Antenna help please

[nelson2525]

Has anyone tried the Comet BNC-W100RX or the AH-W100RX? I listen to 800mhz trunked systems exclusively and need something that will give me a gain of distant signals. I prefer not to go to the hassle of a rooftop mount since I will be moving in about a year. I am open to other suggestions except the Radio Shack 800 (20-283). I bought one of those and saw no improvement over the one that came with the scanner so it is going back. I should mention I have a Uniden BCD396XT scanner.

Thanks

 

[teufler]

I am using a Larsen 800 mhz dual 5/8 wave design. DPD makes a like design. DPD Productions - Scanner, Aviation, NOAA, Low-Band, 700 MHz Public Safety, Base & Mobile Radio Antennas for Commercial & Hobbyist Applications
It is the 2nd one listed. I have a ground plane, not a mag mt but I don;t think that will make much difference as long as you have a ground plane. Its only about 10 feet off the ground but compared to a dual band antenhna that is outside, it gets 50% better readings that th eoutside antenna on 800 mhz. I too have the same scanner as you do.

 

[nelson2525]

I am using a Larsen 800 mhz dual 5/8 wave design. DPD makes a like design. DPD Productions - Scanner, Aviation, NOAA, Low-Band, 700 MHz Public Safety, Base & Mobile Radio Antennas for Commercial & Hobbyist Applications
It is the 2nd one listed. I have a ground plane, not a mag mt but I don;t think that will make much difference as long as you have a ground plane. Its only about 10 feet off the ground but compared to a dual band antenhna that is outside, it gets 50% better readings that th eoutside antenna on 800 mhz. I too have the same scanner as you do.

Thanks teufler. Do you think this antenna would do well if used inside my house or maybe in the attic?

 

[nelson2525]

need antenna help

Has anyone tried the Comet BNC-W100RX or the AH-W100RX? I listen to 800mhz trunked systems exclusively and need something that will give me a gain of distant signals. I prefer not to go to the hassle of a outside base mount since I will be moving in about a year. I am open to other suggestions except the Radio Shack 800 (20-283). I bought one of those and saw no improvement over the one that came with the scanner so it is going back. I should mention I have a Uniden BCD396XT scanner.

Thanks

 

[teufler]

the antenna

yes it should, it gets good results here in my house rather than mounted outside. 800 is more line of sight, has good penetration of stuctures, I get covered about 20-25 miles. This is 700 and 800 stuff. The antenna I have is the Larsen one, though the DPD ones looks pretty much the same. If you would put the mag mt on a 4" round plate, a pie tin size, that would be the same antenna that I have.

 

[marksmith]

Has anyone tried the Comet BNC-W100RX or the AH-W100RX? I listen to 800mhz trunked systems exclusively and need something that will give me a gain of distant signals. I prefer not to go to the hassle of a outside base mount since I will be moving in about a year. I am open to other suggestions except the Radio Shack 800 (20-283). I bought one of those and saw no improvement over the one that came with the scanner so it is going back. I should mention I have a Uniden BCD396XT scanner.

Thanks

Very surprised that the RS 800 antenna did not outperform the stock antenna for the systems you monitor. Mine does bigtime. Other suggestions would be the Laird 806 or the Laird Tuf Duck, both specifically 800mz antennas. Both also outperform the stock one, and the 806 actually gives a higher signal reading than the RS800, even though the signal quality is slightly lower. The Tuf Duck is better than stock but it's only 4" long and I use with the radio on my belt.

Mark
536/996P2/HP1e/HP2e/996XT/
396XT/PSR800/PRO668/PRO652

 

[teufler]

The Larsen number is FB35T835WA.. Its 5 dbd gain, Antenna Catalog - Larsen Pulse
this has a discription of the antenna

 

[joeuser]

Has anyone tried the Comet BNC-W100RX or the AH-W100RX? I listen to 800mhz trunked systems exclusively and need something that will give me a gain of distant signals. I prefer not to go to the hassle of a rooftop mount since I will be moving in about a year. I am open to other suggestions except the Radio Shack 800 (20-283). I bought one of those and saw no improvement over the one that came with the scanner so it is going back. I should mention I have a Uniden BCD396XT scanner.

Thanks

Good antennas. They should have a guide printed on them to show you proper length & element s for the range you desire. I'm surprised the RS 800 didn't meet your needs. Sure, its not a top notch product but it does very well for the price.

I know you can't won't go outdoor but a yagi could be had for 20$ and could be mounted inside...

P.S. Double posting is poor practice

 

[nelson2525]

The Larsen number is FB35T835WA.. Its 5 dbd gain, Antenna Catalog - Larsen Pulse
this has a discription of the antenna

Thank you!!

 

[nelson2525]

Good antennas. They should have a guide printed on them to show you proper length & element s for the range you desire. I'm surprised the RS 800 didn't meet your needs. Sure, its not a top notch product but it does very well for the price.

I know you can't won't go outdoor but a yagi could be had for 20$ and could be mounted inside...

P.S. Double posting is poor practice

Thanks for the info joeuser

P.S. I don't know how to delete this post because I realized I should have asked this question in the antenna forum. I would gladly delete it if I knew how. These are my first posts to the forum.

 

[nelson2525]

Very surprised that the RS 800 antenna did not outperform the stock antenna for the systems you monitor. Mine does bigtime. Other suggestions would be the Laird 806 or the Laird Tuf Duck, both specifically 800mz antennas. Both also outperform the stock one, and the 806 actually gives a higher signal reading than the RS800, even though the signal quality is slightly lower. The Tuf Duck is better than stock but it's only 4" long and I use with the radio on my belt.

Mark
536/996P2/HP1e/HP2e/996XT/
396XT/PSR800/PRO668/PRO652

Thank you!

 

[mikewazowski]

Threads merged.

 

[dodgelover93]

antenna help..

just curiouse is the BNC-W100RX antenna fit on bct15x scanner and does it inprove the signle stranth .. i listen to am band and racing band and ham radio... im in windsor ontario .. how mutch better is the BNC-W100RX then the stock antenna on the bct15x scanner thanks...

 

[DJ11DLN]

I'll add another vote on being surprised that the RS800 didn't improve performance. And I'll throw out there that my first RS800 was defective. It was actually much worse than the stock duck on my then-new Pro-18. I was just getting back into scanning after a long hiatus and dealing with the learning curve. And I just couldn't figure out why so many people here were bragging them up so much. I eventually got to try another one and it made a huge difference in my 800 MHz reception and even improved VHF-Hi for me; I now own several of them. So don't discount the possibility that you may have gotten a clinker...it does happen.