BCD396XT/BCD996XT: Antenna location question

I have a Tram 1411 discone antenna,now,I'm trying to keep it stealth so the neighborhood natives do not get upset.
Would it get better reception mounting 6ft off the ground outside or 12 ft high in the attic?
Let me add,my home is modern,plain wood roof with typical shingles,no duct work or wiring,just blown insulation and the need to receive 800 MHz digital.

Depends on what your roof is made out of and whats up in the attic. If you roof has any sort of metal, vapor shield,etc it will reduce the performance of your antenna.
6 feet high outdoors might be an issue as the structures around you can block the signals. metallic vapor barriers in insulation, plaster/stucco walls with metal lath, aluminum siding, etc. can all be problematic.

The -real- way to find out for sure is to take your radio and antenna into the attic and give it a try. Take it outside and repeat the test. Only you can know for sure which one is going to work better.

All things being equal, though, altitude is king. Getting the antenna up higher will increase your radio "horizon".

Try it both places and then put it where it works best...... I would guess the attic would work better but there is to many variables such as what the house has for roofing and stuff like that !

KSPILOT536 said:

I have a Tram 1411 discone antenna,now,I'm trying to keep it stealth so the neighborhood natives do not get upset.
Would it get better reception mounting 6ft off the ground outside or 12 ft high in the attic?

Click to expand...

What is your primary frequency of interest?

Carting the entire discone antenna / radio and cables into the attic.... and then outdoors... can be quite cumbersome. This is where a handheld scanner shines. Take the handheld scanner into the attic and make note of the signal strength / clarity on several of your most listened-to agencies. Then take the same handheld to the spot outdoors where you are considering for the discone. You'll be able to immediately compare the two locations. If the handheld does better in the attic, so will the discone.

As previously stated; depends what type

of materials are present in the building structure. Try it in the attic and then outside, then you can make a better call as to which is best. I know you said there's no metal, etc., but as mmckenna stated, check a little deeper. I would guess the attic would be best for your 800Mhz reception if no metals are found.

I've got three antennas in the attic over my garage feeding the garage scanners. There are no reception issues with them.

Additionally I have another antenna mounted to the roof on the opposite side of the house feeding my office scanner. Cable runs are comparable. I don't notice much of a difference between the two locations.

However at one point I had a scanner antenna more or less just outside a window. The reception from that was noticeably poorer than the taller antennas.

Unless you are in some type of deed-restricted community prohibiting outside antennas (check your home's deed), there may not be any recourse your neighbors have if you roof mount an antenna. After all, at one point in time, outside television antennas were very common and Dish TV antennas still are.

Well,I took the Discone to the attic and its about 3ft too tall to mount,if I take the 4ft stinger off will that effect 800mhz receive?

KSPILOT536 said:

Well,I took the Discone to the attic and its about 3ft too tall to mount,if I take the 4ft stinger off will that effect 800mhz receive?

Click to expand...

It shouldn't. That was added for low-end improvement (low frequency).

DDan said:

What is your primary frequency of interest?

Click to expand...

His last 4 words were,"receive 800 MHz digital."

What about using one of those vent t ype antennas that look like they are part of the roof?