Antenna question cable feet ?

[usnasa]

hello all i have the scanner discone antenna i am thinking about relocating it to a better Location on my house the question is how far can the antenna be from my scanner
( pro 2051 ) about how many feet of cable can i go is there a limit ?
and what is the best cable to get ?

 

[MacombMonitor]

Belden 9913, or LMR400 are both excellent. If cost is a factor, then consider RG6. For each foot of cable you run, there is some signal loss. The higher the frequency, the higher the loss. So at 850MHz, this is a major concern. Try to keep the run as short as possible, say 50~75 feet. Over a hundred feet is not good.

 

[usnasa]

i have rg 8 cable now can i use that ? and thanks

 

[MacombMonitor]

i have rg 8 cable now can i use that ? and thanks

Not all RG8 is created equal. Belden 9913 is a form of RG8, however it is much better than say the RG8 you might buy at Radio Shack. Do you know what brand it is, or a part number on it? How long of a run were you planing?

 

[usnasa]

its a radio shack RG 8 50 foot i think i bought it was a long time ago does it have it printed on it how long it is ? I Just dont remember i would like to extent it maybe another 25 feet because where it is now its between two houses and want to put it on the other side of my house because i live on a corner and want to get it away from my neighbors house

 

[MacombMonitor]

its a radio shack RG 8 50 foot i think i bought it was a long time ago does it have it printed on it how long it is ? I Just dont remember i would like to extent it maybe another 25 feet because where it is now its between two houses and want to put it on the other side of my house because i live on a corner and want to get it away from my neighbors house

Radio Shack's coax is not the best, but it depends on who they were buying it from at the time. Are you talking about a whole new run of 75 feet, or adding 25 feet onto it using coax couplers? Any additional coax fittings introduced into the line will add loss as well, so again, it's not recommended. However, how is your reception at this time? If it's really good, and your signal levels are high, they it should work OK.

 

[usnasa]

no i was going to add to it because its too much work to run a new line ,its good but i think my problem is the antenna is in a bad spot in between the houses i think it would be better on the other side where there is nothing to block it thanks

 

[MacombMonitor]

Simple enough to test! Just add the 25 feet to your existing coax (inside), on your current setup, then see how it works. If it works OK, then you can feel more confident about moving the antenna, etc.

 

[usnasa]

YES i will do that but i should not connect extend my rg 8 to rg 58 will that matter or should it be all the same type ? thanks

 

[MacombMonitor]

YES i will do that but i should not connect extend my rg 8 to rg 58 will that matter or should it be all the same type ? thanks

RG58 has even greater loss than RG8, especially at 850MHz. Again, it won't hurt to try, it will probably work...but not very well. 25 feet of RG8 is not that expensive, I'd stick with that.

Check your local Radio Shack stores. Several of them are closing, and have 20~50% discounts.

 

[usnasa]

thanks for all of your help

 

[MacombMonitor]

thanks for all of your help

You're welcome! Let us know how it all works out.

Bill

 

[usnasa]

it will be on the week end when i get the chance

 

[n8chb]

hello all i have the scanner discone antenna i am thinking about relocating it to a better Location on my house the question is how far can the antenna be from my scanner
( pro 2051 ) about how many feet of cable can i go is there a limit ?
and what is the best cable to get ?

Gen rule is,

The longer the feed line the more loss.
The higher the frequency the greater the loss.

On lower frequencys one can use less expensive coax, vhf and higher the better coax cable gives less loss per foot.

100 foot is acceptable for most scanner frequencys and after that the loss is much greater
and a peramp might be needed.

see - http://hamradio.arc.nasa.gov/coaxcableloss.html

73

Roger

 

[kb2vxa]

Hi all,

Here we go again with another Great Debate, this road has been travelled so much I'm surprised your wagon hasn't disappeared the ruts are so deep. READ before you ask AGAIN, please. To cut through all this crap, in all cases the lower the loss the better the cable, do your homework. I MUST add upon seeing a certain post that Belden 9913 doesn't even BEGIN to resemble RG-8U, it's air dielectric cable more resembling hard line than coax, specifically it's called "semi-rigid line".

"Oh the pain, the PAIN!"
Dr. Smith

 

[rpowley]

RG58 has even greater loss than RG8, especially at 850MHz. Again, it won't hurt to try, it will probably work...but not very well. 25 feet of RG8 is not that expensive, I'd stick with that.

Check your local Radio Shack stores. Several of them are closing, and have 20~50% discounts.

Yesterday I picked up a couple 50' rolls of RG8 with PL 259 connectors at my local Radio Shack (that is not closing) for $9.97 each . The store manager claimed that this is a discontinued item - It was much cheaper than the RG58 that they are selling.

 

[MacombMonitor]

Hi all,

Here we go again with another Great Debate, this road has been travelled so much I'm surprised your wagon hasn't disappeared the ruts are so deep. READ before you ask AGAIN, please. To cut through all this crap, in all cases the lower the loss the better the cable, do your homework. I MUST add upon seeing a certain post that Belden 9913 doesn't even BEGIN to resemble RG-8U, it's air dielectric cable more resembling hard line than coax, specifically it's called "semi-rigid line".

"Oh the pain, the PAIN!"
Dr. Smith

The only "PAIN" here is you, interrupting all of us with your so-called expertise, and insults! :roll:

I used to sell Belden cable products, but rather than take my word for it, just look at the Belden web site! You will see under their catalog number "9913" that the very first part of the technical description is, and I quote: "Coax-RG8/U Type"

Imagine that! Here is the link:

http://bwccat.belden.com/ecat/jsp/Index.jsp?&P1=undefined&P2=undefined&P3=undefined&P4=undefined&P5=undefined&P6=undefined

 

[N_Jay]

The only "PAIN" here is you, interrupting all of us with your so-called expertise, and insults! :roll:

I used to sell Belden cable products, but rather than take my word for it, just look at the Belden web site! You will under their catalog number "9913" that the very first part of the technical description is, and I quote: "Coax-RG8/U Type"

Imagine that! Here is the link:

http://bwccat.belden.com/ecat/jsp/Index.jsp?&P1=undefined&P2=undefined&P3=undefined&P4=undefined&P5=undefined&P6=undefined

I love these discussions.:twisted: :twisted:

How far you can go only depends on a two factors.
1) The excess signal margin over the minimum desired signal at the antenna.
2) The cable loss at the desired frequency.

All done!

Well, #1 is made up of a few factors:
a) The signal strength transmitted in the direction of your receive antenna
b) tech distance from the transmit antenna
c) any objects or clutter between you and the transmit location
d) the desired minimum signal level

and #2 is made up of:
e) The type of cable,
f) The length of the cable
g) the specific brand and design of the cable (The type is a general specification)
h) The condition of the cable
i) the frequency of the signal

Of course most of the factors a through i are made up of other factors!:twisted: :lol: :twisted:

In other words; without A LOT of additional information, everyone is providing OPINIONS based on ASSUMPTIONS!:roll: :roll:

 

[MacombMonitor]

In other words; without A LOT of additional information, everyone is providing OPINIONS based on ASSUMPTIONS!:roll: :roll:

Which is how many of us actually get things done! Sometimes you can get so entrenched in the details, that you never accomplishing much of anything.

 

[N_Jay]

Which is how many of us actually get things done! Sometimes you can get so entrenched in the details, that you never accomplishing much of anything.

LOL, sure.

You get things done, BUT,

Do you get the right things done?