Hello all,
I am in the Metro Boston area and am in need of opinions/advice regarding scanner antenna solutions for an apartment dweller.
The Set Up -
I am on the third floor of a 4-story brick and steel apartment building and face east. The "listening post" is in a livingroom that has a 10'x7' sliding glass door leading out to a balcony. The balcony is set-in to the building (that is, there are full height brick walls to either side of the balcony with an aluminum railing running across the balcony's edge).
Needs -
I primarily monitor public safety frequencies in the VHF hi through 800Mhz. Both TRS and Conventional as well as a few APCO25 (with more to come I imagine). Currently, all of my radios (4 in the listening post) are operating off back-of-set antennas (insert snickers here). I am seeking to extend my listening radius as much as possible.
My assessment -
I have two options for locating an antenna:
---My first choice would be out on the balcony. Probably the old antenna-mast-in-a-table-umbrella-stand trick. The dilemna with THAT choice is I just cannot figure a way to get the coax fed into the apartment. As much as the apartment management would not have a problem with my antenna on the balcony, they WOULD have an issue with me drilling through the frame of the door, etc. Sure hope some other folks have a better idea I haven't thought of.
---My second choice would be to mount the antenna in the same fashion but just INSIDE the sliding glass door/window, concealing it behind a lightweight, paper & wood, 3-paneled ornamental room divider I currently have on hand. While there would be no more than a 5-ft. difference in the location of the antennas between the two options, I would imagine there would be a significant degredation of range - both distance and directionally speaking.
Equipment Options -
I'd also appreciate some suggestions regarding the antenna itself. Years ago at another location I had a big honking ChannelMaster scanner antenna that worked great. I need something a bit smaller here. The inside mounting option would sit on a 5-ft. mast and could not hit the 7-ft. ceiling. The "inside option" would also require that the radial elements remain somewhat low profile/short (after all, it is my living space). If it ends up outside, I can go a bit bigger (8-ft. ceiling) and the radials should not be TOO much of an issue (2-3 foot max).
Let me know if anyone needs more info. I can post photos if it would be helpful. I really would appreciate any and all suggestions on the above "problem".
Thanks!
Ted P./Cambridge MA
I am in the Metro Boston area and am in need of opinions/advice regarding scanner antenna solutions for an apartment dweller.
The Set Up -
I am on the third floor of a 4-story brick and steel apartment building and face east. The "listening post" is in a livingroom that has a 10'x7' sliding glass door leading out to a balcony. The balcony is set-in to the building (that is, there are full height brick walls to either side of the balcony with an aluminum railing running across the balcony's edge).
Needs -
I primarily monitor public safety frequencies in the VHF hi through 800Mhz. Both TRS and Conventional as well as a few APCO25 (with more to come I imagine). Currently, all of my radios (4 in the listening post) are operating off back-of-set antennas (insert snickers here). I am seeking to extend my listening radius as much as possible.
My assessment -
I have two options for locating an antenna:
---My first choice would be out on the balcony. Probably the old antenna-mast-in-a-table-umbrella-stand trick. The dilemna with THAT choice is I just cannot figure a way to get the coax fed into the apartment. As much as the apartment management would not have a problem with my antenna on the balcony, they WOULD have an issue with me drilling through the frame of the door, etc. Sure hope some other folks have a better idea I haven't thought of.
---My second choice would be to mount the antenna in the same fashion but just INSIDE the sliding glass door/window, concealing it behind a lightweight, paper & wood, 3-paneled ornamental room divider I currently have on hand. While there would be no more than a 5-ft. difference in the location of the antennas between the two options, I would imagine there would be a significant degredation of range - both distance and directionally speaking.
Equipment Options -
I'd also appreciate some suggestions regarding the antenna itself. Years ago at another location I had a big honking ChannelMaster scanner antenna that worked great. I need something a bit smaller here. The inside mounting option would sit on a 5-ft. mast and could not hit the 7-ft. ceiling. The "inside option" would also require that the radial elements remain somewhat low profile/short (after all, it is my living space). If it ends up outside, I can go a bit bigger (8-ft. ceiling) and the radials should not be TOO much of an issue (2-3 foot max).
Let me know if anyone needs more info. I can post photos if it would be helpful. I really would appreciate any and all suggestions on the above "problem".
Thanks!
Ted P./Cambridge MA