Austin Spectra antenna
- Thread starter rob2262
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- Feb 20, 2003
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I bought one from Scanner Master.
Might checkout Ham Radio Outlet.
Might checkout Ham Radio Outlet.
I've always either driven up and bought from the manufacturer or used Multec Communications:
Austin Antenna Spectra Multiband Mobile/Base Scanner Antenna
Austin Antenna Spectra Multiband Mobile/Base Scanner Antenna
I bought a new one and used it once, how much ya wanna give for it?
prcguy
prcguy
conrad314
Member
I just purchased a second one from them and it took 6 weeks to get it! But I love too!
Doesn't surprise me. Multec has the manufacturer drop ship the product. Austin Antenna is a small operation, and if there's a large order on the table in front of it, it could take some time. The antennas are hand made.
ka3jjz
Wiki Admin Emeritus
That's pretty difficult, frankly. Making an antenna that works well from 30-900 mhz is almost impossible; some bands will be better than others.
Having the Spectra, I can tell you that it does a passable job on civil VHF air, even though it's not tuned for it. It's quite good on 800; I used to work in College Park Maryland and when I was in a clear spot, I could hear my home (Anne Arundel) system - not well, mind you, but it was doable. That's a distance of about 30-40 miles, and given a semi urban environment, that's very good indeed.
VHF hi band is fine; I can easily hear some of the fire dispatch freqs quite a ways away. The poor point, as you might expect from a 2 foot antenna, is VHF lo. It works, and you can cut the top whip to improve performance somewhat, but don't expect miracles. It just ain't gonna happen. There isn't much UHF in my area, but when I used it on Prince George's conventional systems, it worked ok.
Just keep in mind there's no one wideband solution that performs well everywhere. An antenna for a broadbanded application like this one is going to be a compromise at some point
best regards..Mike
Having the Spectra, I can tell you that it does a passable job on civil VHF air, even though it's not tuned for it. It's quite good on 800; I used to work in College Park Maryland and when I was in a clear spot, I could hear my home (Anne Arundel) system - not well, mind you, but it was doable. That's a distance of about 30-40 miles, and given a semi urban environment, that's very good indeed.
VHF hi band is fine; I can easily hear some of the fire dispatch freqs quite a ways away. The poor point, as you might expect from a 2 foot antenna, is VHF lo. It works, and you can cut the top whip to improve performance somewhat, but don't expect miracles. It just ain't gonna happen. There isn't much UHF in my area, but when I used it on Prince George's conventional systems, it worked ok.
Just keep in mind there's no one wideband solution that performs well everywhere. An antenna for a broadbanded application like this one is going to be a compromise at some point
best regards..Mike
russellmaher
KC1ANC
Hi rob2262, you've made a good choice as far as my experience with the Spectra has been. I have a trunk mount Spectra and I connect it to my Uniden BCD396T when I go mobile and have always been delighted with the results. I monitor PD, FD, EMS, DPW, Air, Marine, any freqs the 396 will pick up, I listen to. The antenna is a bit pricey, but it's worth it IMHO. That having been said, let me help you out with getting one, if possible.
I purchased my Spectra (and the Ferret, also) directly from the manufacturer by calling ahead and driving up to the plant to pick them up. Since you live so far away from them (the plant is located in Gonic, NH) I don't think you'll want to make the drive, so here's my suggestion. Call 1-603-335-6339 and talk to Barbara Austin (the owner) to find out if you can purchase it directly from them and ask if they will ship to your home and how long it will take.
This is really a small operation (I think there were about six employees) on the day that I went there, but Barbara and her guys are very nice and made me feel at home, and went out of their way to accomodate me, and I believe that they will treat you the same way. So try this option and see what happens, and let us know how you make out.
Russell
Hooligan
Member
I'm more enthusiastic about the Spectra antenna's performance than Mike is.
The only down-side to me is that it's pretty obnoxious looking, but I can swap it out with a more discrete-looking antenna when prudent.
As for Multec Communications, I DO NOT recommend them, based on my recent experience.
Ealky January, I called them up to see if they had the Spectra in-stock (their web page doesn't provide such info). I was told they did not, but to expedite my receipt of one, they'd be glad to have the factory drop-ship it directly to me. I then placed my order with Multec via their web page & received an automated receipt advising they'd email me a shipping notification with UPS Tracking # ASAP.
A week went by &... nothing, not even my credit card billed. I tried calling Multec but the # was busy. I then emailed Multec just asking what the status of my order was. No response after 24 hours, so then I called Austin Antennas directly on the phone. I spoke with a nice person who apologetically explained that their employee primarily responsible for building the Spectras had broken her leg, *and* there was a shortage of a certain part, but they expected the Spectra production-line to start back up in several days, and that they'd be happy to drop-ship my order via Multec directly to me.
So now, I understood the delay & was patient, however, Multec never bothered to respond to my email. ONE MONTH after I placed my order, I finally got an automated email from Multec indicating that my order could not be shipped within 30 days, so if I wanted to cancel the order, I should contact them. This wasn't even really a courtesy -- it's US law.
About two weeks later, I finally received the antenna. It's well-made, works very well -- better than other scanner or VHF/UHF ham antennas I've used, but apparently Multec never did have the manufacturer directly ship the antenna to me like they said they would (& Austin confirmed they easily could). Maybe that was done so that Multec could charge me their BS $5 'handling' fee in addition to the $13.01 shipping fee & apparently mandatory 27-cent insurance.
My grand total, for what their web page advertises as an antenna costing $78, was $96.28
That's still cheaper than the advertised price of a few of the bigger-names selling the antenna, but I'd rather deal with a vendor that is more responsible, and that doesn't have such insane terms & conditions as Multec Multec Communications / rfwiz Terms & Conditions
The reason I was asking is because I did a side by side comparison of an Austin Spectra and an older Antenna Specialists MON series from 30 to 512MHz and if VHF lo band or UHF is your primary need the A/S works better.
On VHF lo band the Austin peaks sharply around its resonant point then drops rapidly where the A/S works from 5 to15db better across most of that band,
On VHF air and high band their about the same and the Austin works better in the 225 to 300MHz range but from about 400 to 470MHz the A/S is 5 to 10dB better.
I did not test 800 reception between these and all numbers I'm quoting were actual receive levels measured on a spectrum analyzer with both antennas using the same mount and feedline.
prcguy
On VHF lo band the Austin peaks sharply around its resonant point then drops rapidly where the A/S works from 5 to15db better across most of that band,
On VHF air and high band their about the same and the Austin works better in the 225 to 300MHz range but from about 400 to 470MHz the A/S is 5 to 10dB better.
I did not test 800 reception between these and all numbers I'm quoting were actual receive levels measured on a spectrum analyzer with both antennas using the same mount and feedline.
prcguy
ocn29rsc
Member
I have always had an interest in purchasing the spectra due to what I have read about them but the price has always scared me...and I have been using a 1/4 wave vhf for some time on vhf, uhf, and 800 and did judt fine.
I purchased a ferrit base antenna about 2 years ago and wow...so this summer i dished out the extra for the spectra and when traveling between where i live at the beach vs where family lives in the mountains...just out performs the 1/4 time and time again.
I purchased a ferrit base antenna about 2 years ago and wow...so this summer i dished out the extra for the spectra and when traveling between where i live at the beach vs where family lives in the mountains...just out performs the 1/4 time and time again.
russellmaher
KC1ANC
A week went by &... nothing, not even my credit card billed. I tried calling Multec but the # was busy. I then emailed Multec just asking what the status of my order was. No response after 24 hours, so then I called Austin Antennas directly on the phone. I spoke with a nice person who apologetically explained that their employee primarily responsible for building the Spectras had broken her leg, *and* there was a shortage of a certain part, but they expected the Spectra production-line to start back up in several days, and that they'd be happy to drop-ship my order via Multec directly to me.
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russellmaher
KC1ANC
As Hooligan said and I reported in my post on 3-2, the people at Austin Antenna are great. They will do their best to accomodate you when you call them and tell them what product you want to order. So with that said, I recommend to anyone wishing to purchase something from Austin, pick up the phone and let them do it for you without the hassle and excuses that you get from some of the companies out there.
Russell
Russell
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