Need help with radio setup

[McDIESEL_N7]

I used to live on the base that I’m streaming and the audio quality was great. We have moved off base and I got a great Mil-air band antenna and mounted it in my attic thinking calls would be about as clear, but they aren’t.

I was hoping someone on here could give me some pointers to increase the quality. I probably could move the antenna outside, but I don’t think I could get that much higher without my wife complaining about the ugly antenna.

 

[dave3825]

My wife likes to be informed of severe weather alerts. Tell your wife what I told mine. I told her the higher the antenna, the better the weather radio sounds when there are alerts.

Seriously though, higher the better. Also I believe I have seen people rotate the Omni X to find its sweet spot even though its omni directional. If you can, bring the scanner up into the attic and hook it to the antenna and then move and or rotate the antenna and see if audio clears up..

 

[a417]

I used to live on the base that I’m streaming and the audio quality was great. We have moved off base and I got a great Mil-air band antenna and mounted it in my attic thinking calls would be about as clear, but they aren’t.

I was hoping someone on here could give me some pointers to increase the quality. I probably could move the antenna outside, but I don’t think I could get that much higher without my wife complaining about the ugly antenna.

Your big mil-air band antenna in your attic may be outpeformed by a tiny VHF quarterwave stuck on a gutter outside. Just getting it up and away from the RF hell that is most modern houses may be the key.

 

[wtp]

how far away did you move ?
are you trying to hear ground stuff ?

 

[McDIESEL_N7]

how far away did you move ?
are you trying to hear ground stuff ?

We only moved a couple miles away as the crow flies. I would love to be able to hear ground stuff, but I know that may not be in the cards. I used to be able to hear it pretty well with just the rubber ducky antenna on my portable scanner, but now it's so weak that I'm sure I'd have to raise the antenna quite a bit.

 

[McDIESEL_N7]

Your big mil-air band antenna in your attic may be outpeformed by a tiny VHF quarterwave stuck on a gutter outside. Just getting it up and away from the RF hell that is most modern houses may be the key.

There is a small protrusion on the side of the house that I may be able to simply mount the antenna on and it will still be hidden from the street and it will be further from the wiring and wifi etc.

I didn't think about it before, but we have this like foil shielding on the inside of our roof as a thermal barrier. I'd be willing to bet that's attenuating the signal a ton. Moving the antenna on the outside of the roof may improve signal quality substantially. I'll give it a try and post an update when I get it done.

 

[wtp]

yes on the attenuation. one name for it is solar-ply.
and probably the insulation inside the walls has it too.


and that is a more solid styrofoam with aluminium sheets on both sides.
most houses are Faraday cages now, even the windows have metal in them to reflect heat.