new scanner... now need an antenna

[diesel_stroker]

I just recently bought a Bearcat BCD996XT and it is amazing. It pulls in a lot of frequencies then my former 2 scanners I've had in my truck. Right now I only have a glass mount antenna which isn't bad at all. I live about 75 miles away from NYC and can hear FDNY every other day.
But I feel like I can get more out of my scanner with a better antenna. I've looked around and found that the Austin Spectra is a great antenna for my application. I basically listen to some 30-45mhz, some on the 450-470mhz, and mostly 150-170 & 800-900mhz range.
Now the question is.... is it a good buy or is there something better out there? Does anyone have an Austin and how well do you like it?
Thank you very much

 

[ka3jjz]

The Austin isn't all that great on low band - it's just too short physically - but you can recut the top whip to make it a bit more resonant on the section of the band you want. It's quite good in all the other ranges you mention. I have it on my Camry on a heavy duty Diamond trunk lip mount and I have heard my home 800 system from 30 miles away in hilly terrain - not well, mind you, but I got it...73 Mike

 

[ridgescan]

75 miles off a glassmount? I find it impressive that Mike can get stuff 30 miles away on 800MHz! Is this typical? I'm just wondering because my limit on my glassmount is maybe 15-20 miles and I cant get more than 30 miles out of my base discone. Maybe too many hills here I guess.

 

[ka3jjz]

Many factors come into play about how far away a system you can hear; the power of the transmitter, the height your antenna is, the frequency, obstacles, all of this and more. It just so happens that the repeater that I was hearing my system on is quite high in comparison to the obstructions that were around me, so that's going to play a huge role in how well or poorly I would hear it.

As I mentioned before, it wasn't real strong - best when I been on a hill in a relatively clear area of obstructions, and got progressively worse as I got closer to the city. The city is lower than the surrounding area, so I would expect that all the buildings would cause numerous reflections. Not a big stretch to understand that - but it did surprise me that I heard my home system at all from such a distance.

73 Mike

 

[ridgescan]

I can understand you getting a 30 mile catch of 800MHz on your hardwired mobile-I can get SF 800 15 miles away on a glassmount mobile. I said yours was impressive not unbelievable. The OP said he can get NYFD at 75 miles with a glassmount mobile-I find that very hard to believe given my experience here. I just couldnt see receiving the fire dept all the way down in let's say Santa Cruz from my glassmount mobile in SF, much less my base discone. If you're getting that kind of reception from your glassmount for real, don't change it because you are doing a hellofa lot better than most.

 

[BigDogg795]

I can understand you getting a 30 mile catch of 800MHz on your hardwired mobile-I can get SF 800 15 miles away on a glassmount mobile. I said yours was impressive not unbelievable. The OP said he can get NYFD at 75 miles with a glassmount mobile-I find that very hard to believe given my experience here. I just couldnt see receiving the fire dept all the way down in let's say Santa Cruz from my glassmount mobile in SF, much less my base discone. If you're getting that kind of reception from your glassmount for real, don't change it because you are doing a hellofa lot better than most.

Correct me if I'm wrong (especially since I'm still learning), but if he's listening to FDNY on their VHF freq's, wouldn't the potential for greater distances exist, especially if he's in line of site?

 

[SAR923]

Indeed, FDNY has some powerful repeaters mounted high. Even so, getting them at 75 miles is probably rith at the limit of a glass mount. Ridgescan, I used to live in the Bay Area. I could regualrly pick up Santa Cruz SO dispatch in Sonoma County with a 5/8 AS whip on the roof of my Explorer. OTOH, I coulodn't pick up the SF trunk system with a discone mounted 45 feet in the air. A lot depends on the frequency, terrain, the transmiter location, and even the local propagation. I'm generally not a big fan of glass mount antennas, but it sounds like Mike either got a good one or actually followed the directions when he installed it.

 

[ka3jjz]

I'm not using a glass mount antenna - if you read my message I'm using an Austin Spectra on a Diamond heavy duty trunk lip mount. 73 Mike

 

[ridgescan]

Indeed, FDNY has some powerful repeaters mounted high. Even so, getting them at 75 miles is probably rith at the limit of a glass mount. Ridgescan, I used to live in the Bay Area. I could regualrly pick up Santa Cruz SO dispatch in Sonoma County with a 5/8 AS whip on the roof of my Explorer. OTOH, I coulodn't pick up the SF trunk system with a discone mounted 45 feet in the air. A lot depends on the frequency, terrain, the transmiter location, and even the local propagation. I'm generally not a big fan of glass mount antennas, but it sounds like Mike either got a good one or actually followed the directions when he installed it.

I gotta remember that I have tons of mountains here too-my glassmount on the truck does well for what I need but like I said max is maybe 20 miles on UHF. I never gave VHFhi a try on my mobile. To me if you can receive a good 10 mile radius in a mobile you are doing fine so the OP IMO has a fantastic antenna now if it gets 75 miles