Very Broadband Antenna System

[yvh]

Good Afternoon. Attached is an antenna system that I plan on trying/using as we move from our house to an apartment or condo. There are several question marks in the writeup that I hope you can add details. I added this here as I am most concerned about the performance of the loop. K

 

[prcguy]

Is this for indoor use? If so be prepared for lots of interference from computers, routers, cell phone chargers, TVs, LED light bulbs, basically any modern appliance that plugs in the wall. The passive HF/VLF loops I've used have been very numb and needed an amplifier. My W6LVP active loop works so much better I would never consider a passive loop again. I see 4-way splitters used on both the loop and Discone, are these amplified splitters? If not you will loose at least 75% of your signal by splitting 4-ways. I would not stack the Discone on top of the loop, just put them maybe 6ft apart and the loop should be happier.

 

[krokus]

If you will be on the ground floor, and will have access to the outside, would you be able to use a Loop on Ground antenna for HF RX?

 

[ILSAPP]

Is this for indoor use? If so be prepared for lots of interference from computers, routers, cell phone chargers, TVs, LED light bulbs, basically any modern appliance that plugs in the wall. The passive HF/VLF loops I've used have been very numb and needed an amplifier. My W6LVP active loop works so much better I would never consider a passive loop again. I see 4-way splitters used on both the loop and Discone, are these amplified splitters? If not you will loose at least 75% of your signal by splitting 4-ways. I would not stack the Discone on top of the loop, just put them maybe 6ft apart and the loop should be happier.

Really considering investing in a W6LVP Magnetic Loop Antenna Experimenter’s Kit to improve my HF aero listening.
It's really worth it, right?

 

[prcguy]

Its hard to beat a good active loop for their size. My various outdoor wire antennas work better but I've used a W6LVP loop indoors and had surprisingly good results, much quieter than any other indoor antenna. I have the regular W6LVP on my roof and the experimenters kit with a home made PVC stand and Nitinol wire loop about 3ft in diameter.

Really considering investing in a W6LVP Magnetic Loop Antenna Experimenter’s Kit to improve my HF aero listening.
It's really worth it, right?

 

[devicelab]

Really considering investing in a W6LVP Magnetic Loop Antenna Experimenter’s Kit to improve my HF aero listening. It's really worth it, right?

Just realize that it won't abate man-made noise. If you live in a "high-noise" neighborhood then you're pretty much screwed. There are gimmicks to remove noise but most do not work well or are very practical since you're trying to listening to a wide range of frequencies. Don't waste your money.

 

[prcguy]

An active loop is about the quietest antenna you can find for HF reception indoors. You can turn the loop to null noise sources. I was very surprised how well my W6LVP loop worked indoors where no other antenna I tried gave useable reception.

Just realize that it won't abate man-made noise. If you live in a "high-noise" neighborhood then you're pretty much screwed. There are gimmicks to remove noise but most do not work well or are very practical since you're trying to listening to a wide range of frequencies. Don't waste your money.

 

[ILSAPP]

Thanks both @devicelab and @prcguy for your feedback, really appreciated!

 

[devicelab]

Just to be clear, I was trying to say that active loops are great antennas but are not a miracle solution for noise. I was stressing not to waste money on the 'noise canceling' devices. Never had much luck with indoor antennas myself but some people get decent results from a passive antenna on a balcony, railing, etc.

 

[ILSAPP]

I may explore firstly a simple passive loop remotely tuned by a variable capacitor since I already have all the parts and have some knowledge on arduino programming. In the past I remember that this kind of setup worked brilliantly (by that time it was manually tuned) of course with the disadvantage of having to tune the capacitor for every frequency.