Bcd396xt

[CopyThat]

I just bought a BCD396XT today. The thing I hate about mobile scanners is their 6 to 8 inch antennas. One of the accessories for the BCD396XT was an 800MHz 1/4 Wave SMA antenna. I did buy it.

Questions: Is it shorter than the stock antenna? If it is shorter, can I just use it instead of the stock antenna, or is it a different kind of antenna?

Thanks novice, just starting out with scanners..

 

[n4yek]

I just bought a BCD396XT today. The thing I hate about mobile scanners is their 6 to 8 inch antennas. One of the accessories for the BCD396XT was an 800MHz 1/4 Wave SMA antenna. I did buy it.

Questions: Is it shorter than the stock antenna?

The normal stock antenna is about 6 inches for the scanner so pull out the tape measure and you will know.
Some 800 MHz antennas are about the same length as the stock antenna, but a 1/4 wave antenna at 800 MHz is about 3 inches or so in length.

If it is shorter, can I just use it instead of the stock antenna, or is it a different kind of antenna?

Dedicated 800 MHz antennas usually don't do very well outside of the 800 MHz band. That is what they are designed to do and not much more than that.

Happy scanning and welcome.

 

[CopyThat]

Stuck with the stock antenna then?

So in other words if I want to listen for 700 MHz things like Police, EMS, etc which are on P 25 700MHz then just use the long stock antenna? It would be nice to have a 2" antenna like the Police Officers have on theirs. I just do not enjoy having an antenna in my arm pit when I have the scanner on my belt loop. LOL

 

[rvictor]

So in other words if I want to listen for 700 MHz things like Police, EMS, etc which are on P 25 700MHz then just use the long stock antenna? It would be nice to have a 2" antenna like the Police Officers have on theirs. I just do not enjoy having an antenna in my arm pit when I have the scanner on my belt loop. LOL

The police have the advantage of only needing to receive a single band of frequencies so their antennas can be cut specifically for that band and, in the case of 700/800 MHz can be quite short. You can do that too if you don't care too much about the lower frequencies.

That said, an antenna that isn't perfectly suited for a particular band may still work very well if your location is good relative to the source of the signal and the signal is strong. With no antenna at all, my scanner still receives a number of frequencies.

73
Dick