Best external vhf/uhf ham radio antenna set up to improve indoor reception?

[WalterAFG]

I need some ideas or configurations on how to get a better reception indoors at home.
I have a hand held Baofeng GT-3TP III with a NA771 which can be sketchy in some parts of the house.

Which external antenna set up could i use to increase reception and transmission in regards to VHF/UHF,
what do you use to get the great transmissions you are happy with?

 

[K4EET]

Hi Walter. I did not check your frequencies for those two bands which may or may not be the same as here in the States. In any event, I have always used the Cushcraft AR-270B (or equivalent) for an external antenna. 73, Dave K4EET

 

[ka3aaa]

Any antenna installed as high as you can get it outdoors will make your reception much better as long as the antenna is designed for the frequencies you want to listen to..

 

[tweiss3]

Unfortunately any antenna you may get to "improve" your reception may actually reduce performance. Your Baofeng and many other cheaper Chinese made radios (Anytone included) lack the proper filtering and often experience what is known as desensitization, which results in missed transmissions. In my area, there is enough radio adjacent to the HAM bands that the radio can't pick out the the frequency you are attempting to listen to, and open the squelch.

I have had this happen on my Anytone 878, when the Yaesu 817 and Kenwood D74 sitting right next to it pick up the signals just fine. There was also a local new HAM the past few weeks that started with a Baofeng. He got an external antenna to help improve performance. While he could get out farther with his transmission, the antenna picked up incoming signals too well, and he wasn't able to hear anything from his radio, due to the desensitization.

What this means, and it's unfortunate to tell you, is that your best improvement will be to get a better radio. No point in tossing money at antennas/coax/mounts/hardware when the same money spent on a better radio will give you much better performance.

 

[JimD56]

Hello, Walter in Wales. Love Wales, beautiful countryside. I have seen posted on here an outdoor Tram, Diamond, or similar brand VHF/UHF Dual Band Antenna mounted on a camera tripod and it can sit wherever in the house. However, a long stretch of cable would create signal loss. Just how much... IDK, there are cable run signal loss calculators online.

 

[K4EET]

Hello @WalterAFG, I wanted to say that what @tweiss3 said in Post #4 about the Baofeng HTs is accurate. In addition to my Alinco, Kenwood and Yaesu HTs, I purchased a Baofeng to see how it performed against my other HTs. Just as @tweiss3 observed with their Anytone 878, I have also seen the same issue with my Baofeng UV-5R5 HT. The Yaesu FT-65E and Yaesu FT-70DE are relatively inexpensive HTs but perform so much better than the Baofeng HTs. Thanks @tweiss3 for making that point as it is very pertinent information.

 

[WalterAFG]

Great info and advice from all of you here ty. Guess its back to the drawing board, so i have now thrown my Baofengs in the skip (not really) but i will be looking for a better quality HT, will be doing some more research on the decent HTs available. Looks like i'm going to have to dig a little deeper into my wallet to get something that performs better than the Baofengs. They have been a good introduction to the HAM world and i have definitely caught the bug. Onward and upward tally-ho) 73

 

[WB9YBM]

I need some ideas or configurations on how to get a better reception indoors at home.

If the antenna simply must be indoors, getting it as high as possible & away from metallic objects (electrical conduit & etc) might be the only option (attic, maybe?).

 

[wtp]

after you get the antenna, remember that you can't really go around the house with the radio.
so it then goes from bad to none.

 

[WB9YBM]

after you get the antenna, remember that you can't really go around the house with the radio.
so it then goes from bad to none.

Unless you wire up a remote base.

 

[K4EET]

@WalterAFG, don't hesitate to start a new thread to discuss better HTs for you. There are a LOT of choices out there that do different data formats if you dig even deeper and get one capable of some digital mode of operation. 73, Dave