Best VHF-HI BaseAntenna (High Gain)

[MB]

Looking for opinions on a good high gain VHF-HI base antenna. I allready have an Antenex FG1523 3dB Fiberglass Omni along with a Antenex Voyager VG1505 6dB Aluminum Omni. Does anyone have experience with any other high gain antennas?

How would a 6dB Dipole Array compare with the above? I also noticed Hustler makes a 7dB G7-150-2 Omni.

I live in a very rural area with a lot of mountains and valleys and need something to really pull the signals in. 95% of my listening is in the VHF-HI band. I wonder how the Niljon would work in my location with its "Multi-path, Multi-polarization and Geo spatial capture design"

Always looking for something better!

MB

 

[tom_guess]

Try a yagi with a rotor if your topography is as you described.

 

[MacombMonitor]

Here's something that should help, and inexpensive enough to play with! Unless all your monitoring comes from one direction, you're probably going to want to mount it on a rotor.


Centerfire 150-156MHz VHF Yagi, $31.95
http://www.centerfireantenna.com/vhfmursyagi.html

 

[timmer]

I believe there is a yagi advertised on the scannermaster website for $142 that is supposed to do a great job on vhf-hi band 150-174mhz. You will need a rotor. I think it is made by antennex, check it out.

 

[mancow]

Try the ELK brand log periodic. It's incredible.

 

[kb2vxa]

Hi MB and all,

For the highest gain possible in an omni you have to go professional with something along the lines of a Cushman Station Master but it's bandwidth is a bit limited and it's HUGE and weighs a TON. Something lighter but even longer is a colinear dipole array, for more gain just add more dipoles. It has the advantage of broader bandwidth but only four dipoles take up about 40' of tower, it's THAT big.

If you want gain derived from directionality the Yagi beam is the way to go. Then you need a rotor to point it in the desired direction. It consists of three basic elements, reflector, driven and director, for more gain just add more directors. That can get out of hand too, the Cushcraft Long Boomer has 22 elements on a 33' boom, you can knock over your neighbor's chimney with that one.

OK, so much for extreme engineering, you want something smaller and less expensive. Since only you know what will fit your needs forget about all the opinions you invited and form your own. Do some research, Google is your friend and a great place to pick up some ideas. Then toss them around with some VHF ham operators or professional radio techs who will help you decide what's best for you. Don't solicit opinions or opinions are what you'll get.

You have to do your homework first, narrow down the field and then ask specific questions of a technical nature to those in a position to supply you with useful information. Ask broad questions on a scanner site and all you get are opinions and not a speck of information helpful in your final decision. You've got to do the research, the only opinion that matters is your own.

 

[MB]

Thanks for the response guys!

However, I have allready tried the Antenex Y1505 - 9.2 dB Gold Anodized Yagi with a rotor. The problem is that the signals that I am trying to monitor come from all different directions and I was constantly changing the rotor direction. It got to be to much of a pain, so I took the rotor and antenna down. Maybe I should give it a shot again.

Maybe I should look into a higher gain omni.?.

I am thinking about trying to raise my 3 dB antenna 10 ft higher. I think if I change the entrance point and take up some of the slack out of the 9913flex I can get 10 more feet out of it. Right now its at 25ft with a 12" Radio Shack wall mount. I wonder if 35ft. will be to high for the mast and mount?

Also thinking about adding an Advanced Receiver Research P150VDG preamp ( + 24dB GaAsFET). Anyone tried these?

So many options... I don't know what to do. I wish I could try them all but it may be to much $$$$ and my neighbors may not like seeing all those antennas. I wish I lived on top of a hill with no one around. That would be the ideal situation!

Any other opinions??

 

[Hoofy]

MB,

You might want to look at ham radio 2 mtr verticals. Many advertise 136 to 174 bandwith and 6 or more db of gain. Cushcraft, Diamond, Hustler, Comet, etc. make ham antennas. Aluminum or fiberglass radome.

I've got a cheap Cushcraft ringo ranger (claimed 6db gain) that's been up for 10 years and still works fine and I've got a pricier Diamond dual bander (claimed 8.3 db gain) up for 5 or 6 years and it works fine. I receive the Freighters (mid 150mhz) on Lake Superior just fine with either one and both have taken some 50+ mph winds off Lake Superior.

Height is good. Sometimes where you locate the antenna on or near the house makes a difference in the signal strength.

Good luck..

 

[trooperdude]

Also thinking about adding an Advanced Receiver Research P150VDG preamp ( + 24dB GaAsFET). Anyone tried these?

Try this one instead:

http://www.hamtronics.com/
LNK Preamp for VHF or UHF

They are happy to re-peak to your desired bandwidth.

 

[kb2vxa]

Hi again,

MB, what you have there isn't Belden 9913 but ordinary RG-8AU polyfoam, close but no cigar.

Hoofy, you too, no cigar. A 2M antenna has about a 4MHz SWR bandwidth and the gain figure although hyped only occurs within that range and falls off outside it. I use a Diamond tri-bander but don't expect a heck of a lot of gain on other than the ham bands. I think that Cushcraft is the ARX-2B, correct me if I'm wrong. What I'm thinking of is the 5/8 wave over 1/2 wave colinear with the radial kit. That antenna is tunable using the chart from 130 to 170MHz so if tuned to 160 it should give near rated gain across a good portion of VHF Hi with a fair amount of rolloff near the band edges.

Troop, I think you're on the right track, 24dB gain is just a bit much. 18 is more reasonable and I'll narrow it down a bit, the LNK-166 is a good choice.

Guys, take note of this right from the horsse's mouth!

"Because it has no selectivity, it is not recommended for applications in a high rf environment where selectivity is essential to avoid overload or intermod interference."

This applies to the WB models typical of those you scanner guys are so in love with. It also applies to the above band specific preamp but to a much lesser degree. The quoted statement applies to out of band interference that hams are expected to understand which is why it's not mentioned specifically. A band specific preamp can cause or accentuate in band interference but consider the odds when you look at the number of signals across any given bit of spectrum, the more spectrum the more signals.

OK, back to the subject at hand. MB, try the Cushcraft (Hoofy save me, give the model number!) alone first and add the preamp only if you feel you really need it. Take your time, listen a lot and don't make a hasty decision you may regret.

 

[MB]

MB, what you have there isn't Belden 9913 but ordinary RG-8AU polyfoam, close but no cigar.

What are you talking about? The cable I have is Belden 9913F7! It is labeled all over the cable. Where the hell did you come up with RG-8AU polyfoam??

Troop, I think you're on the right track, 24dB gain is just a bit much. 18 is more reasonable and I'll narrow it down a bit, the LNK-166 is a good choice.

How can you say 24dB is to much?? There are tons of variables to look at! If I am way out in the boondocks with no transmitters around, 24dB is not enough as far as I am concerned!

 

[OpSec]

MB, are you using this for scanning only, or as a transmit antenna also? If you get a vertical like a StationMaster or a 2- or 4-bay dipole, then look for something that is cut in the middle of the VHF band, near 150-155 MHz.

A 4-bay dipole is about 25 feet long, and has a significant wind load, so mounting one on a roof tripod or other small structure is out...you need a decent tower, old tele pole etc. We use literally tons of 2 and 4 bay VHF dipoles, and they are a great antenna and receieve and talk quite well....however ours are all on 75+ foot towers, with most at least 100-200 feet off the ground. If all you can get is 30-40 feet up, then even with a preamp you will still fall short of "DX" signals unless there is ducting.

Without seeing your setup, I'd recommend looking at a high quality 6db vertical and upgrading your feedline to 1/2" hardline. Toss in a quality preamp and antenna grounding protection (polyphaser, etc) and you'll be good to go.

 

[MB]

MB, are you using this for scanning only, or as a transmit antenna also? If you get a vertical like a StationMaster or a 2- or 4-bay dipole, then look for something that is cut in the middle of the VHF band, near 150-155 MHz.

I am using it for scanning only. I was thinking about the StationMaster but can't seem to find one anywhere. Do you know where I could find one? I was also looking into an Antenex 4-Bay dipole like this one:

http://www.econ2way.com/catalog/public/dipole_array_antennas.htm

A 4-bay dipole is about 25 feet long, and has a significant wind load, so mounting one on a roof tripod or other small structure is out...you need a decent tower, old tele pole etc. We use literally tons of 2 and 4 bay VHF dipoles, and they are a great antenna and receieve and talk quite well....however ours are all on 75+ foot towers, with most at least 100-200 feet off the ground. If all you can get is 30-40 feet up, then even with a preamp you will still fall short of "DX" signals unless there is ducting.

What do you use your dipoles for?

Without seeing your setup, I'd recommend looking at a high quality 6db vertical and upgrading your feedline to 1/2" hardline. Toss in a quality preamp and antenna grounding protection (polyphaser, etc) and you'll be good to go.

What would you recommend for a high quality 6dB antenna? I was looking at the 7dB Hustler G7-150-2:

http://www.new-tronics.com/main/html/base_g_series_g7_150.html

 

[OpSec]

What do you use your dipoles for?

We still like VHF, so our entire voice and data network is on VHF high frequencies. The pic below is a good representation of what our sites look like. In lieu of combiners, duplexers and circulators we use split TX and RX antennas for most sites. The TX antennas are shown on the top tier, RX antennas are on the second tier and the lower tier shows some miscellaneous antennas for other needs.

 

[MB]

Stateboy

Nice... Is thsi for the DOT?

What would you recommend for a high quality 6dB antenna? I was looking at the 7dB Hustler G7-150-2:

http://www.new-tronics.com/main/html...es_g7_150.html

 

[OpSec]

That Hustler looks decent. I'm familiar with some of their products and never had any complaints with them. That said, your mileage may vary. I would think that you may have an icing problem in the winter, so any vertical will need to be beefy enough to handle that.

While the radio system is not directly for WisDOT, it is for one of the Divisions within DOT - The Division of State Patrol. Its is owned, maintained and used by DSP, but various other state and federal agencies also run traffic thru us (DNR, Criminal Investigations, USMS etc), and there are roughly 100 local/county agencies that subscribe to our high speed data network. We have the only statewide radio and data network, with reliable connectivity in 98% of the land area. For state units, we have an intergrated statewide CAD and GPS/AVL system via IP-based high speed data radios in all WSP and some WDNR units.

From my console, I can routinely monitor our surrounding region's dispatch channel and VHF mutual aid channels in 3 states. Our VHF infrastructure is well placed and rather effective.

 

[MB]

That Hustler looks decent. I'm familiar with some of their products and never had any complaints with them. That said, your mileage may vary. I would think that you may have an icing problem in the winter, so any vertical will need to be beefy enough to handle that.

While the radio system is not directly for WisDOT, it is for one of the Divisions within DOT - The Division of State Patrol. Its is owned, maintained and used by DSP, but various other state and federal agencies also run traffic thru us (DNR, Criminal Investigations, USMS etc), and there are roughly 100 local/county agencies that subscribe to our high speed data network. We have the only statewide radio and data network, with reliable connectivity in 98% of the land area. For state units, we have an intergrated statewide CAD and GPS/AVL system via IP-based high speed data radios in all WSP and some WDNR units.

From my console, I can routinely monitor our surrounding region's dispatch channel and VHF mutual aid channels in 3 states. Our VHF infrastructure is well placed and rather effective.

So I presume this is a trunking system? What type? It isn't MACOM Opensky is it? What VHF mutual aid channels do you use? 155.370, 155.475, 155.715, 45.88???

Your system sounds somewhat like whatt N.Y. is trying to do. Can you monitor your system via scanner?

 

[OpSec]

Our voice network is still conventional VHF...only the data is digital. No trunking for us. We tried it out a few years ago but ran out of frequencies so the project was never built out. Rumor has it we are going to start going P25 later this year. I'll believe that when I see it.