Just a general question about mobile scanner antennas. Is there a certain brand or type that has optimal performance. Permanent mount or magnetic mount.
Mobile Scanner Antennas
- Thread starter JLyons
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I found that a Best Buy essentials HDTV Indoor Antenna (about $15) works extremely well. I am not kidding. You will need a F-type adapter to hook to your scanner. If you look at the frequency range, you will see it hits all the bands with the most traffic.
Looks like the question is about a mobile antenna so not sure an indoor TV antenna will set up well on a car but I can see it working in a fixed environment in some instances. Anyway I’ve used both a mag amount and permanent mount. I prefer permanent mount. Side by side comparison it might be hard to really tell the difference but the permanent mount will tend to hold up better and logically should have a performance edge over a mag mount. I use an old Antenna Specialist, an Austin Spectra, and a Comtelco. Each has its advantages. It depends on frequency bands and distances you need to cover.
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I use a Laird NMO Mag mount with a Larsen VHF/UHF/800 antenna and it works great on all 3 bands. I haven't tried VHF conventional, but it's the best antenna I've used for VHF Trunked, UHF Conventional/Trunked, and 800 Conventional/Trunked.
I use
I use the Best Buy HD Antenna in my truck stuck to my back window. The back window has tinted, cant see it from outside of vehicle. It works very well. I doesnt picket fence like most internal rubber ducks.
mmckenna
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Antenna choice really depends on what you want to listen to, and what your budget is.
It's difficult to find one single antenna that will cover -all- the capabilities of your scanner, so giving us an idea of what your particular interests are will help us recommend a good antenna.
For most users, the multi-band NMO antennas are a good overall solution if you don't need VHF Low band coverage.
NMO mount antennas give you the widest range of options, it's the de facto standard in the two way radio industry, and once you go with an NMO mount on your vehicle, you'll have a whole lot of options for antennas.
The Larsen NMO-150/450/758 is a good all around option if you are going to be mounting on top of a tall vehicle. I've got one of these I'm trying out on top of my work truck, and I've used it on both a VHF radio and an 800MHz radio on my trunking system. More importantly, it has a spring base and a flexible whip which is nice if you get into areas with low tree branches or parking garages. It'll cover VHF, UHF and the 700/800MHz band well:
If you want to save a few bucks and don't need the high flexibility, you can go with the older, slightly less expensive Larsen NMO-150/450/800
If you need all that, plus VHF Low band, you may want to consider running one of the above antennas as well as a dedicated low band whip. You'll also need a diplexer to combine them into one coaxial cable to connect to your scanner.
The antenna is the most important part of your radio setup. I'd much rather have a really good antenna with a less expensive radio than an expensive radio with a cheap antenna. The antenna will really improve performance.
Avoid the cheap Chinese stuff. Stick with the known name brands like Larsen, PCTel, Laird, EM Wave. Avoid the Tram, Browning Chinese junk and the gimmick antennas. You want something that's going to last.
It's difficult to find one single antenna that will cover -all- the capabilities of your scanner, so giving us an idea of what your particular interests are will help us recommend a good antenna.
For most users, the multi-band NMO antennas are a good overall solution if you don't need VHF Low band coverage.
NMO mount antennas give you the widest range of options, it's the de facto standard in the two way radio industry, and once you go with an NMO mount on your vehicle, you'll have a whole lot of options for antennas.
The Larsen NMO-150/450/758 is a good all around option if you are going to be mounting on top of a tall vehicle. I've got one of these I'm trying out on top of my work truck, and I've used it on both a VHF radio and an 800MHz radio on my trunking system. More importantly, it has a spring base and a flexible whip which is nice if you get into areas with low tree branches or parking garages. It'll cover VHF, UHF and the 700/800MHz band well:
If you want to save a few bucks and don't need the high flexibility, you can go with the older, slightly less expensive Larsen NMO-150/450/800
If you need all that, plus VHF Low band, you may want to consider running one of the above antennas as well as a dedicated low band whip. You'll also need a diplexer to combine them into one coaxial cable to connect to your scanner.
The antenna is the most important part of your radio setup. I'd much rather have a really good antenna with a less expensive radio than an expensive radio with a cheap antenna. The antenna will really improve performance.
Avoid the cheap Chinese stuff. Stick with the known name brands like Larsen, PCTel, Laird, EM Wave. Avoid the Tram, Browning Chinese junk and the gimmick antennas. You want something that's going to last.
This is the antenna that I use for UHF/VHF Ham Radio transmit and receive. Because the radiating element is so thick, it covers a very wide band with maximum performance. This antenna transmits from 136-156 MHz., and 436-456 MHz. with a low SWR. It's because of the thickness of the whip. There is a rubber-coated spring at the base. This antenna is almost indestructible. I never had to remove it going through a car wash, that is, with NMO permanent mounts.
It is also an excellent receive antenna for UHF, VHF, 700, & 800 MHz. It's a quarter-wave on VHF and a 3/4 wave on UHF. I don't know the multiplier for 700 & 800 MHz., but I use it for the Illinois Starcom21 P25 trunked system with excellent results throughout any region I've driven through.
I have numerous EM Wave antennas on my car with NMO mounts. I have had the car for 8 years and initially had Laird VHF 1/4 wave antennas. That is until the bases started cracking. My vendor won't sell Laird antennas anymore and strictly uses EM Wave with positive performance for all his customers.
Here is the link for THE ANTENNA FARM:
It is also an excellent receive antenna for UHF, VHF, 700, & 800 MHz. It's a quarter-wave on VHF and a 3/4 wave on UHF. I don't know the multiplier for 700 & 800 MHz., but I use it for the Illinois Starcom21 P25 trunked system with excellent results throughout any region I've driven through.
I have numerous EM Wave antennas on my car with NMO mounts. I have had the car for 8 years and initially had Laird VHF 1/4 wave antennas. That is until the bases started cracking. My vendor won't sell Laird antennas anymore and strictly uses EM Wave with positive performance for all his customers.
Here is the link for THE ANTENNA FARM:
mmckenna
I ♥ Ø
I'm running the same antenna on my personal truck, connected to a Motorola CDM-1550 on VHF. Work and amateur stuff in it. It's been a nice antenna.
I'm running the non-spring version on my wife's truck, connected to a Kenwood TK-7180 with mostly ham stuff in it.
I still spec out Larsen antennas at work, but I'm liking these EM Wave antennas more and more.
I use several antennas, the most important thing is to drill a few damn holes in the center of the vehicle (with the proper tools of course) and use permanent NMO mounts. The great thing is, with standard (like 3/4") NMO mounts you can swap out antennas in about 1 minute or less. So you can experiment all day long with different antennas until your happy. I use 3 NMO mounts on my vehicle; 1 has a 4' Larsen VHF antenna for civilian Airband and VHF. The size gets kind of annoying sometimes but it works great both for scanning and ham use. (For a while I've debated with myself about getting a smaller one because it does kinda stand out at 4 feet high lol). I also have a Larsen UHF antenna, and a separate 800 antenna MHz again from Larsen.
I'm about to install a couple stridsberg multicoupler's, which lets you properly operate multiple radios/scanners from a single antenna.
I'm about to install a couple stridsberg multicoupler's, which lets you properly operate multiple radios/scanners from a single antenna.
Thanks to everyone for the ideas. This gives me a good idea of what works.
The radio shop I used to work for doesn't sell Laird antennas anymore. They spec out EM Wave antennas, all models. I have Em Waves on my personal car, and the thickness of the whip allows a wider transmit bandwidth. The spring and mount are completely covered in rubber, and make an excellent seal with the NMO mount & car body keeping moisture away from the mount.
Some of them are approximately 8 years old and have NEVER failed. The Laird's plastic base cracks, and we know what occurs when that happens? I only have one Laird on my car, because it was brand new when I acquired it less than a year ago. I already have an Em Wave ordered to replace it, just in case.
mmckenna
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I've had mine for about a year on both trucks, and I'm completely happy with them. I do like the seal design, seems to work well. If they'd roll out a tri-band model, I'd probably use them on my next project, but so far they require 2 separate antennas plus a diplexer to get all three bands. Hopefully they'll come out with a better solution soon.
I've been running and spec'ing Larsen for about 30 years now, and I have never had one fail.
I've got a few Lairds, including 1/2 wave VHF with springs on UTV roll cages. I keep a close eye on them, but haven't seen any coil failures yet. I dislike their sealing, the O ring is too easy to lose.
If I had a really decent camera (my iPhone 12 Pro is just "OK") I'd take some photos of the Laird antennas that I didn't recycle. Except for the one I purchased off eBay earlier in the year, ALL of the other Laird's bases are cracked. The cracks go from one end of the plastic base to the other. One particular Laird has about five cracks in it. I only kept a couple of them strictly for demonstration/comparison to my Em Wave antennas. I don't know if this is an urban legend or not, but someone mentioned that Em Wave is run by a guy who used to work for Laird, Larsen, Comtelco, or Antenex. Again, I can't verify this.
AYoung2600
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They just recently released a tri-band antenna. I have not seen it for sale anywhere yet, but it is on their website.
mmckenna
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They just recently released a tri-band antenna. I have not seen it for sale anywhere yet, but it is on their website.
Thanks, when I get back in the office I'll give them a call and order one. Glad they came out with something.
I'm currently using the Browning BR-137 which I bought from either The Antenna Farm or Amazon, I forget which vendor. I have it in my POV connected to a Uniden 536HP permanently connected via NMO mount. The 536 is in my Jotto Desk Lazy L console in the CVPI. It works like a champ! I previously had an Em Wave EM-M11003 which actually is spec'ed to cover 764-869 MHz., however, it worked fantastic on UHF and even VHF, even though it's tuned by the factory differently. Of course, I'm only receiving on it, and would NEVER transmit on any antenna unless it was cut for the frequency range I'm using a transmitter on it.
The first thumbnail photo is the Em Wave EM-M11003, and the 2nd is the Browning BR-137.
The first thumbnail photo is the Em Wave EM-M11003, and the 2nd is the Browning BR-137.
I'll look forward to your assessment of the new model. It will be interesting to see how it compares to Larsen's similar model.
Here's Em Wave's answer to the "all band" scanner antenna:
file:///U:/Em%20Wave%20Antennas/EM-M43002%20All-Band%20Scanner%20Antenna%20NMO%20Mount%20010422.pdf
file:///U:/Em%20Wave%20Antennas/EM-M43002%20All-Band%20Scanner%20Antenna%20NMO%20Mount%20010422.pdf
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