NooElec RaTLSnake M5 - Premium 3-Antenna Bundle for SMA-Input SDRs

[SCPD]

Before reading, please reference NooElec - NooElec RaTLSnake M5 - Premium 3-Antenna Bundle for SMA-Input SDRs - Antennas - SDR Accessories - Software Defined Radio

I have ordered this last week and I suspect it is waiting in my landlord's office in which she does not come on weekends and the postal carrier drops all mail in a window If she is here tomorrow Monday Aug.13, 2017 I will have it and test it.

In the meantime has anyone ordered and used the NooElec RaTLSnake antenna bundle?

Comments on it appreciated.

I will let you know my findings although will be crude.

 

[MineralMan]

The telescoping one is the same as the one that came with my SMArt dongle. It works very well, and even better when stuck to a pie tin. It's my primary antenna for indoor use. The other two, I don't know about.

Let us know what you find.

 

[SCPD]

The telescoping one is the same as the one that came with my SMArt dongle. It works very well, and even better when stuck to a pie tin. It's my primary antenna for indoor use. The other two, I don't know about.

Let us know what you find.

It's arrived and now connected.

Actually the NooElec NESDR Smart I have telescoping one is barely 2ft long. The RaTLsnake telescoping whip is 46inches every bit of 3ft10 inches!!! That'll really work for airband frequencies!!

I have the antenna tuned to 118mhz (25inches 1/4 wavelength) but I am tuned to the NOAA weather band and it is hearing long distance stations way out 62 miles east of me during the moderate temperature inversion over Oklahama City.hearing well.Seeing 4 other long distance weather stations to.moderate strength yet good enough to understand what it says.The local one will over load the dongle lol!!

The stub black stub with the 3 blue rings is for 800-1100mhz. Right now I am receiving high data rate 110/second packets on ADS-B just for 12 aircraft.

Both black stub antennas feel very well built and has a little bit of weight like a coil is inside. they are thick. The one with the blue rings is 4 inches overall length and about 3/4th of an inch thick. The all black one is 1100-1700mhz overall length 3 inches 3/4th inch thick (it has a helical inside).

 

[MineralMan]

You're right, I'm sure. I'm having very good performance in that band, though, with the shorter version. I'm planning, however, to install a discone broadband antenna outside shortly. I have one ordered, and will be very interested to see how much my reception in various bands improves.

 

[SCPD]

You're right, I'm sure. I'm having very good performance in that band, though, with the shorter version. I'm planning, however, to install a discone broadband antenna outside shortly. I have one ordered, and will be very interested to see how much my reception in various bands improves.

You wouldn't be wrong at all to throw in a attenuator inline as them antennas make signals bigger and more overload to be expected. Please read my post again as I added to it about the 2 black studs that came with the RaTLsnake M5 set

I can't wait to read about your findings with the new discone!

 

[MineralMan]

Yes. An attenuator may well be necessary with the discone. The chief offender will be the local FM broadcast band. Already, even with the short telescoping whip, they have forced me to lower the RF gain on my system. Since these dongles are broadband in nature, it's not too difficult to overload the front end.

I may actually have to resort to some sort of filter to block the commercial FM band at some point.

I'm not finding much of interest up in the 800 MHz and above spectrum, so those shorter antennas aren't really of much interest for me. I'm primarily interested in voice comms.

In fact, right now, I have a courier delivery company tuned in and am listening to it in the background. It's in the 452 mhz area, and that little whip is pulling in signals from the entire Minneapolis St. Paul metro area on that freq.

I think my next step will be decoding digital voice comms. Since I live in a major metro area, there's plenty of interest in those. I'm just getting started, so this is all pretty new to me, and tons of fun.

 

[SCPD]

Yes. An attenuator may well be necessary with the discone. The chief offender will be the local FM broadcast band. Already, even with the short telescoping whip, they have forced me to lower the RF gain on my system. Since these dongles are broadband in nature, it's not too difficult to overload the front end.

I may actually have to resort to some sort of filter to block the commercial FM band at some point.

I'm not finding much of interest up in the 800 MHz and above spectrum, so those shorter antennas aren't really of much interest for me. I'm primarily interested in voice comms.

In fact, right now, I have a courier delivery company tuned in and am listening to it in the background. It's in the 452 mhz area, and that little whip is pulling in signals from the entire Minneapolis St. Paul metro area on that freq.

I think my next step will be decoding digital voice comms. Since I live in a major metro area, there's plenty of interest in those. I'm just getting started, so this is all pretty new to me, and tons of fun.

Ya I am as well enjoying voice comms. on 800mhz I monitor the local Morotola analogue network with the black stub with blue rings singals are good but the usual distortion in a metro area on motorolo is there. Not much I can do other than move the antenna till the signal clears up. Polie/Fire/EMSA for southwest Oklahoma networked together. The city of Oklahoma city EDACS system is digitized voice and DSD+ sounds nasal to me and can't stand it but that's another subject. Since OKCPD is linked to the Motorola system I get the full scoop. Much better. I hope they do not change a thing lol.

I enjoy listening to the Oklahoma County Detention Center at 460.2375 and 460.3875. They have a repeater but it's not long range. I am fortunate enough to live 1/2 mile from it to hear anything. Not many in OKC can hear it well unless close enough or use a good outdoor antenna.

RaTLsnake antenna bundle general info I found not listed on Nooelec page for it:
46 inch telescoping whip variable frequency range 65mhz (1/4 wavelength) full extended. Full retracted 1300mhz(1 full wavelength) 9 inches.
COAX is RG-58 6ft 6inches.

Magnetic mount is sturdy. Bigger than standard that came with the NESDR Smart. A little more magnetic measures 2.5inches diameter. MEtal housing. The section just above the magnet feel like a hard rubber like material.Feels soft to the touch Very sturdy.

FM Broadcast test. There is a radio station that plays country music here in Oklahoma County called 'Hank FM" 99.5mhz. It is not the most powerful station but now with RTL-SDR set to manual setting of 3.7db it is now full quieting with signal strength 2 db over S9. I do enjoy music so I won't be blocking FM.

I think it's a good indoor use antenna bundle. They all work fine for me. I hope others have more to add to this thread. not bad for $16