ultravista
Member
- Joined
- Sep 19, 2012
- Messages
- 99
I have been using an active mini-whip antenna (PA0RDT) at approximately 20 feet on a non-conducting mast. From my QTH, the mini-whip has been exceptional for RX.
Over the weekend, I ran a wire around the house under the eaves, approximately 200ft of wire @ 10 feet or more off the ground. As a loop, the coax braid connects to one side and the conductor to the other. It is two conductor alarm wire and I am only using one in the pair. No balun, just a simple PL-259 connector connecting the conductor and braid to the wire.
The mini-whip wholly outperforms the loop antenna. Strong signals present on the mini-whip practically disappear with the loop. On a scale of 1-10 for RX, the loop is a 1 or 2 compared to the mini-whip. Using the loop is like not having an antenna at all.
As a novice, I thought for sure, the long wire around the house would be at least as good if not better due to the electrical length. Not at all.
Can someone help me understand why the mini-whip @ 20 feet is outperforming the 200 foot loop @ 10 feet?
Over the weekend, I ran a wire around the house under the eaves, approximately 200ft of wire @ 10 feet or more off the ground. As a loop, the coax braid connects to one side and the conductor to the other. It is two conductor alarm wire and I am only using one in the pair. No balun, just a simple PL-259 connector connecting the conductor and braid to the wire.
The mini-whip wholly outperforms the loop antenna. Strong signals present on the mini-whip practically disappear with the loop. On a scale of 1-10 for RX, the loop is a 1 or 2 compared to the mini-whip. Using the loop is like not having an antenna at all.
As a novice, I thought for sure, the long wire around the house would be at least as good if not better due to the electrical length. Not at all.
Can someone help me understand why the mini-whip @ 20 feet is outperforming the 200 foot loop @ 10 feet?