greenbean78
Member
just curious if you have your antenna up about 25 foot or higher what range on the scanner does it need to be set at i have a sds100 my antenna up about 30foot was just wondering?
scanner range ?
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@greenbean78 this is a question about your SDS100 scanner, you might get better responses in the Uniden forum. Just click REPORT in the bottom left corner and ask them to move it
greenbean78
Member
alright thanks i've always been curious about it and was just wondering
Antenna placement has a lot to do with what Scanner Range setting a person may choose, regardless of scanner model. An antenna mounted outside (on a roof or antenna tower) is more likely to receive a distant transmitter's signals than a scanner placed in the corner of a basement.
So the outside high mounted antenna setup should allow a user to experiment with different Scanner Range values to see what can be received. Unfortunately there is no hard and fast rule saying "for every foot of antenna height, increase the range 1 mile". There are way too many variables involved. You just gotta experiment. The Scanner Range value essentially is how far the scanner reaches out (or how wide the scanner's reception net is cast) to attempt to receive signals.
In closing, I can't emphasize enough there are many variable on reception and only experimentation will tell the final story.
Range depends on a lot of things. One issue is "seeing" over the curvature of the Earth. The higher the antennas (both transmitting and receiving), the farther they can see each other. This is why transmitters/repeaters are often on high towers and/or mountains.
Another factor is the frequency band you want to receive. Here in California we have the CHP on low-band VHF. Those signals can really travel, but are subject to atmospheric interference. I like VHF high band for the best overall distance. These days systems are on 700 & 800 MHz (trunked) systems, and often require multiple sites/towers to be able to cover their intended range.
The receiver itself, other than some really bad models, are typically not part of the range question. However, strong nearby signals from cell towers and TV/radio broadcasters can significantly reduce your range (because they essentially reduce the receiver's amplification of everything to get that strong signal down). One approach in this case is to filter out those unwanted strong signals before your receiver.
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