SDR Antenna?

[se]

Hello All.

What do any SDRplay users in this forum think of any of these 3 indoor antennas as far as will they even work and how good are their performance?

Thanks Sheldon.

 

[KC4RAF]

What antennas?

 

[jwt873]

The second one is pretty good.

 

[se]

Oops Sorry I forgot to paste the link to the antennas I was asking about.

Search - Indoor Antenna

Sheldon.

 

[se]

Oh and also can I buy these antennas within Canada?

Sheldon.

 

[slicerwizard]

A $360 antenna for an SDR? Works for me!

 

[Flatliner]

Hello All.

What do any SDRplay users in this forum think of any of these 3 indoor antennas as far as will they even work and how good are their performance?

Thanks Sheldon.

They are excellent on every level. These plastic versions are made for inside use and it's possible to squeeze them through a small attic hatch door. I have the ALA1530.

 

[se]

Indoor Version.

Hi.

Im on Wellbrooks website right now. Is your version the indoor version? Would you please send me the exact link to it-the indoor version? Is there a store in Canada where I can buy this antenna? im gonna look for a Wellbrook Youtube channel.

Sheldon.

 

[Flatliner]

Yes. The blue one is bendy.

Active Loop Antenna ALA1530 Indoor

I've no idea where you will get them in Canada but Andy will post internationally. I'm guessing that you may need the North American version (voltage)?

Contact form here. http://www.wellbrook.uk.com/index.php?route=information/contact

 

[se]

COST?

So . What would my cost be in Canadian dollars if I bought this antenna?

Active Loop Antenna ALA1530 Indoor

Sheldon.

 

[br0adband]

Kinda expensive but hey, if you feel like tossing money on such things more power to ya I suppose.

One thing for the record: those active antennas are strictly for HF use and while the SDRplay is by design capable of HF reception that's not the only thing it can do, obviously. Such antennas are effectively useless for anything over 30 MHz save for some very low band VHF maybe up to the 6m band around 50-54 MHz and even then the filters inside the antenna may just cripple that in many respects.

If your focus is strictly on HF then it's an antenna for consideration but, for that much money I think I'd find some plans and build one myself or just get a spool and toss out a long wire.

 

[se]

Hi. I guess I should state/restate that I would like to decode WEFAX and other related meteor;pgical modes as well as all other modes that are present between 10KHZ-2GHZ of the SDRplay. Are there any commercially available indoor antenna arrays that will accomplish this?

 

[johnnyelectron]

I thought NOAA WX satellites were VHF 136-144MHz between the Aircraft Band and the 2-Meter Ham Band?

 

[jwt873]

The Wellbrook loops are for HF (up to 30 Mhz). They work very well. I have this one Active Loop Antenna ALA100M L/M Ap. NA . But I use it primarily for medium frequency work... Mostly for listening to distant stations on the AM Broadcast band and aircraft beacons down in the 200 - 400 Khz range. Don't expect very good service for VHF. (Over 30 Mhz).

The Pound Sterling is way down right now because of Brexit.. (I wish it were this low when I bought mine). So now isn't a bad time to buy one. The contact information is on the Wellbrook page. You can email the company directly with any questions. Or, just add one to your cart and then check out using your payment method.

You can convert British Pounds to Canadian Dollars here XE Currency Converter - Live Rates (Don't forget to add the 2% that the bank or credit card company will charge you for making the exchange).

 

[se]

Maybe forget everything I asked previosly. Put it this way, What type of indoor device can I buy that will let me listen to, monitor or decode anything I want to at random on my SDRplay? Remember I cannot put up an outdoor antenna.

Sheldon.

 

[natedawg1604]

Maybe forget everything I asked previosly. Put it this way, What type of indoor device can I buy that will let me listen to, monitor or decode anything I want to at random on my SDRplay? Remember I cannot put up an outdoor antenna.

Sheldon.

Well, there is no such thing as a "SDR device xyz -specific" antenna. Everything depends on what frequency bands you wish to monitor, the distance between your location and the location of each specific system/site you wish to monitor, the elevation of your location vs. the elevation of the site/system of interest, and various other factors.

If you want to monitor a vhf public safety repeater 5 or 10 miles away, a portable whip antenna may work fine. However, if you want to monitor, say, your local regional airport 25 or 30 miles away it's a whole different story. And as was mentioned previously, HF is a whole different discussion.

There are numerous antenna designs/makes/models etc, and some are designed for "wideband" monitoring across several spectrums. Do you have any clue what type of system(s) you want to monitor right now, today? Do you know approximately where the transmitter(s) is located?

 

[se]

I guess I will have to ask each manufacturer that manufacturers antennas for software defined radios if they sell what I need.

Sheldon.

 

[natedawg1604]

I guess I will have to ask each manufacturer that manufacturers antennas for software defined radios if they sell what I need.

Sheldon.

There is no such thing; antenna manufactures do not build antennas for specific types of radio receivers, antennas work the same with a SDR dongle vs. a hardware scanner vs. ham radio vs. marine radio vs. aviation radio etc.

You may want to review the forum archives of the Antenna Section, and look at the antenna products sold by scanner master.

 

[slicerwizard]

Hi. I guess I should state/restate that I would like to decode WEFAX and other related meteor;pgical modes as well as all other modes that are present between 10KHZ-2GHZ of the SDRplay. Are there any commercially available indoor antenna arrays that will accomplish this?

There is no such thing as a 10 kHz to 2 GHz antenna. You might as well ask for a vehicle that gets 50 MPG and is also capable of hauling a 100 ton load of gravel while you're at it. There is a reason why more than one model of car/truck/antenna exists - one size does not fit all.

 

[M105]

When it is all said and done it's just radio. Radio antennas don't care if they are connected to a 1949 vacuum tube console or a 2016 SDR plugged into a USB port. Like Slicer says, there are reasons behind the myriad of antennas on the market. Examine what you want to hear and procure the radio antenna(s) you need to receive the signal. Connect it to your RADIO with a decent impedance match, position it as best you can, and enjoy what you can hear. Often times that $10.00 homebrew concoction will work just as well as the shiny $300.00 job...