SDS100/SDS200: SDS-100 recommended VHF/UHF antenna

safetypro79

Scanning since 1967
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In my location here in Salem Oregon I primarily listed to local/county FD’s which are on VHF/UHF other the P25 system the City of Salem uses.

I have a Remtronix 820 antenna.

Any recommendations for an antenna that will have good reception on VHF/UHF and can be used with the P25 system also. I’m less than 5 miles from the P25 system.
 

Bob1955

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Eastchester, NY
In my location here in Salem Oregon I primarily listed to local/county FD’s which are on VHF/UHF other the P25 system the City of Salem uses.

I have a Remtronix 820 antenna.

Any recommendations for an antenna that will have good reception on VHF/UHF and can be used with the P25 system also. I’m less than 5 miles from the P25 system.
Diamond SRH-77CA (SMA connector) and that antenna is pretty good on VHF/UHF and reasonable too.
Have a nice Saturday evening.
 

Colin9690

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Lewis Center, OH
In my location here in Salem Oregon I primarily listed to local/county FD’s which are on VHF/UHF other the P25 system the City of Salem uses.

I have a Remtronix 820 antenna.

Any recommendations for an antenna that will have good reception on VHF/UHF and can be used with the P25 system also. I’m less than 5 miles from the P25 system.
I second Bob's post above. I've had that antenna for years and have used it on many different scanners including the SDS-100.

It works great, and is in my opinion the best VHF/UHF handheld antenna you can buy.

(edit) : The antenna works great on P25 and P25 simulcast as well.
 

hiegtx

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Dallas, TX
In my location here in Salem Oregon I primarily listed to local/county FD’s which are on VHF/UHF other the P25 system the City of Salem uses.

I have a Remtronix 820 antenna.

Any recommendations for an antenna that will have good reception on VHF/UHF and can be used with the P25 system also. I’m less than 5 miles from the P25 system.
Diamond SRH-77CA (SMA connector) and that antenna is pretty good on VHF/UHF and reasonable too.
Have a nice Saturday evening.
I think that you might be better off with the RH77A. That's the same antenna as the SRH77CA, but it has a BNC connector rather than SMA.

Using the RH77CA, you would also need to use the SMA to BNC adapter that came with the scanner. The SMA antenna, SRH77CA, would not make a good and secure attachment to the SDS100. The SDS100 is 'water resistant', so it's SMA antenna connection is somewhat recessed in the scanner's top. So while the SRH77A would, technically, attach to the scanner, you will not be able to fully seat it on the antenna connector of the scanner. Thus, it might not make a full connection, as well as being attached only for a few of the upper threads on the scanner's connector instead of fully seating down into the recessed SMA. That might possibly make it more vulnerable to possible damage (to the scanner's connector) it it was dropped, or was hit from the side.

Another antenna to consider is the RH789. That is a telescoping antenna, with markings on it to suggest how far to extend it for specific frequency bands. Here again, using the SMA to BNC adapter would also be needed, but that insures that you have a good, and mechanically strong, connection between the scanner & the antenna. I have this antenna as well as the RH77A. Both work well in my area (Dallas/Fort Worth metro).

Note that if using the RH77A on the BCD436HP, the SRH77CA would be just fine without having to use the adapter & ordering the BNC version. The 436HP does not have the recessed antenna connector as is on the SDS100.
 

WRQS621

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A flat HD TV antenna with a sma adapter. I use them all the time. They are actually a dipole antenna If you review the frequency range on them you will see they cover tha bands. Matter fact OTA TV is VHF/UHF as all us old folks know.
 

n1chu

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Farmington, Connecticut
A Dremel tool (with the right attachment) will eliminate that raised ridge the SDS100 has around the antenna connection! The only thing that ridge does is justify Uniden’s moisture resistant claims. And since I don’t take long hot showers with my SDS100 or long walks in a rain storm, it’s more bothersome than necessary… besides, a rubber grommet will also seal the antenna connection from moisture. Without that ridge I can attach any antenna or antenna adapter I have without issue, and I have a bunch of those antennas to choose from!
 

nessnet

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A Dremel tool (with the right attachment) will eliminate that raised ridge the SDS100 has around the antenna connection! The only thing that ridge does is justify Uniden’s moisture resistant claims. And since I don’t take long hot showers with my SDS100 or long walks in a rain storm, it’s more bothersome than necessary… besides, a rubber grommet will also seal the antenna connection from moisture. Without that ridge I can attach any antenna or antenna adapter I have without issue, and I have a bunch of those antennas to choose from!

Don't Dremel the radio....
Just Dremel a slight collar on the SRH77CA. Go slow and check the fit frequently.

Did it to mine and it now fits securely on the 100, (into that antenna recess) .
Works great too.
 

safetypro79

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Also an excellent point, the best bet might be to modify the antenna base rather than the radio case. However, the same issue of damage exists with my Remtronix antenna. But realistically the diamond sma antenna base modified might be the better alternative.
 

safetypro79

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Update: my diamond RH77CA arrived 30 minutes ago and as you can see from the photo the local Salem P25 is 5 bars on signal. However I was getting 5 bars without an antenna and on the Remtronix I was using.

But…. Yamhill county VHF FD did break squelch which previously I was not receiving at all from my new location since March 1st. So right now the diamond ant is a better performer (as expected) on VHF than the single 700-800 band Remtronix.
 

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JoeBearcat

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In my location here in Salem Oregon I primarily listed to local/county FD’s which are on VHF/UHF other the P25 system the City of Salem uses.

I have a Remtronix 820 antenna.

Any recommendations for an antenna that will have good reception on VHF/UHF and can be used with the P25 system also. I’m less than 5 miles from the P25 system.

The 820 is designed for 800 MHz. If you are a Remtronix fan they have two 842 models (SMA and BNC) that cover VHF, UHF, and 800 MHz.

Others have made comparisons between them on this site.
 

hiegtx

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The 820 is designed for 800 MHz. If you are a Remtronix fan they have two 842 models (SMA and BNC) that cover VHF, UHF, and 800 MHz.

Others have made comparisons between them on this site.
I have the SMA version of the 842 antenna. It does ok here in my area, for the few remaining Vhf & Uhf channels, but most of those are in the process of migrating to a P25 Phase II system, with 700 & 800 MHz frequencies. When I visit friends in a rural area about 100 miles west of the DFW area, almost everybody is Vhf-high, so I switch to either the RH77CA or RH789, along with the SMA-BNC adapter.
 

_Wilson_

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I have the adapter that Jon Wienke use to sell... The site below has them... Not sure if this site is still active though...

View attachment 142168



I just tried to order from that site.... they are still listed.. thanks for the info, just got my sds100.. also have the remtronix 820S... much improved over the oem duck antenna, but i also need a good vhf high, and uhf antenna im quiet curious about the diamond models and also the remtronix 842,,, ive stayed away from radio for too long....time to get back in it.. so i will be needing assistances.... thank you all for the information here.....what i plan on doing with the sds200 .... well i have two monitor antennas.. some of you might have heard of the antenna specailist A/S mon52 ? Micro choke antenna, and big bro mon58 (same whip with an added four element ground plain) i have them both... one is on a 75 foot tower (mon58) that one is ear marked for the sds200.... ive tried other antennas against both of these... nothing has ever out done these antennas... ive pulled radio traffic in from over 50 miles away... but that was years ago when nashville was still on vhf high... ranging from 151.131, to 155.860, and i believe t-dot was 159.090 ? And of corse Natchez trace patrol that was 171.775 i think ? Thp was still vhf low band.. anyways.. just chewing the fat over the years.... thank you again.... im sure from reading im about to get schooled.. on changes to radio from analog to what we have now......i look forward to learning.
 
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