Wellbrook Loops - is it worth it?

[ILSAPP]

What are the consensus regarding the wellbrook antenna? Well worth the cost even considering it is a receive only antenna?

 

[ka3jjz]

Moved from its original place since it has nothing to do with mounting issues. Please don't hijack a discussion, as it's considered a big no no here.

I've been doing some looking at this myself as I am in a condo with no way to have an outdoor antenna. These have been long considered to be the king of the mountain, but the cost in the US is really high due to import fees. The Pixel is somewhat better in this regard (it's still very expensive even if it's made in the US), and there are evaluations one way or the other that one is better than the other. However the topic of receive loops has started to get more attention from other manufacturers, and there are even a number of homebrew designs out there. In addition, there's a loop put out by W6LVP that has garnered a little attention because his price is roughly 1/2 of the Wellbrook, but it seems to perform really well. Check out the loops wiki (link below) for more on this topic...

Loops - The RadioReference Wiki

Mike

 

[KC1UA]

I have one, mounted on top of my shed, maybe about 10 feet off of the ground, and on a rotor. I scoped out the "quietest" area of my yard and chose this spot. I live in an extremely noisy environment, suburban-type neighborhood with 1/4 acre lots, and of course everyone is running every type of tech gadget imaginable which is a killer on HF reception from my experience. I used wire antennas and actually gave up HF listening as a result of my frustration. The Wellbrook loop has made a huge improvement for me, the noise floor is extremely low. Signals are not as strong as they might be on a wire and/or an antenna cut for a particular frequency range but they don't need to be. Having the loop on a rotor makes it even better as any remaining interference whether it's man made or an unwanted station can be somewhat or totally nulled out by rotating it.

I thought about this for over a year before finally biting the bullet and I'm glad I did.

 

[ridgescan]

Yes. Although mine has a bug I need to address, overall it is a very powerful receive antenna for what it is physically. Mike, you ought to get one as it would be the answer to your environment. This thing is very good at killing bleedover from strong adjacent stations next to your desired station. Strong in MW. Very competitive in HF, although I find my 100' endfed wire/9:1 trans actually cleaner than the Wellbrook, especially in 40-120 meters. Very good in LW too! Superior hardware, but not too thrilled about the feedpoint at the loop, or the flimsy patch cable at the interface-to-receiver.

 

[ka3jjz]

Ah well, not until I'm re-employed....Mike

 

[EricCottrell]

Hello,

Any nearby MW stations will have a high signal level out of the loop and can overload some receivers and SDRs. I use a MW Band-Reject filter. I bring the loop down to the Winter SWLFest for the listener lounge. You can see the Roxborough site from the balcony, and the MW Band-Reject filter is required to tame the overload. Not a problem when using my WJ-8711A or Racal receivers.

I was surprised at the VLF stations I can pickup with the loop. Cutler, Maine is strong here, but I also see stations from Europe.

73 Eric

 

[wa8pyr]

Hello,

Any nearby MW stations will have a high signal level out of the loop and can overload some receivers and SDRs. I use a MW Band-Reject filter. I bring the loop down to the Winter SWLFest for the listener lounge. You can see the Roxborough site from the balcony, and the MW Band-Reject filter is required to tame the overload. Not a problem when using my WJ-8711A or Racal receivers.

I was surprised at the VLF stations I can pickup with the loop. Cutler, Maine is strong here, but I also see stations from Europe.

And it works great at the SWL Fest, even on a balcony overlooking a shopping mall across the street (which is no doubt loaded with any number of noise generating widgets). The super-high-end receivers Eric and others bring to play with combined with the Wellbrook makes SWLing a real pleasure at the Fest. . . as long as you can get past all the hubbub in the room.

If I wasn't in a deed-restricted neighborhood I'd seriously consider getting one and installing it at the end of my garage, away from the house. If Congress ever gets around to passing the limited preemption of CC&Rs bill, I may be able to get away with it.

 

[coolderb]

And it works great at the SWL Fest, even on a balcony overlooking a shopping mall across the street (which is no doubt loaded with any number of noise generating widgets). The super-high-end receivers Eric and others bring to play with combined with the Wellbrook makes SWLing a real pleasure at the Fest. . . as long as you can get past all the hubbub in the room.

If I wasn't in a deed-restricted neighborhood I'd seriously consider getting one and installing it at the end of my garage, away from the house. If Congress ever gets around to passing the limited preemption of CC&Rs bill, I may be able to get away with it.

I purchased a Wellbrook ALA-1530 over the Winter. Got a good deal on Ebay which included the antenna as well as remote mounting/control cables. I live in a condo/townhouse community but I am seriously considering mounting it outside. Many of my neighbors have DirectTV and DISH receivers mounted on the outside of their units. My Wellbrook is smaller and less obtrusive than those dish antennas. It will be barely noticeable. If anyone asks me about I will simply tell them it is just another satellite receiver antenna (technically it is

 

[Ryangn]

At my previous home I was restricted by the HOA - so no antennas outside. I bought my Wellbrook to put in the attic and never regretted that purchase one bit. It made a huge difference for me and worth every penny.
With that being said the Wellbrook is the only loop I have ever owned so I don't have anything else to compare it to.