Which antenna, 140 - 160 mhz?

[smittyj77]

Im trying to decide what antenna to use for 140 - 160 mhz range, im pretty sure I want to go with an nmo mount. Using a uniden bcd996t I also want to use the GPS option on the scanner as well. Ive been looking at these antennas:

GPSDB150P - Antenex (Laird Technologies) Low Profile Permanent Mount Dual-Band GPS/Land Based Bar Antenna 137-150MHz VHF/GPS Wideband Phantom Antenna
(Will this work as a GPS antenna for the scanner to?)

TRABT1420 - Antenex Phantom Low Profile 142-160MHz VHF Unity Gain Tunable Antenna (Black/NMO Mount) with Patented Field Diversity

B66 - Antenex VHF 1/4 Wave Broadband Models (66-174MHz, Unity Gain, 49" Tapered Whip)

ABSCANC - Antenex Scanner Antenna (150/450/800 MHz, Receive only Gain, Black)

AD150 - Antenex Disguise Antenna (150-174MHz, Short 1/4 Wave, Chrome)

QWB144 - Antenex Quarterwave Antenna (144-152MHz, Unity Gain, Black)

Sorry for so many links. But there are so many options, and I dont want to go in the wrong direction, right now I have my scanner runnig thorugh the radio antenna on a "T" and its not bad but I have alot of dead spots, so I want to choose the correct antenna.

Thanks for any input

 

[N0IU]

It appears that the GPSDB150P would work for the scanner and a GPS unit, but do you really need an external GPS antenna? This antenna is $150 and for a lot less, you can get a really good scanner only antenna.

 

[Kennrth]

Hi there,
Looked over your list - Don't like your selections. Been a Ham for over 30yrs. You should consider MFG's that are used by Amatuer radio operators. Remember most lay people have no way to test the mfg's claims. The Amatuer Radio Relay League ARRL found most antenna specifications are indeed false.

Stick with the honest tried and true Mfg's
Diamond antenna
Larson antenna
Wilson antenna
Auston antenna
Hi Gain
CushCraft
AOR antennas
Hustler
FireStik


For single band I recommend Diamond and Larson. For wideband check out AOR.
I would not select a single band antenna for your wide band scanner. They are designed for broadcast (transmitter applications)
Peaks and nulls are normal when mobiling. Not an antenna problem.
Nulls and peaks caused by vhf/uhf bounce and mix in environment.
Best scanner antenna is wideband type.

Keep in mind that half power on the receiving input is only abour 1 S unit - no big deal .
Best mobile antenna for a scanner is the highest wideband one you can fit at the center of your car.


I beleive GPS unit has its own antenna built in 1.5ghz and inputs info via rs232 second port

 

[Hooligan]

You don't give enough info for anyone to really help you out much. You want something centered on about 150MHz, for a broadband scanner. Are you wanting to hear distant signals in 140-160? Do you care about UHF at all?

A new antenna may or may not resolve the "dead spots."


As for the guy pushing you to ham antennas, notice how he says he's been a ham for over 30 years, then notice that in those 30+ years, he hasn't mastered the spelling of amateur. I've only been a ham for about 27 years, but I've learned that just because someone is a ham, it doesn't mean they necessarily know what they're talking about.

Many of the antennas/brands you're looking into are used by commercial & public safety land mobile radio applications -- their comm techs research & evaluate antennas better than the average ham geek does.

For my primary scanner mounted in the car, I've been satisfied with tapping into the standard 31" AM/FM whip antenna for 30-1300MHz, but then I have other receivers & higher-profile, gain-antennas I can use if I want to focus on one chunk of the spectrum or sit on a distant signal (& yes, I often use a 'ham' antenna for it).

Getting a VHF antenna with the built-in GPS antenna is a nice little package, but then antenna placement might turn into a compromise, as opposed to two separate antennas. That product itself might be a compromise in performance of both aspects in order to put them into one package.

 

[smittyj77]

I usually listen to OPP on Fleetnet towers so usually within 50 miles of the tower, also fire at the 154.430 mhz, the OPP are at 141.??? - 142.??? mhz and I dont really listen to much more although there are some ems frequnices in the 410 - 413 mhz range.

I have found that my AM/FM antenna doesnt really seem to be cutting in, I can have awesome reception with it in one spot one day and almost no reception with it in the same spot the next day.

So what your also saying is im better of to get 2 seperate antennas, one for gps and then another for the scanner? OR would that one I listed do the trick?

 

[N0IU]

So what your also saying is im better of to get 2 seperate antennas, one for gps and then another for the scanner? OR would that one I listed do the trick?

From what I can tell, the GPSDB150P is actually 2 antennas in 1 package: 1 for VHF and 1 for the GPS. There are 2 physical leads coming out of the bottom of the antenna. If you do need an external GPS antenna, it looks like this one could work. What brand/model GPS are you using?

 

[guitarbrian30]

j-pole

I have had a gentlemen on ebay make me a custom tuned j-pole ant.

IT works great. I have it tuned to 157.41250 mhz.

You I attempted to make my own yagi. hahaha that was funny, I wife still laughs about that one.

Something more to think about.

You can build your own too.

 

[FFPM571]

The antennas you have picked out are fine for what you need.They are public safety and 2 way antenna mfgrs. Get the NMO for the scanner and a separate GPS that can be mounted anywhere Ive mounted the small GPS antennas at the base of a windshield and the dash and had great luck.

Ive seen plenty of people try to use a ham antenna for for scanner and 2 way and been very disaponted by less than stellar performance. We ahve replaced them with a good quality antenna and they were shocked by the new found performance

 

[thomas724]

why dont you go here>>>>>>>>>>>>J POLE ANTENNA DESIGN CALCULATOR by K4ABT
and make your own. I did and I get great results on my Pro-26

 

[smittyj77]

I need the gps antenna for my scanner its gps scanning capable. So i can set certain sites to scan when im within a certain long lat

So it sounds like im on my own picking an antenna lol

 

[W6KRU]

I need the gps antenna for my scanner its gps scanning capable. So i can set certain sites to scan when im within a certain long lat

So it sounds like im on my own picking an antenna lol

Your scanner does not have a built-in GPS. It requires an external GPS to be hooked up via the serial port.

 

[N0IU]

Your scanner does not have a built-in GPS. It requires an external GPS to be hooked up via the serial port.

Apparently you and I are the only ones who know that and I don't even own one!

 

[smittyj77]

So what you guys are saying is that this will not work? Garmin 18 PC GPS 18 PC OEM Receiver reviews (010-00321-54)

 

[N0IU]

Actually that Garmin GPS unit would work quite well with the BCD996T scanner. This unit comes enclosed in a magnetic base that you can stick on the roof of your vehicle so you will not need to use a separate GPS antenna. Just hook up the serial cable and program your scanner as instructed on pages 118-126 of your owner's manual.

With all due respect, some of your responses appeared to have indicated that you weren't aware that you had to hook up a separate GPS unit to the scanner in order to use the Location Based Scanning features and I am still not entirely sure you understand this.

As far as an antenna for the scanner, this one looks like a good choice: http://www.scannermaster.com/Scan_Force_Mobile_Antenna_p/25-541147.htm