Who has the LOWEST PROFILE mobile scanner antenna?

[Uplink]

I'm looking for wide band performance and low profile at the same time, sort of like a mobile version of an RD-9 portable antenna. I have an NMO mount on top of my truck but I park in parking structures and don't want to bang it. I have tried the MAXRAD BMAX Maxscan antenna on my cowl (great performance) but the whitling drove me nuts. I also have an
Antenna Specialist AM/FM antenna splitter but it doesn't perform that great. Any suggestions for pickup truck owners like me???

 

[LarrySC]

Low profile ant's dont come multi-band or wide band. They are specific freq only. VHF or UHF etc.

 

[Al42]

And they don't work all that well below 450 MHz.

Uplink, mount a decent antenna near the top of the back wall of the cab if you don't want one on the roof.

 

[brian]

I've tried both the Antenex ABSCANC and the Larsen tri-band NMO150/450/800. Both are similar to the Maxrad BMAXSCAN in profile and specs. My experience was that the Larsen performed better (especially on 800MHz), but I liked the base of the Antenex better, so I put the Larsen whip on the Antenex base. I'm happy with its performance and it's slight profile.

I have no empirical data to support that statement, so your milage may vary. It's one of my pet peaves that people state with some authority that one antenna performs better than another without some science to back it up. Lots of other things affect perceived reception - the radio system you're trying to monitor, your location to the transmitter, your vehicle's ground plane, the receiver you're using, your coax, etc., etc. Since I fall into that category as well, take what I say with a grain of salt.

I appreciate those who have the proper test equipment and knowledge to perform scientific side-by-side antenna comparisons, and I value the results of their work.

Brian

 

[kb2vxa]

Hi Brian and all,

"I appreciate those who have the proper test equipment and knowledge to perform scientific side-by-side antenna comparisons, and I value the results of their work."

You're talking about engineers working at a range or in an anechoic chamber using state of the art lab equipment for doing R&D for a commercial manufacturer or the military. Hams don't fit into this category and manufacturers of scanner antennas employ monkeys with vivid imaginations. Hams think outside the box and monkeys, well, they belong in a box. Either way you won't get much scientific data, but you'll get plenty of technobabble which translates to "I have no idea but it works." and maybe a leftover banana.

Seriously, I know some hams and a few CBers even who have done side by side comparisons and fully documented measurements from the usual test equipment, hardly laboratory grade and almost never has seen a recent NIST calibration. Just the same we can tell you the results but we'll never claim you'll see the same in your testing environment, neither is a laboratory. As for the monkeys who claim a gazillion dB gain and DC to light frequency coverage, well, toss 'em a banana.

 

[ke5lvt]

this is just my thoughts but the antenex phanton uhf is a good all around scanner antenna. it is about 4" tall. i have installed many of them for uhy and 800Mhz. it has been a very good antenna.

 

[Uplink]

Low profile ant's dont come multi-band or wide band. They are specific freq only. VHF or UHF etc.

By low profile, I was thinking less than 12" like your handheld scanner's antenna. I was hoping somone out there would make a mobile antenna that size for the top of a truck cab that doesn't hit the roofs of parking structures. Unfortunatly the are all twice the size of an HT antenna, but it sounds like its just a pipe dream.

 

[doctordave]

Sti-Co (available at Tessco and other online vendors) makes a super flexible (they claim un-breakable - but mine typically last about 4-6 mo) whip antenna - about 21" (you can certainly trim it down). Thin, black in color and w/ NMO base. Looks sharp on a vehicle and will tolerate lots of bending/banging as you drive through parking garages daily.

 

[MacombMonitor]

The Valor PMM3B has been recommended more times than I can count, and with the exception of one recent remark (which has yet to be explained), everyone has been extremely satisfied.

Check it out:

http://www.universal-radio.com/catalog/scanants/1190.html

@ $11.95, it's certainly a low-risk venture!

 

[kb2vxa]

Hi again,

"...but it sounds like its just a pipe dream."

What you dream depends on what's in the pipe.