hey guys. i know close to nothing on this subject so im trying to expland my knowledge on this subject. when it comes to a scanner with multiple different bands, is it better to get one antenna that covers all bands or get a couple different antennas and run them together? is there some kind of splitter for antennas that connect them all together to create a range of frequencies the scanner will pick up?
radio antennas for dummies
- Thread starter eng18ine
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hawkspringsfire
Member
Get one antenna that covers all the bands that you are scanning. Look for something like these:
Monitor/Scanner : The Antenna Farm :: , Your Two Way Radio Source!
That is if you are talking about mounting the antenna on a vehicle.
Monitor/Scanner : The Antenna Farm :: , Your Two Way Radio Source!
That is if you are talking about mounting the antenna on a vehicle.
7d9_z28
New Member
And DO NOT, I will repeat DO NOT buy a window/glass mount antenna.
Save your money and a headache. Mag mount if you have to, permanent mount recommended.
Save your money and a headache. Mag mount if you have to, permanent mount recommended.
7d9_z28 said:And DO NOT, I will repeat DO NOT buy a window/glass mount antenna.
Save your money and a headache. Mag mount if you have to, permanent mount recommended.
They aren't as bad as people say, you sound like you have had one but didn't like it. I think it all depends on where you live and what bands you are on, even with lowband my WMA still picks up a decent reception while mobile and my UHF feeds are always 100%.
7d9_z28 said:And DO NOT, I will repeat DO NOT buy a window/glass mount antenna.
Save your money and a headache. Mag mount if you have to, permanent mount recommended.
i had one in my car before i got rid of it. it wasnt bad at all. it made a very annoying whistle at higher speeds but it wasnt bad at all
Steve0625
Member
scruffythewild said:
Have to agree here. I had one on the back window of my pickup for many years. It worked great in an area with good VHF and UHF coverage by police, fire, and ems.
The worst of it was the dope at the car wash tried to turn it down and it bent. He could have left well enough alone. I think they fired him after I got done yelling at the manager.
That said, I still prefer to drill the hole in the roof when possible. Decent ground plane helps a bit with reception, but is more important with transmit.
lafd55
Member
And something to point out. DO NOT use two antennas for 1 scanner, it doesn't work and is a waste of money. Just get a scanner antenna that covers all bands or if you only listen to a specific frequency then just get an antenna for that bandwidth, I use a VHF antenna for my scanner.
If you are listening to a nearby trunked system, a through the glass is OK.
If you are listening to a variety of systems and bands, get a good all-band antenna such as the hustler (Mobile Scanner)
I had a glass antenna that I cut down to a few inches for 800 mhz and it worked like a charm for a trunk-only scanner, while I had the hustler all-band through the roof for my conventional-only scanner. I didn't want 2 big whips for a somewhat temporary installation (at the time I was upgrading to a single BCT15X shortly and the trunker was a freebie)
Also a note, don't split one antenna for multiple scanners either, and NEVER tap into the am/fm antenna because your will be horribly disappointed - sticking your tongue to a coat hanger would work better.
If you are listening to a variety of systems and bands, get a good all-band antenna such as the hustler (Mobile Scanner)
I had a glass antenna that I cut down to a few inches for 800 mhz and it worked like a charm for a trunk-only scanner, while I had the hustler all-band through the roof for my conventional-only scanner. I didn't want 2 big whips for a somewhat temporary installation (at the time I was upgrading to a single BCT15X shortly and the trunker was a freebie)
Also a note, don't split one antenna for multiple scanners either, and NEVER tap into the am/fm antenna because your will be horribly disappointed - sticking your tongue to a coat hanger would work better.
Yeah my window makes a really annoying whistling sound, I drive a civic Si coupe so I dont really have a place to mount a mag antenna because everything is pretty curved and the wires running through the trunk would need slack and idk I just dont think it would look nice. I would put it nice on the back window but I dont want it to interfere with my defroster, stupid me though, put the antenna on the rear driver side window instead of the passenger which I think looks better anyway, plus the driver wont hear the wind noise as loud. IMO
scruffythewild said:
i was driving a civic too. put a glass antenna right in the center of the back window ontop and since i just dont give a hoot put 2 mag mount antennas on the trunk lid. honda really fails in the department of paint lol. a couple days and the clearcoat was gone.
I would just get a ham radio whip antenna with no coils. Another option and probably from a performance standpoint would be best is to go with a mobile discone. That is a wide-band antenna. Here is one that I have seen, there may be others but I have used and trust Diamond Antenna. Diamond® Antenna ~ D220
Also a note, don't split one antenna for multiple scanners either, and NEVER tap into the am/fm antenna because your will be horribly disappointed - sticking your tongue to a coat hanger would work better.
lafd55
Member
thank you to everyone who answered. a buddy of mine has one of the worst antenna farms going on his roof. last time i counted 8 antennas for a scanner, cb and lowband radio.
chief1562
Member
On the question of the right antenna. I hace a Gre PSR-600 digital. works great don't really need an antenna on it to receive. But would like to get a little better reception on the conventional channels.
I've got a radshack on it now with the center load not extended. Have tried different postions on it and doesn't help.I live in a house not a trailer. if that makes a difference.
What would you all suggest?
Also have looked at antenna sites in the upper posts they say upto 1200 but does that mean digital?
I've got a radshack on it now with the center load not extended. Have tried different postions on it and doesn't help.I live in a house not a trailer. if that makes a difference.
What would you all suggest?
Also have looked at antenna sites in the upper posts they say upto 1200 but does that mean digital?
Jarred J.
Lifetime VIP Donor
those radio shack extebdable antennas are garbage. ive bought 2 and they both broke within weeks
chief1562
Member
I hear you on that.This is my 2nd one. that's why it's not extended. gotta move soon but I was wondering if i put up a out door antenna if the conventinal freqs. will come in better.
Tried on of those snoop indoor antennas anybody want to buy it. :-x
Tried on of those snoop indoor antennas anybody want to buy it. :-x
For years I have simply used a 18" quarter wave VHF High band antenna for each scanner. Works well on all bands I have ever tested.
Duncanville1 said:
i know basically nothing about radios or antennas. all i know is i have a scanner that needs an antenna. could you send me a link or something to an antenna that you described?
chief1562
Member
Don't need one for my Gre PSR-600 p25 digital will recieve without one but need it if i want here conventional.
Jarred J.
Lifetime VIP Donor
chief1562
Member
NPS Ranger
Member
Travelin Man
Member
lafd55 said:
With use of a diplexer or multiplexer, multiple antennas into a single radio works just fine.
An antenna makes no difference in analog, trunked, or digital communications. Rather, it is the bandwidth that's the distinguishing factor.
I also used an AM/FM antenna with a scanner adapter from Antenna Specialists in the mid-1970's and it worked very well with the old mast-type antenna. It seemed to me we had worse OEM am/fm antennas later. That was with low band, high band, and UHF. Later, my mobile scanners instructed to use an 18" NMO whip, and were matched internally. Also, be sure to turn a scanner off before transmitting. You will desensitize the scanner receiver. That is a major reason we went to scanning radios, to mute the receiver before we transmitted.
I also used an AM/FM antenna with a scanner adapter from Antenna Specialists in the mid-1970's and it worked very well with the old mast-type antenna. It seemed to me we had worse OEM am/fm antennas later. That was with low band, high band, and UHF. Later, my mobile scanners instructed to use an 18" NMO whip, and were matched internally. Also, be sure to turn a scanner off before transmitting. You will desensitize the scanner receiver. That is a major reason we went to scanning radios, to mute the receiver before we transmitted.
A good quality multi-band scanner antenna should work wonders, particularly with an NMO mount. I was just trying to clarify there is no difference in the antenna because the radio signal is analog, trunked, or digital. If you are exclusively monitoring only one band, such as high band VHF, then you will get excellent performance from the same type of antenna that would be used for a mobile transceiver.
First, read the scanner manual to see if there are any recommendations or instructions specific to that model scanner (for example, on my Bearcat, the manual recommended an 18 inch whip for VHF/UHF).
Others have mentioned particular antenna manufacturers and models that have worked well for them. However, the particular locality, terrain, specific bands and frequencies to be scanned, and the power and placement of the public safety radio transmitters, base station antenna and repeaters will all affect the performance of a mobile receiver.
Good luck, and let us know about your final selection and its performance.
First, read the scanner manual to see if there are any recommendations or instructions specific to that model scanner (for example, on my Bearcat, the manual recommended an 18 inch whip for VHF/UHF).
Others have mentioned particular antenna manufacturers and models that have worked well for them. However, the particular locality, terrain, specific bands and frequencies to be scanned, and the power and placement of the public safety radio transmitters, base station antenna and repeaters will all affect the performance of a mobile receiver.
Good luck, and let us know about your final selection and its performance.