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Post by MonkeyMan on Jul 18, 2015 8:58:39 GMT -5
Help me out here folks. I received an email from Solidsignal.com on a sale they were having and found this antenna on "clearance" for $80. After close inspection it appears to be a 4' Firestick on a cheap mount, terminating with a PL259 to 75 ohm cable adapter which is covered in shrink tubing for good measure. 4' isn't even the ideal length for the middle of the FM band. This thing is going for $115 on Amazon and the reviews are positive, am I missing something here??? www.amazon.com/Pixel-Technologies-AFHD-4-Satellite-Antenna/dp/B001I7T6AE#Ask |
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Post by spitfire441 on Jul 18, 2015 13:17:32 GMT -5
Help me out here folks. I received an email from Solidsignal.com on a sale they were having and found this antenna on "clearance" for $80. After close inspection it appears to be a 4' Firestick on a cheap mount, terminating with a PL259 to 75 ohm cable adapter which is covered in shrink tubing for good measure. 4' isn't even the ideal length for the middle of the FM band. This thing is going for $115 on Amazon and the reviews are positive, am I missing something here??? www.amazon.com/Pixel-Technologies-AFHD-4-Satellite-Antenna/dp/B001I7T6AE#Ask Pure snake oil. You could build it or I can and sell it to you for $40. LOL Go with your gut on this one. |
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Post by MonkeyMan on Jul 18, 2015 13:36:33 GMT -5
That's what I figured, thought maybe I was missing something. Cripes its even the wrong length! I guess you can throw in that "HD" tagline and charge triple for anything.  |
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Sandbagger
Administrator/The Boss 
Posts: 6,247 
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Post by Sandbagger on Jul 21, 2015 22:50:32 GMT -5
Help me out here folks. I received an email from Solidsignal.com on a sale they were having and found this antenna on "clearance" for $80. After close inspection it appears to be a 4' Firestick on a cheap mount, terminating with a PL259 to 75 ohm cable adapter which is covered in shrink tubing for good measure. 4' isn't even the ideal length for the middle of the FM band. This thing is going for $115 on Amazon and the reviews are positive, am I missing something here??? www.amazon.com/Pixel-Technologies-AFHD-4-Satellite-Antenna/dp/B001I7T6AE#AskI would agree that it APPEARS to be a 4' Firestick or similar fiberglass CB antenna, but I can't tell from the picture whether or not that's really the case. But if that's truly the case, it's really a lame attempt at assembling readily available parts and trying to market it for a service it wasn't designed for (and making money doing it). An antenna resonant at 27 Mhz will not work optimally at either the AM or FM broadcast bands. It is possible that the antenna was designed to be a loaded 1/2 wave for the FM band. But that's unlikely as there doesn't appear to be any matching network (Unless it's under the shrink wrap section with the F to PL-259 adapter). |
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Post by MonkeyMan on Jul 22, 2015 8:33:16 GMT -5
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Post by MonkeyMan on Jul 22, 2015 11:36:04 GMT -5
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Sandbagger
Administrator/The Boss
Posts: 6,247
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Post by Sandbagger on Jul 22, 2015 16:57:37 GMT -5
It's tough to make an antenna work effectively for two bands so widely different. An efficient 1/4 wave antenna for the FM band can be made with a simple 31" rod (and similarly sized radials ideally). For the AM band, a 1/4 wave antenna would need to be around 234 FEET long. So obviously anything shorter than that will not be all that efficient. But since AM stations tend to run lots of power, practically anything you can string outside will bring in stations. So AM is really a compromise. But I have to wonder about the 48" antenna length choice. It's too long for an FM 1/4 wave, but too short for a 1/2 wave. So I'm back to the "using a cheap CB antenna to scam big bucks out of the unsuspecting OTA broadcast crowd" theory. |
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Post by MonkeyMan on Jul 22, 2015 20:24:44 GMT -5
I have an old Shakespeare 4' fiberglass antenna and mount, I should rig it up and give it a whirl, just for kicks and giggles.
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Sandbagger
Administrator/The Boss
Posts: 6,247
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Post by Sandbagger on Jul 23, 2015 5:52:00 GMT -5
I have an old Shakespeare 4' fiberglass antenna and mount, I should rig it up and give it a whirl, just for kicks and giggles. I'm sure it will work somewhat. An outdoor antenna, even the wrong length, should work better than an indoor antenna, especially if you have "stuff" inside that generates interference. Maybe that's what that "AM/FM" antenna product company is counting on. |
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Post by MonkeyMan on Jul 23, 2015 7:45:33 GMT -5
I have an old Shakespeare 4' fiberglass antenna and mount, I should rig it up and give it a whirl, just for kicks and giggles. I'm sure it will work somewhat. An outdoor antenna, even the wrong length, should work better than an indoor antenna, especially if you have "stuff" inside that generates interference. Maybe that's what that "AM/FM" antenna product company is counting on. Hmmm, maybe I should market my own. How's the "Super HD Monkey Penetrator" sound?  |
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roadrunner
Mudduck
Just got here today. Looking forward to talking to anyone about RF radios and antennas.
Posts: 37
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Post by roadrunner on Aug 1, 2015 10:28:13 GMT -5
It's funny that i came across this post because i have been doing some research and development on FM radio antennas this week. A friend asked me if i could build a better FM antenna so i started do some reading up on it. The first thing i found out is that a vertical FM antenna will not pick up the radio waves as good as horizontal. (The flat side)
I decided to build the HD-6010 four element by Winegard because it will be used as a home antenna. This antenna is designed to receive in all direction and is your basic dipole type. What is really funny here is the fact that this antenna is one of the best out there and it only cost 20 $ on Amazon.
The antenna i built worked really well once i put a transformer on it and my friend was very happy he didn't pay 115 dollars for it. Roadrunner
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Sandbagger
Administrator/The Boss
Posts: 6,247
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Post by Sandbagger on Aug 1, 2015 13:28:41 GMT -5
It's funny that i came across this post because i have been doing some research and development on FM radio antennas this week. A friend asked me if i could build a better FM antenna so i started do some reading up on it. The first thing i found out is that a vertical FM antenna will not pick up the radio waves as good as horizontal. (The flat side) I decided to build the HD-6010 four element by Winegard because it will be used as a home antenna. This antenna is designed to receive in all direction and is your basic dipole type. What is really funny here is the fact that this antenna is one of the best out there and it only cost 20 $ on Amazon. The antenna i built worked really well once i put a transformer on it and my friend was very happy he didn't pay 115 dollars for it. Roadrunner FM broadcast stations typically transmit on both polarities (although their ERP may not be the same on both). This mindset was decided some years ago based on the fact that a great percentage of listeners at home use (or tap off of) horizontal TV antennas for FM reception, while the other percentage of people listen while in their cars, with vertical 1/4 wave whip antennas. So it's necessary to cover both polarities. Here's a nice site that lists FM station transmitter power and usually includes both polarities if they broadcast that way: www.radio-locator.com/ |
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Post by MonkeyMan on Aug 3, 2015 15:00:16 GMT -5
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roadrunner
Mudduck
Just got here today. Looking forward to talking to anyone about RF radios and antennas.
Posts: 37
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Post by roadrunner on Aug 4, 2015 8:16:40 GMT -5
Monkey man, Thank you for your input on FM antennas. I did enjoy reading all the post on this antenna subject and the cost of them. Sandbagger, I don't know now you find these great web sites but i will pass that FM locator site on to my friend. Thanks again Roadrunner
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Post by critter on Aug 4, 2015 9:28:11 GMT -5
Considering the cost and the annoyance, perhaps, I'd still go with the I-Max 2000. Still something to try, but I'd have to go out and buy the pipe, clamps, antenna, then mount it to the pipe, find a place to put it, and see if it works. Not being a smart ass here, just sayin' ... 73's yo ...  |
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