Strong Signals - Antennas

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Introduction
While this section is meant in no way to be an authority on antennas, it will help you start thinking about how important it is to match the antenna to the frequency range you are listening to get the most from your monitoring station.
No one antenna can do it all. It's just not "physics"-lly possible! You'll have to pick the ranges that are most important to you and buy the antennas you can for proper coverage. As time goes on, expand your collection to cover more ranges.
And never underestimate the power of experimentation whether using a purchased model or your own home-brewed creation! This page was last updated in May 2007.
Thank You
Let me add my personal thanks to Mike Agner, KA3JJZ, who has volunteered to keep this page up to date!

Overview

Your monitoring station is only as good as its weakest link. The radio you buy is usually based on budget and can be viewed, for the most part, as a constant in your system. However, there is much you can do to upgrade your antenna.
First off, let's just say that no antenna can be all things. For the most part, an antenna's ability to receive a given frequency is dependent on the length of that antenna. Since your antenna is fixed in length, you can see how it is not the most efficient for receiving a wide range of frequencies. This is in direct conflict with the objective of the modern receiver whose job is to receive transmission on a very wide range of frequencies.
Legions of entire books have been written on antennas alone. It is far from an exact science but much is known and can provide hours of interesting experimentation.

Handheld Models

For a handheld, the antenna that usually comes with it is a coiled piece of wire covered in a plastic or rubber coating and is affectionately referred to as a 'rubber duck' or 'duckie'. Since this antenna is a constant length, it will receive some frequencies much better than others.
The best bet for a good antenna is an extendable whip antenna(similar to those found on your typical AM/FM boombox or car power antenna)which can be lengthened or shortened to help match its length to a desired frequency range. In some situations, a whip antenna might be prohibitive, in which case a multi-band antenna might be best.

Here's a rundown of some of the more popular models. Some of the dealers who carry these include AES, Radioware, Grove, Radio Shack and Uniden. The costs listed should only be used as a guideline.

Manufacturer	Model	Coverage	Price	Length	Comments
Austin	Condor	30-1000MHz	$30	12"
Daiwa	HA-45S	144-900MHz	$19	1.78"
Daiwa	HA-96B	144-900MHz	$25	3.74"
Diamond	RH-3	2m/430/1.2G	$35	1.75"
Diamond	RH-77CA	2m/440	$35	14.75"
Diamond	RH-205	2m 5/8	$28	??"-??"
Diamond	RH-519	2m/440	$35	8.3"
Diamond	RH-707	2m/440	$38	8.25"
Diamond	RH-951	2m/430/1.2G	$50	14"
Diamond	RH-951S	2m/430/1.2G	$58	14"?	slim
Grove	ANT-8	25-1300MHz	$17	7"-46"
Grove	ANT-19	144-960MHz	$15	5.5-20"
Icom	FA-1443B	2m/440	$23	8"
Larsen	KD4-146	2m	$17	?"
Larsen	KD4-2/70	2m	$28	?"
Larsen	KD4-222	2m/440	$17	5"
Larsen	KD14-445	440	$17	?"	1/4 wave
Larsen	KD4-146-HQ	2m	$22	?"	part 1/4 wave
Larsen	KD14-2M-HW	2m	$34	?"	1/2 wave
Larsen	KD14-440-HW	440	$34	?"	1/2 wave
Premier	AL-800	2m/440	$35	8"-34"	2-in-1 antenna
Premier	RD-78	2m/440	$23	15"	2.15/3.2 dBi gain
Premier	RD-8	2m/440	$18	6.5"	thin whip
Premier	RD-9	2m/440	$19	7"	thin whip
Premier	RD-98	2m/440	$25	17"	2.15/3.2 dBi gain
Radio Shack	20-006	25-1300MHz	$10	6.5-26"	9 sections w/coil
Radio Shack	A0146	30-1000MHz	$20	6"	PRO-25/46/51
Radio Shack	A0337	25-1300MHz	$20	6"	PRO-26/43/60/62
Smiley	TS	2m/220	$17	?"-??"	1/4 wave
Smiley	SS-II	2m	$20	10"-54"	5/8 wave 6-9db gain
Smiley	SLD-2	2m	$18	12"	5/8 wave 7db gain
Smiley	RD-2	2m	$15	7.75"	3db gain
Smiley	RDS-2	2m	$15	4"
Smiley	SS-III	220	$20	9"-36"	5/8 wave 6-9db gain
Smiley	SLD-220	220	$18	9"	7db gain
Smiley	RD-220	220	$15	6"
Smiley	RDS-220	220	$15	4"
Smiley	SS-IV	440	$20	6"-18"	5/8 wave 6-9db gain
Smiley	SL-440	440	$13	9"	1/4 wave
Smiley	SLD-440	440	$18	7.5"	7db gain
Smiley	RDS-440	440	$15	4"
Smiley	RDMD-440	440	$15	3"
Smiley	FLX	2m	$26	9"-35"	1/2 wave 7-9db gain
Smiley	270A	2m/440	$20	6"-18"	1/4 & 5/8 gain
Uniden	AT-218	25-1300MHz	$?	6"
Watson	W801	25-1900MHz	$20	8.5"	"Regular-Gainer"
Watson	W881	25-1900MHz	$30	16"	"Super-Gainer"
Watson	W889	25-1900MHz	$20	5.3-16"

If you plan to add an external antenna for base usage of your handheld, be sure it can handle the added signal strengths it will be receiving. Some receivers will be overloaded and produce garbage commonly referred to as intermodulation. On others, it may even de-sensitize the front-end resulting in fewer signals being heard!
Look here for my review of many handheld antennas!
Personally, I use the following antennas the most on my handhelds :
- Diamond RH-3 - great for stealthy monitoring
- Grove ANT-8 - great for HF and best VHF/UHF pickup
- Grove ANT-19 - good all around VHF/UHF
- Premeir RD-8 - 6" flexible duck
- Premeir RD-9SMA - great for SMA radios
- Watson W889 - best all around
Look here for my review of the indoor Sky Scan Desk 1300 antenna.

Mobile Models

Look here for a review of the NilJon Super M antenna
Check out SoCalTVRadio's Antenna Comparison here
Here's a page on how to modify the Radio Shack mag mount scanner antenna for better performance

Base Models

Here at the Strong Signals shack, I use a number of antennas for my collection of base radios :
- Two RadioShack 20-176 ground planes
- Two RadioShack 20-044 omni-verticals
- One RadioShack 20-014 ground plane
- One RadioShack 20-013 discone
- One RadioShack 20-032 mag mount whip
- One Nevada B1300 discone
- One Grove ANT-8 whip
- One Grove ANT-6 dipole
- One SkyScan V1300 discone
- One Ventenna VT-15S
- One Niljon Omni-vertical base
- One RadioShack mag mount CB whip
Look here for my base antenna survey.
I have added 2 4-port amplified Stridsberg Multicouplers. It currently connects one of my 20-044s to my AR3000A, AR8600, AR5000 and IC-PCR100. The other multicoupler connects the other 20-044 to my 2 PRO-2006s, PRO-2004 and PRO-2067. Someday I hope to get around to writing up a little something on the multicoupler's operation and usefullness.
No matter how good the antenna is, the coax and connectors you use to connect it will make or break your monitoring station. Look here for more information

Other Reviews and User Opinions

Check out this page for other antenna reviews.
Here's another site with antenna reviews.
Eham net has 2 categories of user reviews: Omnidirectional and beams

Build Your Own

There's a handy tip for making your own BNC wire antenna for HF/VHF/UHF, submitted by Gerald S. Santomassimo, KB0VOF
You can also find some ideas on my Scanner Tips page
Do you need to calculate lengths to build a J Pole? See Buxcomm's handy calculator

800 MHz Listening

Grove sells the Max Systems line for both handhelds and base units
Radioware carries the Seeker 800
MAXRAD carries yagis for numerous applications
Radio Shack carries cell phone replacement antennas rated at 3 - 5 dB gain. Just buy a TNC to BNC converter and you're all set!

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