Re: antennas
Dave Martindale <[email protected]>
| Newsgroups | gmane.recreation.radio.hardware.icomr2 |
|---|---|
| Message-ID | <[email protected]> |
> From: Dan Jacobson <[email protected]> >Subject: rubber ducky antenna not good enough for shortwave > >Apparently the stock rubber ducky antenna is OK for 144 and 490 Mkz, >but wanting to hear the shortwave and AM broadcast bands, not up to >par. It's designed to work well on the 144 and 440 MHz ham bands (the same antenna is used on the IC-Q7). If it works at any other frequencies, it's just an accident. In fact, the R2 antenna *does* pick up AM broadcast signals at around 1 MHz well enough to listen to local stations, which is amazing. My other amateur dual-band antennas are absolutely totally deaf at that frequency. >So, what shall I connect up in its stead? On condition though, say >that you are determined to use household items to construct it and not >buy it ready made. For shortwave, the simplest antenna is a long piece of wire. >BTW, Though I have managed to cobble together a SNA to coax connector, >slipping a metal tube over the rubber ducky seems like a way to >"connect another antenna" without removing the rubber ducky. Poor idea. Slipping a tube over the rubber antenna will capacitively couple some signal into the antenna element. But the rubber antenna isn't just a piece of wire; there is almost certainly a matching network in the base of the antenna (that's why it's larger in diameter). That matching network isn't designed to pass signals at shortwave frequencies, so it probably won't pass much of the signal. Just take the rubber antenna off. >Another idea for connecting antennas on the fly to enhance the rubber >ducky would be to whittle off the rubber at the tip of the ducky until >one reaches the coil, and then alligator clip various things to that. >However this is probably a road to ruin. Same problem as above. The antenna is not just a wire. Dave ------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor ---------------------~--> Get A Free Psychic Reading! Your Online Answer To Life's Important Questions. http://us.click.yahoo.com/O10svD/Me7FAA/uetFAA/ELTolB/TM ---------------------------------------------------------------------~-> Post message: [email protected] Subscribe: [email protected] Unsubscribe: [email protected] List owner: [email protected] Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/