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Maco base antennas
- Thread starter Se7en
- Start date
If you are a Ham; then you might want the A99 or an Imax. I don't know what you have against it. Cheap and usable Ham antenna. My Imax easily tunes on 10, 11, 12, 15, and 17 meters. Same is true for the A99. The V58 is a 5/8 wave antenna that can only do 11 and 10 meters and needs a tuner for 10 meter. The V-quad and 3 element beam will do the 10 and 11 meter bands using an antenna tuner too. The only time I use an antenna tuner with the Imax is on 15 and 17 meters, just to clean up a small SWR difference.
The V-Quad and the 3 element are of course directional beam antennas that will require a rotor and have some usable gain and bandwidth.
I use an Imax and a 4 element Sirio beam, and that worked out well for me . . .
The V-Quad and the 3 element are of course directional beam antennas that will require a rotor and have some usable gain and bandwidth.
I use an Imax and a 4 element Sirio beam, and that worked out well for me . . .
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all im trying to do is get a base antenna with gain i talk to people base to base with atleast 50 mile difference. ok if i had to choose between the a99 and imax2k?
The A99 is a 1/2 wave antenna, and the Imax is a 5/8 wave antenna. It depends how much you want to spend. The Imax is about $100 and the A99 is about $70. I wanted the performance of a 5/8 wave antenna, so I went with the Imax.
However, to get 50 mile distance is something no antenna mfr can guarantee. I get more than 50 miles out of mine; but location is everything. Location, location, and location! Are you on a hill, in a small valley, or living on The Great Plains? Even the ground itself can be favorable or a hindrance for radio wave propagation.
The first important 'location' is the location of the antenna's height above ground. About 35 ft from the ground to the antenna 'feed point' (where the coax screws on to the antenna) is a height that will work for you.
The antenna comes from the factory with the SWR adjustment already made for you. All you have to do is put the sections together and mount it on metal masting and secure it.
I live in San Jose CA and can talk all over the SF Bay Area. Some ares come in better than others, but the bay itself helps this out.
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So much information available on the net.
Recommend you GOOGLE search each antenna you mentioned, you can also look at some different sights for comparing the antennas.
Height is a consideration as ROBB mentioned.
Point to point coms the yagi is the way to go, but there is expense to that yagi, towers, rotors etc, etc.
the IMAX 2000, after researching for a few months, and listening to ROBB sing the praises of it, I bought one and installed it at 70 feet, it works great 10/11/12/15 I have yet to try 17 meters on it but all the above is with no tuner for my install.
Do your research, figure out what you want to do, and
Do not forget to look at the QUAD antenna, if you just want 50 mile coms and a great signal the quad is hard to beat.Morse123,
There are several 'differences' between those antennas. The first one is that one is an omni-directional antenna, the other two are directional or 'beams'. That's the biggest difference I think.
Next is that they all have some 'gain' to them. Not very much at all for the 5/8 wave omni-directional antenna, and depending on a lot of factors, moderate amounts of 'gain' for the two directional antennas. There's nothing wrong with some 'gain', but carrying that to extremes is not all that productive at all.
And then there's are the 'problems', inconveniences, and cost associated with the various types of antennas. Omni-directional antennas tend to be the simplest to deal with. It amounts to getting them at the highest -practical- height for you and your particular situation. That 35 - 36 feet thingy is more 'optimism' than 'dead-nutz' fact. A different height can be the 'best' depending on the surroundings. That's cuz 'Momma Nature' controls propagation, not us, and we all don't live in the 'perfect' place for electrical characteristics of the 'dirt'/water.
And then there's the supporting structure for the antenna. And the means of turning those directional antennas in the direction that you want. Those things can exceed the cost of the antenna by quite a bit. Sometimes not very practical at all.
So, all things considered, I wouldn't make a recommendation for an antenna for you. I simply don't know enough about your goals, financial situation, or what you can do where you live. Good luck, hope you find something that fit's your needs.
- 'Doc
There are several 'differences' between those antennas. The first one is that one is an omni-directional antenna, the other two are directional or 'beams'. That's the biggest difference I think.
Next is that they all have some 'gain' to them. Not very much at all for the 5/8 wave omni-directional antenna, and depending on a lot of factors, moderate amounts of 'gain' for the two directional antennas. There's nothing wrong with some 'gain', but carrying that to extremes is not all that productive at all.
And then there's are the 'problems', inconveniences, and cost associated with the various types of antennas. Omni-directional antennas tend to be the simplest to deal with. It amounts to getting them at the highest -practical- height for you and your particular situation. That 35 - 36 feet thingy is more 'optimism' than 'dead-nutz' fact. A different height can be the 'best' depending on the surroundings. That's cuz 'Momma Nature' controls propagation, not us, and we all don't live in the 'perfect' place for electrical characteristics of the 'dirt'/water.
And then there's the supporting structure for the antenna. And the means of turning those directional antennas in the direction that you want. Those things can exceed the cost of the antenna by quite a bit. Sometimes not very practical at all.
So, all things considered, I wouldn't make a recommendation for an antenna for you. I simply don't know enough about your goals, financial situation, or what you can do where you live. Good luck, hope you find something that fit's your needs.
- 'Doc
Your Imax is only a part of the radiator when you use it on 12 15 and 17. The coax shield is doing a lot of the radiating too. Might make some unwanted neighbor friends like that.
antenna
I had the MACO v58 and they are OK 50 mile radius I rather doubt it, 25 is more than likely, it works on 11 meters and on 10 a tuner is needed.
If you get a wind over 65 mph for a constant time forget the antenna it bends in high wind gusts.
I opted for a Sorio 2016 and it works great on 10 meters with my tuner and I only tried it on 11 meters once and the average was 30 miles when the band was closed, as all radio people know it depends on the height, obstructions, and power run..
DOCTOR/795
I had the MACO v58 and they are OK 50 mile radius I rather doubt it, 25 is more than likely, it works on 11 meters and on 10 a tuner is needed.
If you get a wind over 65 mph for a constant time forget the antenna it bends in high wind gusts.
I opted for a Sorio 2016 and it works great on 10 meters with my tuner and I only tried it on 11 meters once and the average was 30 miles when the band was closed, as all radio people know it depends on the height, obstructions, and power run..
DOCTOR/795
i agree with doictor i run a sirio 2016 and chat 50 miles with 100 watts
the sirio 827 is/supposed to be slightly better.
for a beam the v-quad and y quad are dual polarity needing 2 coax cables
and constantly turning them when txing locally unless everyon lives
in same direction.making these undesireable imho.
the m103 mounted horizonally would be great for dx so in short
sirio 2016/827 for local chatting
maco m103 monted horizonlly for dx
i dont like the a99 or imax either they transmitted in my neighbors
tvs ,steros,pc speakers, better than on the airwaves ..lol id stay away
the sirio 827 is/supposed to be slightly better.
for a beam the v-quad and y quad are dual polarity needing 2 coax cables
and constantly turning them when txing locally unless everyon lives
in same direction.making these undesireable imho.
the m103 mounted horizonally would be great for dx so in short
sirio 2016/827 for local chatting
maco m103 monted horizonlly for dx
i dont like the a99 or imax either they transmitted in my neighbors
tvs ,steros,pc speakers, better than on the airwaves ..lol id stay away
B
BOOTY MONSTER
Guest
that's very true and definitely something you should consider before buying a base antenna without ground elements . neighbors constantly complaining about hearing you through their electronics (tv , computer , phone radio ) and the spouse/kids at your house too will get old real quick . id strongly suggest something with full 1/4 wave length ground elements .
are you just going to be using this with a cb radio or are you wanting to use it on ham frequency's too ? if youre in a area without very high winds or heavy snow/ice in the winter ill suggest a sirio vector 4000 .
B
BOOTY MONSTER
Guest
its a flip of the coin determined by your particular location . some folks say it helped , some say it didn't make any difference . sorry that there isn't a definitive answer , but antennas are like the real estate business ...... location location location . typically though a antenna with 1/4 wave length ground elements dont cause the issues common to the imax and antron antennas .
it could help 50/50 chance at best.reason the gpk for the imax the radials
are only 6 feet in lenth.if they were 9 feet it might help more imho.
lets put it this way i live in a very rural ghetto area a few folks have the base antennas and a few run 2kw + also have a ham OP with over 30 antennas on his property. cool guy too
i only have a 45' antenna tower then the imax2k is in my budget and is what would work better then the cheezy dipole i'm using. 100$ is the most i can spend on a antenna ill be running 100w or less.....and i like how it can be tuned 10m - 17m without clipping anything.
my current alt is 175' above sea level + the 45' tower 220' alt
if i could afford a maco 8 element id mount that in the back yard since i have 12 yards of free space and absolutely no power lines around my property.
i only have a 45' antenna tower then the imax2k is in my budget and is what would work better then the cheezy dipole i'm using. 100$ is the most i can spend on a antenna ill be running 100w or less.....and i like how it can be tuned 10m - 17m without clipping anything.
my current alt is 175' above sea level + the 45' tower 220' alt
if i could afford a maco 8 element id mount that in the back yard since i have 12 yards of free space and absolutely no power lines around my property.