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FR24 Box Antenna upgrade

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  • FR24 Box Antenna upgrade

    I've had the FR24 Receiver box for some time now (around 2013) and I've noticed since installing my range has dropped by a small margin.

    I'll be installing AIS & FLARM antennas shortly for other sharing projects so while I'm up on my chimney and have access to the ADS-B antenna FR24 provided for me, I was wondering if it would be worth upgrading the ADS-B antenna for something with a slightly higher gain. Am I right in thinking it is a 0Dbi antenna? Also could water ingress be causing an issue over the 4 years?

    I'm also wondering if maybe my issues are being caused by interference and the next question would be does the FR24 Box have a Bandpass filter and if not would there be any issues fitting one, something like the FA's branded one? I'm in a fairly urban area next to a large BT Comms (microwave) tower.

    What's the unwritten rules on antenna separation? By Height rather than spacing them out horizontally?

  • #2
    If its the one they provided its fairly matched with the hardware and quite well gained.

    So possibly not a lot of point adding a different one. Sure its not seasonal atmospherics? Other than that yes, water can corrode the contact pins if they were not weather sealed and kept out of the way of the elements.

    Cells can be a small interference depending on the local frequency band used. And theres a small amplifier in the unit already so a bandpass could be detrimental.

    Check out the best antenna thread and similar for other user findings
    Posts not to be taken as official support representation - Just a helpful uploader who tinkers

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    • #3
      Originally posted by ScotsSharer View Post
      Am I right in thinking it is a 0Dbi antenna? Also could water ingress be causing an issue over the 4 years?
      No, it has 4.8 dBi gain.



      Water/moisture in cable and connectors is always a risk if you didn't install it correctly. There should be one layer of self-amalgamating tape , AND one outer layer of black electrical tape (for UV protection).

      Originally posted by ScotsSharer View Post
      I'm also wondering if maybe my issues are being caused by interference and the next question would be does the FR24 Box have a Bandpass filter and if not would there be any issues fitting one, something like the FA's branded one?
      There is a SAW filter inside the box, the FA filter will not add any benefit, just attenuation. If you are REALLY close to a GSM BTS, you may or may not see an improvement with a cavity filter.

      Originally posted by ScotsSharer View Post
      What's the unwritten rules on antenna separation? By Height rather than spacing them out horizontally?
      The important thing is to keep any conductive object out of the antennas near-field. But in general, vertical separation is great if possible, since the gain lobes of the antenna is oriented horizontally.

      /M
      F-ESDF1, F-ESGG1, F-ESGP1, F-ESNK1, F-ESNV2, F-ESNV3 F-ESSL4, F-ESNZ7, F-LFMN3
      T-ESNL1, T-ESNL2, T-ESGR15
      P-ESIA, P-ESIB, P-ESGF, P-ESSN, P-EFMA
      mrmac (a) fastest.cc

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