Steve, you've made and shared a genuinely interesting and informative video. You even managed to include a bit of jeopardy, when the loop initially appeared to be underperforming your doublet. Please make more like this.
I didn’t think people still said things like blimey, I wish we could sit for a coffee somewhere as you sound damn interesting. Take care of yourself sir, safe travels.
What a wonderful review. Thanks. One question: When using the scope on the Icom in a wider view (like 250Khz or 500Khz), are you able to receive the whole spectrum, or is the filter so tight that you can't see adjacent stations on the scope?
Hello Steve, as mentioned by many other enthusiasts you have made indeed a very comprehensive and informative video. Well done! I am a former user of the babyloop antenna and I used it intensely for many years with success. Later on I sold it to a very good friend of mine which I regret till this day. However it is my intention to buy the loop again since this is the most ideal antenna in my space limited situation. The most remarkable fact of your findings was, at least for me, that the babyloop in your situation was more sensitive for DX signals in the opposite direction in comparison what is explained in the antenna instruction manual, i.e. not in the direction of the gamma match but the other side. At the time I used the babyloop I was not aware of this property or behaviour I simply followed the instructions give by Cirro Mazzoni. I would like to you see, and with me many other radio amateurs I presume, If this also is also the case on your transmissions. Could you do some other experiments for us and share these with us? I would recommend you to make use of the Reverse Beacon Network or RBN for short. You do not need any additional equipment connected to your transceiver. You just use your computer to monitor your results. You only have to give CQ in { CW / RTTY / PSK31 or PSK63 } on a certain frequency repeatedly by sending the following sentence "TEST de G4HPE TEST". Make it last for a few minutes or so and observe your results on the RBN main page. Turn the babyloop in exactly the opposite direction and repeat the same procedure again. I am looking forward to you reaction ( and your findings of course! ) Sincerely Erwin, best 73 de PA3FCB
Thanks for uploading the video Steve very concise and helpful . Certainly looks a very good option especially for those with antenna constraints. Well worth considering 😊
I've got to say a massive thank you for doing this video. It's the best Baby loop video out there and it's so informative. Over the next few days I'll be setting my own baby loop up so I'm sure I will watch this video several more times I suspect🙂
How can I say... Just perfect. The one of the best presentations I've ever seen on YT. Full of clear, straightforward, useful information. No empty chit-chat on a negligible topic. Very well done! Congratulations! 73 de HA5CST
Dear Steve, 28:32 Have you tried swapping the wire connections to the SO 239 socket that came attached on the baby loop, may be manufacturer soldered it crosswired at the factory?...that my guess. 73 VU3FXD
Hello from Switzerland, congratulations on an excellent presentation, I just had to watch this twice. I am located in a situation that cries out for a Baby Loop; small plot, potentially dangerous neighbors ! I am almost convinced that this is for me but may I ask about your findings since this video was made 10 months ago ? Grateful to you. Kind regards, John HB9IMG
Steve, at 5:20 min you are talking about the height the antenna should be above the ground. As an absolute newbie, I would like to know if this antenna is supposed to be mount more or less close to the ground (like in your garden), or if it is also OK to mount higher up, like for example on the fence of a balcony ~10 above the ground.
I found this fascinating. Years ago I had a AEA Isoloop, a much more rudimentary system which had to be tuned manually and was very touchy. On 15m at least, it was quite effective. I wonder if the tuning process can be detected by nearby operators? I suggest that you may want to waterproof the front of the PL259. Water can seep through the threads. Usually I use self-vulcanizing rubber tape covered with a layer of vinyl tape to protect it against the sun, although probably you needn't worry about sun in the UK! -- 4X6GP
I am looking for about your product place lace me a message. When I post this , I am looking for more information no this . Want know about this . can much run and pay one USA Kentucky
Thank you very much Steve , at last a decent video explaining the use of the Baby loop , I have been looking for a couple of years for this type of accurate information , most are just waffle and rubbish and not explaining the required information . Keep them coming G1ILJ
Hello Steve, this is by far the best video about this baby loop. Although extremely clean English is spoken. I didn't fully understand a small point because I speak German. If the antenna is in fully automatic mode and I scan the frequency for stations on the Icom with the VFO, the tuning of the antenna is also fully automatic, did I understand that correctly? Sorry if I'm asking such a stupid question?😢
A friend of mine built a 10 to 20 Meter Loop which worked great on all five bands, it too had a very high Q, guess it's the nature of the Propagation Beast...However! The Tunable 20 to 150 Picofarad clamped plate capacitor could only handle 30 watts anything over that it was just a conductor....Thank you very much for this presentation. Well done 73's KC3ZDW
Great video Steve. Lots of great information well explained. I'd be interested to know how you weather sealed the side of the terminal box where the cable tie attached.
I'd prefer if you looked at weak signals as opposed to S9 stations. Also many get the loop for noise levels, especially on the lower HF bands, we saw no demo of this... Just an observation. I thought of getting the Midi loop, but jury is still out.
Well done Steve, a very detailed demo with some very good tips. I have a baby loop and a midi loop here. I did some trial tests on the baby loop over a 2 week period and was happy with the results. I used the keypad to alter frequencies and found the forward and reverse directions to be very similar in signal strength. I did some tests on the 40m band on our local radio club net and found the baby loop to be omnidirectional and and rotating the loop had very little effect. I assume that was because the radio club boys were within 40 Km of my location so I guess that means the 40m band NVIS propagation is omnidirectional and DX propagation or more directional. I added Fair-Rite mix 31 suppression torroids on all cables - the coax, the rotator cables and the DC motor cables. Those ferrites were added at both ends of each cable to ensure they were all adequately choked. I'm using the same rotor as you and I would be delighted if it would rotate at double the speed to get to the target direction quicker. Thanks again, 73, Jamie VK2YCJ
Good day Steve, thanks for the nice review. Due to the high Q of the antenna, I tend to tune the frequency of the antenna 1 kHz higher than the radio, when I'm in USB and tune the antenna 1 kHz lower when I use LSB. (I have the MIDI-Loop). I noticed that this gets my reading of the SWR exactly the same on the Loop-tuner and my TRX. On the part of issues with the tuning box of the loop, I recently got many times the fault: "Motor fail - no load". Initially, I checked all connections on the tuner, on my radio and on the antenna itself. I found some moist inside the tuning motor cable connection box, at the base of the antenna. It also partially corroded the wires of the connections there. I ended up getting rid of the terminal blocks there and soldered the wires together of the incoming and outgoing side of the RF choke that is housed inside that box. But it didn't solve the issue with getting "Motor fail - no load". Only after I swapped the + and - connection of the tuning motor, on the side of the "tiny little" plug that goes into the back of the tuning unit, it was solved. To this day (3 months later) the fault hasn't returned and I can enjoy the antenna again. 73 from Holland de PC7H - Roy
Terrific demonstration and thorough. Your installation is working very well and I'm surprised given the size of the loop. Unfortunately, for this level of performance, the price is high.
Regarding noise some bands have more noise than others I put it down to the frequency spectrum of the different switch mode PSU use is what my conclusion has come to.
Good video and well done. I have the baby loop with a Flexradio 6700 and a power Genius XL amp, they work well together. I am only one mile From Brookmand Park without the loop I would be not able to work on HF. Thank you G3DEN
Steve, I have a question. in your video you didn't showed how the remote stations received you on the baby loop vs the douplet. I would be interesting to hear your experience with that
Well that was a surprise to find your video recommended in my RUclips feed Steve. Your loop is certainly a substantial piece of engineering. My biggest problem is electrical noise to the front of my property where the shack is, whereas the rear is quieter. I do have a loop in the rear garden, but it is active RX only. A couple of thoughts, have you considered upgrading your stepladder? A more rigid set of steps is a definite plus. We have a set with yellow grp sides with aluminium treads, there are also a set of side rails that you can brace a leg against, they make quite a difference. I agree that your DC cable into that small plug on the back of the controller is less than ideal, if you are still concerned you could use six inches or so of a lighter gauge cable say 6A as a transition to the 40A. The impedance loss would be negligible, I’m sure it’s running on pcb tracks inside the box. Anyway an interesting video and good luck with your new loop. Excuse the strange RUclips handle, it dates from when I had my big bike and I’ve never changed it. Cheers Nick G0OQK
I'm really very impressed! I'd be interested in your results on transmit. I have a fairly high noise floor on the lower HF bands and went for a Wellbrook RX loop as an RX only antenna with my TRX. Loops really do make a huge difference in noise floor - whilst the signal on the loop may be a couple of S-points down on a resonant antenna, the s/n is so much better that the actual strength almost is irrelevant compared to the vast improvement in listening experience.
Thanks for all your effort in the review. I've had a baby loop for a couple of years and my experiences match the review. I was able to test the loop at a couple of different locations in the yard and noted that the location and height made significant performance differences. I wound up reducing the height a couple of feet to improve SWR on 10 meters. I also painted it green to make it invisible against the pine trees. For me, well worth the effort and resources.
Hm! Petty the gamma is heavily welded , trimming that would put you SWR in place. I dont know if that paste is good or bad , I would put it together fluss, and then protect it from outside with silicone grease , and then service it from time to time. How is the loop reacting to heavy rain and snow with the non protected capacitor? How are the "nills" in and out of the plane? and are they also offset like the beam heading? Would be nice if the loop was offered as a raw loop , and then you could put together your own controller , eg arduino Just a thought, Tnx es gl
The capacitors is just fins of alum in air space... I could see water or snow changing values as it would take up space but pretty hard to harm the ant.
I'm curious to know how well the loop rejects local noise? You do mention that it's quieter in the video around 28 mins, but don't quantify that. Many Thanks, John 2E0SVB
I haven't quantified noise rejection (I never had noise!). But the pattern for the antenna gives you a rough indication: a figure of eight pattern, with vertical polarisation in the plane of the antenna, and horizontal at 90 degrees to it. The nulls in the pattern are sharp and deep. So there will be strong noise rejection within those nulls. Low-mounted loops (high ones are non-ideal electrically and physically) will have broad patterns and there's nothing to suggest this aspect would reduce noise.
Excellent informative video. None of the other reviews I have seen have been conclusive. I have been looking at these loops for some time and you have persuaded me to buy. (2nd hand) I have small garden with a Hustler 6BTV. I can only deploy radials on a 45 degree segment. I hope that the Baby Loop will improve my reception.
Have you tried using more, but shorter radials for the vertical? Remember that almost all of the return current intensity is within the first ~10% of the radial's length; beyond that, it's largely a waste of wire and a needless feeling of constraint.
I can imagine what the signal strength would be with the loop at the same height as the doublet. Definitely an advantage with a directional antenna versus your doublet. Mark KB3Z
Whilst a clear aspect is certainly important, height isn't for a magloop, and indeed works against DX performance in general. If you model one (vertically erected, as in the video), at 2m base height, you get a 'loaf of bread pattern', that covers all paths, long and short, fairly equally for the vpol radiation. There is somewhat weaker hpol radiation at 90 degrees to this. Take it to 10m, and it will reach much the same peak low angle radiation at 10 degrees (about -1dBi, but this value is likely to be significantly lower than for a real loop, as my WSPR tests tend to show). But overall, there is a loss of pattern at lower elevations at 10m, compared to 2m height and the NVIS increases by 5dBi at 90 degrees. So, unless NVIS is your quarry, a lower loop is the best all-round solution.
Great video and demo, Steve. I bought a Baby-loop in June of 2022. I live in a small city and on a small lot. I wanted an antenna with the ability to direct the signal. I mounted mine on a Yeasu 450 rotator and started using it. I also found that the signals, both transmitted and received, are stronger off the backside of the loop. Glad to see that it wasn't just my installation. I've also tried it at two different heights based on the minimum and maximum distance recommended by the manufacturer. I have made numerous DX QSO'S with it. The noise level is lower than my 65' Windom and my DX Commander Rapide. 73, KC8WVG. Ciro Mazzoni should reference your video on their website.
They should at least try and heat the aluminum before welding, cold weld. I'm not much of a welder myself but have a welder and understand what it takes to weld aluminum. There's AC polorazition shift/bias offset settings to clean as you weld. Shouldn't look loke that at those prices. They'll probably improve over time.@@jasonpalmer5437
If you have a scope in your rig, and a "tuner tuner" (palomar 340) you can tune a magnetic loop dead on freq, huge null on the scope. I've done it. @@jasonpalmer5437
I checked the coaxial connection with volt meter on the baby loop It shows a direct short between center pin to screw connected is this normal for the loop.
@@williamjohnston8775 Test the coax first un-connected from the antenna to eliminate any doubt. Then check again connected, it is likely normal. Remember "Radio Frequency" is Alternating Current so there is no reason to have an open circuit in the driven portion of the loop. I'd need to have a hands on understanding of the antenna to speculate any further. "73"
@@MONTY-YTNOM it's at the end of the garden just placed on the ground . It's meant to be directional but I find it omnidirectional. Fantastic on 40m for its size.
I really enjoyed this video. I have no intention of purchasing such equipment though I have no doubt your efforts would aid others who are. Looking forward to more videos from your RUclips channel. M0GJQ
Steve, you've made and shared a genuinely interesting and informative video. You even managed to include a bit of jeopardy, when the loop initially appeared to be underperforming your doublet. Please make more like this.
Good Grief! Just about all aspect of this unit and it's installation must baffle and scare the daylights out of beginner hams!
Blimey. Over complicated. Just simple things suits me as now I am an old guy with my memory isn't good. George
I didn’t think people still said things like blimey, I wish we could sit for a coffee somewhere as you sound damn interesting. Take care of yourself sir, safe travels.
What a wonderful review. Thanks. One question: When using the scope on the Icom in a wider view (like 250Khz or 500Khz), are you able to receive the whole spectrum, or is the filter so tight that you can't see adjacent stations on the scope?
Hello Steve, as mentioned by many other enthusiasts you have made indeed a very comprehensive and informative video. Well done!
I am a former user of the babyloop antenna and I used it intensely for many years with success. Later on I sold it to a very good friend of mine which I regret till this day. However it is my intention to buy the loop again since this is the most ideal antenna in my space limited situation.
The most remarkable fact of your findings was, at least for me, that the babyloop in your situation was more sensitive for DX signals in the opposite direction in comparison what is explained in the antenna instruction manual, i.e. not in the direction of the gamma match but the other side. At the time I used the babyloop I was not aware of this property or behaviour I simply followed the instructions give by Cirro Mazzoni.
I would like to you see, and with me many other radio amateurs I presume, If this also is also the case on your transmissions.
Could you do some other experiments for us and share these with us?
I would recommend you to make use of the Reverse Beacon Network or RBN for short. You do not need any additional equipment connected to your transceiver. You just use your computer to monitor your results.
You only have to give CQ in { CW / RTTY / PSK31 or PSK63 } on a certain frequency repeatedly by sending the following sentence "TEST de G4HPE TEST". Make it last for a few minutes or so and observe your results on the RBN main page. Turn the babyloop in exactly the opposite direction and repeat the same procedure again.
I am looking forward to you reaction ( and your findings of course! )
Sincerely
Erwin, best 73 de PA3FCB
Thanks for uploading the video Steve very concise and helpful . Certainly looks a very good option especially for those with antenna constraints. Well worth considering 😊
Excellent demo video, Steve! We couldn't have done better!
Thanks a lot and 73 to you. I3VHF Ciro and the LOOP Antenna team
I do wonder about using a conductive mounting… surely this affects the loop?
Would an insulated mounting make any difference. ?
I've got to say a massive thank you for doing this video. It's the best Baby loop video out there and it's so informative.
Over the next few days I'll be setting my own baby loop up so I'm sure I will watch this video several more times I suspect🙂
Absolutely excellent video, thank you. What is the performance like on TX? (Compared with your other HF antenna?).
How can I say...
Just perfect. The one of the best presentations I've ever seen on YT. Full of clear, straightforward, useful information. No empty chit-chat on a negligible topic. Very well done! Congratulations!
73 de HA5CST
Dear Steve,
28:32 Have you tried swapping the wire connections to the SO 239 socket that came attached on the baby loop, may be manufacturer soldered it crosswired at the factory?...that my guess.
73 VU3FXD
Hello from Switzerland, congratulations on an excellent presentation, I just had to watch this twice. I am located in a situation that cries out for a Baby Loop; small plot, potentially dangerous neighbors ! I am almost convinced that this is for me but may I ask about your findings since this video was made 10 months ago ? Grateful to you. Kind regards, John HB9IMG
Thanks for the video, very intteresting. I wish I could have one. I can only dream. M0AYO
Steve, at 5:20 min you are talking about the height the antenna should be above the ground. As an absolute newbie, I would like to know if this antenna is supposed to be mount more or less close to the ground (like in your garden), or if it is also OK to mount higher up, like for example on the fence of a balcony ~10 above the ground.
I found this fascinating. Years ago I had a AEA Isoloop, a much more rudimentary system which had to be tuned manually and was very touchy. On 15m at least, it was quite effective. I wonder if the tuning process can be detected by nearby operators?
I suggest that you may want to waterproof the front of the PL259. Water can seep through the threads. Usually I use self-vulcanizing rubber tape covered with a layer of vinyl tape to protect it against the sun, although probably you needn't worry about sun in the UK! -- 4X6GP
very nice video thank you
73, OG4U
Very useful video! Cheers from GW4LJW.
Would love to see a transmit video on this compared to what signal your doublet gets out
I was just going to comment the same thing !😀
I was just going to comment the same thing !😀
Typically -6dB
Can I ask you, how much is the real life SWR 1:2 bandwidth ?
An interesting experiment... What do you actually mean that the loop is more effective than a normal dipole?
Well I've been using/testing my the last few days and I'm not sure it needs a rotator, but I agree that its 180* out :)
I am looking for about your product place lace me a message. When I post this , I am looking for more information no this . Want know about this . can much run and pay one USA Kentucky
What ?
Dx Engineering sells the loop in the USA, somewhat close to Kentucky, their store is southeast of Cleveland in Tallmadge Ohio.
Thank you very much Steve , at last a decent video explaining the use of the Baby loop , I have been looking for a couple of years for this type of accurate information , most are just waffle and rubbish and not explaining the required information . Keep them coming G1ILJ
mw1cfnradio.blogspot.com/2018/06/magnetic-loop-careful-what-you-believe.html
Can we have an update on the loop please?
Nice garden big enough for a array of antennas
Outstanding video. Thoughtfully put together and an honest evaluation. Subscribed. 73
is the pole steel or aluminium ?
Excellent video.
Hello Steve, this is by far the best video about this baby loop. Although extremely clean English is spoken. I didn't fully understand a small point because I speak German. If the antenna is in fully automatic mode and I scan the frequency for stations on the Icom with the VFO, the tuning of the antenna is also fully automatic, did I understand that correctly? Sorry if I'm asking such a stupid question?😢
It’s always a pleasure to enjoy a proper British review. Thank you for sharing. Enjoy your superbly- performing new antenna. 73s de KO6ARA
A friend of mine built a 10 to 20 Meter Loop which worked great on all five bands, it too had a very high Q, guess it's the nature of the Propagation Beast...However! The Tunable 20 to 150 Picofarad clamped plate capacitor could only handle 30 watts anything over that it was just a conductor....Thank you very much for this presentation. Well done 73's KC3ZDW
Great video Steve. Lots of great information well explained. I'd be interested to know how you weather sealed the side of the terminal box where the cable tie attached.
I'd prefer if you looked at weak signals as opposed to S9 stations. Also many get the loop for noise levels, especially on the lower HF bands, we saw no demo of this... Just an observation.
I thought of getting the Midi loop, but jury is still out.
Well done Steve, a very detailed demo with some very good tips. I have a baby loop and a midi loop here. I did some trial tests on the baby loop over a 2 week period and was happy with the results. I used the keypad to alter frequencies and found the forward and reverse directions to be very similar in signal strength. I did some tests on the 40m band on our local radio club net and found the baby loop to be omnidirectional and and rotating the loop had very little effect. I assume that was because the radio club boys were within 40 Km of my location so I guess that means the 40m band NVIS propagation is omnidirectional and DX propagation or more directional. I added Fair-Rite mix 31 suppression torroids on all cables - the coax, the rotator cables and the DC motor cables. Those ferrites were added at both ends of each cable to ensure they were all adequately choked. I'm using the same rotor as you and I would be delighted if it would rotate at double the speed to get to the target direction quicker. Thanks again, 73, Jamie VK2YCJ
Good day Steve, thanks for the nice review.
Due to the high Q of the antenna, I tend to tune the frequency of the antenna 1 kHz higher than the radio, when I'm in USB and tune the antenna 1 kHz lower when I use LSB. (I have the MIDI-Loop). I noticed that this gets my reading of the SWR exactly the same on the Loop-tuner and my TRX.
On the part of issues with the tuning box of the loop, I recently got many times the fault: "Motor fail - no load".
Initially, I checked all connections on the tuner, on my radio and on the antenna itself. I found some moist inside the tuning motor cable connection box, at the base of the antenna. It also partially corroded the wires of the connections there. I ended up getting rid of the terminal blocks there and soldered the wires together of the incoming and outgoing side of the RF choke that is housed inside that box.
But it didn't solve the issue with getting "Motor fail - no load". Only after I swapped the + and - connection of the tuning motor, on the side of the "tiny little" plug that goes into the back of the tuning unit, it was solved.
To this day (3 months later) the fault hasn't returned and I can enjoy the antenna again.
73 from Holland de PC7H - Roy
Great video with a good explanation of how the antenna works and performers good luck and enjoy.. thanks George MW0SWR .
What a wonderful and most enjoyable presentation.
Thank you for taking the time to document and film your work.
Subscribed… HI HI
Terrific demonstration and thorough. Your installation is working very well and I'm surprised given the size of the loop. Unfortunately, for this level of performance, the price is high.
Thank you for filming this nice presentation of this product. Definitely the only so comprehensive on youtube. Much appreciated.
73
Diego
Regarding noise some bands have more noise than others I put it down to the frequency spectrum of the different switch mode PSU use is what my conclusion has come to.
Great video Steve, good recommendation from the RUclips algorithm 👍
Does the loop tuner have memories so it can recall them quickly or does it retune each time?
Good video and well done. I have the baby loop with a Flexradio 6700 and a power Genius XL amp, they work well together. I am only one mile From Brookmand Park without the loop I would be not able to work on HF. Thank you G3DEN
What a nice and detailed video. I own the baby loop myself and use it on 11m around the tripple 5. It works great. 73s de 13AB66
Steve, I have a question. in your video you didn't showed how the remote stations received you on the baby loop vs the douplet. I would be interesting to hear your experience with that
This was a great video! How are you finding the loop?
Great steve, exactly what i was looking for, greetings from brazil
Well that was a surprise to find your video recommended in my RUclips feed Steve. Your loop is certainly a substantial piece of engineering. My biggest problem is electrical noise to the front of my property where the shack is, whereas the rear is quieter. I do have a loop in the rear garden, but it is active RX only.
A couple of thoughts, have you considered upgrading your stepladder? A more rigid set of steps is a definite plus. We have a set with yellow grp sides with aluminium treads, there are also a set of side rails that you can brace a leg against, they make quite a difference.
I agree that your DC cable into that small plug on the back of the controller is less than ideal, if you are still concerned you could use six inches or so of a lighter gauge cable say 6A as a transition to the 40A. The impedance loss would be negligible, I’m sure it’s running on pcb tracks inside the box.
Anyway an interesting video and good luck with your new loop.
Excuse the strange RUclips handle, it dates from when I had my big bike and I’ve never changed it.
Cheers Nick G0OQK
Best demo video I've found so far!
Thanks for your effort 👍
Absolutely brilliant review! looks fantastic if I ever win the lottery :D haha!!
Thank you for the excellent video on the Ciro Mazzini Baby Loop.
I'm really very impressed! I'd be interested in your results on transmit. I have a fairly high noise floor on the lower HF bands and went for a Wellbrook RX loop as an RX only antenna with my TRX.
Loops really do make a huge difference in noise floor - whilst the signal on the loop may be a couple of S-points down on a resonant antenna, the s/n is so much better that the actual strength almost is irrelevant compared to the vast improvement in listening experience.
Excellent and thorough coverage. Thank you so much for making this video !
Great video pls do another and include some tx so we can see the performance at differing power levels. Well done ! Excellent stuff
Thanks for all your effort in the review. I've had a baby loop for a couple of years and my experiences match the review. I was able to test the loop at a couple of different locations in the yard and noted that the location and height made significant performance differences. I wound up reducing the height a couple of feet to improve SWR on 10 meters. I also painted it green to make it invisible against the pine trees. For me, well worth the effort and resources.
Buenas 73s desde Canarias que tal funciona la antena loop magnetica
Hm! Petty the gamma is heavily welded , trimming that would put you SWR in place. I dont know if that paste is good or bad , I would put it together fluss, and then protect it from outside with silicone grease , and then service it from time to time.
How is the loop reacting to heavy rain and snow with the non protected capacitor?
How are the "nills" in and out of the plane? and are they also offset like the beam heading?
Would be nice if the loop was offered as a raw loop , and then you could put together your own controller , eg arduino
Just a thought, Tnx es gl
The capacitors is just fins of alum in air space... I could see water or snow changing values as it would take up space but pretty hard to harm the ant.
Hello Fine review Thanks SEB
I'm curious to know how well the loop rejects local noise? You do mention that it's quieter in the video around 28 mins, but don't quantify that. Many Thanks, John 2E0SVB
I haven't quantified noise rejection (I never had noise!). But the pattern for the antenna gives you a rough indication: a figure of eight pattern, with vertical polarisation in the plane of the antenna, and horizontal at 90 degrees to it. The nulls in the pattern are sharp and deep. So there will be strong noise rejection within those nulls. Low-mounted loops (high ones are non-ideal electrically and physically) will have broad patterns and there's nothing to suggest this aspect would reduce noise.
a very interesting & informative video , thanks 73
Excellent informative video.
None of the other reviews I have seen have been conclusive.
I have been looking at these loops for some time and you have persuaded me to buy. (2nd hand)
I have small garden with a Hustler 6BTV. I can only deploy radials on a 45 degree segment. I hope that the Baby Loop will improve my reception.
Have you tried using more, but shorter radials for the vertical? Remember that almost all of the return current intensity is within the first ~10% of the radial's length; beyond that, it's largely a waste of wire and a needless feeling of constraint.
I can imagine what the signal strength would be with the loop at the same height as the doublet. Definitely an advantage with a directional antenna versus your doublet. Mark KB3Z
Whilst a clear aspect is certainly important, height isn't for a magloop, and indeed works against DX performance in general. If you model one (vertically erected, as in the video), at 2m base height, you get a 'loaf of bread pattern', that covers all paths, long and short, fairly equally for the vpol radiation. There is somewhat weaker hpol radiation at 90 degrees to this. Take it to 10m, and it will reach much the same peak low angle radiation at 10 degrees (about -1dBi, but this value is likely to be significantly lower than for a real loop, as my WSPR tests tend to show). But overall, there is a loss of pattern at lower elevations at 10m, compared to 2m height and the NVIS increases by 5dBi at 90 degrees. So, unless NVIS is your quarry, a lower loop is the best all-round solution.
Interesting video. Just one comment. Personally I would have assembled the loop in the house and carried the assembly out to the garden.
Dont do that with the midi, its over 7 foot from mount to Cap 😂😂😂
Great video Steve,
Thanks
And when it's freezing or snowing... What's happend ?
Dont worry about it 😂
Great video and demo, Steve. I bought a Baby-loop in June of 2022. I live in a small city and on a small lot. I wanted an antenna with the ability to direct the signal. I mounted mine on a Yeasu 450 rotator and started using it. I also found that the signals, both transmitted and received, are stronger off the backside of the loop. Glad to see that it wasn't just my installation. I've also tried it at two different heights based on the minimum and maximum distance recommended by the manufacturer. I have made numerous DX QSO'S with it. The noise level is lower than my 65' Windom and my DX Commander Rapide. 73, KC8WVG.
Ciro Mazzoni should reference your video on their website.
Piss Poor welding on the Aluminum at the price those sell for.
Its 6060 aluminum TIG welded. Should hold together though. My example was done a bit better.
They should at least try and heat the aluminum before welding, cold weld. I'm not much of a welder myself but have a welder and understand what it takes to weld aluminum. There's AC polorazition shift/bias offset settings to clean as you weld. Shouldn't look loke that at those prices. They'll probably improve over time.@@jasonpalmer5437
If you have a scope in your rig, and a "tuner tuner" (palomar 340) you can tune a magnetic loop dead on freq, huge null on the scope. I've done it. @@jasonpalmer5437
I checked the coaxial connection with volt meter on the baby loop It shows a direct short between center pin to screw connected is this normal for the loop.
@@williamjohnston8775 Test the coax first un-connected from the antenna to eliminate any doubt. Then check again connected, it is likely normal. Remember "Radio Frequency" is Alternating Current so there is no reason to have an open circuit in the driven portion of the loop. I'd need to have a hands on understanding of the antenna to speculate any further. "73"
Great stuff , I've got the stealth loop and it's fantastic 👍👍
Where do you use that from ? The attic ?
@@MONTY-YTNOM it's at the end of the garden just placed on the ground . It's meant to be directional but I find it omnidirectional.
Fantastic on 40m for its size.
I want one
I ended up buying one from DX .Did not realize how big it is. Your info is the best .Thank you
I really enjoyed this video. I have no intention of purchasing such equipment though I have no doubt your efforts would aid others who are. Looking forward to more videos from your RUclips channel. M0GJQ
Why in the world did you put the antenna so far away from your house?
Noise