I was all ready to get one, as it is the perfect solution for my situation. Then I saw it was $500! Seems like an awful lot of money for what it actually is.
You can build your own for a lot less money. A ground rod only 6-8" in the dirt is NOT a ground. It is only a temporary mounting point. A 50 ohm resistor would give you a perfect match on all bands. Radiating efficiency is what counts.
I deployed my Go 2 Antenna for the first time this evening. I measured SWRs 2.00 or less across all of the bands (usng a AA-230 Zoom) and had clear reception on the 40-m, 20-m and parts of the 17-m bands. Very impressive!
Just a heads up your air conditioner condensate pan drain is clogged. That’s why the water is dripping on your windowsill. You might want to have that looked at.
For POTA or SOTA work a simple inexpensive end fed half wave antenna with one end tossed over a tree limb would be a good choice. A simple dipole would also be a good choice and would perform very well. Both easy to deploy and take down. Both easy to DIY and well under $100 including coax.
I've done one or two POTA activations in my day and yes, I absolutely love my EFHW antennas. However, this antenna was designed for those who can't use an antenna at home due to HOA's.
I would not exactly call an EFHW antenna "easy" to deploy. You would need to get the far end of the antenna quite high into the air, and that presents quite a challenge to me.
@@denelson83 Exactly! I'm 63, and fell and hurt my shoulder very badly at work several years ago, that required multiple surgeries. It's now probably 70% of what it once was, if that, and I realize that some people have even more difficult challenges that I do.
Ingenious calling it "My Go 2 Antenna", which everyone will think is their go to antenna. I really like the concept and hope to get one someday. But the price dude... aagh.
That is definitely a smart marketing ploy. I can't say I would ever consider purchasing it at that price point. I wouldn't mind trying to make a homebrew version though.
@@AD6DMDennis Probably could do but no one will tell you what the matcher transformer is. 9:1 un/un? Never mind the ground post driver device...Use a bloody big hammer!
What I want to know is how it works. Usually antennas that cover all bands with a tiny "matching" unit means there is a 50 ohm resistor in that little matching device. I will not even consider something like this if the manufacturer will not explain how it works.
Time saver during set up....clip the connector that goes on the lug on the transformer. Instead of an eye connector make it a "U" connector then all you have to do is loosen the screw and slip it under then snug it up. Hope this helps/makes sense.
You just convinced me. I have a weird wedge shaped lot with power line problems along the back of the property. I can envision right where this antenna can go. Thanks for being the lab rat and the excellent videos you do. I am an ex-Ham (N0AVV General Class) studying for re-licensure after a 26 year hiatus. Trying to bone up for my technicians license test on May 13, 24.
1. You do have room for radials, as you have demonstrated. Additionally laying them around the perimeter of the foundation can be done. Every little bit helps. 2. What you have installed IS a radial/counterpoise. Glad it works for you!
Not really. One wire stretched across my small yard is hardly what I would call room for radials. I wish I had room to set up my DX Commander. That would be awesome. Also, the wire portion of this antenna is 100% not a counterpoise wire. It is part of the radiating element. It is connected to the center of the coax, not the shield. Either way, it has been working great for my in the front yard.
@@hamradiotube You show very explicitly at 3:24 that the wire is NOT connected to the center coax wire. The wire is in fact a counter-poise. Try jumping the wire to the vertical drive element and key up if you want to settle it. It will short the drive and shield right after the cheap 49:1 encased in epoxy.
Make or buy a 49:1 unun. Balun Designs has a 200 watt for $60 or 1 kw for $95. Add about 62 ft of wire. Toss into a tree and you have a half wave end fed for 40-10 meters. A 6 ft counterpoise ( you can play with the length) and no tuner. EFHW antennas are dipoles and the only difference is they are fed at the end. Just be careful since the voltage is highest at the end points. Phil K1PJR
@@hamradiotube A 28 ga. white or lite gray wire from an end fed will never be seen. A flag pole antenna with tuner will make this antenna look like a coat hanger, will get DX, will get through pile up's and will cost no more than this antenna and the one that replaces it because it's a lousy radiator. There are other antennas that will work far better. It still has a radial in the air. So do several other portable vertical antennas that will out perform this by many times. You have to compare and let the newby's know this is not their only answer. Come on Mike, you can do it !!! I have faith in you Brother ! P.S. I don't want a bird house on a short pole in my front yard, it would clash with my Pink Flamingo's....lol
Man that honestly looks real great for portable work. Leave one in a camper. Park for the night, or day, or wherever. Hammer your stakes down, run coax, and enjoy the sounds of DX amid the feel of nature.
Looking at a VNA graph with it's tight circle around 50ohm indicates that there is a resistor inside to keep the SWR low. That probably explains why it is only rated to 25W and why it is potted. It can still be an OK antenna though, not a great but an OK one. As other has pointed out 500$ is a bit pricey. 73 SM7PNV
@@fintronics it's probably not a dummy load but an antenna with a slight resistive load so will still radiate some of the power. This is just conjecture from my part anyway as I don't have the antenna, I just inferred it by looking at the VNA graph.
I use a cg-3000 tuner, a 12m fibreglass pole, 12m wire up and 12m wire along the ground and I make excellent qsos with that setup- my farthest ever last october: central europe to chile - over 12000km with 80watt portable from a little hill nearby. bought the tuner used for 80bucks, pole and cable new for another 110 bucks (the pole was 100 quid but is worth it) so 190$ for a real dx chaser.
Hi Mike, thanks for the interesting video. That kit looks fairly well thought out and setup looks straight forward. This could be a partial solution for frustrated Hams that like to work the HF bands that live in HOAs or could be used for camping. I would imagine even in the most hyper HOA neighborhood, you could set this antenna up at night for a few hours, then take it down, leaving no antenna evidence. My biggest gripe however is, given the (close to) resistive (near 50 ohm) match you are seeing on every band, to me this indicates you are transmitting into (most likely) a 6 dB attenuator. Therefore, the most power the antenna could possibly radiate is 25% of the input power, when the antenna is resonant. You never indicated which band you were on but, I assume the band selection would make a huge difference in the amount of power that actually gets radiated. Fortunately with HF, the propagation does most of the work so, the antenna (although not perfect), would be far better than nothing. I noticed the antenna was telescoping so, I assume using a specific length could be used for each band to optimize transmission. 73! AC8AQ.
Thanks Bill, yeah the main target for this antenna is those that live in an HOA. It wouldn't be my first choice for a POTA/portable activation but I thought that would be a great way to show how it gets out. I'm sure there is all kinds of transformation going on inside the magic box but it works, and it solves a problem. I think I was on 20 and 40 in this video. You don't need to adjust the whip either, which is nice. It has resonance on all the bands just the way it is.
This device shunts power to ground. This is why it doesn't get hot. Radiation resistance on low bands will be very low. The "zero" reactance shown on the analyzer is an indicator of massive losses. Is it fraudulent? That depends on the language used to advertise it. It's not a "fake" device, but the manufacturer should absolutety not make the device impregnable and refuse to disclose the "matching" scheme , which appears to be a shunt feed with distributed capacitance. It is obviously a useful aerial, but $500 is ROBBERY.
@@hamradiotube Even though Ham radio enthusiasts spend heaps of money on quality equipment, do you think the antenna setup is worth $500? Looks good and practical, and impressive, ease of assembly in no time, though for convenience. I am not a ham operator but did make a couple of portable antennas for my Sangean ATS 505. Does the job bringing in stations I've never heard of before...so that is an adventure...I admire all you Hams with all the equipment you use.
good analysis! “6dB attenuator” 😊 Looks like this is center-fed, has 2-elements, is L shaped antenna … the vertical whip is what it says it is, and the horizonal “wire NVIS element” is a bit like a Beverage Antenna. That’d help it receive fairly clearly, right? 🤔 interesting. I maybe *want* one of these? but only for listening. 😂 and I’d just build it.
According to HRCC, the stake insertion tool problem has been resolved. Bob at TN07 Engineering recalled all of the first gen tools, replacing them with a more robust tool. All new antennas ship with the new tool.
The wire along the ground is the other half of the dipole setup. It will radiate a bit because the earth will attenuate the signal. Also it will radiate straight up.
I’ve seen this antenna briefly on a few RUclips channels. Your video is the best by far I’ve seen describing it. However, what you’ve also shown me is that this is not an antenna that is easy to set up - at least not in the way that you would want for a home antenna. Going outside, pounding rods into the ground, and stringing up wires along the ground every time you want to use it sounds painful, especially in the winter. And because it sits on the ground, with the radiating element just inches off the ground, and tubes sticking out of the ground, you would have to take it down or mow around it constantly in a casual back-yard set up. God forbid some little kid runs in your yard, trips over wire and onto one of these copper pipes and impales themselves. The only way I can see this antenna of being useful on a day-to-day basis is if you can hide or disguise it so that you would never have to landscape around it or trip over the wire/pipes. I’m not somebody who usually freaks out at the cost of anything in this hobby, but I went on their webpage and saw they sell this thing for an obscene $500. That’s $500 for a whip, a wire, two small copper pipes and a transformer. My Cushcraft MA5b, a 2-element multi-band beam is cheaper than this. I would suggest that if you want an Antenna that is easy to set up, take down, move around, and put away which doesn’t require a tuner - get any of the commercial magnetic loops from MFJ, Alexloop, Chameleon, or Alpha. They are expensive, but not as expensive as this antenna. They are also probably going to be less efficient-especially on 40 and 20 m, but they are a much easier, safer, temporary/portable option than this. And other better cheaper alternative is simply getting a Buddipole and putting it on a tripod. You may have to invest in a small tuner, it’s still cheaper than this antenna. The best HOA Friendly Antenna, so long as you have a large enough yard and a tree, is an end-fed half wave for 40-20-15-10. Full size, no tuner, you can make one yourself or buy one from MFJ for $50. Of course, there are other manufacturers that offer a bit better quality in the $100-$200 range, but I’m doing fine with my $40 QRP (35 watt) from MFJ strung up horizontally at 50 ft. Lastly, if you want a cheap, effective option in a limited space environment, buy (Do not make, you’ll lose money) an LDG 9:1 unun In a beautifully made, weatherproof case for about $25, find any place to put up a 31-41 foot vertical or sloping wire and a 17’ Counterpoise wire you can tac into the ground with yard staples. Instantly, you have a multi band vertical antenna which on most of the bands will have an SWR between 1.9 and 5.0- but it can be easily tuned by any tuner to work all the HF bands; Plus the set up is super portable, as portable as an end-fed half wave, if you want to keep it portable. Again, great video, but I just see so many better options out there than this antenna at this price. Somebody needs to do a teardown of their matching system so that people can build this at home If they really want to use something like this. They are charging such an obscene amount of money For this product that they deserve competition.
They really deserve some credit for the r&d of truely designing a tunerless antenna. 2.0 or less, 80-6 is not just a good portable, but the permanent one, then have a lil field day selling up the 58 ft wire, 17 foot counterpoise, hanging it from trees and pieces of fence pipe that you can end the day by dissecting the lightening and wind catcher. And that thing would still need a tuner, providing loss on any gain, right at the feedpoint, unless you get an automatic tuner, which eats much more wattage and adds it to the Infra-Red band.
@@ERICtheLATE Any matching system has some loss, including theirs. End-fed half waves cut for 40 meters don't need tunes for 40m, 20m, 15m, or 10m; those cut for 80m can be tuned to include 17 ans 12 as well, They cost 50-75% less than this antenna, and are way more stealth and safe.
@@kd8opi The antenna does have the spanning and issues of any HF antenna. With HOA, this may save some from just ditching HF and just chatiing on the recliner with an HT on 2meter, 70cm or GMRS bands. Make a dipole out of coax, tack it to the wall, and you can hit that 100 mile radius, because some fancy homes are actually townhouses on skimpy lots.
Sure did. It's nice to see a company that has great customer service and would do something like that. He's mailing out new slammers to everyone who bought the antenna.
I met Bob and Laura at the Athen Hamfest and purchased one of his antenna. From my Valley, surrounded by mountains, I have been getting pretty good results.
Good video. If you put the horizontal wire out where other people can come along, you should put some white safety tape or other visibility enhancers to keep people from using it as a trip wire.
Wow I love the form factor of this antenna. The price? YIKES!! I didn't see that coming. BTW--I see you ran it on 20. How is it doing on 40 and 80? These are normally my bands of choice. Thanks Mike. (Fellow Micigander.) KM8RTY
An incredible flat SWR means two things > 1. High losses of system, 2. Low efficiency of system. So I prefer to stay away from these antennas. Anyway important think which was not mentioned in vid - they are asking $500 for this kit…hahahahahahahahaha hohohohohohoho …no way! Sorry mate. But thanks for nice vid!
Thanks for watching. While I don't know whats inside, I do know that I have made contacts with it. It's not the only portable antenna in that price range either.
That is true. I don't know enough about shunt fed antennas to really speculate why this antenna functions the way it does. Maybe I will take it out and compare against a couple other antennas. That's a good idea.
@@hamradiotube it would be very interesting to find out. i also imagine there might be some directionality to this antenna depending on which way the counterpoise or whatever that wire is goes. speaking of which, another fun experiment might be to add 3 more wires of similar length and connect them at the same terminal to essentially create 4 equally spaced radials and see what effect that might have. i'm not sure the copper rods are necessary, as i hear they provide poor ground at rf so i think they are mainly used for mounting, i'm not sure though.
We were watching the video, my wife had her checkbook out.... and then you had to say the "Karen" thing... lol. Her name is Karen.. she get's that a lot. LMAO - K1QS.
Well the creator of the antenna who personally handed it to me says otherwise. I'm gonna go with him. It's not connected to the shield, but the center of the coax.
If the 25' wire is connected to the center conductor as a radiating element it is providing capacitive matching. Terminating the 25' wire to earth ground makes it an LC matching circuit with earth ground termination it makes it similar to a rhombic or beverage antenna. I was a little bit surprised that it didn't help with your local QRM at the home QTH. Low to the ground and grounded usually helps. It might be interesting to model the antenna to see what Mr. Smith thinks is in the secret sauce. Its probably closer to 9:1 than 49:1. Please do a follow-up after you've got a few hundred contects on it. Keep working at FUN!
Looks promising and setup is a breeze but the price is high. Also what is it's propagation paths? How does it compare to your Little Tarheel? Their price is similar. I wonder how it compares to the Chameleon mpas kit?, Their Balun and antenna system is similar.
Yep, something fishy going on. The physics of non-resonant antennas don’t change because someone comes out with a new one. There’s something lossy in that epoxy slug to mask the true SWR of this thing...from 80m up to 6m! 17 feet plus a horizontal radiator can’t have low SWR from 3.5 to 54 MHz. You can accomplish the same thing with a random length of fence wire, as long as you make it lossy enough. As a matter of fact, I can receive North and Central America, and parts of Europe, with a wire clipped to my roof flashing. It’d transmit as efficiently as this if I added the Magic Resistor to create the loss that hides the poor SWR. Yeah, it made a contact. It still has to exhibit miserable radiation, and at $500 to boot. If you believe in stuff like this, please find an old ARRL antenna handbook and learn about cheap wire antennas.
Everything works... But, some thing's work better than others. I'm thinking a 49:1 transformer connected to your box springs in the bedroom would work just as good, or better than this, and be even more stealth. If you're going to use it for portable ops, there are much better options that will easily outperform it. I've loaded up a 150 watt light bulb. Did it work? Yes. Did it work well? Depends on your goal. My light bulb antenna bagged me a 80 mile qso, but, it was just an experiment. Could I encase it in epoxy and sell it? Apparently I could. Yeah, this "go 2 antenna is easy to put up, but, are you that lazy that that's worth $500? Then, put it in your cart. The real answers are 1) a resonant antenna will perform the best. 2) high q (narrow bandwidth) will perform the best. 3) size matters (sorry guys). My two compromise antennas for quick deployment are: 1) A tapped wolf river coil under a 10' whip, on a 6' tripod with a tuned counterpoise elevated 6' above ground. Total investment to buy, all the parts, about $160. It will blow the go2 out of the water. 2) A 80 meter end fed half wave, on a 30' pole, with ends on 6' fiberglass driveway markers. I built mine, but, you can buy one for $35-$130, depending on if you get the whole antenna, or just the transformer, and if you buy off Joe ham on eBay, or, from myendfed antennas.
You said if you live in an apartment….I do, so explain how this will work in my 4th floor apartment in NY where there is no grass and surrounded by more apartments and sidewalk.
Nope. All made in the USA. He has since recalled the slammer and is mailing out new ones to everyone who has bought this antenna. That's good customer service if you ask me.
The wire looks like a counterpoise to me, it is not connected to the threaded drive element. The shield connection surely has a connector on the transformer, which that wire seems to be connected to. If not a counterpoise, it could be an off-center fed vertical dipole with a horizontal ground plane. But I doubt it, it looks like a counterpoise.
Huntsville, TX to Fort Lauderdale, FL, that's about 1200 miles over very low elevation land and salt water. Still not a bad trip, park to park, so I assume he is running a portable rig, lower power and temporary antenna.
@@hamradiotube Sorry, I posted that comment before I had watched the rest of the video where you show the map of contacts. Most of us who have been hams for a while are very skeptical of magic antenna claims for smaller broadband antennas. However, I've seen many positive reviews of this antenna. None are scientifically rigorous or even include A - B tests against a known antenna. But, the results seem better than one would expect from a limited size antenna.
Looks very nice! I was thinking If one could come up with he transformer and two ground rods and the wire. You could fasten a 12 Meter spider beam to one ground rod to string up the vertical for the DIY'er. That sliding vertical is nice though. I wish you had tried it on 11 meter as well just for the hello of it.
Oh lawd. Is this the one you were using this week for POTA that we got a P2P? If so, Im looking forward to hearing my awkward radio voice. But you sounded really good with it. Nice signal into the Everglades. K4ABX.
If it was yesterday, no. Sunday or Monday yes. I cut all but a few qso’s from the video unfortunately. It would have been way too long for a review otherwise.
I think the transformer is a 5:1 UNUN. I am going to try my Alpha Antenna in that configuration and see how it works. You may have something similar. Just cut a ground rod in half.
I would be a little concerned about the amount of tension you need on that wire pulling out if using other than a full ring. If it is strong enough, though, that would definitely make hook-up and breakdown WAY more convenient.
how would this antenna work on a tower next to my house? The tower is 17 feet high. I would run the wire across my roof about 2-3 feet off the roof. I live in a manufactured home community. My house is 54x20 and my lot extends 7-10 feet on all sides from the house.
Since the grounding wire makes the antenna directional, it would make that wire a counterpoise. I was wondering if the counterpoise wire were to be bent into a square shape around the base, would it be more omnidirectional?
This antenna and similar antennas are by nature compromise antennas. I would like to know what the bandwidth on all these bands are. At 80 meters it cannot be very wide. Ease of setup is certainly the antenna's main selling point. I am a little wary of the telescope antenna that could easily bend or break if not handled carefully , or if the antenna falls over for whatever reason. At 500 bucks, for me it is not a "Go 2" but a "no go." Does an op have to have all amateur bands available at all times? I would like to suggest a cheaper alternative. For portable operating I use mono-band end fed half wave antennas and 7-10 meter long telescope poles (from Spiderbeam). I usually operate on 20 meters. This antenna and the ones for 15 and 10 meters ((I don't have any WARC band antennas) hang individually vertically along the pole not all at the same time, with the help of a little masking tape. I guess you could hang them all and let them slope fout rom the center pole. I haven't tried that yet. You just have to move your coax connector around. Setup and tear down times are a matter of minutes. Even changing bands goes quickly. No tuner is necessary. With the half wave antennas I get full bandwidth. The antennas themselves cost around 35 Euros a piece, the telescope pole aroung 60 Euros. As for 30 and 40 meters (the wire gets pretty long) , I use an inverted "V" configuration. Of course, you could also make your own or buy ready made 49:1 or 64:1 matching units that can handle whatever power output you may wish, and buy some antenna wire and make your own antennas cheaper. When I was a radio newbie I let myself be impressed with a 6-160 meter antenna from the company Alpha Antennas. It too wasvery expensive, and it never worked well. My homebrew random wire antenna was much "louder," and my signal strength and reports were much better than the store bought antenna. This is not to mean that the My Go 2 antenna is in any way a bad antenna. I don't have one and have no experience with one. I would only like to point out that for those of us with a strict CFO/XYL it may be too difficult to get the green light to spend 500 bucks on a new toy. The alternative may not be as elegant and convenient, but she may green light that. 73!
Of course it's a compromise. Every antenna is. Understand that the main purpose of this antenna is NOT to take portable, but for those that have very strict HOA's. I just did it because portable is kinda my thing. If you re-watch the video, I sweep all the bands on the analyzer so you can see the bandwidth. I do know all about EFHW antennas and use the crap out of them portable, though mine are resonant, multi band 49:1 EFHW's. I don't use a tuner. You will see a lot of that on my channel if you watch more. For sure the price is high. There are others on the market priced the same. They aren't for everyone, but for those that don't have any other option, the do solve a problem. Thanks for sharing your thoughts and thanks for watching. Good luck with the CFO/XYL lol :). 73
Is that whip the same as the MFJ 17 foot whip? I have used that on a tripod with 4 drooping 17 foot radials, as a 20M ground plane, that worked pretty well.
Subscribed. Thanks for the content. de K4DRE I like your review on this antenna. Yes I would absolutely consider purchasing it; but the $499 price tag was a bit of a shock. Doesn't really matter though, they are out of stock as of 01/09/2022.
Hey Mike that’s a great looking antenna , It looks like the set up takes no time. Over 50 contacts at the park with the bands not in good shape I think you did excellent. Thanks for the video and the information. Stay safe. WD5ENH Steve
Hi Mike, I'm new on Your Channel, thanks for Your videos. Good entertainment and a lot of useful information! What kind of analyzer are You using in the video? 73 from JO40en
They really need to work on the price point. I was stoked about one but found an antenna that does the same job for half the price. If they were even in the 350 range I would have bought one. What happened to sell some discounted, get name recognition and then raise the price?
I’m disappointed for what the antenna costs $$$ that the ground pounder is already failing after such little use, for a heavy piece of stock it shouldn’t fail. I may have to change out mine with one I use at work. Thanks for the review Mike can’t wait to give mine a try.
I was impressed - love the design and portability. Went to the website and saw the price - doing the math on the pieces and parts, the coil is really pricey. Then I saw the power capabilities of this setup which seems very low per price point. Having made my own coil(and melted the first one) the PVC used seems to handle 100w digital with no problems so far. Wonder if I could run a horizontal wire off of it and get the same performance characteristics? Might be worth and experiment since this seems to remove the requirements for radials. Hmmmm...thanks for the review.
Agreed. Seems like a great antenna for about $150. But almost $500? You could buy a tri-band beam for that price. If they'd lower the price to a reasonable level, they would probably sell 10 times more than they do now.
@@NsixVHF, at this price point i'm pretty sure the company is not too interested in selling a lot of these...but, whatever they sell, they are probably making a hefty margin. they are probably making the transformers one at a time, having a few in stock to sell at any given time. as a "portable antenna," realistically it should sell for about $249 or less. if TN07 wanted to scale production (which, as i have previously stated they probably don't want to do), they could get the price down. niché antenna for sure.
It’s the MFJ-223 but if you’re looking for an analyzer I would get the RIgExpert stick pro. It’s $10 less and does so much more. I did a video on it a month or so ago. I’m in love with it.
I've not used the MPAS 2.0 but they are really 2 completely different antennas with 2 totally different uses. The TN07 is designed primarily to be used at home as an HOA antenna. The MPAS is designed more for the portable operator to be taken out into the field and deployed in many different configurations.
I was all ready to get one, as it is the perfect solution for my situation. Then I saw it was $500! Seems like an awful lot of money for what it actually is.
Its really bad antenna, do not buy it.
Likewise! Watched the video and thought “perfect, at last something I can use…”. Then I saw the price 😱
Yeah but it solves a problem. It's certainly not the only antenna in that price range. There's a market for it and people are buying them.
based off of what?
You can build your own for a lot less money. A ground rod only 6-8" in the dirt is NOT a ground. It is only a temporary mounting point. A 50 ohm resistor would give you a perfect match on all bands. Radiating efficiency is what counts.
I deployed my Go 2 Antenna for the first time this evening. I measured SWRs 2.00 or less across all of the bands (usng a AA-230 Zoom) and had clear reception on the 40-m, 20-m and parts of the 17-m bands. Very impressive!
Congratulations. Take an Ohm meter and measure the resistance across the coaxual connector and report it back to us.
Very impressed with the antenna analyzer reading across the bands. Very amazed.
Read like a dummy liad.
Just a heads up your air conditioner condensate pan drain is clogged. That’s why the water is dripping on your windowsill. You might want to have that looked at.
lol, probably.
For POTA or SOTA work a simple inexpensive end fed half wave antenna with one end tossed over a tree limb would be a good choice. A simple dipole would also be a good choice and would perform very well. Both easy to deploy and take down. Both easy to DIY and well under $100 including coax.
I've done one or two POTA activations in my day and yes, I absolutely love my EFHW antennas. However, this antenna was designed for those who can't use an antenna at home due to HOA's.
I would not exactly call an EFHW antenna "easy" to deploy. You would need to get the far end of the antenna quite high into the air, and that presents quite a challenge to me.
@@denelson83 Exactly! I'm 63, and fell and hurt my shoulder very badly at work several years ago, that required multiple surgeries. It's now probably 70% of what it once was, if that, and I realize that some people have even more difficult challenges that I do.
@@MyTube4Utoo But, I have decided to try out deploying one anyway. FWIW, I am only 39.
73 VE7NDE
@@denelson83 Good for you. 👍 Best of luck.
Ingenious calling it "My Go 2 Antenna", which everyone will think is their go to antenna. I really like the concept and hope to get one someday. But the price dude... aagh.
That is definitely a smart marketing ploy. I can't say I would ever consider purchasing it at that price point. I wouldn't mind trying to make a homebrew version though.
@@Blue-Collar-Radio I think the main value-add component is the match. I wonder what that costs by itself, and one could DIY the rest.
@@AD6DMDennis
Probably could do but no one will tell you what the matcher transformer is. 9:1 un/un?
Never mind the ground post driver device...Use a bloody big hammer!
Wow, you aren’t kidding about the price.
@@MauriatOttolink maybe Mike will sacrifice his so we can make our own 🤣
What I want to know is how it works. Usually antennas that cover all bands with a tiny "matching" unit means there is a 50 ohm resistor in that little matching device. I will not even consider something like this if the manufacturer will not explain how it works.
No clue. You’d have to ask the manufacture about that. I do know that it does work as this video shows.
No wonder it's potted.
Time saver during set up....clip the connector that goes on the lug on the transformer. Instead of an eye connector make it a "U" connector then all you have to do is loosen the screw and slip it under then snug it up. Hope this helps/makes sense.
You just convinced me. I have a weird wedge shaped lot with power line problems along the back of the property. I can envision right where this antenna can go. Thanks for being the lab rat and the excellent videos you do. I am an ex-Ham (N0AVV General Class) studying for re-licensure after a 26 year hiatus. Trying to bone up for my technicians license test on May 13, 24.
Good demo of the "My Go 2 Antenna". Looks like a pretty good performer. Way overpriced! Cool hearing your Dad on the air. 73!
It is a cool antenna. Not cheap at all though. Def nice to work my dad though. That's a rarity. Only worked him one other time.
1. You do have room for radials, as you have demonstrated. Additionally laying them around the perimeter of the foundation can be done. Every little bit helps. 2. What you have installed IS a radial/counterpoise. Glad it works for you!
Not really. One wire stretched across my small yard is hardly what I would call room for radials. I wish I had room to set up my DX Commander. That would be awesome. Also, the wire portion of this antenna is 100% not a counterpoise wire. It is part of the radiating element. It is connected to the center of the coax, not the shield. Either way, it has been working great for my in the front yard.
@@hamradiotube You show very explicitly at 3:24 that the wire is NOT connected to the center coax wire. The wire is in fact a counter-poise. Try jumping the wire to the vertical drive element and key up if you want to settle it. It will short the drive and shield right after the cheap 49:1 encased in epoxy.
Cool antenna, glad to see its as easy as it appears to setup and man great SWR across the bands.
yeah it really is magical for sure.
Nice antenna and it looks super simple for POTA. Great video Mike. Keep up the good work my brother!
It sets up in all of about 5 minutes. It's great.
Mike I use a piece of 1" galvanized pipe with a screw on cap to knock mine in. Works well. I wear gloves to keep from tearing my hands up.
Good idea. I may need to look into that.
Make or buy a 49:1 unun. Balun Designs has a 200 watt for $60 or 1 kw for $95. Add about 62 ft of wire. Toss into a tree and you have a half wave end fed for 40-10 meters. A 6 ft counterpoise ( you can play with the length) and no tuner. EFHW antennas are dipoles and the only difference is they are fed at the end. Just be careful since the voltage is highest at the end points.
Phil
K1PJR
Yes you can, but that has nothing to do with the point of this video and antenna. It's for people who CAN'T put up a wire antenna because of HOA's.
@@hamradiotube A 28 ga. white or lite gray wire from an end fed will never be seen. A flag pole antenna with tuner will make this antenna look like a coat hanger, will get DX, will get through pile up's and will cost no more than this antenna and the one that replaces it because it's a lousy radiator. There are other antennas that will work far better. It still has a radial in the air. So do several other portable vertical antennas that will out perform this by many times. You have to compare and let the newby's know this is not their only answer. Come on Mike, you can do it !!! I have faith in you Brother ! P.S. I don't want a bird house on a short pole in my front yard, it would clash with my Pink Flamingo's....lol
Man that honestly looks real great for portable work. Leave one in a camper. Park for the night, or day, or wherever. Hammer your stakes down, run coax, and enjoy the sounds of DX amid the feel of nature.
Looking at a VNA graph with it's tight circle around 50ohm indicates that there is a resistor inside to keep the SWR low. That probably explains why it is only rated to 25W and why it is potted.
It can still be an OK antenna though, not a great but an OK one. As other has pointed out 500$ is a bit pricey.
73
SM7PNV
Well said !!! Are you old enough to remember the MAXCOM antenna scam??? Seems to be similar…
A dummy load is not an "OK" antenna.
@@fintronics it's probably not a dummy load but an antenna with a slight resistive load so will still radiate some of the power. This is just conjecture from my part anyway as I don't have the antenna, I just inferred it by looking at the VNA graph.
I've not made too many contacts on a dummy load. I have made contacts with this antenna however.
I'm sure there's all kinds of voodoo inside. Still gets out and I made contacts.
Interesting and impressive antenna. It was neat to hear you work Rich and Suzanne from our club up here too.
It is really cool indeed!
I use a cg-3000 tuner, a 12m fibreglass pole, 12m wire up and 12m wire along the ground and I make excellent qsos with that setup- my farthest ever last october: central europe to chile - over 12000km with 80watt portable from a little hill nearby. bought the tuner used for 80bucks, pole and cable new for another 110 bucks (the pole was 100 quid but is worth it) so 190$ for a real dx chaser.
Hi Mike, thanks for the interesting video. That kit looks fairly well thought out and setup looks straight forward. This could be a partial solution for frustrated Hams that like to work the HF bands that live in HOAs or could be used for camping. I would imagine even in the most hyper HOA neighborhood, you could set this antenna up at night for a few hours, then take it down, leaving no antenna evidence.
My biggest gripe however is, given the (close to) resistive (near 50 ohm) match you are seeing on every band, to me this indicates you are transmitting into (most likely) a 6 dB attenuator. Therefore, the most power the antenna could possibly radiate is 25% of the input power, when the antenna is resonant. You never indicated which band you were on but, I assume the band selection would make a huge difference in the amount of power that actually gets radiated. Fortunately with HF, the propagation does most of the work so, the antenna (although not perfect), would be far better than nothing. I noticed the antenna was telescoping so, I assume using a specific length could be used for each band to optimize transmission. 73! AC8AQ.
Thanks Bill, yeah the main target for this antenna is those that live in an HOA. It wouldn't be my first choice for a POTA/portable activation but I thought that would be a great way to show how it gets out. I'm sure there is all kinds of transformation going on inside the magic box but it works, and it solves a problem. I think I was on 20 and 40 in this video. You don't need to adjust the whip either, which is nice. It has resonance on all the bands just the way it is.
This device shunts power to ground. This is why it doesn't get hot. Radiation resistance on low bands will be very low. The "zero" reactance shown on the analyzer is an indicator of massive losses. Is it fraudulent? That depends on the language used to advertise it. It's not a "fake" device, but the manufacturer should absolutety not make the device impregnable and refuse to disclose the "matching" scheme , which appears to be a shunt feed with distributed capacitance. It is obviously a useful aerial, but $500 is ROBBERY.
@@hamradiotube Even though Ham radio enthusiasts spend heaps of money on quality equipment, do you think the antenna setup is worth $500? Looks good and practical, and impressive, ease of assembly in no time, though for convenience. I am not a ham operator but did make a couple of portable antennas for my Sangean ATS 505. Does the job bringing in stations I've never heard of before...so that is an adventure...I admire all you Hams with all the equipment you use.
good analysis! “6dB attenuator” 😊 Looks like this is center-fed, has 2-elements, is L shaped antenna … the vertical whip is what it says it is, and the horizonal “wire NVIS element” is a bit like a Beverage Antenna. That’d help it receive fairly clearly, right? 🤔 interesting. I maybe *want* one of these? but only for listening. 😂 and I’d just build it.
According to HRCC, the stake insertion tool problem has been resolved. Bob at TN07 Engineering recalled all of the first gen tools, replacing them with a more robust tool. All new antennas ship with the new tool.
The wire along the ground is the other half of the dipole setup. It will radiate a bit because the earth will attenuate the signal. Also it will radiate straight up.
Great kit mike. Love it.
Thanks 👍
I’ve seen this antenna briefly on a few RUclips channels. Your video is the best by far I’ve seen describing it. However, what you’ve also shown me is that this is not an antenna that is easy to set up - at least not in the way that you would want for a home antenna. Going outside, pounding rods into the ground, and stringing up wires along the ground every time you want to use it sounds painful, especially in the winter. And because it sits on the ground, with the radiating element just inches off the ground, and tubes sticking out of the ground, you would have to take it down or mow around it constantly in a casual back-yard set up. God forbid some little kid runs in your yard, trips over wire and onto one of these copper pipes and impales themselves. The only way I can see this antenna of being useful on a day-to-day basis is if you can hide or disguise it so that you would never have to landscape around it or trip over the wire/pipes. I’m not somebody who usually freaks out at the cost of anything in this hobby, but I went on their webpage and saw they sell this thing for an obscene $500. That’s $500 for a whip, a wire, two small copper pipes and a transformer. My Cushcraft MA5b, a 2-element multi-band beam is cheaper than this. I would suggest that if you want an Antenna that is easy to set up, take down, move around, and put away which doesn’t require a tuner - get any of the commercial magnetic loops from MFJ, Alexloop, Chameleon, or Alpha. They are expensive, but not as expensive as this antenna. They are also probably going to be less efficient-especially on 40 and 20 m, but they are a much easier, safer, temporary/portable option than this. And other better cheaper alternative is simply getting a Buddipole and putting it on a tripod. You may have to invest in a small tuner, it’s still cheaper than this antenna. The best HOA Friendly Antenna, so long as you have a large enough yard and a tree, is an end-fed half wave for 40-20-15-10. Full size, no tuner, you can make one yourself or buy one from MFJ for $50. Of course, there are other manufacturers that offer a bit better quality in the $100-$200 range, but I’m doing fine with my $40 QRP (35 watt) from MFJ strung up horizontally at 50 ft. Lastly, if you want a cheap, effective option in a limited space environment, buy (Do not make, you’ll lose money) an LDG 9:1 unun In a beautifully made, weatherproof case for about $25, find any place to put up a 31-41 foot vertical or sloping wire and a 17’ Counterpoise wire you can tac into the ground with yard staples. Instantly, you have a multi band vertical antenna which on most of the bands will have an SWR between 1.9 and 5.0- but it can be easily tuned by any tuner to work all the HF bands; Plus the set up is super portable, as portable as an end-fed half wave, if you want to keep it portable. Again, great video, but I just see so many better options out there than this antenna at this price. Somebody needs to do a teardown of their matching system so that people can build this at home If they really want to use something like this. They are charging such an obscene amount of money For this product that they deserve competition.
They really deserve some credit for the r&d of truely designing a tunerless antenna. 2.0 or less, 80-6 is not just a good portable, but the permanent one, then have a lil field day selling up the 58 ft wire, 17 foot counterpoise, hanging it from trees and pieces of fence pipe that you can end the day by dissecting the lightening and wind catcher. And that thing would still need a tuner, providing loss on any gain, right at the feedpoint, unless you get an automatic tuner, which eats much more wattage and adds it to the Infra-Red band.
@@ERICtheLATE Any matching system has some loss, including theirs. End-fed half waves cut for 40 meters don't need tunes for 40m, 20m, 15m, or 10m; those cut for 80m can be tuned to include 17 ans 12 as well, They cost 50-75% less than this antenna, and are way more stealth and safe.
@@kd8opi The antenna does have the spanning and issues of any HF antenna. With HOA, this may save some from just ditching HF and just chatiing on the recliner with an HT on 2meter, 70cm or GMRS bands. Make a dipole out of coax, tack it to the wall, and you can hit that 100 mile radius, because some fancy homes are actually townhouses on skimpy lots.
W3
@@ERICtheLATE p
For what it is, the price of $500 is outrageous. 😯
He recalled all of the rods. I like that antenna
Sure did. It's nice to see a company that has great customer service and would do something like that. He's mailing out new slammers to everyone who bought the antenna.
Sorry if this was a review and not just an ad, you'd cut that thing open to see what's in it instead of repeating "its a secret".
So you have to cut something open and ruin the product to review how it performs? That doesn't make sense.
I met Bob and Laura at the Athen Hamfest and purchased one of his antenna. From my Valley, surrounded by mountains, I have been getting pretty good results.
Nice. Good to hear you're getting out with it.
Oh cool, I've been considering this one for a while, looking forward to hearing your thoughts!
Well you know them now.
ThNHR TeamReplay for the win!
Fantastic
Yeah buddy
Impressive! I might need an alibi to why I bought another antenna! …..great job on the review
Just tell her its been tucked away in the closed this whole time. She'll never know.
@@hamradiotube She does the same. Every once in awhile a find a shirt with a tag 🏷 still attached. Difference… I use my antennas 😉
Mike - Thank you for the review!! This solves a lot of problems. I really appreciate your evaluating it!
Glad it was helpful!
Good video. If you put the horizontal wire out where other people can come along, you should put some white safety tape or other visibility enhancers to keep people from using it as a trip wire.
It comes with some high viz tape for that, I just didn't use it.
Neat antenna there Mike. I like how it's quick and easy to setup. Definitely great for HOA use. 73
Less than 5 minutes if you're not filming multiple shots!
@@hamradiotube That’s pretty quick! 😂
Wow I love the form factor of this antenna. The price? YIKES!! I didn't see that coming.
BTW--I see you ran it on 20. How is it doing on 40 and 80? These are normally my bands of choice.
Thanks Mike. (Fellow Micigander.) KM8RTY
Cool 😎 HOA Antenna kit! You gave me an idea 💡 Mike, will be experimenting with something similar that I own.
Have fun!
An incredible flat SWR means two things > 1. High losses of system, 2. Low efficiency of system. So I prefer to stay away from these antennas. Anyway important think which was not mentioned in vid - they are asking $500 for this kit…hahahahahahahahaha hohohohohohoho …no way! Sorry mate. But thanks for nice vid!
Thanks for watching. While I don't know whats inside, I do know that I have made contacts with it. It's not the only portable antenna in that price range either.
low SWR can also mean high loss. you should do a comparison between this antenna and any other one that you can take to the park.
That is true. I don't know enough about shunt fed antennas to really speculate why this antenna functions the way it does. Maybe I will take it out and compare against a couple other antennas. That's a good idea.
@@hamradiotube it would be very interesting to find out. i also imagine there might be some directionality to this antenna depending on which way the counterpoise or whatever that wire is goes. speaking of which, another fun experiment might be to add 3 more wires of similar length and connect them at the same terminal to essentially create 4 equally spaced radials and see what effect that might have. i'm not sure the copper rods are necessary, as i hear they provide poor ground at rf so i think they are mainly used for mounting, i'm not sure though.
We were watching the video, my wife had her checkbook out.... and then you had to say the "Karen" thing... lol. Her name is Karen.. she get's that a lot. LMAO - K1QS.
Haha, I have a cousin but she is spelled Caren lol! So long as she's not the HOA Karen she should be ok.
Good info and fun to watch. This one is a bit pricey. Thanks for putting this out.
Its a counterpoise.
Keep up the FUN work!
Well the creator of the antenna who personally handed it to me says otherwise. I'm gonna go with him. It's not connected to the shield, but the center of the coax.
If the 25' wire is connected to the center conductor as a radiating element it is providing capacitive matching. Terminating the 25' wire to earth ground makes it an LC matching circuit with earth ground termination it makes it similar to a rhombic or beverage antenna.
I was a little bit surprised that it didn't help with your local QRM at the home QTH. Low to the ground and grounded usually helps.
It might be interesting to model the antenna to see what Mr. Smith thinks is in the secret sauce. Its probably closer to 9:1 than 49:1.
Please do a follow-up after you've got a few hundred contects on it.
Keep working at FUN!
I just use a 100 ft flagpole with a big ATU and for distraction a tiny flag in it.
A 100’ flag pole??? That’s a big one indeed.
Impressive antenna, thanks for another great video Mike.
My pleasure. Thanks for watching.
Looks promising and setup is a breeze but the price is high. Also what is it's propagation paths? How does it compare to your Little Tarheel? Their price is similar. I wonder how it compares to the Chameleon mpas kit?, Their Balun and antenna system is similar.
Awesome video! I’ll look into buying one of these!
One contact beats no contacts good job from w3oj.
Oh I’ve made plenty of contacts with it. It works quite well.
Looks really cool, just wish it wasn't so expensive.
Yep, something fishy going on. The physics of non-resonant antennas don’t change because someone comes out with a new one. There’s something lossy in that epoxy slug to mask the true SWR of this thing...from 80m up to 6m! 17 feet plus a horizontal radiator can’t have low SWR from 3.5 to 54 MHz.
You can accomplish the same thing with a random length of fence wire, as long as you make it lossy enough. As a matter of fact, I can receive North and Central America, and parts of Europe, with a wire clipped to my roof flashing. It’d transmit as efficiently as this if I added the Magic Resistor to create the loss that hides the poor SWR.
Yeah, it made a contact. It still has to exhibit miserable radiation, and at $500 to boot. If you believe in stuff like this, please find an old ARRL antenna handbook and learn about cheap wire antennas.
ok
Great Video Mike, but the Price for this is Crazy. I mite add you dont need a tuner for a dummy load either
Lol that is true, but this antenna actually puts out RF.
Great video presentation. I have questions regarding the "mystery box", which is not patented. 😄
Great video!! Hoping to get out and get to some parks for pota.
Go get em!
Everything works... But, some thing's work better than others. I'm thinking a 49:1 transformer connected to your box springs in the bedroom would work just as good, or better than this, and be even more stealth. If you're going to use it for portable ops, there are much better options that will easily outperform it. I've loaded up a 150 watt light bulb. Did it work? Yes. Did it work well? Depends on your goal. My light bulb antenna bagged me a 80 mile qso, but, it was just an experiment. Could I encase it in epoxy and sell it? Apparently I could. Yeah, this "go 2 antenna is easy to put up, but, are you that lazy that that's worth $500? Then, put it in your cart.
The real answers are 1) a resonant antenna will perform the best. 2) high q (narrow bandwidth) will perform the best. 3) size matters (sorry guys).
My two compromise antennas for quick deployment are: 1) A tapped wolf river coil under a 10' whip, on a 6' tripod with a tuned counterpoise elevated 6' above ground. Total investment to buy, all the parts, about $160. It will blow the go2 out of the water.
2) A 80 meter end fed half wave, on a 30' pole, with ends on 6' fiberglass driveway markers. I built mine, but, you can buy one for $35-$130, depending on if you get the whole antenna, or just the transformer, and if you buy off Joe ham on eBay, or, from myendfed antennas.
You said if you live in an apartment….I do, so explain how this will work in my 4th floor apartment in NY where there is no grass and surrounded by more apartments and sidewalk.
The pounder looks to be made of Chinesium
Nope. All made in the USA. He has since recalled the slammer and is mailing out new ones to everyone who has bought this antenna. That's good customer service if you ask me.
Thanks for sharing, this antenna is very interesting for me.
Thanks for watching.
Definitely a HOA antenna that would get the job done!
I'm using it at home all the time and I'm not even in an HOA!
Great video. I wanted to try one of these since I am in a HOA. However, once I saw the price, No way.
Great review, really nice to see the SWR graphs! This could be a solution for me. 73
I hope it works out for you.
Thank you but our most HOA s would never let you put that up but the bird feeder would work
The wire looks like a counterpoise to me, it is not connected to the threaded drive element. The shield connection surely has a connector on the transformer, which that wire seems to be connected to. If not a counterpoise, it could be an off-center fed vertical dipole with a horizontal ground plane. But I doubt it, it looks like a counterpoise.
super video, excellent stuff,cheers,MINT"
If you attach a wire to a lug and run it as you have i am pretty sure its a counterpoise for the antenna but i may be wrong
Huntsville, TX to Fort Lauderdale, FL, that's about 1200 miles over very low elevation land and salt water. Still not a bad trip, park to park, so I assume he is running a portable rig, lower power and temporary antenna.
Oh I made plenty more contacts than that but yes I'll take it. No clue what he was running though.
@@hamradiotube Sorry, I posted that comment before I had watched the rest of the video where you show the map of contacts. Most of us who have been hams for a while are very skeptical of magic antenna claims for smaller broadband antennas. However, I've seen many positive reviews of this antenna. None are scientifically rigorous or even include A - B tests against a known antenna. But, the results seem better than one would expect from a limited size antenna.
Super video Mike❗️
Thank you Mike
Man, what would I do without your reviews? Thanks a ton!
KJ7NUX
I'm not sure but I'm glad you're here. 73
Looks very nice! I was thinking If one could come up with he transformer and two ground rods and the wire. You could fasten a 12 Meter spider beam to one ground rod to string up the vertical for the DIY'er. That sliding vertical is nice though.
I wish you had tried it on 11 meter as well just for the hello of it.
Oh lawd. Is this the one you were using this week for POTA that we got a P2P? If so, Im looking forward to hearing my awkward radio voice. But you sounded really good with it. Nice signal into the Everglades. K4ABX.
If it was yesterday, no. Sunday or Monday yes. I cut all but a few qso’s from the video unfortunately. It would have been way too long for a review otherwise.
@@hamradiotube gotcha. Yeah it was Monday. Looking forward to the video. Looks like a very cool antenna.
@@_onthemike_ Wait, I just had to check. You definitely made it into this video. You had me in stitches! Good to work you buddy!
@@hamradiotube hahaha. Awesome! Wish I was recording cause I’m sure my face was ridiculous. Very cool making contact. Glad to have you in the log.
The only trouble is the cost is way out of line.
I think the transformer is a 5:1 UNUN. I am going to try my Alpha Antenna in that configuration and see how it works. You may have something similar. Just cut a ground rod in half.
That's ok. It's not for everyone.
Get i 1' piece of schedule 40 threaded pipe, only one end need be threaded. Screw a cap on iy. Now you have a great rod banging device. EZ!
Great tutorial video.
I just subscribed. Where exactly can find the place to purchase it?
Thanks for the sub. Sorry for the month long delay in answering but there is a link in the description.
Could you cut a piece out of the horizontal wire's ring terminal then you would not need to take the bolt out of the thread and lose it.
I would be a little concerned about the amount of tension you need on that wire pulling out if using other than a full ring. If it is strong enough, though, that would definitely make hook-up and breakdown WAY more convenient.
how would this antenna work on a tower next to my house? The tower is 17 feet high. I would run the wire across my roof about 2-3 feet off the roof. I live in a manufactured home community. My house is 54x20 and my lot extends 7-10 feet on all sides from the house.
3:51 gotdamn right it is!
Since the grounding wire makes the antenna directional, it would make that wire a counterpoise. I was wondering if the counterpoise wire were to be bent into a square shape around the base, would it be more omnidirectional?
It's not a counterpoise. It's part of the radiating element. And in my highly scientific test, I found that it was not really directional.
I found my next antenna.
This antenna and similar antennas are by nature compromise antennas. I would like to know what the bandwidth on all these bands are. At 80 meters it cannot be very wide. Ease of setup is certainly the antenna's main selling point. I am a little wary of the telescope antenna that could easily bend or break if not handled carefully , or if the antenna falls over for whatever reason. At 500 bucks, for me it is not a "Go 2" but a "no go." Does an op have to have all amateur bands available at all times?
I would like to suggest a cheaper alternative. For portable operating I use mono-band end fed half wave antennas and 7-10 meter long telescope poles (from Spiderbeam). I usually operate on 20 meters. This antenna and the ones for 15 and 10 meters ((I don't have any WARC band antennas) hang individually vertically along the pole not all at the same time, with the help of a little masking tape. I guess you could hang them all and let them slope fout rom the center pole. I haven't tried that yet. You just have to move your coax connector around. Setup and tear down times are a matter of minutes. Even changing bands goes quickly. No tuner is necessary. With the half wave antennas I get full bandwidth. The antennas themselves cost around 35 Euros a piece, the telescope pole aroung 60 Euros. As for 30 and 40 meters (the wire gets pretty long) , I use an inverted "V" configuration. Of course, you could also make your own or buy ready made 49:1 or 64:1 matching units that can handle whatever power output you may wish, and buy some antenna wire and make your own antennas cheaper.
When I was a radio newbie I let myself be impressed with a 6-160 meter antenna from the company Alpha Antennas. It too wasvery expensive, and it never worked well. My homebrew random wire antenna was much "louder," and my signal strength and reports were much better than the store bought antenna. This is not to mean that the My Go 2 antenna is in any way a bad antenna. I don't have one and have no experience with one.
I would only like to point out that for those of us with a strict CFO/XYL it may be too difficult to get the green light to spend 500 bucks on a new toy. The alternative may not be as elegant and convenient, but she may green light that. 73!
Of course it's a compromise. Every antenna is. Understand that the main purpose of this antenna is NOT to take portable, but for those that have very strict HOA's. I just did it because portable is kinda my thing. If you re-watch the video, I sweep all the bands on the analyzer so you can see the bandwidth. I do know all about EFHW antennas and use the crap out of them portable, though mine are resonant, multi band 49:1 EFHW's. I don't use a tuner. You will see a lot of that on my channel if you watch more. For sure the price is high. There are others on the market priced the same. They aren't for everyone, but for those that don't have any other option, the do solve a problem. Thanks for sharing your thoughts and thanks for watching. Good luck with the CFO/XYL lol :). 73
The Karens are wiser now since you posted this video.
Please be cautious, the rod beater may be made of lead.
Oh, very nice antenna, any idea about transformer impedance at the whip base?
What kind of battery you usually use with your 891?
Regards
I know of a guy in you're area a guy called Jake operating the 11mt band.
Is that whip the same as the MFJ 17 foot whip? I have used that on a tripod with 4 drooping 17 foot radials, as a 20M ground plane, that worked pretty well.
he prob doesn't get it from MFJ, but i have several from different companies and they are all exactly the same. I would guess the same manufacturer.
Subscribed. Thanks for the content. de K4DRE
I like your review on this antenna.
Yes I would absolutely consider purchasing it;
but the $499 price tag was a bit of a shock.
Doesn't really matter though,
they are out of stock as of 01/09/2022.
Hey thanks so much, welcome to the channel! The price is a bit steep but for what it does, it solves a problem for a lot of people.
Hey Mike that’s a great looking antenna , It looks like the set up takes no time. Over 50 contacts at the park with the bands not in good shape I think you did excellent. Thanks for the video and the information. Stay safe.
WD5ENH
Steve
that's a very well made system
Hi Mike, I'm new on Your Channel, thanks for Your videos. Good entertainment and a lot of useful information! What kind of analyzer are You using in the video? 73 from JO40en
another fantastic video Mike thanks Jaison 73 from kb2uew
Thank you Alvaro. Always love to see your comments :)
Thanks for the video
I would buy if it weren't 500 dollars! I want to research making my own transformer
They really need to work on the price point. I was stoked about one but found an antenna that does the same job for half the price.
If they were even in the 350 range I would have bought one. What happened to sell some discounted, get name recognition and then raise the price?
Awesome & thank you
Has anyone elevated this antenna? Wondering if I could mount it 10 feet off the ground and run the counterpoint wire also that high off the ground???
Looks like a great antenna but the price! I am going to have to hold off on this one.
Yeah its not cheap but it serves a purpose.
I have this antenna and can’t get below 2.9:1 on 20 meters
Looks like an awesome antenna, nice review, nice portability. My only concern is that it is pricey.
stop showing me crazy cool antennas !!!!! my wallet loves you hahahaha I want one
I’m disappointed for what the antenna costs $$$ that the ground pounder is already failing after such little use, for a heavy piece of stock it shouldn’t fail. I may have to change out mine with one I use at work. Thanks for the review Mike can’t wait to give mine a try.
He emailed me and said he's already working on a new improved version.
I have a hard time justifying $500.
I feel for the genuine ladies named Karen. Those "Karens" have made it hard for them.
I was impressed - love the design and portability. Went to the website and saw the price - doing the math on the pieces and parts, the coil is really pricey. Then I saw the power capabilities of this setup which seems very low per price point. Having made my own coil(and melted the first one) the PVC used seems to handle 100w digital with no problems so far. Wonder if I could run a horizontal wire off of it and get the same performance characteristics? Might be worth and experiment since this seems to remove the requirements for radials. Hmmmm...thanks for the review.
Agreed. Seems like a great antenna for about $150. But almost $500? You could buy a tri-band beam for that price. If they'd lower the price to a reasonable level, they would probably sell 10 times more than they do now.
@@NsixVHF, at this price point i'm pretty sure the company is not too interested in selling a lot of these...but, whatever they sell, they are probably making a hefty margin. they are probably making the transformers one at a time, having a few in stock to sell at any given time. as a "portable antenna," realistically it should sell for about $249 or less. if TN07 wanted to scale production (which, as i have previously stated they probably don't want to do), they could get the price down. niché antenna for sure.
Great video, Mike. What is the model number of the MFJ antenna analyzer you are using?
It’s the MFJ-223 but if you’re looking for an analyzer I would get the RIgExpert stick pro. It’s $10 less and does so much more. I did a video on it a month or so ago. I’m in love with it.
Hey, Mike! What’s your opinion regarding comparison on this antenna and the MPAS 2.0 system?
I've not used the MPAS 2.0 but they are really 2 completely different antennas with 2 totally different uses. The TN07 is designed primarily to be used at home as an HOA antenna. The MPAS is designed more for the portable operator to be taken out into the field and deployed in many different configurations.