Loop on the Ground antenna, is it any good? REVIEW
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- Опубликовано: 24 ноя 2021
- I was given a loop on the ground antenna to review by a fellow ham (G8SAR), I decided to test this using my Sun SDR pro radio which can split antennas for receive and transmit.
Verdict from the antenna review is.....
I'm a licensed amateur radio operator from the United Kingdom. My RUclips channel features videos focusing on operating portable radio from various locations plus how to videos, tutorials, insights and conversations in the hobby.
Good video Carl, and interesting results so far. I was going to try something similar. Have used a magnetic loop antenna for listening with mixed results.
Hi Carl. Extremely interesting to see how others get on with this arrangement. I tried this quite a while ago on my channel with similar results to you. I found it's performance to be very underwhelming to be completely frank with you.
In my case I found that I got better performance from a RX only mag-loop or a high-Z vertical (preferably at the bottom of the garden as far away from the houses as possible). I thought the vertical would be noisier but I was pleasantly surprised.
The high-z was ground-mounted (due to the requirement for a ground rod) & the mag-loop was between 4 & 6 feet off the ground. The jury is out on which performed better.....there wasn't much in it.
The loop could be rotated to null out some noise from the surrounding houses (which may also have nulled out a couple of weaker stations).
I want to try mounting the loop on the side of the house with a rotator at about 20ft to see what that does. I'm wondering if getting it up in the clear will make any difference, although bringing it closer to the house (or in my case mounting it on the house) may be counter-productive. Might be worth a try though.
Those are my thoughts & practical experiences so far.
This is definitely on my list to do. I first saw Roly set up a ground loop. I'm in a built up area and I've only got a small garden, but I definitely think it will help my situation.
Hi Carl, a very interesting and informative video, I really enjoyed it and learned a few things that I will try at my home qth, as I am also plagued by noise, and am looking for a solution, and it seems that you have provided an easy answer. I will certainly try it and see how it works, thank you for sharing.
I think you've found what a lot of others do, which is that noise is so pervasive close in to our homes now that even a LOG picks it up enough of it that it doesn't improve the S/N ratio all that much. Always worth trying these things though.
The loop that close to the shed would have coupled the shed to the loop
I've had a 60' LOG in use for 9 months or so. I find it to be effective from 20M down, It performs best from 40M down and I even use it for monitoring directional beacons. I use it with a RSP Duo along with a 80-6 OCFD. When using both antennas in diversity reception mode I can cancel out a lot of noise. While I would not want a LOG for my only antenna I do find it quite useful at times and plan on keeping this one available.
Thanks for the video Carl, I am tempted to go outside and do the same, but it's a misty and dismal day here in Romford. 73, Bob. M0BOB.
I'm very interested in future testing results as I am planning a loop on the ground at my new QTH.
I can't help but think the metal shed would be coupling to your LOG and skewing your results. Will be interesting to see if the results are similar in other locations.
Great video Carl and impressive radio you have there. I wonder if you were to try the loop on 60 metres. You might find it will improve inter G when the band changes to favour European stations. In winter by afternoon the local signals fade. The loop may receive the higher angles of radiation favouring the inter G.
I noticed Roly, has elevated loop by a foot or so off the ground. Wonder if that makes a difference. Going to try this in my garden today, elevated then directly on the ground. Wish I was back in the UK now, after watching your radio expeditions… VK4QP.
Hi Carl. Like many things in amateur radio, to see if something works at your QTH, you often have to suck it and see. I tried a LOG a la Roly, ZL1BQD. A prodigious undertaking involving 90M of insulated wire. Made a 3 S point difference on 160 and 80M, less so on higher bands. Then, blow me I learn how to fiddle with my RF gain settings, adjust the tone settings for the RX and master the amazing filtering on the rig and the difference was even greater. Was hoping to combine the benefits of both, but the XYL described my LOG as worse than an attack of herpes in the eye (I'm cursed with a family surfeit of medics), and so the LOG was removed and replaced with a box of Milk Tray. 73, M0YZT
I need a supply of milk tray
I’ve definitely seen some directivity with my log antenna Carl 👍 Gm4zji Chris
THANK YOU...... DES CREAN,, BELFAST IRELAND
Hi Carl I live in a built up area and over the years played with many types of RX aerials, tune loops broadband loops propergation does have a effect, one aerial will pick up a signal while the other will be weaker due to the time of day caused by the angle of radiation.
My current loop is a vertical polarised loop W2PM with preamp with a ferrite transformer, and 20db preamp the coax does become part of the system it picks up common mode on the outer braid, I have solderd to the outer braid a earth wire and sealed it with a hot clue gun and used a earth rod that does help to improve S/N I think you could do with a pre amp on that loop it would help. G4LMZ
Greetings from across the pond ... I have 2 of these loops, one in the front yard is 60 feet (15' per side) and another in part of the neighbor's yard (with permission) that is larger, about 133 feet (not perfectly square, but roughly 32' per side). I use Unified Microsystems Beverage Antenna Transformers BT-75, $33 US, set up for 75 ohm coax and they both work fairly well. I think there is a misconception that these should or will receive 'better' than other types of antennas--they are simply quieter. You do lose some signal strength, but they remove much of the hash one might hear in a noisy environment (I am in an urban location). I think you would do better if you moved it away from the shed and placed it in the yard (dodging the land mines, lol). Use wire garden staples to hold it down and the lawn will grow up around it, making it utterly invisible. No problems running the lawnmower over either of mine ... Placing the transformer at the corner of the diamond shaped layout (on the N side for example) will give it an east to west orientation, you don't have to make a perfect shape, whatever is available will work ..... Hope that is of some help, 73 ;-]
Can't help thinking the shed isn't helping. Would be interesting to compare. As others have said, it's not going to receive better but it will take some noise out. How about a compromise, say round the fence one foot off the ground. Some people have found a slightly raised log works better for them. Less noise and doesn't lose quite as much signal.
Morning Carl. Interesting.
I use a LOG antenna and also have a Wellbrook loop. (I also have a SUNSDR2Pro)
I used the LOG yesterday in the 80M Autumn Series RSGB CW contest.
Mine uses a design from KK5JY and looks similar to yours with a single matching transformer wound on a binocular core.
Mine is fed with about 10m of RG8X.
My TX antenna is an 80M half wave OCF dipole.
How's the LOG perform?
On 80M and 40M the 'radiation' pattern is pretty much omnidirectional. On higher bands it has some gain off the 'side points' (left and right) of the diamond pattern of the wire on the ground.
Signal to noise ratio is improved over the OCF dipole and about the same as the Wellbrook loop (that is only 1M in diameter) on 40M and 20M but better on 80M. (The antenna's 'aperture' improves pickup)
Using the loop in the contest last evening, I could hear and work stations that colleagues a few miles away could not. Its definitely quieter than the OCF dipole (that is up at about 12M) and gives superior Signal to noise ration -- much better than turning down the RF gain on RX.
The Wellbrook is better at 'nulling' out local interference from a neighbour's LED lights -- which is why I have it.
Over the winter, I may well publish and article/video on the LOG antenna.
73
Bruce
Twitter: @G4ABX
Web: g4abx.co.uk
RUclips: Dr.T(G4ABX)
Im wanting to get an RSPduo as I only want to listen in on things. My garden is rectangular shaped and a total of 52m in circumference. My question is, if I make a round loop antenna, does it need to be an exact size of will using the 52m be ok?
I wonder if that metal shed is affecting the loop Carl.
That looks a good set up Carl. As Mat has put and you have stated, perhaps moving it away from the shed will help. Did Ian (G0CNN) also do this with good results?
I’ll ask him
I noticed the loop location was around the shed and you made a comment about it, did you try it around the lawn away from the shed?
Not yet
Using LOTG antenna with great success, 230ft of wire, but for 80 and 160M, can't see it working for anything higher than 80M.
I use it as a diversity antenna and the IC-7610.
Might be worth getting pre amp for your LOTG.
O
Cheers, that’s a good idea, I’m thinking about trying 80m at home but the noise floor has always been an issue. I would need to bury the loop or at least make sure it’s not a trip hazard
My noise floor on 160 and 80m is S0. My noise can be a real pain on 20m - 6m. What can be done for those bands? Because the LoG does nothing to improve SNR. I have confirmed only 1-2 S points of noise is being generated within my QTH, the bulk of it is coming from surrounding homes and is picked up by my Hex Beam.
I love my receive loop very very low noise
👍👏👏
I am trying a 15 foot square LOG. Its OK, not fabulous. Maybe a larger loop or different location I'd like better.
I used to run a 60' long wire in a oblong loop 6' over ground, far better.
The noise floor is great.hi hi
Over all was good 👍
de KQ4CD
4:34 ... task for the dog!
Try the loop around your grass rather than the shed
Try it away from the shed
Very Similar results as the other RUclipsrs who have tried this an interesting proposition but no miracle unfortunately
My wife would kill me if I laid 60' of wire around our small garden ! 73 M7BLC