# Has Anyone Installed A Radio Antenna Booster?



## thefulminator (Aug 8, 2007)

Has anyone tried one of these? Antenna Booster. If so how well did it work? The reviews seem good.

The same one is also available through Sears.


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## thefulminator (Aug 8, 2007)

Anyone.......................................


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## Jelly Donut (Apr 13, 2009)

When I got my OB, I was looking into something like that, then I just added another XM radio to my account and went in that direction. Now I have "Hair Nation" at the campfire!!


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## N7OQ (Jun 10, 2006)

I find it very interesting reading the reviews, one guy said that it worked so great and he didn't even have to connect the red wire to anything. Well that red wire is the power lead and it won't even work at all if it is not connected. Me I wouldn't waste my money on one I have seen similar boosters and they do little to help with reception and usually just amplify the noise. The front end on modern radios are so good that no amp is ever needed. I say save your money a better antenna is always better than a booster.


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## BigBadBrain (Aug 26, 2004)

Antenna gain will determine the kind of signal you get - this kind of booster will only amplify what the antenna brings in (if it even does that). Different kinds of antennae will have different gain. Without changing the antenna you are unlikely to see a change in the true signal range. That is not to say you cannot do anything about the signal you can pull in - you just need a better antenna, not a 'booster'.


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## zrxfishing (Sep 12, 2007)

Any suggestions on a better antenna??


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## BigBadBrain (Aug 26, 2004)

Oh boy. I will assume you want this for your camper not at home. The question then becomes one of whether you want to set up the antenna when you get to camp or would rather have it up all the time. (If this is for the tow vehicle rather than trailer, a whole different approach is needed). If you don't mind some setup in camp there are considerably more options. Let's start there.

For an antenna that you set up after you've parked (and assuming you are only talking FM here) there are two kinds of antenna - omnidirectional and directional. Omnidirectional antennas do not require you to point them in any particular direction to get a good signal, directional antennas will require you to set up and then orient the antenna for the best signal. Omni antennas have less gain than directional antennas assuming the directional antenna is pointed at the source. OK. Next we have size considerations. For Omni antennas in the FM bands (88-108 MHz) there are generally 1/2 wave and 1/4 wave antennas. Without dragging you into all the details, the larger the antenna the better the gain. So, generally speaking, the 1/2 wave antenna is better than the 1/4. This 1/2 wave dipole antenna  would be a good choice (or something like it). This will give about the best gain you can get without going directional. I'd go ahead and follow the recommendations from the manufacturer for mounting it and connecting to the radio (usually quality coax cable - 75 ohm). I'm guessing they will recommend a short mast (the dipole is about six feet long so it wouldn't require too complicated of a mast setup to get the whole antenna above the roof - just remember to take it down before you tow!!!).

For camping, I'd forget a directional antenna. For an antenna that you leave up all the time you will have considerably less performance than a 1/2 wave dipole.

Anyone feel like correcting what I've said - please chip in, I don't claim a thorough expertise here.

Hope it helps.


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## thefulminator (Aug 8, 2007)

When installing a new antenna, I assume that you leave to existing antenna where it is and install the new one at a differnt location. I don't even know if you could get to the base of the antenna or run the lead in the attic of an Outback. Any opinions?

I also read an article on car antennas where it was stated that to get a clean signal, the antenna must have a good ground contact with the vehicle. In the case of a car, the ground is obtained at the installation hole in the body. I assume that the antenna in the roof of my Outback is only mounted to the wood panel and rubber roof which would give no ground at all. Any comments on this?


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## BigBadBrain (Aug 26, 2004)

I'm not sure how the Outback antennas are mounted either. You are right - antennas like the one on the outback require a 'ground plane' which, in a car, is the car body. I guess I never thought about the fact that there is likely no metal in the top of the camper. If the antenna is grounded to the radio and the radio is grounded to the Outback frame then I suppose there is a ground plane of sorts. Likely it could be made better but not without some trouble. If it isn't grounded then grounding the antenna is certainly something to try. [[A thought just occurred to me as I wrote this; if you were to take a piece of hardware cloth or some other metal screen and cut a hole in the center of it (I'd use about a 3 foot square) that would fit over the antenna and contact the base of the antenna (a good electrical connection) then see if the performance of the antenna is better. This is only something I'd do to see if a different ground plane will help - I wouldn't advise it as a permanent solution.]] IF a bad ground plane is the problem then adding a new 'better' antenna like the current one will probably not help much.

If I was going to replace the antenna with one in a different location I'd think twice before removing the old one - that's a hole in the roof that right now is not a leak risk; pull the antenna and you have a hole to fill somehow. On the other hand, if you are going to mount another roof antenna, why not reuse the hole rather than making a new one. I can't help in advising about how to access the antenna mount from inside the camper - everything seems pretty closed up tight.

I guess that wasn't all that helpful.


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## thefulminator (Aug 8, 2007)

What about trying to ground the antenna by clamping a wire to it and running externally to to a location where you could get a decent ground?


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## BigBadBrain (Aug 26, 2004)

That sounds easy enough to try - go for it. If the antenna is not grounded to something right now it probably works very poorly - attaching a ground wire would be a good indicator of whether it is or not. I'd try grounding it to the trailer ground though rather than an Earth ground - avoids issues of ground current.


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## thefulminator (Aug 8, 2007)

I was thinking of running a lead from the radio antenna to the tv antenna. I assume the tv antenna gets grounded through the tv signal booster.


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## BigBadBrain (Aug 26, 2004)

Sounds good.


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