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4g antenna positioning/choice

Hi
You can change the cable on the antenna, as long as its 50 ohms, and also for the desired frequency range, however cutting the cable close to the back of the antenna and putting in connectors will introduce insertion loss and provide a weak point for water ingress etc. Best results would be obtained if you were to un-solder the existing cable and replace directly onto the antenna board inside, but this will mean opening the antenna enclosure up, which is not for everyone.
Have a look at some of the online cable loss calculators.
https://www.qsl.net/co8tw/Coax_Calculator.htm
Stick in the cable type and length you have (or the length you think you need, and see the difference on each of the bands)... you will be surprised at how much less loss better quality cables have in comparison to the cheaper cables that comes with these off the shelf 4G antennas. LMR-400 (RG-8) is a good compromise for an upgrade, for flexibility and performance.
As Gavin said, for best results, stick the Router up next to the Antenna in a IP67 Enclosure and power it via PoE over Cat5e/Cat 6 (if its capable) and keep the coax as short as possible. Or in
Thanks! Very interesting, imay well give it a go upgrading the cable etc. From quick look doesn't look like rocket science wiring...

One question on your recc for cable I've found following which I assume is a good cable. Their SMA male is £5 a pop vs £10 for loads on amazon...
Is there a real difference, or would this cable not fit the amazon ones?
 

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You can take this route and make up a cable on your own if you have the right tools, but for the connectors you have suggested you will need a crimping tool with the right size of insert. Unless you intend to make a lot of cables in the future, its far more cost effective to buy a pre-terminated cable. I use a company called MS Distribution for any Wifi or LTE cables I need as they will crimp on the connector you need, and if you call them you can order the exact specification and length (e.g. with a SMA Male connector on one end. etc. ). Note that LMR-400 has a solid core so less flexible than the braided core equivalent which is LBC-400. Slightly more loss with the braided core but will be pretty insignificant at <5m length.
Hope this helps
 
Thanks, I'll have a look into all that.

Final question, assuming I still attempt 4x4mimo seeing as I have the modded router anyway its worth a go.

With 2no pairs of 2x2 ISKRA antenna, it says the pair should be spaced 90cm apparently ( and 45 degrees offset) . would the below work so that each pair of x orientated antenna were 90cm from the other one / or would they somehow interfere with each other being so close/ staggered with another pair...? Just trying to work out how to do it and not have it look like an industrial complex...
aerial.webp
 
I'm not sure on the minimum requirements of 90cm to achieve MIMO. It may have to do with the actual wave length (at 800-900MHz is about 30cm, so somehow a multiple of that).

This guy explains it well (he's from Poynting):


 
I'm not sure on the minimum requirements of 90cm to achieve MIMO. It may have to do with the actual wave length (at 800-900MHz is about 30cm, so somehow a multiple of that).

This guy explains it well (he's from Poynting):


yeah ISKAR just say minimum spacing 66cm and optimum 96cm. Im more curious if slamming 2 sets alternated with each other ( to save space) is fine, because they work as pairs and each pair would be 90cm odd apart or somehow messes up the reception/ signal by slamming another aerial, albeit not the paired one right next to another aerial.
 
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Not sure what you mean.
Check out this forum post from tplink, very informative, loads of good info. Also explains the 90cm bit (it's got to do with wave length indeed).

 
Hm, this is quite interesting and space saving (from the same link above).
 

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These yagi's used for multi MIMO configurations are each feeding a single input on the router, so the recommended spacing is to ensure that the proximity of objects around an antenna (especially ones that are made of metal which can cause inductive or capacative effects) do not cause any undue effect (changing the standing wave ratio) on the antennas. All antennas regardless of type are tuned to provide multiple characteristics, like feed point impedance (commonly 50 ohms, 75 ohms for terrestrial tv equipment etc.), an optimal forward gain and front to back ratio (in the case of directional antennas). If the antennas were say feeding a single phase system, (like stacked yagi or cubical quad antennas in the case of HAM radio), then a matching system would be needed to ensure that the combination of the two antennas presented 50 ohms to the radios. In your case each antenna is essentially a standalone, so as long as you maintain the recommended minimum spacing distance which is determined by the wavelength of the lowest frequency that the antenna will cover, you will be fine.
 
Resurrecting this thread!

I have now installed and tested a bit. So bad news, yep no 4x4mimo where I live at the moment!

However putting proper ISKRA antenna on an outside mast has improved my RSRP from -109db on band 3 to -80db.

Corresponding speed increase from around 20 to 30mbs previously to now reaching 75mbs.

A question on best bands to use. It appears I have Bands 3, 20 and 32. The speed tests vary so much that its not clear if it better to have all 3 and aggregation vs just band 3 but no aggregation. Are there any other bands i should test for?

I suppose it doesn't really matter and ill just keep it it on all 3.


2.jpg
 
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There is another mast eNB 12734 due East of you, and according to CellMapper is LTE-A (at least cell 1 is)


Are the trees in Hembury Woods blocking your line of sight to this mast?
 
Resurrecting this thread!

I have now installed and tested a bit. So bad news, yep no 4x4mimo where I live at the moment!

However putting proper ISKRA antenna on an outside mast has improved my RSRP from -109db on band 3 to -80db.

Corresponding speed increase from around 20 to 30mbs previously to now reaching 75mbs.

A question on best bands to use. It appears I have Bands 3, 20 and 32. The speed tests vary so much that its not clear if it better to have all 3 and aggregation vs just band 3 but no aggregation. Are there any other bands i should test for?

I suppose it doesn't really matter and ill just keep it it on all 3.


View attachment 1809

Are you still using Three?
Your app is saying 20mhz bandwidth on band 3.
Three only has 15mhz.
 
There is another mast eNB 12734 due East of you, and according to CellMapper is LTE-A (at least cell 1 is)


Are the trees in Hembury Woods blocking your line of sight to this mast?
Ahh okay, what does LTE-A mean, is that thst it can do 4x4 mimo? I'll have a look at it but imagine the woods amd hill it's on get in the way.
 
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Ahh okay, what does LTE-A mean, is that thst it can do 4x4 mimo? I'll have a look at it but imagine the woods amd hill it's on get in the way.
LTE-A says there's band aggregation going on. Don't think you can see MIMO this way. The only way to do so AFAIK is to load the SIM up in your phone and run something like Network Signal Guru app.
 
For those interested in such things. looks like my trial EE sim far is superior to my THREE sim. EE gets band 3 (20mhz) at -80db with this new setup while THREE only gets band 3 (15mhz) at -100db. THREE sim gets to around 30/35mbs where as EE sim gets upto 80mbs. Both connected to the same ( only visible one) tower.

I'm planning to get a new EE unlimited 4G contract via EE business as its cheaper than personals and also technically for my business anyway. Does anyone know if there are any drawbacks to using the EE business instead of personal?
 
We're not aware of any, if you find one let us know. :)
Thanks,

I was just reading this thread

EE 4G+ (LTE-A) keeps dropping'

The only unlimited business contract is "business essential" not smart. Does anyone know if these are at all speed limited as outlined in that chat and is the £2 add on for full speed still a thing with EE or applicable?
 
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