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Advice needed on external 3G/4G antenna

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    #332
    daraghwal
    Registered Users Posts: 945 ✭✭✭daraghwal


    Bawnmore wrote: »
    You're better off waiting until someone who knows what they're talking about comes along, but anecdotally I ordered this last week and spoke to the guys there and they suggested 10m as the max you'd want to be extending the cables on this type of antenna before you start seeing loss. I assume it'd be the same for an omnidirectional antenna (cables are same), but someone else here will know for sure.

    I sorted a roof ladder recently, so will sort mine when the weather is less awful.

    I installed this setup (a few pages back in this thread) and got great results from a mast 7km away. 10m will work but the more you add to that the worse things get. Especially if you're joining it etc. I would just go for this setup that's pre-terminated etc. rather than joining cables etc.


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    #333
    Bawnmore
    Registered Users Posts: 1,733 ✭✭✭Bawnmore


    daraghwal wrote: »
    I installed this setup (a few pages back in this thread) and got great results from a mast 7km away. 10m will work but the more you add to that the worse things get. Especially if you're joining it etc. I would just go for this setup that's pre-terminated etc. rather than joining cables etc.

    I'm pretty sure that's where I got the lead for my one. Called that crowd after and they were very helpful answering all my stupid aerial related questions so bought on the spot.


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    #334
    pms7
    Registered Users Posts: 463 ✭✭pms7


    Berberis wrote: »
    Very interesting and informative thread this is.
    Like a lot of others we are stuck with poor reception and have been using a Huawei B593 with a three sim for past couple of years.

    We usually leave the settings on the router to 3G as the 4G is too inconsistent. Speeds are very slow, usually anything from 1mb or less up to 2mb for most of the time and occasionally we get teased with speeds of up 10mb for very short periods.

    I looked at the links for finding nearest mast and if there is a clear sight and it appears there is a 3 mast 4.47km away.
    So was thinking of putting one of the Poynting 4G-XPOL-A0001 Cross Polarised 4G Omni LTE Antenna on the gable wall of the house which faces in the direction of the mast.

    I see that the cables which come with the antenna are 5m long. We usually place the router at the other end of the house as it gets a wider spread of its signal from there as the house is L shaped and the old part of it has very wide solid walls.

    Would anyone know if I would get away with connecting an extra 5 metres of cable to the Antennas cable so I could still have the router located where it is. ie approx 10 metres from where I would locate the antenna.

    And if so would anyone be able to let me know what the specs are of the cable and connector fittings I would need please.

    Thanks in advance
    Go for the Xpol 2 directional, no point in omni in rural location when can point at mast. https://signalsolution.novatel.ie/9dbi-cross-polarised-high-gain-outdoor-lte-panel-antenna-xpol-2 Can get a 10M one but if loss of signal causes speed issue cannot fix it, but if get 5M and router in wrong place can easily extend wifi with no loss. Better do it once and do it right. Also get router that supports carrier aggregation. Similar distance to you from 3 mast, getting 70-140Mbps.
    5G version also available.
    the house is L shaped and the old part of it has very wide solid walls. I have similar house to that, got mesh wifi extender, super job, Tenda mesh mw3


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    #335
    Ten Pin
    Registered Users Posts: 2,815 ✭✭✭Ten Pin


    For rural areas, antennas supporting 700-2700MHz are better. 700MHz isn't in use yet but will be next year. Above 3000MHz is of little benefit in rural locations due to shorter coverage range.


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    #336
    The Cush
    Registered Users Posts: 15,481 ✭✭✭✭The Cush


    Ten Pin wrote: »
    Above 3000MHz is of little benefit in rural locations due to shorter coverage range.

    Aren't the MNOs rolling out 5G in the 3.6 GHz from masts nationwide, it's possible there could be one in the vicinity in which case an aerial covering that frequency range would be an advantage.


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    #337
    Berberis
    Registered Users Posts: 783 ✭✭✭Berberis


    Cheers for all the advice folks.

    Might see If I can borrow a pair of binoculars and see if I can actually spot the mast. On a clear day I'm nearly sure I can actually see the mast, in the direction that the site viewer shows where it is. If there were tops of trees in the line. would it affect it at all?

    I'll probably go for the Directional antenna with the 5m cable and see what the signal to the rest of the house is like with the router positioned to the opposite end to where we usually have it located.

    Actually I should move the router to the upstairs window at the far end of house where the antenna would be positioned to see if the signal is stronger there.

    pms7, I'll look into the tenda mesh you mentioned if signal is not extending to far parts of house.

    I see there is a 5G antenna but not delivered to Ireland from amazon


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    #338
    Berberis
    Registered Users Posts: 783 ✭✭✭Berberis


    I moved the router upstairs to the window facing the direction of the mast

    If I set it to 3G I'm getting 3 bars out of 5 on the router and speeds of average around 4Mbps download and around 1.5Mbps Upload
    Put it to 4G and I get 4 to 5 bars on the router and speeds of around 9Mbps download and 19Mbps upload. At one stage I got 36.1 down and 37.3 up.

    Speeds are slower, the further I move the laptop away from the router and one of my smart plugs which is the furthest away from router is not connecting.

    So going by the info in this thread, I would assume that the directional antenna would even improve these speeds hopefully. Then look at the Tenda mesh to extend the signal if its still not reaching the last smart plug


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    #339
    MyPeopleDrankTheSoup
    Registered Users Posts: 2,709 ✭✭✭MyPeopleDrankTheSoup


    apologies if this is a stupid question but can I point a mas to my closest town and get a different 3g tower? I get 3g signal no bother out the country but speeds are terrible at night. I'm thinking the backhaul to that mast is being used by everybody. But 3g in town at the same time, speeds are consistent, I'm guessing as most people have fixed broadband in town. So is it possible to select your tower with a directional mast?


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    #340
    Ten Pin
    Registered Users Posts: 2,815 ✭✭✭Ten Pin


    So is it possible to select your tower with a directional mast?

    Possibly but you'd have to shield all possible signal from the 'slow' mast. Even then, the mast in town might try to throw you off as it knows there's a mast closer to you. The best chance of it working is if the masts are diametrically opposite relative to your location.

    It also depends how far from each mast you're located.


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    #341
    ED E
    Registered Users Posts: 36,164 ✭✭✭✭ED E


    Yeah, being very close to the cell you're trying to avoid would be a problem. You'd probably end up with something like this (possibly smaller).

    rtele.png?w=800


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    #342
    pms7
    Registered Users Posts: 463 ✭✭pms7


    MyPeopleDrankTheSoup wrote: »
    apologies if this is a stupid question but can I point a mas to my closest town and get a different 3g tower? I get 3g signal no bother out the country but speeds are terrible at night. I'm thinking the backhaul to that mast is being used by everybody. But 3g in town at the same time, speeds are consistent, I'm guessing as most people have fixed broadband in town. So is it possible to select your tower with a directional mast?
    Should be possible with a directional aerial, especially if can put house in the way.
    Handy if your router allows you to see what cell connected to. Can get LOG and dish antennas which are a lot more directional than a panel one, but not all cover all bands.
    https://editorsean.com/articles/3g4g-antenna-advice/
    Think opposite is case with me, have good speed 70-100Mps day and night on rural 4G mast, neighbour goes from 50 to 0.5 evening, thinking connecting to town mast.


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    #343
    irishgeo
    Registered Users Posts: 9,369 ✭✭✭irishgeo


    couple of quick questions

    1. why is their aerial banned in Ireland https://www.irishwireless.net/lte-diy/xpol-a0001 , I have this and it was brought before any ban , not getting greats speeds with it.

    2. anyone have one of these? https://www.irishwireless.net/preconfigured-sxt-lte?search=sxt%20lte&description=true

    Is it better? How is it powered?


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    #344
    TimHorton
    Registered Users Posts: 1,053 ✭✭✭TimHorton


    irishgeo wrote: »
    couple of quick questions

    1. why is their aerial banned in Ireland https://www.irishwireless.net/lte-diy/xpol-a0001 , I have this and it was brought before any ban , not getting greats speeds with it.

    2. anyone have one of these? https://www.irishwireless.net/preconfigured-sxt-lte?search=sxt%20lte&description=true

    Is it better? How is it powered?

    I had the one you have and the gain was not great , However I bought this in August and its directional and I have it in my attic and get 90/100 mb off peak on Vodafone where I got 20mb without , https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00C1DGGKC/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1


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    #345
    Ten Pin
    Registered Users Posts: 2,815 ✭✭✭Ten Pin


    1. why is their aerial banned in Ireland https://www.irishwireless.net/lte-diy/xpol-a0001 , I have this and it was brought before any ban , not getting greats speeds with it.

    IMO that's some sort of error or mix up with booster/repeaters. If it's illegal then why are they selling it? Haven't seen any other vendor with that notice on a passive antenna.


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    #346
    Bawnmore
    Registered Users Posts: 1,733 ✭✭✭Bawnmore


    OK so I fit my directional antenna today and saw a jump in speed immediately. Would usually be getting between 15 and 20 down and about 2 up. After fitting the antenna I'm seeing about 60 down and 50 up when I was testing which is great. I've reverted back to the old setup for the time being as I've no sockets in the attic at the moment so that's a job for a day sometime soon.

    One question - so I can see the mast I'm connecting to on comreg and I'm pointing the aerials in that general direction to get the speeds above. It's very much just that though - pointing aerials in that general direction. Is there any way to tweak the direction to improve the accuracy?


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    #347
    irishgeo
    Registered Users Posts: 9,369 ✭✭✭irishgeo


    TimHorton wrote: »
    I had the one you have and the gain was not great , However I bought this in August and its directional and I have it in my attic and get 90/100 mb off peak on Vodafone where I got 20mb without , https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00C1DGGKC/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

    it's only for a holiday home but I barely get 1 meg up and it's connected to the outdoor aerial. I have my doubts it's working at all.


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    #348
    TimHorton
    Registered Users Posts: 1,053 ✭✭✭TimHorton


    Bawnmore wrote: »
    OK so I fit my directional antenna today and saw a jump in speed immediately. Would usually be getting between 15 and 20 down and about 2 up. After fitting the antenna I'm seeing about 60 down and 50 up when I was testing which is great. I've reverted back to the old setup for the time being as I've no sockets in the attic at the moment so that's a job for a day sometime soon.

    One question - so I can see the mast I'm connecting to on comreg and I'm pointing the aerials in that general direction to get the speeds above. It's very much just that though - pointing aerials in that general direction. Is there any way to tweak the direction to improve the accuracy?

    Have a look at both links , You can tweak antenna direction by monitoring Device Information on the Modem, Concentrate on RSRQ and RSRP for 4G Connections.
    example

    CELL_ID: *******
    RSRQ: -6dB
    RSRP: -98dBm
    SINR: 9dB
    PLMN: 27201

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cA5wApfZSjw
    http://blog.industrialnetworking.com/2014/04/making-sense-of-signal-strengthsignal.html


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    #349
    pms7
    Registered Users Posts: 463 ✭✭pms7


    Ten Pin wrote: »
    IMO that's some sort of error or mix up with booster/repeaters. If it's illegal then why are they selling it? Haven't seen any other vendor with that notice on a passive antenna.

    Yes, seems to be Comreg error, someone came across 1926 law on aerials, but it make no sense. It only does the same as your router, except outside. And booster/repeaters which were illegal are now legal, recommended ones only. Some sites have that notice, others took them down. Can get on Amazon or one site moved it to the repeater section.


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    #350
    pms7
    Registered Users Posts: 463 ✭✭pms7


    irishgeo wrote: »
    couple of quick questions

    1. why is their aerial banned in Ireland https://www.irishwireless.net/lte-diy/xpol-a0001 , I have this and it was brought before any ban , not getting greats speeds with it.

    2. anyone have one of these? https://www.irishwireless.net/preconfigured-sxt-lte?search=sxt%20lte&description=true

    Is it better? How is it powered?

    No 2 is directional with router and aerial in one outdoor unit. Does not support carrier aggregation (use 2 bands at same time) like most routers do now, so in theory less speed. Ethernet cable from it is not restricted by length like aerial cable is so can bring signal further into house. Powered through the ethernet cable.


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    #351
    Berberis
    Registered Users Posts: 783 ✭✭✭Berberis


    Looking for a bit of help re the setting up of the Tenda mesh devices.
    They are due for delivery along with the directional antenna this Friday.

    From doing a bit of research about setting up the Mesh system, my understanding is that there will now be a different wifi address. example Tend Nova 1.

    Does this mean that I will need to reset all my smart devices like the google home and nests and plugs to this new address.

    Update:
    The Tenda mesh arrived at tea time, so I had to set them up straight away to see how it goes.
    Moved the router up to the window sill, pointed it in the direction of the mast set it for 4g and speeds were out of this world for me. (20-30 down and 20-30 up)

    Set up the 3 Tena mesh's and speeds were consistent all over the house, even in parts down the far end where the bedrooms are which always just about got a smidgen of a signal before. So at 8pm in the evening I'm getting roughly 14 - 20Mps download speeds everywhere.
    When the Antenna arrives on Friday, it will be interesting to see how much quicker it will increase the speeds.

    I did have to reset all my smart plugs, google home, 2 minis and Chromecast to the new WIFI, which took a while but done now.

    I noticed once I had everything connected to the WIFI, that the speeds have now dropped to 6mbs download. I opened the Tenda app and when I click on connected devices, for the google home and minis and the Chromecast, it says "connected 5G access" where all the other devices and lap top says "connected 4G access"
    Could the 5G access be what is slowing the speeds down?

    Update 2:
    The 5G access must not be affecting the speeds. Just tried the speeds (10pm) now and I'm back to getting over 20 Mps download.

    Unbelievable speeds for us. A big thanks to all Boardie's who posted on this thread.


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    #352
    irishgeo
    Registered Users Posts: 9,369 ✭✭✭irishgeo


    Berberis wrote: »
    Looking for a bit of help re the setting up of the Tenda mesh devices.
    They are due for delivery along with the directional antenna this Friday.

    From doing a bit of research about setting up the Mesh system, my understanding is that there will now be a different wifi address. example Tend Nova 1.

    Does this mean that I will need to reset all my smart devices like the google home and nests and plugs to this new address.

    Update:
    The Tenda mesh arrived at tea time, so I had to set them up straight away to see how it goes.
    Moved the router up to the window sill, pointed it in the direction of the mast set it for 4g and speeds were out of this world for me. (20-30 down and 20-30 up)

    Set up the 3 Tena mesh's and speeds were consistent all over the house, even in parts down the far end where the bedrooms are which always just about got a smidgen of a signal before. So at 8pm in the evening I'm getting roughly 14 - 20Mps download speeds everywhere.
    When the Antenna arrives on Friday, it will be interesting to see how much quicker it will increase the speeds.

    I did have to reset all my smart plugs, google home, 2 minis and Chromecast to the new WIFI, which took a while but done now.

    I noticed once I had everything connected to the WIFI, that the speeds have now dropped to 6mbs download. I opened the Tenda app and when I click on connected devices, for the google home and minis and the Chromecast, it says "connected 5G access" where all the other devices and lap top says "connected 4G access"
    Could the 5G access be what is slowing the speeds down?

    Update 2:
    The 5G access must not be affecting the speeds. Just tried the speeds (10pm) now and I'm back to getting over 20 Mps download.

    Unbelievable speeds for us. A big thanks to all Boardie's who posted on this thread.
    Can you have the 5ghz and 2.5ghz WiFi split up. And have a 5ghz WiFi network for the 5ghz enabled devices and keep the 2.5ghz devices on the slower network?


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    #353
    Berberis
    Registered Users Posts: 783 ✭✭✭Berberis


    On the Tenda app there's a smart assistant tab which can be enabled so for 30 minutes the device can discover 2.5ghz devices for setting up.
    Although I only seen that after I set up my devices


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    #354
    B9K9
    Registered Users Posts: 77 ✭✭B9K9


    MF290 wrote: »
    I set up a 4g router and antenna a couple of weeks ago. A directional antenna pointed towards the nearest cell tower works best. Omni directional antennae are best suited for campervans that are moving about.

    I wonder if it would be better to optimise my camper to receive best signal while parked. It has a nifty directional antenna aiming setup. on the road internet would be mainly google maps handled by the phones. We would be watching netflix etc while parked up. I was thinking about a log periodic aerial for that?


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    #355
    B9K9
    Registered Users Posts: 77 ✭✭B9K9


    has anyone tried this LPDA-0092 from Poynting?https://www.amazon.co.uk/ALLNET-LPDA-A0092-LPDA-antenna-A0092/dp/B00FVAGXB4/ref=sr_1_2?crid=2VFF8S27N1RPN&dchild=1&keywords=lpda+antenna&qid=1607601313&sprefix=lpda%2Celectronics%2C206&sr=8-2


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    #356
    Mervyn Skidmore
    Registered Users Posts: 3,076 ✭✭✭Mervyn Skidmore


    Anyone tried any of the cheapie outdoor antennas from the likes of aliexpress?


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    #357
    heffo500
    Registered Users Posts: 963 ✭✭✭heffo500


    Mervyn Skidmore wrote: »
    Anyone tried any of the cheapie outdoor antennas from the likes of aliexpress?

    How much are they?


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    #358
    Mervyn Skidmore
    Registered Users Posts: 3,076 ✭✭✭Mervyn Skidmore


    heffo500 wrote: »
    How much are they?

    20-25 quid I think. I need a temporary solution and don't want to spend a whole pile.


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    #359
    jdon72
    Registered Users Posts: 244 ✭✭jdon72


    Has anyone tried this before? https://www.amazon.co.uk/Bingfu-Outdoor-Waterproof-Vodafone-Cellular/dp/B086J9NBQ8/


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    #360
    heffo500
    Registered Users Posts: 963 ✭✭✭heffo500


    Mervyn Skidmore wrote: »
    20-25 quid I think. I need a temporary solution and don't want to spend a whole pile.

    Will the 4g router not pick up the network signal in the house without an aerial?


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    #361
    heffo500
    Registered Users Posts: 963 ✭✭✭heffo500


    jdon72 wrote: »
    Has anyone tried this before? https://www.amazon.co.uk/Bingfu-Outdoor-Waterproof-Vodafone-Cellular/dp/B086J9NBQ8/

    I'd be dubious, is the phone signal good outside your house and poor inside if yes it might be ok otherwise I wouldn't say it would be great.

    Are you far from your nearest signal tower?


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