How did you mount your antenna?

rwithers · Posted: Mon Oct 01, 2007 2:21 pm Post subject: How did you mount your antenna?

I am on the verge of purchasing a Verizon EVDO card and probably will have to get some sort of external antenna as I can only get about 1 bar of EVDO service roaming around my yard. I live in a very rural area but it seems from testing I have done on a friends PDA and some initial walking around that I can get the service I plan on going home today with phone in field test mode and see what I can get for signal.

But my main question is how have some of you mounted an Omni or Yagi antenna. I am a little leary of punching holes in the roof as my house is new construction. What are some other things people here have done? I have considered a pole mounting in the ground similar to my Directv installation. Any suggestions, pictures, etc are welcome.

Thanks

hddrivedude · Posted: Mon Oct 01, 2007 5:07 pm Post subject:

Sorry if 1st post crashed.

Don't know about Verizon as I use Merlin S720 and Sprint. I am also very rural. (NW Houston ~50-60miles). Here is my set up that wokrs well for my wife and I.

Merlin S720 Omni External Antenna connected to an EVDO direct connect 3W amp, this runs into my Linksys router where I have the card installed. I mounted to antenna near the roof ridgeline, ran the cabling through the attic, down short distance through the exterior wall into the back of a cabinet. Have the router mounted on top of the cabinet. Seems to work well for wife and I, we both work from home and VPN into our corporate nets through it. I have photos, if you want to respond directly I can send them to you. Good luck.
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SJ

Rangerw · Posted: Mon Oct 01, 2007 7:54 pm Post subject:

Here is a snippet from a post I made earlier in the WRT54G OpenWRT Firmware thread:

For grins and giggles I ran a speed test, same server, at the same time:
KPC-650-wrt54g3g-3amp booster-the Omni antenna = 200ms - 604 down - 113 up

V640 (Express) - in a Vista Ult HP Pavilion dv9230us express slot - VZW Access Manager v6.2.5 (1784a) = 276ms - 318 down - 47 up

Gotta love the amp/antenna! Gotta order a adapter tonight for this 640.

An Omni and adapters for the 640 are ordered as of an hour ago, and I may have a amp at the office that was part of our old cellphone service repeater, gotta dig it out and see. Not wanting to spend alot since this 640 will be a backup card.

The omni I have now with the amp and KPC-650/WRT54G is just screwed to the eave of the house with wood screws. I did try to utilize all the cable so to get it away from the router as far as possible and I take great pains to keep all the wiring that is associated with the router/amp/antenna run away from all other stuff ie: the router/amp power cords I try to keep away from the antenna cabling, etc.

I do believe in the amp/omni.
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A simple man.