new 2 scanning need advice

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beefy_boy
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new 2 scanning need advice

Post by beefy_boy »



hi im new 2 scanning ive just got a realistic pro 2006 scanner and i want 2 know what is the best antenna 2 use outside as i live in the middle of nowhere in a small country village and also which is the best low loss cable 2 use and what connector do i need for the back of my scanner 2 connect the antenna 2 the scanner

thanks
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Andy
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Post by Andy »

Hi Beefy - welcome to the wonderful world of scanning. I'm not sure, but your PRO2006 probably has an SO239 socket for the antenna, so you'll need the matching plug which is (rather confusingly) called a PL259. As for your coax, you could do a lot worse than CT-100 or similar satellite TV cable. I use this stuff on most of my radios and it's excellent - low-loss, well screened, flexible and cheap! And it's usable up to about 2GHz! It's 75 ohms, but believe me it doen't make a scrap of difference. It's a bit thick to fit into a PL259 though, so you might have a bit of 'engineering' to do...
If your coax is only going to be short (say 10 metres or less), bog standard RG58 will do nicely. It will fit a PL259 like it was made for it, 'cos it was.
Antennas? Very difficult, as the range of frequencies is way too big for one antenna to cope with. A discone may be the best bet, but a dual-band amateur antenna designed for 144 and 432 Mhz might do if you are interested mainly in airband, marine and UHF pmr.
One word about RG58 - you can get all manner of rubbish coax that calls itself RG58, and some of it isn't worth a bean. Look for the proper stuff with a tightly-woven braid.
Oh, and make sure the PL259 you buy is for RG58, as you can get them for big fat cable, too.
Confused? You will be!
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