General Cellphone tower strength question

PhireSide

PhireSide

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Hi guys

We stay on a farm and I seem to be having a bit of a problem. We are in line of sight of a Vodacom cell tower, but we are partially obscured by some trees. To get my 3G modem to work, I would need some sort of repeater or booster. I can get a clear LOS if I am on the roof. What would be the best antenna to place there? I read about the YAGI and such type of antennas but I cannot seem to figure out what would be best.

Any comments?
 
There are quite a few threads on antennas.

In short, getting a decent yagi antenna is probably your best option. You wil need a 3G modem with a connector for the antenna though. I have repeatedly heard that the adapters don't work well at all. You can take a look here and here for locally available antennas.
 
also, with some of the farm houses if they have had an iron roof, it seems to have degraded the signal...I might stand to correction on this though
 
wabbit16 said:
Hi guys

We stay on a farm and I seem to be having a bit of a problem. We are in line of sight of a Vodacom cell tower, but we are partially obscured by some trees. To get my 3G modem to work, I would need some sort of repeater or booster. I can get a clear LOS if I am on the roof. What would be the best antenna to place there? I read about the YAGI and such type of antennas but I cannot seem to figure out what would be best.

Any comments?
Click to expand...

Log a call with Vodacom and their efficient network dudes should be able to foot the cost of a yagi by giving you one to point at the tower. the adaptor is what amplifies the signal, so i hope you have a decent data card, if you dont i would advise one that you can stick a direct port connector into as opposed to a sleeve, something like the equivalent of MTN's E230 perhaps?

iCare said:
also, with some of the farm houses if they have had an iron roof, it seems to have degraded the signal...I might stand to correction on this though
Click to expand...

You are quite right- tin roofs, stone walls and trees are major deterrents. ive found from my travels in Morgenzon, ermelo and out of Piet retief that the lumbering operations they have there are indeed a problem given the woodland density:)
 
Eish, I would say the distance is about 8 kilometers, give or take.

I do get 3G signal, but it is maybe one or two bars. Sometimes it suddenly drops and I have to switch over to EDGE, and then I can get about 90% signal strength for a while. We have decent MTN coverage, and absolutely no CellC/Virgin Mobile unless I roam onto the VC network.

Sorry if I missed previous threads on the subject, I can never find the right stuff with the Search feature :P

Thanks for all the replies so far :)

I'll contact Vodacom next week and see what they can do about it.
 
8km is way too far for general 3G.that said,there are cases in the rest of the world where sites have been configured to propogate over 100km reliably. Obviously, as will all 3G sites, it also depends on how many users might be active on that site
 
SteveO said:
8km is way too far for general 3G.that said,there are cases in the rest of the world where sites have been configured to propogate over 100km reliably. Obviously, as will all 3G sites, it also depends on how many users might be active on that site
Click to expand...


Hmmm, I don't think there are many 3G users in our area....not at the rate that we receive signal anyways. I have sent VC an email explaining my situation, so when they get back to me we'll see what they suggest.

I'll tell them I want to buy an absurd amount of data per month, maybe then they won't palm me off as some low-end user with a small problem :D
 
wabbit16 said:
I'll tell them I want to buy an absurd amount of data per month, maybe then they won't palm me off as some low-end user with a small problem :D
Click to expand...

They'll probably call your bluff and want you to sign a 24month MYGIG 20 contract up front. :D

Off at a tangent. If you really want "absurd", a MYGIG 20 Advanced cost nearly R300 LESS than a MYGIG 20 Standard contract!
 
wabbit16 said:
Hmmm, I don't think there are many 3G users in our area....not at the rate that we receive signal anyways. I have sent VC an email explaining my situation, so when they get back to me we'll see what they suggest.

I'll tell them I want to buy an absurd amount of data per month, maybe then they won't palm me off as some low-end user with a small problem :D
Click to expand...

Can't really help with your "small problem" issue (maybe it's genetic? :confused:) but can help with the 3G signal issue.

Try and get as high as possible, even if you have to stick a mast on the roof. Then get a high-gain antenna from Poynting and mount it on the mast aligning it as accurately as possible to the tower.

Get a 3G modem with an external antenna socket, or even better, get something like a B970 3G router as this will allow you to keep the antenna cable as short as possible. Try to avoid the inductive couplers you can buy for the external antennas.

Run a cable from the antenna and plug it straight into the modem or router and Bob's your uncle.
 
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