Testing for signal with an antenna

[ville]

I've been very happy with iBurst, unlike it seems many users here, and have almost converted family members to switch to iBurst from a landline.

The problem is their location... Bredell in Kempton Park. A tower was recently set up at Jhb Intl... I've used my UTD to test for a signal, and I do get a very low intermittent signal in some places on the property, but not enough to connect. I am hoping that with a good antenna the signal will be strong enough for them to use... it doesn't need to be great, only functional, and I'm sure even a poor signal will outdo a 56K modem. Now what I want to know is whether anybody will be able to test for a signal there with an antenna? I know iBurst do signal tests with antennas if you're already a customer, but these people aren't, and so they don't have an iBurst modem that someone can just connect an antenna to to see whether there's a signal... whoever does the testing will have to do it from scratch.

So does anybody know of a supplier or reseller that will undertake something of this sort, i.e. test whether an external antenna will provide a usable iBurst signal on the property?

Any help would be appreciated.

 

[Netformatix]

iBurst in JHB have a team that will assist with this, just email their helpdesk ([email protected]). There will be a charge for the service though.

 

[WebhostingTalk]

Stay away from Iburst

 

[rudirautenbach]

Ville,

PM me I might be able to give you a hand. For free...

 

[JasonX]

Singal Qaulity

Hi

I recently moved, I use to have a 100% signal, and now I am lucky if I get 40% signal. So I got hold of one of Iburst's Omni Antennas. Signal Strength now is 50% to 60%. Seems to be some interference (Electric fencing atc.)

But I am downloading at better speeds now than when I use to have a 100% signal at my previous location. How does this work?

Still need to decide whether I should return this antenna (7 days to return).

 

[WebhostingTalk]

Hi

I recently moved, I use to have a 100% signal, and now I am lucky if I get 40% signal. So I got hold of one of Iburst's Omni Antennas. Signal Strength now is 50% to 60%. Seems to be some interference (Electric fencing atc.)

But I am downloading at better speeds now than when I use to have a 100% signal at my previous location. How does this work?

Still need to decide whether I should return this antenna (7 days to return).

Why don`t you rather get a directional antenna(flat panel)? They pickup far less interference than a omni.

 

[who.is.michael]

Read this...

I agree fully with WebhostingTalk's first post, but if you must do the iBurst thing, this post might help. I have used the Yagi from Poynting with good results, provided you are within the 2 Km range of a tower. If I can just convince Poynting to adjust the feed of this antenna to the 1792 iBurst SA frequency range, it would be the best antenna for iBurst use to be found anywhere...

PS. Stay clear of omni antennas for use with the iBurst system - In most cases I have found this to be the cause of base station "hopping".

Good to see it helped...

If you have spare cash and want to further improve your signal either purchase another Long Range Yagi RAY1800/17
of the same type from the same supplier and mount them side by side about 16 cm apart (boom-to-boom) and combine them to the main feedline using a “combiner” splitter module, this will narrow the horizontal beamwidth and increase the gain by approximately another 3dB or purchase two higher gain Yagi’s .

However the best cellular antennas can be found in Ireland, reasonably priced (60 EUR) however the shipping cost (125 EUR) is rather high. The shipping cost would be the same for ten antennas, so if you can convince a few iBurst users to purchase as well and split the shipping costs it can be well worth your while.

Insulated Yagi’s

Parabolic antennae

Hope this helps.

Regards

Michael

EDIT: To reply to your post below; as it is not completely accurate. Narrowing the beamwidth would allow for less “noise” from unwanted towers and other sources, therefore an improved signal (> -3dB) allowing for a higher throughput.

Would appreciate your feedback once you have tested it – it is especially relevant where there are several base stations with a difference in signal of <10dB.

 

[JasonX]

Thanks for the info.

So this will work "as is" with Iburst. I suppose I will need some kind of converter to be able to connect it to the USB modem.

Spare cash? How much we talking about?