What is Your Favorite Base Antenna?

I have to agree MC.

The Steppir may be a good product in some situations, I just don't know. But in looking at that website it looks like a cartoon presentation to me, just Pie in the sky. It is an interesting idea, but I just can't see the control they speak of in that antenna.

King, do they have steppir motors at all elements? Maybe you can fill us in on all of the details, just how this particular antenna really works. How do you know the element has extended or retracted properly? They talk about reversing the bi-directional quality in two seconds. Does this mean the antenna is a bi-directional gain antenna? The controller must be a computer interface to do all that adjusting of the ribbon type copper elements, right?

I think you have told us you are currently looking for a place to put it on a building somewhere in the middle of Manhattan, so you must have one, right? If it will work 20 -10 meters then it must work 11 meters also. What is the gain and front to rear for the one you have and is it three elements or more?

Come on King give us some details about the Steppir

Marconi,
The biggest problem with a 'Steper' antenna is it's cost! The next 'biggest' problem would be it's reliability. Anything that's adjustable more than once or twice, will eventually break down, wear out, or just quit cuz it's tired. That's true of anything, not just the 'Steper' antenna, right? Which isn't saying that it isn't a very nice antenna. (I've bought cars cheaper than that! And they ran too - lol.)

Best antenna I've ever owned was a huge horizontal loop. Worked on all bands, didn't loose all that much power from mismatches (tuner), and did more than a couple of WAC, and WAS's. The best antenna, bar none? Of course not. But it worked and that's all I ask...
- 'Doc

Old Wilson ground plane sold to Maco many many years back now known as the Alpha V-5/8s .....put them up and guide them down well ,I've seen a few that have been up for over 20 years , rusted as they may ,but still putting out just fine. Also like the sigma-4s / salutes ....but the wind would always bend them up fairly well )-: and they really never looked real pretty after that......but boy were they some a$$ kick'in modulating ,receiving sore thumbs in the sky (-:

Hygain Penetrator 500

back in the day

beam, polaris comet
vertical, avanti sigma4, ham international big mack

present day, jays i10k

Master Chief
there is no way a Maco 4 element will out perform a Steppir 4 element...

now whether it will drasticly out perform the maco in a manor of comparing low cost of Maco to that of the Steppir..
I Doubt it..
But then.....i would be able to use it in ways you would not be able to use the maco......going over a far wider range of frequency's without lossing effectentcy of a typical mono banded beam and also without need of tuner..

try that with the maco..
there are many beams that destroy Maco..

Later

there is no doubt that the Steppir beams are expensive..
yes the moving elements at some point can and likly would fail..

basiclly they are offering a mono band antenna that will act as a mono band antenna from basiclly 7 mhz all the way to 55 mhz

what makes it posible is the manor in which they ajust their elements to the size needed for a particular frequency..
taking into account the exact needed lengths for all 4 elements
(the 4 elements stay positioned in same spot of the boom)..

this enables the highest obtainable foward gain..
now there are 2 ways one can set it up..

either for highest front gain for maximum punch..
however those using beams know that side and rear rejection is as importent and even more importent then maximum foward gain..

those using beams do so....to get out further....while enabling them to hear greatest in that foward gain (where ever you are pointing your rotor)while rejecting signals from the 3 other directions....so one can hear far better in the foward pointing direction...

depending on how one perfers to set up the rear and or side rejection...one can tune the carituristics of the antennas specs to those one desires most..

i have little problem with only Jay's Interceptor I-10K in getting out to where the skip is coming from.....
beams further can enhance this ability...

but also by having great side and rear rejections we can hear far better without being drowned out by other nearby local or short skip traffic.....giving the ability to let our radios better hear whatever our beams are pointed to..

well Steppir helps do this as best as posible...
but where so many other beams have unmoving elements there is no ability to tweek things (on the run sort of speak)..

unlike a typical beam.....one can set up the elements to enable simutanious listening-talking in foward and rear directions (with a loss of gain ofcourse) so you can better tell where the signals are coming from (doing so faster since there is less spinning of ones rotor)..

though the size of the steppir beam is relitivly large (depending on the frequency being used)..
it is far smaller then some of those insanely large boom antennas....and yet it often acts better then not only other designes of simular size...but also better then antennas of say 25% longer booms or even more....so one need not use as large a rotor-tower set up and also be less suseptible to various winds and weather conditions..

when not in use one simply turns the emements off basiclly and retract the elements back in so it is actually quite small..

it is for sure a over kill if one intends to talk simply on 11 meters....and it is surly very expensive (about $4500.00...add rotor cable and proper tower...well one gets the picture)

but come on...
i know plenty of people who use say an Icom 706MKIIG and only intend to talk on 11 meters and or freeband..

do you really thing those who have and use radios like the new IC-7000 or the IC-7800 are crazy and or spend too much..
what about those using 3 or 4 120 to 200 foot towers to house their massive antenna farms...

basiclly it is all relitive..
some simply go further then others..
this is why some also consistintly talk further then others..

come on now...
how practical is a porsche or a S class benz..
who actually needs a 6 story brownstone in manhatten instead of an apartment...

simply put...
people buy things they want...to do and perform as they want.

again is no way a Maco can even come close to that of a steppir....even in comparing the frequencys that the maco is intended for...even then the Steppir kills the maco..... and then there are all those other frequency's..

Later

Antenna

I have owned a few different base antennas in my days and the last few have been fiberglass(A99s). Last fall a friend of mine gave me a new in the box Penetrator 500(aluminum), that my father sold to his father back in 1978. They had never put it up. Well, it's up now and what a talker.

hey Bomber...

I bet that antenna is a talker..
to this day it is one of the better antennas out there..

only 2 antennas equal it and only 1 antenna betters it
(Jay's newer version that is actually an highly improved version)
Interceptor I-10K

Later

Hey King, what is different in this new version of which you speak?

My favorite omni is a imax2000

my favorite beam is a m-103 on the flat side

take a look at it yourself at...

www.a1antennas.com

basiclly i is stronger and using a better matching device (hairpin matcher)
also i do not think your older version uses a top hat

Later

so I've heard nothing but good about this 10 K goodie. but in my case and others who run CB radio only ,I think one would be good to go with a Maco 5/8 wave , IM sure it would do just fine and dandy for less then half the money.

King post the following;

take a look at it yourself at...

www.a1antennas.com

basiclly i is stronger and using a better matching device (hairpin matcher)
also i do not think your older version uses a top hat

Later

Click to expand...

Hey King, about the I-10K. I don't know of any mode to this one except maybe a high output model that Jay has designed for the regular I-10K. You mention my older version as though you know that I have an older version. I don't think you could know anything about what I have.

Of course my I-10K has a capaticance hat and I bought mine in early April 2002, and it does look just like the one on his website.

Also look back at one of my posts in this thread where I speak about the steppir antenna you bring up. I think from what I have read you have one right? I had a few questions that I asked there and I would appreciate your response if you can.

Marconi

i did respond to it..

ask me again what you wanted to know..

Later