Antenna Reference Chart
March 1953 Radio-Electronics

March 1953 Radio-Electronics [Table of Contents] Wax nostalgic about and learn from the history of early electronics. See articles from Radio-Electronics, published 1930-1988. All copyrights hereby acknowledged.

Selecting the proper antenna for a particular application can mean the difference between success and failure when any combination of signal strength and/or signal interference is involved. Modern spread spectrum technologies has eased the job a bit, but there are still instances when high gain and/or directivity is necessary. You might be tempted to say that gain and directivity are essentially the same thing, and to some extent that is true. However, in the case of needing to minimize signal interference from surrounding sources, a directional antenna might be utilized not due to a need for increased desired signal strength but to reduce the power of undesired emitters. Such was often the requirement for television and FM radio reception. After years of needing to reorient the folded dipole antenna for my FM radio because of changes in signal strengths of relatively nearby stations only a couple channels apart*, I finally installed a Channel Master antenna on an Alliance rotator mount. Now, when changes in atmospheric and ground conductivity conditions cause adjacent channels to bleed over into each other, I simply turn the dial on the rotator control and voila, problem solved. Maybe a more selective FM receiver would help, but that would take a pretty high-end (i.e., expensive) product. The same situation applies to over-the-air TV broadcasts in the Erie, Pennsylvania, area, where a few degrees difference in antenna pointing can stop the digital broadcasts from dropping out.

* 88.1 WEFR and 88.9 WSFE can interfere with 88.5 WMCE

Antenna Reference Chart

This chart takes into consideration only proportional signal strength over unobstructed terrain at given distances from the transmitter, based on the effective radiated power of the average v.h.f. television transmitter. It does not cover the possible effects of natural obstacles or buildings on the path or strength of the received signal.

For example: The single-bay in-line antenna has fairly high forward directivity, and works best at distances up to 25 miles from the transmitter (B and C). Where you want to receive two stations from different directions at this distance, select an antenna that has the necessary gain without the sharp forward directional characteristic, such as the 8-element conical V. (The ranges given are for v.h.f. only, and will be much shorter on u.h.f. due to increased ground attenuation on the higher frequencies.)

In built-up areas close to the transmitter, there may be difficulties from rear and side reflections, especially where tall buildings are involved. Use a conical with a large number of reflector elements (a 6-front, 6-back type for example) to raise the forward gain and reduce signal pickup from the rear and sides.

Our thanks to Radio Merchandise Sales, for permission to reproduce this chart, which was prepared by their engineering department.

Posted February 25, 2019