Antenna suggestions

[Krugar]

Hi All,

I've had my iQue 3600 for about a week now & I've noticed it doesn't work too well in the car when it's overcast. So I'm starting to look into antennas.

Garmin's as pointed out is pretty expensive, but I was wondering if anyone has tried a Wi-Sys 3910? I'm virtually ignorant as to what makes an antenna good / bad.

On top of that, I lease my truck & they frown on it having holes in it when I return it. Do the mag mounts work well? Do I even have to put it outside to get an improvement?

I'm otherwise pretty happy with my new toy.

Thanks in advance!

[AlanJ]

I think you will find the antenna most will point you in the direction of, is the GILSSON. I purchased one because of the problems I had in a hire veh in Spain, it had a reflective coating on the windscreen and that stopped me picking up any sats, Ive since bought the Gilsson and also a sucker mount for the inside of the windscreen. They both perform very well and are easy to change from one veh to another.

[Krugar]

Anyone know where to get a glisson in Canada then? :)

Cheers & Thanks!

[jonasolof]

Originally posted by Krugar
Hi All,

I've had my iQue 3600 for about a week now & I've noticed it doesn't work too well in the car when it's overcast. So I'm starting to look into antennas.

Garmin's as pointed out is pretty expensive, but I was wondering if anyone has tried a Wi-Sys 3910? I'm virtually ignorant as to what makes an antenna good / bad.

On top of that, I lease my truck & they frown on it having holes in it when I return it. Do the mag mounts work well? Do I even have to put it outside to get an improvement?

I'm otherwise pretty happy with my new toy.

Thanks in advance!

The Wi-Sys 3910 is probably a very good preamplified GPS antenna. It has a low noise figure of 0.8 dB. Only problem, you can't power it from the iQue, because the iQue won't give you more than 2 volts at the external antenna connector and the Wi-Sys is rated for about 5 volts.

The best choice is the Gilsson. You can order it over the web from gpsgeek.com.

Yes postage does cost some. But less than a midldle hand. Long live global logistics!

BTW, I've ordered a couple of 3910's to try. I'll also modify the voltage regulation to feed it with 5 volts from a separate cable and use the 2-2.5 volts over the antenna cable to control power on/off.

[Krugar]

Okay, I have to admit I don't know my arse from my elbow when it comes to antennas, but this vendor site: http://www.gpscentral.ca/accessories/wi-sys.htm lists it as working on the iQue 3600, which is why I was considering it.

I also found manufacturer's web site:

http://www.wi-sys.com/products/antennas/3910.php

and I think that says it runs at 3 or 5 volts. Towards the bottom of the page it says:

voltage: 3.0 - 5.5 VDC
current: 7.5 mA @ 3VDC
11.5 mA @ 5VDC

This is under the heading "Electrical". It also states it has an typical gain of 28dB at 3V and 30dB at 5v.

I just don't know if this makes it a good antenna or not. Would this be compairable to the Gilsson, better, or worse? That is assuming it does in fact work off the iQue 3600.

And would these antennas require external mounting in my Rendezvous, or would having them near a window also improve reception?

Thanks in advance!

[Curious Cat]

Originally posted by Krugar
Okay, I have to admit I don't know my arse from my elbow when it comes to antennas, but this vendor site: ....

Then follow the advice if someone who does, Jonas,"The best choice is the Gilsson. You can order it over the web from gpsgeek.com".:)

[jonasolof]

No

I made a mistake re the voltage. I can't be sure how well it works, because I haven't had a chance to test it yet. I have ordered it, but it hasn't arrived yet. They were willing to sell me some bare preampilfiers also without the patch antenna mounted and that takes some time to get out of the manufacturing.

I measured on a bare Gilsson (with the cover lifted off. The working voltage after the voltage regulator when fed with 9 volts is 2.9 volts. I believe the circuits are optimized for 3.3 volts or possibly 3 volts. The probelm arises when you connect it to an iQue, because if you drain 5.5 mA, output voltage drops to 2.0 volts. If you drain 7.5 mA, it will drop more. As yet we don't know how the 3910 behaves on the iQue. But it has obviously been tested, and there are good reasons to belive that it works OK.

We know that the Gilsson works very well. If you want to stick out and not do as the rest of the crowd, the 3910 is the antenna to try IMO (because of the low noise figure)

[Krugar]

Thanks Jonas, I'd love to hear what you find.

I don't know if I can wait thou my iQue's not finding any satellites :( I'm not sure what's up now, but I'll post that in a different thread.

Cheers!

[Golfman59]

Just bought the Gilsson antenna and it works great lying on the corner of my dashboard. However, I have a question. Since my 12volt outlets shut off with the key, will my battery drain if the Gilsson antennna is plugged into the iQue with no power connected to it. Garmin told me before I purchased the Gilsson, that leaving the iQue antenna flipped open there will be a battery drain. I would assume the same thing would happen with the external antenna plugged in.