Jeroen wrote:
Hello All,

Picking up my SWL hobby wich I left in ~ 1992.

I have a Phillips D2999PLL and Sony AN-1 which I have kept from back
then. My living situation is far worse (for SWL that is) compared to
back then when living ina quiet suburb. Living in the city centre now
with a supermarket with huge fans on their roof for cooling the
freezers and such, and ofcourse all the equipment from our neighbours.

So I've been reading the forums, sites and newsgroups on my equipment
and found that generally the receiver is well received (*g*), and the
antenna is not! Back then though I've been able to receive quite a
bunch of QSL cards from stations I picked up in the tropical bands. Had
lots and lotsof night of fun!

But, to improve my antenna situation I've been looking around to see
for alternatives. Active antenna's are out of the question for me.
Frick, the quality ones seem to start at 200Euro. As a soon to be daddy
and other expenses coming up I can't afford those...

I've little room for a reasonable 'random wire' either. After some
looking around I decided to give the EMF antenna a try from RF-Systems
in the Netherlands (where I come from as well, accidentally).
After a few days of trying different configurations (indoors, out on
the balcony, horizontal, vertical, north-south, west-east and all
inbetween, 30 degree sloped, earthing to the earthwire in the powerbox
of the appartment, etc) and comparing it to my Sony AN-1, I can savely
say, at best the EMF antenna produces equally to the Sony An-1, but has
never exceeded it. It seems to pickup far more noise and interference
then the AN-1 does.

So the EMF is up for grabs for anyone here who makes a good offer for
it!

I also have to add, I did quite some browsing and reading on the EMF
before I ordered it, and the general tendency was it is an OK antenna.

I guess, in my situation the AN-1 isnt such a bad antenna after all, or
the EMF is for my situation a really bad antenna!

This week I am going to try and build a magnetic loop. At first I saw
many daunting schematics which are too technical for me with my left
hands, but I found this page (http://www.kr1st.com/swlloop.htm) with a
*very* simple version that according to the writer is so simple as it
is for receiving only. Apparently, the transmitting ones need to be far
more technical. Does anyone has any tips regarding building any of
these? My particular interest is the 60meter band.

And, anyone any comments on my EMF/AN-1 comparison? I think I pretty
much tried all configurations, and in reality there isnt much to do
with the EMF, its all prebuild. But I'm open for suggestions!

Jeroen,

The RF Systems "EMF" Antenna is relatively short at 16 Feet
and is a magnetically coupled Antenna. The signal levels are
thus relatively small compared to a much longer 50-80 Foot
Random Wire Antenna. So -Yes- in this instance you may find
that the Sony AN-1 Active Antenna does as well or better than
the "EMF".

Don't forget that the Sony AN-1 Active Antenna :
* Should be Mounted at least 3-5 Feet above your Roof
-or- at least 15-20 Feet away from your House/Building.
* Can be Mounted inside the Attic.
* Can be Mounted Horizontally and Rotated to Null-Out
the main source of your local Noise to some degree.
{every little bit helps }

Alternative - Instead of using the Sony AN-1 Active Antenna's
Short Vertical Whip Antenna Element : Use a One Metre
Diameter Horizontal Loop Antenna Element with one-end
of the Loop connected directly to the Sony's Head Unit and
the other-end of the Loop connected via a 300, 450, 600 or
1K Ohm Resister to the Sony's Head Unit. Try the different
Resisters to determine which gives the best Signal Levels
and overall frequency coverage.
Note - Sometimes the sort of Terminated Horizontal Loop
Antenna Element will provide lower noise levels and better
Radio reception then the simple Vertical Whip Antenna
Element. Usually this type of Terminated Horizontal Loop
Antenna Element is installed in an Attic Area.

iane ~ RHF