Gainmaster v A99 V iMAX 2000

Antenna question for SSB... antenna.. Gain master v A99  V Imax 2000  

Thank you...  

As I'm writing this, 30 people have viewed this question and skipped over it.

(I wonder if it's because this has been asked before?)

Can you give as a clue to where you are going to be using said SSB antenna? Will be for home or out portable? Is it for a flat, mid or end of terrace, a bungalow, in a the middle of town or out in the country?

When I'm out portable, I have used a 1/2 wave silver rod, my current portable antenna is a Solarcon A-99, and I have had some great contacts on all modes using less than 30 watts.

73

Ray 2290

Sure later will appear few users owns them & will report their experience ... but once updated my antenna to boomerang, allowed me to talk with 2 stations, one using Gainmaster (if i remember was from UK) & with A99 from Paris, both good ...
Gain master from few videos reporting less static noise to weak stations so better DX
Here from an other user & maybe read the description if using Gain master
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=URXE67qMMZg

2 years back on air and dragging my feet setup wise.

But I find antenna's/aerials one of the interesting aspects of the hobby.
Trial and error.
Mrs said I'm a nerd
So what, I enjoy it.

If your antenna will be very high up the Gain Master will be best out of the 3. Say 20 feet and above. But it needs to be on a free standing pole away from houses and trees. It will not work correctly if put on a 6 foot pole on your chimney as it will become unbalanced. Being a 5/8 wave coaxial dipole in a tube. 

It will work but not well, any piece of wire will radiate and make DX when there is a massive charge on the F2 layer but that does not make any given piece of wire (which is all any antenna actually is) a good benchmark antenna.

A traditional coil matched 5/8 wave needs a ground plane to operate well or will lose its gain (1.5dB on average in the real world) as it gets further from the earth. 

Any low angle gain from a traditional coil matched 5/8 wave comes from a reflection boost from the ground or an extensive radial system. So you get 2 waves in phase with each other at a slightly lower angle than a 1/2 wave at the same ground mount height. As soon as a 5/8 wave is raised from the ground this gain is lost as the relationship with the ground reflection is lost. Unless you have a large elevated ground plane. (i.e. 4 x 2.6m 1/4 wave radials - which puts most people off and why most 5/8 have a shortened set of radials which are not quite as effective, the MAX2000 lacks even short radials unless you stump up more money for their short radial add on.)



They are best if you can only have a ground mounted antenna. Then you can put a load of radials down as well as benefit from the ground itself. This is very unlikely to be your plan though. I appreciate the Max2000 is not a traditional antenna but for simplicity's sake we shall deem it so.

I would discount the Antron 99 entirely it is just a 1/2 wave on 27MHz and an expensive one at that. If you decide on a 1/2 wave I would save your money and get a 1/2 Sirio for less than 1/2 the price.

https://www.radioworld.co.uk/sirio_gps27_1_2_cb_antenna_silver_rod

How any of the antennas will work will be very dependent on how and where it is installed.

Give us more info on mount height and on what and we can go more detailed.

All of the antennas will work fine when put up nice and high in the open. It will be difficult NOT to make DX contacts in the next few years.