What does your setup look like?

A jubilee Clip is the generic name given to a worm drive hose clip / clamp.

Because i don’t have one right now? :wink:

I was laughing about the “jubilee” where the original translation is used in a complete different context in german

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My latest build:

IP65 box
GPIO Labs amp
Pi 4 w/ heatsink/fan setup
Blue FA stick
FA US filter
USB SD dongle for rpi-clone backups
USB power + power extension

It’s going into a FA antenna with about 6" of feed line ~25’ off the ground

I’ve been building a few iterations of this (poe, no amp, fans, no fans) – but this is the first with an amp. Time to start futzing with gain!

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Nice one, looks great. I found this explanation of IP65: “IP65 Protected from total dust ingress Protected from low pressure water jets from any direction, limited ingress protection”. Is that sufficient to deal with rain then?

I always wonder what happens with condensation? Presumably when you close this it contains air which contains some humidity, eg say 65% relative humidity. If the box is outside and gets cold, doesn’t that cause the humidity to condense out and coat the items inside with a thin layer of water droplets?

What kind of coax are you using to feed the antenna?

I live in NYC and have 5 of these boxes outside - we’ve been pounded with rain over the last few months and no problems yet. The SMA is sealed with epoxy on both sides + it’s o rings. The membrane pass through is also epoxied – but since it is under the case there is a small space between the power and the membrane which I assume allows a little airflow provided water isnt shooting directly up at the bottom.
A pi3 can get up around 80C when in direct sunlight in the summer - but otherwise seems so far so good. I actually havent seen any condensation yet - and checked the boxes this am in about 30F weather. Longer term putting a sensor in there would be ideal. Coax is LMR 400. Ideally I’d like to switch over to POE to avoid the power flucuations sometimes see with the USB power extension cable.

Decided to get my dual receiver setup a bit more organized. It’s all in the attic so waterproofing is not an issue.

The 1090MHz side is fed with FA antenna and RTL-SDR Triple Filtered LNA.

The 978MHz side is fed with a simple 1/4 wave ground plane right now. Planning some antenna improvements with a filtered LNA on that side. Note that the baseplate is pre-drilled for a second bias-tee.

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Looks great, much more organized than I am.

You haven’t seen my messy installation…

Anyways meanwhile i fixed the antenna mount with an additional hose clamp (or jubilee clip) and left the cable ties there as well.

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I’m too embarrassed to post an image of my 11 day old setup - a Flight Aware 1090 aerial gaffer taped to an upstairs bedroom window with the Pi and FA Pro dongle stuffed behind the telly. To my astonishment it still gets 250+ NM traffic!

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Welcome, I’m loving the sound of that setup and would like to see a photo! 250NM+ is excellent! You’ve got great coverage to the south and you’re leading your region for flights. It says MLAT isn’t enabled, are you able to turn it on?

There’s no shame in this group, there’s equal respect for a top-class perfectly tuned and erected setup, and for old bits of wire stuck to biscuit tin lids hanging off coathangers with sellotape. My setup is currently slouching on a windowledge, with a FlightAware antenna mounted on a kitchen roll holder, trying to pretend it’s a player!

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Trying to keep the antenna cables as short a possible, I decided to place the everything on the roof with only a 12VDC feed (12AWG to keep the loss down) connecting it to my shacks power supply and the Wifi being sent via an external antenna. I’ve got a couple of vents on order in case it gets too hot in the metal case.

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Thank you! Seeing all the hard work many members put into getting optimal reception, I was getting prepared to look into getting the aerial outside and all the intricacies that entails. However, inspired by other posts I checked the “heywhat’sthat” site for my theoretical line of sight coverage and it practically matches what I’m getting already! Unfortunately I’m located at the foot of a hill hence the restricted North West reception.

I had MLAT switched off as I was concerned out data usage but I have switched it on for today to see how it goes.

Here’s the shameful aerial installation pic - looks like the windows are covered in sea spray! I’m surprised the aluminium spacer in the double glazing hasn’t impacted reception greatly. I did finesse the position on the window for peak reception on distant targets. Perhaps I’ve inadvertently made it directional :wink:

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That’s a lovely view, for both you and the antenna!

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Someone wise once told me, “It it’s dumb, but works, it’s not dumb.”

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I’m really fortunate to have a nice view over the town. I have a clear view of the sea which really helps with the range. Recently set up an AIS (shipping) receiver too which isn’t doing so badly too.

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Seriously?

Forget about the installation, focus on the background outside. Beautiful view!
And if it’s working, who cares?

I have mounted my antenna on an umbrella stand, extended by a curtain rail.
But i don’t care as long as my wife is not asking for this stuff :slight_smile:

With this setup, my device (blue ProPlus stick, no additional filters or amps) achieved today a new high message rate of 1265/sec with only 124 aircraft at this time. Looking forward for summer season where i normally get +20% more aircraft.

This! I know what the difference is between winter and summer and I’m really looking forward to the coming year. I want to know what my system is really capable of (and how high I can get in the global rankings).

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I can see it’s on now, how’s it going on your SkyAware page, are you seeing loads of MLAT aircraft over that lovely open southern sky?

Here is my shameful antenna installation :slight_smile:

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https://flightaware.com/adsb/stats/user/abcd567#stats-5252

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I’ve taken that view for granted for too long!I should probably do a panorama of it someday - I’ve done so much 360 degree imagery (many aerial) in other parts of the locality yet what is seen from the doorstep gets neglected.

Good to know I’m not alone in stringing up aerials in opportune ways! As you say, if it works well enough… :slightly_smiling_face:

Your setup is is certainly busier than mine. The most planes I’ve seen so far was in the high 60s with around 1100 messages per second. I’m not familiar with the traffic patterns yet but sheer quantity of aircraft airborne at any one time has been an eye opener!