At Wits End....

[chrissezhi]

Good evening -

I am at wits end. So I I am using an LB1120 and a pair of https://thewirelesshaven.com/shop/antennas/4g-lte ... l-antenna/ (see pic showing mount and X pattern for polarization .

Honestly - I am not getting any increase in signal strength. I have these placed in attic pointed to the cell tower. If I take the cell phone (T-Mobile) and compare to the LB1120 - bar strength is the same (2bars) and using opensignal - speed upload/download is around 5MB/2MB.

Any ideas of what I can do?

Thank you for taking time to respond!

2019-11-17 19_47_33-Photos.png

2019-11-17 18_58_24-T-Mobile USA (United States of America) - Cellular Coverage and Tower Map.png

[JimHelms]

What type of coax cables are you using, and how long are they?

It is not uncommon to lose more through cabling that what is otherwise being gained by the antennas.

I would use THIS calculator as a start.

[chrissezhi]

Thank you for the quick reply - to answer - I am using the following - https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B077W ... UTF8&psc=1

The above cables plug into the LB1120 https://www.netgear.com/home/products/m ... B1120.aspx (running bridge mode) to an ASUS RT-AC68U via CAT6 Ethernet Cable.

[terryjett]

Do not want to step on Jim's toes here, but you are losing around 3db in just the cables. Then, if the ts-9 connectors fit loosely (cheaply manufactured), you could be losing all your gain from antennas.

I have noticed on hotspots using the ts-9 connector, that it is not usual for signal levels to fluctuate wildly. Do not know the LB1120 but I would look at the menu showing signal levels for hints of lose connectors.

If you phone and hotspot are getting same signal levels / performance, would venture to say hotspot not seeing the antennas.

[chrissezhi]

Thank you - I am not against buying cables if so what would you recommend - links if possible.

[terryjett]

Thank you - I am not against buying cables if so what would you recommend - links if possible.

Word of friendly advice (I learned the hard way): before changing this, buying this and that, do some troubleshooting to pinpoint your issue.

Have you found the signal level menu in your hotspot? If so, look at it and move your cable connections around. If you see changes in signal level, then would say it is the ts9's or cable itself.

Are you positive your antennas are pointed correctly? I assume that you used some type of signal level to dial in the antenna position?

As for recommending a certain cable, I will leave that to the master himself - Jim:)

Bottom line is do a little troubleshooting and if you already have, share the results here.

[JimHelms]

I agree with everything terryjett has recommended--especially trying to hone in on the signal using your device signal level menu before purchasing anything else.

As for cables, it depends on the distance between the LB1120 and the antennas. If you can get by with 10 feet of cabling, I would look at THESE with TS-9 cable ends.

[chrissezhi]

ok - came home and did some tests unplugging the ts-9 cable - honestly bars did not change. Even before unplugging the bars would jump between 2/3 bars. Unplugging / Plugging did not make a difference. I would say tower is roughly 4-6 miles away.

I am using Open Signal to determine where my tower points and then utilizing cellmapper to verify direction of tower (included a pic). Below is a pic of opensignal and showing direction.

Question - on the cables that Jim provided - if I needed 35 feet, what shall I do?

[JimHelms]

I would recommend using Times Microwave LMR400 at 35 feet.

As for aiming your antenna, you need to look at the real signals, not bars (which are deceptive).

Is there not a network status menu on the LB1120 that shows this information.

[JimHelms]

Log into your hotspot. Go to SETTINGS > MOBILE > STATUS DETAILS:

Network Status Page.png

This chart shows what the stats represent:

Amtenna Stats Explained.png

Slowly rotate your antenna, in "all" directions, while watching your stats. You may find out that you are not hitting the correct (or best) tower.

[rramse]

Oh I know how challenging this is to get a good working setup. May I suggest before you go buying expensive cables: Take the LB1120 up into the attic and measure the signal strength without an external antenna. With the LB1120, whatever signal you get with the internal antenna is only going to be worse with fantastic external antennas like you have even with good cable. This is partly because of those terrible TS-9 connectors on the Netgear.

I have an LB1120 working as a failover modem connected to a different cell tower than my main modem. I tried several different outdoor antennas that were just too noisy to get a fast speed and I'm just 1.5 miles away. I finally found a spot inside my single story house where the signal was penetrating between obstacles. The only antenna that provided marginal improvement for this modem was a cheap H-planar modified by shortening the leads.

At over 5 miles, an indoor antenna won't work, but you might need to get a different modem also.

[chrissezhi]

Thank you for your responses. So I tried different cables - and as you can see from the screenshot it made a difference. Now the question is - is my ISP throttling me? Speed Test - https://speedof.me/show.php?img=191122023029-6208.png

Also - if the Netgear could be the issue - I am plugged directly into it - gigabit - what router would you guys recommend.

Note - as I was typing this - my bars dropped down to 1 and were at four .. what gives? It also looks like it changed towers.

With all that said - could it be still cables? hardware ….

Before:

before.png

After:

before.png

[JimHelms]

Not sure what could have caused the sudden change in signals.

Could still be cabling/connectors and/or possibly one of the TS-9 connector ports on the hotspot is bad or not making a good connection when the hotspot warms up.

Again, there is the remote possibility it could be tower related (i.e., updating hardware/software).

[terryjett]

Also - if the Netgear could be the issue - I am plugged directly into it - gigabit - what router would you guys recommend.

Note - as I was typing this - my bars dropped down to 1 and were at four .. what gives? It also looks like it changed towers.

With all that said - could it be still cables? hardware ….

I have been helping with a project to setup low income (rural) families with 4G internet. Most all of the devices in homes are similar to your netgear and have ts-9 connections. Most all have issues with signal levels and what you just experienced - tower swapping. They do not use t-mobile though (at&t).

One trick I saw in field was using rubber bands (very sloppy solution - but did seem to help) wrapped around the ts-9 fittings and then around the hotspot to keep connectors set. Very poor solution.

Devices like your netgear were never really intended as "permanent" hotspots. They were designed for travel and occasional use devices. The ts-9 connectors (in my view) are a very sloppy design and meant for temporary connections. In my past experience, would only describe ts-9 as a "test port".

If you are going to use for dedicated internet, would go with a more permanent setup. A very good source of information is https://wirelessjoint.com/viewtopic.php?f=37&t=123

I have a WE826, Sierra Wireless EM7455 on AT&T and very happy. I then reused my old Linksys router as repeater for WE826. All devices to use the Linksys as connection. Great inexpensive way to get started.

[AntennaRaul]

I once purchased several different TS9 to SMA adapters on ebay and Amazon. Checking in the lab I found all had strange losses and SWR spikes. Some made with RG-316 were less bad. I trust the SMA end so I think the TS-9 side is usually the problem. It is small and must be very precisely made and installed to hold 50 Ohms within it. Now Im going to design my own TS-9 and have it produced to avoid the junk.
Seeing the first posting on this thread, I didnt see what the new antennas were comparing too, I did see a reply about cable losses negating the antenna size and placement improvement, fully agree. However, did you know the roof material and angle cut of the signal can eat a lot of signal? Not so much at 600 Mhz but it just gets real bad going upwards from there. If the roofing nails happen to resonate at your frequency, its even worse. Just wanted to put in my 2 cents worth.

[chrissezhi]

Thanks to all for replies … so I have a Mofi4500 4GxeLTE V2 Router but am having troubles with SIM clicking - hence the reason I am not using and was looking at other alternatives. The Sierra card in there now is a MC7455. What case do you think I would need to get up and running? If it helps, I am looking to let the router be a IP Pass Through.

[terryjett]

Thanks to all for replies … so I have a Mofi4500 4GxeLTE V2 Router but am having troubles with SIM clicking - hence the reason I am not using and was looking at other alternatives. The Sierra card in there now is a MC7455. What case do you think I would need to get up and running? If it helps, I am looking to let the router be a IP Pass Through.

Not sure I understand "having troubles with SIM clicking", but not all that familiar with the Mofi4500 4GxeLTE V2 Router.

It all depends on how much you wish to invest in a "case".

Not sure what is going on with this router @ The Wireless Haven, but would recommend for someone just needing to get going with solid equipment: https://thewirelesshaven.com/shop/routers/lte-rou ... te-router/ (ping The Wireless Haven support and ask).

Check out @swwifty's setup: http://wirelessjoint.com/viewtopic.php?f=37&t=123&sid=ef264db90ba4bfdd63271b8b76ae59a6

There are so many different options, but it comes down to how much you want to invest.

[chrissezhi]

Thanks to all ... I appreciate the help.

[BillA]

What type of coax cables are you using, and how long are they?

It is not uncommon to lose more through cabling that what is otherwise being gained by the antennas.

I would use THIS calculator as a start.

The above golden advice should be framed and hung on the wall of every antenna freak out there, just sayin'.

As an additional bit of information, longer cable runs (especially with low quality, high loss cables) can introduce a non-linear attenuation across "some" bands, so while it may seem to help on most bands, some can actually become even worse.