Ham Radio - Do antenna tuners help with shortwave listening?

[@artgumbus]

Before getting my ham license, I was a SWL'er for 60 years... in the last twelve of those I was using a Nye-Viking antenna tuner with great results on my SWL long wires. I found it very important to have the long wire as far AWAY from the QTH, gutters, roofs and any electrical noise makers to reduce the noise floor. I also used a fairly little know device, no longer made, by Palomar called the Palomar RX-100 Noise Bridge. The RX-100 and the tuner make for a great combo to "find" the "spot". Now days, I use the Palstar AT2K and with my Yaesu FTdx101MP I can suck just about any faint stray magnetic wave off the long wire and DNR and Contour it to a listenable bit of information. Thanks for this video... If I only had room for a RHOMBIC antenna farm...... now that would be something... 73 and happy holidays amigo.. Art W1SWL

[@Andre-PY4DR]

Nothing beats a video where you actually show it in action and prove the concept like that... Great job!!

[@SunilAruldas]

Around 40 years ago, after college, I used chicken wire from our 1st floor flat up to the terrace above 3rd floor, then clear across it at 1 ft above head height. Say 150 feet total, L shape. In Calcutta, India. Then via a homebrewed L tuner to our old SW valve AM radio. I would tune for least noise, easily done. Pulled in Radio Brazil, Radio Switzerland, Radio Finland etc. My best was AFRTS (armed forces radio and tv network) somewhere near the Artic circle. The simple antenna tuner made a HUGE difference, no question

[@davecasler]

Nice job, well-explained! 73, Dave, KEØOG

[@SeasparrowDD979]

Yeah, he made it so understandable! I was struggling for months until I seen this video. Now I feel confident enough to join the local Ham club to get more advice!! So nice to be able to understand SWL now. WRYM788 73!

[@jimgraham6722]

Thanks a very interesting topic. The issue really is signal to noise ratio (SNR). Making the antenna resonate, either in its own right or with help of a tuner improves sensitivity to the wanted signal and hence SNR. My particular AR interest is in high SNR reception In looking at long wire, dipoles and wire antennas generally, they tend to have a large spatial extent and therefore capture a good deal of noise (unwanted, particularly local) as well as the wanted signals. Receive only antennas like active mag loops and Miniwhips with their small spatial dimensions tend to capture less noise (unwanted) and can provide significant improvements in signal to noise ratio, particularly in lower HF bands below 20m. In part this is because such antennas can be positioned in a way to minimise local noise pickup. The magloop for example can be placed low, where local E field noise is minimal but in coming H field component of wanted signals is still strong. This is the same principal behind an AM band ferrite loop stick antenna. In my own case, I use a multi band vertical and a long wire (110m) for transmission but can select separate receive only antennas. My low noise receiving antenna setup is based around an electrostatically shielded Pixel active magloop phased with a miniwhip spatially separated by about 10m. While sometimes having slightly less sensitivity, this setup has consistently lower noise, typically 20dB+ less than the vertical and wire antennas, making for much more pleasant listening. In many cases what are noisy signals when received on the vertical and wire, have almost FM quality when received on the low noise receiving antenna setup.

[@tahoma6889]

One thing to consider. Detuning the system with a manual tuner can do wonders to reduce noise. This is why many hams use separate receive antennas. This gives them options. Automatic antenna tuners need a transmitted signal to work. Thus, using manual tuners for receive is the option. One can be built easily because it's not being used to transmit. Turning knobs to peak noise is quick and easy. Turning knobs to reduce noise is the same. A longwire and a manual tuner is a win for shortwave listening.

[@Randomwesternredneckguy]

Many auto tuners (including mine from MFJ) have buttons on the front that can be used to tune manually for maximum noise.

[@grs6262]

Quite right.. that is the process I use.. my location is subject to TREMENDOUS rfi.. I have something fairly nearby that covers the spectrum from 100kc to over 50 mc.. Preamp and attenuators are too coarse, but tuning the tuner for a sig/noise sweet spot has proven to be my best tool.. an outboard RF gain sorta..

[@BretChilcott]

Thank you for confirming my suspicions. I will soon be moving where in I will be using a vertical antenna. Knowing that verticals are especially bad about receiving noise, I am researching the possibility of adding an active receiving loop. What is the best active receiving loop on the market? Thank you! BretC/AC0AE

[@-Mark_F]

Excellent video. Very clear and concise. It is good to know that an antenna tuner does indeed improve the reception for SWL’s! TYFP!

[@andrewhill4226]

Agree with you 100%. I was a long time SWL'er before taking my M6 in 2010. An ATU tunes whatever antenna it is attached to near 50 ohm as possible. It tunes a range near to where you are listening to and detunes other stations outside the range, so as Tahoma says reducing unwanted noise. A great antenna to use SWLing is a rotatable loop in vertical and horizontal phases, so you can null out stronger stations and possibly pick out the weaker and DX signals. Magnetic loops are in a way like a rotatable loop with coupled ATU built in. Tuning a small section of the frequency desired and detuning anything outside the bandwidth. I found that a great antenna to use for SWLing was a long horizontal wire connected to a vertical CB antenna ( inner only ) with the matching coil removed. Slung North to South, this L shaped antenna having both polorizations and coupled with a manual ATU was excellent for a small plot, local and DX stations. Have a lovely Christmas and get some rest. I look forward to seeing some new videos in the New Year. Stay safe, 73's Andy M6APJ. Don't worry about the minorities so much, it will haggle your brain ! LOL

[@BrekMartin]

Except an ATU won’t do anything for a listener because it needs a transmitter! So you’re obviously lisenced 😂

[@-Mark_F]

It was really interesting seeing what the impedance looked like across the spectrum. I used to imagine it as a continuous slope but instead it spikes all over the place. Great vid and thanks again!

[@G6EJD]

The theory of reciprocity says a tuned antenna that is matched for optimal transmission must perform better on receive whilst the transmission match exists, but some ATU’s drop their tuning relays on receive thereby mismatching the antenna.

[@colin-4794]

Happy holidays Kevin, thank's for all the interesting topics these past months.

[@robertmeyer4744]

that was a great demonstration. I do a lot of short wave listing. antenna tuners some times pre selectors do help on fixed antenna. I use a MFJ analyzer to set tuner to 50 ohm. also I found a outher benefit. the tuner is aet to a frequency. everything else makes impendence go way down or up.makeing a high Q point. with strong stations or noise not in what you tuned to can over load front end of receiver. helps drop noise floor on selected frequency as well. this helps pull out weak stations. 73's

[@mishalharbi777]

I thought this was obvious. the impedance mismatch is a barrier that acts both ways and causes part of the signal energy to reflect back to where it came from. if the source of the energy is your radio (when transmitting), then you have the normal reflection of transmitted power. if the source of the signal is the antenna (when receiving) then some of the signal power reaches the radio and the rest is reflected back to the antenna, effectively reducing the power of the signal received. great content btw Kevin and your channel is one of the best out there.

[@rlanning3743]

Good job. The frustrating part is its name - Antenna Tuner. As you explained it does NOT change the antenna. That element picks up RF energy more efficiently at frequencies close to or at the element's resonant length. The feedline has the same SWR - doesn't change. The Antenna Tuner changes the impedance between the feedline and the radio. There is a theorem that says something like this. Maximum energy transfer occurs when the source and load impedances are the same. The tuner does that. Doesn't matter which way the energy is flowing - transmitting or receiving - the transfer will be optimum when the impedances match. Good job! Bob - W6OPO

[@Don-ev5ov]

A novice in radio, not even a license, this topic interested me months before I saw your video. I had heard that a tuner would not affect receiving but I thought it would, for the reason you cited. Thank you for your experiment. Great video.

[@hubercats]

Helpful video, Kevin. Thank you. I think much of the confusion about this subject results from the name “antenna tuner”. These devices are actually impedance matching devices, not antenna tuners. I.e., as you point out, they don’t change the actual antenna, only the coupling of it to the feed line. At least that’s the way I think about it. Meanwhile, enjoy you time off and Happy Holidays to you as well. - Jim (KK7CSC)

[@Pioneer936]

It could be said electrically they change the antenna with the adjustment of the reactances to resonance

[@timothystockman7533]

Antenna tuner is the correct term. It changes the antenna's resonant frequency with loading capacitance or inductance, thus tuning it to a new resonant frequency. Resonance is about oscillating currents, not necessarily about physical size. An 8 foot mobile whip can be made quarter-wave resonant, for instance, at 40 meters, by using a large loading inductor. An antenna tuner also matches the radiation resistance of the antenna to 50 ohms, much like a transformer would. Perhaps the antenna tuner is misunderstood because it is a dual function device. IMHO there needs to be a question in the General Pool about antenna tuners and antenna resonance. I think the only way to stomp out this misconception is to force amateurs to learn it right when they study for the test.

[@muddyexport5639]

Merry Christmas/Happy Holidays. Thanks for yet another good vid. Will be missed. Enjoy!!!

[@DAVIDGREGORYKERR]

The ATU is going to match the Antenna to the input impedance of the Tuner but we can use an 9:1 or 16:1 UNUN to couple a Longwire antenna to the radio.

[@Steve-GM0HUU]

Yes, assuming the longwire is medium impedance (e.g. several hundred Ohms) at the frequencies of interest, it makes sense to use a 9:1 or 16:1 unun at the antenna to reduce the impedance down to nearer 50 Ohms for connection back to the shack where it can get some final adjustment using an "ATU" to make it exactly 50 Ohms resistive presented to the receiver.

[@georgemcdaniel8625]

I am glad to see that you are also a metal detectorist. I started with a Garrett AT Pro.

[@jonthebru]

As a ham I often tune by noise before transmitting and adjusting power/SWR.

[@hubercats]

I’ve been thinking about this topic quite a bit since first seeing Kevin’s interesting video. At least as of today, here’s my (another) two cents on the subject. I view the antenna system as being comprised of four components: antenna, matching network located at antenna feed point, feed line and antenna tuner (Note that I’m keeping baluns/unbaluns off the table for simplicity). As to the antenna, I think its performance will be optimal if it’s resonant for the band of interest. Given a resonant antenna and an assumed feed line impedance of 50 Ohms, the job of the matching network is to transform the antenna feed point impedance to 50 Ohms. This should result in low SWR on the line. This begs the question as to the role of the antenna tuner (in the receiver). I noted one comment in which the author suggested that the antenna tuner helps to make the entire antenna system resonant. This doesn’t seem quite right to me in that I think you want only the antenna itself to be resonant. According to (kzbin.info/www/bejne/sJnWiXyvpptnjcU), at least to the degree I understand it, an “antenna tuner” is used to compensate in scenarios where you are driving an antenna with frequencies off of resonance. Happy Holidays! - Jim (KK7CSC)

[@RadioWhisperer]

Your right, an antenna tuner does not make the antenna resonant, it's a transformer that let's the radio side see 50 ohms at any frequency in its range. The antenna side of that is resonant on whatever frequencies the antenna is resonant. Having the transformer (tuner) is doing nothing but transforming the impedance of the antenna on that frequency to 50 ohms, which allows more energy from the antenna to be transferred to the radio. The tuner does nothing to the impedance of the antenna on any frequency, only the physical parameters of the antenna and it's surroundings can change the resonance of the antenna.

[@andrewmcphee8965]

Just getting back into SWL, replaced my ancient Sangean with a sweet Tecsun PL-880, a really nice radio. I have 3 poles and 30 metres (98 ft) of wire suspended in my backyard but am learning there's more to it than throwing up a length of wire (which works amazingly well, but I'm learning that to get a quality signal some learning and fiddling is needed). I need to learn about impedance, and videos like this are great, thanks so much from Melbourne, Australia!

[@michaelkaliski7651]

ATU’s absolutely help with listening as well as transmitting because they act to help tune the antenna to the receiver’s input impedance and can act as a bandpass filter to reduce interference from powerful stations transmitting on harmonically related frequencies. Is it essential? No, you can hear signals just fine without an ATU but with more noise and interference in the background.

[@ouijim]

Manual tuner is first tuned for loudest audio signal on frequency of choice so I say yes it does work for receive only radios.

[@TheManFrayBentos]

For the past twenty years I've used an antenna tuner for my SWL pastime. No matter how good or bad the receiver, it always made a difference, as you amply demonstrated. Now that I'm licenced, of course I use one, as I've no wish to damage my equipment. So, good all around, in my view.

[@Steve-GM0HUU]

Thank you Kevin, MX. Hope you have a good break and looking forward to some more videos in the New Year.

[@JohnWallace74]

Good video. I have a tuner and I have done similar experiments to prove to myself that the tuner helps with receiving as well. Anyway thanks for the video and showing your VNA and receiver for the proof for all.

[@davidsradioroom9678]

I had a Sony ICF-2002 that had a simple tuner in it. It did help a little in improving reception, but did not make the antenna pick up any more stations.

[@geofham8332]

Agreed

[@timothystockman7533]

I think you arrived at the right answer for the wrong reason. Yes, an antenna tuner can help when receiving. I have an antenna with an auto-tuner near the feed point. I can QSY and then listen. Now if I transmit a few seconds of dead carrier so the auto-tuner will do its thing, the received signals will come up a few S units. So obviously the tuner is helping reception. But why? Matching the radiation resistance is only part of the picture. I think you should also have your VNA plot the reactance of the antenna. Something many people notice is that a resonant antenna usually performs better than a non-resonant, active antenna. Why is this? It is because, at resonance, the oscillating currents in the antenna reinforce to produce stronger oscillations. In a non-resonant antenna, the oscillating currents do no reinforce, so it delivers a weaker signal. Remember that resonance is an electrical principle involving oscillating current; too often when considering antenna resonance, many people think that it has only to do with physical size. Any size antenna can be made resonant with the appropriate loading inductance or capacitance. This is one function of an antenna tuner, canceling out reactance. The other function of an antenna tuner is to match the radiation resistance of the antenna to 50 ohms. To take a little side trip, although you can make a very short antenna resonant with a large loading inductor, it will still be an inefficient antenna because it has a very low radiation resistance. Another side trip. In your setup, the antenna tuner is at the shack end of the coax. So the entire feedline is mismatched. This generates reflected power which reflects back from the antenna tuner to the antenna where it will reflect back to the tuner. With a lossy feedline, such as coax, the energy in these reflected waves is eventually burned up in the coax. Using a low loss feedline like ladder line can minimize this problem. Your auto-tuner is eliminating the reactance it sees, allowing the currents in the antenna an feedline to oscillate at the frequency the auto-tuner has tuned. This would be even more pronounced if the ATU was near the feed point so the feed line was not part of the antenna oscillation. Also it is matching the resistance it sees to the receiver input. Once again, this would be more effective if the ATU was near the feed point so the transmission line could see 50+j0 at both ends. I disagree with your premise that the antenna tuner does not change the antenna. When it cancels the antenna's reactance, it adds loading to the antenna to change its resonant frequency so that the antenna oscillates a different frequency. This is no different than adding inductance or capacitance to a tank circuit to change its resonant frequency. I propose a new term for antennas: "natural resonant frequency", the frequency at which an antenna resonates with no added loading inductance or capacitance. Because when you add capacitance or inductance to cancel reactance, you are changing the actual frequency at which the antenna currents oscillate.

[@dean5263]

A radio receive amp is non-selective, therefore if your antenna is receiving a signal at its resonant frequency, that will engage the radio's AGC to desensitize the receive amp. When you change the resonant frequency of the antenna with an antenna tuner, the signal you want is the dominant signal, in turn stopping that other signal from desensitizing your receiver's amp. Just a dumb guess.

[@loughkb]

Yes, the tuner acts like a preselector. As well as optimizing the transfer of energy.

[@williampiergiovanni5227]

I have an MFJ-901B antenna tuner which provides an SWR of 1. You have answered my question concerning reception. I don’t have hi tech ability to measure impedance so I must assume the impedance is good, based on the SWR. Your video is very revealing. Thank you!

[@n1kkri]

I look at it this way. When you transmit and your ant is not offering a 50 ohm match to the radio the wave is reflected back down from the antenna to the radio. The opposite happens when the signal received by the antenna (it's now acting like the transmitter) sending a signal to the rig (50 ohms)that doesn't match the antenna impedance. The reflection happens at the radio sending the signal back up the transmission line. The tuner re-reflects the signal in the appropriate direction. For transmit it would send the reflected signal from the antenna back to the antenna. For receive it sends the reflected signal from the radio back to the radio.

[@geofham8332]

Hi, yes they help, used one for years and increases audio volume on some bands using just a random long wire.

[@manishbhoola]

Excellently explained ! Couldn't be better . I am from India and learning to be a ham. This here explained a basic findamental so well. Thank you ! Could you please elbaorate more on which LDG tuner model you are using and details on yhe doublet antenna

[@loughkb]

LDG Z11 pro tuner. Search my channel for doublet and you'll find the video about the antenna.

[@BretChilcott]

Thank you for taking time to create this informative video. The knowledge you share is helping hams improve their stations. 73 BretC/AC0AE

[@Kirk-Monteux-Production]

Love that wind noise in the shack. And you absolutely right on the bands and on youtube with "Happy Hollidays" you can't go wrong.

[@GoGlennR]

Great clarification video, Kevin! It presents a very nice way to explain to someone WHY the antenna tuner is beneficial also for receiving signals! 👍

[@bradcfi2]

Great subject and video. I always wondered about this issue and had noticed signal levels would come up as my SteppIR yagi would tune. Made sense to me and now I know why.

[@erikmattson8629]

Very clear and helpful explanation. Thank you, sir.

[@astrorad2000]

The old SWL receivers had antenna trim or preselector to help match the antenna to the rig.

[@JuhaK71]

I think it's for to retune the receivers preselector circuit when the antenna pulls it out of tune. For sure it helps to match the antenna, but I'm not sure if it can solve the problem completely. I have to try my Hammarlund HQ100 some day with the tuner and without it and see if there is any difference. At the moment, I have a 55m long doublet with 240ohm twin lead feedline. Cheers: OH8UBJ/Juha

[@wolson9]

Happy Holidays and thank you for this discussion!

[@anthonyzinnanti7933]

Excellent presentation. I really like the tone of your videos and the thoroughness of the information. I do shortwave listening with an Elite 750 with a 6/10/20/40 OCFD and I've been struggling with performance. This should help.

[@ChipLohman]

For a concept best understood by physicists, you gave us a good match! Chip, NN4U

[@davemaier7]

Kevin thank you so much for all that you do to promote ham radio. I find your videos to be very informative and this one in particular. All the best, Dave K7CI

[@graphicventures]

Thanks for such an informative video Kevin. Merry Christmas from Dubai

[@Mike500912]

Yeah, we don't tend to be superstitious in Australia. our family has the summer holiday in November to avoid the December rush.

[@robt6695]

Thanks for your video. Very informative. Seeing as you have a wide audience re your Christmas greeting, remember it's not winter everywhere. It's summer down here in sunny Tasmania. Merry Christmas.

[@BobtheTraveler-WD8NVN]

Great Video !!! I plan to be in Quartzsite mid January and I plan to attend QuartzFest 2022 for my fourth year there !!

[@acestudioscouk-Ace-G0ACE]

The information presented here makes a lot of sense. I voiced a similar opinion to yours and got shouted down, so I feel vindicated that someone with your experience and knowledge makes the same points so clearly. Season's greetings to you Kevin.

[@colinhorwood363]

Happy Holiday to you from Colin in the UK.

[@OctavMandru]

A simple pi network antenna tuner is tuned on receive simply by listening where the maximum noise is, and then finely tuned by transmitting. So yes, it definitely helps the receive

[@kitswithkaren5003]

Nicely explained video.Yes an antenna tuner helps but there is no substitute for a good antenna in the first place.For SW listening it's been my experience to avoid antennas fed with coax.Ladder cable being the far better option.The braid on coax lets in all sorts of noises and interference which is not needed.🐻🐵☺️👍

[@stevegriffin9552]

Hey Kevin that was a great video about the short wave and antenna tuner. I do remember that gentleman of ham radio and short wave. And I remember watching what he had to say, what are you enjoyed your video about you went into a more in-depth reason why it is good or if it’s not as good. And I really did enjoy the demonstration. How do you also hope you have a good and safe holiday enjoy the time for yourself if you don’t put out any videos before Quartzsite be safe. 73 WD5ENH Steve

[@aerofart]

If I’m not mistaken, once you achieve reception of at least a certain minimum signal level, it would seem to me that the more important factor would be signal-noise ratio, which would not necessarily be best when signal level was highest. This may be why you hear a lot of folks say that a tuning and swr doesn’t really matter when you’re dealing with receiver-only antennas.

[@loughkb]

Yes, but having more signal to work with may allow whatever filtering your radio can do to be more effective.

[@aerofart]

@ That’s certainly a consideration.

[@M7XCB]

Happy holiday Kevin hope you have a good one and thanks for all the videos you've put out this year I've watched it all it a pleasure to watching it 73s 🇬🇧

[@larrypicard5969]

Thanks Kevin. This was an interesting video. I was an SWL for many years. The term covers a broad range. At least in the dark ages, before the Internet, most SWL's were people who listened to international broadcasters like the BBC, VoA and Radio Netherlands. For receive-only applications, there are two prime considerations: signal to noise ratio and frequency agility. A third consideration is immunity from elective fading. When listening to high power radio broadcasters the signal strength is usually high enough that the limiting factor is noise, either natural or man made. A less efficient but lower noise antenna works best. Because of automatic gain control (AGC) and the fact that most modern receivers are extremely sensitive, a little less signal at the radio's front end does little to affect reception. In most cases using a tuner increases the received noise as much as the received signal. Using a tuner in the general case only decreases frequency agility, adds complexity and frustration to tuning and an additional expense. The exception to this rule occurs where an antenna delivers relatively little signal to the radio. With very weak signals the radio's internal noise is at the level of the received signal. Examples include using a very short antenna or an untuned loop without a pre-amp. Most SWL's will get the most benefit from an antenna setup that picks up the least noise. Transmitting is a different case. You need to protect your transmitter from reflected power and you want to get the most power possible into the antenna.

[@loughkb]

Yes. A tuner is just another tool in your arsenal. Not something that would be used all of the time, just as needed.

[@larrypicard5969]

@@loughkb Thanks again Kevin. You have hit the nail on the head. Exactly my point.

[@christopherpearson4899]

Lots of theory but how many times do we see, even when tuning for a transmitter, first to “tune for maximum noise” on a receiver? Proof empirical that an ATU when matched gets more signal to the receiver. Thanks for demonstrating this, Kelvin.

[@HitchHiker4Freedom]

That was my first thought. Tune for max signal.

[@richardravich8337]

Happy Holidays Kevin! 73's de WD6FIE

[@kitswithkaren5003]

very well explained video.I have been using a tunner for years but for beginners this will be very helpful.

[@vitale6633]

Very helpful explanation and demonstration. Much appreciated.

[@chronobot2001]

Would a jfet preamp, with a very high input impedance, work better with whatever length of wire you are using? For receive only. It wouldn't load down the antenna and most of the signal voltage would be seen across the 1 - 10 Mohm input impedance. I did this for a direct conversion receiver I made. The preamp was a J310 jfet in a self bias config with a 10 Mohm gate resistor. The jfet fed an emitter follower. The overall gain was about unity but the input resistance was now 10 Mohms. It made it so a 2 ft telescoping antenna worked really well. Of course the long wire still worked somewhat better but the performance was very good either way. The only other issue was the preamp was also picking up 60 hz, but an appropriate choke going from the antenna to ground removed the 60 hz and didn't affect the hf.

[@kenbaird7067]

Thanks for a very informative video. As a long time SWLer I will be seriously looking at antenna tuner. Best wishes and thaks again

[@lilblackduc7312]

Thank you, Kevin. 🇺🇸 😎👍 ☕

[@W4OP]

I think what you are missing is a very important point. If the tuner allows more signal into the receiver- it also allows more noise into the receiver in an equal amount. If not then you are saying that the tuner knows the difference between noise on the RX frequency and signal. an obvious impossibility. Yes, signals were louder, but so was the noise. The waterfall display color clearly shows this. This is basic S/N theory. Dale W4OP

[@loughkb]

Yes, of course the noise floor comes up. I didn't miss it, it was just so obvious that I didn't feel the need to point it out.

[@W4OP]

@@loughkb So, the signal to noise does not change, then what is the tuner helping with besides making everything louder? All of today's receivers have more than enough gain to allow for low gain antennas (i.e. mismatched antennas, Beverages, Flags etc) to overcome HF noise figures.

[@loughkb]

@@W4OP LOL!

[@andrewking3087]

@@loughkb Deos the tuner allow you to receive a signal that you could not receive with just the antenna? Perhaps a weaker signal than the one in the video?

[@loughkb]

@@andrewking3087 It can, when applicable, certainly make some CW contacts much easier on the ears. More signal for the filters to process. Along those lines, digital modes would be a bit better detected by demodulating and decoding software. Less dropped characters in RTTY or PSK31. A bit less snow from less AGC action in an SSTV image. And there's the additional benefit of getting the most out of the antenna across the spectrum, rather than just at it's resonant and harmonic points.

[@charlesschindler1971]

Wishing you “All the Best”in the new year from myself &”Dennis the Cat”.

[@timmcilraith8762]

All the best Kevin. Have learned a lot from your vids.

[@vincentstevens5048]

Interesting stuff. Is the antenna tuner you are using a passive device? I've e been playing with my antennas over the last little while. I mainly am interested in Mediumwave DX and have a couple of antennas , two flags, a delta loop and a youloop. As you described, the impedance varies with frequency. 200 to 1000 ohm on the one flag antenna, as measured with my NanoVNA at the two ends of MW. So getting a linear match across the whole MW band is impossible with just a fixed balun. Would some kind of adjustable LC circuit help? PS i like your postcard of Cape Town. My hometown. 73, Vince

[@guntramschlemminger7383]

In addition to match the impedance of the Antenna/Feedline system to the impedance of the RX input there is a second benefit. The antenna tuner is made up of a L/C circuitry and is frequency selective. Its not a broadband transformation. It selectively filters out the spectral portions near the RX frequency and suppresses the spectral part far from the RX frequency. As result you get less total Signal amplitude to the 1st stage of the RX and reduce the risk to get into non linear operating conditions. It suppresses cross and intermodulation and makes the whole system more robust to very strong signals outside the selected RX band. Greetings from former DJ0PA

[@RoyGNH]

Dang, that was educational to this newly minted general ticket holder! 73s

[@DonDegidio]

Hi Kevin, Happy Holidays. Great explanation. I agree with many of the comments that antenna "tuner" creates much confusion. They should be termed antenna matching units. Stay safe. 73 WJ3U

[@Pioneer936]

It could be said whilst the tuner is adjusting the reactances to create resonance this is where the tuning name comes from ?

[@redneckways1933]

I had no idea if a dipole and a tuner would work,but I made one anyway for my shot wave. It works, OK. I did get more channels than I did without it. I still want to find a better way to listen to my shot wave thow.

[@Jonjemit9006]

Kevin, what about if you just have a long wire connected to a portable SW radio with a miniature jack? Will a tuner improve receiver performance?

[@loughkb]

In some ways. The tuner will act as a pre-selector. Reducing nearby out of band RF that could swamp the rf pre-amp in the receiver. It will also improve the transfer of energy on the desired frequency range by creating an impedance match between the antenna and the receiver.

[@Dzonemp]

Merry Christmas!

[@scottrand7626]

A Very Merry Christmas to you....

[@london19657]

Very well explained to this beginner, thanks.

[@johng7rwf419]

Seasons greetings, enjoy your break.. J

[@greasydot]

Happy New Year Kevin. Very nice video.

[@eugenepohjola258]

Howdy. Wonderful demonstration. I would, however, advocate that an out of resonance antenna tuned to resonance with a tuner will "suck in" more energy from the air than a non resonant does. Yet, I agree that matching impedances is the most significant aspect. In high regards.

[@loughkb]

The antenna itself is not changed, it remains out of resonance. The other side of the matching network presents a resonant impedance, derived from the network itself.

[@eduardopower5254]

Merry Christmas ⛄🎄⛄ Kevin and God bless you 😊👍🏼

[@fernandoscrenci4874]

Very Nice indeed !! By showing your experience by video !! You have explain it !! Two Ways !! ✍🏻😉

[@dandee9141]

Great video that answers a question my brother and I have been wondering about using a tuner for his IC-R8600 receiver. He will be using a very long wire for the HF bands does yours have a balun or unun attached. At first, I was thinking the IC-705 has a built-in tuner, but it doesn't. You must be using an external manual tuner. It would be nice to know if you have any suggestions on a tuner just for short wave listening. Thanks. Dan.

[@loughkb]

If the antenna is a long random wire there really wouldn't be too much of a point to putting a transformer on the end of it. Maybe a 9 to 1 just to bring the high impedance at the end of a wire down a little bit so it's easier for the tuner to deal with. And just about any tuner with manual controls will work. Just tune for the noise peak around whatever frequency you're listening to.

[@jeff-73]

Excellent vid. Have fun on your time off.

[@psnpacific]

👍 my R390 receiver has an antenna trim built in...

[@dennyoconnor8680]

The winter Solstice was big in the old pagan religions and the days around/near the solstice have been incorporated into the younger and newer religions as some form of holiday from work with the calendar rolling over 10 days post solstice.. Now, being descended from Irish and Danish ancestors my Celtic DNA prefers the old celebrations on the Solstice complete with a big feast, lots of booze, and a good orgy. So happy holidays to you also (a few months in advance)

[@ve6hdh992]

Another great video. You have a great Christmas and a wonderful New Year. Keep safe. 73 Dee

[@JohnnyClavin]

This is true for a radio that has a 50-ohm input and a 50-ohm feedline. This is not the case if you have a portable shortwave receiver. A single random wire works just fine. My ham radio is a Yaesu FT-450D. My portable is a Tecsun PL-880.

[@loughkb]

A 'tuner' doesn't specifically produce a 50 ohm output. It will allow you to match whatever the impedance of the antenna is to whatever the impedance of the receiver is and improve energy transfer.

[@maxit-mw]

Your PL-880 has an high impedance input that matches the impedance of a short wire antenna so further impedance matching is not important.

[@MakeDoAndMend1]

Hi. QUESTION. If you have an aerial correct wavelength for the station you are listening too. If you introduce an aerial tuner does it increase the signal strength by improving the Q of the aerial. Cheers from old George.

[@loughkb]

No. The antenna is only going to 'grab' so much signal out of the air. If you're system is resonant for the frequency you are receiving, the transmatch would only introduce a small amount of loss. You may reduce the energy from other signals on different frequencies though, possibly reducing interference or desense of the RF amplifiers in the receiver.

[@MakeDoAndMend1]

@@loughkb Many thanks. I grew up with Thermionic Valves whereby the RF Amplifier was wideband. No band pass filters. ATU were as big as the radio. They matched impedance and also acted as band pass filters. Sometimes the knobs were marked sensitivity selectivity. The ATU increased the wanted signal by increasing the signal to noise ratio alowing the front end RF amp gain to be manually adjusted. It's rare to see an ATU as good as the old ones. Modern radios have band pass filters built in. Less knobs to adjust. Thank you for your reply it confirms my thoughts on modern ATU. Ps one of my old radios weight was 18 stone without power unit or ATU and it was only a Marconi DF Receiver ex ww2. No Transmitter. Cheers from old George just getting back into radio. 👍🤠🇬🇧

[@DanVanMusic]

Tuning the antenna increases the signal as you showed, but also increases the noise. So the signal to noise ratio is the same, regardless of the S--meter reading. That's why beverages and receive loops work. They provide a good S/N Ratio even though they are non resonant . Sensitivity on HF modern receivers is not the problem. Their Noise Figure is way below the atmospheric noise level. So they are more than sensitive enough. The name of the game in shortwave receiving in having a good signal to noise ratio, not the highest S Meter reading. You should have mentioned that the best reason for using a tuner on HF is that it acts as a pass-band filter, reducing strong, off frequency signals which will degrade receiver dynamic range. That is more important than trying for the highest S Meter reading.

[@loughkb]

SNR is a different topic and outside the scope of this video.

[@cooldad4]

I understand that but what about the loss in signal because of the internal electronics? I have a Yaesu frt-7700 for my frg-8800; switched off, there's a slight loss in signal when in line!

[@thewind-ne8rh]

now on that same line of thinking , would it be best for S.W.L to have a remote tuner at the base of the antenna connector before the coax run?

[@scottmajors4430]

Thanks for this very helpful and instructive video, Kevin - greatly appreciated. Merry Christmas! Scott D. Majors de K3SDM

[@menajemh]

The tuner work like a band pass filter in certain way for that particular wave range you are working on?

[@arainadiaz9219]

For receive, preamp works best, overcomes such mismatches

[@georgestein7484]

Nice video. A question. My antenna is a 1 meter diameter Wellbrook loop. The amplifier at the antenna requires 12v DC. Can one still use an automatic tuner to plot the impedance as in your video and to then have it engaged for listening? Your thoughts, please. Regards, George, Redmond, Oregon USA

[@loughkb]

You could not use an automatic tuner, since those require transmitting power in order to tune. Transmitting into your loop would burn out the amplifier. You would need to use a manual tuner and tune for a peak in the receiver noise at the frequency you are listening.

[@georgestein7484]

@@loughkb I was pretty sure that would be the case. Could the 12v have an adverse impact on a manual tuner? I am leaning toward NO, since one can pump at least 100 watts thru them or more depending on the specific tuner.

[@loughkb]

@@georgestein7484 you would put the tuner between the radio and the bias t supply. That is if it is a power supply that hooks to the coax. It would be the last thing in line before the antenna. And it would not put power on the coax that goes to your radio. Which is where you would put the tuner in line between the power supply and the radio

[@davidevans6432]

Used an L-match tuner for random end fed wires for many years as an SWL. Often made a significant difference.

[@TrueIndie88]

How great to see it.

[@elwood.downey]

Sure it helps. Just think of adjusting a small loop during receive. You can hear a huge increase in signal when nearing a good match, the same match you want for transmit.

[@12DGJB21]

For SWL, is using a 1:1 BalUn (placed in-between where the antenna first connects to the Coax feed) still a good idea to help remove RFI if I'm also using an antenna tuner at the radio antenna input? Or is it redundant?

[@loughkb]

That would help to reduce common mode noise. Hashy broad RF noise that gets onto the antenna system and travels down both conductors of the feed line as if it were a single wire. It wouldn't help with any kind of carrier noise. A narrow signal generated by something.

[@jameswest3275]

thank you for the very informative video. what hardware/software are you using to measure the impedance? thanks.

[@loughkb]

I use a BlueVNA and it's associated android app.

[@bobahlberg6360]

Happy Holidays Kevin de k0taz