|
New to Ham Radio?
My Profile
Community
Articles
Forums
News
Reviews
Friends Remembered
Speak Out
Strays
Survey Question
Operating
Contesting
DX Cluster Spots
Propagation
Resources
Calendar
Classifieds
Ham Exams
Ham Links
List Archives
News Articles
Product Reviews
QSL Managers
Site Info
eHam Help (FAQ)
Support the site
The eHam Team
Advertising Info
Vision Statement
About eHam.net
|
| Reviews Summary for MFJ-1786 Super Hi-Q Loop |
|
You can
write your own review of the MFJ-1786 Super Hi-Q Loop.
|
KC2SIZ
|
Rating: 5/5
|
Apr 27, 2008 05:33
|
Send this review to a friend
|
|
If you can't have limited space, this is just the ticket...
|
Time owned: 3 to 6 months
|
I've had the MFJ-1786 for a few months now. It is one of a number of different loop antennas at my house. For me, it's been perfect. I have a limited amount of space, but I also don't want to compromise too much in the way of performance. This MFJ loop obviously doesn't take up a lot of space, and it really gets out. Using no more than 100 watts, I have made contacts in Norway, Croatia, Serbia, Italy, Spain, Morocco, Venezuela, Cuba, Mexico, Ireland, and every corner of the US. It works very well, as loop antennas tend to do.
Yes, it is not effortless to use as frequent retuning of the antenna is required. This is more annoying for some people than for others. I don't mind the retuning at all so long as the performance is there, and in this case it is. End of story.
|
|
N2CVZ
|
Rating: 5/5
|
Dec 5, 2007 18:33
|
Send this review to a friend
|
|
Awesome!
|
Time owned: more than 12 months
|
|
I have mine mounted about 10-feet above the roof of a 5-story co-op apartment building. In all honesty (I know this is a cliche) if I can hear them I can work them. Was running 50 watts from a Ten-Tec Scout 555 that worked great; now running 100 from a Kenwood TS-830. Like any magnetic loop antenna, bandwidth is about as wide as a strand of hair but the tuner makes things quite easy. I simply tune it for the loudest noise then fine tune it with a small amount of RF. I can almost always get it down to about 1.5:1. We live on a hill overlooking the Hudson River so sometimes the wind can really give it a beating, but after a year I see no signs of problems. Highly recommend it for anyone with space restrictions. Now to solve my 80 meter problem...maybe a stealth loop.
|
|
WB0FDJ
|
Rating: 5/5
|
Dec 5, 2007 12:19
|
Send this review to a friend
|
|
A good performer
|
Time owned: 0 to 3 months
|
Been using my 1786 for about a month. Mounted indoors on the second floor (actually just leaning against the wall), so it's at about 16 feet, vertically. I moved it around some until I found the sweet spot where it doesn't interact with it's surroundings. Mine came ready to go, nothing broken, worked within about 5 minutes of taking it out of the box. After about another 5 minutes I figured out the tuning and in my opinion the tuning issue is no big deal. As others have noted, 90% of the time I can change bands "by ear" and within the band tuneup, say 20 kHz away takes about a second, literally. I continue to "hunt and pounce" and find it's no problem.
Running 30 watts out I've had some enjoyable QSO's,during very casual operating, with CA, NY, TN, PA (from MN) getting typically 559 reports. Best mileage was an XE1. I have made QSO's using 5 watts. No, it doesn't beat out some of the better antennas I've used (Carolina Windom, Gap, etc) but then none of them would fit into the spare room upstairs. I am happier with tihs antenna than I thought I would be. I am also running a Slinky for listening and 40 mtrs and while the Slinky works, I don't get the same results. Not even close. Next spring this is going up on a mast outdoors.
Expensive, Yep. But then again I think all antennas are overpriced. Thing is this antenna works and if you are stuck with the need for an indoor antenna I don't think you can do better.
|
|
N1YWB
|
Rating: 4/5
|
Nov 26, 2007 22:26
|
Send this review to a friend
|
|
Excellent compact HF antenna
|
Time owned: more than 12 months
|
In the 2005 IARU HF Championship, I operated this antenna. I placed 6th in the Single Op Low Power W/VE category. So there's your pudding. You might not win the contest but you can place top 10. This antenna doesn't suck.
Read my full review at: http://n1ywb.blogspot.com/2007/11/mfj-1786-super-hi-q-loop-antenna.html
|
|
WA2DTW
|
Rating: 4/5
|
Apr 4, 2007 15:15
|
Send this review to a friend
|
|
No problem with mine
|
Time owned: more than 12 months
|
Mine was indoors, using it QRP with the FT817 several years ago. Made many CW contacts on 17, 20 and 30 meters, with good signal reports.
It does tune quite sharply. But there is not much of a learning curve.
|
|
MW0CVW
|
Rating: 0/5
|
Apr 4, 2007 13:38
|
Send this review to a friend
|
|
MFJ 1786X LOOP
|
Time owned: 0 to 3 months
|
I purchased a new MFJ 1786X from Waters & stanton in the u.k and received the unit the following day.
I opened the box and followed the instructions as required.The first thing I noted was the poor mechanical construction of the loop assembly,thin plastic fixed with self tapping screws...
I tryed to fix the supplied four mounting bolts and brackets into the main loop assembly and found the fixing holes where damaged..
Note:This was a brand new unit..
I phoned Waters & Stanton (U.K) and discussed this issue with their service department..
What a waste of time,so finally it was decided they would credit me for the loop..
Following discussions with other suppliers here in the U.K, it was apparent a fair percentage of MFJ1786X loops had been returned due to poor construction and component failure..
|
|
G8FXC
|
Rating: 4/5
|
Jan 29, 2007 09:58
|
Send this review to a friend
|
|
Follow up...
|
Time owned: more than 12 months
|
After more than a year with the 1786 as my main antenna, it has grown on me! The need to retune is a pain, but there really is nothing else that can produce comparable results in such a small package. I normally use the large wire loop to search around, then switch to the 1786 before operating.
Following KB3KUR's comments about high SWR, do follow the instructions in the manual for adjusting the coupling loop - it makes a big difference. My 1786 is in the loft space right hard up against the wall and a tiled roof, but I can get the SWR down to virtually 1:1 on all frequencies. Open the casing and make a mental (or even paper) note of the shape and positioning of the coupling loop. Then experiment with it, gently bending it - taking care to not strain the joints at each end. Don't move it too close to the main loop - don't want arc over!
It can be a fiddly job - after each change you need to check the SWR across the full range of operation. You may not get down to 1:1 across the board in which case you will need to choose the shape which works best on your prefered bands. Its probably a good idea to keep drawings with records of results as you go so that you can later select the shape which works best for you...
Martin (G8FXC)
|
|
KB3KUR
|
Rating: 4/5
|
Jan 29, 2007 07:28
|
Send this review to a friend
|
|
Better than expected
|
Time owned: 3 to 6 months
|
I am quite new to HF, so take the review for what it is worth. I live in a first floor condo. The antenna was my attempt to communicate without an attic or roof. I have made contacts in Idaho and Texas from my NJ home. I was using a TS-2000 at 100 watts. I am sure that I can improve performance as I build experience.
The SWR is positional (when the antenna is next to a wall or ceiling). Sometimes I find it difficult to tune below 4:1. Other times the needle drops down to almost 1:1. Tuning is relatively easy, though I still struggle with the auto tune features.
I am not a fan of MFJ when it comes to support and service. That said, I am still getting decent performance from the antenna.
Lou
W0RWS
|
|
N5EAT
|
Rating: 4/5
|
Nov 22, 2006 16:49
|
Send this review to a friend
|
|
Very Happy
|
Time owned: 0 to 3 months
|
I have had this antenna a bit over a week. In that time I've used it in both the horizontal and vertical modes. Each mode produces startingly different results. The good news is that it works very well and is easy to tune once you get into the habit. The loop is fairly directional in vertical mode. I have it presently mounted in the center of a spare upstairs bedroom and have no trouble tuning it in either polarization on any band. The bandwidth is extremely narrow (plus and minus 10 to 15 kc on 20 meters). However, the antenna provides adequate receive up and down the whole band. If you tune from the cw portion of the band up into the ssb portion all one needs to do is apply a bit of power and depress the "up" slow tune button until the swr drops. Same for going down the band. It only takes a few seconds to find the new match on the same band.
Signal reports are good and as others have reported - the noise level on receive is much less than with some of my other antennas. I have not opened mine up to see if there are "production" problems yet. This antenna works a bit better than I expected, and it's actually easier to use than I had thought based upon some reviews.
|
|
DL3MGG
|
Rating: 5/5
|
Oct 20, 2006 01:35
|
Send this review to a friend
|
|
Great antenna,but....
|
Time owned: more than 12 months
|
|
I have got my MFJ 1786 in Oktober 2005 and I can`t say anything bad about it. Together with a rotary, about 11 meters over ground I did quite nice contacts,the most of then in Europe (sun activity very low in this times). But than the problem occurs: After a warm autum day with a very cold night, the capacitor within the loop refused to turn on. So I took down the loop, opened the case, put out the motor with the gear, opened up the motor and realised that the copper coils burned away. I think the reason is: the grease inside the gear went hard because of the cold weather and as a result the motor blocked. I phoned the dealer and he told me, that he knows the problem, but it is no problem to order a new motor. So I´m waiting and waiting...
|
|
If you have any questions, problems, or suggestions about Reviews,
please email your Reviews Manager.
|
|
|
|
|
