| W4CK |
Rating:      |
2022-11-25 | |
| Superb design, quality, and performance! |
Time Owned: 6 to 12 months. |
I cannot thank OptiBeam enough for this wonderful beam - it replaced my trusty 1977-vintage Mosley CL-33 WARC, a very rugged, reliable performer, but the difference in the pileups is quite unbelievable, both in terms of receive and in terms of comments from other stations around the world.
I LOVE the square boom - elements are guaranteed to be in the same plane.
Assembly was quick and easy - and Tom, DF2BO, is just an email away. VERY QUICK responses to a few questions I had.
SWR is great on all 5 bands.
The OB9-5HD is my first beam without traps, and even after 47 years on the air, I honestly could not have imagined or believed the difference until I've experienced it over the past few months.
Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. |
|
| K6ZSR |
Rating:      |
2022-09-04 | |
| 5 bands, xlnt docs & materials & performance-great price! |
Time Owned: 0 to 3 months. |
Update on my newly installed Optibeam OB9-5 yagi:
When I first put it up I tested with yagi at 20 ft. Swr was ok but no real cigar moments here on all bands.
Today, with a little time on my hands, I cranked that sucker up to 55 ft. Results were amazing to me !
No tuner in line:
(20) 1:1 across the entire band
(17) 18.068-18.110 1.5:1 18110-18.168 1.3:1
(15) 21.000-21.025 1.6:1 21.100 1.3:1 21.150 1.2:1 21.200 -21.450 1:1
(12) 1.5:1 across the entire band
(10) 28.050 1.8:1 28.300 1.6:1 28.500-28.800 1.5:1 29.000-29.100 1.2:1
29.300 1.2:1 29.500 1.6:1 29.700 2.3:1
I am now a happy camper. 5 bands, no tuner, clean looking, no moving parts & great swr on all the bands. I highly recommend this antenna. I read the reviews on eham.com, before purchasing, and they were right on!
mike, k6zsr
|
|
| N7OR |
Rating:      |
2022-08-22 | |
| Great Antenna |
Time Owned: 0 to 3 months. |
This is a very well made antenna. I am quite pleased with the engineering, the solid feeling of the entire assembly, and the fact that there are no traps, coils or anything like that. I was looking for a 5 band antenna that would last a while between maintenance cycles as I'm not comfortable with climbing anymore at my age and I rented a boom lift for this install. I had considered a steppir antenna but read a few accounts of mechanical failures and I wasn't feeling lucky so I looked elsewhere.
Assembly was completed in my shop over quite a long time, as I was in no hurry and just worked on it in short bursts on "rainy days". Sometimes literally. I had 2 questions as I went along and Tom "Blue Ocean" was very quick to reply and I can't say enough about his customer service in this day of basically no customer service anymore. Just superb.
I installed this beam on a trusty old (recently re-furbished) Rohn 48 foot free standing tower. Attached to a Yaesu G-2800DXA rotor. So the tower height and antenna size are just right in my opinion for my oversized but still basically a city lot in my small town.
After installing the beam but before pulling the new antenna feedline and rotor cable through the conduit into the radio room, I attached the antenna analyzer and everything looked great. Almost as good as the sweeps shown in the manual, and equally as acceptable. There is one small exception, and that is the VSWR at the very bottom of 21 Mhz is a tiny bit high. At and below 21.003 the VSWR just goes above 2.00:1. It looks basically flat across the rest of the band and never goes above 1.38 at any point. The antenna is adjustable (3 length settings on the active elements) and I could have gone back up and lengthened the 15 meter driven element, but I decided to leave it alone as I find it acceptable. I was a little concerned about this impacting the other bands, as this antenna isn't really a log periodic type, but it does share some of that design.
The only issue that I wish I had paid more attention to during assembly is making very sure each element is exactly parallel. When standing directly below and looking straight up, I sometimes question if this is true. Sometimes these can be optical tricks due to other objects in the foreground or background, and if mine are out of alignment it is very subtle and I like to believe that my performance isn't being impacted much if at all. I just think I would have liked to have that peace of mind that I knew they were in precise alignment. I credit my questioning of this fact due to two things. First, I was under the assumption that the square boom, the square u-bolts, the square mounting plates and the fact that the 5 driven elements need to all interact with the phase line bars and crossovers would make it almost impossible for them to be out of alignment. Secondly, the page in the manual with the overall dimensions is in metric, with a German only explanation, and I'm an Imperial measurement with fractions kind of guy my entire life. Yes, I could have asked Tom, but I know metric measurements are very precise and they always translate out to things like "Appx 13/16" or "slightly less than 17/64". I need to go on Amazon Europe and buy a proper metric tape measure.
On the air, only for 2-1/2 days so far. The radio and amplifier are happy with the antenna and have no issues. The Summer conditions have been geomagnetic stormy, but I made quite a few contacts into Europe and Asia using FT8 mode, and tuned across the end of a CW contest where everyone I called was able to copy me with no repeats. I look forward to better Autumn conditions soon, some CW contests, and just the overall improvement in cycle 25. I didn't intend to build a dx king or contest champion station. I think this antenna at this height will bring me plenty of joy operating on HF. |
|
| LX1AX |
Rating:      |
2022-07-02 | |
| BOUGHT A NEW ONE/17 YEARS UP BEST INVEST IN HAMRADIO IN MY LIFE |
Time Owned: more than 12 months. |
Hi to all,
I bought an new OB9-5HD last year! Why! Because it was time after 17 years to change the rotator, the Coaxcable, and the Bearing. And Tom ( DF2BO ) had since made some very important mechanical improvements which means also improvements for the security around.
But be sure mine is after 17 years still strong and still working nothing broke, the only thing is the antenna isn't shining so much :-), which is normal.
So I thought to change all together to have the Perfection!
And I have another problem, I'm afraid to climb, so a company came and have all done perfectly in a half day with a crane the 20 of June 2022, the same company as 17 years ago here from LX, and they have done a super Job.
My old OB9-5HD has the same element diameter as the new one.
New Improvements:
1) 4 black element holders where the phasing line goes over the driven elements, which include widder element plate-holder
2) Boom to mast mounting is more solid and big
3) Boom Truss
4) 5 KW Balun is much better
So I don't know if it's the coax cable, the Balun but SWR is now much better and it was also very good before.
I had Aircell 7 and now from Messi&Paoloni Ultraflex 10 ( H2010 ), this one has less loss, and came From Kabel Kusch in Germany, which is also a perfect, friendly and serious company.
But now the most bands show no SWR so 1,0
over the hole Band except 10 m until +- 29Mhz. So you don't need these antennas with the motors moving electrical parts in the fiberglasses. Only on 20 M band it goes up to 1,6 when the antenna is on the south, but that is due to the influence of the gutters of my house, I had the same with the old one, and when I turned away from the south it goes rapidely to 1,3 ! The antenna would be better a few meters more, for 20m Band only, over the roof of my house, but in this height ( not so high ) I can sleep better by storm.
I want not to tell more again which is known, perfect and rapid communication with Tom ( DF2BO ).
I love this perfect antenna made by OPTIBEAM.
73's to all Alain LX1AX
--------------------------------------------------------------
Review from 2021:
In April 2005, the OB9-5 was putting up on the roof of my house.
It will be 17 years and as you know the last week 3 big storms here but the antenna survived it again.
Everything is like the first day. 17 years without maintenance. This antenna is superb.
During these 17 years we've had ice, snow, rain and strong stormy winds +- 150 km/hour. The OB9-5 survived without any problem.
For info: I'm limited in space and I can't put up bigger antennas from OPTIBEAM.
Important to tell is that TOM DF2BO from Optibeam listen to his customer very carefully before selling. He wants to give you the Best for your location,your tower and your demands.
Ah, yes for shure the OB9-5 works really great on all the 5 bands, but this fact is nowadays well known by the Ham Community.
It's so easy to put it together, just plug and play for a very long, long time as I have done and will do.
After 17 Years I'm still happy with this fantastic product made by OPTIBEAM.
All in all I can say the OB9-5 has prooved to me to be an really great DX Antenna which is solid built and MAINTENANCE FREE NOW FOR 17 YEARS.
Just go for it and you will have no regrets.
73, Alain LX1AX |
|
| WD0ERU |
Rating:      |
2021-09-05 | |
| Excellent product and support! |
Time Owned: 0 to 3 months. |
| The best beam I have ever owned, and well worth the wait for shipment to the US. From when I first opened the box I could tell that this was no ordinary beam. The build quality is truly amazing and instructions are clear and concise. All parts are clearly marked which makes assembly easier. We spent a few hours over a couple days getting it assembled and then up the tower! Tom at Optibeam and the folks at DX Engineering (US distributor for Optibeam) were all top notch to work with. Fast response times to any questions we had just added to the excellent customer service. I’ve had the beam in operation for over 3 weeks now at about 50 ft, with 100W. If I can hear them, I can work them! German engineering at its finest. You won’t be disappointed. |
|
| DJ3ABC |
Rating:      |
2021-09-05 | |
| OB9-5 Top DX antenna, very good quality Made in Germany! |
Time Owned: 3 to 6 months. |
| The antenna is easy to assemble thanks to the detailed description. You immediately notice the clean workmanship and the good quality of Optibeam. It takes a good two days to set up if you do it conscientiously. We then attached the antenna to a large lifting platform and then mounted it on the 60mm stainless steel mast at a height of 11.50 m. The antenna performs extremely well and so far I am extremely satisfied. Even from 2100 lcl DL time, DX connections up to 10,000 km are effortlessly possible. Within only 3 days (the first 3 days after setup) I was able to establish connections to the USA, Chile, Colombia, Japan, Kenya, Bonaire, all with 100 watts of output power, without an amplifier. The antenna is powerful and has a low price. Now that all of our large gardening projects have been completed, I will again have plenty of time to test the antenna in more detail, even under even better DX conditions. Tom DF2BO from Optibeam is extremely committed and takes care of the relevant issue very quickly. Within a very short time you get an answer and a remedy from him, impressive. The service from Optibeam is exemplary and a prime example. Many thanks to Tom and the whole team, you are helpful and deliver spite products. At the same time, I also ordered an OB2-40 which was sent by Dachser forwarding at the same time. The test report can be found under the heading OB2-40. All the best, greetings to all readers, have fun and GOOD DX with the antennas from Optibeam. |
|
| DL2TOS |
Rating:      |
2021-06-23 | |
| My best choice |
Time Owned: more than 12 months. |
I am a skeptical person! Before the OB9-5 I had a view different beams sience 1999. Well, after more than 1 year of antenna change to the Optibeam OB9-5 you cannot come to any other conclusion that this antenna is the best decision you can make in terms of size and design. Unfortunately, there are also similar copies on the market, but they do not justify the price difference in terms of quality to the Optibeam OB9-5. Also the support to the manufacturer ... I had a few questions ... you can't really beat it. I will have a lot of fun with the antenna for the next years. That tells me my good feeling and the experience I have gained so far with the OB9-5
|
|
| MM0GPZ |
Rating:      |
2021-03-05 | |
| Old yagi supported |
Time Owned: 3 to 6 months. |
Thanks to Tom for providing support to me for an antenna I picked up 2nd hand. I think it is maybe 12 or more years old. The phasing tubes had been lost and Tom provided precise instructions that allowed me to build my own. They worked perfectly and first time I used the OB9-5 in anger was CQWW CW 2020. I made more QSO's than I ever did previously and I felt like I was a big signal. I had used a Hexbeam for several years previously which was very good but the OB9-5 is just obviously and immediately excellent. I am still getting used to stations telling me how loud I am :-)
The antenna is the old type and not HD. It was in excellent condition with the exception of the mast to boom clamp which when inspected had several fault line cracks and looked ready to fall apart. To be honest it looked very lightweight for a fairly large antenna. I repaired that easily with some angle iron cut to size and it is more than strong enough now. I understand Optibeam provide a much more robust mast to boom clamp nowadays.
I'm confident the OB9-5 will have many more years of service now.
Gordon
MM0GPZ MM2N |
|
| VK2SR |
Rating:      |
2020-10-23 | |
| OUTSTANDING |
Time Owned: 6 to 12 months. |
| Great service from Tom answering all questions via email within a few hours! The mechanical engineering and quality of the aluminum and all hardware is typical world class German quality. The antenna was packed very well and all parts were checked off a list as well as some spare hardware. The performance on 20/17/15 and 10M is a good as my 3 ele mono banders when compared on a separate tower at the same height.The front to side rejection is superior to the mono banders and the same front to back was observed on all LP and SP signals. This is amazing value for money and will last a lifetime. Very impressive DX performance so far with very few sunspots. Thanks Tom for a superb electrical and mechanical design mate! |
|
| EA8AXT |
Rating:      |
2020-10-12 | |
| Top Quality |
Time Owned: 0 to 3 months. |
I finished with the antenna installation two days ago.
The total time I invested in the assembly was approximately 5-6 hours, occasionally at night.
All aluminum tubes are perfectly hand-marked, so assembly is easy altough requires 100% attention.
The quality of the product is beyond dispute, fabulous aluminum, hardware and all stainless steel parts, including some extra parts.
The attention given by Tom, DF2BO, has been perfect. He has answered my emails very quickly, even on Saturday and Sunday.
In my case I did not use balun, nor did I rf-choke with the coaxial cable, I just put 12 TDK ferrite staples in the RG-213 just before the connection point.
The antenna is 7 meters above the roof of my 10 meter house. The swr is good on all bands, I just had to adjust the dimension of the driven elements at 15m and 20m to lower it further towards the CW portion of those bands. You have 3 holes ready in the driven elements to choose at your convenience.
In short, very satisfied with the purchase. I will write another post in the future to comment on his performance on air |
|