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Reviews For: Yaesu ATAS-120

Category: Antennas: HF Mobile & Accessories

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Review Summary For : Yaesu ATAS-120
Reviews: 97MSRP: 325
Description:
Motorized Mobile Screwdriver Antenna 40m-70cm. Updated version of ATAS-100. Band change control with Yaesu radios FT-100, FT-897, & FT-847.
Product is in production
More Info: http://www.yaesu.com/
# last 180 days Avg. Rating last 180 days Total reviews Avg. overall rating
00973.6
K4PDM Rating: 2006-07-08
857D/Atas a nice combo! Time Owned: 6 to 12 months.
First, let me say that I think this antenna is overpriced--for just a little more money, you can buy antennas that are more rugged and efficient. For a lot less money, a Hamstick is more efficient (but I have broken my share of them!) I probably would not have the 120A if Yaesu had not had a special package deal going on.

But it certainly is convenient to be able to hit the "Tune" button on the 857D and switch bands, knowing you will have a perfect match every time. Until I experienced it, I really didn't know how enjoyable that would be. I have seen no need to run separate grounds or go to any extra lengths to get the antenna to work, because it tunes fine with just the Diamond K400 screws cutting into the paint on the back door of my 2003 Tracker. The only other ground in my system is the DC ground at the battery.

As far as performance goes, the laws of physics are still in effect--this is a small antenna, so it's even more of a compromise than a Hamstick or other, larger unit. It does work, but I am longing for the next sunspot maximum when ANY matched antenna will provide lots of DX on a daily basis. And it does work best on the higher HF frequencies, being less of a compromise as you go up in frequency. (I don't use it on VHF or UHF.)

I have the newer 120A model and in six months, have had no trouble in rainstorms or after hitting tree limbs. Occasionally I must fine-tune the match on 6M as per the 857D manual, but other than that, it always tunes perfectly.

I think it is noteworthy that my installation required no extra grounding, and I understand that my vehicle must be an exception to the norm. I just want to stress that one should not assume they will have trouble with this antenna, because not everyone does!
W6NYG Rating: 2006-07-07
First evaluation Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
This experience might be of assistance to another ham with a plastic Saturn SUV.

We bought our 2006 Saturn Vue last week. My first thought was to install my SG 237 Smartunner and a fender mounted ball mount.

My options were limited to the small screwdriver antenna manufactured by Yaesu. The ATAS 120A is an improved version of the earlier antennas.

Most of the reviews on Eham have covered the improvements. I was forced to use a clamp on mount that is designed to work with the ATAS HF antenna. The coax is about as small as any I've ever seen.

Now for the details and a warning to others. I had a professional installer mount the antenna and add a 20 ga ground wire. The vehicle is a 2006 Saturn Vue SUV. Most of the body parts are made from aerospace polymer materials.

On my install the antenna went thru it's low swr routine on my FT 857 D. When the swr was below a pre set point the transceivers microprocessor stopped the motor.

I tested the ATAS 120 A on 20, 17, 15, 12 and ten meters. it searched for the lowest swr and stopped the tuning process. Then I pressed the tune button with the transceiver on 40 meters the motor would go to the stops and not move until using the manual down button.

On the remote display I could see the swr warning indicator blinking. If this happens to you it is necessary to use your microphone and key the transceiver TUNE on and select the down button.

There is a service menu that qualified techs use but it is not recommended for most hams.

The reason my antenna will not auto tune on bands higher then 20 meters is poor counterpoise.
I had my ATAS 120 A installed on the hatchback door. The door requires an additional bonding ground at the hinge assemblies.

A word of caution! Every mobile install is slightly different. Saturn vehicles have plastic fenders and door panels. I recommend contacting Yaesu service if you have a similar problem.

I did get on the air this evening on 20 meters SSB. I worked a station in Georgia and received a S 9 report. Hopefully other hams have easier installs. It is hard to rate the antenna until I have made contacts on all the bands.
de w6nyg/m
K6LCS Rating: 2006-06-22
Current Version Fine! Time Owned: 6 to 12 months.
Complaints about poor weatherproofing have been "cured" for over a year - with the current ATAS-120A model.

For those with the older ATAS-120 models (like the previous poster), Yaesu offers a rubber cap (Yaesu part number RA0698300) to better weatherproof the unit.

Poor 40M performance complaints? Many of these performance-related complaints are from folks who have not properly grounded their antenna. The ATAS-120 demands a good ground.

Clint Bradford, K6LCS
909-241-7666
AB9LX Rating: 2006-04-27
sad Time Owned: 6 to 12 months.
I went for a ride to southern IL and it was raining, that was the end of my antenna working. It would not move up or down. I dried it out while in southern IL and it started working fina again until it started raining again. Sitting in corner of garage and now using my High Sierra Sidekick with no problems.
N0IRW Rating: 2006-04-19
no major problems Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I have had this antenna since January 2004 and it has been on the truck the entire time. The only time I have ever had any problem with getting it to tune was on 2 occasions.....the first, i had a loose PL-259 on the back of the rig and the other was after it had been on the truck for 1 1/2 years and it quit working. I removed it and cleaned the base and the threads in the SO-239 base and the threads on the mount.....screwed it back on and it has been running ever since......moisture will cause corrosion in the connectors causing a loss of ground......and this antenna needs a GOOD ground. I have worked all over the world with it and love the antenna for HF ( I wish it had 80).....i don't like it for VHF/UHF though.
PY2ADR Rating: 2006-02-28
Good for a mobile Time Owned: 6 to 12 months.
Working on a Land Rover since last year. Doing a nice job but don´t forget: it´s a mobile antenna and...it´s small. So do not expet many DX and good reports. But it´s very nice too RX while traveling.
KF5Y Rating: 2006-02-22
TIGHTEN THE SCREWS Time Owned: 6 to 12 months.
I HAVE HAD THE ANTENNA FOR ABOUT A YEAR. I HAVE HAD ONE OR TWO OCCASIONS WHERE THE MOTOR DID NOT WORK. THESE WERE BRIGHT SUNNY DAYS. AFTER POWERING OFF FOR A WHILE AND THEN APPLYING POWER THE ANTENNAE WOOD WORK AGAIN. AGAIN THIS HAS ONLY BEEN ON ONE OR TWO OCCASIONS.

THE BIGGEST PROBLEM THAT I FIND IS THAT AT SPEEDS ABOVE 40 MPH I BELIEVE THAT THE BALL BEARINGS AND THE COIL ARE NOT MAKING SOLID CONTACT. THIS OBVIOUSLY CAUSES THE AUDIO TO BE SLIGHTLY BUT OBVIOUSLY CHOPPY. IN ADDITION THE THREE SET SCREWS AT THE BASE HAVE COME LOOSE ON TWO OCCASIONS. THE NEXT OCCASION THEY WILL GET LOCK-TITE.

I LIKE OTHERS WOULD LOVE 80 METERS SO I PLAN TO TRY THE TARHEEL OR ANOTHER. USING THIS WITH THE 757D IS A PLEASURE, I.E. ONE BUTTON TUNING.
AC0DB Rating: 2006-02-16
GREAT Look, GREAT Performer! Time Owned: 3 to 6 months.
I knew that this antenna was doing well for me, but I didn't know how well until I started working the 3YØX DXpedition - I contacted them on 15 meters on 2 tries, 17 meters in 3 tries, 20 meters in 4 tries. Admittedly, I caught them on 20 right when they went QRV after a break, and i've spent 1 hour calling the night before without any luck - but 15 and 17 had good pileups that I got through. I've worked into Russia and South America without trouble. I can't say enough about the performance on HF.

VHF and UHF seem a little weak. I haven't found the specifications, but I would imagine that the antenna is unity gain on these bands. For living in a metropolitan area and not needing a high gain antenna to work repeaters, it does well for me.

Tuning from my Yaesu FT-857D is a snap and tunes well on all bands from UHF through 40 meters.

Last, but not least, this is probably THE best looking antenna on the market. I looked at numerous other antennas and they aren't nearly as attractive. This keeps the XYL somewhat happy (she'd be happier with no antenna...but that's not an option :o)).

I have not had any issues with water ingress into the antenna and it has been installed and exposed to the weather since 10/05 (this writing is on 2/16/06).

Highly recommended!
G7IDJ Rating: 2006-01-17
Good Antenna Amazing Results Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
Hi there,

I have been operating HF Mobile for two years on long boring trips. So far I have been using monoband whips and multiband whips which need manual tuning. The monobanders worked fine and I had some good results but the multibanders were useless.
In the end being fed up with stopping the car I bought a High Sierra Sidekick and later an ATAS120.
The Sidekick worked fine but I found the tuning whilst driving a bit fiddly and I didn't like the number of wires.

The beauty about the ATAS in contrast was that the power to the antenna was fed to it through the coaxial so no DC cables to contend with and tuning is just one press of a button on the rig and the rest is done automatically.
The Antenna is very compact and easy to store away and works fine from a Tri-Magmount. After installing it I was calling CQ on 20 and got a reply from a station in Chicago....Yorkshire - Chicago is not bad.
The other station was running 1KW into a dipole and the report I got from Chicago was the same as I could give to the station, the difference being that I was in the inner city in a little crammy car park at the bottom of a valley running only 65W. The report convinced me of the effectiveness of the antenna.

Something else I noticed. Should the supply voltage to the radio drop below 10V the antenna motor won't work when you attempt to tune it.
Also in case you are in Europe the Atas needs an Imperial Allen key. I took along a set of metric hex keys and none of them fitted. Also don't forget that you will need an SO239 connection on your magmount instead of the 3/8 inch.

All in all a good antenna, minimising the cable salad for mobile operation and mostly it just works.
Pity it doesn't cover 80m and I hope that our drizzly rain won't get to it too soon.

I have paid for it £170 second hand. In the past I have spent in excess of £200 on monobander whips, with that the ATAS is a worthwhile investment making life a lot simpler.

A future project is to hook up the High Sierra and the ATAS and test the performance of both side by side. It will be interesting to see but I have got a feeling that there is very little difference between them. If I find anything I'll post it here!

thanks

Michael - G7IDJ@aol.com

W9RPE Rating: 2005-11-09
Class by itself! Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I am on my second ATAS-120 and both have been excellent performers. I used the first one with an IC-706MKIIG and my current one with my Yaesu FT-857D. For compact screwdriver performance and SIZE there is no other antenna out there that compares. I drive a 2003 Monte Carlo and it also looks good on the car with a Diamond K-400 mount. No way I'm mounting a full size screwdriver on my car. Yaesu also added a weather boot to the more recent production and I have never had any water leak into the antenna. In addition to my daily two hours of commuting to and from Chicago,two weeks ago I drove straight thru to VA(10 hours at 65+ mph) in a continuous rain storm and the ATAS did not show any indication of water penetration into the antenna. I wouldn't hesitate to buy another.

----------------------
Earlier 5-star review posted by W9RPE on 2005-04-26

I used one with an Icom 706MKIIG and interface box to tune the antenna with excellent results. Mounted on my 2003 Monte Carlo it worked well from 40 thru 70cm and had a nice apperence. Unlike the giant "bugcatcher style" antennas the ATAS-120 doesn't produce enough drag to affect my gas mileage and it keeps peace with the xyl..hi hi.

I traded it and the 706 for a TS-850 and other goodies. I miss having an all band mobile installation so I just ordered the Yaesu 857D and another ATAS-120.

As other have said, a solid ground is a MUST!! Don;t expect to be able to tune this puppoy without one.

73'

Ron