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Reviews For: Tennadyne T6 Log Periodic

Category: Antennas: HF: Yagi, Quad, Rotary dipole, LPDA

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Review Summary For : Tennadyne T6 Log Periodic
Reviews: 35MSRP: 425.00
Description:
6 element log periodic
Product is in production
More Info: http://www.tennadyne.com
# last 180 days Avg. Rating last 180 days Total reviews Avg. overall rating
00354.8
K4TB Rating: 2004-03-14
Great antenna! Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
After erecting the T-6 at 45', my first contact was 599 from a JT1 on 20M CW! What more can I say? The antenna replaced an old Hygain TH3 and homebrew antennas for 18M and 6 M. Now I can operate all bands 20-6M with less load on the tower and no antenna interactions. SWR with the T-6 was 3:1 at the low end of 20M and progressively lower as I moved up each band, with almost 1:1 on 10M. That was not due to line loss however; signals are outstanding on each band. My Icom 756 with internal tuner, and my old SB200 amp with no tuner, love the match on all parts of all bands, 20-10M. 6M also matched well across the band with the 756's tuner.

The assembly was straightforward although it pays to study the instructions before you start. I concur with the comments of others about the need for a support for the balun, although I managed to make mine fast without a support, by carefully tieing it off using plastic wire ties. A complete diagram of the entire antenna would be very helpful, also. Everything went together with the machined accuracy of a Swiss watch. I had no problems with screws as some have.

There is definitely some "magic" in the T-6, presumably due to the efficiency of a trapless antenna. DX stations seem to peak better than stateside due to some better low angle performance it appears. Front-to-back is as advertised, but I noticed that the nulls off each corner at the back and the sides are very deep, which helps for nulling out interference.

A log periodic array like the T-6 is a lot better way to go than a tribander of similar proportions, in my opinion. You get similar performance on the low bands, better on the high bands, plus the benefits of easy tune-up on any frequency in the range, and the use of all ham bands 20-10M and shortwave in between. Also, the T-6's thinner elements tends to blend against tree backgounds well if you want a less obtusive look for the neighbors.
W2EH Rating: 2003-05-22
Solid construction with good performance. Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
The T-6 lived up to expectations. I liked to construction methods used and the good quality hardware provided by Tennadyne. Two items I added to the design were a black plexiglass mount for the Collins Balun, which keeps stress off of the feedpoint solder lugs and at the suggestion of K2LEX - John, I used plastic autobody plugs from a mail order house which plug the access holes in the two booms. The T-6 is turned by a HAM -4 rotor and sits up at a modest 45 feet. The Rohn 25G tower is guyed using 5/16" black Dacron rope, and the T-6 is fed with Davis 9914F "BuryFlex coax".
K2LEX Rating: 2002-11-18
Will buy again! Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
In my search for the perfect antenna for my situation, I chose the Tennadyne T-6. The antenna had to meet the following criteria;
Small footprint
No traps
High quality
Must have the WARC bands
XYL friendly
Did I say XYL friendly? I knew that 39 foot element might be a problem, I rolled the dice, came up a winner.
I read every review on this antenna before I placed my order with Chuck. Any questions that could not be answered by reading the reviews or specifications were easily answered by the owner of Tennadyne, Chuck, who always picked up the phone when I called.

Assembly went smooth and took about 4 hours by myself to complete. The instructions are easy to read and follow. I purchased the Collins balun from Tennadyne to go along with it, you need one but you can make your own. All the parts are precision fit and drilled. All the holes were chamfered. The antenna is constructed from aircraft quality aluminum and all the hardware is stainless steel. My father worked in the aircraft industry his whole life and this antenna reminded me of something he might have made. The quality part of my criteria was satisfied.

After my pre-assembly of the boom and elements, I brought it outside to finish it. After attaching the elements I propped it up on a stepladder to check the swr. Six feet off the ground and swr was less than 2:1 across all the bands, as advertised.

I hoisted it up on my Tri-ex wt51 crank-up, it only weighs 27 lbs., cranked it up and put the power to it. I have to say that I've been very satisfied with the results. Running 100 watts I can get through any pile-up, not always first or second, but I get through.

Front to back, forward gain, swr, front to side, blah, blah, blah. You can drive yourself nuts digesting all the information when comparing antennas. The bottom line is , does it work?. The t-6 works. Only regret is that I didn't buy the t-8. If the t-8 is supposed to be better it must be a real performer.

Nice job Tennadyne, I will be buying another……. More than likely a T-8.

And that 39 foot element doesn't look so big at 50 feet!

John
K2LEX
ZS6HZ Rating: 2002-07-28
Highly recommended antenna Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I have installed a Tennadyne T6 in South Africa (ZS) (at 12m AGL) and in Angola (D2) (at 15m AGL). It assembles easily, and with just simple hand tools. Operation is superb, and the design is sturdy enough to outlast African conditions. It is easy to transport this antenna and it can be installed on a variety of masts or towers. The price is excellent value for money. I plan to standardise on the T6 or T8 for all my commercial HF clients who use 13MHz and up.

I used the antenna in Johannesburg to provide communications between my office in Johannesburg and myself while I drove from South Africa to Uganda(5X). Even from my mobile installation, signals were in excess of 5/5 at all times, usually armchair copy.

Commercially, I have had permanent daylight comunications between Luanda, Angola and Johannesburg, South Africa every day without fail, with communications quality in excess of 85% at all times. While testing the antenna I had RST 57 to 59 QSO's from Johannesburg into East and West Europe using just 5 Watts, and I have had regular contacts into North America running only 50 Watts with better-than-expected results.

For anyone who needs an antenna that operates outside of the normal amateur bands, and needs wonderful performance, this is THE antenna!!!
N0AN Rating: 2002-06-21
Excellent Performer in Small Package Time Owned: 6 to 12 months.
Having used a T-10 by Tennadyne for five years at my last qth and going through five major ice storms, I had a good feeling about the mechanical ruggedness of the Tennadyne design. It is a sound mechanical structure. After moving to a new QTH and having a lower stress rated tower that was free standing, I decided to go for the smaller T-6. My only concern was how much performance drop off was I going to experience.

After having it up for nearly a year, I can say that I am VERY pleased. I am still often the first or second station answered in typical pile-ups, and in the really ugly ones, I still manage to work them.

My second concern was vswr bandwidth. The T-10 was exquisite. It maintained < 1.7 : 1 from 13 to 30 mhz. The T-6 is still quite broad, but it tends towards the 2:1 area ...by that I mean, it is more often 1.8 to 1 than 1.3, and in places can hit slightly over 2:1. In any case, my radios have no problem delivering full power into them, but the T-6 is not as "flat" as the T-10, and that was to be expected.

The T-6 is very well made, easy to assemble (if you know what it's supposed to look like and understand the techniques in use) and quite rugged. The dual boom design is a real blessing, not only giving a direct 50 ohm match, but also in adding strength to the antenna. The instructions for the first time builder are not exactly terrific, but I didn't have to call Chuck for help, either.

I'm using the Collins choke balun.

The F/B on 20 is not as good as the T-10, but then again, the T-10 had a 24' boom and 10 elements, as opposed to 6 elements on a 12 or 14' boom (can't recall at the moment). In general the F/B is excellent for an antenna its size. An important thing to remember is that F/B measurements are strongly influenced by angle of arrival. Those who say there is no F/B on the T-6, probably have fallen victim to this error. High angle arrival signals will show virtually no front to back. This is NORMAL, if your antenna is installed at least 50' up. To really evaluate F/B one needs to look at signals arriving from at least 3000 miles away. Use only signals of that distance or greater, and you will see what the real F/B on the antenna is. Secondly, on F/B. Yagis have a greater F/B only on a specific portion of the band. F/B is inherently narrow band on a yagi designed for good gain. The LP's like the T-6, for example, maintain their F/B across their entire design range. (Again, be careful how you measure it.) A yagi can't even maintain f/b across all of 20m, much less the span covered by the T-6.

For its size, cost and weight, the T-6 is the best HF antenna on the market. If you have more money and tower strength, get the T-10 or larger.
(By more strength I mean a guyed tower. I'm using only an old HDBX-48 freestanding Rohn that is rated to have a Yagi with a boom no greater than 12' on it.) Rohn 25 would let you put whatever you wanted in terms of Tennadyne LP's on it.) (Guyed of course)

The best compliment I can pay to the T-6 is that I don't miss my T-10. Chuck gives first rate customer support, listens to his customers and has constantly improved the array of antennas he offers.

Having used LP's for nearly 6 years now, I wouldn't want to use any other kind of HF directional antenna. Tennadynes are fine antennas and fairly priced. Anyone using a tribander would be much better off with the T-6 or T-10. The weight is comparable or less, the performance every bit as good (practical gain results) and the F/B will be better on most frequencies. No traps, no coils, no intermittants, and no narrow bandwidth.

LPs are the best kept secret in Ham Radio. The myths that they are heavy and costly are easily disproven by consulting the Tennadyne web page. The myth that a Yagi kills the LP for gain, just doesn't hold up in practical usage, and a consistent F/B from 13 through 30 mhz is not obtainable from any yagi antenna on the market.

I would recommend without reservation the Tennadyne LPs. First rate.

hasan schiers, N0AN
W4ATM Rating: 2002-03-07
Great All Around Antenna Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I replaced a Cushcraft A3 with this antenna, specifically so I could get gain on 17 and 12 meters. It's been up through 2 weekends (and one DX contest) so I'm ready for at least a preliminary review.

This is a good little antenna! The boom is shorter than the A3 (12 ft vs 14), but with no traps, the longest element is longer than the A3's longest. Overall, I think the performance is comparable on the bands the A3 covered. I think that without real antenna instrumentation I can't say if one is better than the other or not. In the DX contest I was able to work everyone I tried to work, even if it took a few calls. The A3 used to give similar performance. Aside from the contest, I've been able to work real DX on 18 and 12, the main reason for swapping antennas.

The assembly instructions, as others describe, are a bit unclear in places. Better drawings or photographs would help. And count me as one who would like to see a couple of more pieces of hardware (after crawling in the grass on hands and knees looking for one sheet metal screw). The machining of the antenna is impeccable, though, and it goes together just as it should (once you figure out how it should go together). Here in central Florida, we have the saltiest air in N. America, so I'm interested in how this will hold up.

My SWR performance isn't as good as one report. It tends to stay around 2:1, with some ripple. This may be because it's only up at 25', and there may be reflections from my roof below it, or the trees within a wavelength on HF. Much to my surprise, it presents a decent load on the 6 meter SSB calling frequency - at least my Icom 746 will tune it to a good load with its built-in antenna tuner - and I've had a couple of QSOs on 6 already. It doesn't present a good load below 50.1, but it's fine at 50.125 and up through the AM portion of 6m.

Overall, count me as happy. Yes, I'd recommend it to friends and buy another one.


W4ATM
W0HFG Rating: 2001-12-17
PRETTY DARN GOOD Time Owned: more than 12 months.
ISTALLED AT 60 FT ONE YEAR AGO THIS PAST FALL.. WORKED GREAT ALL THRU THE WINTER.. SEEMS TO BE SOMEWHAT BROAD IN BEAM WIDTH, AS JUST AIMING CLOSE SEEMS TO DO THE JOB.. GREAT FRONT TO SIDE THO.. HAD IT POINTED NW LAST SPRING WHEN 98-100 MPH STRAIGHT LINE WIND FROM DUE WEST CAME.. BENT 4 0F THE SIX ELEMENTS ON ONE SIDE.. THE 3/8 TIP ELEMENTS WERE SWEPT BACK AT 45 DEGREES AND THE LONGEST REFLECTOR WAS BENT SLIGHTLY AT THE BOOM. I WENT AHEAD AND USED IT THE REST OF THE SPRING AND ALL SUMMER UNTIL NOV THIS YEAR. IT WORKED JUST FINE, JUST LOOKED BAD. GOT SOME HELP AND TOOK IT DOWN, STRAIGHTNED THE BENT ELEMENTS, FLIPPED THEM END FOR END AND REINSTALLED ON THE TOWER.. HAVEN'T SEEN ANY ICE YET (KNOCK ON WOOD). BUT I HAVE WORKED OVER 250 COUNTRIES THAT FIRST YEAR (INCLUDING P5) WOULD DO IT AGAIN. WORKS AS GOOD OR BETTER THAN MY OLD TA33 AND GIVES ME TWO MORE BANDS.. JIM / W0HFG WESTERN KANSAS
WB2WIK Rating: 2001-12-17
Slightly amazed Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I wrote an initial review last month after having the antenna up for two days. Now, it's one month later and the T-6 has seen a lot of use.

General: As I do have or have had other beam antennas up, I can make some general observations which are a bit more scientific than "works great," a too-often used claim made by some who have nothing to compare their antenna(s) to at all.

20 meters: The T-6 at 51' above ground works about the same as a 2 element Yagi; broad front lobe, reasonable F/S, not a great F/B.
17-15 meters: Better. More like a well-optimized 2 element, or a short 3 element, Yagi. Narrower pattern, much more obvious peaks, improved F/S and F/B.
12-10 meters: Better still. I'd say like a real, honest 3 element monobander on these bands. Drastically improved pattern, like a real Yagi; very obvious front lobe, about 30 degree BW. On 10m I can peak Connecticut and Maryland as two distinctly different, albeit close, directions, from 3000 miles away. That's like a real beam, and obviously sharper than on the lower bands.

VSWR across all amateur frequencies from 14.0 through 29.7 MHz remains <2.5:1, and in most places is <2.0. Across the CW/SSB portions of 10 meters, VSWR is actually <1.5. These measurements are made with an MFJ-259 analyzer about ten feet away from the antenna feedpoint, where my balun "pigtail" would normally connect to the transmission line to the shack.

An interesting point: I used the T-6 to operate about 5 hours of the ARRL 10 Meter Contest this past weekend (12/15-12/16), two hours on Saturday afternoon; 45 minutes Sunday morning; two hours Sunday afternoon. That's about all the time I had to devote, and it was just for fun. In that time, I made 468 contacts in 115 multipliers, including 60 ARRL sections and 55 DX entities representing all continents, without doing much of anything except calling CQ and awaiting answers. Many (many more than I would have expected) callers commented on "strong signal," "very loud here," and such. For a 6 el LPDA up only 51 feet, I was astounded at the number of such reports, all unsolicited.

I only go out of my way to tell another contest station that he's very strong if he truly is, compared with others from the same area. The top signals are obvious, and for the most part the difference between "average" and "very strong" is the other fellow's antenna. I have done nothing special to make my T-6 work extraordinarily; possibly it's at a very efficient height above ground on 10 meters, but anyone can do that.

In all, very impressive.

I'd still recommend Chuck and Tennadyne re-do their assembly instructions, include a choke balun standard, add a nonconductive support for that balun to attach to, include spare hardware (nuts & bolts) and other minor changes which will make the user experience a better one, during assembly. However, the antenna performs well and I'd recommend it to anyone having the want to cover all five bands between 14 and 30 MHz with limited space and funds. It's a winner.

WB2WIK/6
N0AH Rating: 2001-08-14
6/6 Stack Array Perfomance Improves Time Owned: more than 12 months.
To follow up on my earlier posting about the seeming lack of the stacked effect vs the higher antenna, I ran tests for over an hour with Tim, KK2RF in WNY with the the following results heard on his beam antenna pointed right me here in SE Wyoming:

17 meters 10 second dead key at 50 watts:

First test
Lower antenna S-7
Upper Antenna S-9
Stack 15/9

Second test
Lower antenna S-5
Upper Antenna S-5
Stack S-7

Third Test
Lower Antenna S-2
Upper Antenna S-5
Stack S-7

He had no idea which antenna was what, I changed the order of the antennas for each test.....Man was I glad to see these results!!

Conditions changed a lot during our tests but the stack seemed to stay ahead of either antenna, finally, Har!

My previous reports were just from SSB contacts. Guess the QSB and all the factors of a modulated signal disguised the effects......

The results of this test clearly shows the array is working. Also spoke to WX0B and Jay saw no reason why the stack would not be stronger then using a single antenna except under certain conditions.

I guess the array perfomance's will be up and down depending upon conditions and angles of propagation etc.....

Makes me want to go out and buy a ring rotor for the lower antenna now-

73 Paul N0AH

K0PCG Rating: 2001-05-07
This is the one to buy! Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I gave up the best tri-bander in the world for this antenna! The KLM KT 34A is a very hard act to follow: nearly flat SWR on all bands, real good gain, proven by over 310 countries in the bag. ...but the T6 Log beats it hands down. This IS the one to buy.

A 12 foot boom (that’s right I said 12 feet) 6 elements and no traps, tuning straps etc. makes for a very sleek, slim and light weight antenna. It’s almost XYL proof. Well almost...keep in mind that the KT34 looked like a television antenna made up of 8 trombones on steroids. Anything would look better than that. Now to performance. SWR is 1:1.5 on all bands except at 29.6 mhz where it’s at 3:1 and I have to use a tuner. Signal reports have been fantastic on all bands; far better than the tribander. For example, I worked DXCC on 18 mtrs in a two weeks. Now I’m working on 12 meters. Pile up busting on 10, 20 and 15 is every bit as good as the KT34A if not better, so far I have been first or second call.

As I’ve learned, a log is a completely different antenna than a yagi. For example, this log uses two 12 foot booms, one on top of the other separated by insulated spacers. Both booms are hot. The feed point on the antenna is at the end of the boom not at the center as with a yagi. The coax braid attaches to the end of the lower boom, center conductor to the upper boom. That’s all there is; no fancy matches etc. Front to back is not a sharp with as with the yagi. In fact on 20 meters I can’t really tell any difference; I don’t worry about short path or long path on that band. As you progress up in frequency the Front to Back starts to separate. On the sides the log almost nulls the signals out. In this regard the log is very directional.

Construction was extremely simple. No measuring was needed and everything was cut and drilled to measure. Was very easy to install on the 55 foot tower. It comes in a box six feet long by 4 inches. An excellent choice for a DX pedition,

In summary this is an incredible antenna. Why would you buy a tribander when you could have all five bands with near mono-band performance on all? I say near because I can’t believe that this little antenna can keep me in the front line of the pileups with the big boys using the full size monobanders....but it really does. Chuck at Tennadyne claims that it has to do with efficiency, etc. If you have any questions call him and he give you the technical details. All I can say is that this is one great antenna.

e-mail if you need further particulars.

Nick K0pcg
Des Moines, IA
k0pcg@CritelliLaw.com