Ricky,
I agree we should look into this.
However, before we order the antenna we need to see how we can use
it.
The antenna is over 14? long. I don?t think it will fit on the
base. We need to
look at the power cart this weekend and see if we can figure out some
alternatives.
When I built the power cart I tested the Legacy system. I had the
power cart
in my Living Room and was able to control an engine (i.e. sound the
horn)
when I was almost to my front door (a distance of around 30? to
40?). I think
at that time I had the v1.3 software loaded on the system. Before
the first
show where we used the new power cart I loaded the v1.4 software.
The other major change between my initial test and our first use of
the
power cart was the addition of the power monitor. From what I
read
on the forum article it is possible that the wiring above the Legacy
base
(i.e. the power cart) could be interfering with the signal. The
Legacy
base is near the front of the cart, but the antenna is at the back of
the unit.
Perhaps just turning the unit around so the antenna is at the front
would
help. Also, perhaps we can use the cable from the Hawking antenna
to
move the antenna off the base (I don?t know if the connectors are
compatible or not).
We did try the Hawking powered antenna and found no substantial
difference.
That moved the antenna above the power monitor.
We need to do some experimenting at the work day and see if we
can
figure out what is causing the signal degradation. Some of the
possibilities
are:
- v1.4/v1.5 software
- antenna too far back
- Legacy base on the middle shelf of the power cart
- antenna needs a boost
The referenced antenna only costs $9.90 and we could get it before the
work day
if we want to try it out. We could discuss this at the April 1st
Board of Directors
meeting. They are claiming only a 5-day delivery time for the
antenna so if I
order it on the 1st or 2nd we should have it by the 13th for the work
day.
Ira