{"id":18681,"date":"2016-05-05T13:38:33","date_gmt":"2016-05-05T17:38:33","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/?p=18681"},"modified":"2016-05-05T13:38:33","modified_gmt":"2016-05-05T17:38:33","slug":"countycomm-a-note-of-caution-about-the-high-gain-ferrite-bar-antenna","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2016\/05\/countycomm-a-note-of-caution-about-the-high-gain-ferrite-bar-antenna\/","title":{"rendered":"CountyComm: A note of caution about the high-gain ferrite bar antenna"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Ferrite-Bar-PL-365\"<\/a>After our post this morning<\/a> regarding the high-gain ferrite bar antenna (available via eBay<\/a>), I received a message from Nick at CountyComm<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Nick notes:<\/p>\n

“[The high-gain antenna is]\u00a0very cool however we wanted to let you know that we found out it [can]\u00a0actually destroy the antenna input to the GP5\/SSB or GP5\/DSP\u00a0because of its heavy weight. [W]e had at least five radios come back [after] customers had purchased the large ferrite antenna from an eBay seller.”<\/em><\/p>\n

Many thanks, Nick, for the feedback. It is important to note that the high-gain bar antenna is not an OEM product, so CountyComm isn’t responsible if it harms the radio’s antenna jack.<\/p>\n

While still relatively lightweight, the high-gain bar antenna is substantially heavier and longer than the GP5’s supplied MW antenna.<\/p>\n

I’ve been concerned about dropping the GP5\/SSB with the larger bar antenna inserted–fearing the jack could break off–so\u00a0I’ve been very<\/em> careful using it. I’ll probably continue using the larger ferrite bar, understanding that I’ll have to handle it with care.<\/p>\n

If you’re concerned about damaging your radio, I would suggest using an inductively coupled AN200 loop antenna<\/a>\u00a0instead.<\/p>\n

Again, Nick, thanks for the heads-up!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

After our post this morning regarding the high-gain ferrite bar antenna (available via eBay), I received a message from Nick at CountyComm. Nick notes: “[The high-gain antenna is]\u00a0very cool however we wanted to let you know that we found out it [can]\u00a0actually destroy the antenna input to the GP5\/SSB or GP5\/DSP\u00a0because of its heavy weight. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[373,3607,433,3,26],"tags":[4097,3376,3377,3470,1646,1584,3471,3490,4099,34],"class_list":["post-18681","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-am","category-antennas","category-mediumwave","category-news","category-radios","tag-am","tag-countycomm","tag-countycomm-gp5-ssb","tag-countycomm-gp5ssb","tag-ferrite-antennas","tag-fm","tag-gp5-ssb","tag-gp5ssb","tag-mediumwave","tag-shortwave"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pn3uc-4Rj","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":16638,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2016\/01\/a-high-gain-ferrite-bar-antenna-for-the-pl-360pl-365-and-countycomm-gp5-series\/","url_meta":{"origin":18681,"position":0},"title":"A high-gain ferrite bar antenna for the PL-360\/PL-365 and CountyComm GP5 series","author":"Thomas","date":"January 6, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"If you own a Tecsun PL-360, PL-365 or a CountyComm GP5\/DSP or GP5\/SSB, you might take note of this large ferrite bar antenna offered by a Greece-based seller on eBay. As you can see in the image above, this antenna is substantially larger than the stock MW antenna supplied by\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Accessories"","block_context":{"text":"Accessories","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/accessories\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Ferrite-Bar-Antenna-PL-365-GP5SSB","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/Ferrite-Bar-Antenna-PL-365-GP5SSB-1024x576.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/Ferrite-Bar-Antenna-PL-365-GP5SSB-1024x576.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/Ferrite-Bar-Antenna-PL-365-GP5SSB-1024x576.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":16846,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2016\/01\/ron-approves-of-the-high-gain-ferrite-bar-antenna\/","url_meta":{"origin":18681,"position":1},"title":"Ron approves of the high-gain ferrite bar antenna","author":"Thomas","date":"January 16, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"In response to our post about the high-gain ferrite bar antenna for the Tecsun PL-360\/PL-365 and CountyComm GP5\/DSP and GP5\/SSB, SWLing Post contributor, Ron, writes: ...and it's worth it. On MW there is a marked difference on both the low and high ends of the band, just as the builder\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Accessories"","block_context":{"text":"Accessories","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/accessories\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Ferrite-Bar-PL-365","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/Ferrite-Bar-PL-365-e1452095775536.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/Ferrite-Bar-PL-365-e1452095775536.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/Ferrite-Bar-PL-365-e1452095775536.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/Ferrite-Bar-PL-365-e1452095775536.jpg?resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":17978,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2016\/03\/the-countycomm-gp5ssb-my-go-to-shortwave-radio-for-hiking\/","url_meta":{"origin":18681,"position":2},"title":"The CountyComm GP5\/SSB: my go-to shortwave radio for hiking","author":"Thomas","date":"March 30, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"Posting the Blinq deal a few moments ago reminded me that my favorite\u00a0shortwave radio to use while hiking\/walking is the CountyComm GP5\/SSB. I have CountyComm's custom GP5 case\u00a0which I\u00a0clip to my belt or backpack. While hiking, I find it handy to open the case from the top, pull the radio\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "News"","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"CountyComm GP5\/SSB while hiking","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/IMG_20160227_124105134.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":18674,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2016\/05\/steven-is-impressed-with-the-countycomm-gp5ssb-and-high-gain-bar-antenna\/","url_meta":{"origin":18681,"position":3},"title":"Steven is impressed with the CountyComm GP5\/SSB and high-gain bar antenna","author":"Thomas","date":"May 5, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Steven Crawford, who sent the following message\u00a0to me (several weeks ago) and has kindly allowed me to share it here. Steven writes: I hope this finds you and yours well. I just wanted to take a few moments and express my sincere thanks to\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Accessories"","block_context":{"text":"Accessories","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/accessories\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"GP5SSB-Front","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/12\/GP5SSB-Front.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/12\/GP5SSB-Front.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/12\/GP5SSB-Front.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":11280,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2014\/11\/the-countycomm-gp-5ssb-a-79-shortwave-portable-with-ssb\/","url_meta":{"origin":18681,"position":4},"title":"The CountyComm GP-5\/SSB: a $79 shortwave portable with SSB","author":"Thomas","date":"November 4, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to SWLing Post reader, Jim, who points out that the new\u00a0CountyComm GP-5\/SSB is\u00a0available for pre-order at Universal Radio. Universal expects to ship the GP5\/SSB in late November. I have the CountyComm GP-5\/DSP\u00a0(a.k.a. Tecsun PL-360) and recommend it in my\u00a0radio travel guide. I especially like the unique external ferrite\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "New Products"","block_context":{"text":"New Products","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/new-products\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"CountyComm GP5\/DSP","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/11\/CountyComm-GP-5-SSB-102x300.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":11748,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2014\/12\/a-review-of-the-countycomm-gp5ssb-portable-radio-a-great-emergency-portable\/","url_meta":{"origin":18681,"position":5},"title":"A review of the CountyComm GP5\/SSB portable radio: a great preparedness radio","author":"Thomas","date":"December 20, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"On Tuesday I received the new CountyComm GP5\/SSB portable shortwave radio, a sample sent me from CountyComm. If you're familiar with the current shortwave portable landscape, then you'll quickly note that the GP5\/SSB shares a striking resemblance to both the GP5\/DSP and the Tecsun PL-360. \u00a0While I\u00a0hadn't anticipated writing\u00a0yet another\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "New Products"","block_context":{"text":"New Products","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/new-products\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"GP5SSB-Front","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/12\/GP5SSB-Front.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/12\/GP5SSB-Front.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/12\/GP5SSB-Front.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18681","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/15"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=18681"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18681\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=18681"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=18681"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=18681"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}