{"id":22254,"date":"2016-11-17T09:01:56","date_gmt":"2016-11-17T13:01:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/?p=22254"},"modified":"2016-11-20T08:03:05","modified_gmt":"2016-11-20T12:03:05","slug":"review-of-the-doxytronics-8020ca-magnetic-loop-antenna","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2016\/11\/review-of-the-doxytronics-8020ca-magnetic-loop-antenna\/","title":{"rendered":"Review of the DoxyTronics 8020CA magnetic loop antenna"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"8020ca-assembled-1\"<\/a>

(Image source: DoxyTronics)<\/p><\/div>\n

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Troy Riedel<\/a>, who shares the following guest post:<\/em><\/p>\n

\n

Review: DoxyTronics Portable HF Magnetic Loop 8020CA<\/h2>\n

-by Troy Riedel<\/strong><\/p>\n

Before I purchased the DoxyTronics 8020CA antenna<\/a>, I emailed the owner\/manufacturer and asked if he felt this antenna would be a good choice with the radios that I own. He promptly and courteously answered my question and I purchased the antenna on September 30th. I received the antenna approximately 6-days after I ordered it.<\/p>\n

\"The<\/a>

The DoxyTronics 8020CA magnetic loop antenna<\/p><\/div>\n

I have been evaluating the antenna for 5-6 weeks mostly on my Grundig Satellit 750<\/a> and my Grundig G3<\/a>. I have used other portables but the two aforementioned Grundigs were the radios I used most.<\/p>\n

The antenna control box has a \u00bc-20 hole on the bottom so it can be mounted to a video camera tripod. The assembled antenna weighs 3 lbs. I tried using a light duty DSLR tripod that I own, however that was nowhere near sturdy enough. I had to use a heavier duty tripod (Ravelli AVT<\/a>) that I use for astronomical purposes. This Ravelli has a weight capacity of 16 lbs and it easily supported the antenna. I\u2019m confident a much smaller and lighter duty tripod than the Ravelli could be used, I simply don\u2019t own anything in-between as my astronomical binoculars and binocular telescopes weigh 5 \u2013 14 lbs.<\/p>\n

The 8020CA Antenna consists of a large tuning knob and control box. The control box has switch settings of 3-5 Mhz and 5-15 Mhz. In testing, I found that I could \u201ctune\u201d up to 17.840 MHz.\u00a0\u00a0 No batteries are needed to operate.<\/p>\n

The antenna worked equally well with all of the \u201cportable\u201d radios that I tested (I am a SWL\u2019er, not a ham).<\/p>\n

I can summarize the antenna\u2019s performance as this: it is not a magic elixir that will allow you to capture signals too faint to recognize without the antenna attached, but it definitely enhances the signal and \u201cstabilizes\u201d it to the point where the level of the signal remains relatively constant (less peaks & troughs in signal strength).<\/p>\n

\"img_1908\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Hopefully you can hear what I have summarized and concluded. I have included a two and one-half minute recording of the following:<\/p>\n

Radio:<\/strong> Grundig Satellit 750
\nRecorder:<\/strong> RadioShack 140-214
\nFreq:<\/strong> 7.310 MHz
\nBW:<\/strong> Wide
\nBroadcaster:<\/strong> Radio Romania International
\nDate of Recording:<\/strong> 15NOV2016
\nTime:<\/strong> 2309 \u2013 2313 UTC<\/p>\nhttps:\/\/archive.org\/download\/thomas_swling_RRI\/RRI.mp3<\/a><\/audio>\n

Click here to download as an MP3.<\/a><\/p>\n

00:00 \u2013 00:30:<\/strong> 8020CA Antenna Attached
\n00:30 \u2013 01:00:<\/strong> Radio\u2019s Whip Antenna
\n01:00 \u2013 01:30:<\/strong> 8020CA Antenna Attached
\n01:30 \u2013 02:00:<\/strong> Radio\u2019s Whip Antenna
\n02:00 \u2013 02:30: <\/strong>This last 30-second segment is with the 8020CA attached, however I am panning the Ravelli tripod 360-degrees in the horizontal. You will hopefully notice that there is a \u201csweet spot\u201d where the signal and reception is the best of the entire 2:30 recording. I had set-up the antenna and I completed a quick, test recording of Radio Romania. But conditions changed slightly and the best signal during the recoding was approximately 50-60-degrees away from where the best reception was earlier. This is a positive for the antenna: you can pan the tripod head where the antenna sits to null and\/or find the best signal.<\/p>\n

Note: this is my first shortwave and radio-related review I have ever done. I have done many astronomical reviews \u2013 where I have much more experience \u2013 so please be kind towards this first attempt.<\/p>\n

\n

No worries, Troy! We’re kind and appreciative here–especially since guest posts are all about sharing our experiences and experimentation!<\/em><\/p>\n

I must say, the DoxyTronics loop is doing a fine job mitigating the local QRM\/interference that is easily heard when only the telescopic whip is being used. I’m also impressed that a passive loop this modest in size has so much gain without amplification.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

Thanks, again, Troy for sharing your review!\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

Click here to view and\/or purchase the\u00a0DoxyTronics 8020CA magnetic loop antenna<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Troy Riedel, who shares the following guest post: Review: DoxyTronics Portable HF Magnetic Loop 8020CA -by Troy Riedel Before I purchased the DoxyTronics 8020CA antenna, I emailed the owner\/manufacturer and asked if he felt this antenna would be a good choice with the radios that I own. He promptly […]<\/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":true,"_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":[3607,8,3194,545,3,129,43],"tags":[1643,5627,5629,5628,3417,4581],"class_list":["post-22254","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-antennas","category-articles","category-guest-posts","category-ham-radio","category-news","category-reviews","category-shortwave-radio","tag-antennas","tag-doxytronics-8020ca-antenna","tag-doxytronics-8020ca-antenna-review","tag-doxytronics-8020ca-magnetic-loop-antenna","tag-magnetic-loop-antennas","tag-troy-riedel"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pn3uc-5MW","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":21797,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2016\/10\/guest-post-troy-takes-us-on-a-tour-of-his-listening-post\/","url_meta":{"origin":22254,"position":0},"title":"Guest Post: Troy takes us on a tour of his listening post","author":"Thomas","date":"October 15, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Troy Riedel, who writes: I don\u2019t have a \u201cshack\u201d, but I wanted to take the time to share with you my \u201clistening post\u201d. But first, let me start from the beginning. \u00a0 I\u2019d call myself an amateur astronomer first \u2013 and a Shortwave Listener\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Guest Posts"","block_context":{"text":"Guest Posts","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/guest-posts\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"DoxyTronics 8020CA Antenna","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/IMG_1851-768x1024.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/IMG_1851-768x1024.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/IMG_1851-768x1024.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":24400,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2017\/02\/the-w6lvp-magnetic-loop-antenna\/","url_meta":{"origin":22254,"position":1},"title":"The W6LVP magnetic loop antenna","author":"Thomas","date":"February 24, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Troy Riedel, who asks: Just curious if you or anyone you know have any experience with Magnetic Loops from W6LVP? [...]Here's his eBay page - 458 feedbacks and 100%. Thank, Troy! I've never used the W6LVP loop, but the price--in comparison with other wideband\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Accessories"","block_context":{"text":"Accessories","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/accessories\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/02\/W6LVP-Loop.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":41082,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2019\/12\/new-product-tecsun-an-48x-now-available\/","url_meta":{"origin":22254,"position":2},"title":"New Product: Tecsun AN-48x (now available)","author":"Troy Riedel","date":"December 6, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"Anon-Co just announced that Tecsun has released their new portable, active loop antenna - the AN-48x (27.99 plus shipping) \u2013 and it is available for purchase.\u00a0 Copied below is their announcement: Tecsun has launched its latest antenna which is now available at Anon-Co! This active loop antenna has a portable\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Accessories"","block_context":{"text":"Accessories","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/accessories\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/AN-48x-300x240.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":40435,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2019\/11\/the-new-tecsun-an-48x-active-loop-antenna\/","url_meta":{"origin":22254,"position":3},"title":"The new Tecsun AN-48x Active Loop Antenna","author":"Thomas","date":"November 3, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Troy Riedel, who shares a link to the new Tecsun AN-48x Active Loop Antenna at Anon-Co. Here's the description from Anon-Co: TECSUN AN-48x is an active loop antenna for enhancing shortwave (SW), medium wave (MW\/AM) and longwave (LW) reception. Unlike previous models (DE31MS, A38-LMS)\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Antennas"","block_context":{"text":"Antennas","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/antennas\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/Tecsun-AN-48x-Active-Loop-Antenna.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":50682,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2021\/11\/free-to-a-good-home-larry-is-giving-away-radio-gear-to-swling-post-readers\/","url_meta":{"origin":22254,"position":4},"title":"Free to a good home: Larry is giving away radio gear to SWLing Post readers","author":"Thomas","date":"November 3, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"I recently received the following message from SWLing Post contributor, Larry Thompson: I\u2019m 74 and want to pare down my extensive receiver collection. I have a number of receivers and portable shortwaves, as well as antennas that I want to get to good homes. They would be free with the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "News"","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/Sony7600GR.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/Sony7600GR.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/Sony7600GR.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":30560,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2018\/01\/kenneth-is-impressed-with-the-w6lvp-magnetic-loop-antenna\/","url_meta":{"origin":22254,"position":5},"title":"Kenneth is impressed with the W6LVP Magnetic Loop Antenna","author":"Thomas","date":"January 28, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor,\u00a0Kenneth Wigger, who writes: One Friday evening I contacted Larry W6LVP and asked a question about the kind of coax that he would recommend for his Magnetic Loop antenna. I was surprised to get a response with technical information within an hour or so. 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