{"id":61335,"date":"2024-12-10T20:39:26","date_gmt":"2024-12-11T00:39:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/?p=61335"},"modified":"2024-12-10T20:39:26","modified_gmt":"2024-12-11T00:39:26","slug":"here-we-go-loop-de-loop-in-which-your-humble-correspondent-tests-a-hypothesis","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2024\/12\/here-we-go-loop-de-loop-in-which-your-humble-correspondent-tests-a-hypothesis\/","title":{"rendered":"Here we go loop de loop . . . in which your humble correspondent tests a hypothesis"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Jock Elliott, KB2GOM<\/strong><\/p>\n

It was this post by Alan — https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2024\/11\/bbc-rd-how-to-test-a-loop-antenna\/<\/a> — that set me off. After downloading the BBC report on how to test a loop antenna, I noticed the following in it:<\/p>\n

\u201cPolarisation Illustrations of the antenna usually show it mounted upright; that is, with
\nits axis parallel to the ground. This is fine for the reception of LF and MF transmissions, which
\nare vertically polarised, but most HF transmissions are horizontally polarised.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Huh, I thought, \u201cI wonder this would have any bearing on how I use my MFJ 1886 loop antenna?<\/p>\n

So hooking the 1886 loop to an SDRplay RSPdx, here\u2019s what the spectrum looks like on medium wave in vertical orientation with the 1886\u2019s internal amp turned on:<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>And here’s what the medium wave spectrum looks like with the loop in horizontal orientation, amp on:<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>But what about shortwave reception? Here’s 31 meters in vertical orientation:<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>And here’s 31 meters with the loop in horizontal orientation:<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Here’s 25 meters in vertical orientation:<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Here’s 25 meters in horizontal orientation:<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>It looks to me, at the very least, the noise floor is lower . . . or I am in desperate need of a laxative?<\/p>\n

For more about my adventures with the 1886 loop, check this — https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2022\/10\/testing-the-mfj-1886-receive-loop-antenna\/<\/a> — and this — https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2023\/01\/saturday-morning-fun-fat-mw-dxing-with-the-mfj-1886\/<\/a><\/p>\n

My conclusions: I definitely don’t want the 1886 loop in horizontal orientation for medium wave DXing, but I think that the flat orientation might help for shortwave DXing.<\/p>\n

What do you think?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Jock Elliott, KB2GOM It was this post by Alan — https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2024\/11\/bbc-rd-how-to-test-a-loop-antenna\/ — that set me off. After downloading the BBC report on how to test a loop antenna, I noticed the following in it: \u201cPolarisation Illustrations of the antenna usually show it mounted upright; that is, with its axis parallel to the ground. This […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":114,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","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":[3607,433,3,43],"tags":[9323,4667],"class_list":["post-61335","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-antennas","category-mediumwave","category-news","category-shortwave-radio","tag-jock-elliott-kb2gom","tag-loop-antennas"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pn3uc-fXh","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":61402,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2024\/12\/the-great-gonzo-radio-experiment\/","url_meta":{"origin":61335,"position":0},"title":"The Great Gonzo Radio Experiment","author":"Jock Elliott","date":"December 14, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"By Jock Elliott, KB2GOM It\u2019s funny how you can start out thinking about how to solve a problem, the whole process takes a turn, and you wind up with an unexpected but pleasing result. It all started innocently enough. Alan posted this \u2014 https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2024\/11\/bbc-rd-how-to-test-a-loop-antenna\/ \u2014 and this statement appeared at\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\/2024\/12\/Great-radio-experiment-and-skies-019-1024x768.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/Great-radio-experiment-and-skies-019-1024x768.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/Great-radio-experiment-and-skies-019-1024x768.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":54322,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2022\/10\/testing-the-mfj-1886-receive-loop-antenna\/","url_meta":{"origin":61335,"position":1},"title":"Testing the MFJ-1886 Receive Loop Antenna","author":"Jock Elliott","date":"October 12, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"By Jock Elliott, KB2GOM Hang out any place online where shortwave listeners gather, and you won\u2019t have to wait long before you hear something like this: \u201cI recently moved to a condo, apartment, or house where there is a home-owners association. Listening conditions are pretty rotten, and I cannot string\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\/2022\/10\/MFJ-1886-005-001-1024x936.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/MFJ-1886-005-001-1024x936.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/MFJ-1886-005-001-1024x936.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":55249,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2023\/01\/a-little-daytime-medium-wave-dxing\/","url_meta":{"origin":61335,"position":2},"title":"A little daytime Medium Wave DXing . . .","author":"Jock Elliott","date":"January 8, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"By Jock Elliott, KB2GOM Let\u2019s get one thing clear from the start: it\u2019s all Ken Reitz\u2019s fault. When the search for the guilty begins, the finger should point squarely at Mr. Reitz. Who is Ken Reitz? He is the Managing Editor and Publisher of The Spectrum Monitor. \u00a0 The Spectrum\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "AM"","block_context":{"text":"AM","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/am\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/photos-for-SWLing-blog-002-001-1024x683.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/photos-for-SWLing-blog-002-001-1024x683.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/photos-for-SWLing-blog-002-001-1024x683.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":55526,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2023\/01\/saturday-morning-fun-fat-mw-dxing-with-the-mfj-1886\/","url_meta":{"origin":61335,"position":3},"title":"Saturday morning fun: \u201cfat\u201d MW DXing with the MFJ-1886","author":"Jock Elliott","date":"January 30, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"By Jock Elliott, KB2GOM It was a reader, Mario Filippi, who set me on this path. He posted a comment that said, in part: \u201cAn interesting place to DX would be the segment between 1500 \u2013 1590 kc\u2019s where there are a number of news stations, one being federal news\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "AM"","block_context":{"text":"AM","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/am\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/photos-for-SWLing-blog-002-001-1-1024x683.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/photos-for-SWLing-blog-002-001-1-1024x683.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/photos-for-SWLing-blog-002-001-1-1024x683.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":54404,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2022\/10\/sometimes-the-right-tools-lead-to-agreeable-results\/","url_meta":{"origin":61335,"position":4},"title":"Sometimes the right tools lead to agreeable results","author":"Jock Elliott","date":"October 23, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"By Jock Elliott, KB2GOM Listening to the HF ham bands can be a lot of fun. All you need is a shortwave receiver capable of receiving single sideband (SSB) transmissions and a chart of the amateur bands. You can find downloadable PDF charts of the United States Amateur Radio Band\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\/2022\/10\/bhi-shortwave-001-1024x768.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/bhi-shortwave-001-1024x768.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/bhi-shortwave-001-1024x768.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":61431,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2024\/12\/a-file-worth-having-bobs-guide-to-building-an-electrically-small-resonant-loop-antenna-for-mediumwave-reception\/","url_meta":{"origin":61335,"position":5},"title":"A File Worth Having: Bob’s guide to building an Electrically Small Resonant Loop Antenna for Mediumwave Reception","author":"Jock Elliott","date":"December 17, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"This post is short and sweet. If you click here--Electrically Small Resonant Loop Antenna for Mediumwave Reception (PDF)--you can download a copy of Bob Colegrove's excellent paper on the Electrically Small Resonant Loop Antenna for Mediumwave Reception. He has actually built this antenna; it works; and he uses it often.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "AM"","block_context":{"text":"AM","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/am\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/Bob-Homemade-Loop-antenna-1.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/Bob-Homemade-Loop-antenna-1.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/Bob-Homemade-Loop-antenna-1.jpeg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/Bob-Homemade-Loop-antenna-1.jpeg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/Bob-Homemade-Loop-antenna-1.jpeg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/61335","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\/114"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=61335"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/61335\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":61345,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/61335\/revisions\/61345"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=61335"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=61335"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=61335"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}