- Joined
- Jul 27, 2019
- Messages
- 11,582
- Location
- Midlothian, VA
- RV Year
- 2017
- RV Make
- Newmar
- RV Model
- Ventana 4037
- RV Length
- 40' 10"
- Chassis
- Freightliner XCR
- Engine
- Cummins 400 HP
- TOW/TOAD
- 2017 Chevy Colorado
- Fulltimer
- No
Today was a full day of fun hell. Just like most of my day 1 of a new RV trip, it's time to get the new mods installed and get things cleaned up and ship shape for the trip. I recently bought 2 x Parsec Husky antennas per recommendation of @MapNerd. I figured I'd give them a try and see how they compare to my Pepwave 201/401 setup but more importantly get my roof cleaned up before Elon hunts me down and has me controlling Space X launches!
Last night I connected the Parsec Husky's to both of my Pepwave MAX Transit CAT 18 routers to test the antennas before I did anything on the roof. The test would not really be a good comparison as the antennas are inside sitting on the dash. The tests showed very good results on both AT&T and Verizon that I use. So today's work proceeded as follows.
The first thing to do was maximize pain. I mean remove 7 antennas from the roof. 2 x Pepwave Wi-Fi antennas and 2 x Pepwave 4 x 4 MIMO cellular antennas. I didn't realize how strong Sikaflex 221 was which I used to adhere them to the roof in my 3D printed antenna towers, also not realizing how strong those would be. Without whining too much they are off, and also the panorama 2-in-1 that I had on the air conditioner shroud and 2 x panorama omni's I had on the outboard sides of my outboard solar panels.
Now it's time to install the Parsec Husky's one each on each air conditioner shroud. I wired the front air conditioner antenna to drop into the over driver's seat AV compartment where the pepwaves are. The second antenna went on the rear air conditioner which dropped in through the roof in the half bath electrical panel area which is where pepwave 2 now resides. I used a UV protected outdoor ethernet cat6 cable that runs up from the half bath via the roof and down in to the front AV compartment so the two pepwaves can be ethernet connected.
Did I say pain in the butt? Never doing this again but it's done. So far performance is good but it's too soon to really compare and I don't think I can compare antennas as cellular speeds change by the minute. I'd say if I did this over again I'd either go with the Husky or the Pepwave all in one that's out now (421 I think it is) but I like having the antennas on the AC shroud as it's an ideal location in my opinion for 360 unobstructed view.
One thing I want to explore is the Pepwave Wi-Fi mesh system where it allows you to mesh multiple pepwave Wi-Fi units. With my antenna spread now this should work out well but I have to make sure it doesn't cause issues in controlling which cellular source (wan) is being used.
I'll report back on test results later but so far I'm pleased with the Parsec Husky antenna. I don't feel I can really offer an opinion of one vs. the other (compared to the Pepwave antennas) but the longer cable length for my setup is a plus.
Last night I connected the Parsec Husky's to both of my Pepwave MAX Transit CAT 18 routers to test the antennas before I did anything on the roof. The test would not really be a good comparison as the antennas are inside sitting on the dash. The tests showed very good results on both AT&T and Verizon that I use. So today's work proceeded as follows.
The first thing to do was maximize pain. I mean remove 7 antennas from the roof. 2 x Pepwave Wi-Fi antennas and 2 x Pepwave 4 x 4 MIMO cellular antennas. I didn't realize how strong Sikaflex 221 was which I used to adhere them to the roof in my 3D printed antenna towers, also not realizing how strong those would be. Without whining too much they are off, and also the panorama 2-in-1 that I had on the air conditioner shroud and 2 x panorama omni's I had on the outboard sides of my outboard solar panels.
Now it's time to install the Parsec Husky's one each on each air conditioner shroud. I wired the front air conditioner antenna to drop into the over driver's seat AV compartment where the pepwaves are. The second antenna went on the rear air conditioner which dropped in through the roof in the half bath electrical panel area which is where pepwave 2 now resides. I used a UV protected outdoor ethernet cat6 cable that runs up from the half bath via the roof and down in to the front AV compartment so the two pepwaves can be ethernet connected.
Did I say pain in the butt? Never doing this again but it's done. So far performance is good but it's too soon to really compare and I don't think I can compare antennas as cellular speeds change by the minute. I'd say if I did this over again I'd either go with the Husky or the Pepwave all in one that's out now (421 I think it is) but I like having the antennas on the AC shroud as it's an ideal location in my opinion for 360 unobstructed view.
One thing I want to explore is the Pepwave Wi-Fi mesh system where it allows you to mesh multiple pepwave Wi-Fi units. With my antenna spread now this should work out well but I have to make sure it doesn't cause issues in controlling which cellular source (wan) is being used.
I'll report back on test results later but so far I'm pleased with the Parsec Husky antenna. I don't feel I can really offer an opinion of one vs. the other (compared to the Pepwave antennas) but the longer cable length for my setup is a plus.
