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Topic: Recommendations for external antennae for MOFI hotspot (Read 233 times) previous topic - next topic
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Recommendations for external antennae for MOFI hotspot
Hi folks,

We've been using our MOFI 4500-4GXe LTE V2 for a number of years, and have been quite happy with it.

We have it mounted in the rear vent fan area against the Maxshield vent cover, so the paddle antennae are outside the aluminum shield.  It works pretty well.  But we expect we will be in more remote areas on this trip (we're starting to plan a Yukon/AK adventure), so we were hoping to maximize our cellular reception.  We have Verizon plans for what we hope to be the best coverage.

Has anyone found a good external antennae set up for their RV MOFI (or equivalent) hot spot.  Did you use omni or directional antennae?  How and where did you mount them to your rig?  If directional, how did you point them and how time-consuming is that?  Has anyone used the Batwing antenna as a mobile platform for such external antennae (we have no other use for the Batwing, so would consider that)?

Ideally looking for solutions that folks feel work well for them and give a substantial improvement in reception range and/or data rates in remote areas (realizing every location is unique).  I'd love to learn from your experience, and would welcome specific antennae set-up recommendations.

Thanks in advance!
Steven & Carol Crisp -- 2000 26.5' Blue Mid-Bath named Thistle Dew Too
Our RV Motto:  "No place to be ... and all day to get there"
2024 Adventure: The Great Eclipse Escapade!  HI(Air),NV,AZ,NM,Mason,TX(Totality!) ...
Re: Recommendations for external antennae for MOFI hotspot
Reply #1 –
Hi there, it's the OP again  :)

I remember a few years ago there were lots of discussions of how to improve cellular reception, so I'm surprised I haven't heard anyone's personal solutions, investigations, or ideas.

If you got a good solution to improving your cellular signal strength via an external antenna (or two), please share (or please point me to the thread(s) that already cover(s) this topic).   It needn't be specific to a MOFI hotspot; similar solutions apply to various cellular Jetpacks, and other cellular receivers and wifi transmitters.  All ideas or pointers would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance.  Just trying to get our ducks in a row before we launch soon.
Steven & Carol Crisp -- 2000 26.5' Blue Mid-Bath named Thistle Dew Too
Our RV Motto:  "No place to be ... and all day to get there"
2024 Adventure: The Great Eclipse Escapade!  HI(Air),NV,AZ,NM,Mason,TX(Totality!) ...
Re: Recommendations for external antennae for MOFI hotspot
Reply #2 –
Quote from: Steve and Carol Crisp  - 
If you got a good solution to improving your cellular signal strength via an external antenna (or two), please share (or please point me to the thread(s) that already cover(s) this topic).   It needn't be specific to a MOFI hotspot; similar solutions apply to various cellular Jetpacks, and other cellular receivers and wifi transmitters.  All ideas or pointers would be greatly appreciated.

Not exactly what you’re looking for but the solution I found that’s best for me is a complete system called Insty Connect Explorer 5G with "Cloud Wings" (more on that later).  At $999 it’s an expensive system but it has worked really well.  Insty Connect is the brainchild of Nick Jolin, fellow RVer and engineer/designer.  What first drew me to Nick’s design was that he understood the problem of placing the antenna at some distance away from the cellular modem.  Even with low loss coax, at cellular frequencies, there is loss to the received signal due to the length of the coax cable.  Adding a booster will increase the received signal but at the expense of amplifying the noise too.  This is what most people do, antenna on the roof, cellular modem inside the coach with a long coax cable connecting the two.  What Nick’s design does is move the cellular modem into the antenna housing on the roof to minimize signal loss and cable induced noise, then he runs a USB cable down to the router inside the coach.  The USB signal is lossless and noise free as long as it isn’t over 30ft.  There are some downsides to this approach, like you have to have a dedicated SIM card in the modem (you don’t want to climb the ladder to retrieve the card) and it isn’t portable like a JetPack is.

The system I bought has 2 sim slots in the modem.  I have a grandfathered Verizon unlimited plan and a grandfathered AT&T unlimited plan so I can switch between carriers using the included web interface, based on which carrier is available and/or faster.  The antenna and matching modem is a 4X4 MIMO.  MIMO is “multiple-input and multiple-output” and is what allows for fast LTE and 5G data speeds.  Originally my system was 2X2 MIMO allowing for 2 simultaneous receive/transmit channels.  Nick has his own 3D printers and makes the antenna/modem housings himself.  After I bought mine, he designed the “Cloud Wings” 4X4 MIMO antenna and upgraded the modem to 4X4 MIMO.  Since I had purchased the $79 Customer Care package, the upgrade cost was minimal.  I think it was $30 which basically covered the shipping costs.

I have the router attached (upside down) to the bottom of the cabinet over the dinette.  It runs on 12v that I grabbed from the 12v plug on the same cabinet.  I added a switch to the right of the router for turning on and off.  I haven’t mounted the antenna/modem on the roof yet but plan to do so soon.  Currently it’s up in the overhead pushed up close to the front.  The front part of the overhead is fiberglass and so far the reception has been good.  Something new that’s kind of nice is the router’s web interface supports Travelmate mode.  The last two weeks I was staying at a SKP campground near my daughter that had very good WiFi.  Even though my cellular plans are called unlimited, there is a point where I could be cutoff for excessive data usage.  So I setup the Travelmate mode and connected the router to the campgrounds WiFi.  I didn’t have to change any of my other devices; tablet, phone, laptop or Roku.  I do confess that I used the Roku and binge watched the first 6 episodes of Bosch: Lagacy and several Dodger games and didn’t use any cellular data 😃.  I did have to pull the USB connector from the router to disable the cellular connection and only use the campground WiFi.  I opened a support ticket about having to do so and Nick responded that a firmware upgrade would be coming in a month or so to prioritize cellular and/or WiFi connections and provide for failover if one stops working.  Nick does give good support.

Anyway, that’s my solution.  It may not be what works for you but it does for me.

- John

Here’s a picture of the upside down mounted router and switch…


Fulltimer with a 2021 MId-Bath “Babe”, 1996 Cherokee “Scout” and “Bandit” the wonder dog 🐶
Re: Recommendations for external antennae for MOFI hotspot
Reply #3 –
Quote from: JohnR  - 
The solution I found that works best for me is a complete system called Insty Connect Explorer 5G with "Cloud Wings" (more on that later).  At $999 it’s an expensive system but it has worked really well for me.  Insty Connect is the brainchild of Nick Jolin, fellow RVer and engineer/designer.  What first drew me to Nick’s design was that he understood the problem of placing the antenna at some distance away from the cellular modem.  Even with low loss coax, at cellular frequencies, there is a big loss and added noise to the received signal.  ...


Thanks for that input John.  Exactly the kind of description I was looking for.  Just the other day I was talking with an antennae-savvy guy, and he mentioned his previous solution of two omni antennae on a high pole lost their benefit due to cable loss bringing the signal down to the MOFI.  I had already started to look at short runs of cables (hence using the batwing for directional antennae, and an omni on the roof for travel use).  

I had also stumbled upon Nick's video ("why I can't recommend MOFI any more"), and when I saw he was selling his own product, my first thought was to discount what he was saying.  But this helped open my eyes a bit.  But yes, that's a pretty steep entry cost for the 5G model.

Not sure how you would know this, but can you tell how much the 5G frequencies help you when you are way out yonder?  I'm guessing not much if at all?  So just thinking if the less costly 4G version with Angel Wings would be something to consider. 

I'm not satisfied with the performance of my MOFI paddle antennae underneath my MaxAir vent.  While very convenient, I seem to get slower speeds than from my iPhone inside the rig itself (at least from a test this morning).  That doesn't make any sense to me.  Any thoughts on that?

Anyways, really appreciate your long write-up, John.  I think it may help a bunch of folks.  Thanks very much!
Steven & Carol Crisp -- 2000 26.5' Blue Mid-Bath named Thistle Dew Too
Our RV Motto:  "No place to be ... and all day to get there"
2024 Adventure: The Great Eclipse Escapade!  HI(Air),NV,AZ,NM,Mason,TX(Totality!) ...
Re: Recommendations for external antennae for MOFI hotspot
Reply #4 –
Quote from: Steve and Carol Crisp  - 
Not sure how you would know this, but can you tell how much the 5G frequencies help you when you are way out yonder?  I'm guessing not much if at all?  So just thinking if the less costly 4G version with Angel Wings would be something to consider.

5G is not a specific frequency, but a means to combine multiple channels from different frequency bands to increase data rates.  The 5G cellular bands can be thought of as low frequency, mid frequency and high frequency.  The higher the frequency, the higher the data rate.  However the higher the frequency, the smaller the coverage area.  Millimeter wave 5G is crazy fast but the coverage area is measured in feet.  So it’s mostly used in high population centers like stadiums and downtown metro areas.  The lower frequency 5G bands have very long reach but data rates similar to 4G LTE.  The mid frequency 5G bands are a happy medium.  The FCC auctions off leases of the frequency bands and just recently opened up the mid frequency bands for 5G cellular use.

The 5G cellular modem that Insty uses doesn’t cover the mm wave (highest frequency) band so  it’s not an issue.  I don’t plan to drive my LD to Manhattan or Yankee Stadium anytime soon.  T-Mobile has concentrated their 5G leases in the lower (long range) frequency bands.  AT&T focuses 5G on the low and mid frequency bands and Verizon main 5G areas are mid and high frequency bands.

So to answer your question… short range 5G mm wave is a non issue because I can’t get it even if I wanted to and all the other 5G bands are covered by the Insty Connect antenna/modem.  What the Insty 5G brings to the table is the ability to combine up to 4 channels over different bands to increase data speed.  Of coarse there’s no guarantee that I can see/use 4 channels simultaneously but the capability is there.

BTW - Nick also sells a directional 4X4 MIMO antenna he calls Binoculars for $499.  The idea is to put it on a long pole and the 4X4 MIMO modem goes inside the binocular housing.  The system I have is working fine and I haven’t found the need for a directional antenna yet.

- John


Fulltimer with a 2021 MId-Bath “Babe”, 1996 Cherokee “Scout” and “Bandit” the wonder dog 🐶
Re: Recommendations for external antennae for MOFI hotspot
Reply #5 –
John,

Great info! Thank you for taking the time to share this. I had no idea this particular product existed until reading your post, looks like a really great option.

Jason
Jason

2003 Rear Bath
"Razor Crest"
Our first RV, purchased from the original owner 01/2022
Re: Recommendations for external antennae for MOFI hotspot
Reply #6 –
Quote from: Steve and Carol Crisp  - 
I'm not satisfied with the performance of my MOFI paddle antennae underneath my MaxAir vent.  While very convenient, I seem to get slower speeds than from my iPhone inside the rig itself (at least from a test this morning).  That doesn't make any sense to me.  Any thoughts on that?

The reason that your iPhone is faster inside the LD than your MOFI 4500 is probably related to what bands are covered by each device.  You didn’t say what iPhone or what carrier you have but the iPhone 12 covers the following 4G LTE bands:

iPhone 12 4G LTE bands
1, 12, 13, 14, 17, 18, 19, 2, 20, 25, 26, 29, 3, 30, 34, 38, 39, 4, 40, 41, 42, 46, 48, 5, 7, 71, 8

And your MOFI 4500 covers these:

MOFI 4500-4GXeLTE V2
Carrier4G LTE BandsFrequency (MHz)
AT&T2, 4, 5, 12, 14, 30, 661900, 1700 AWS, 850 CLR , 700 AC/PS, 2300 , 1700/2100 Ext AWS
T-Mobile2, 4, 12, 66, 71**1900, 1700 def, 700 a, 1700/2100 Ext AWS,  600 (5G Freq)
Verizon2, 4, 13, 661900, 1700 AWS, 700 C, 1700/2100 Ext AWS
.

The iPhone 12 definitely has a better radio built inside and can choose the best band for your current location.

- John
Fulltimer with a 2021 MId-Bath “Babe”, 1996 Cherokee “Scout” and “Bandit” the wonder dog 🐶
Re: Recommendations for external antennae for MOFI hotspot
Reply #7 –
Quote from: JohnR  - 
... What 5G brings to the table is the ability to combine up to 4 channels over different bands to increase data speed.  Of coarse there’s no guarantee that I can see/use 4 channels simultaneously but the capability is there.

BTW - Nick also sells a directional 4X4 MIMO antenna he calls Binoculars for $499.  The idea is to put it on a long pole and the 4X4 MIMO modem goes inside the binocular housing.  The system I have is working fine and I haven’t found the need for a directional antenna yet.

- John

Thanks again John for the education and information.  Very useful indeed.  Yes, I had seen those "Binoculars" but wasn't sure how much of a pain it would be to have to swap the modem each time.  I guess if your performance was really bad, it wouldn't matter, if the swap made the difference.  A lotta money, especially if you also get the directional antennae, but we do love to be able to stay connected.  Things to consider!

Really appreciate you sharing your experience with this relatively new product, and your depth of knowledge.  Thank you!
Steven & Carol Crisp -- 2000 26.5' Blue Mid-Bath named Thistle Dew Too
Our RV Motto:  "No place to be ... and all day to get there"
2024 Adventure: The Great Eclipse Escapade!  HI(Air),NV,AZ,NM,Mason,TX(Totality!) ...
Re: Recommendations for external antennae for MOFI hotspot
Reply #8 –
Quote from: JohnR  - 
The reason that your iPhone is faster inside the LD than your MOFI 4500 is probably related to what bands are covered by each device.  You didn’t say what iPhone or what carrier you have but the iPhone 12 covers the following 4G LTE bands:
...
The iPhone 12 definitely has a better radio built inside and can choose the best band for your current location.

- John


Thanks again for info I guess I should know but certainly do not.  Actually we're still on iPhone 11 Pro and Pro Max.  I'll have to check and see if the radio is the same to the one you note.  Please don't give me a reason to want to upgrade my phone too 😱

I gotta tell you I had no idea there was so much continuing development and improvement with these radios and antenna designs.  Kinda thought the field was mature.  But I guess it makes sense with all the new frequencies being used.  I've certainly learned a bunch from your posts -- thanks John.
Steven & Carol Crisp -- 2000 26.5' Blue Mid-Bath named Thistle Dew Too
Our RV Motto:  "No place to be ... and all day to get there"
2024 Adventure: The Great Eclipse Escapade!  HI(Air),NV,AZ,NM,Mason,TX(Totality!) ...