Can you run a Cell Booster through the Cable/Sat port?

[pdavey]

I originally ran my weboost 65 thought the sat port and it worked well. I have since installed a custom marine mount with an omnidirectional antenna on the top of the roof.

Here is a picture of the weboost 65 amplifier in the cabinet and the way I mounted the inside antenna over the dinnet

[Hermes]

Originally Posted by pdavey

I originally ran my weboost 65 thought the sat port and it worked well. I have since installed a custom marine mount with an omnidirectional antenna on the top of the roof.

Thanks. Could you share with us why you switched from a Weboost 65 to a 50 model?

Is it the fact that the Weboost 50 is omnidirectional whereas with the more powerful Weboost 65 you have to find and direct it towards the closest cell tower?

[pdavey]

So I am still using the weboost 65 booster as it is the most powerful, I just paired it with an omnidirectional antenna as having to point the directional at each new location is not worth the additional 2-3 dbi gain.

This is the antenna I got for my roof mounted antenna:

https://www.wilsonamplifiers.com/wil...xoCdi4QAvD_BwE

I also have a Poynting omni-400 I have considered replacing it with as it is almost an 8dbi gain vs the Wilson 5+dbi gain

https://poynting.tech/antennas/omni-400/

I haven't tried the Poynting yet as it would take a design change to the top of the antenna I built.

[Hermes]

Thanks!

[GeeSag]

Here is an interesting article from Wilson Amplifiers

https://www.wilsonamplifiers.com/blo...-best-for-you/

Notice it appears to be written March 5, 2021.
Interesting that they publish this article now after WeBoost has had both 50 OHM and 75 OHM amplifiers on the market now for quite some time.

[SSquared]

Originally Posted by GeeSag

Here is an interesting article from Wilson Amplifiers

https://www.wilsonamplifiers.com/blo...-best-for-you/

Notice it appears to be written March 5, 2021.
Interesting that they publish this article now after WeBoost has had both 50 OHM and 75 OHM amplifiers on the market now for quite some time.

Wow.


I don't even no where to start, there are so many factual errors in that article.



The one thing they get right is that fatter cable usually has less loss than thinner cable. But the thickness of the cable does not determine whether it is 50 ohm vs. 75 ohm!

[GeeSag]

Please do elaborate on some of the top factual errors that bother you.
I am curious.

I would love to hear the factual errors.

The reason I am diving into this thread: When I first bought my Drive 4X-Rv I found it strange that WeBoost shipped a 75 ohm antenna in the kit with the amplifier that had a 50 OHM on the outside antenna port. I spent quite a bit of time building out my whole system to be 50 ohm. Then WeBoost introduces the Connect RV 65 which is 75 ohm, thus shooting down all my coax and antennas if I want to maintain the impedance matching.

[GeeSag]

Maybe there is an easy answer:

Maybe it can be answered in one simple paragraph.
Make that two Paragraphs!

If you have coax in your walls, (Home, Small Office, trailer) and If you want to use that coax, and If that coax is RG-6/RG-11 which it probably is, then use it. And try to optimize the system for 75 ohm. Buy the Connect RV. If you plan on pulling new coax anyway and If you can tolerate large diameter cable, like LMR400, then optimize the system for 50 ohm. If you want to take advantage of some of the cool 50 ohm antenna, but also want to use that RG-6, then mix and match, but the system will be less than optimized, and since the cable runs are relatively short 20 - 30 feet, and since there is so much amplification, it just blows away the impedance mismatch impairments and go ahead an have a less than optimum system.

75 ohm is better if that is what you want to use. Emphasis on the word want. i.e existing wiring.

[GeeSag]

Seriously:
For cellular frequencies (600-2700 MHz)
is 50 ohm any better than 75 ohm?

Power Transmission capacity:
We are talking very low power levels, (23dBm LTE UE uplink and -80 to -110 dBm downlink) in places where a Booster might provide a benefit. I would call those very low power levels when comparing 50 versus 75 in terms of their performance in transmitting power levels.

In terms of attenuation:
For runs that we are talking about for RV boosters: 20 - 30 feet typical for outside side of amplifier,
Is there enough difference in attenuation between 50 and 75 to make a difference?
Is it fair to compare LMR-240 with RG-6 and compare LMR-400 with RG-11.
For this booster application: can we basically ignore most of the other RG and LMR's sizes, since those would probably be the two most common in either 50 or 75 used for RV booster, correct?

Weboost chose to make the Connect 65 a 65 dB amp and the Drive (Reach and X) as 50 dB amps.
So I think answer becomes even easier:
To get the extra 15 dB gain, there is only one choice: use 75 OHM.
So back to the Original Poster's question: Can we use the Satellite Coax in the Airstream? Absolutely.

Ah! A new question:
Does the 65 dB amp provide Noticeably better performance to the end user than the Drive Reach or X?

Back to the first question:
I do not think the above answers if 50 ohm is better than 75 ohm as it applies to cellular frequencies, but it does answer if 75 is better than 50 for the cellular boosters available.

Question Number 3: A even more troubling question:
Notice the above talks about cellular frequencies 600 - 2700,
and the Connect 65, Drive Reach and X are actually 700 -2100.
That will start to become even more important as T-Mobile builds out 600 MHz and 2.5GHz. If T-Mobile can "Reach Further" with 600 MHz than AT&T or Verizon with their 700 MHz, then for rural campgrounds, it would be nice to be able to Boost T-Mobile. Not possible with current WeBoost amps. Also, T-Mobile is leveraging their Sprint Acquisition and turning up more 2.5GHz. That is also out of the range of the current amps. That is a real bummer for anyone trying to leverage the T-Mobile 100G for $50 data plan.

Footnote: I capped cellular at 2700 MHz for now. 3.5 GHz is coming, but until it gets here, no reason to worry about it. Likewise for any LTE up in 5 GHz: Not relevant to RV boosters.

[pdavey]

Originally Posted by GeeSag

Seriously:

For cellular frequencies (600-2700 MHz)

is 50 ohm any better than 75 ohm?



Power Transmission capacity:

We are talking very low power levels, (23dBm LTE UE uplink and -80 to -110 dBm downlink) in places where a Booster might provide a benefit. I would call those very low power levels when comparing 50 versus 75 in terms of their performance in transmitting power levels.



In terms of attenuation:

For runs that we are talking about for RV boosters: 20 - 30 feet typical for outside side of amplifier,

Is there enough difference in attenuation between 50 and 75 to make a difference?

Is it fair to compare LMR-240 with RG-6 and compare LMR-400 with RG-11.

For this booster application: can we basically ignore most of the other RG and LMR's sizes, since those would probably be the two most common in either 50 or 75 used for RV booster, correct?



Weboost chose to make the Connect 65 a 65 dB amp and the Drive (Reach and X) as 50 dB amps.

So I think answer becomes even easier:

To get the extra 15 dB gain, there is only one choice: use 75 OHM.

So back to the Original Poster's question: Can we use the Satellite Coax in the Airstream? Absolutely.



Ah! A new question:

Does the 65 dB amp provide Noticeably better performance to the end user than the Drive Reach or X?



Back to the first question:

I do not think the above answers if 50 ohm is better than 75 ohm as it applies to cellular frequencies, but it does answer if 75 is better than 50 for the cellular boosters available.



Question Number 3: A even more troubling question:

Notice the above talks about cellular frequencies 600 - 2700,

and the Connect 65, Drive Reach and X are actually 700 -2100.

That will start to become even more important as T-Mobile builds out 600 MHz and 2.5GHz. If T-Mobile can "Reach Further" with 600 MHz than AT&T or Verizon with their 700 MHz, then for rural campgrounds, it would be nice to be able to Boost T-Mobile. Not possible with current WeBoost amps. Also, T-Mobile is leveraging their Sprint Acquisition and turning up more 2.5GHz. That is also out of the range of the current amps. That is a real bummer for anyone trying to leverage the T-Mobile 100G for $50 data plan.



Footnote: I capped cellular at 2700 MHz for now. 3.5 GHz is coming, but until it gets here, no reason to worry about it. Likewise for any LTE up in 5 GHz: Not relevant to RV boosters.

Lots of good information here.

Not sure about the rest of you but I only use the cellular booster when things are almost non existent. Usually that means lower end of 4G LTE or 3G.

Many places we all want to go have almost 0 coverage let alone 5G which by the way that roll out for true 5G broadly is still about 5-7 years away no matter what the carriers tell you.

What T-Mobile is selling isn't really 5G but an enhanced 4G LTE with a higher bandwidth and data speed. 4G LTE can handle up to 50 MBPS althoug most networks cap it at 25.

True 5G will see upwards of 1 GBPS but if you have a 5G phone in most areas you are better off turning 5G off and using 4G LTE as the bandwidth is better from all those people with 5G phones wanting to see the 5G on their status bar

Not sure where I was going with this post but I had fun writing it.

Oh yeah, don't worry about 5G. That was my point.

[GeeSag]

Is 5G important to a thread on WeBoost?

It is.
It is not.
It Depends.

Since this thread is about: Can we use the Satellite RG-6 Coax for WeBoost?
I think we have covered that.

The topic of is 5G important to Weboost probably deserves a separate thread because as people search about Weboost and 5G in the future, it will probably be better served under a separate thread.

[David in Lex]

1) Will these ports work? They all seem like regular coax
2) Should I connect to the Cable or Sat port (what is the difference?)

We have a 2020 FC 30 RBQ. We connected the outside antenna cable to the satellite port on the outside of the trailer. Yes, it does work.

The hard part for us was finding the coax cable labelled Sat inside the trailer. We found it after much digging around among the rats' nest of cables in the upper right hand corner of the cabinet at the front our trailer, where the blue ray player is mounted.

We don't use the booster at every campground, only where needed, but it does help (as long as there is at least some cell signal to boost).

We've bungeed the antenna to trees or lantern/clothes line posts rather than using the included mounting brackets to improve the antenna's stability.

I can say more about our installation if there are further questions.

[GetawA-S]

We tried out our Weboost over the past few days at a central Florida campground. It worked the same going through the SAT cable as run through the door. The SAT connection does require the adapter assortment mentioned in an earlier post (F type to Weboost cable).
For the outside mount, I used a piece of aluminum bar stock bent into an S shape, with one end inserted into the canopy frame and the other cradling an $0.87 bracket from Home Depot to hold some 1/2” square tubing that I U-bolted the Weboost mount to. Fussy to fabricate, but it works. There’s one on each end of the curbside canopy, and at our last site, the front location did not work while the rear did. The “bars” on the cellphone inside the trailer did not really tell the story (fluctuated from one to two), but without the Weboost we had NO internet over our smartphones or linked laptop.
So, results may vary, be prepared to experiment!

[StrangeDaze]

Originally Posted by Bmille05

I just did a video installing a WeBoost and used the SAT cable connection. You have to buy a adapter. I will post the adapter and video below.

Coax adapter I was not 100% sure which one so I bought this variety kit. Had everything I needed.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Let me know if you have any questions.

I noticed the adapter kit you used is not 75 ohm... but 50. Is it possible that caused you to not get as good a result?

[dinks]

Originally Posted by Bmille05

I just did a video installing a WeBoost and used the SAT cable connection. You have to buy a adapter. I will post the adapter and video below.

Coax adapter I was not 100% sure which one so I bought this variety kit. Had everything I needed.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Let me know if you have any questions.

Bmille05’s video was massively helpful for us. Bmille05 or others, how did the cable wire out of the closet (in the video it’s clearly coming out there but no info on how to best accomplish that) in a Globe 23’?

[ortsa]

Originally Posted by pdavey

Yes you can. I did the same thing when I first bought it. I ran the antenna through the sat port and used the loose end of the satallite cable in the back cabinet to connect to the booster where I wired it directly to 12v with a switch. I ran the inside antenna right above the cabinets.

The TV port likely won't work as buried behind the wall is a booster you would have to contend with. The Sat port is your best bet.

Attachment 381712Attachment 381713Attachment 381714

Fast-forward to now, 2022 and Starlink. I just ordered mine and as I wait to hear when it ships I am starting to get very curious how I'll install it. I don't think it can stay on the roof during travel, but not sure. I'm ok placing it on the ground but need to figure out how to run the wire into my Airstream. I was thinking the never used Cable/Sat port. Is this a possibility? Could I pull the Starlink cable through and into the rig via this port?

[Rich Jenkins]

Following with interest.

I have the same problem as everyone else, trying to work out how to get a coax from the outside to the inside of my coach (2022 23GT FBT.) I am very interested in the 50 ohm "Sat" cable reuse idea, as that seems like an ideal solution already in place.

Assuming I can locate the "Sat" end somewhere up in the BlueRay closet, that is. If I do, I'll post back.

[David in Lex]

It’s not hard. We have the WeBoost RV 65. As I’ve said elsewhere, you connect the cable from the outside antenna to the exterior satellite port. Finding the corresponding cable in the rats nest in the blue ray cabinet (we have a FC 30 RB, so the cabinet is the front of the trailer on the upper right side) can be a challenge. It took us a while, but it’s in there and it is tagged ‘sat,’ so you’ll know it when you find it. You connect this cable to the booster. And then connect that to the interior antenna. (For us, we put that in the front left upper cabinet that’s next to the one where we put the booster in. As I’ve also said, the RV 65 works well for us. Installation is not hard.

[SSquared]

Llando,

I believe the "Sat" cable in Airstreams is 75 ohm cable--that's standard for TV antenna and cable system connections. I have the Weboost 65 RV, which expects 75 ohm cables. I use the Sat cable and it works fine.

I believe some cell boosters expect 50 ohm cables. In that case, using the Sat cable would be sub-optimal, but I would expect it to work to a reasonable degree. YMMV.


Does anybody out there have a 50 ohm booster and use it with the Sat cable??

[Rich Jenkins]

Thanks guys, I appreciate it’s not hard to use the Weboost, my only issue is locating the dad gone Sat cable in my rig, a 2022 23GT FBT.

I’ve gotten the Blueray ‘box’ separated from the bulkhead. I can see all the wires that go to the Furion stereo and Blueray. I see them disappear into the speaker cabinet through the 3” hole.

I’m sure the Sat cable is in the speaker cabinet, but can’t figure out how to open it up.

The speaker grille might come out, but I can’t see how to remove it without damage.

The bulkhead with the hole might come out, but I can’t find any locating screws to remove.

My next step is to get a small inspection mirror and flashlight and see if I can see a Sat cable through the 3” hole and fish it out somehow.


On the subject of 75 Ohm characteristic impedance cable vs 50 ohm, or vice versa, it’s been a few years since I got my EE degree (1981). My guess is if you used a cable with impedance not matching the one the amp was tuned for, you’d have some reflections. VSWR would then not be a perfect 1:1 (If I recall how this works correctly it’d be 1.5:1?) This wouldn’t be enough to matter significantly in this application, would be my guess. But yes, it would not be as efficient. I’ll try and do some more research to quantify how much this affects signal reception in engineering terms, as this is kinda interesting to me, and relevant to this thread.