Nano VNA and Nano VNA-F

[Bradbn4]

I was / am considering picking up an ICOM 7300, but wanted to get a better understanding on the costs beyond just the radio transmitter.  So I stumbled on the following hardware that would let me inspect the performance of any antenna after installation. 

A HF VHF UHF UV VNA Vector Network Analyzer Antenna Analyzer + 2.8"LCD under  Nano VNA open source can be found for  about 50 dollars. 

Very good price for the performance it provides.  One of the common upgrades is to re-case the hardware using a 3D printer.   The software is also supported at github.

http://nanovna.com/

The above link has all the pretty pictures and background on this hardware.

There is also another version that increases the screen size to 4.3", adds a few nice tweaks for fully shielded case.  A lot of good details can be found at the following link.  Price is about $110 dollars.

https://github.com/flyoob/NanoVNA-F


Note: There are a lot of clones of both sets of hardware out there.  Some don't have the required shielding and are poorly made. 

[exSun]

The NanoVNA was discussed a lot at https://owenduffy.net/blog/. Scroll down to find articles on it.

Use of low powered test equipment to measure antennas is possible, but beware of false readings due to pickup of nearby RF at or close to the frequency being measured. Still, it's a good way to track your antenna system and look for changes.

When you  get the 7300 OTA PM me and we'll talk!

[Bradbn4]

Good info, nice to see you online.....

It looks like I will be heading a bit south from you in a hand full of hours to drop off my Ford Escape in Texas.

The car is on the trailer; and i did notice that a good spot for a small right could be mounted on my trailer hitch.

I did see the good adds for some sweet hardware just below 1k.  Which is why I was looking at the Nano VNA-F.  It looks like they bumped the spec for the hardware up a bit for the '-F' version.  Price is about 120.....

Currently I am using my low RF noise power supply on a transfer pump.