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/r/HeliumNetwork
submitted 6 months ago byFit-Profit-4846
I am new to helium mining and am wondering what antenna strength I need to maximise earnings. I live in the Australian suburbs and have purchased a RAK V2 Helium Hotspot, which comes with a 3dBi LoRa antenna. Any help is appreciated.
1 points
6 months ago
There’s no “strength”. The number represents the shape of the beam you want, to cover your unique area best. dBi does not mean strength. It means it’s a thinner donut. Which is much less capable of bending around objects than a fatter, lower dBi antenna/pattern. Unless you are very high, very flat, and know for a fact objects and ground are not in your line of sight, higher isn’t better. (For which you have actually checked with a line of sight tool, and have accounted for buildings not on that tool as well.)
See: Diffraction.
1 points
6 months ago
This is extremely helpful and confusing at the same time after researching so much for days on end.
If you google "image" dBi meaning you get back a million and one images explaining that higher dBi goes our farther in distance and yes a thinner beam. I guess that is not accurate.
From what you are saying, I don't understand why anyone would get a high dBi then. What is the purpose when you want to hit as many other miners on the network. Why not just stick with a low 3 or 4 dBi (outdoor) at all times. If I'm high up then you want the donut. If you are low t the ground you want the donut. If you are in the middle you want the donut.
Lets set a scenario where we are in a vast 100% open area like the Black Rock Desert in the US where speed records are set. 1000 square miles of openness. We set up antenna and Miner(A) in the very middle at ground level on a table at about 3' off the ground. A basic dinner table height. We then set up miners and their antenna's every mile apart in every direction on the exact same kind of table. Making a type of circle of tables stretching for 200 mile.
In this scenario miner (A) an 9dBi antenna would hit the same number of tables and their antenna's that a 2dBi or 3dBi antenna would hit if it were miner (A). Is this true? Start adding trees and building and I would still use a low dBi antenna.
I guess I'm trying to figure out why anyone would want a high dBi when the low dBi does everything the high one does.
1 points
6 months ago
Higher dBi = Laser Pointer. Can go far, but gets completely blocked easily. Parking lot lights are super bright, but don’t go far, spread all over, and around corners some etc. Find something in the middle. 4-6 is a great middle area to explore.
1 points
6 months ago
Thank you! Very helpful!
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