FAQ - Yagi and Panel Antenna Trouble Shooting

Question: I do not see any noticeable increase in the bars on my cell phone when I connect it to the Yagi antenna.

Answer: There are several reason why there is no change in signal strength:

1. You do not have all of the cables hookup and attached properly. Check all connectors. Make sure the external antenna adapter is connected to the right port on your cell phone

2. The Yagi antenna is not pointed at the Cellular Tower. Many people think that they are pointing at the tower because they can see it from their home or building. However, you may be looking at another companies tower instead of the one your cell phone is hooked up to! Make sure you rotate the Yagi antenna on the pole slowly pausing every 5 degrees at least 20 or more seconds. This allows the field strength meter (the Bars on your cell phone) to catch up with the signal strength.

3. My cell phone does not increase any bars: The Bars on your cell phone aren't sensitive enough: Most cell phone signal meters are not calibrated properly. Each bar m seen on the meter represent as much as a 15 dB change in signal strength. A 7 dB gain may not even be enough to increase 1 bar! It is important to note that a 3dB increase in signal strength translates into double the signal strength and a 6 dB to 4 times. You can essentially be getting 4 times the signal with no bar increase. The best test is if you can make a call and if you have fewer dropped calls as well.

4. When I hookup my cell phone the signal strength shows a drop in bars: This is most likely caused by a shorted adapter, cable or if you chose the wrong frequency antenna. It can also be caused by the cell phone external adapter port malfunctioning. Disconnect all cables from the external antenna adapter and unplug the external antenna adapter from the cell phone. Does the signal level increase? If so, plug in the adapter. It should decrease if the port disconnects the internal antenna.

I connected the Yagi Antenna and now I experience fluctuating Signal levels, it goes to no bars then bounces to 3 or more bars. When I do make a call, It drops: This is most prevalent with CDMA type of services such as Version., Alltel and Sprint. This can be caused by

1. the tower being too far away (greater than 25 miles) The distance problem is as a result of the timing delay of the signal coming form the tower to your cell phone.

2. a software problem within the cell phone itself. There are upgrades available for most cell phones. These upgrades can installed most of the time by your cellular provider or dealer.

3. Tree Fade: You have trees in the way. You need to place the Yagi at a different location or on a higher pole to clear the tree line or other obstructions.

I followed all of the instructions. I rotated the antenna very slowly pausing at 5 degree increments for at least 20 seconds. There is not a tree around me, no buildings to contend with, I have flat land. All of my connectors are on properly. My cell phone works well without the adapter plugged in. I upgraded my software on the cell phone. I am less than 5 miles from the center of a town. What now? Email us at