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Peak n tune your gps.


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one of my other hobbies is ham/cb radio n scanners.almost everyone i know in the hobby peaks n tunes thier radio for more tx n rx power..theres even detailed info online how to do it yourself..has anyone ever done this to thier gps to enhance its ability to preform ?

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one of my other hobbies is ham/cb radio n scanners.almost everyone i know in the hobby peaks n tunes thier radio for more tx n rx power..theres even detailed info online how to do it yourself..has anyone ever done this to thier gps to enhance its ability to preform ?
Aside from perhaps an external antenna, which would be very ungainly while walking through the woods, no. Not that I've ever heard of, at least. Our GPS receivers do well enough for us to find what we're looking for.
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one of my other hobbies is ham/cb radio n scanners.almost everyone i know in the hobby peaks n tunes thier radio for more tx n rx power..theres even detailed info online how to do it yourself..has anyone ever done this to thier gps to enhance its ability to preform ?

The data is digital, and there's no transmitter to mod (unless you can hack the satellites). Pretty much all you can do is to get a better antenna.

 

There's generally not much point in trying to get better accuracy when searching because current units are good enough, and you're dependent on the accuracy of the original coordinates anyway.

 

Edit : correction, not analog.

Edited by Chrysalides
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one of my other hobbies is ham/cb radio n scanners.almost everyone i know in the hobby peaks n tunes thier radio for more tx n rx power..theres even detailed info online how to do it yourself..has anyone ever done this to thier gps to enhance its ability to preform ?

What exactly would you 'peak' or 'tune' in a GPS receiver?

 

The phrase "peak and tune" is most commonly applied to (illegal) CB radio transceiver modifications and usually consists of:

 

* Turning up the Transmitter's wattage

* Adjusting the modulation for maximum output without distortion

* Modifying the mike amp circuit to produce more modulation if needed

* Aligning the receiver for optimum signal to noise ratio

* Adjusting the squelch range

* Frequency adjustment to zero tolerance

* Frequency counter display calibration

* Calibrating the transmit and receive meter settings

* Performing a complete check of all functions

* Performing a visual of the circuit board for cold joints and flaws

 

None of which apply to the circuitry of a GPS receiver.

 

73 de W4AGA

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one of my other hobbies is ham/cb radio n scanners.almost everyone i know in the hobby peaks n tunes thier radio for more tx n rx power..theres even detailed info online how to do it yourself..has anyone ever done this to thier gps to enhance its ability to preform ?

The data is digital, and there's no transmitter to mod (unless you can hack the satellites). Pretty much all you can do is to get a better antenna.

 

Coincidentally, a better antenna is often going to do more to get better performance from a CB/Ham radio than a peak-n-tweak. I had a few CB radios a long time ago that were modified, it was the four element quad antenna that I built that allowed me to transmit and receive long distances. Still, I suspect that a better antenna for a GPS woujld likely be more cumbersome than useful.

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well,,for a gps you could only peak the recieve or something that might put you closer to ground zero other than the standard unit .

Good luck, let us know how this works out for ya! :)

 

As was alluded to above, with any radio antennas are everything! The bigger and higher the better. External antennas for GPS receivers will increase signal reception.

 

For the best possible reception get an external GPS antenna and attach it to the top of your hat. I'm not kidding. :laughing:

Edited by TheAlabamaRambler
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has anyone ever come up with a home brew antenna for a gps ?

Links to GPS Antenna Construction Sites

 

http://www.ggrweb.com/article/gulley.html Construction Details For A GPS Helix Antenna

 

http://www.scott-inc.com/html/gpsant.htm Homebrew Vertical Plate Mono Pole

 

http://home.iae.nl/users/plundahl/antenne/helical.htm A home brew helical antenna for GPS

 

http://home.iae.nl/users/plundahl/antenne/patchant.htm Peter Lundahls GPS patch and pre-amp

 

http://www.tuc.nrao.edu/~demerson/helixgain/helix.htm The Gain of the Axial-Mode Helix Antenna

 

http://www.gartrip.de/antenna.htm How to make a re-radiating antenna for the Garmin Etrex family, using the GA27 active antenna, by Heinrich Pfeifer.

 

http://bytethebullet.com/geocaching/reradiating_antenna.htm As above, points to site of Heinrich

Edited by TheAlabamaRambler
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has anyone ever come up with a home brew antenna for a gps ?

Links to GPS Antenna Construction Sites

 

(snipped)

 

 

A bunch of those links don't work. I haven't really looked but considering how many homebrew versions there I have to wonder if there are some reasonably priced commercial antenna available, and more importantly, which models of GPS receivers provide an external antenna connection.

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http://www.maps-gps-info.com/gp-ant.html

 

The American Radio Relay League (ARRL) has many great resources on the subject, unfortunately a major website re-write recently broke the links found all over the internet. You can search for them on arrl.org.

 

I made a comment earlier that I think was taken as silly. It is not. Get one of the several low-profile external GPS antennas and affix it inside a ball cap.

 

The wire can run down the back of your shirt or if your GPS has Bluetooth you can go wireless. Once you get past the concept and think of the science you will see that it is the best option for hikers desiring an uninterrupted signal.

 

sku_5303_1.jpg

Edited by TheAlabamaRambler
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Rule one of making a good radio: Use a good antenna.

 

More than one person has mentioned having one of those smaller pucks in their hat. Big deal. To really peak and tune, you want a choke-ring antenna. You could put it on a tripod, or carry it on a pole to keep it up high and level as you're walking. These mitigate multi-path problems, and as MP is usually your largest error source, this antenna should improve your accuracy. About the size of a large dinner platter though. Wear one in your hat only if you want to look like some biblical good guy:

 

S56L.jpeg

 

gnss-choke-ring-antenna.jpg

 

See also:

http://www.frontierprecision.com/FPI_Produ...eChokeRing.html

Edited by lee_rimar
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one of my other hobbies is ham/cb radio n scanners.almost everyone i know in the hobby peaks n tunes thier radio for more tx n rx power..theres even detailed info online how to do it yourself..has anyone ever done this to thier gps to enhance its ability to preform ?

 

OMG! this is the stupidest post I have ever herd. JESUS! I would be stupid enough to post something like this on a CB forum, but to post this for a GPS is stupid.

 

I wouldn't touch a radio you were turning screws in if my life depended on it. Mainly because if you knew what you were talking about, you would know that asking something like this about GPS is completely ridiculous.

 

Your one of those guys that cuts the limiter in your radio and wonders why you sound like crap right?

 

What you need to understand is that when it comes to radio's and RF, take every thing you know conventionally about electronics and toss it out the window.

 

So go ahead and start messing with things in a gps. You won't find any Variable resistors to turn and if you start cutting things out of any circuits you will brick your GPS.

 

GPS depends on riangulation, not power. I would say within 3 feet is pretty good. 9 times out of 10 my unit brings me on top of the cache.

 

my dave made says I'd step all over you...

 

EDIT: And I highly doubt you have a ham ticket, because no self respecting ham would suggest anything like you just have.

Edited by mchaos
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Sorry LoL.

 

I work on and repair CB radios, and am quite into it my self. Its bad enough I have to hear wrong thinking about radio's on the radio. Don't need it here too lol.

After that first post, I was of the opinion that you'd just run your nose into a tank coil somewhere. Lighten up.

 

While pointless on a modern day GPS, the occasional tweak to a pre-digital receiver or transmitter is the norm as component drift takes its toll over the years. My diddle sticks came in yellow, white, red, green and blue, slotted one end and hex on the other. What did you use back in the day??? Or did your RF life start with digital freq synthesizers?

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OMG! this is the stupidest post I have ever herd. JESUS! I would be stupid enough to post something like this on a CB forum, but to post this for a GPS is stupid.

1. You're a postherd? You know, like a shepherd, but for forum posts? :D

 

2. Yes, that little child in Lee Rimar's post is Jesus, but why do you need to shout? :lol: Besides, the main subject is John the Baptist :lol:

 

3. I can point out more stupid threads in just the last week alone, without even trying.

 

4. Why should topics about GPS be exempt from stupidity? If you read this as "is there any way I can improve the performance of my GPS receiver" does it make it any better?

 

Hope you feel better after your rant :D

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I sometimes use an external with my 'CSx, on the car roof reception is improved/faster then when on the dash without it - so yes an improvement this way. Mostly I use the external when biking or hiking with it mounted on a baseball cap. Bike use with the reciever mounted on the handle bar I block less signals than with my body shrouding them - tracks are better. When hiking I like to use a belt clip, thus with the external up top the reciever is not rocking to each step nor blocked by my body. Yes the external does improve overall accuracy - more so in wooded areas, but the cable can be in the way. For Geocaching I just use it plain.

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OMG! this is the stupidest post I have ever herd. JESUS! I would be stupid enough to post something like this on a CB forum, but to post this for a GPS is stupid.

... (needless rant continues)...

... And I highly doubt you have a ham ticket, because no self respecting ham would suggest anything like you just have.

Like I mentioned in a previous post on another thread... "You need to work on your social skills my friend".

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With the exception of the high grade precision antennas (like that Trimble with the choke ring collar to reduce multipath), there's not much you can do to improve GPS reception.

 

The key here is: If you have LOS, you'll have good signal. If you don't have LOS, the satellite signal will contribute to errors if you receive it. Also, you can't use a "high gain" antenna, since high gain antennas are fundamentally directional - a GPS antenna needs to cover the whole sky evenly.

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