How to setup and install your 4G/5G antenna

Setting up your 4G or 5G external antenna can actually be very simple. If you have read our previous steps, Signal Checks, Network Selection , Router selection & External antenna selection you will be armed with all the knowledge you need to setup your 4G and 5G external antenna.

Plug & Play Routers: As always, you can let us take care of all these steps for you by purchasing one of our plug and play router kits. For those of you wanting it to go alone, no problem carry on reading

Step 1: Pointing the antenna in the right direction

Ok so if you have purchased a puck type antenna you can ignore this step. for those who have purchased an omni direction panel antenna, this step will still add benefit. For those who have purchased a directional antenna, this step is vital. (If you need to recap antenna types click here)

When you run your signal checks on your service providers website they may have provided you with Antenna locations via an online map. If this was the case you simply need to take reference of the location or direction in relation to your location.

Want to make things easy? For full signal survey of all networks including antenna direction data you can let us do the hard work for you. Find out more here: Full Signal Survey

For those who have chosen a service provider that does not provide this level of detail don’t worry there are other options available. The best of these are online and mobile phone app based products. Many of these are completely free and quite self explanatory to use.

Our favourite Online and APP based 4G and 5G antenna locators are MASTDATA.com & OPEN SIGNAL.

Both the above mentioned providers have phone apps and are free to use in their basic forms. We especially like the MASTDATA.com graphical interface – demonstrated below

Once you understand the location of the nearest 4G and 5G mast the next step is to ensure you point your antenna in that general direction. There is a margin of error which will vary by antenna but are usually quite forgiving. For example it’s not uncommon to find a directional antenna with a 25 degrees field of view/tolerance. the margin for error is determined by the antennas radiation pattern.

4G Antenna radiation pattern

Ok so we will try not to get too complicated with this. We would suggest that unless you are going to setup a lot of these antenna’s you can probably skip this description as you can achieve good results with trial and error. For those who want to know more, here’s a brief explanation.

An antennas radiation pattern is usually measured on two axis. To simplify we can imagine this as its vertical and horizontal axis. the complication being that antennas can potentially have a 360 degree view in both axis. meaning their radiation pattern could be a sphere.

If an antenna had a radiation pattern of a perfect sphere this would mean it is an omni directional antenna that has equal signal gain in all directions. In reality this isn’t possible as an antenna needs to be located/stand up somehow and therefore the stand/bracket/case would block some field of view and therefore reduce signal gain in that particular direction.

A directional antenna will show DB gains much higher in its intended direction but may still have gains in its unintended direction. This can sometime lead to the install of antennas with unsatisfactory results, as the antenna will still pick up signal if facing the wrong way but will be much weaker, less reliable and slower as a result.

An antennas radiation pattern can be shown in 2d and 3d form. (see below image). pointing the antenna in such a direction so that it sweet spot is right within the strongest possible band from your providers mast will ensure you are receiving the best possible signal with the equipment you have.

Mounting your 4G & 5G External Antenna

Roof mounted Puck antenna installation

If you have purchased a puck type antenna for a car, van, caravan or boat the easiest mounting option is to drill a hole in the roof of the vehicle and mount the puck antenna flush. these antennas come as standard with a screw type fixing which clamps the antenna to the roof. They usually have integral seals or a rubber type pad they prevents water ingress. Many owners choose to also seal with silicone for extra security.

Puck antennas are extremely easy to install and very forgiving. If you can get your head over the fact you need to drill a hole in your vehicle you will have no problems at all with very basic DIY skill levels.

4G & 5G Panel Antenna installation

Panel antennas come in many forms and have a number of mounting options. We find them to be the most versatile antennas. The biggest issue you will face will be trying to give the antenna the clearest possible line of sight to a cellular mast.

The easiest mounting solution is to use suction cups on windows. This is a less permanent solution which makes it ideal for people on the move. stays in hotels or people who don’t feel comfortable permanently fixing the 4G antenna to their property.

Most people tend to post mount their 4G & 5G antenna’s. this provides a solution to clear objects, and buildings that may block clear line of sight for the antenna. It also offers flexibility in pointing the antenna, being able to infinitely adjust the direction in which the antenna points is ideal for directional antennas, especially in weak signal areas where every little gain counts. 4G and 5G masts are relatively light meaning you wont need the most sturdy of masts, we tend to use Sky dish brackets as these are smaller and less of an eye sore than tv antenna masts, but both will work as well.

Top Tip: Panel antenna’s can be mounted on existing TV antenna masts. The antenna operates on a different frequency. as such they will not interfere with each others signal as long as you do not block immediate line of sight. this is important as a unlike a TV antenna, a 4G/5G antenna both receives and transmits signal.

Router location and Cable signal loss

Once the antenna is installed the next important step is to choose your router location. Ideally we want to place the router as central as possible in the property, vehicle. This ensures the most even signal distribution across your chosen area.

The biggest issue with router placement is getting the cable from the external antenna to your router. It is very important to note that the further away your router is from the antenna, the more signal strength you will lose. Higher end antenna’s (see antenna selection) usually come with up to 5metres of cable included. this cable will be high quality shielded cable. If you require longer cable this can be purchased in extension packs. Ensure you purchase high quality cable and only the length you require. Poor quality cable and loose cable that wasn’t needed will be be detrimental to your signal strength and quality.

Top Tip: Don’t try and use standard COAX cable, this will not work as it has a different Ohms resistance rating. Only purchase made for purpose cable.

4G & 5G Extension cable and connector types

The main cable connection types associated with 4G and 5G routers in the UK are SMA, TS9 & CRC9. generally you will find that mains powered or none mobile routers will use SMA connectors and the Mobile hot-spot type will use TS9 or CRC9. remember not all routers have antenna connection ports (see router selection for detail)

Connection types can easily be altered with adapters so don’t worry if your router is TS9 type and the antenna is SMA. The adapters are extremely cheap at a few £.

Once you have installed the antenna and located your router, its time to setup your router and get online. Move to the