Like all things in contesting, I think it depends on one's goals and
circumstances. Sure, an LPDA will not perform as well as long (maybe even
mid-length) yagis. But... it also will cost less, take up less space in the
vehicle, take up less space/weight on the mast, take less time to set up
(assuming you start from scratch), and will only require one run of heavy coax.
Plus obviously AN antenna will outperform NO antenna! And as others have
mentioned, you can use it for a backup "any band that failed" antenna in the
future, if you later graduate to a higher-performing setup.
Cheap surplus coax switches of good quality show up fairly often on ebay that
can handle frequencies up to 1-2 GHz at a couple hundred watts, switching
between 6-10 connectors, and these are easily controlled by anything from an
automated arduino to a pushbutton control panel, so I would not be turned off
by the need for a switch.
Just my thoughts on the matter. I considered building my own LPDA as there are
many good calculators out there, but ended up with a large van for a rove
vehicle, which will happily swallow many large antennas. Now if it would just
run reliably....
Patrick
KB8DGC
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