[SECC] Happenings at AA4LR - RigExpert AA-55

[Bill Coleman]

I bought myself a late Christmas present. We talked about a newer antenna analyzer earlier on this list. Based on the recommendations I received, I chose the RigExpert AA-55. The -230 would have been nice, but since I don’t see doing a lot of 2m antenna work, the -55 seemed sufficient.

The unit itself is sizable and lightweight. Screen is reasonably bright and readable, although it doesn’t have the resolution of a modern cell phone. The interface is a little bit clunky, in this age of touch screens, but it’s rugged and works. 

Took me a while to figure out the interface and interpret the results. It’s very easy to pick a center frequency and a width and do a scan - although sometimes it takes a lot of button presses. 

Nicest feature is that you can take a reading and store it in a slot and review them later. With ten slots you can take several readings. 

I was tuning up a trap WARC dipole. I would take three readings, store them into slots and then take it back inside.

The RigExpert comes with software called AntScope2. I used the Mac version. Not only can you download the readings and analyze them on the computer, but you can save, load and compare them. You can also run the analyzer from AntScope2 directly, which in some ways is easier than punching buttons.

I used AntScope2 to good effect. I saved readings on all four bands for my Cushcraft A3S/A743 pointed toward EU and Japan. Those readings were largely the same, changing only slightly due to the proximity of the house. 

Later, when I rebuilt and re-installed the WARC Inverted-V on the tower about 8 feet below the Cushcraft, I re-ran all the readings and compared them. The curves were basically identical, with very slight changes on 10m toward Japan. I interpret this to mean there is minimal interaction between the two antennas. 

Overall, I’m very pleased with the RigExpert AA-55. It was a good choice. And I haven’t even tried some of the other features, such as the cable loss measurements.

Bill Coleman, AA4LR, PP-ASEL        Mail: aa4lr at arrl.net
Web: http://boringhamradiopart.blogspot.com
Quote: "Not within a thousand years will man ever fly!"
            -- Wilbur Wright, 1901