BETSO Bowtie vs Lectrosonics SNA600a

[stefanosound]

Hello everyone,

I need a pair of antennas for my bag, what do you prefer and why?
Thank you

 

Stefano.

 

 

[codyman]

I've owned both and I prefer the betsos.  Easier to strap to the front of my k-tek bag and they stay out of the way vs I felt I was always fighting with the SNAs.  I haven't done any scientific range tests but both seem to comparable to me in that regard.

[Axel Mishael]

Hello,

 

bumping this topic since I have the same doubts as Stefano, would anyone else care to comment their experience?

 

thanks in avance,

Axel.

[Alien]

I use the Lectosonics ALP600 in a bag mounted on 6 inch handles. Here I have to cover a Football Stadium with one or two players mic'ed-up and working one or two sidelines on foot. At the next game I might be up in the stands seated so would be able to mount the ALP's up high. This set up works for me and although the bag setup may get annoying when running I know what I get with these antennas and worry that with the Bowtie when down low I wouldn't get the range I need.

[Axel Mishael]

Thanks for the input Alien...

[Mark LeBlanc]

I have a pair of Bowtie's on the way, mainly for a bag rig. Past few months I've been working in the worst RF environment I've ever encountered. Wide open space with TV and Cell towers surrounding set. Using any type of directional antenna was basically a disaster.  Tried the SNA's and they worked great but were somewhat clumbsy in the bag, bumping the antennas walking in high grass and trees. Giving the Bowties a show mainly because of how clean they setup.. Will report back in a few weeks..  This pic is how I've been running the SNA's on my main rigs.

 

 

[Axel Mishael]

Thank you Mark!

[EnotsMedia]

I have not used the Bowties…but to me they seemed too large (shape wise) and clunky for my bag setup liking…I’ve been using the SNA600a’s for years in the bag and love them. Small, slim, fold up nice for travel. Here they are in my bag, - I know ideally they should be further apart but they work absolutely great in my bag..absolutely zeros issues.

 

I also use one on my cart Comtek feed  w/ the Remote Audio antenna upgrade and it’s just as awesome. 
 

883/SL2/DSR4 (x2)

 

 

[Paul F]

Does anybody put them up near their shoulders on the harness? Is that better due to height and away from the other stuff or a bad idea being closer to the body?

[rich]

As long as your body is not between the transmitter and antennas, the extra height will be a good thing. 

[edward chick]

I have both. The Bow ties can be clunky during run and gun for sports doc or fast moving jobs. The SNAs seem to get a little bit better range. I find the set screws that keep the antenna at the precise block setting need to be tightened periodically as they become loose over time. 

 

[vin]

On 6/10/2023 at 3:22 AM, edward chick said:

I have both. The Bow ties can be clunky during run and gun for sports doc or fast moving jobs. The SNAs seem to get a little bit better range. I find the set screws that keep the antenna at the precise block setting need to be tightened periodically as they become loose over time. 

 

I would recommend a very tiny drop of Loctite (temporary hold version) to solve this problem. 

[DanieldH]

Whenever I got a bag with bowties, I hated them, as cables like to get caught in there. 

What is the use case of either system vs a set of good old wips cut to various length?

[Spin360]

I have both and don't use the SNA anymore. They are very clunky, get caught everywhere and have sharp edges. Also they fold all the time when you bump anything, no matter how hard you tighten the screws.
The betsos have roundish corners and are a lot easier to manage.

Didn't do range tests, but even if the range on the SNAs would be a bit better I'd still use the bowties.

[Tim Norris]

On 6/11/2023 at 3:32 AM, DanieldH said:

Whenever I got a bag with bowties, I hated them, as cables like to get caught in there. 

What is the use case of either system vs a set of good old whips cut to various length?

 

With either antennae mounted on the far edges of your bag, you get better separation and a little bit more elevation. I think there is also an advantage to having a pair of 1/2 wave dipole antennae rather than a pair of 1/4 wave whips relying on each receiver for a ground plane.

 

I have my Bow Ties mounted at the front corners of my bag, using the supplied hardware, so they can be moved out of the way (down and towards the sides) when not needed. They fold over the top of my bag for storage at the end of the day. There is definitely an improvement over the whips.

 

Proper antennae mounted up higher on stands would be better than anything mounted in the bag.

I rarely have this option.

 

My fantasy for bag work... I would love to have to have some sort of headgear on which would be mounted some sort of shark fin antennae array and headphones.  This would make booming at the same time quite difficult.

 

 

Cheers,

 

Tim

[DanieldH]

On 6/14/2023 at 4:09 PM, Tim Norris said:

 

With either antennae mounted on the far edges of your bag, you get better separation and a little bit more elevation. I think there is also an advantage to having a pair of 1/2 wave dipole antennae rather than a pair of 1/4 wave whips relying on each receiver for a ground plane.

 

I have my Bow Ties mounted at the front corners of my bag, using the supplied hardware, so they can be moved out of the way (down and towards the sides) when not needed. They fold over the top of my bag for storage at the end of the day. There is definitely an improvement over the whips.

 

Proper antennae mounted up higher on stands would be better than anything mounted in the bag.

I rarely have this option.

 

My fantasy for bag work... I would love to have to have some sort of headgear on which would be mounted some sort of shark fin antennae array and headphones.  This would make booming at the same time quite difficult.

 

 

Cheers,

 

Tim

Hey Tim,

thanks for your helpful remarks that make perfect sense.

Your headwear idea reminds me of a little howto years ago from @LarryF iirc for a dipole made out of a coax cable to be straped on the harness. Thinking this further, the upper part of the dipole could grow on ones shoulders. 

[Matt Geldof]

I own both. Only use the Bowties now. Mounting convenience is not even a comparison. Far as performance, very similar in almost every way to the Lectros,. When they work, they add some range. Nothing crazy. They won't fix a RX that is struggling in a congested RF environment, especially in NYC. Where I love them the most, is when I am in a sort of bag / cart hybrid situation, where I need to move into a tight space and put some antenna's up high and away from the bag. I carry a couple 10' BNC cables in my bag so I can quickly clamp the bowties up on a nearby stand or railing, clearing walls, video village or whatever obstruction is in my way. I never even bothered clipping the folding Lectros to my bag. Didn't think I'd get along well with the bowties clipped on either, but they are so easy to articulate and fold into whatever position I need. I often clip them on, even while doing run and gun in tight quarters. The whips are always close by, if I need to stash the bowties. 

[Tim Norris]

19 hours ago, DanieldH said:

Hey Tim,

thanks for your helpful remarks that make perfect sense.

Your headwear idea reminds me of a little howto years ago from @LarryF iirc for a dipole made out of a coax cable to be straped on the harness. Thinking this further, the upper part of the dipole could grow on ones shoulders. 

 

Hello Daniel,

 

Recently I began using these homemade TX dipoles on my digital hops transmitter (DCHT) in the bag. Eventually I may sew them in place, pointed down on the front of the bag, but for now they are just temporarily fastened to it. It works. I was having RF issues from the TX whip being between upright between the RX Bow Ties. Now I can put the TX where I want it to be (so I can see and manipulate it) and the TX dipole is where it needs to be. I suppose attaching it to my harness would also work well. I like it more out of the way.

 

Cheers,

 

Tim

 

 

[Jason Nightall]

The Betso bowtie has an inbuilt 700 MHz low pass filter, which is a bonus if your antenna distribution doesn't have any filtering.