Author Topic: Does Access really improve reception from the 5 in 1?  (Read 1661 times)

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

Offline davefr

  • Senior Contributor
  • ****
  • Posts: 195
Does Access really improve reception from the 5 in 1?
« on: February 18, 2018, 09:49:28 AM »
Has anyone done a signal strength comparison between Smart Hub and Access Hub to see if reception really improves?

One of my Smart hubs is about 100' from the sensor and reception was so flakey I had to take it apart, scrap their crappy built in antenna and solder on a 433 MHz/approx. 13" dipole antenna.

Has anyone taken apart the Access hub to inspect the antenna?

 

Offline John Z

  • Senior Member
  • **
  • Posts: 89
Re: Does Access really improve reception from the 5 in 1?
« Reply #1 on: February 18, 2018, 10:02:50 AM »
davefr,

The antenna in Access is a coiled shortened vertical. It is omni-directional, resonant, and impedance matched to the radio. In my view it does a much better job than the bent wire strung around the smartHUB. I see more consistent performance with less sensitivity to sensor placement. Others have reported seeing higher signal strengths vs. the hub, or seeing neighborhood devices they did not previously detect.

One other observation, though. Access seems to require a bit more distance from a router or other WiFi sources. In my setup, getting too close has resulted in unstable signal strengths reported for my sensors.

Offline nincehelser

  • Forecaster
  • *****
  • Posts: 3337
Re: Does Access really improve reception from the 5 in 1?
« Reply #2 on: February 18, 2018, 11:27:11 AM »
I don't know why I can't get these pics to orient the right way...

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]

Offline davefr

  • Senior Contributor
  • ****
  • Posts: 195
Re: Does Access really improve reception from the 5 in 1?
« Reply #3 on: February 18, 2018, 11:30:16 AM »
^^^Thanks guys!!!

Offline daman

  • Forecaster
  • *****
  • Posts: 520
Re: Does Access really improve reception from the 5 in 1?
« Reply #4 on: February 18, 2018, 11:30:47 AM »
Most definitely YES.

My friends old hub never got above a signal of 2, now he has a signal of 4 always.
KMIBADAX38
AcuRite Iris/AcuRite Access

Offline BeaverMeadow

  • Senior Contributor
  • ****
  • Posts: 282
Re: Does Access really improve reception from the 5 in 1?
« Reply #5 on: February 18, 2018, 12:11:06 PM »
My 5 in 1 is 300' away from my SmartHub. The SmartHub gets only a signal of 2 bars. I never lost any data because of this reading (which MyAcurite defines as "weak").

 

Offline vreihen

  • El Niņo chaser
  • Forecaster
  • *****
  • Posts: 1216
  • K2BIG
Re: Does Access really improve reception from the 5 in 1?
« Reply #6 on: February 18, 2018, 02:21:14 PM »
Out of curiosity, is there an Acu-Rite or Chaney logo on that board's silk screen?  Just curious if they are making it themselves or buying a general-purpose board from someone else.....


I don't know why I can't get these pics to orient the right way...

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
WU Gold Stars for everyone! :lol:

Offline John Z

  • Senior Member
  • **
  • Posts: 89
Re: Does Access really improve reception from the 5 in 1?
« Reply #7 on: February 18, 2018, 02:27:18 PM »
vreihen,

The board appears to be highly customized to the Access product. Definitely not a "generic".
« Last Edit: February 18, 2018, 02:29:21 PM by John Z »

Offline DoctorKnow

  • Forecaster
  • *****
  • Posts: 1982
Re: Does Access really improve reception from the 5 in 1?
« Reply #8 on: February 18, 2018, 03:29:33 PM »
When you ask "Does access really improve reception"... I get the feeling you don't believe what I wrote, along with some others as well.

So yes it does, I did not try to mislead anyone. Of course not every single installation will yield the exact results, but overall the antenna is much stronger.

Offline davefr

  • Senior Contributor
  • ****
  • Posts: 195
Re: Does Access really improve reception from the 5 in 1?
« Reply #9 on: February 18, 2018, 03:36:35 PM »
When you ask "Does access really improve reception"... I get the feeling you don't believe what I wrote, along with some others as well.

So yes it does, I did not try to mislead anyone. Of course not every single installation will yield the exact results, but overall the antenna is much stronger.

Why do you feel I don't believe the comments??  I never thought anyone was misleading me.  I asked the question and got what I was looking for.

Offline John Z

  • Senior Member
  • **
  • Posts: 89
Re: Does Access really improve reception from the 5 in 1?
« Reply #10 on: February 18, 2018, 03:41:10 PM »
The new antenna is intrinsically better than what was in the smartHUB, but as important, or maybe even more so, the new antenna steers clear of all the interference/noise generating apparatus on the circuit board. The smartHUB bent wire ran right along some pretty noisy circuitry on the board. I could never fathom why.

Offline nincehelser

  • Forecaster
  • *****
  • Posts: 3337
Re: Does Access really improve reception from the 5 in 1?
« Reply #11 on: February 18, 2018, 04:02:44 PM »
The other side of the main board.  Be aware this is of the "beta" hardware.  I haven't compared it against the production version.

John Z and I have already pored over this photo a while back to identify parts as best we could.  I don't want to spoil any fun you might have trying to figure out what's what yourself, so here it is without comment.  :grin:

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]

Offline nincehelser

  • Forecaster
  • *****
  • Posts: 3337
Re: Does Access really improve reception from the 5 in 1?
« Reply #12 on: February 18, 2018, 04:42:35 PM »
For the sake of antenna comparison, here is a photo of the innards of a recent-vintage SmartHUB.

Note the long wire antenna coming off the receiver module, then runs up along the top half of the plastic housing, runs through the hinge, and then into the "paddle".

 [ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
« Last Edit: February 18, 2018, 04:56:40 PM by nincehelser »

Offline John Z

  • Senior Member
  • **
  • Posts: 89
Re: Does Access really improve reception from the 5 in 1?
« Reply #13 on: February 18, 2018, 04:51:12 PM »
There is an amazing amount of info that can be gleaned from George's pictures, if studied carefully.

Have at it, ladies and gents. Looking forward to your comments.

 

anything