Ok, so first the situation... there is a Cell tower about 6km from a property we are purchasing, and from a few spots on the property it is CLEAR line of sight, so you can get a nice 4 and sometimes 5 bars (out of 5) signal. However, get out of LOS, and no signal. Anybody know of a signal booster that'll boost it upto 1-2 miles if I put it directly in line of sight of the tower? So far all the ones I've seen while seraching Google just show the 4mw type ones that just boost to an area of about 3000sqft, and mostly for indoor. I need one for outdoor to boost it in the area (LOS is due to there being lots of trees on the property, but the tower itself is quite high and again, very visible so any tower or something that was put up would be able to get the signal. The above is for GSM. Also, the local internet company has two options. First is DSL, second is wireless (it's not Wi-Max as far as I can tell, as their wimax rates are about double the rates of their regular "wireless"). This option is cheaper, but again the signal comes from the same tower I mentioned above... so is it possible to put up a multipurpose tower? DSL is not feasible, as there is no phone line running to the property, and nearest phone line would be 3-5miles (minimum) away. That and the chances of people stealing the wire here are quite high. Any help would be appreciated.
Firstly no you cant legal.y run a repeater that would put out that kind of power. Only a carrier that is licenced for that frequency can run a proffesional grade repeater. These kind of repeaters are expensive approx 20-30 dollars and if not properly set up will create problems for the network. One option I have seen done is buy a repeater designed for a 10,000 square foot building and use an outdoor antenna versus the in building one. If you went this route make sure it does not point back to the tower the repeaters donor antenna is pointed to, the repeater will create problems for the network. You will run into the same kind of issue with Wifi. With the Wifi I would get a router that can use an external antenna and get it up as high as you can. You could also get high speed internet from a Cell phone company if any offer it in your area.
The cell company internet is limited in terms of speed as well as total transfer bandwidth, at something like 500MB. Maybe I should have been a little more clear though. The property is about 2000 acres (give or take a hundred), and there is nothing around north of the property that it would interfere wtih. South of the property is the tower, whcih is either 2.8miles or 4.72miles (checked Google maps, but couldnt figure out whcih point the tower is at)from the point on the property where I need the internet signal. From that point to the property line is 1.1mile. As for the wifi, I've been told the internet is actually going off that same tower that I need to point to. Now for the main thing, I am not worried about FCC licensing, as A: I'm concentrating on keeping the signal within a range of upto 5square miles, and B (more importantly), this is for a property in South America, so no real concerns about that. Matter of fact, the government is actually asking for help in expanding their technological areas, although this probably wont qualify as there isnt too much of a population near where this property is that would use cellphones. I was thinking of maybe some kind of satellite dish style thing that would be able to bounce the signal towards the property, would this be feasible/doable? Thanks again for any advice
Here is a website that offers the outdoor repeaters that would best cover your needs. CommScope ::: Andrew ::: Product/Coverage and Capacity/RF Repeater Systems They have alot of different models. The major problem is going to be price.
Thanks, that helped a great deal. This may be a stupid question, but what is a "donor antenna"? From what I can gather from the site, one antenna is for one technology (One for GSM1900 and one would be for WiMax). Or is it one per different provider (One for ProviderX, one for ProviderY, and one for ProviderZ, even though they all use GSM1900)? Lastly, where would I get the donor antenna from? Unfortunately I'm going to assume they wont just donate it I'm going to email for costing. Might just knock down a few trees that are in the way instead, as it seems a little easier (for the GSM), and throw up a Wireless N booster and network that where the itnernet signal comes on the property. The donor thing would be appreciated though. G
Most of the stuff you can get from Andrew/Commscope. The donor antenna is a directional antenna that points towards the tower. The other antenna provides the boosted signal were you need it. Normally they support one technolgy only. Wimax is a completly different technology.
Only a carrier can install the type of equipment you are looking for . We have a large building unit that is 70db . It will do 50,00 square feet and up to 68 devices at once . But what you are looking for a carrier has to iinstall and license and it ain't cheap