TV/FM antenna pre-amp location.
Does anyone see an issue with mounting a pre-amp for a attic mounted antenna in
attic with the antenna ?
Will the attic heat cook the pre-amp ?
Thanks
I design such equipment, and we life test it for a month at 85C. It
has to meet spec all through that - and down to -40C. It'll be ok
I'd expect that there may be somewhat reduced long-term reliability
due to the heat... continued high operating temperatures are
notoriously bad for electrolytic capacitors. A preamp designed for
commercial-grade service, and built with high-quality 105C capacitors
would probably be less subject to trouble than designed-to-be-built-
cheaply consumer-grade junk. You often get what you pay for :-)
Some of those cheap "mount on the mast" preamps and "active antenna"
systems have caused real problems in the past. There was an incident
a few years ago in which one or two of these were installed on boats
moored in a harbor here in Northern California. Under certain
conditions they'd "go unstable" and break into spurious oscillation
(always a risk for any amplifier) and they were squealing enough UHF
noise back out through the antennas to saturate and blank out GPS
receivers located within a mile or so of their location. This is a
Very Bad Thing for captains who are trying to enter a fog-bound harbor
safely!
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