CF-30 CF-31 WIFI Thread

For a CF30
6300 NO...5300 YES

I probably have a card here.

 

I have 4- 5100 cards. But shipping to Russia will be more than you buying a card from Russia.

 

So, I will try to find that 3rd antenna, thank you!

 

Thanks for you care, I gonna order it here - AliExpress.com, it has a free shipping to Russia.

 

Sorry for disturbance, I am a little confused which one 5300 card to buy.
Are they same or do the have differences?
I am asking since some sellers specify something like "Fit all brand laptop, not included HP/ Lenovo/ Samsung".
Here is just an example:
https://www.aliexpress.com/store/pr...32689375936.html?spm=2114.12010608.0.0.K1gk9Z

Sorry for silly questions - again)))

 

Cards from a Dell work good for me.
Cards from Hp and Lenovo will NOT work.

 

A bump to aide the WIFI//BT discussion about CF19 mk6 that use the same combo WIFI??BT card as the CF31 mk3 that I worked on in this thread.

 

A new mod..

AW-CB160H----not a cheap card.
802.11ac
3 antennas just like the Intel 6300
The CB160H uses different antenna connectors so short adapter cables are required.

 

I ordered 80cm MHF4 Cables (made for a Thinkpad 540) from the Ali site, good resource as you can't really find them in the US for whatever reason. Then I ordered some more TaoGlas antennas but I was wondering about that...

Would it be better to have the 2 Taoglas antennas in the top of the lid as usual and then mod an SMA external jack to put a Really decent antenna outside the laptop with a 2m cable? use a decent 5-7dB Dipole or maybe something directional? Would also make it easier to 'test' different antennas. Would it not being hooked up all the time matter much??

Been many years since radio school in the military ;-)

 

I kept everything inside on mine. Did not want any extra bits.

I do have a thread on how to mod a SMA jack onto a CF30. It would be t same as a CF31.


http://forum.notebookreview.com/threads/rewirering-the-pass-through.518338/#post-6707380

 

" ... put a Really decent antenna outside the laptop with a 2m cable?"

it depends ...
if the gain of the antenna is enough to overcome the insertion losses of the coax then , technically , it would be worth it .
for example , if the insertion loss of the coax is 4db (read as -4db) and the antenna provides 3db of gain (over iso) , then you have a net loss of 1db .
(yer runnin' backwards)
many times the only reason a "good" external antenna provides an improvement is because of "signal access level" .
if you use an iso antenna and get a reading of (say) -50db out in "free space , unobstructed" whilst inside you get -60db , this is an improvement of 10db ...
soooo ... you have 10db of coax losses to play with until you run into the same level as running the device on internal antenna(s) inside .

making a "test" port ...
in theory , one can make a simple combiner to allow two different antennas on the same input ...
however , "simple" will also allow the two antennas to interact to a great degree and can actually cause a degradation in signal level (think phase cancellation) .
the best way is to use an isolated and dedicated input (some devices have multiple inputs that offer a certain degree of isolation between ports) .
if you want to get fancy (read expensive) you can use a "directional combiner/circulator with a reject port" .
the simplest method that produces positive results is an rf switch (mechanical or pin diode switching , etc .) to select which input feeds the device .

leaving a port "open" ...
all ports should be terminated with the characteristic impedance of the line/coax with a pure resistive device (no reactance ; capacitive or inductive) .

you might want to check on 7db of gain with a simple dipole .
they are also a "broadside" device ... the null is off the ends of the antenna .
a yagi , log periodic or phased colinear array will give gain and directionality ... not much directionality with a simple vertical colinear .

i started out as an 05B20 in 1974

 

Thanks CWB, I was a 5937, replaced boards, soldered connectors, and the occasional diode or resistor. The intelligent side of the Corps. (Still read it slow and carefully but I can do it without moving my lips now! )

I am looking to improve reception in my RV and I can make a dedicated antenna for the dock, so when in the RV the dock could have a directional yagi for it or something. When IN B&N, McD's, or something, I should get a great signal with the performance card and decent Taoglas, it is when at the edge of the campgrounds, parked far away or something I'm concerned with.

My brother moved to the country and has 'Impact Wireless' internet. It is basically a high powered WiFi that goes off of the cell towers and his is 25 miles away but he still gets ~20M download speeds. Anyone familiar with/Have experiance with them??

Thanks for all the Info!

 

i started out as a brass pounder and wound up (eventually) in crypto/intel ... a few MOS' under my belt (even a couple of disparate ones) .

those cell tower data costs are pretty high ... 10 bucks a gig on average .

a small yagi , say 6 element , should provide decent gain for the job at hand .
(the owners could always daisy chain wireless repeater units to provide decent signal for all involved) .
i would figure out a way to use a "poor man's repeater" ...
you use a decent yagi and use it to feed a simple vertical antenna inside your rv .
in this manner , a larger size of coax can be used instead of that 22GA stuff ... much easier to work with .

about the types of coax ...
your runs will be short and thus cheaper to build .
https://forums.qrz.com/index.php?threads/2-4ghz-coax.170484/
http://www.w4rp.com/ref/coax.html
http://www.rfconnector.com/rf-cable-guide.php
etc .
for example , LMR 400 has a loss of around 6.8db per 100 feet but is fairly easy to work with ...
sooo ... 6.8/100 = .068db/foot .
let's say there will be 15 feet between the antennas .
.068 X 15 = 1.02db of loss .
now we have an idea of what we are up against ... not much loss with that length of particular coax .
(remember ; every 3 db cuts the available signal in half)

next , finding a decent yagi for the frequency band of interest for a decent price (you don't need scala brand antennas) .
the first result upon googling(?) "2.4GHz yagi antenna" :
https://www.amazon.com/Brands-Wireless-2-4GHz-Antenna-Booster/dp/B0054MLMLA
personally , i would find something with an "N" connector instead of those small types ... "N" connectors are fairly standard and robust :
http://www.amphenolrf.com/connectors/n-type.html
and they "fit" the LMR coax nicely .
the vertical radiator/antenna used inside can simply be a piece of brass brazing rod or 1/8-1/4 inch tubing of the correct length connected to the inner conductor of the LMR with 4 radials of the same material but 4 times as long connected to the outer braid .
hang the antenna/coax from the ceiling in an out of the way spot , or dead center above the table .

some construction articles :
http://www.dxzone.com/catalog/Antennas/WiFi/

if you want to move ahead with this idea , i will certainly be willing to help you out .

edit ...
i am around fosston .

 

I have a "dish" on the end of the house pointing at a receiver +15 miles away.....then that array points at another mountain top...and from there relayed to the dot.com that hosts my internet and email. $135/quarter year. (three months) 1.45 Mbps down / .45 up. (right now....... I've seen numbers in b/s occasionally) Unlimited but very slow. We have a change coming they say but my problem is the house receivers just won't hack it. They were waiting on new home antennas last I heard.

Telephone lines are state of the art for 1955. At least there is two wires now but not viable for Interweb.

Optionally I have a WWAN booster that gives three to four bars of Verizon 4G...and helps my cell service also. WeBoost. I leave the "Stupid" Phone's WWAN off but can use it as a hotspot in event the dish service goes down. (expensive)

 

CWB, I know where that is, I'll definitely take you up on the offer and plan a trip up that way this summer!! If nothing else just shoot the shi... Uh, breeze...

My brothers IP company is unlimited and about $50/month. It works well to stream videos while traveling with the family (moving) and when at home it is connected to the bigger external antenna, which gets its signal from the cell tower ~20 miles away.

I luv the multi dish antenna system, I was thinking of something similar. (Also thinking of using a bunch of CF29s/30s as motion detecting game cameras, but I Digress...) I have some property in Northern MN and would have to tap off a neighbors internet half a mile away. I have Fiber optic in the road running by the land and you can get Giga service if you want to pay that much, but only if I bring in Grid power ($25K) from the neighbors place... Not going to happen for a place I spend 3-5 weeks at a year...


My Digikey Taoglas antennas came in I picked up another pair of the 831s that Tishers suggested earlier in the posts and a pair of the 830 Dipoles that are slightly more gain and higher efficiency, they also have the MHF4 connectors and WOW are those things tiny!

 

I finally received the NGFF to mini PCIE adapter.
I am going to test a 7260 NGFF card in the CF31 mk3 and see if it works.
If it works, it will open up more options for wifi cards.

 

Quick pic.

The "dish".
The farthest peak is where the repeaters reside.

 

HEY!!! Why ya gotta say that?!? LOL I just dropped ~$60 for the AW card, antennas and cables... Received the Card yesterday, the antennas today, and the cables... well they are coming from China, Sooo...

Here are the new Taoglas I received today. I'm planning on using the ones I have in it now to replace the stock antennas in another laptop as the cables for the AW card are the MHF4 sized ones. No junctions, connections, or even tight/sharp bends for the signal to get caught in!

Any thoughts on best placement for them? They are 'dipole' but have a fairly Omni (XY&Z) pattern.

 

this is what I did.

 

No worries.
The AW160 is still the best card

 

I was thinking of removing the WWAN boards and cut a piece of stiff plastic/fiberglass to screw into their place so the antennas stay flat and rigid but don't have any metal to interfere with the signal.

 

good idea on meeting after it warms up ... that leaves a 2 week window in the middle of july .


still waiting for the weather to warm and (now) dry up so the plane can be drug out of the hangar .

 

Hi Shawn,

Howdie, newbie here.
I was following the Taoglas Antenna thread and just had a few questions for you if you don't mind. I believe you got 2 of them for your CF31, one for each "side".

Did i understand correctly that you had a 6300 wifi card at the time you installed the Taoglas antennas (which was a huge upgrade over the stock wifi card), then later you've further upgraded the to a AW-CB160H -which was even better?

Is the 160H still the card you're still using currently?
Other than different antenna connectors (at the card-end), were there other difficulties/conflicts while (or after) installing it in the CF31 ?

Or, if you recommend that i stay with the 6300: they seem to be either DELL or Thinkpad specific. Which one should I grab?

Also, how do I connect the 3-rd antenna to it ?

Thanks.

 

Yes I am still using the CB160H. It is an expensive card.
The 6300 is cheap, but still an upgrade in performance.

Getting the proper drivers took a little bit of effort. I think Dell has a package that I used.
Bluetooth is on the WIFI card on a CF31 mk3.
I could not get Bluetooth working on a CB160H.
I don't use BT so it did not matter to me.

 

Understood, and thanks.

With the 6300 though, you were able to retain Bluetooth 3.0, but lost BT 4.0, correct?

(By the way, what is the model # of the stock wifi card in the CF31 mk1...?)

Also, have you done the TecroTech webcam upgrade?

Thanks.

 

@SHEEPMAN! (Jeff) did that upgrade here

http://forum.notebookreview.com/thr...-31-mk-2-and-mk3-installation-success.822433/

http://forum.notebookreview.com/thr...that-are-a-good-match-for-a-toughbook.821007/

 

Do not use any Thinkpad/Lenovo WIFI card. They will not work.

Intel 6300 does NOT have BT on it at all. The BT board from a mk1/m2 is BT 3.0

Stock card on a mk3 is Intel Centrino® Advanced-N 6235 802.11 a/b/g/n

6235 spec sheet
https://www.quietpc.com/instructions/intel/centrino-advanced-n-wimax-6235-brief.pdf

6300 spec sheet
http://www.ggsdata.se/laptops/bilder/accessories/intel/6300.pdf

CF 31 mk3 spec sheet
https://www.2d3d-gis.com/pdf/CF-31mk3_Spec_Sheet_Standard.pdf

 

CF 31 mk1 and mk2 BT board

 

Thank you so much guys !

 

Hi Shawn, what type of connectors do I need for the CB-160H (at the card-end) please?
Also, would you have a link to the (Win7 64bit) driver(s) for it ?

 

My systems are 32 bit. I never used a 64 bit driver. You are going to need to do some legwork on your own.
Another name for CB160H is
BCM94360HMB
It is a Broadcom card.

Searches on this forum leads to these results
CB160H
http://forum.notebookreview.com/search/21138634/?q=cb160h&o=relevance

BCM94360HMB
http://forum.notebookreview.com/search/21138653/?q=BCM94360HMB&o=relevance

The antenna connectors are
IPEX-4, MHF4, Gen4 UFL

https://www.ebay.com/itm/3-x-Origin...h=item3b1ff48d93:g:MvIAAOSwtbxbyE1y:rk:1:pf:0

https://www.ebay.com/itm/3PCS-IPEX-...h=item3636c85162:g:pPMAAOSwatRbSFr1:rk:3:pf:0

 

Thanks, Shawn.
I'll do the rest of the legroom on my own.
Much appreciated!