Do-it-yourself 3g signal booster for Internet modem

How to make an amplifier for an Internet modem with your own hands

The Internet signal in the city is provided by the presence of base stations and a special cable. In this case, the signal is stable and guarantees the speed ordered by the tariff. And what to do outside the city, where there is no fiber optic cable?

Outside the city there is no base station and fiber optic cable lines for high-speed Internet. Usually, providers develop a high-speed network where there is a large population. Yes, and this business is quite expensive, even for large organizations. As they say: it is not economically feasible!

Therefore, ordinary Internet users suffer in the summer with Internet access and speed when they travel outside the cable network.

A few years ago, there was no way to access the Internet outside of a developed infrastructure. About three years ago, with the advent of usb modems, it became possible to use the Internet in country houses and cottages. But the signal is poor and the speed is the same. There is only one way out: make an amplifier for the Internet modem with your own hands or buy a 3g signal amplifier.

3g network coverage map

Each provider has its own network. For example, in 2012 I bought an MTS modem and suffered all season: there was almost no signal at all. I had to urgently go to the city to hand over the work done, not to mention how to surf the Internet.

The next year, on the advice of friends, I connected to the Internet through Beeline. Of course, I was happy, because compared to MTS, it was gorgeous. But ... only during the day. In the evening, with an increase in the number of Internet consumers, the network hung up.

To choose the best provider for your country house, you need to analyze the network of each provider. A map of the 3g network coverage of a specific provider will help you figure this out.

Type in the search line "MTS network coverage map".

In the address bar you need to write the address and the point you are looking for will be automatically indicated on the map. Now look: is there a network at a given point and of what quality.

3g MTS network coverage map at the desired point

The map shows that there is no MTS signal on my street and two neighboring ones.

Do the same with cards of other providers: in Izhevsk, in addition to MTS, this is Beeline, Tele2, Megafon.

3g network coverage map Beeline at the desired point

Beeline's 3g network coverage map shows a good network, but in fact there was no normal signal for the following reasons:

1. the nearest Beeline base stations are located on the outskirts of the city
2. between the last base station and my street a little more than 8 km (less than 10 km), which means that there seems to be 3g, but the modem constantly loses the 3g network and switches to 2g mode. This switching usually occurs due to a weak signal level or high load.
3. 3g modems operate at frequencies of 1900-2150MHz. The signal of this frequency range passes well only in the "line of sight". Obstacles in the form of mountains, forests, high-rise buildings are barriers to signal propagation over long distances. And the map shows that in a straight line between the city and my street there are several decent-sized "bald spots". Most likely they play some kind of negative role.

As a result of such a search on the 3g network coverage map, I determined that the best option for me is Megafon: a stable network on my street and in the surrounding area for 2-3 kilometers. On the map in the direction of the city, the 3g network is the same color throughout:

Coverage map 3g Megaphone at the desired point

Although Tele2 has the same indicators:

3g Tele2 network coverage map at the desired point

The final choice between the two providers can be made by examining the signal strength of the provider in the area using a cell phone.

3g modem signal level

To determine the signal level of a 3g modem, you need to do the following field studies:

1. using a cell phone (the same provider as the modem), determine the places in your suburban area where the signal is maximum. Walk around all the corners of the cottage: behind the house, behind the bathhouse, in the open space ... everywhere.
2. if there is an indicator on the laptop, then do the same by walking around the entire area with the laptop
3. put on paper indicators at these points - make a map
4. choose the 2-3 points that are most suitable for you and conduct additional studies of the signal level, but already in height: on the 2nd floor, on the roof, using a pole 2-3 m long, etc.
5. stop your choice in one place

The determination of the 3g signal level of the modem can also be controlled using programs that not only show the signal level, but also allow them to be controlled so that the modem itself can select the desired type of network depending on the reception quality. But so far, this case seems very complicated to me.

Such studies need to be carried out in order to determine the direction. The nearest provider's base station may not be in the direction you previously thought. If there are several of them, then for some reason a good signal does not come from the one you were guided by.

And yet, how to strengthen the signal so that Internet access outside the city is stable and faster?

In an online store or offline, you can buy special equipment for these purposes: an amplifier for an Internet modem

Signal booster for Connect 2.4 wi-fi modem

The signal amplifier for the modem must be selected, taking into account the provider network you have chosen.

For example, "Connect 2.4 wi-fi" brand amplifiers are popular:

The 3G/4G modem kit is designed to provide stable Internet access via USB modems in areas of poor signal reception of GSM (GPRS/EDGE), 3G (HSDPA/HSUPA/WCDMA) and 4G (LTE) networks of any operators, as well as to provide wireless connecting computers, laptops, netbooks, tablets, smartphones and other devices using WiFi technology.

There are also various devices, such as antennas and offset feeds. But, I want to consider the configuration of this amplifier:

1. antenna
2. cable length 1.8 m
3. wireless router for wifi

In principle, if Wi-Fi is not needed, then you can buy an antenna with a 5m cable like RK-50-3-18

After we have clarified the configuration of the purchased amplifier, we will consider options for home-made designs.

Simple 3g modem amplifier design

Last season I made a simple do-it-yourself 3g modem amplifier. I didn’t take any measurements, I just asked the sales guy in the store about the amplifier (I was ready to buy any, if only I had Internet in the country). The guy told me about his method, and I just repeated it:

1. you need to buy an extension cable 3-5m long with usb connectors "father-mother"
2. take a CD disk and on it make a mount for a flash drive in the middle of the disk
3. outside the window, from the outside, on the facade, make some kind of fastener for the disk, such as a carnation
4. hang the disk with the modem on the outside of the window or on the window on the inside of the room (if it is raining or cold), and connect the other cable connector to the laptop

That's the whole design. Indeed, the signal is caught not badly, compared to what it was.

This small amplifier design is powered by a length of cable and a mirrored CD-like surface.

If you increase the area of ​​\u200b\u200bthe amplifier and use something of a larger diameter instead of a CD, then you can significantly increase signal reception.

I found on the Internet a do-it-yourself 3g modem amplifier design, similar to my design, but with a large “antenna” diameter:

1. take aluminum basin
2. we mark the center of the basin and come up with some fasteners for the modem at this point. The modem should look exactly in the center of the basin.
3. we connect a cable with a length of 5 m or more, if during the study of your site you determined that you need to raise the amplifier higher
4. We hang the basin on the wall of the house in the direction where the signal is most captured. Can be mounted on a wooden pole and raised as high as possible above the house
5. Using the “poke method”, we select the best location for the center of the basin and finally fix it so that it does not turn around in the wind.

Instead of an aluminum basin, you can take an aluminum colander:

Homemade modem signal amplifier from a colander

They say that the signal level is increased by 3-4 times. I am going to try out this design this summer season, because I need high-quality Internet.

Why homemade? Because I already know from my design that this option works. And because, they say that a purchased amplifier for an Internet modem does not guarantee quality - “money down the drain”, because “our brother is being fooled”: a home-made one works, but a purchased one does not. There is no amplifier in it - a simple reflective desktop-type antenna ( Connect).