WSPR analysis of an EFHW and a Dipole
With only a little time for radio this month I decided to use the excellent WSPRlite from SOTABeams to compare my two staple SOTA (portable) aerials; the 3 band linked dipole and 3 band End Fed Half Wave (EFHW) (which uses SOTABeams pico traps rather than links). I achieved this using a single WSPRlite unit by using a local comparison station throughout to eliminate propagation effects.
Empirical evidence suggested that the EFHW was performing on par with the Dipole which surprised me...I expected it to be less effective. The experiment confirmed that the dipole was the better performer but also that the EFHW was only a little lower in performance and, given it's simplicity, small size and diminutive weight it remains a firm favourite for portable and SOTA activities.