Our Blog
Is a Longer Antenna Cable Ever Better? (Almost Never: Here's Why)
A product designer hides a 2.4 GHz antenna inside a metal enclosure, then adds a 2 m extension cable to put it outside. The link range goes up, even though cable loss is now 3 dB. That sounds wrong. It is not, and it is the one case where a longer … More
Posted on 10/13/2026
Best Coaxial Cable for 433 MHz Devices (Remotes, Sensors, ISM)
For a 433 MHz device, choose a short 50 ohm pigtail when routing and connector size dominate, and a lower-loss feeder when the antenna must be several meters away. There is no single best cable: total insertion loss at the installed length matters … More
Posted on 10/13/2026
RG213 and RG214 Cables: High-Power Coax for HF/VHF Systems
RG213 and RG214 are nominal 50 Ω, roughly 10 mm-class coaxial cable families commonly considered for radio interconnects and HF/VHF feeder work. RG214 typically adds a second braid and silver-plated conductors; that does not automatically make it l… More
Posted on 10/13/2026
Sourcing RF Cable Assemblies from India: Quality, Compliance and Make-in-India Advantages
A procurement lead at a US radio company has bought RF cable assemblies from one overseas source for years. A tariff change, a long shipping delay and one lot with high VSWR in the same quarter convince her to qualify a second source. The shortlist… More
Posted on 10/13/2026
What Is the Difference Between RG316 and RG316D?
A buyer orders 200 pigtails and sees two lines on the quote: RG316 and RG316D. The price differs by a few cents per meter. Is the second one a better cable or just a different label? It is a different construction, with one real change: an extra sh… More
Posted on 10/13/2026
Insertion Loss vs Return Loss vs VSWR: The Three Numbers That Define Every RF Cable
A datasheet lists a cable assembly as "VSWR 1.3 max, insertion loss 0.8 dB max at 6 GHz." Another says "return loss 17.7 dB min." A buyer wonders whether the second cable is worse. It is the same quality: VSWR 1.3 is a return loss of 17.7 dB. Inse… More
Posted on 10/13/2026
Can Coaxial Cable Go Bad Over Time? Aging, Storage and Shelf Life
A stockroom finds a spool of RG58 from 2009. The jacket is stiff and chalky, and a purchasing manager asks whether it is still good. A second engineer has an RG316 jumper from the same year that looks new. Both are coax, and they age very different… More
Posted on 10/13/2026
Best Cable and Connectors for 2.4 GHz ISM Band Projects
For a 2.4 GHz ISM project, choose a 50 ohm cable assembly whose complete insertion loss, connector interface and routing suit the device. Keep miniature board pigtails short; use a lower-loss feeder when moving the antenna several meters away.A Wi-… More
Posted on 10/13/2026
RG6 vs RG58: Why 75 Ohm and 50 Ohm Cables Aren't Interchangeable
A spare TV coax reel looks like an economical way to extend a radio antenna. The connectors can be adapted, and the thicker cable may even have lower attenuation at the band of interest. Yet the radio expects a different transmission-line impedance… More
Posted on 10/13/2026
dB, dBm, dBi and dBd Explained: The RF Units Cheat Sheet
A radio datasheet lists transmit power as 23 dBm, an antenna as 5 dBi, and a cable loss of 1.5 dB. A new engineer asks if she can add them all. She can, but only if she knows which are absolute and which are relative, and that mixing the two the wr… More
Posted on 10/13/2026