Picking up where this old thread left off....
Does anyone have a 3d model for a C7 wall mount that accommodates for the antennas?
I'm also in the camp looking for Hue and Lutron wall mounts too if anyone has those!
For reference the original External Antenna thread.
Looking at the positioning of the antennas, it looks like my wall mount (or desk stand) could work. Worst case one of the retainer clips for the wall mount could be shifted (since my design includes the OpenSCAD file) or removed (even after printing).
this works depending on where you mount antennas
or this for a C4 I think is same size ?
I'll probably have a wall mount for my custom case in a couple days.
Didn't take as long as I thought it would. I haven't tested it as the model is printing now but here's a link to it.
https://www.printables.com/model/284424-hubitat-custom-case-wall-mount
Update: The wall mount fits the custom case perfectly but it's an itty bit too small for the stock case. You could probably increase the size by 1-2% and it would work fine for the stock hub.
This thread just motivated me to order the design below from JLCPCB (black resin SLA), so I can get my hub further away from my router.
Some good options here, thanks! I'll see exactly where the antennas end up and go from there. This one is going out in my barn so not the nicest of environments but not terrible either.
Curious to see how much range I'll have and hoping I'll easily be able to reach my other barn and chicken coop.
Here's to hoping the C8 or next revision includes external antennas too!! (or at least an option to buy it that way)
This is where I should have spent more time. Oh, and also remembering to mark which connector goes to which antenna. Learn from my mistakes, so you can make completely new ones!
3 weeks later (mostly due to cheapest shipping). Turns out that my antenna placement left zero margin, but works! Not sure when I will wall mount, since I am heading out of town.
I made a little site for the mod since they closed the other thread. I'll add more detail in a couple of days but it's well summarized.
I have a long-since decommissioned Luxul XW-24-FP7 sitting around collecting dust. Does anyone see any issues with using this as the antenna for this mod? I don't have any Zigbee devices, so this is Z-Wave only.
It's a 7db High Gain 2.4GHz powered external antenna that used to be paired to an 802.11G AP. It's more or less this one: https://www.wirelessphonegallery.com/pdf/XW-24I-FP7-Lux-MM-Spec.pdf
That'll be no good. Zigbee is 2.4GHz but Z Wave is a 868MHz in the UK/EU and 900MHz in the US
Right...duh. I think I knew that but had a brain fart when I saw people discussion using 2.4 - but that was obviously for the zigbee side.
Another beneficiary of @lewis.heidrick 's kindness here.
I was hoping to be able to stash my hub on a shelf inside my closed rack. Just got back the hub he upgraded and I am now using the dual antenna mount (which he found for me to buy on Amazon...more kindness).
All but 3 of my 39 Z-Wave devices are now directly connected.
Add my thanks to the others given to Lewis for sharing his knowledge and skill--Thanks!
That mount worked out great for me too!
OMG, that will be exactly what I need when I do this mod. Perfect.
As others have mentioned numerous times: If you're thinking about doing this, just do it. Hopefully the theoretical C-8 already will have this connector built in, but in the meantime, this is a great upgrade. If you have a moderate level of soldering skill, you can do it.
One thing to be aware of (stating the obvious): in @lewis.heidrick's awesome tutorial (which you definitely need to read and watch) the photos/videos are VERY zoomed in (macro lens, I think). These parts are tiny. Even with tweezers, it's a bit tricky to get the connector where you want it, but eventually you get it. Just take your time.
It's funny, when I first watched the video, I hadn't yet taken apart my Hub nor received the parts. I was wondering why you had put such a massive glob of flux paste on the connectors.
Yeah...I get it now.
Yea, that glob was only about 2mm.
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