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[cancunia]

I have a +/- 45 deg cross polarised antenna made for 4G but I use 3G for data as 3G is much faster where I live. I've noticed a significant difference in speeds depending on which way round (main vs aux) the cables from the antenna are connected to my router. I have 2 different routers and get very similar results, an approx 8mbit/s difference. I'm wondering if this is normal or if there's a fault with the antenna or perhaps the antenna cabling, but if it was a cabling / antenna fault it should make no difference which way round the cables are?

   

[Alex Atkin UK]

It might, depending on how the logic works for how its using the antennas.

I'd think they would both be equal using MIMO, but perhaps they aren't and indeed one is being used as primary.  Maybe only one transmits, or one is used for management traffic, so if that's the one with the best signal then logically it would perform better overall.

You could try just one at a time, in primary.  Then do the same in aux, and see what happens?

Given they do label them as Primary and Aux, it would suggest there is a difference in how they are used.

[cancunia]

Thanks. I'll try what you suggested and see what happens. I'll also try the antenna at 45 degrees in case the 3G signal is vertically polarised.

[Alex Atkin UK]

When it comes to things like that I always think it comes down to tinkering rather than "how its supposed to work".

Example, I have a point to point WiFi link across the road but one antenna is outdoors, the other indoors (they're both designed to be outdoors).

As such, aiming them directly at each other doesn't actually give the best results, the trick seems to be to pickup reflections as the wall between them blocks direct reception so it seems to be more stable and faster bouncing off the balcony wall through the window at an odd angle.

Of course with mobile ideally you'd mount the antenna high enough to get direct line of sight to the tower.  Neither of my 5G routers have outdoor antennas though so there again I think its guesswork on how to navigate the houses and bushes between me and the tower.  Putting them where I think it would be more direct, doesn't actually get the best signal.

[cancunia]

Mixed results with the antenna at 45 deg. The Proroute Gem 420 was noticeably faster with the cables one way around but would not connect with the cables the other way. The B535-333 was pretty much the same both ways, just a bit faster. I'll put the antenna back to 'normal' as it looked odd at 45 deg with the cables hanging out the side.
Maybe Three will uprate the 4G on the tower I use at some point in line with their intention to switch off 3G next year. For now, I'm happy with the 12-25 Mbit/s I get with 3G vs the 3-4Mbit/s I get with ADSL.