Ghost or stealth GMRS antennas are popular in the Jeep and overlanding community, but do they really work? Not everyone wants a large antenna on their vehicle, which is why “ghost” GMRS antennas, such as the Midland MXTA25 are often installed instead of larger 1/4 wave or 5/8 wave whips.
Full Disclosure: We did not receive any compensation or free products for this review. This post does include an affiliate link to the antenna we use.
We don’t mind having a larger antenna on our overland truck or our Jeep, yet sometimes there are situations when things like overhanging branches along a trail or parking garages in the city can be a problem. In cases like these, we’ve found it’s easy enough to unscrew our Tram-Browning 5/8 wave antenna and install a Midland MXTA25 ghost antenna on the same NMO mount.
An Unscientific Range Test of the Midland MXTA25 Ghost GMRS Antenna
For our range test of the 3.5″ tall Midland Ghost GMRS antenna we compared it to our Tram – Browning BR-180B 5/8 wave whip, which has a gain of 5.5 dB on UHF. This has been our go-to antenna for both ham and GMRS and we like the flexibility of being able to do both with one antenna.
The other antenna we compared the MXTA25 to was a cheap dual band VHF/UHF ghost antenna made by Eightwood (Bingfu). This antenna is 3.5″ tall like the Midland antenna and claims to have a gain of 3 dB.
We had the help of a friend in Manor, Texas, who has a 50 watt GMRS base station with an omni-directinal 5.5 dB gain antenna at about 35′.
- Radios – Btech GMRS-50X1 (mobile) – Midland MXT-500 (base)
- Power – 42 watts (mobile), 50 watts (base)
- Frequency – GMRS Channel 16 – 462.650
- Antennas Used – Base – Dual band omni-directional with 5.5 dB gain at 35′. Mobile – 3.5″ Midland MXTA25 Stealth, 3.5″ Eightwood Dual Band VHF/UHF stealth, 37″ Tram-Browning BR-180B dual band – 5.5dB gain. (NMO antenna mount on truck roof is slightly off center).
- Terrain – Level, lightly rolling countryside, mixed Suburban/Rural (homes, businesses, billboards, overhead power lines along route.
The Results of Our Test
We decided that any two-way communication between the radios would be successful if readability of 3 or better (readable with difficulty) was achieved. Driving east from Manor along US-290 with the first antenna installed, (the dual band Eightwood) we talked back and forth until the base station could no longer copy our transmission.
After 5 1/2 miles the base station could barely read our transmission and at 6 miles we no longer broke their squelch, so we turned around and returned to the same spot and installed the Midland MXTA25 GMRS ghost antenna. After screwing it on, the base station could copy our signal with a readability of 4 (almost perfectly readable).
We continued down US-290, checking our signal with the base station until reaching 7 miles, where our signal dropped below readable levels.
We stopped at that point, installed the Tram-Browning 5.5 dB gain antenna. Our signal at this point after changing to the Browning was 4 (almost perfectly readable). We continued traveling east, with some difficulty at low spots along the highway, reaching a distance of 12 miles (up on a slight rise in the terrain) after which our signal became unreadable past that point.
Results
- Tram – Browning BR-180B – 12 miles
- Midland MXTA25 – 7 miles
- Eightwood Dual Band Stealth Antenna – 5 1/2 miles
Update 09/18/22: Our farthest contact using the MXTA25 ghost antenna has been with a base station 32 miles from our home. Not too bad for a 3″ antenna!
What We Learned
We learned that the cheap dual band ham stealth or ghost antenna made by Eightwood wasn’t quite as effective as the Midland one of a similar size. While it still worked well for up to 5 miles, it also had a higher SWR (a measure of reflected power back into our radio) of 1.5 (actual meter reading in photo below), compared to 1.1 for the Midland MXTA25 and Tram-Browning antennas. (To learn how to set SWR for a whip antenna see our post The Easy Way to Tune a GMRS Antenna.
Note For Amateur Radio Operators – We had hopes of using the Eightwood/Bingfu dual band for both 2 Meter ham (VHF) and GMRS radios (UHF), but SWR was so high it was unusable on VHF. Because of higher SWR we DO NOT recommend you use one of the cheap dual band ghost antennas for 2 meter ham or GMRS.
(We sent the Binfu back!) We also thought the Midland Ghost antenna might be usable on the ham 440 band, but SWR there was very high. It is a GMRS only antenna.
5/8 Wave Whip Offered Best Range
We got the best range when using the Tram-Browning 5.5 dB gain whip, with 12 miles being the farthest we could talk in this case. Our goal was to see how effective the Ghost GMRS antennas performed and we were surprised by how well each worked, especially the Midland MXTA25.
I was skeptical at first, but after seeing how well the Midland MXTA25 Ghost Antenna worked (7 miles base to mobile is decent in a suburban setting) we now leave it on more often. Mobile to mobile we still can get about 5 miles range in flat, open country between our car and truck, both using ghost antennas. (This is not excellent range, yet good enough for keeping in touch between vehicles when traveling together.)
GMRS Range Is Mostly Line of Sight
It’s important to note that, unlike CB or even VHF radio, UHF GMRS radio signals travel only about as far as the line of sight. If a person standing on top of our base antenna could see us in the mobile with powerful binoculars, they could talk to us. Beyond that, more power or better antennas wouldn’t help all that much.
Where a bit of extra dB of antenna gain from the 37″ Tram Browning whip came in handy is when we needed a bit more power to push past things like roadside billboards, houses and light tree cover as we got farther out.
A Cautionary Note About High SWR on GMRS Repeater Channels
GMRS repeater input frequencies are 5 Mhz higher. If you use these, make sure your antenna is matched for them.
When you use a GMRS radio on repeater channels, your transmission will be on the input frequency, which is 5 MHz higher than the ordinary GMRS channel. If you plan on using your antenna for repeater use, make sure you check the SWR on the repeater channels. The Midland MXTA25 had an SWR of 1.5 on repeater channels (acceptable), and 1.1 (excellent) on regular GMRS channels. The Eightwood/Bingfu was unusable on GMRS repeater channels, with an accessible but not impressive SWR of 2.0.
Your Mileage Will Vary
Each situation when communicating with another GMRS radio will be different, and a stealth GMRS antenna like the Midland MXTA25 Ghost antenna might be enough for most GMRS users daily use. If your situation is more sketchy, or you’re trying to reach to a distant repeater, the ability to screw on a higher gain antenna can be worth it. (That’s why we like mobile GMRS antennas with NMO mounts.)
If you want maximum range from your GMRS radio and can leave a high gain whip on your vehicle, that’s probably the best way to go. On the other hand, if you don’t mind sacrificing some range, the Midland Ghost GMRS antenna should perform fairly well under most conditions. Using the Midland MXTA25 we’ve since connected with local repeaters from 20 miles away (from a high spot.)
We Also Found This “Shark Fin” Ghost Antenna
The shark fin antenna above is another cheap, imported dual band VHF/UHF stealth antenna that we found online. It serves at a GMRS antenna on the car, and actually works fairly well for that purpose, yet works poorly on VHF. We’ve run 50 watts into it with no problem and SWR runs about 1.1 on GMRS frequencies. We did not include this antenna in our stealth GMRS antenna test but it performs similarly to both of the GMRS ghost antennas tested above.
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Update: Shortly after writing this post, I did a quick range test of a 4″ shark fin GMRS (dual band) antenna. (sold under various brands). On GMRS channel 16 I was able to talk to my wife on her 15 watt Midland micro-mobile from a 50 watt Btech GMRS-50X1 in the truck (truck using the Midland Ghost antenna) at a distance of 5.5 miles across a heavily developed urban area.
Later we tried it as we drove on a wide, open stretch of highway north of Austin and achieved 10 miles of range between vehicles. All in all, this cheap shark fin stealth antenna works pretty well for GMRS.
Note: We tested this antenna on both regular and GMRS repeater channels (UHF) and on the VHF ham band. SWR was 1.1 on GMRS frequencies – so it works great there – but was not usable on VHF because of high SWR.
We hope this article was helpful in deciding whether or not to use a ghost GMRS antenna. The bottom line is, that from our perspective, they do work pretty well, just not quite as well as full sized GMRS antennas. If you hate visible antennas on your vehicle and still want to use GMRS, they are a great solution when mounted properly.
Related Article – How Far Does GMRS Radio Work?
Full Disclosure: This post may include affiliate links.
