DIY Radio Antenna

I built a radio antenna from wood, bronze, coaxial cable, and solder, and use software-defined radio (SDR) to receive and explore amateur radio signals on my computer. The build follows Diana Eng’s Yagi antenna project featured in Make: magazine.

Receiving signals with software-defined radio

The antenna feeds an SDR receiver, which turns radio signals into digital samples for the computer to process. Software handles filtering and demodulation and lets me tune across frequencies.

Common amateur (ham) radio signals include FM voice transmissions in the VHF and UHF bands. These can be direct conversations between operators or traffic through repeaters, which receive and retransmit signals to extend their coverage.

Homemade Yagi antenna with metal elements attached to a wooden boom, mounted on a tripod beside a window — The antenna build

The antenna beside a desk with SDR software displaying a radio spectrum and waterfall on the monitor — The software-defined radio setup

Project inspiration

Credit to Diana Eng for the Yagi antenna project in MAKE Volume 24. Her project provided the guide for my build.

Read the Make: article