Review on AUDIOVOX Remote Antenna Rotator VH226F by Julio Montano

An overview of the RCA VH226F programmable PTZ unit. This new RCA swivel assembly, as it is called, is very beautiful, well designed and durable, but there is very little information about it. I installed it on my 10 foot chimney mounted lower mast and 2 foot rotary antenna mast replacing a 45 year old Radio Shack rotor. I'll try to fill in some details.1. The body of the rotor part is metal and very strong, but I can't find any reference to the maximum antenna weight or torque. They state a maximum antenna mast length of 3 feet above the rotor. They state a main mast diameter of 1.25 inches, but specify that can accommodate a mast up to 2 inches in diameter. I assume the same goes for the antenna mast section. The bottom mounting bracket has additional holes for additional guy ropes. Be careful when installing the rotor base to the main mast. There is a protruding tab on the rotor that acts as a stop when the unit is slid onto the top of the mast. This tab should just touch the top of the main mast and protrude into the middle mast space. As you lower the rotor further, this tab will be pressed against the side of the mast and will not align and disengage the rotor with the main mast.2. There is a 3-wire interface between the control box and the rotor. The maximum length for 20 AWG 3-wire cable is listed as 150 feet, but longer cables with thicker wires are acceptable. (Be careful when connecting the 3 wires. They are numbered 1, 2, 3 on the control box and 3, 2, 1 on the rotor.) The screws are smaller than I expected and they warn of potential damage to the system if the wires are connected incorrectly, 1 to 1, 2 to 2, and 3 to 3. Both units have terminal blocks for connecting screws, and the screws have square washers that do not rotate when the screws are tightened. This helps compensate for the fact that the terminal blocks are so small. If your wires are too thick to use a U-shape around the screws, I recommend a simple straight piece of wire, maybe ¼ inch, inserted under the square washer, while the screw is tightened. (Instructions indicate ½ inch stripping.)3. The control box display only shows 2 digits in degrees, so 18 means 180 degrees. However, antenna positioning is much more accurate. The motor in the rotor unit always rotates at a constant constant speed and the control unit is synchronized with the motor unit by digitally integrating the clockwise and counterclockwise motor time. Time and rotation are set to 0 degrees in both blocks simultaneously by pressing the start button. From now on, time will be used by the control unit to track the movements of the antenna. There are no repeatability or accuracy specifications in this control system, but I find a digital timer and memory better than about 1 degree play in a mechanical one. In addition to the initial synchronization system, there is an automatic calibration system. to match the speed of the digital counter to the speed of a separate motor unit paired with a separate control unit. This relative speed calibration is performed at the factory so the user does not have to do this, but if it is ever necessary the user can recalibrate the two speeds.4. There is a memory system with 12 positions and 12 memory selection buttons. There are also clockwise and counterclockwise buttons for random control. Once a good antenna position has been found, the save button can be set to that it remembers this position by first pressing the memory button and then one of the 12 buttons. The antenna can then be brought back into this position in the future by pressing this button. The memory and current position of the antenna is saved every time it is turned on, probably with the help of flash memory, so the device can be unplugged most of the time and turned on only when the antenna needs to be rotated. There is a power switch on the control box. Memory locations can be reprogrammed and all deleted if desired.5. The indicator on the control box is red and too bright to watch TV at the same time. I used a cutout to fit a piece of black trash liner to cover the display. It turns off the display and keeps it clearly visible. The display shows the currently selected memory, A, BC, D, E, FG, H, I, J, U or L, with a single character and two digit display of the current antenna position in degrees clockwise when looking down on the antenna. , divided by 10. So 3 very bright characters must be drowned out. Overall I like this block. It is well designed and durable. Its speed is well chosen: not too high for large antennas but not too low to get there, about 55 seconds in 360 degrees, roughly the speed and direction of the seconds hand. My antenna is small but I find it can rotate even large TV antennas. I set 0 degrees west because there are no stations in that direction. Just in case, a copy of the user manual in English is allowed, in this review it can be found here: https://www.dropbox.com/s/jbvm7kaq0bizi9h/RCA%20VH22GF%20User%20Manual.pdf?dl=0 because there are no stations in this direction. Just in case, a copy of the user manual in English is allowed, in this review it can be found here: https://www.dropbox.com/s/jbvm7kaq0bizi9h/RCA%20VH22GF%20User%20Manual.pdf?dl=0 because there are no stations in this direction. Just in case, a copy of the user manual in English is allowed, in this review it can be found here: https://www.dropbox.com/s/jbvm7kaq0bizi9h/RCA%20VH22GF%20User%20Manual.pdf?dl=0 dropbox.com/s/jbvm7kaq0bizi9h/RCA%20VH22GF%20User%20Manual.pdf?dl= 0 because there are no stations in that direction. Just in case, a copy of the user manual in English is allowed, in this review it can be found here: https://www.dropbox.com/s/jbvm7kaq0bizi9h/RCA%20VH22GF%20User%20Manual.pdf?dl=0 because there are no stations in this direction. Just in case, a copy of the user manual in English is allowed, in this review it can be found here: https://www.dropbox.com/s/jbvm7kaq0bizi9h/RCA%20VH22GF%20User%20Manual.pdf?dl=0 dropbox.com/s/jbvm7kaq0bizi9h/RCA%20VH22GF%20User%20Manual.pdf?dl= 0 because there are no stations in that direction. Just in case, a copy of the user manual in English is allowed, in this review it can be found here: https://www.dropbox.com/s/jbvm7kaq0bizi9h/RCA%20VH22GF%20User%20Manual.pdf?dl=0 because there are no stations in this direction. Just in case, a copy of the user manual in English is allowed, in this review it can be found here: https://www.dropbox.com/s/jbvm7kaq0bizi9h/RCA%20VH22GF%20User%20Manual.pdf?dl=0 com/s/jbvm7kaq0bizi9h/RCA%20VH22GF%20User%20Manual.pdf?dl= 0 because there are no stations in this direction. Just in case, a copy of the user manual in English is allowed, in this review it can be found here: https://www.dropbox.com/s/jbvm7kaq0bizi9h/RCA%20VH22GF%20User%20Manual.pdf?dl=0 com/s/jbvm7kaq0bizi9h/RCA%20VH22GF%20User%20Manual.pdf?dl= 0 because there are no stations in this direction. Just in case, a copy of the user manual in English is allowed, in this review it can be found here: https://www.dropbox.com/s/jbvm7kaq0bizi9h/RCA%20VH22GF%20User%20Manual.pdf?dl=0