WaveForm MIMO User manual

by
Your MIMO External Antenna is sold and supported by Waveform
and our team of Signal Specialists.
We’ve helped over 20,000 customers boost their signal since our
company was founded in 2007. We’ve installed and con gured
thousands of devices in buildings across the country, and we’re
here to help. If you have any issues at all, please don’t hesitate to
reach out.
52 Maxwell,
Irvine, CA 92618
[phone]
www.waveform.com
[email protected]
About Waveform
MIMO External
Antennas
We know, reading manuals isn’t always fun. But we promise it’s worth it.
We’ve helped hundreds of customers improve signal to their cellular LTE/5G
routers. We’ve compiled everything we’ve learned in this manual.
Give it a read before you start: it’ll save you time and help you get the best
performance out of your MIMO External Antenna.
PLEASE READ THIS FIRST:

Antennas
Depending on which antenna you purchased, you’ll either have a single MIMO Panel Antenna
or two Log Periodic Antennas. We recommend using the Log Periodic Antennas if you have
line-of-sight to your nearest cell towers. Our MIMO Panel Antenna may perform slightly betterf
you’re surrounded by trees, buildings, or hills.
Cables and Adapters (optional, only included with complete kit)
If you purchased a complete antenna kit, the parts listed below will also come included.
What’s in the Box
Clear bag
Optional: 2x Lighting
Protector Kits
Blue bag
Red bag
J-Mount Bracket
and Hardware
Yellow bag
2x N-Male to N-Male
Barrel Adapters
J-Mount Antenna
Mount
Pigtail Adapters
(2x U.FL, 2x TS9 or 2x SMA)
2x 30 ft
RS400 Cables
or
1x MIMO
Panel Antenna
2x Log
Periodic Antennas
2

Heads up: using MIMO antennas to improve your signal can take a bit of patience.
We’d be surprised if you saw better data rates immediately upon connecting the antennas.
Be prepared to spend an hour or two to  nd the right location and direction for your antennas.
This manual is based on feedback from hundreds of customers like you. We’ve revised it
dozens of times based to make it as helpful as possible and make the process of getting better
data rates as easy as we can.
We promise you’ll be glad if you read it from start to  nish before you get started. It’ll help you
save time, avoid the most common pitfalls, and ensure your system works as well as possible.
Who We Are
Hi! We’re Waveform. We’ve been around since 2007, and while we’ve grown a bunch since
then we’re still a small team. There’s just a handful of us answering texts, and picking up calls.
The four of us pictured below lead support and product development. Feel free to reach out to
us at any time; our emails are all just our  rst names @waveform.com
Ian (Support) Sina (CEO) Harry (Support) Marcus (Product)
Stuck? Have Questions? Please: Contact Us!
We’re a small team, but we really care about helping you get the best results.
Talking to customers is what helps us improve our products. We can also help troubleshoot,
and sometimes a small tweak we suggest can make all the difference.
Even if everything goes smoothly, reach out and let us know how your system is performing.
We love getting feedback: let us know if there’s any way we could have made the install
process or this manual better.
Call us at [phone] or email [email protected]. We’re available from 9am-5pm PT,
Monday to Friday.
Install Manuals, Who Needs ‘Em?
3

It’s important that there’s at least some 4G LTE or 5G signal outside or on the roof of the
building where you’re installing the MIMO antennas, and ideally it should be “usable.” If you
don’t have usable signal outside, proceed with caution, and consider giving us a call.
What Do We Mean by “Usable”?
When you take your cellular router or hotspot outdoors, you should have a reliable data
connection even without connecting your new external MIMO antenna(s). When running a
speed test, you should have at least 0.1 Mbps download and upload speed.
MIMO antennas will help condition the outdoor signal and get you better data rates. But if the
signal outside your building isn’t usable to begin with, MIMO antennas might not help.
You can certainly still give the MIMO antenna a shot, but you may still be unable to connect.
Compatibility
First, a quick reminder: our MIMO Panel and Log Periodic Antennas support almost every
3G, 4G LTE, and low/mid-band 5G service in use in the US and across the world. Here are the
bands they cover:
Supports all 4G LTE bands between 600 and 2700 MHz, including:
B2, B4, B5, B12, B17, B29, B30, B66
B2, B4, B5, B13, B66
B2, B4, B5, B12, B25 B26, B41, B66, B71
Supports all 5G bands between 600 and 2700 MHz, including:
n2, n5, n66
n2, n5, n66
n41, n71
Before You Start
00
4

How Much Improvement Should You Expect?
In short: it’s hard to say. Many people see an increase in data rates of between 50% and 200%.
But some people only see 10%. Our CEO often says that despite all the science, wireless
signals often work in “strange and magical” ways.
One thing is for sure: the more patient you are and the more locations and directions you try,
the more likely you are to see a big increase in data rates.
If you’ve gone through this manual and aimed the antenna(s) as we suggest, but you’re still not
seeing much improvement, reach out to us for help. We’re generally available from 9 am to 5
pm PT, Monday to Friday, and we love helping solve tricky install problems.
This is the process that we suggest using for installing your MIMO External Antenna:
1Read this manual. Ideally from start to nish so that you understand the whole process
before you begin.
2Assemble your antenna(s) to your mount. Start by assembling your mount and
attaching your MIMO Panel Antenna or cross-polarized Log Periodic Antennas.
3Find the best antenna location and direction. This step is the most time-consuming, but
it’s worth the effort. Getting it right has a huge impact on your system’s performance.
Make notes of your readings on the table in section 4.
4Verify performance and hard-wire everything. Without making any holes in your roof or
walls, temporarily run the cable indoors to your hotspot or router and run speed tests. If
everything looks good, it’s time to nalize cable runs and hard-wire everything.
5Tell us how your system is doing. We really love hearing how our customers’ systems
are performing. Send an email or give us a call and let us know how things look.
Install Process Overview
01
5

The pictures below show how your antenna(s) should be secured to your mount. We’ve shown
this with the optional J-Mount, included only in the complete kit, but any mount will do.
If you have two Log Periodic Antennas: Note how the two Log Periodic Antennas on the right
are angled at 45 degrees in opposite directions. This is called “cross-polarization” and is crucial
to MIMO. Mount these exactly as in the image and then treat them as a single antenna.
For the next step in section 3 it’ll be helpful to have your antennas attached to your mount, so
take some time now to get these set up before moving on.
If you’d like more detailed instructions on how to assemble our J-Mount and mount the
L-bracket(s), you can  nd that online at waveform.com/polemount-instructions
Assembling the Antenna(s)
02
6

Finding the right antenna position for your MIMO antenna(s) is the most important part of the
install. In this section, we explain the best and simplest method for positioning and aiming.
Section 7 covers some more advanced tips that we don’t recommend for most users.
The Goal
Your aim is to  nd the best location and direction for the antenna(s). The location should
maximize data rates to your LTE/5G router or hotspot. It can take a little patience, but spending
some time here can have a huge impact – it’s worth a bit of extra effort.
Set up Your MIMO Antenna in “Test Mode”
Is your hotspot or router battery-powered?
Or do you have a power extension cord?
If so, set up your MIMO antenna(s) in “test
mode” by connecting them directly to your
router. Take your hotspot and antenna
outside with you, and you’ll have everything
you need to start testing different locations
and directions.
Here’s how to set up your hotspot and antenna(s) in test mode, if you’re using the adapters
included in the complete kit:
Don’t have a way of taking your router outdoors with you? No problem. Just keep your router
or hotspot indoors near a power socket, and use a longer coax cable in place of the barrel
adapters so you can take just the antenna(s) outside.
Positioning and Aiming the Antenna(s)
03
POWER EXTENSION
CABLE
MIMO Panel or Cross-Polarized
Log Periodic Antennas
Barrel Adapters
Connect pigtails to the cellular
antenna ports on your router
Speedtests on
hotspot/router WiFi
7

If you aren’t able to bring your router or hotspot outside with you, then your connection speed
may be limited by the router’s WiFi range rather than its cellular connection. So we recommend
asking a second person to stay near the hotspot or router with a phone: ask them to run speed
tests as you try different positions with the antenna(s).
Running Speed Tests
Since the goal is improved data rates, it makes sense to use a speed test app to measure your
data rates through your cellular router or hotspot’s WiFi.
If you’re testing with your phone, download our favorite speed test app (“Speedtest by Ookla”)
by visiting this URL: waveform.com/speedtest. If you’re using a laptop, visit speedtest.net in a
browser. Go ahead and run a couple of speed tests indoors from a device connected to your
router or hotspot’s WiFi. You’ll notice your results fl uctuate a little between tests – that’s normal.
Now go outside. With each location and direction you try, run 1-2 speed tests, and make a
note of the results in the table on the opposite page.
How to Position & Aim
Finding the right antenna location and direction takes some patience, but it’s absolutely worth
it. Spending time to get it right will have a big impact on your system’s performance. Here are
all the locations and directions where we recommend testing your MIMO antenna(s):
Don’t just go to the highest point of the roof! While signal is generally stronger the higher you
go, there’s also often more interference. We’ve found it’s often better to mount the antenna(s)
on the side of the building where the structure can shield the antennas from interference.
Once you’ve found the best antenna location and direction, move on to section 5 below to
get ready for your  nal installation.
8

Use the table below to make notes of your data rate measurements while you’re positioning
and aiming the antenna(s).
Position and Direction Download Speed Upload Speed
Your Data Rate Measurements
04
9

Once you’ve identied the best location for your antenna(s), it’s time to set up a provisional
install. Keep your antenna(s) outside in the location you’ve selected, but run the cables and test
your router/hotspot indoors.
Don’t drill any holes in your walls yet! Start with a temporary install to make sure everything is
working well, as described in the next section of the manual.
If you purchased the complete kit with your MIMO antenna(s), follow the steps below to
assemble and install your MIMO Antenna kit. If you just purchased the antenna, your assembly
may look a little different.
Getting the Complete Kit Set Up
Refer to the diagram to the right as needed, for assembling the complete kit.
1Secure your MIMO Panel Antenna or Log Periodic Antennas to your mount if you
haven’t already. If your kit includes the 2x Log Periodic Antennas, be sure to cross-
polarize them at ±45° from vertical (90° to each other). See section 2 above for more
information.
2Mount the antenna(s) outdoors in the location and direction where you found the fastest
data rates using the method described in section 3.
3Connect your MIMO Panel Antenna or Log Periodic Antennas directly to the coax cables
(RS400 if you purchased the complete kit).
4Connect the two coax cables to the adapters and hand-tighten them.
5Connect the two adapters to your cellular router or hotspot.
05 Assembling Your System
10

MIMO Panel Antenna or cross polarized Log Periodic Antennas
Depending on which kit you purchased. Shown with the optional J-Mount .
Your LTE/5G router
Connect the pigtails to the cellular
antenna ports, not the WiFi antenna
ports (if your unit has them).
Check your manual or search online
if you’re not sure which is which.
SMA, TS9 or U.Fl to
N-Female Pigtail Adapter x2
Included with the optional kit only.
Which one you use depends on
the connectors on your hotspot or
router.
30 ft RS400 Cable x2
Included with the
optional kit only.
11

Before drilling holes in your walls, we recommend running cables temporarily through a
window or door and testing to make sure that everything still works well.
If you’re happy with your data rates, you can start drilling holes and moving to a permanent
install.
If you’re having issues with your temporary setup, or aren’t happy with the performance, don’t
panic! We can help you gure it out. Call us at [phone] or email [email protected].
We’re available from 9am-5pm PT, Monday to Friday.
A Quick Note on Surge Protection & Grounding
We recommend using two Lightning Surge Protector Kits to ground your outdoor antenna.
These protect your router or hotspot in case of lightning and prevent high-voltage power from
entering your home. The surge protectors should be installed just before the coaxial cable
enters the building.
You can pick up a pair of Lightning Surge Protector Kits at waveform.com/surge-protector.
Both the surge protectors and your mount itself should be grounded. We recommend using at
least 10 AWG cable. Keep in mind the numbers increase as the cable gets thinner. So 6 AWG
and 8 AWG are both okay, but 12 AWG and 14 AWG are too thin.
If you have a satellite or HDTV antenna on your roof already, it’s likely grounded. You can
simply ground the mast and lightning surge protectors to the satellite dish. Alternatively, you
can ground your mast and antenna(s) directly to a grounding rod. Most homes should have a
grounding rod, but if yours doesn’t you can purchase one easily at a hardware store.
Even if you don’t purchase a lightning surge protector, you should still make sure to at least
ground your J-Mount.
Weatherproong Outdoor Connections
N-type connectors are outdoor-rated, but water can still sometimes get in and cause issues. We
strongly recommend wrapping all outdoor N-type connections with stretch-and-seal self-fusing
silicone rubber tape (available from most hardware stores).
Test & Install Permanently
06
12

Advanced Optimization
07
By this point, you should have a really solid understanding of how to aim your MIMO
antenna(s) and get great performance. In fact, we’re convinced that for 95% of people, the
instructions provided in this manual so far are more than enough.
If, however, you’d like to go a little deeper and get technical to optimize your system even
further, here are some general guidelines.
1 Look up your nearby towers on CellMapper.net. Try to nd the eNodeBIDs that your
LTE/5G router or hotspot is connecting to using the device’s admin interface.
2Aim your antenna(s) at each nearby tower and band lock your hotspot or router to every
band that the tower transmits. Run speed tests on each band to nd the fastest bands.
3 Try enabling multiple bands and using carrier aggregation to nd the fastest band
combination. Carrier aggregation allows your devices to connect to two or more bands
simultaneously but doesn’t always result in an improvement. Stick to a single band if
that gets you the best results.
Unfortunately, some devices don’t offer band locking, and many don’t list eNodeBIDs or any
kind of cell tower identiers, making these steps impossible. Every cellular router and hotspot
is so different that we could never cover all of them with just one set of instructions.
However, we’ve written up guides for some of the most common devices, you can nd them
online at waveform.com/hotspot-guides.
We suggest reading our guide for your router, or referring to your user manual.
We’re Here to Help!
We know, there’s a lot of information out there and this can get very technical. Don’t be afraid!
If you’re having difculty, aren’t happy with the performance of your system, or you’d just
like a hand, we’d love to help! Call us at [phone] or email [email protected]. We’re
generally available from 9am-5pm PT, Monday to Friday.
13

Here are our nal tips for a smooth installation and for good performance:
- If you have extra cable, don’t coil it tightly.
If you have extra cable, make sure to keep any cable loops as large as possible to minimize
negative side-effects (4 ft or wider loops are best).
- If data rates decrease over time, consider re-optimizing your system.
Occasionally carriers will change their towers to broadcast different bands, light up new
towers, or simply turn off existing towers altogether. If your data rates suddenly get worse, try
re-aiming your antenna(s) to get the best results.
Did your installation go great? Are you having trouble aiming your antenna(s)? Do you think
our manual could be improved? Are your data rates not quite what you were hoping?
We’d love to hear from you: give us a call at [phone] or email [email protected].
We’re not a huge, nameless corporation with lots of bureaucracy. There is a small team of us
who wrote this manual and provide support for our products, and we love hearing how our
products perform and understanding how we can get the absolute best cell signal in any given
situation.
So please, reach out!
Tell Us How It Works
09
Some Final Tips
08
14

Hopefully by the time you've nished installing and tuning your MIMO antenna,
you're as excited about this product as we are.
One of our biggest challenges is spreading the word. Most people don't know
that products like our MIMO antenna exist.
Help us get the word out: everyone you refer gets 5% off their kit, and we'll also
give you 5% of whatever they spend in cash (via Paypal).
Simply visit waveform.com/referrals to get started.
Excited about your MIMO antenna?
Get 5% for each friend, family, or neighbor you
refer.
15

52 Maxwell,
Irvine, CA 92618 [phone] www.waveform.com [email protected]
Need help? We’re ready and waiting.
MIMO Antennas aren’t always easy to install. In fact,
getting everything up and running can sometimes be a
pain. But the end result is worth it.
One of the bene ts of buying from Waveform is our
lifetime technical support on every system we sell. We’ve
installed hundreds of these devices ourselves, and can
walk you through troubleshooting and  ne-tuning your
installation for best results.
Simply give us a call at [phone], or pop us an
email at [email protected]. We’re generally available
from 9 am to 5 pm PT, Monday to Friday.
We love helping solve tricky install problems.