Common mode current induced by radiated sources (plasma TV, routers, computers, transmitters, etc) can be picked up by the outside of the coax braid from the antenna feed point back to the receiver. This portion of the coax braid acts like a receiving antenna, picking up common mode noise signals that override weak signals making them difficult or impossible to hear! The solution? A common mode noise filter with high choking impedance at the receiver end of the coax. Do you have common mode noise on your coax? Here is a simple test (pdf) 1. Remove the coax connector and measure the noise level. Common mode noise suppression with the Palomar CMNF series of filters is typically 25-36 dB which is equivalent to 4-6 “S” units on radios with 6 dB/”S” unit or may be more on radios with 3dB/”S” unit. Note for antenna switch users, perform the above test on each antenna coax lead separately to determine if that particular antenna braid is contributing noise to the receiver – use a coax noise filter on the antennas that have common mode noise.Coax Common Mode Noise Filter
2. Now insert the coax connector CENTER CONDUCTOR ONLY into the SO-239 antenna input and measure
the noise level (it should be higher and include possible signals)
3. Now connect the OUTER SHELL of the coax connector to the antenna input and measure the noise
level. If it is higher you have common mode noise and the common mode noise filter will help suppress this noise which
is carried on the outside of the coax braid (acting as a second receive antenna).
For RFI common mode suppression use, mix 31 is effective from 1-300 Mhz, mix 43 works from 25-300 Mhz, Mix 61 is for 200-2000 Mhz, and mix 77 favors .1-50 MHz. These frequencies are those of the interfering signal to be eliminated, not the operating frequencies of the equipment to be protected. See Mix Selection for other applications.
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Bead dimensions are shown in the picture below and in the table as A, B, C
Ferrite Bead Dimensions
Application Note: Use impedances for each bead at your desired frequency to select number of beads needed for desired Z. For example if you have a 50 ohm RG-8 coax cable and want a choking impedance of 500 ohms at 10 Mhz, you can check the FB102 column (since FB102 will pass RG-8 through its center ID) at 10Mhz and find that Mix 31 has a Z of 108 ohms/bead and Mix 43 has a Z of 91 ohms/bead. For 500 ohms we would need 5 mix 31 beads or 6 mix 43 beads to have greater than 500 ohms. Mix 31 has better response below 10 Mhz but above 10 Mhz mix 31 and mix 43 are very close. If you need more Z, just use more beads in series on the cable or use more windings thru a larger ID bead (e.g. USE FB102-31 for 4 turns of RG-8X for 16X increase in Z per bead – see pictures below for examples). Use Mix 61 for VHF and above for RFI/EMI suppression and below 30 Mhz for multi-ratio impedance transformers (baluns/ununs). See Mix Selection for other applications.
For extra large cables use the FB400-31 which has an inside diameter of 3 inches (76mm).
Frequency Range Comparison Chart
(FB56-xx size)
Multi-turn Common Mode Choking Impedance Increase Example (FB56-43)
Ferrite Bead relative size comparison
Left to right sizes: FB56 (ID = .25″), FB102 (ID=.505″), FB103 (ID=.77″)
SLIP ON Sizes for Heliax and Coax Cable
Cascaded Common Mode Chokes/Line Isolators/1:1 Baluns
 RG58 4 turns on 2 FB102-31 for 2000 ohms choking impedance |
 RG58 12 turns on FT240-43 for 4000-6000 ohms choking impedance |
Handy Wire Size reference for ferrite bead sizes needed
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Connector already on cable? See Snap On Ferrite Beads for convenient installation on cables with connector already installed.