Televes’ Yagi BIII Beats Antennas Direct C5 in independent testing

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Why pay more? An independent engineer tested our Televes Yagi BIII VHF antenna against the much more expensive Antennas Direct Clearstream C5. Solid Signal sells both antennas so I knew we’d win either way.

What I didn’t expect was that the Televes antenna, at one quarter the price of the Antennas Direct unit, would meet or exceed AD’s antenna in almost every test. Take a look for yourself at TVFool Forums, or check out some of the relevant results here:


Charts courtesy of TVFool.com

The tester, “Tripelo,” built his own test rig and as you’ll see if you read his whole thread he has tested a lot of antennas with very professional quality results. He includes several other tests of the Yagi BIII as well and I have to commend him for the excellent quality work and the high level of professionalism he shows here.

What you’re seeing is that results for the two antennas are VERY similar and across the spectrum, the Televes antenna either outperforms or comes very close to the Antennas Direct one. This is great news for people who are looking for the best quality antenna but don’t want to spend a lot.

Normally when you see results like these you would expect that the less expensive antenna would be less durable. That’s not the case here. I’ve tested both antennas myself personally and I think that on balance they are evenly matched in the durability department. The C5 has a more durable antenna element but the reflector is not as strong as the directors and reflector of the Yagi BIII. The Yagi BIII shares some of the same parts with Televes’ much more expensive antennas, meaning that you get the same durability as those other antennas in a much less expensive antenna.

I think that no matter which antenna you go with you’re going to be very happy, but as for me I would be even happier with an extra $100 in my pocket. Wouldn’t you?

Solid Signal provided the Yagi BIII antenna to TVFool tester “Tripelo” for testing, without charge, but had no editorial control of the content or testing results.

About the Author

Stuart Sweet
Stuart Sweet is the editor-in-chief of The Solid Signal Blog and a "master plumber" at Signal Group, LLC. He is the author of over 10,000 articles and longform tutorials including many posted here. Reach him by clicking on "Contact the Editor" at the bottom of this page.