Until recently I've simply been using a telescopic antenna positioned in bay window of my bedroom where I receive the best reception.
I have now moved this into the loft and after experimenting on the best position (which is not always simply the highest I can get it) my reception has dramatically improved! I am still just using a telescopic antenna with a BNC connection to rg8 coax cable and what has always improved reception for me is having a similar length of wire hanging straight down 'trapped' in the earth side of the connector which is effectively creating a dipole type antenna.
My telescopic is extended to just under 23 inches (about 58cm) so it is tuned to 259Mhz which is precisely the middle of both the VHF and UHF airbands (118-400Mhz) and it is proving very effective.
For the first time in years, I paid the princely sum of £9.95 to try a Nagoya 771 dual amateur band antenna (2m/70cm bands) as I thought this might perform well as it is tuned for both amateur bands just above the civil and military airbands but in my very unscientific testing alongside the telescopic it was definitely poorer reception so I'm sticking with my makeshift antenna for now, oh well, for only £9.95 it was worth a try.
What I have learned over the years, is that depending on your location and what specific ATC units/airfields you want to hear the most, antenna height is not always as important as the location of your antenna, happy listening!
