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Network Vision/LTE - Orange County Market (Anaheim/Santa Ana/Irvine/Huntington Beach)


mbaseball3

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I also took a pitcture of the site. I'm no networking expert but it looks like there are missing parts at the ends, like covers or something.

 

could it be they are waiting for backhaul? When it was up and running and I did speed tests right under it the average was only 15Mbps which seems a little low to me for a newly active site. does that have to do with the 5x5? When I speed tested the first Lakewood site I was averaging 27Mbps.

 

This is the stage and alondra one correct? I drove on those cross streets and I haven't seen the tower. What's a landmark by it.

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I got a 4G LTE signal randomly in Irvine near Jamboree the other day. It was only here for like 1min, then it vanished :-(

I tried to get evidence of the signal while it lasted.

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Did you map it in sensorly?

 

Sort of lol. If you zoom in enough near bastanchury and state college you'll see the little purple circle. I didn't have time to go out and do it though.

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What do network vision panels look like?

 

I'll try to post a picture later but the new NV panels are wider and thicker and have a radio box usually right behind them. They are doing one panel per sector like that here. So if a tower antenna array was previously 2, 3 or 4 panels per sector the new style will be one larger panel per sector. It appears like at some of the sites around here they are leaving the older panels on the array too but those are likely just dummy panels now.

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http://s4gru.com/index.php?/topic/2902-how-to-spot-sprint-panels-and-rrus-ericsson-style/

 

Everyone take a seat in the desks....and welcome to Sprint RRU Spotting 101. ;)

 

First lets look at what to NOT look for. In our area, AT&T has RRUs that look almost identical to the ones Sprint has. They are both made by Ericsson.

 

ATT_NOT_RRU.jpg

 

The box circled above is NOT an RRU. Do not confuse these. These are probably some sort of junction box and/or amplifier that AT&T used on previous deployments. Take note of the size.

 

ATT_RRU_ONE_A.jpg

 

Hey that's an RRU! Yep. One big problem though. Where are the others? Not to mention the panel next to it is another give away. We will get to that in a minute. Since there is only one RRU located on this sector and panel, this is NOT Sprint's.

 

ATT_CABLES.jpg

 

Let's look at the cables. Notice there are only 2 hooked up the panel itself? (Do not confuse the ACUs hanging out of the bottom). There are 4 inputs on this panel but only 2 are used. Easier to see in the next picture. Again this is AT&T's equipment for LTE.

 

ATT_CABLES2.jpg

 

See what I'm talking about now? AT&T is only using one side of this panel. Hence the one RRU. Those other little pieces sticking out of the bottom are actually stepper motors that change the downtilt of the antenna from a remote location. They daisy chain from one another.

 

ATT_RRU_ONE_B.jpg

 

This is a different site. Do you notice the same thing? One RRU with only 2 cables on the one panel. This is AT&T again. "But but..where's Sprint?" Read on...

 

SPR_THREE_RRU_A.jpg

 

Looks like the same RRU right? Count them! 2 back to back, then one at the top. Some sites will have more depending on the traffic.

 

SPR_THREE_RRU_B.jpg

 

Look! It's three RRU's again.

 

SPR_CABLES_A.jpg

 

Now let's look at the panels. Notice how the cables are right up at the front of the panel and not in the center? Also, count them. There are 6 inputs. 2 for PCS 1X/EV, 2 for 800SMR, and 2 for PCS LTE. There are also 3 ACUs for downtilt control (more on that later). See how all the cables are hooked up?

 

SPR_CABLES_B.jpg

 

Six cables all hooked up again. Creates almost a "wall" of cables where you can't even see the ACU's tucked in behind them.

 

SPR_ACU.jpg

 

A little different angle. But again 6 cables hooked up. Look behind the cables on the bottom of the panel and you can see the 3 ACUs with the RFS stickers on them. This allows Sprint to remotely control the downtilt of all three interfaces all independently. 1X/EV, 800SMR, PCS LTE, could all have their own downtilt setting. If another site comes online or even another site is added later due to capacity or to thicken coverage. Sprint could change the downtilt angles of the adjacent sites all without ever visiting the site.

 

There's also another type of panel to look for on Network Vision upgrades. See below:

 

NL13XC096_C.JPG

 

This panel is a narrow beamwidth panel used in some dense urban areas and even rural areas to "shoot" down the interstate to the next city. This different panel is circled on the sector on the left. Notice the regular panel on the right? You can also see the narrow beam legacy panels with the "fins" on the sides of them on the same sector. But once again the dead give away are the multiple RRU's behind the panels. (Thanks to kevins669 in the NOLA market thread for this picture)

 

I hope these graphics and explanations can help you recognize the Sprint equipment in your area. Just remember, every tower is different due to the thousands and thousands of variables between sites. If you are ever in doubt, take a picture and post it. You have to learn some how... that's what I did. Then you'll take on the addictive hobby of taking pictures like I have of the sites above.

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