QAntenna

QAntenna is a simple-to-use software utility that facilitates an intuitive workspace for studying antennas in 3D form. It lets you open .nec files, calculate radiation patterns, and work with multiple antennas at the same time.

After a fast setup procedure that shouldn't give you any trouble, you are greeted by a large frame with a minimalistic structure that's easy to navigate.

An empty 3D model is loaded at startup, so you can begin by opening a .nec-formatted file. Several samples are provided by QAntenna in this regard.

It's possible to pan the model to view it from different perspectives. When it comes to adjustment options, you can change the pattern scale, transparency, sphere and segment radius, along with the minimum dB at the origin. Moreover, you can toggle the display of the surface, spheres, mesh, volumetric, and grid.

QAntenna lets you examine log details, calculate patterns, render the design to an image file with the .png, .bmp, .ppm, .xbm or .xpm extension after entering the preferred resolution, or copy it to the Clipboard instead. There are no other notable options available here.

Unsurprisingly, the tool didn't put a strain on the overall performance of the machine in our tests, since it needed low CPU and RAM to work properly. However, it popped up an error and crashed in several cases right after loading some of its sample files. We must also take into account the fact that QAntenna hasn't been updated for a long time.