Some external antennas from china ...

Manufacturers shipping external antennas with their product should make sure that it a suitable antenna that is optimal for the usage.

Recommend read before buy or sell external antenna -> https://tinkerman.cat/post/analyze-your-antennas-using-an-aai-n1201sa/

@Hedda That is pure Hard(ware)radio Porno !!

I have the base knowledge from LF (low Frequencies) to military radar from my educacion and working experience but i dont have the instrument for doing the test but its very basic foy my but the radio world is very strange if you not knowing the technique behinds.

You should googling for can antenna and you dont believe its working at all and is one joke but its working more then well also for Zigbee networks if making the masses right !!

You might then also want to check out some of the YouTube videos from Andreas Spiess https://www.youtube.com/c/AndreasSpiess/

Examples:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZpKoLvqOWyc

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J3PBL9oLPX8

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_pjcEKQY_Tk

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6cVYsHCLKq8

He also builds some DIY long-range antennas too including one where he attempts to break the world record for LoRa range.

You might then also want to check out some of the YouTube videos from Andreas Spiess

By the way, might not ask or suggest to him to do a video on Zigbee antenna optimizations.

He is on GitHub too as "SensorsIOT" at https://github.com/SensorsIot and makes all his projects public.

Andreas have doing many good videos that explaining things for users but hi have not being triggered for the zigbee train and like more "analogue" systems like 433Mhz sensors. And hi is one real radio hacker from the old skool.

Hi have "helping" one IKEA radio clock that was having little bad signal with one time sender that is working.
I was doing the same with other hardware (smaller for integrating in devices) and putting one small ESP-02S inside my watherstations (4 done) and they is getting the time from NTP.SE by injecting the coveted time signal after the receiver chip :-))

All antennas for BL and WiFI 2.4 Ghz is OK for Zigbee as long using the normal channels (98% can only using the "normal" ones).

I have capture one then one router is sending with on sequences number and its getting one frame from is neighbor with the same number. Look for Ack 107:

No.	Time	Protocol	Zigbee Src	Zigbee Dst	IEEE Src	IEEE Dst	Group Nr	ZBN Seq	ZBA Seq	ZDP Seq	Nwk Seq	Info
117395	13:31:01,716348	ZigBee HA	0x0000	0xa257	0x0000	0xa257		65	105		178	ZCL OnOff: On, Seq: 10
117396	13:31:01,717132	IEEE 802.15.4									178	Ack
117397	13:31:01,717598	ZigBee	0xa257	0x0000	0xa257	0x0000		44			106	Route Record, Dst: 0x0000
117398	13:31:01,718016	ZigBee	0xa257	0x0000	0xa257	0x0000		44			106	Route Record, Dst: 0x0000
117399	13:31:01,718502	ZigBee	0xa257	0x0000	0xa257	0x0000		44			106	Route Record, Dst: 0x0000
117400	13:31:01,778058	ZigBee	0xa257	0x0000	0xa257	0x0000		44			106	Route Record, Dst: 0x0000
117401	13:31:01,778737	ZigBee	0xa257	0x0000	0xa257	0x0000		43	105		107	APS: Ack, Dst Endpt: 1, Src Endpt: 1
117402	13:31:01,779155	ZigBee HA	0x0000	0xffbf	0x0000	0xffbf		67	107		179	ZCL OnOff: On, Seq: 12
117403	13:31:01,779821	IEEE 802.15.4									179	Ack
117404	13:31:01,780413	ZigBee	0xa257	0x0000	0xa257	0x0000		43	105		107	APS: Ack, Dst Endpt: 1, Src Endpt: 1
117405	13:31:01,840325	ZigBee	0xffbf	0x0000	0xffbf	0xa257		179			107	Route Record, Dst: 0x0000
117406	13:31:01,840904	ZigBee	0xa257	0x0000	0xa257	0x0000		43	105		107	APS: Ack, Dst Endpt: 1, Src Endpt: 1
117407	13:31:01,841316	IEEE 802.15.4									107	Ack
117408	13:31:01,841680	ZigBee	0xa257	0x0000	0xa257	0x0000		44			108	Route Record, Dst: 0x0000
117409	13:31:01,842022	IEEE 802.15.4									108	Ack
117410	13:31:01,903392	ZigBee	0xffbf	0x0000	0xffbf	0xa257		179			107	Route Record, Dst: 0x0000
117411	13:31:01,904167	IEEE 802.15.4									107	Ack
117412	13:31:01,904597	ZigBee	0xffbf	0x0000	0xa257	0x0000		179			109	Route Record, Dst: 0x0000
117413	13:31:01,905184	IEEE 802.15.4									109	Ack
117415	13:31:01,965057	ZigBee	0xffbf	0x0000	0xffbf	0xa257		178	107		108	APS: Ack, Dst Endpt: 1, Src Endpt: 1
117416	13:31:01,965774	IEEE 802.15.4									108	Ack
117417	13:31:01,966172	ZigBee	0xffbf	0x0000	0xa257	0x0000		178	107		110	APS: Ack, Dst Endpt: 1, Src Endpt: 1
117418	13:31:01,966566	IEEE 802.15.4									110	Ack
117429	13:31:04,717018	ZigBee HA	0x0000	0xa257	0x0000	0xa257		69	109		186	ZCL OnOff: On, Seq: 14
117430	13:31:04,718063	IEEE 802.15.4									186	Ack

If having one pool temperature sensor 250 m away and having one directional antenna with +20 dBm gain for its makes sin but you is getting large problem if on device is 5 m away in the same direction an can killing your bellowed sensor if some is transmitting on WiFi in the same direction.

This is why I like to see support for more than one Zigbee coordinator (and networks) in ZHA at the same time, as requested here:

#673

Having support for two Zigbee coordinators in ZHA (with their own separate mesh networks) would solve this problem you get when you have a single property with two areas that can not for whatever signal killing reason be bridged using one mesh network.

Z-Wave solves this by allowing multiple controllers on the same network, (only one primary Z-Wave but you can have several secondary Z-Wave controllers in the same network).

Since the Zigbee specification does not have a similar solution it would be nice if there could be a workaround implemented at the ZHA application level to allow several Zigbee coordinators as long as they have their own separate networks that are not aware of each other at the Zigbee level.

But perhaps some aluminum tape for patching antennas for limiting the radio range for all routers.

zigpy-znp radio library allows to config the TX power output dBm settings ("tx_power") in software. Does not bellows do that too?

zha:
  zigpy_config:
    znp_config:
      tx_power: None           # if set, must be between -22 (low) and 19 (high)
      led_mode: None           # if set, must be one of: off, on, blink, flash, toggle
      skip_bootloader: True    # skips the 60s bootloader delay on some CC2531 sticks

Zigbee is allowing more controlling devices in one network !!
But it can only being one trust center if you is reading the speces.
And you can have "Zigbee control bridges" (that is wot IKEA GW is) (Control bridge [Device ID: 0x0840]) that is controlling other devices in the network as it was one own network(or part of the network as private ones).

I like the micro python Zigpy concept on small controllers or in one god EFR32 with ZHA that can connecting to multiple Zigpy instances.

Zigbee is allowing more controlling devices in one network !!
But it can only being one trust center if you is reading the speces.
And you can have "Zigbee control bridges" (that is wot IKEA GW is) (Control bridge [Device ID: 0x0840]) that is controlling other devices in the network as it was one own network(or part of the network as private ones).

Moving this discussion to -> #673

The MGM210L is one good Silabs example https://fccid.io/QOQMGM210L/Internal-Photos/Internal-Photos-4211021 is the module IKEA is using (or some version of it) and its looks very like the ZS3L from the component layout and have the first capacitor very near the AP pins and then the the RF filter stage and little more away is the antenna tuning and the x-tall is moved away from the RF parts and its FCC certificated.

IKEA have produced many millions (I think billions is more correct today) modules and also custom devices with MG1P but the MG2X is needing to much work for calibrating in the production so they have copy @tube0013 and is using one already FCC certified module for (hopefully) all new devices.

PM: Today dcCONZ have shipping around 100.000 Rasp/CornBee coordinators that is one fraction of what devices IKEA have being shipping (I think the first tradfri year was over 5 million devices sold).

Thanks !!

The EFr32 and USB chip soldering looks very good made !!

But . .
Most of the discreet components have getting one swimming lesson and its more or less the same shamanistic as the SM-011.

The problem is that led is making the RF working other then planed / designed if applying more or lesser. If all board is the same is possible calibrating the the chops radio but is its little up and down then you have large quality problems.

Can some one using both hands and counting components in the RF part and saying what is good or bad ??

One more or less capacitors is not so bad !!!!
And you have some extra as spear components if needed ;-))

I have seen the module on FCC but it was no god photos there.

One very god thing is the ceramic antenna that shall being very god (deCONZ is using it in all there coordinators) and its having much better lobes then one "normal" PCB antenna.

Have you trying reading if Silabs have setting the radio parameters in DI or CTune in manufacture token with SS ?

I have recovering one IKEA module that i was bricking with flashing wrong bootloader with Commander and the STK (normal J-Link is not working must being on STK) and have 2 more but need putting back the cables on them and adding PTI and V-com for debugging and advance network analyzing.

They stole Tube's idea :)

the Silabs modules i use are far superior to the SM-011 😂 .. i'm flattered.

Yes but with SM-011 they is still having all the known problems they is having with ZBB and the USB stick.

I think i keep recommending tube0013 devices then its proven working well and have good quality components that is working very well !!!

And one more thing that can being bad if they not have doing the "real" RF test well is the Zigbee and WiFi/BL antennas shall normally being 90° and not 180° from the center axle for canceling the others signal optimal.

That CC2652 based series just changes shhh....stuff. Then letting z2m manage it all and boom.