What is a DAS System?

A Distributed Antenna System (DAS) improves wireless coverage in buildings by connecting a network of antennas to a central signal source. A DAS is most often used for distributing 4G and 5G cellular and public safety frequencies, in offices, apartments, airports, and stadiums.

How DAS Works

A DAS either captures existing cellular signal from outside cell towers or generates it internally. This signal is then distributed through a building using strategically placed antennas. The multiple smaller antennas work together to provide consistent, reliable coverage throughout the entire space, replacing the need to rely on external cell tower signals attempting to penetrate the building's structure.

Where DAS is Used

🏢 Office Buildings
Essential for modern workplaces where reliable cellular connectivity impacts productivity and communication. Particularly valuable in high-rise buildings and campus environments where external signals struggle to penetrate.

🏥 Healthcare Facilities
Critical for hospitals and medical centers where consistent communication is essential for patient care, emergency response, and medical device connectivity. Supports both staff and patient connectivity needs.

🏨 Hotels & Venues
Ensures guest satisfaction in hotels, convention centers, and entertainment venues where large numbers of people expect reliable service. Particularly important for business centers and conference facilities.

🏭 Warehouses & Manufacturing
Enables crucial communication in challenging environments with metal structures, high shelving, and thick walls. Supports modern logistics operations and IoT device connectivity across large industrial spaces.

🎓 Educational Institutions
Provides campus-wide coverage for students, faculty, and staff across multiple buildings. Supports emergency communications and enables modern learning technologies.

Key Benefits

  • Reliable Coverage: Eliminate dead zones and weak spots throughout your building. DAS provides consistent signal strength across all covered areas, from basement levels to top floors, and even in traditionally difficult spaces like elevators and stairwells.
  • Multi-Carrier Support: One system supports all major cellular carriers, eliminating the need for carrier-specific solutions. This ensures all users have access to strong cellular service, regardless of their provider.
  • High-Capacity Performance: A DAS system is engineered to handle the demands of hundreds or thousands of simultaneous users without any degradation in service quality. Even during periods of peak usage, such as large events or busy business hours, the system maintains consistent performance levels for all users. This robust capacity ensures that high-bandwidth applications and data-intensive tasks run smoothly, preventing the congestion issues that commonly plague crowded spaces.
  • Future-Ready Technology: Today's DAS installations are designed with tomorrow's technology in mind. These systems are built to be compatible with current 5G networks while maintaining the flexibility to adapt to future cellular standards as they emerge. The scalable nature of DAS allows for straightforward capacity expansion as your needs grow, protecting your investment through multiple cycles of technological advancement. This forward-thinking design ensures your DAS will continue delivering value well into the future.
Want to dive deeper?
Learn about system types, technical specifications, and design considerations in our comprehensive DAS Guide.
Frequently Asked Questions

We know, there’s a lot to take in! Here are answers to some of the questions we see most often.

Large buildings often have significant challenges with cellular coverage. Weak signals, dead zones, dropped calls, and slow data speeds are frequent issues, especially with newer construction methods. A DAS, or Distributed Antenna System, is a wireless network that improves indoor cellular coverage using multiple small antennas installed throughout a building rather than a single large antenna. It connects these smaller antennas to an external cellular signal using a system of cables. This allows the wireless signals from cell towers to be received and transferred and then rebroadcast indoors from the antenna nodes. By distributing the cellular signals across many antennas located strategically, a DAS provides uniform wireless coverage for technologies like 4G/5G LTE throughout the entire indoor space. 

In this guide, we cover both how to test for coverage and how to fix coverage issues if you've identified a problem.

DAS is an acronym that stands for Distributed Antenna System. A DAS distributes multiple antennas via a system of cables throughout a building.

A distributed antenna system enhances indoor cellular coverage for large buildings and/or outdoor campuses. Small antennas are strategically placed throughout the coverage area and connected them to an external signal source using a wired network. This network distributes and amplifies wireless signals from nearby cell towers inside via the antenna system. This distributed antenna system provides strong and reliable cellular connectivity across the entire space it serves.

A distributed antenna system is used to improve indoor wireless coverage in large and dense buildings that typical cellular signals have trouble reaching like buildings, hotels, airports and hospitals. It is also possible to use a DAS across a campus, like a university. The system extends network coverage across the environment where cell signals may be weak or even nonexistent. By distributing and boosting external antenna signals within its coverage area, a DAS provides reliable cellular connectivity for voice calls, text messaging, and high-speed data on mobile devices.

Why Choose Waveform for Your DAS Signal Solution
We're the preferred vendor for multiple DAS manufacturers and have helped improve signal for hundreds of deployments. Our team is ready and able to walk you through the process of finding and deploying the right solution.
Trusted by 10,000+
SMBs and Enterprises:

Proven Experience
We've Helped Over 5,000 SMBs and Enterprises Improve Their Cell Signal
At Waveform, cell signal enhancement is all we do. Since our start over 15 years ago we've helped thousands of clients across the country fix their signal problems.
  • 150,000 sq ft residential building
  • Multi-Carrier Off-Air Distributed Antenna System deployment.
  • 150,000 sq ft residential building
  • Multi-Carrier QUATRA Distributed Antenna System deployment.
  • 25,000+ sq ft office and laboratory
  • Dual-Carrier Hybrid Distributed Antenna System

The Waveform team is clearly passionate about the work they do, and they're incredibly knowledgeable about cellular connectivity for the IoT devices in our EV chargers. It's always easy working with them because they go the extra mile to make it easy for us. Their solutions work as expected, and we've yet to experience any downtime.

Jeffery Moore
Infrastructure Solutions Engineer, Shell Recharge Solutions

Working with Waveform on cell coverage solutions for Rancho Mirage's City Hall was a refreshingly positive experience! Waveform's team worked closely with us to understand our needs. They went above and beyond by designing an excellent system, communicating well, and supplying all the materials promptly. If only more of my projects went as well as this!

Jason Jaurigue
Director Of Information Services, State of California

SemaConnect has partnered with Waveform to provide customers with world class support and expertise to deliver reliable cellular signal solutions for SemaConnect Charging Stations. Over the last year they have been faultlessly reliable and always professional. They know this stuff better than anyone we've worked with, and their solutions show it!

Peter Fisher
Senior Project Manager, SemaConnect/Blink Charging
Our Process
Boosting Cell Signal With Waveform
After deploying hundreds of systems for customers around the country, we’ve developed two DAS deployment methodologies that we think best serve our customers.
For smaller deployments
Guided Self-Install
We'll walk you through installs in smaller buildings under 100,000 sq ft in size.

  • Remote Signal Survey
    We'll walk you through taking basic signal measurements.
  • Full System Design Including RF Propagation Analysis
    We'll analyze your building, design a full booster system, perform RF propagation analysis, and generate predicted coverage maps.
  • Guided System Install & Commissioning
    We'll ship you equipment and walk you through getting all the equipment installed and deployed.
  • Ongoing Support
    We'll provide ongoing technical support in case you any experience any issues down the line.
We'll handle everything
Turnkey Install
For buildings between 100,000 and 1M+ square feet

  • Fast Initial Quote
    We'll quickly give you an idea of typical costs for your building based on size & building materials.
  • On-Site Pre-Install Site Survey
    Our technicians will visit your site to take signal readings and make detailed deployment notes.
  • Complete Turnkey Install & Post-Install Testing
    Our deployment team will visit the site to complete all installation, commissioning, testing, and cleanup.
  • Maintenance and NOC Monitoring Plans
    We'll monitor and maintain your booster system to ensure uptime and performance.
Meet Our Team
Delivering Connectivity
Our team of 50+ signal experts is distributed across the country and ready and eager to help you achieve full bars, say goodbye to frustrating dropped calls, and say hello to blazing fast data rates. Here's a few of the faces you might encounter on your journey to better signal.
Jonathan Boucher
Commercial Solutions Lead
Jose Martinez
Commercial Solutions
John Farag
Commercial Solutions
Austen Hoover
Senior Account Executive
Tom Hernandez
VP, Enterprise
Andy Roberts
Director, Engineering
Josh Segelson
Director, Project Management
Sam Westwood
COO
Connect With a Signal Expert
Get a Free, Fast Quote

Connect with our signal experts to get a free signal consultation, and initial estimate for your signal needs.

Please check the coverage area as it's typically over 1,000 sq ft
In particular: are there any concrete or metal walls or other dense obstructions within the building?
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