I don't see a range number in your post (I'm just curious). I would put the following code in the firmware of both devices while modifying the global to be the same in each device for each test:
bool g_externalAntenna = true;
void setup() {
if (g_externalAntenna) {
Mesh.selectAntenna(MeshAntennaType::EXTERNAL);
} else {
Mesh.selectAntenna(MeshAntennaType::INTERNAL);
}
}
void loop() {
}
Also, because you are using SYSTEM_MODE(AUTOMATIC) with DeviceOS 1.5.0-rc.1 or 1.5.0-rc.2 , I would check out
https://community.particle.io/t/functions-and-variables-disappearing/54794
in case any issues listed there are affecting your tests.
Many thanks to