Radio reception in vehicles.

[Smallfry]

The radio reception on my little van is not great when the signal starts to get weak and some stations cannot be received at all. The other vehicles do not suffer from this.

A new aerial (antenna, for the pedantic) does not cure this, but I notice the base has a separate small lead to it, which I assume is a signal booster ? Does anyone know if and how it can be checked to see if it is working ? Replacement is expensive, but more importantly access involves dismantling half the vehicle interior.

 

[voipio]

Pics of the antenna base would help. What does the extra wire look like? Water ingress into the coax can make it extremely lossy to radio signals at VHF (FM, and with DAB even more so).

 

[ajlelectronics]

Aerial is English for reception apparatus. Antennae are what insects carry on their heads and so are useless as reception apparatus. Remember that the yanks consider "Amperage" to be a valid word and that most of their bathrooms do not in fact, contain a bath. Nor do their "restrooms" have anywhere to rest.

To answer your question, the box could be an inline amplifier, filter or just a termination point. Does it have a power feed to it? If so, try disconnecting it, the reception should disappear.

Many modern car aerials are extremely compromised in the name of aesthetics so don't expect it to work like a resonant whip.

A very crude test for an aerial system is to listen to a weak station and short it to deck, which should shut reception down.

 

[Melvyn Best]

At one time the test for a decent aerial earth was to get hold of it, if the volume increased you had a bad earth

 

[ajlelectronics]

At one time the test for a decent aerial earth was to get hold of it, if the volume increased you had a bad earth

If the aerial is resonant then yes that is a useful test, as it should reduce the performance.

 

[Turbo]

Peugeot/Citroen vehicles have an extra wire going to the aerial base. I think its some sort of booster.

 

[sg66]

If it has Bluetooth just stream it from your phone, I've started doing that as my radio is not dab + so I've started loosing stations, the phone thing works great, it's better coverage than the dab.

 

[frank horton]

who uses a radio anymore......?.....

 

[sg66]

who uses a radio anymore......?.....

Me when I'm driving.

 

[addjunkie]

If it has Bluetooth just stream it from your phone, I've started doing that as my radio is not dab + so I've started loosing stations, the phone thing works great, it's better coverage than the dab.

I do that as the dab coverage pants out in the sticks.

 

[sg66]

I do that as the dab coverage pants out in the sticks.

I can't believe the reception via the phone, it's way better, I've a100gb of data a month and hardly put a dent in it

 

[ajlelectronics]

I can't believe the reception via the phone, it's way better, I've a100gb of data a month and hardly put a dent in it

Try living in the sticks! Even main roads like the one I live on has 4G dead spots. On top of that is the nonsense about having to "log in" to the BBC etc. There are also folk who don't have nor want a mobile. Selecting a radio station is easy on a proper radio, you don't even need to look at it normally.

 

[Keith 66]

who uses a radio anymore......?.....

I do, Radio Caroline on 648mw, they are only running a 10kw transmitter but it covers 2/3rds of the UK with a signal as good as Dab.

 

[sg66]

Try living in the sticks! Even main roads like the one I live on has 4G dead spots. On top of that is the nonsense about having to "log in" to the BBC etc. There are also folk who don't have nor want a mobile. Selecting a radio station is easy on a proper radio, you don't even need to look at it normally.

I use mine out in the sticks, I don't use BBC and it just auto reconnects and plays when I get in the van I don't have to do anything, van stays on Bluetooth when I start it up and I drive off that's the extent of the involvement, sometimes the phone is on the dash sometimes it's in my pocket, no need to interact with it at all, I have more dead spots in Northumberland with dab than I do with the phone, but if it don't work for you that's fine it was only a suggestion.

 

[RWD3M]

I listen to the radio a lot. In the cars (all but one of them*) I listen to 6Music (DAB only) and I'm surprised at how good reception is, especially on the aftermarket Sony in the Mini (complete with mickey mouse, stick on antenna). In the Workshop I have it on all the time and when I'm on my own in the house I also listen as I get to turn the TV off!!!

* My '36 Morris has 6 volt electrics and doesn't have a radio at all. Mind you, it's so bally nioisy, I probably wouldn't be able to hear it anyway!

 

[jmp49]

Peugeot/Citroen vehicles have an extra wire going to the aerial base. I think its some sort of booster.

There's +12v to the antenna base to power a amplifier on a peugeot expert (confusingly I think its a black wire...), that's powered off the original headunit. I'm not sure if the amplifier is for gsm, gps or the radio reception though as all 3 use the same base.
I dont know what smallfry's little van is, but if its a peugeot expert, and it has a aftermarket stereo fitted, a lot of the non oem fitting looms dont power the antenna base and that's where I'd be looking first...

 

[Turbo]

There's +12v to the antenna base to power a amplifier on a peugeot expert (confusingly I think its a black wire...), that's powered off the original headunit. I'm not sure if the amplifier is for gsm, gps or the radio reception though as all 3 use the same base.
I dont know what smallfry's little van is, but if its a peugeot expert, and it has a aftermarket stereo fitted, a lot of the non oem fitting looms dont power the antenna base and that's where I'd be looking first...

I fitted an aftermarket head unit in a pug 306 and I couldn't get decent radio reception until I sent power down that black wire.
I only found out about it when I decided to see if the aerial connection was corroded.