Poor DAB radio signal - can I boost?

MrsE_2

My DH just got a DAB radio & the signal is terrible, he has to put it in the kitchen window to get a signal (& I hate things on kitchen windows:p).

Do different DAB radios have better aerials?
Can you buy aerials to boost DAB radios?
Or is it just my area & all radios will be terrible?
The car radio works ok on the drive.

DCFC79

I bought a cheapy 1 from argos and it wont pick up half the DAB stations whether at work or at home and a more expensive wifi radio i bought still wont pick up DAB stations, ariels are extended and still not much good.
I do get interference sometimes on 1 station but that might be because its the cheapy 1

lucylucky

MrsE wrote: »

My DH just got a DAB radio & the signal is terrible, he has to put it in the kitchen window to get a signal (& I hate things on kitchen windows:p).

Do different DAB radios have better aerials? Yes
Can you buy aerials to boost DAB radios? You can connect some radios to external aerials
Or is it just my area & all radios will be terrible? Maybe your area, only trying another DAB radio will prove it one way or the other
The car radio works ok on the drive. DAB car radio works okay on your drive? It has a better aerial and is outside.

DAB coverage can be very patchy

MrsE_2

lucylucky wrote: »

DAB coverage can be very patchy

The car radio is bog standard factory fit radio/CD, not DAB (AFAIK).

lucylucky

MrsE wrote: »

The car radio is bog standard factory fit radio/CD, not DAB (AFAIK).

A decent signal received on AM/FM/LW is no indicator of DAB reception.

Iconic

This link gives you a map of the UK showing DAB coverage.

Providing you are in a DAB area it also gives tips on improving reception...
http://www.stevelarkins.freeuk.com/dab-reception.htm

C_Mababejive

OH bought one last year. It looks stylish enough but even in a major city/central service area,it still squeaks and pops sometimes when it struggles to grab the signal. My advice to anyone is dont buy one. My theory is that the whole concept has been floated via an unholy alliance between Governments and those companies with vested interests. Governments want to free up radio spectrum so they can sell great big bits of it to the highest bidders whilst vested interests naturally want all your existing equipment to no longer work,be skipped and then for them to sell you an inferior product!

Soon your car radio will also have to be thrown away. Do you have a nice expensive hi fi with a superior analogue receiver...? Bin it.

I prefer real radio even if it involves a little snap,crackle and pop.



Analogue radios of every kind have agc circuitry (auto gain) which senses a waning signal and so cranks up the gain (receiving power) of the radio. They are far more tolerant to interference and signal loss than DAB.DAB involves the receiving and processing of a datastream in much the same way as you might receive satellite TV. There is a very narrow margin between signal and no signal. Have you ever tried re-adjusting a SKY tv dish? With the short wave radio above and just a simple length of wire,you can listen to the world. Its far more interesting to spin a dial and discover stuff than to just press a button. Simple FM radios work in much the same way.

googler

MrsE wrote: »

Do different DAB radios have better aerials?
Can you buy aerials to boost DAB radios?
Or is it just my area & all radios will be terrible?

Possibly. But do you really want to be buying radio after radio till you find one that works?
A booster would only be of use if there's an aerial socket on the radio - is there?
It could be your area. Ask the neighbours if anyone else uses DAB. If your house is in a hollow, or there's hill(s) between you and the transmitter, that won't bode well. If the kitchen is on the wrong side of the house relative to the transmitter, that won't help.

BBC website used to have links to transmitter locations, try there....

MrsE_2

googler wrote: »

Possibly. But do you really want to be buying radio after radio till you find one that works?
A booster would only be of use if there's an aerial socket on the radio - is there?

No! & no:(

I assumed their was an ariel socket, but there isn't.

googler

The other problem with DAB at the moment is the volatility of available stations.

We're pretty much guaranteed that Radio 2, 3, 4 etc will stay with us (6music seems to be excepted), but a couple of years ago, I invested in a DAB mainly because of one station - The Jazz.

Wall-to-wall jazz music of all types, from 1940s-era big band and swing, through mainstream small groups of the 50s and 60s, through to Weather Report, and the jazz-rock of the 70s through to present day. No DJs, no news reports, no traffic reports, just music. Others that I liked including Chill and Classic Rock.

The Jazz and Chill have disappeared now, along with much of my motivation and enthusiasm for DAB. It's no use having a choice of hundreds of stations when none of them play what you like

Sweey_as_a_nut

What I done last year, I have two aerials one freeview and the other for the now just about defunct terrestrial tv. The terrestrial aerial I no longer had use for, I tried it as a DAB aerial by fitting an F connector. The signal now is always 100%. It won't work for everyone as an experiment and time on my hands I tried the freeview aerial by just unplugging it from the freeview box to my Dab wireless and it was not so good. probably the aerial direction is the biggest problem. But worth a try.