[GlowWorm]

I was wondering if anyone can recommend a good am/fm (I only listen to fm)tuner antenna, preferably an indoor one under a c-note? I live in a valley where fm reception as very poor if this helps any? Thanks

 

[replytoken]

I have an Arcam Alpha 8 which I enjoy greatly. You may want to see if you can find a used one out there. I would not recommend the older Cambridge Audio tuner based on the Creek design. Very poor build quality. If you want to shoot the works, I believe that you will want to look for a Magnum Dynalab tuner. Good luck.

 

[GlowWorm]

I'm quite happy with the Cambridge Audio T500 I just bought 2 weeks ago, at least with the stations I'm able to pull in. Actually I need a good antenna to pull in more stations, hence the original title. I don't doubt that the Arcam and Magnum units you speak of are superior, but I'm not in the market for another tuner just yet.

 

[replytoken]

My mistake. I guess my antenna wasn't hooked up! Sorry.

 

[ooheadsoo]

Bump for a good antenna

I can't even find one at the radio shack website.

 

[g_hause]

If you have an attic try sticking a big TV antenna up there. I got one for something like $75 from one of the big home improvement warehouse stores. I also got an amp for it for around another $25. I doubt you can co better for $100 if you have the space. I've got a Rotel tuner on the way and I can't wait to see how it does.
g

 

[BigD]

I need indoor fm tuner atenna too.
Yesterday I was testing my 30 year old Mcintosh MR77 fm tuner. Wow I'm totally impressed with this unit. I don't know why I never plug it in before... Anyway I'm looking for fm antenna. Perhaps do-it-yourself will work too. Please keep the suggestions coming!

 

[ooheadsoo]

There are several diy designs but they are BIIIIIIIG.

http://www.kgnu.org/howtohear/antenna.html

http://www.electronics-lab.com/artic...structions.pdf

Now where can I put that unobtrusively?...

 

[BigD]

Terk technology any good???
I'm looking at FM+ ($9.99) and FM4000 ($25)???

 

[ooheadsoo]

I don't know if Terk is any good but hey look, the FM-50 uses the same design as the first diy one. The only thing is that it has a built in signal amp, which may or may not be redundant, I suppose. I bet they cost a pretty penny.

 

[Brunobiseu]

Well, I have recently bought a Magnum Dynalab SR100 Antenna for 50 Euros here in Portugal (35 USD on the Magnum Dynalab site) to replace the "wire" that came with my Sony tuner, and got a reception improvement of 4-10db, depending on the FM station (still 10db away from the theoretical tuner maximum reception, though...). So the use of one of this model or its big brother, the ST-2FM (99 USD...), both indoor models, does help reception ... a bit; however, I believe you'll have to go the outdoor or signal amplifier path if you are to get a big improvement.
Hope this will help.

 

[KYTGuy]

Best bang for the buck is to go to an outdoor vertical antenna, like they sell for around $100 at www.ccrane.com. Because it is a vertical, it does not need a rotator or a special flexible link/loop of antenna wire, and it can stand up to a lot of wind...it recieves from any direction (OMNI) pattern. Best if you mount it as high as you can. I use chain-link fence ridge pole (comes in twenty foot lengths) one or two, and run the coax through the interior of the pole, to avoid the weathering and slapping in wind problems. You will have to be able to mount it (on the pole or not) as near as possible to where the receiver will be. Use the best coax you can afford. Don't forget to provide Lightning Protection. Ground your tuner as well as you can.

 

[gerG]

I've tried several indoor approaches, including a full up Sterba curtain (takes up an entire wall) and the antenna in the attic approach. Nothing even came close to a roof mounted unit. Unfortunately I am in a real problem area.

I have a decent article from Audio magazine showing 3 types of diy indoor antennas. I can't post it, but I can email it, so send me an email if you want the details.


gerG

 

[Wodgy]

Before doing anything major or spending big bucks on a quality antenna, I'd recommend just getting a short 75-ohm coax cable and plugging your FM tuner into an unused cable TV outlet in your house. This has always worked for me, delivering crystal clear, solid reception. You don't need a cable TV subscription for this to work (I don't have one), just an unused outlet. I'm not sure whether the cable companies rebroadcast local FM stations over the cable, or whether the long cable TV run to the curb acts as a giant antenna. Either way, it works better than any antenna I've tried.

 

[cpw]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Wodgy Before doing anything major or spending big bucks on a quality antenna, I'd recommend just getting a short 75-ohm coax cable and plugging your FM tuner into an unused cable TV outlet in your house. This has always worked for me, delivering crystal clear, solid reception. You don't need a cable TV subscription for this to work (I don't have one), just an unused outlet. I'm not sure whether the cable companies rebroadcast local FM stations over the cable, or whether the long cable TV run to the curb acts as a giant antenna. Either way, it works better than any antenna I've tried.

How about tying into a Dish Network coax?
Same idea or problematic?
Thx,
CPW