OT - AM aerials

Bill Wright wrote:
"Dave Plowman (News)" wrote in message
...
I have a roughly 15 ft rod aerial externally on the top of the house
which has a balancing transformer on the end feeding RF balanced screened
cable with a matching balanced to unbalanced transformer at the other end
connected to a Quad AM3 receiver - which is designed for an external
aerial and has no internal one. I get pretty well interference free
reception on LW, MW and SW. But I've no idea what they cost these days.
I'd say no change from 200 + quid fitted.

I did a similar thing recently for the Roberts factory and it must have been
that sort of figure.

Bill


Was the *the* Roberts factory where they make the sets or where they
just rebadge the Sangeans?

/Glory days no more
//Thinks about the McMichael 372 and Murphy 192 in the loft.

"bhk" wrote in message
...

"bhk" wrote in message
...
OK I know this is not the place for this but I don't know where else
to ask and there appear to be a number of old-stagers lurking here.
What is the best arrangement for picking up local AM broadcasts?


Thanks for all your contributions. I recognise much of what you are
saying but it has been so long that I last was in this area I had
forgotten much of it.

Firstly there were some questions about the old couple and their
requirements. They are well into their eighties but are still very
lucid. It should be understood, I think, that old habits die hard and
change is often resisted at this period in life. He wants only to
continue to enjoy his Saturday afternoon football and rugby on what is
now Radio 5 Live which he is accustomed to finding on 693metres on his
dial. Not interested in local soccer which in this part of the world
usually involves Eastbourne playing whoever. Being from originally
from Yorkshire his heart is still in the north, of course, and he
enjoys national programming. She is an old linguist and enjoys a radio
play from France when the signals come in at night, on MW or LW,
albeit with some co-channel interference. And no, they don't have
freeview (or sky) and I think they are realist enough to recognise
that their prospects of being around when analogue is switched off
hereabouts in 2012 aren't all that good.

You are probably right in suggesting that the sport, at least, is
available on DAB and I was wrong in criticizing it. My experience is
limited to hearing the crass noisy programmes on my young son's set
when I visit him rather than the quality of the medium.

I had forgotten the internal aerial which is fitted to the Roberts. I
will assess the suggestions you have made but I think that it might be
asking too much to try and improve matters without some new hardware.
I see on the web that Roberts still supply FM/MW/LW sets at a
reasonable price and I wouldn't object to shelling out 40GBP for the
R9999 for them if the modernity of the presentation doesn't frighten
them too much. I suspect it would serve their purpose. What do you
think?

Very interested in the amount of response that this thread has
generated.

Kenneth



Have a look at
http://www.dxradio.co.uk/sangean/ats909.php
Expensive but a real radio.

Also look around for a Sony ICF-SW7600 in one of its guises.
Discontinued so should be cheap but a superb radio - I wouldn't travel
anywhere in Europe without mine.

Both will take an external aerial connection.


--
Woody

harrogate three at ntlworld dot com

One other thing I've just remembered about the use of AM. We regularly
listen to the test match while driving down through France! The 199kHz
signal finally becomes unusable around Dijon down the autoroute A26.
Can't do that on DAB or FM.

Re-tuning to the correct Droitwich frequency of 198kHz may cure
that sibilance distortion you may be experiencing.


--
Graham

%Profound_observation%

In article ,
Graham. wrote:


Radio 1 wasn't on FM for its first 21 years.

Not quite true. Radio 1 didn't have a dedicated FM outlet, but shared one
with R2. ISTR, every weekday 10 - 12pm, Saturday afternoons and a slot on
Sunday were R1's times on FM.

--
From KT24 - in "Leafy Surrey"

Using a RISC OS computer running v5.11

I had forgotten the internal aerial which is fitted to the Roberts. I
will assess the suggestions you have made but I think that it might be
asking too much to try and improve matters without some new hardware. I
see on the web that Roberts still supply FM/MW/LW sets at a reasonable
price and I wouldn't object to shelling out 40GBP for the R9999 for them
if the modernity of the presentation doesn't frighten them too much. I
suspect it would serve their purpose. What do you think?

Well you could get them one of those 'retro' sets that look just like the
old ones including the old station names on the dial...


I noticed Asda are selling a Bush TR-82C copy with a DAB tuner.
Sacrilege! I own a genuine TR-82C

--
Graham

%Profound_observation%

On Tue, 22 Jan 2008 20:33:20 -0000, "bhk"
wrote:


"bhk" wrote in message
news

"Paul D.Smith" wrote in message
...
...snip...
I also note the requirement of being able to listen to a French station.
As the location is on the south coast is it possible for a new radio
with DAB/FM to be used?
DAB for the Radio 5 Sport and FM for the French station.

Do you think this senior couple could be that if you were to set these
stations into the presets?

Presumably one could even install an FM aerial pointing directly at their
preferred French station - unless they like to search the ether for a
station that they like of course.

Paul DS.


French FM stations do sometimes come through on my own equipment but they
are very hit-and-miss. Sometimes they are there and sometimes not. I
thought that the French were supposed to shape their FM transmitter beams
to prevent interference on this side of the Channel?

Kenneth
One other thing I've just remembered about the use of AM. We regularly
listen to the test match while driving down through France! The 199kHz
signal finally becomes unusable around Dijon down the autoroute A26. Can't
do that on DAB or FM.

Kenneth
That'll be the mustard. Plays havoc with RF signals :-)

Marky P.

In article ,
Graham. wrote:
One other thing I've just remembered about the use of AM. We regularly
listen to the test match while driving down through France! The 199kHz
signal finally becomes unusable around Dijon down the autoroute A26.
Can't do that on DAB or FM.

Re-tuning to the correct Droitwich frequency of 198kHz may cure
that sibilance distortion you may be experiencing.

When last did Droitwich transmit frequencies that high? ;-)

--
*Drugs may lead to nowhere, but at least it's the scenic route *

Dave Plowman London SW
To e-mail, change noise into sound.

"Dave Plowman (News)" wrote in message
...
In article ,
Graham. wrote:
One other thing I've just remembered about the use of AM. We regularly
listen to the test match while driving down through France! The 199kHz
signal finally becomes unusable around Dijon down the autoroute A26.
Can't do that on DAB or FM.

Re-tuning to the correct Droitwich frequency of 198kHz may cure
that sibilance distortion you may be experiencing.

When last did Droitwich transmit frequencies that high? ;-)

On second thoughts leave it be and call it equalisation.



--
Graham

%Profound_observation%

"Mark Carver" wrote in message
...
Yes, Stewpot resurrected his Junior Choice show last year, for two
specials on Sept 30th, and Dec 24th. Dreadful. I remember now why as a 10
year old I listened to London's Capital Radio from then, until well into
my 20s.

The pirates were great. Radio One was a poor thing by comparison.

Bill

"Linker3000" wrote in message
...
Was the *the* Roberts factory where they make the sets or where they just
rebadge the Sangeans?

Far as I know they don't actually manufacture radios there. Could be wrong.

Bill