In the short history of my life I've had about a half dozen mid to high quality home stereo systems. NONE of them have gotten the FM reception that my worst car stereo has. And AM? Forget it. I've tried all sorts of antennas, boosters, and the like without any good results. Now, to make matters worse, I live in the middle of nowhere. My home stereo gets a grand total of ZERO radio stations. But... all my car stereos pull them in great. Even when my cars are inside my metal sided & roofed shop, the reception is great. I just spent a C-note on a Sony portable stereo for my shop and it won't pull in ANYTHING unless you position it just-so and stand just-so by the antenna. I'm geting FRUSTRATED!!!
So now that the 'short' intro is over, the question; Is there ANY reason that I don't want to use a car stereo in my house or shop with a regular car antenna mounted to the roof? I have plenty of metal surfaces on my roofs, so ground plane isn't an issue. Why are the tuners on car stereos so much better than in home or portable stereos?
Thanks in advance for any help here,
Tom
Last edited by tpiini; 07-08-2005 at 08:13 PM.
Reason: grammar
Yep, tried Terk. Nothing. The 12V transformer is a rather obvious necessity, but I've got a pile of them. I also have Sirius, but that's not the issue. I want to get LOCAL stations. Local being something within 50 miles, that is.
So what I'm trying to get here is an opinion on whether the car stereo will work as well in a building as it will in a car. My next step, I guess, will be to rip a stereo out of one of the cars & try it. I was just hoping that someone here might have already done so to save me the trial & error aggrivation. I'm just tired of buying stereos that don't get any radio reception!
If a car stereo has great reception while in the car, parked inside the shop, would it not stand to reason that the same stereo would have the same great reception if mounted in the wall of the same shop? Or is there something about the antenna being on the car instead of on a roof that makes it so much better? That's the REAL question I have.
Yep, tried Terk. Nothing. The 12V transformer is a rather obvious necessity, but I've got a pile of them. I also have Sirius, but that's not the issue. I want to get LOCAL stations. Local being something within 50 miles, that is.
So what I'm trying to get here is an opinion on whether the car stereo will work as well in a building as it will in a car. My next step, I guess, will be to rip a stereo out of one of the cars & try it. I was just hoping that someone here might have already done so to save me the trial & error aggrivation. I'm just tired of buying stereos that don't get any radio reception!
If a car stereo has great reception while in the car, parked inside the shop, would it not stand to reason that the same stereo would have the same great reception if mounted in the wall of the same shop? Or is there something about the antenna being on the car instead of on a roof that makes it so much better? That's the REAL question I have.
well that is an easy answer, yes, it will work. The antenna will work as good on the roof as it will the car. A 31" car antenna is 1/4 wavelength, doesn't matter what it is attached too.
well that is an easy answer, yes, it will work. The antenna will work as good on the roof as it will the car. A 31" car antenna is 1/4 wavelength, doesn't matter what it is attached too.
Okay, now for a REEELY stupid question...
If the regular car antenna is "1/4 wavelength" would I be better off sticking a 124" antenna on the roof???
As you probably guessed from my initial posting, I have about zero understanding of radio theory & function.
Corvette Store
Car stereo for the house???
