zero Posted July 5, 2014 Share Posted July 5, 2014 I wasn't sure if this question should be in electronics, appliances - or here. This question applies to anyone who listens, or tries to listen to weak radio on the AM band, in an RV. I'm trying to find an in-dash radio with good AM reception and it's not real easy to research. I've heard of many people having trouble with AM radios in RVs. Note I'm talking weak signals and drift - not something from a transmitter 20 miles away. I'm aware of all the interference problems on the AM band . . . especially from ignition, alternators, inverters, power lines, etc. That is not my concern. I'm looking for a radio with high sensitivity like many older radios used to have. Most new ones do not. I went through a search for house radio for years and that was also difficult. Lots of BS out there along with false marketing. Most newer radios are built for high noise rejection and selectivity . . not tuner sensitivity. I found several AM radios supposedly made just for weak AM reception with good reviews on the Net that were actually horrible. GE Super Radio is one of those hyped up radios that is pretty useless (I've had three). Ends up the Katio KA1103 is the best I've tried and a Sangean 2nd. Old car and truck radios (mostly 60s and older) had separate AM and FM antenna inputs.with a trimmer on the AM line. From what I've read - most new digital radios for autos have no hookup to the antenna for AM. Just FM. They just use an internal antenna loop or use chassis ground. Rather then buy radios "trial and error" - I'd like to hear if anyone has had any recent radio purchases and found AM reception to be exceptional. I did last year with a Clarion CZ model but sold it along with the car it was in and that model is no longer made. I've been searching specs on many new radios but some companies do not even bother to publish the AM tuner specs. Just the FM. So far - just going by published specs and NOT actual ownership . . here's what I've found with the most sensitive tuners, to the least-worst ones. On paper, Pyle PL95MU beats them all. I have no way of knowing if they are "fudging" the numbers until I actually try one. Pyle PL95MU 43 dB Boss MR1650UA 40 dB JVC KD-G320 40 dB Clarion CZ102 30 dBPioneer - just about all 25 dB JVC KD-R330 20 dB Blaupunkt PMMEL 120W 20 dB Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vanman Posted July 5, 2014 Share Posted July 5, 2014 Look at the antenna on the Dolphins, pulls in really well. Was at a campsite and was listening to the radio changing stations when commercials came on and the bigger RV's on each side asked me what was the frequency of my stations. They couldn't get any of them it turns out, works good on the road also. I'm sure you can find a similar antenna set up for RV's maybe at a truck store?? Good recption starts with a good antenna. vanman Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zero Posted July 6, 2014 Author Share Posted July 6, 2014 I've experimented with half-a-dozen antennas on my Minicruiser. Even an 8 foot marine antenna that requires no metal ground plane. Ends up the best reception has been from a two footer. Making an antenna fit the Toyota sloped fender is not easy. The OEM antenna has a long section of strap metal that grounds the antenna down inside the fender cavity. Not easy to get to and subject to getting rusty. Yesterday -after many antenna experiments and 6 different radios - I found the Pioneer to be the best of the lot. Model X26UI. So much for AM tuner sensitivity ratings. The Pioneer is only rated at half what some others are but did the best. But it works near as well as the Delco in my 1978 Blazer with an analog tuner on AM, and works MUCH better on FM. So - I'm going to call it good for now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maineah Posted July 6, 2014 Share Posted July 6, 2014 An AM antenna on a vehicle is at best is a compromise. The only real reason you can hear them at all is because of their output power most run thousands of watts and the big one’s tens of thousands of watts. Years ago car radios had antenna trimmers to match the antennas length to resonance but I have not seen a radio in a long time that had a trimmer. If you want to receive AM broadcast long is good longer is better you would need a lot of wire to make it too long. If you want to do the best you can with a car radio I would suggest a simple long wire tuner they are pretty cheap and would require some ingenuity it adapt it to the antenna connections but it would make a match out of something that isn’t. The very best antenna for the broadcast band would be a loop antenna not too practical for mobile use and directive so you are pretty much stuck with a whip. GE made a radio that was solely designed for AM broadcast but I believe it was only a table top. AM broadcast is becoming a bit of an orphan they are expensive to operate and the listener base is slipping away so not too many manufactures are interested in making AM radios that are particularly good, great FM and digital but that’s about it.The older radios did a lot better on AM because there were more people still listening to AM radio. The db figures they list are selectivity not really sensitivity, sensitivity is listed in micro volts and that is what really counts the lower the figure the better the receiver. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zero Posted July 7, 2014 Author Share Posted July 7, 2014 The db figures they list are selectivity not really sensitivity, sensitivity is listed in micro volts and that is what really counts the lower the figure the better the receiver. No. The figures I've been checking on radios are for sensitivity, not selectivity. Figures for the latter are also published. I wanted a radio with lower selectivity and higher sensitivity. That's what's needed to get weak AM signals. Tuner selectivity can be expressed in microvolts, dB, or dBm. Amount of signal needed to produce audio output is measured in microvolts. The audio increase produced is measured in dB. When dBm is used - it is decibels relative to one milliwatt. If the sensitivity is known in microvolts, and antenna impedance is known, the microvolt figure can be converted to dBm. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zero Posted July 7, 2014 Author Share Posted July 7, 2014 GE made a radio that was solely designed for AM broadcast but I believe it was only a table top. Yes, it was called the "GE Super Radio." Came out in 1979. I have one original and three newer versions. Worthless pieces of junk, in my experience. It's a radio built specific for medium wave sensitivity and has an internal ferrite loop antenna and an external antenna jack. The original was designed by GE. Later got taken over by RCA, Thomson Electric of China, etc. Versions I, II, and III. Every time a new version comes out I buy one hoping it's improved. Not happened yet. My 1932 Crosley tube radio does much better with the internal "wave magnet" antenna and with an outside long-wire antenna. I've been hearing raves about GE Super Radios since they first came out. I still don't get it. Yet I keep buying them. By FAR - the best AM radio I've ever owned is a Kaito KA-1103. A small AM, FM, and SW radio. Next to that is the Chinese Tescun BL3000 that Grundig rebadges and sells as an S350. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maineah Posted July 7, 2014 Share Posted July 7, 2014 My wizz bang ham radios do OK on AM broadcast but just to listen to AM makes them a pretty expensive table top radio. Another pretty good short wave/AM radio is a Sony 2010 they have built in pre amps. Give google a try with loop antennas they are easy to built and work better than a long wire and have deep nulls great for AM DX. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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