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In Reply to: RE: Radio Shack posted by OakIris on March 13, 2014 at 06:47:51
I recently read a review of the Terk FM50 Pro in The Audio Critic (I think it was issue 25). Peter Aczel can be a crank, but he knows alot about radio and did all the testing himself with a variety of tuners. His review was quite positive. Also, the reviews of this antenna on Amazon are mostly very positive. On the strength of this, I ordered one but don't have it yet. It can be used indoors or outdoors and has a 'power injector' accessory which some users reported they did not need.
I have been using a Terk AF-1 AM/FM indoor antenna for a few years. It is better than nothing, but not by much. I wasn't surprised to see the lousy reviews of it on Amazon.
I live in a community with a neighborhood association which frowns on rooftop antennas, among other things. I'd rather not get hassled by them.
Follow Ups:
It does NOT get a mention in the AC review of indoor antennas. I looked.The two issues V23 and 24 that covered FM showed a very good understanding of what matters to good FM reception. They did not much like the very sophisticated RF-amplifier they did review when added after a small indoor antenna.
If you want good FM reception you have to accept that the wavelength at 100Mhz is 11 feet.
Physics.
Holly, buy some rabbit ears.
Warmest
Tim Bailey
Skeptical Measurer & Audio Scrounger
Edits: 04/22/14
...starting on page 55. I mis-spoke regarding which issue it was in.
Here's the link.
Edits: 04/23/14
It is about time.
Its usefulness for Holly will depend on her/his willingness to re-aim it at each station.
I note that you can turn the RF amplifier off. I'd be willing to bet it will sound better on lots of stations.
RF amplifiers at the antenna are a good way of coping with cable network losses but only downstream of a good antenna with more gain than a dipole. They are not a brilliant idea for a not so good antenna.
The tuner is not as important as the antenna.
Warmest
Tim Bailey
Skeptical Measurer & Audio Scrounger
No, Timbo! Don't give in! keep up the good fight against the free lunchers. At RF size does matter. Aczel laments that the antenna needs to be turned. Oh the pain of directive gain :) Hard to believe that Terk would/could build a preamp competitive with the front ends in most tuners. We've all dreamed of the cute little high gain antenna. (To be sure, I know you know, but for others, antennas are generally passive, their gain is derived from their size and shape. Having recently retired from a career that started with designing satellite antennas, I'm sitting here listening to my Scott 310 E through an APS-13 pointed at Boston. Enjoying it but missing work, too. The DSP age has allowed degrees of freedom we never could achieve with analog means. We've seen a few examples of software-derived radio that do cool things while finding new problems as well. Getting enough dBm at your FE is still where its at. As you say you can't ignore the physics!
Regards to all,
Jim
P.S.to all in general If something works for you that defies conventional wisdom, great! Invest some organic clock cycles at trying to figure out why. Aye, there's the rub...
Edits: 04/28/14
Just wondering if the Terk FM50 Pro antenna lived up to your expectations, unlike the AF-1 antenna you tried out. I'm still in the market, though I now have a couple of 'rabbit ear' type antennas; like your prior experience with the AF-1, they are "better than nothing but not by much."
Holly
Holly, I did not get the FM50 Pro. I bought a Britta omni-directional (non powered) Loop antenna and put it my attic. I have had good results with this one, better than the Terk AF1 by a considerable margin. I did try the Terk AM Advantage antenna. It did absolutely nothing for me so I returned it (to Amazon).
I now have a C Crane twin ferrite loopstick AM antenna. It does strenghten AM signals considerably and works to a certain extent. But signals from weak, distant stations still come in with noise, but are now stronger. I may need to have my tuner aligned.
Andy
Oh! In your previous post you said that you had ordered the FM-50 from Amazon per the reviews you had read, so I thought that was what you ended up with. lol
Thank you for the info about your experience with the Brita antenna thus far; I sure wish I had an attic, that would make things so much easier! I imagine I will eventually end up getting an outside antenna so I have added this one to my wishlist. :-)
Holly
Holly, I don't remember all the particulars, but I think I cancelled the FM-50 and went with the Britta instead.
There is a writeup on the FM-50 in the Audiocritic,, online volume 23 or 24. Peter Aczel was very enamored with it. And he is in a position to know alot about FM reception. I'm not 'dissing' the FM-50, but I decided to try an attic mounted Britta instead. The FM-50 may work very well indeed for you, mounted in your living room or elsewhere. It can also be placed in an attic, if you ever have one. Note that the Terk is directional, while the Britta is not. This was a factor in my decision. The Britta is small, and maybe you could place it in your living room.
Best,
Andy
Edits: 04/11/14
hmmm - didn't think it would work just in my living room, but that is an idea. I have pretty high ceilings too - kind of a cathedral design in the '50's ranch style house so I could put it up as high as possible....
Good point about directional vs omnidirectional; I need to make that decision too. Really, first things first - I need to find a tuner I fall in love with and then decide upon the best antenna for it in particular. I may first try just making a dipole or rhombic antenna to see if either of those will work for me instead of throwing a lot more money at antennas.
Holly
You could fall in love with the MR78 tuner that I currently have on offer with Ebay. Just a suggestion.
:^ )
My ebay ID is andyo5. It is very lovable, but I have moved in the direction of automation vs. absolute capability.
:-D I am quite sure I would love the MR 78, but my wallet would divorce me for lack of funds; I am afraid that I don't have near that amount of spare cash to spend on a tuner (or anything else, for that matter.)
I have read wonderful things about that McIntosh tuner model; I don't imagine it will remain for sale for very long, some happy and lucky radio fool will snap it right up!
Holly
I completely understand. Mac tuners are nice, but expensive. Of the few FM tuners still available in the new US market, I'd probably go with one of the NAD tuners shown on the attached link. They are both budget minded and made by a quality company. Maybe you could find a used one on Ebay.
I hadn't considered NAD - I had been concentrating on tube tuners, actually, but do have some solid state tuners on my list. I will definitely look into the NAD tuners; thank you for the suggestion!
Holly
Oh, OK. I dfid not realize that you were looking at vintage tuners.
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