DAB is usless when moving

[CaliforniaBen]

We have given up with DAB when we are driving as sick of it cutting out. We went to our dealer who did some tests and said they are all like it as a lot of DAB transmitters are not transmitting at full power yet so the signal is very poor especially when you are not near the mast. Anyone else have problems with DAB in their Cali?

 

[rpevans99]

It is still not good is it? Often loses signal.

As an alternative I found that using 4G on my mobile streaming a variety of radio apps works better. Last summer I drove to Italy and back, streamed radio station of choice over bluetooth to my radio - hardly ever lost a signal (including some tunnels). I have a 10GB monthly data allowance and that is plenty.

 

[Victor]

+1 for streaming, we use tune in radio with app connect and works a dream. I have unlimited data on my bundle so it's a no brainer.

 

[ArunAlec]

We have given up with DAB when we are driving as sick of it cutting out. We went to our dealer who did some tests and said they are all like it as a lot of DAB transmitters are not transmitting at full power yet so the signal is very poor especially when you are not near the mast. Anyone else have problems with DAB in their Cali?

Agree DAB is very iffy when on the move. Particularly irritating when it changes over transmitters.

 

[Hotel California]

One of the reasons i never got rid of my old cassettes ...
To be honest i don't think i own a device that recives DAB , the RNS510 in my T5 does not have it , does it ?

 

[Meoncoast]

Had no DAB issue here in Hampshire or while away. Have found if on a campsite and our "camping portable" DAB radio cannot find a signal the van radio still works! most odd.

 

[WelshGas]

Absolutely no problem. In hilly areas it changes flawlessly between DAB and FM and the only time a station might drop out is if the DAB station doesn’t have an FM presence in that area.
Cannot fault it.

Must be a T6 thing.

 

[Ocean Spirit]

Must be a T6 thing.

My T6 DAB has been fine (touch wood) from the lake district to Devon and Cornwall and all across Hampshire.
I think your dealer @CaliforniaBen might be missing something as I dispute 'they are all like that'.
Really? 2018???

 

[Amarillo]

Mine cuts out for ~1/2 second every so often.


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[Moakesy]

Zero issues for me.

 

[Adamvanman]

Looks like other members don't believe you !

 

[Pete_Hampton]

T6 DAB all good here too, when parked up and out on the road.

If can be worth rescanning for stations every now and again to update the list of stations and to include more local ones too.

Might this be worth a try to help reduce 'drop out' as per the OP?

 

[Ocean Spirit]

Looks like other members don't believe you !

I believe him I don't believe some of what his dealer told him.

 

[TwoDogs]

DAB in my Volvo is flawless...never drops out. In my Cali....not so much. Regularly lose the signal (even in places where you think DAB signal would be good..SE England). I assume its the ariel in the T5

 

[Fred holland]

Rubbish in Monmouthshire area. It was fine until they changed mast types a few years ago. Now it’s like the dark zone.

 

[WelshGas]

Rubbish in Monmouthshire area. It was fine until they changed mast types a few years ago. Now it’s like the dark zone.

Drive through Monmouthshire frequently. DAB all the way.
RNS510 System.

 

[Fred holland]

Mines the uprated nav. Other halves sq5 is a no go either. Use mostly iPods. Used to get planet rock tidy but not anymore.

 

[Nick Stubbs]

Surprised how good it is, not had any issues, Derby, North Wales, Yorkshire and London.

 

[Peddster]

Cheap 12v charging adapters can be bad for reception and maybe it is worth checking out, if the reception is better without those chargers/adapters. There is a thread in the German Caliboard about it where a guy checked a few: (sorry german only)

https://www.caliboard.de/topic/1776...s-vergleichstest/?tab=comments#comment-220597

Google translate:

That's why I've just plugged the chargers in the car, put me on a tight-built street corner with medium bad reception, and set a DAB station without FM equivalent. As a load, I've plugged a half-unloaded smartphone to the store. For comparison, I have also tried the VW USB socket in the compartment of the control panel.

The results coincide with the measurements (Phew!):

Amazon:
The reception is usually okay, sometimes it gets "dull" (ie the error rate goes up, the usable bitrate goes down: error resilience, DAB is really cool.), But never stops completely. Plugging in your phone does not really make a difference.

Hama:
Inserted, reception bad. Mobile phone plugged in, reception gone. Immediate and reproducible. Nuff said.

RAVPower:
Even with plugged in cell phone no interference in the reception.

Voltcraft:
Bad reception, again and again dropouts.

 

[MattBW]

My DAB cuts out more when I have things charging from the engine socket in the cup holder. Although its a t5 i always thought the wiring wasn't sufficient for the ampage. Could also be RF inteference from cheap chinese non CE stuff but hard to tell.

Unplug things from the socket, I get far less cut outs.

 

[Amarillo]

My DAB cuts out more when I have things charging from the engine socket in the cup holder. Although its a t5 i always thought the wiring wasn't sufficient for the ampage. Could also be RF inteference from cheap chinese non CE stuff but hard to tell.

Unplug things from the socket, I get far less cut outs.

When you say “cut outs” do you mean a momentary loss of DAB?


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[MattBW]

When you say “cut outs” do you mean a momentary loss of DAB?


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Yes the dab cuts out far more often with the socket in heavy use but to be fair it happens regularly anyway, worse in town though.

 

[WelshGas]

Yes the dab cuts out far more often with the socket in heavy use but to be fair it happens regularly anyway, worse in town though.

Does it not change automatically to the FM equivalent?

 

[ArunAlec]

Does it not change automatically to the FM equivalent?

Mine seems to either change to FM or to another transmitter but not seamlessly. Jumps back a couple of seconds, not the end of the world but irritating!

 

[Amarillo]

Yes the dab cuts out far more often with the socket in heavy use but to be fair it happens regularly anyway, worse in town though.

I suppose I have just accepted it as a feature of the DAB radio.

What concerned me more was that when overseas I was never able to tune into DAB radio. I tried in several countries, I can’t remember which, but definitely in Italy. Do you know if different counties use different types of DAB?


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