Internal AM/FM aerials

bjd

Anyone got any experience of these things? Do they work -  if so,  better or worse than external antenna - and any recommendations?
Thanks in advance.

noiseboy72

AM is usually just a coil. I've not seen a lot of external AM antennae, as it would simply pull in too many distant foreign stations, particularly at night.

External FM come in 2 flavours. Omni directional - normally circular and directional Yagi arrays - which will be pointed at the local transmitter. These are not so popular these days, as regional stations tend to come from more than 1 site. It would only be if you really only listened to Radio 3 or something that you would have a directional antenna.

Internal antennas are never as good. You will get more hiss and a narrower stereo image - as most receivers pull in the mono signal and add in the stereo if there's enough strength. You need good signal for really good quality audio.

Don't forget about DAB, which will normally use a vertical antenna.

bjd

Thanks. As I suspected. As far as DAB goes, Postcode checkers give:
"Unfortunately you don’t currently benefit from DAB coverage"
Oh well, no shortcuts - off with the roof lining and aerial and lead replacement.

noiseboy72

Might be worth trying the aerial in the loft first.  Low band FM is surprisingly good at penetrating buildings and the extra height will work wonders.

I was thinking more in terms of the gadgets you see to sit on top of the stereo rather than putting one in the loft space. A standard FM circular aerial might well do the trick. If not it's then not a great stretch to move it outside if required.

bjd

Oops, sorry...should have said it's the wife's Clio.

noiseboy72

Ha!
In which case, yes a rooftop aerial

Sorry, should have spotted the section!!!

gibbsy

This is the highly modified Clio. Can't see the aerial though.
                                                                       

Sonic67

Short answer, no.

An internal aerial generally won't be better than an external one. A car is a faraday cage. A mobile metal box keeping out signals.

In the same way if you want a decent TV picture, an aerial outside your house tends to be better than one inside.

bjd

Yeah I kinda figured an internal aerial wouldn't be as good. Just wondered if there was a half-decent internal one that would save me having to remove headcloth/door pillar trims etc. to fit a new external. It seems not.

VFR

I can remember those windscreen Ariel's that were embedded into a plastic stick on sun strip, may be worth a look online as they were easy to fit and worked quite well (at the time)