I finally gave in and got a Insignia HD Radio. So far I like it. It picks up analog really good, HD is pretty decent. The sound is good, The only thing I wish it had was AM and the presets was numbered instead of just up and down. And I would of liked to have 2 different FM bands for presets. Other than that its a pretty good little radio.
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Got a Insignia portable HD Radio
- Thread starter jras20
- Start date
K
KE4KLS_Radio
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I bought one Sunday at the local Best Buy for the low, low price of $39.95. Only 2 units available in this store... Upon initial inspection I noticed there was no AC adapter, only a USB cable to attach to a computer. I charged it with my laptop and seems to work well. I would imagine a 5.0 volt cell phone charger with a USB port would work, too. A nice package for the price... look forward to using it...
Mine was 39.95 also, after playing with HD for a while, I learned that for home use if you got it set right it works fine. But once you travel from City to City, it starts going out about 45 miles or so out of the City. When analog still comes in great. If they want HD to work they need to fix this.
We're leaning into something I still haven't gotten a satisfactory answer to, and I suspect the finer engineering minds on this forum may have an answer (and they might even want to share it.)
Is it possible to make something to plug in to the headphone jack on this radio that will:
- Serve as a better-quality antenna than the earphones.
- Still allow for sound output (to an "aux" jack) while minimizing the contribution the audio cable makes to the antenna setup.
Any ideas?
Is it possible to make something to plug in to the headphone jack on this radio that will:
- Serve as a better-quality antenna than the earphones.
- Still allow for sound output (to an "aux" jack) while minimizing the contribution the audio cable makes to the antenna setup.
Any ideas?
Here's some portable news worthy of note: according to the latest edition of Radio World, Sangean will soon be offering AM in its HD Radio portables. The DT-600 HD will have only analog AM with HD-FM while the DT-800 HD will be fully digital for both bands. The 600 (available in June) uses the earbud cable for an antenna while the 800 (available in October) will have a telescoping monopole. Both radios will tune side channels. No price has been set for either unit.
hubcity said:
Depends how and where you want to use it... totally portable, vehicle or into a home system.
In each case, you'd be partially stripping off the outer insulation of your output wire from the headphone jack, separating the wires a bit.
Then get a piece of metal foil about one half inch by 1 inch, a long rectangle. Fold this foil over one wire so it comes together.
You have formed a coupling capacitor. Now you can connect any other experimental antenna to this capacitor.
Test the other 2 wires, singly or in combination with the 2 wires of an FM antenna , whether balanced or unbalanced with a foil capacitor,
to see which wires seem to have the most antenna coupling.
You can see how this is not practical for full portable use. The headphone wire really is the best unless you want to try an amplified antenna.
You can always just try wrapping a few ( maybe 10) wraps of wire tightly around the headphone wire near the jack, and then have a 1 meter wire that just dangled. it might be a good diversity experiment. Or connect the 10 loops to another antenna.
The coupling you get will be very dependent on how tightly you crush the foil onto the wires or how tightly you wrap the turns ( turns should be close and tight). But it's not that hard to get effective coupling. If you're coupling into a 2 wire antenna, connect one side to each end of your 10 loops,
or one each to foil tabs.
I suspect there might need to be some isolation rf-wise, for plug in to a system that would not be an isssue with headphones.
The "system" being plugged into would be a reactance on the rf aspect of the circuit, and might need a choke or 2.
Let me think about it....
Tom Wells said:
I think Internet Legendhood awaits the person who comes up with an easy-to-build, do-it-yourself antenna for each of these purposes, at least with me. (And, this being the Internet, isn't that what it's all about?)
I use the radio in a stationary position at home, plugged into an Aux jack in the car, and in a stationary position at work, so I'm thinking there's three opportunities to think of something interesting. For a totally portable situation, you can't do much better than the supplied headphones, but I wouldn't mind having some kind of apparatus that I can plug the radio into whenever I wind up in any of the three environments I spend most of my day in.
Your help is *much* appreciated!
8
8638
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jras20 said:
That's the Country station in Austin, isn't it? I've only been to Austin once, but if KVET is 98.1, it was a damned good country station!
I didn't check the FCC DB, but they should be able to operate full class C on that channel, and unless they are coming off of something tall, 49.8 Kw isn't a full C.
IN the COL, the (2) 50KW FM's lock the HD, the 19KW FM locks the HD, but the two suburb stations (within 15 miles) both about 6KW, neither gets the radio beyond the flashing HD logo, even with a long wire attached to the ground of the headphone jack. Just not enough "juice" at current HD levels for this little portable.
Oh yea, really missing that "AM" button too!
Oh yea, really missing that "AM" button too!
Got it at Best Buy for the $40 sale price. At home fairly good recep of HD/HD extra stations. At work, a big postal facility, not too bad in the "breakroom" but it suffers when on the workroom floor. Though last night it wasn't too bad. Some of the stations I was hoping to get:
(Boston area. Home is Beverly, work is N. Reading, N of Boston)
WMKK-HD 3 --simulcasts WEEI (Red Sox games, etc.) Right now due to interference I have to place one
AM-FM radio nr edge of building and use mini FM transmitter to hear WEEI. WBOQ-FM does carry Sox but weak
recep on workroom floor...but last night I was able to at least get WEEI on the HD3 for more than a few
minutes. At other times, it would come in for a couple seconds then I'd lose it. We are maybe 6-8 miles
as the crow flies from the antenna
WKLB-HD 2 Classic country Can come in on workroom floor at times
WZLX HD 2 Radio Mojo--all blues. Comes in at home (at times), not at work
WBZ-HD 3 WBZ AM radio. Can't pick up at work. (Could use system I descr. above to hear at work--
AM-FM radio w/ mini FM transmitter to beam signal to my Walkman
To be honest I have not tried it with the enclosed ear buds yet. I have used diff. headphones ranging
from $5-10 Sony or Koss to much more expensive ones (long cord)
Was getting an all 70s station, WROR-HD 2
(Boston area. Home is Beverly, work is N. Reading, N of Boston)
WMKK-HD 3 --simulcasts WEEI (Red Sox games, etc.) Right now due to interference I have to place one
AM-FM radio nr edge of building and use mini FM transmitter to hear WEEI. WBOQ-FM does carry Sox but weak
recep on workroom floor...but last night I was able to at least get WEEI on the HD3 for more than a few
minutes. At other times, it would come in for a couple seconds then I'd lose it. We are maybe 6-8 miles
as the crow flies from the antenna
WKLB-HD 2 Classic country Can come in on workroom floor at times
WZLX HD 2 Radio Mojo--all blues. Comes in at home (at times), not at work
WBZ-HD 3 WBZ AM radio. Can't pick up at work. (Could use system I descr. above to hear at work--
AM-FM radio w/ mini FM transmitter to beam signal to my Walkman
To be honest I have not tried it with the enclosed ear buds yet. I have used diff. headphones ranging
from $5-10 Sony or Koss to much more expensive ones (long cord)
Was getting an all 70s station, WROR-HD 2
I bought an Insignia when it hit the market last July. My motivation for getting it was that it was an inexpensive way to hear the subchannels in my area. I also want to archive the HD-2's and HD-3's that interest me.
In terms of reception, I'd give it B-.
Like the previous poster, I have fairly good reception of the HD signals. In enclosed structures such as grocery stores, office buildings, etc., the performance was not good. In most cases, the HD signals would not lock, and sometimes had trouble getting analog signals.
Surprisingly, I've had better success than expected with reception in the car, with a slight modification. I connected a wire to the headphone out and connected it to the car antenna. It works surprisingly well, with occasional signal dropouts on the major market FM's. The radio wasn't designed for this kind of use, and it performed better than expected.
The stations that interested me were:
KYKY HD-2, which had a chill format when I bought the radio
KSHE HD-2, a free form classic rock with a wider playlist
WARH HD-2, a classic rock format similar to KSHE-2 called "Deep Cuts"
KWMU HD-2, a AAA format
Not long after I bought the Insignia, KYKY flipped their HD-2 from chill to AAA, but I did get some airchecks of the chill format.
The stations I enjoy the most are KSHE-2 and "Deep Cuts." I also like "The Verve," which is a smooth jazz format on the HD-3 of KIHT. I have posted airchecks of these stations elsewhere on this board. I'll post the links here if anyone is interested.
I am not a fan of HD technology, and I don't see it catching on. The sound quality is limited (96 kbps at best, but mostly 48 kbps if the signal is split). These stations would be better suited to the web, and would sound better online if you ask me. But I'll listen to them as long as there there, and aircheck them as long as they're available.
Here are the FM HD's in St. Louis:
KDHX (HD-1 only)--community
WLCA (HD-1 alternative, HD-2 CHR--Alton High School)
KWMU (HD-1 NPR talk, HD-2 NPR talk, WXPN's "X-ponential radio")
WIL (HD-1 country, HD-2 "Kerosene Country" similar to the main signal)
KSD (HD-1 country HD-2 "Foggy Mountain" classic country)
KSHE (HD-1 AOR, HD-2 locally programmed free form, HD-3 80's "My 80's Channel)
WFUN (HD-1 only)--urban AC
KIHT (HD-1 classic rock, HD-2 simulcast of KFTK-talk, HD-3 "The Verve" smooth jazz)
KFTK (HD-1 talk, HD-2 "Red" adult standards)
KYKY (HD-1 modern AC, HD-2 "The River" AAA)
WSDD (HD-1 90's rock, HD-2 "The Beat" R&B/Hip Hop)
WXOS (HD-1 sports, HD-2 ESPN radio)
KEZK (HD-1 AC, HD-2 "The Spirit" contemporary Christian, HD-3 simulcast of KMOX-AM)
KLOU (HD-1 70's and 80's, HD-2 oldies)
WHHL (HD-1 only)--urban
KMJM (HD-1 urban AC, HD-2 smooth jazz)
KPNT (HD-1 alternative, HD-2 also alternative)
WARH (HD-1 "Jack" format, HD-2 "Deep Cuts" AOR, HD-3 "The Mormon Channel")
KSLZ (HD-1 CHR, HD-2 CHR "Amp")
In terms of reception, I'd give it B-.
Like the previous poster, I have fairly good reception of the HD signals. In enclosed structures such as grocery stores, office buildings, etc., the performance was not good. In most cases, the HD signals would not lock, and sometimes had trouble getting analog signals.
Surprisingly, I've had better success than expected with reception in the car, with a slight modification. I connected a wire to the headphone out and connected it to the car antenna. It works surprisingly well, with occasional signal dropouts on the major market FM's. The radio wasn't designed for this kind of use, and it performed better than expected.
The stations that interested me were:
KYKY HD-2, which had a chill format when I bought the radio
KSHE HD-2, a free form classic rock with a wider playlist
WARH HD-2, a classic rock format similar to KSHE-2 called "Deep Cuts"
KWMU HD-2, a AAA format
Not long after I bought the Insignia, KYKY flipped their HD-2 from chill to AAA, but I did get some airchecks of the chill format.
The stations I enjoy the most are KSHE-2 and "Deep Cuts." I also like "The Verve," which is a smooth jazz format on the HD-3 of KIHT. I have posted airchecks of these stations elsewhere on this board. I'll post the links here if anyone is interested.
I am not a fan of HD technology, and I don't see it catching on. The sound quality is limited (96 kbps at best, but mostly 48 kbps if the signal is split). These stations would be better suited to the web, and would sound better online if you ask me. But I'll listen to them as long as there there, and aircheck them as long as they're available.
Here are the FM HD's in St. Louis:
KDHX (HD-1 only)--community
WLCA (HD-1 alternative, HD-2 CHR--Alton High School)
KWMU (HD-1 NPR talk, HD-2 NPR talk, WXPN's "X-ponential radio")
WIL (HD-1 country, HD-2 "Kerosene Country" similar to the main signal)
KSD (HD-1 country HD-2 "Foggy Mountain" classic country)
KSHE (HD-1 AOR, HD-2 locally programmed free form, HD-3 80's "My 80's Channel)
WFUN (HD-1 only)--urban AC
KIHT (HD-1 classic rock, HD-2 simulcast of KFTK-talk, HD-3 "The Verve" smooth jazz)
KFTK (HD-1 talk, HD-2 "Red" adult standards)
KYKY (HD-1 modern AC, HD-2 "The River" AAA)
WSDD (HD-1 90's rock, HD-2 "The Beat" R&B/Hip Hop)
WXOS (HD-1 sports, HD-2 ESPN radio)
KEZK (HD-1 AC, HD-2 "The Spirit" contemporary Christian, HD-3 simulcast of KMOX-AM)
KLOU (HD-1 70's and 80's, HD-2 oldies)
WHHL (HD-1 only)--urban
KMJM (HD-1 urban AC, HD-2 smooth jazz)
KPNT (HD-1 alternative, HD-2 also alternative)
WARH (HD-1 "Jack" format, HD-2 "Deep Cuts" AOR, HD-3 "The Mormon Channel")
KSLZ (HD-1 CHR, HD-2 CHR "Amp")
I'm thinking of using a 3.5mm headphone splitter into my Insignia portable and just making a long wire antenna plug into the 2nd jack - question is, what are they using for the antenna connection - just the shield wire from the headphones?
I have version 3.0 which I bought in January. ***Anyone else have a version number higher than this and have they fixed any of the following glitches???***
There are two glitches in the radio...
When the radio is in RDS analog mode, the signal meter goes away when it shows you the station name and artist name and song.
When you manually seek through the FM Band and come across a station you have already preset in the middle of the band (like preset #5), the radio identifies the preset, but if you hit the preset +/- button it makes you start at preset #1 or #10.
Great signal 35 miles east of Atlanta.
I receive all of the 100,000 kw stations clearly in HD. Anything below 100,000, I have to usually move the headphones around to get an HD hit off of the tower. I do notice the sound quality diminish when there are more than one HD station on the frequency (as mentioned earlier). I assume that is due to the digital compression. The battery usually lasts right at 10 hours (without using the display). I find when I station surf more that the battery life is greatly diminished. Awesome sound, espcially when the radio converts from analog to digital. The radio receives stations about as good as my analog car radio. I have owned several Radio Shack and Sony analog PLL digital tuning radios in the past and they always get neighboring radio interference all the time because the tuner is cheap and not reinforced like a car radio. I would always have to go to a particular location in the room to get anything below 100,000 watts. The Insignia seems like a better tuner similar to a car radio and I can be in a several places in the room without losing the station. It's small and convenient and I think it is a good price for what you get. I use my Motorolla charger to charge the radio. I never use the armband. I still keep the plastic sheet on the face of the radio, because I hear the screen scratches very easily.
There are two glitches in the radio...
When the radio is in RDS analog mode, the signal meter goes away when it shows you the station name and artist name and song.
When you manually seek through the FM Band and come across a station you have already preset in the middle of the band (like preset #5), the radio identifies the preset, but if you hit the preset +/- button it makes you start at preset #1 or #10.
Great signal 35 miles east of Atlanta.
I receive all of the 100,000 kw stations clearly in HD. Anything below 100,000, I have to usually move the headphones around to get an HD hit off of the tower. I do notice the sound quality diminish when there are more than one HD station on the frequency (as mentioned earlier). I assume that is due to the digital compression. The battery usually lasts right at 10 hours (without using the display). I find when I station surf more that the battery life is greatly diminished. Awesome sound, espcially when the radio converts from analog to digital. The radio receives stations about as good as my analog car radio. I have owned several Radio Shack and Sony analog PLL digital tuning radios in the past and they always get neighboring radio interference all the time because the tuner is cheap and not reinforced like a car radio. I would always have to go to a particular location in the room to get anything below 100,000 watts. The Insignia seems like a better tuner similar to a car radio and I can be in a several places in the room without losing the station. It's small and convenient and I think it is a good price for what you get. I use my Motorolla charger to charge the radio. I never use the armband. I still keep the plastic sheet on the face of the radio, because I hear the screen scratches very easily.
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