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Signal Challenge

2

2004RedSox

Guest
Now that the leaves are back on the trees I find the signal cuts out when I'm driving down a street with thick tree covering. With an abundance of trees in my immediate neighborhood, I don't even bother to turn on satelite radio until I'm out of the area. Does anyone else encounter this problem? Any solutions i.e. antenna location? (The antenna is mounted on the trunk of my car).
 
> Any solutions i.e. antenna location? (The antenna
> is mounted on the trunk of my car).
>
That's one of the reasons the company recommends roof mounting. Simple trigonometry tells us that even an additional 18 inches in elevation will significantly lower the minimum line of sight over nearby trees. It won't eliminate the problem, but it will improve your odds of keeping the signal on the margins. Also, make sure the antenna is completely horizontal - not slanted in any way.
I'd add that my experience lately is that trees have only been a problem for me on the narrowest woody roads. All in all, not a big deal, as I see it.<P ID="edit"><FONT class="small">Edited by OldNumber7 on 06/07/05 12:32 AM.</FONT></P>
 
I own an SUV with a dealer mounted antenna for Sirius on the roof. I get cut outs under heavily wooded areas. I got Sirius last August. I had forgotten over the winter how much difference the trees make in certain areas during the spring.

Having said that, it's not enough of a problem for me to ditch the satellite radio. A close friend with XM has similar problems, but not always in the same geographic areas.
 
I drove through a park this past weekend where the airspace above me was basically covered with trees, branches, etc. I checked the signal meter just out of curiosity...got a few drops to 1 out of 3 on the signal meter, but only a couple one-second dropouts.

My antenna is roof mounted (and there wasn't a repeater for 60-70 miles) so I think the roof mount might solve your problem, at least to some extent.

Sirius actually does better in the tunnels near downtown Pittsburgh than the local FMs. If the Squirrel Hill tunnels don't actually have Sirius transmitters inside (as all the cell phone co's do) then the repeater must be right outside them.
 
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