AM/FM Radio Antenna Booster?

Question

just bought this one:

http://www.jcwhitney.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/Product?storeId=10101&Pr=p_Product.CATENTRY_ID%3A2001196&productId=2001196&catalogId=10101

Instructions: Simply plug booster into radio and antenna into booster. Connect power lead to switched 12-volt power source and your done. For radios with motorola style antenna plug only

I managed to get the red cable connected to the car battery, but I still does not get good signal, I still hear a lot of static when i am listening to the radio.

could it be something that i did wrong?

I bought it so i wouldn't need my antenna extended to high on my 1999 honda CRV.

Answer 1

Usually all it will amply what ever signal comes into it. (I've had some and in rural areas it boosted some stations but not to the level people are exclaiming in the ads because average limit for a FM station is 25 miles (even though reality is 10-100 miles)

If the antenna is extended, does your reception get better?

IF no, or the same, check the power lead or you may have a defective unit

Swap out and make sure it's put in... the unit catches the ground thru the motorola plug (standard plug used for many years, but has gone by wayside in the last 10 years or so) and if you had to add an adapter of any sort it may not allow it to work correctly also ...

So try what I wrote and if not, take a piece of wire and touch it from the adapter to ground and see if it works also.....

other than that all I can suggest is JC whitney

Answer 2

mine doesn't work well either....

Answer 3

If the product does as advertised, it sounds like a ground problem to me. Is it possible you hooked up the ground improperly, or that it broke inside the plastic covering (so it's not visible) while you were installing the booster?

Even with a booster, if you are not near a metropolitan area and you get good reception with the antenna fully extended, just return the booster, because that's probably what it's going to take. In that case, it's a trade-off between aesthetics and audio  ;<)

That's about it from me. Gearbox will probably see this question and if he does, pay attention - he knows this sort of stuff.

-a guy named duh