wide mode tuning ??

[redbenjoe]

have a tech question --but more like for this general chat forum ....

plenty of my little boxes -
-have a nifty benefit from their ambience or wide or expand
or etc etc modes --
this surely does give them a bigger box effect --
and a very 'spacial' sound

however --these modes most always trash my fm reception :'-(
---going from mono to stereo to wide --is usually a disaster --

it might be my location --and that we live in a tin side //tin roof abode
as - its gets a bit better -- outside --
--------------------------------------------
but asking -
do any of you have boxes -with such strong tuners--
that you can slam them from mono to wide-
without even a dent in your reception quality ??

 

[el cad]

I have had problems like that before. Mostly with stations that are farther away. I usually test out the boxes using the station that I know is only a few miles away. All the radios pick up the station well enough for the full stereo signal even though my house is in a little valley.

 

[mellymelsr]

Here in the Bay Area we are blessed with plenty of strong stations so when I use my "wide" setting on my Rising or my M9994k there is no difference in tuning strength....

 

[Superduper]

Ira. It may appear that way, but in reality, the sensitivity of the tuner has nothing to do with the mode settings. However, on marginal (not strong) stations, you will seem to get better reception between the mono and stereo settings but that is due to the MPX (stereo) decoder having trouble capturing the pilot signal which is necessary to decode and seperate the encoded FM left/right signals. Switching it to Mono means that the radio no longer needs to work to decode the FM so your signal will seem more stable.

The wide/ambiance, whatever its' called on your boombox is basically stereo with the left/right channels mixing together back to the amp with a slight delay built in, giving you a seemingly wider soundstage. The circuitry and manner that it's done can affect how that sounds. On some models, it sounds crappy and noisy. On others, it actually sounds good. In my opinion, JVC's biphonic is among the worst. Oh yeah, since the wide setting requires a stereo mode with additional mixing of the opposite signal, a poor initial stereo mode will only be exacerbated with the wide mode. Improving the received signal (extending antenna, adding external antenna, adding signal booster, etc) will improve the final audio product.

Mono playback = LR + LR
Stereo playback = (L) + (R)
Wide playaback = (L + delayed-R) + (R + delayed-L)

Does that make sense?

 

[blah blah]

superduper is a veritable font of boombox knowledge.

 

[redbenjoe]

superduper is a veritable font of boombox knowledge.

there is NFW we can over-rate this dude !!!

YES norm - that makes perfect sense -
thank alot for this -------
and for the 100 other clear explanations you have posted ---

 

[mellymelsr]

I hereby dub Norm 'The Professor" of boomboxes...your honorary degree is in the mail. Seriously, Norm your extensive knowledge never ceases to amaze me.

 

[Superduper]

Come on guys, it's just "stereo" here that we're talking about.

 

[redbenjoe]

thats true , superdoopa --

i guess the non-tech solutions are to ::

1. getabettagettoblasta ---or
2. move

 

[Superduper]

OR if the gettablasta isn't working like it shoulda, and it's related to the MPX pilot signal not aligna properly on da gettablasta, OR da gettablasta tuner IF isn't aligna properly, to get it fixed as soona as a possibola

 

[redbenjoe]

well --more seriously --
this wide mode performance 'collapse' has happened with ALL
of the boxes i have tried --

so --perhaps there is no better blaster --for this location -

we are about 60 miles from miami --
where all the 'cool' stations are

 

[Superduper]

Hmmm. Well reading your question a little more carefully, I now see the remark about tin siding and tin roof. Hell, you might as well be situated in a kryptonite proof lead box. Any box sensitive enough to receive under conditions like that probably won't perform well when removed from such inclement receiving conditions. The reason is that by being sensitive enough to receive distant stations, the local stations will interfere. In other words, 90.1 would probably be received locally as well as from distant 90.1 stations as well on a very sensitive tuner. The exception is when your tuner has DX/Local station selectivity which gives the super sensitive tuner the ability to attenuate strong local stations. I believe your Sanyo M9998 has this feature but alas, Sanyo tuners aren't the best tuners out there.

The solution, of course, is to employ an exterior antenna solution. So you will have the best of both worlds. Cheap crappy tuners that'll perform like a champ!

 

[Retro Addict]

I'm lucky to live in an area where FM Stereo and Stereo-wide signals sound crystal clear.

 

[oldskool69]

I have told Ira time and time again that his home was his worst enemy when it comes to FM reception. Not only that, most trailer parks that have the old metal jobs wreak havoc on FM reception. Think of a bunch of aluminum strips being dropped from the sky...you'll get my drift. (No pun intended.)

Ira...please get one of these as I told you years ago...