Radio reception This thing sounds great, but the radio receptio is horrible. It has one of those thin wire antennas hanging out the back, several feet long. The wire was originally tightly wound up when the unit arrived. Radio reception was ok, but with a bit of static. I figured that I would unwind the antenna for better reception. Boy was I wrong! The unit is on a shelf. Letting the wire hang off the shelf (vertically) or lay on the shelf (horizontally) results in horrible static, so much so that the radio loses the station. The only solution that I have found is to crumple the antenna up into a little ball...I can at least hear the station then, but alas, the slight static remains. This problem occurs even when the unit is near a window. The station that I'm interested in hearing is at the lower end of the dial, 90.5. It's a 25,000 watt station and I'm only about six miles from the transmitter. I can pick up the station easily with all of the other radios in the house, just not this one. Hopefully, someone can offer some helpful advice. Otherwise, this thing is going back to Brookstone! Thanks in advance...

A web search for your model turned up a blank. You aren't kidding about having it for years. I'll give you some generic information about AM radio reception and hope you find something useful.

Generally, AM reception is through a wire coil wrapped around a ferrite (very fast magnetic material) rod. Received signal strength is dependent on the angle between the rod and the radio station's transmitter antenna, so rotating it in a horizontal direction (around an imaginary vertical line through the center of the receiver) is often helpful. The angle of the best direction can be affected by nearby equipment (metal appliances, ductwork, computers, etc.)

Many non-portable audio receivers and a few boom box types have both an AM and and FM antenna terminal on the back. The FM antenna is very much like a TV antenna (you can use a TV antenna) and is generally required to get FM reception except in units with a telescoping antenna mounted to the case. The AM antenna is used to augment the coil signal, and is generally needed only if you are trying to pick up a weak signal. Attaching a wire to the AM terminal may help (make sure you have a good electrical connection between the terminal and the metal of the wire). This wire will also have an optimal angle for best reception. Try arranging it vertically; many AM radio stations transmit vertically polarized signals for the benefit of car radio antennas.The longer the wire is, the better, but it doesn't have to be very large. The physical limit is about 110 yards, the practical limit is how much you can stand to have stretched out behind the stereo. (A thin wire going up the wall to the hook behind a picture will probably not attract much attention.)

Portable radios often use a single telescoping antenna for both AM and FM along with the internal coil previously described. If you have this, experiment with antenna position and radio location. I have been told that some early model LED light bulbs may interfere with AM radio reception, especially if they are within a few feet of the radio.

That's the radio antenna. Just tuck it under the unit or along the back of the shelf or whatever if you get adequate reception. If you don't then you might try fussing with it--taping it up the wall, draping it over a book, that kind of stuff.

ground wire

The cascadia has an integrated AM-FM-WX, XM?, and CB antenna system, that is also prone to poor grounding. The best solution is to install aftermarket antenna systems for all of the equipment... I am driving a 2013 Cascadia with quite poor FM, and non existant AM, and WX reception. The XM works. I am afraid to hook up my CB to this, as it is pushing too much power, and is a sideband unit. I would like to hang the engineer by his/her toenails from the nearest tree for comming up with this garbage...

FM reception is weak

What to do

• Extend the power cord as much as possible. The FM antenna is in the power cord.

• Move the power cord to adjust the FM antenna

• If you still have problems with FM reception, you may need an external antenna.

* Call Bose®Customer Service to request one.

The external antenna on your radio is a coax (round) design It needs an adaptor and an antenna which are cheap.

Easy to make, radio shack "F" connector 90 degrees or straight, to 300 ohm wire connections. Attatch a 300 ohm flat ribbon antenna cable to those two screws and plug into radio and see how your reception is. You will need to position the antenna wires to get best reception. I have hid them in back of paintings and so on.

Cheapest solution next to putting an extension cord on radio power cord.

If you used the 2 plug nissan radio harness, there should be a blue wire on there which is the (power antenna) even if your car doesn't have a power antenna, this wire needs to be connect to power on the am/fm amplified ant which is used in many nissan cars.

if the jensen has a blue or a blue/white wire, connect it to one of those. if not, you can always connect it to the red ACC wire. that should solve your reception problem..

hope this helps

Sounds like you have an antenna problem. Find where the antenna plugs into the radio. Unplug it and find a nail or something the same diameter as the center pin wrap about 3-5 turns of a four foot piece of wire around the nail and plug the nail into the antenna input on the radio. If it clears up reception you have a bad or grounded antenna. Follow the antenna wire back to the windshield or fender etc. mounted antenna, sometimes there are other plug in points that get knocked loose.

You may have a bad antenna or antenna cable.
FM signals are measured in microvolts and are easily influenced by poor antennas or a mashed antenna cable.

Is it just a single wire?

If so, purchase a cheap FM antena. It looks like a "T" when spread out (4' to 5'). That should help.

You can purchase an "amplified" antenna, but if your area reception is really bad (such as in a valley) the antenna would just amplify the noise as well. Look for web based radio in this case or if you have cable there are stations on it.

Jeff

..just read about your reception/interference problems and, having lived through similar situations for some time — particularly with different weather conditions. The following solution has settled it all : wrap power cable around storage brackets at back of radio with a short length then wound around support posts (between radio and cupboard from which radio hangs), then run short length to power supply outlet. In my case this result comes after much experimentation with the length of unwapped power cord (including fully unwrapped and stretched out) and different patterns of winding around the support posts. This final result takes care of everything (better sound, no interference/loss-of-reception when moving around in the room or in front of the radio, weather has no effect, stations received that could not be before due to overlap by nearby, more powerful ones). I have only about 2 1/2 feet of cable running from the brackets at back of radio, then wound once around center support and half around right support to then go to wall and down to receptacle close by (I tried all kinds of combinations of unwrapped lengths and winding patterns around 1 to 3 posts)...individual cases may be different. so GOOD LUCK, 'cause the radio is great...!