Radio Reception

[twintrbo]

Does anyone else feel like the radio reception is poor? I find I get static on stations in NYC that I have NEVER heard an issue with in any car on any radio. I will be taking it in for some warranty work and I want to know if I should mention it or not.

 

[electronics4lif]

Does anyone else feel like the radio reception is poor? I find I get static on stations in NYC that I have NEVER heard an issue with in any car on any radio. I will be taking it in for some warranty work and I want to know if I should mention it or not.

I absolutely agree. I thought it was just me. Most other complaints that I saw seemed to suggest that they had no reception from a faulty antenna. Our problem seems to be a poor radio tuner? Let me know what you find out.

 

[jeffc]

Mine is fine. Can't really say its any better or worse than any other car i have bene in. Did either of you change your antenna for one of those stubby ones?

 

[electronics4lif]

I am running the stock antenna.

 

[twintrbo]

Also stock, I would have gotten the shark fin but I heard it makes reception even worse! I was driving around in Manhattan today and getting static from the largest station in the area that broadcasts from the top of the Empire State Building. This just should not happen, period......

 

[5zoom]

+1 on the bad reception. My Mazda3 was the same way.

 

[electronics4lif]

I wonder if anyone that had poor reception replaced their radio with an aftermarket head unit. If they did and the reception improved, then we would know the problem is with the radio itself and not the antenna.

 

[twintrbo]

I would find it hard to imagine its the antenna, its stretches the length of the whole car practically. My cell phone has a built in FM radio, I think that has better reception. It gives me song info too, kind of silly my cell phone is a better car radio than my car radio.

 

[Heat]

I have an aftermarket radio and have good reception. I can't remember how the reception was with the stock radio, I didn't have it in that long but I'm sure that my aftermarket head unit has better FM sensitivity. And it is the head unit, not the antenna, that is causing you grief.

For those of you with stock radios, go to www.crutchfield.com and look around. There are a lot of nice radios in the $140 to $170 range - much better than the stock radio. When looking at a radio there, look under "Features and Specs" and look at the FM sensitivity. For this, it is better to have a lower number, look for something under 10.0 dBf. I personally like the Alpines, though I have a JVC in my Mazda5 and a Sony in my Accord. Kenwoods are good too.

 

[Shahart]

Had my new Mazda 5 three days ago. Only complain is poor FM reception. Even strong stations fluctuate in reception quality. Should I change the antenna?

 

[IPitboy777]

my MSP sucks ass too, hate to have the radio on, lots of static, I thought it was the antenna on the back window but I guess its just Mazdas in general -_-

 

[mikegas]

Got my 2011 Mazda 5 a month ago... had enough of the bad radio reception, change antenna didn't help. Service center out of clue what to do.

 

[Heat]

Got my 2011 Mazda 5 a month ago... had enough of the bad radio reception, change antenna didn't help. Service center out of clue what to do.

Could this be an issue of the radio tuning to odd numbers while the Malaysian radio stations broadcast on even numbers (like Europe)?

my MSP sucks ass too, hate to have the radio on, lots of static, I thought it was the antenna on the back window but I guess its just Mazdas in general -_-

The Mazda antenna works just fine, it's the radio. Buy a new one, you can get a really nice one for around $150 from Crutchfield.

I really don't understand why people *love* the OEM radio. It's garbage.

 

[DKaz]

I prefer keeping the look clean especially on newer cars with integrated look dashboards. On older cars, doesn't really matter. If I were to upgrade, it would have to be a clean OEM looking double din video unit, with backup camera capability. No GPS, prefer TomTom on our iPhones.

No complaints about our radio btw. In Mission BC, I can pick up Seattle's KUBE 93 radio station over 100 miles away just fine.

 

[flcruising]

Agree. some of us don't like the ugly flashing displays of aftermarket stereos either. Our radio reception is just fine, even with a stubby antenna.

 

[DKaz]

I got the Dodge Journey "stubby", dare I say I've experienced a slight improvement in radio reception.

 

[flcruising]

I've got the Journey antenna too, but didn't have the OEM one to compare to.

 

[mikegas]

hmm .. it seem like is player unit. Not that I do not want to upgrade. The player have to be compatible with with the volume buttons on steering, plus also the display in the dashboard, so there is not much choice, practically none. The only other choice would be the touchscreen version, with gps, reverse camera etc, that yet to reach our shores. ...