I have one had one drop out on DAB in the Octavia Combi and that is at the anticlockwise exit on the M25 at J10. It happens for a few hundred yards every time I take the exit.  I don't seem to have any issues with drop outs and I leave the HU in DAB mode all of the time.

I don't tend to have problems round the M25 for reception either.

 

The route I drove above had 4 or 5 dropouts, and it is about 6 miles. The Octavia Hatch I used to have, and the Fabia loaner didn't suffer drop outs on the same route, so something is wrong. Every time the signal quality drops below 10% the radio will mute until the signal quality goes above 15%, so a brief dip can cause a 20 second bout of silence .......

 

Unless you are listening to stations that are DAB only (do not have a FM equivalent) the FM auto switching masks the issue as it will keep switching to FM, fairly transparently. You know when this has happened as there is '(FM)' after the station name on the radio display.

 

Unfortunately, I listen to Five Live and Five Live Xtra a lot ............ or not as much as I used to in the previous O3 hatch.

I'm generally tuned to Radio 2, Radio 5 live, planet rock in DAB and I'm driving all over the country without any issues.

Same here, all over the country and it is on and off on Five Live.

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I'm generally tuned to Radio 2, Radio 5 live, planet rock in DAB and I'm driving all over the country without any issues.

What MY is your car? Is it a MIB1 or MIB2 unit?

I have one had one drop out on DAB in the Octavia Combi and that is at the anticlockwise exit on the M25 at J10. It happens for a few hundred yards every time I take the exit.

+1 I use J10 on M25 regularly & always get DAB dropouts.

Also A303 is particularly bad around Winterbourne Stoke & junction with A36.

+1 I use J10 on M25 regularly & always get DAB dropouts.

Also A303 is particularly bad around Winterbourne Stoke & junction with A36.

I'm not expecting it to be perfect, but I do expect it to perform as per my previous O3 hatch, and the Fabia 3 loaner I had.

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Okay - got the car back minus the professionally installed dash cam and the signal is 90% better. It is not perfect but now acceptable.

 

So the next challenge - which dash cam will work without interfering with the DAB? My next step will be to refit the camera and run it from my USB Battery Pack and see if it copes okay. That should establish whether it is the power supply (12v to the courtesy light with a USB step down there) or the camara.

 

Skoda are trying to establish whether they have a supported dash cam in the range.

Wow, my dashcam made no difference, but it was using the Blackvue power magic wired in to the fusebox.

I've made further improvements to my OEM setup by carefully straightening the Fakra connector on the coax at the HU end and ensuring that there is no strain on the cables when refitting. I am now getting the Wales multiplex when in Manchester!

Reasonably happy with it now, no dropouts on SDL National Multiplex on the trip to work yesterday, it used to drop out in 4 or 5 places.

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So its basicly bad wireing thats the culprit?

On mine, it appears to be. Weather has an influence though, so it may have been one of those good reception days, only time will tell. The aerial still provides only a weak signal in comparison to the Fabia 3 for example, but that is always going to be the case with an antenna in the glass. Why they didn't stick with the sharksfin for DAB I don't know, I can only assume it is because of the GSM connection.

I shouldn't have to be resoldering connectors and sorting out bad installations of the HU that was trapping the wiring on a new car though. The optical connections to the Canton amp were under quite some strain as well at the rear of the HU.

I can get an even better signal using an external antenna through the OEM amp, giving similar results to the Fabia 3, but until I can find a sharksfin that has FM, DAB, GSM and GPS to replace the OEM one that isn't really an option.

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is there a guide anywhere on how to remove the components so I can check my cable at the back?  Im assuming it goes to the glove compartment now rather than the Head Unit?

Hi Andy

 

Mine was straight to the fuse box as well. On the O2 it went straight up the right pillar. On the O3 it is up the left next to the antenna. It is 12v all the way to the courtesy light so that should not be a big issue but I may try moving it. The signal is much better but nowhere near my O2 quality.

 

I agree that a Shark Fin for all is the answer. I was going to do this with a second DAB antenna but it would look silly. The O2 had a shark fin with a bee sting that did everything. They would fail every few months as they let in water. Did you tap your dab cable at the quarter light or on the MIB unit in the glove compartment? Is it the normal socket or will I need a converter if I buy a mag mount external until we find a suitable shark fin?

 

Thanks

 

Garnett

Edited 30 March, 201610 yr by Garnett

The antenna cable goes along the sill on the O3, not up the A pillar.

If you are going to put an external antenna on I would amplify it or you won't see any improvement, in which case you need to be a dab hand (ha ha) with a soldering iron as you will need to connect to the input to the amp on the C pillar, which is just bare wire.

If we ever find a suitable sharksfin with inbuilt phantom powered amp, all the OEM connectors are female FAKRA on the coax cables and male FAKRA on the HU, Sharkskin and C-pillar aerial amps.

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The closest I can find is the Kinetic DRA-6005, would need a couple of 2m Fakra extension cables but would lose the GSM. Would also need to swap over the FM connectors at the rear of the HU to make the current window mounted FM/AM aerial the diversity antenna for TMC, not essential to do this but makes sense to.

Seriously considering this as I have a spare window mounted GSM antenna anyway.

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is there a guide anywhere on how to remove the components so I can check my cable at the back? Im assuming it goes to the glove compartment now rather than the Head Unit?

You need to remove the C pillar cover on the near side, pretty sure it is covered in one of the PDF workshop guides.

Yes, all connections go back to the HU in the glove box.

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Andy

 

I think I found out last time that FAKRA is just smb with plastic around it isnt it?

 

G

I think they are slightly different.

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The closest I can find is the Kinetic DRA-6005, would need a couple of 2m Fakra extension cables but would lose the GSM. Would also need to swap over the FM connectors at the rear of the HU to make the current window mounted FM/AM aerial the diversity antenna for TMC, not essential to do this but makes sense to.

Seriously considering this as I have a spare window mounted GSM antenna anyway.

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I've taken a punt on the DRA-6005 - lets see if I can finally get some decent reception

I drove through the Hindhead tunnel this morning and the DAB signal stayed on all of the way.

Without FM switching? Impressive. Is yours MIB2?

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Okay - I have now upgraded to a top of the range next view 512g dash can. It was an improvement but turning it on and off made a difference to reception in marginal locations. Going straight from the 12v plug to the unit rather than up the left column improved the situation. I have now gone all the way across the car and up the right hand side and over to the centre in 12v then stepped down to usb. It is good but not perfect.

 

Andy - did you find the signal booster helped? If so what do I need to order?

 

Thanks

 

Garnett 

I'm still experimenting with aerials, haven't got a signal booster.

 

Don't buy a DRA-6005 - the hole in the roof is larger than the retaining nut.

 

I'm looking at this one at the moment as it has a specific VW/Audi seal and is pretty much the same as the DRA-6005 but a sharksfin rather than an aerial.

http://www.co-star.co.uk/images/pdf/3785.01%20info%20done.pdf

 

What dashcam did you have before - my Blackvue doesn't have USB it takes 12v straight in to it basically and it made absolutely no difference if it was connected or not. It hasn't been in the car for quite some time now, all of the wiring and Power-Magic have been removed.

Edited 7 April, 201610 yr by andyvee

Hi Andy

 

This was my old dashcam. I loved it as it was so neat and discrete. Amazing picture as well.

 

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Blueskysea-Novatek-AR0330-Camera-32GB/dp/B00LTM82W6

 

G

Mine was in for service today, mentioned problems with DAB signal & satnav announcements not switching back on first time when using voice commands.  Had tried re-booting unit but only provided temporary fix for voice command problem.  Dealer say they've had similar complaints from other customers & have updated the Amundsen firmware which should resolve problems.  Voice commands much improved, quicker response & 100% accurate testing various functions on way home.  Haven't driven any of the usual DAB blackspots yet, will report back when I do.