Hi all,

 

So when I upgraded to a dual camera setup and mounted the rear dash camera to the rear glass in-between the defrost lines, I found that I had lost all DAB reception. Recently I tried to buy some ferrite cores and mounted them on both ends of the USB cable and still had no reception. I'm also aware that there are some dash cameras companies that advertise that they have eliminated DAB interference but they want you to spend £200 or so on their new systems. 🙄

 

I got to experimenting and removed the mount, left the DAB radio on and then moved the rear dash camera while it was on, all over the rear glass to figure out where it cut off the DAB reception. If you mount anywhere on the glass you were going to cut off the signal. I found a nice spot (or so I thought) just underneath the top brake light right up at the edge of the plastic trim, but the problem was that my specific dash camera has a straight cable going out instead of something like a right/left-angle cable (and it's really not so easy trying to find a 6m left-angle to right-angle mini USB cable), so when I opened the boot door it would brush up and against the cable. If I had shut it without looking I'm pretty sure the cable would've been caught between the boot opening and damage both the cable and camera. Then there was another issue, that area below the top brake light gets really hot under the sun, so if you had a weak adhesive on the mount it'll probably fall off over time but the final problem was running the cable back to the C-pillar. I used the provided clips and mounted the USB cable to the top of the plastic trim and that's when the signal cut out again. I tried to shield the wiring using some layered aluminum foil (which I had planned to wrap around the USB cable if it had worked), unfortunately that didn't work and I'm aware that there are some EMF tape but those are very expensive to buy and experiment with. I've already wasted money getting various ferrite cores. Ultimately it looked like this wasn't going to work with any powered USB cable mounted on the plastic trim or rear glass, it all just seems to interfere with the DAB reception.

 

My working solution was something I had found on a bimmer forum.

 

Using what I had available I made this bracket (from a spare joist hanger bracket, lots of hammering, bending and satin black spray paint).

 

Here it is fitted, off centre as there is a plastic trim clip holding up headliner.

 

And here it is with the dash camera fitted and the cable tucked into the headliner and into the C-pillar.

 

I might take it back out and re-adjust the angle so that it fits into the headliner better (or remake it entirely). The only issues I have is that the rear view is off centre and further back than before. The view is also slightly obstructed by the upper brake light cover and parcel shelf. However I have full DAB reception now with this set up, so I can listen to some tunes other than my own (and traffic announcements). 😁

 

Edited 23 April, 20224 yr by SomethingSuperbly

I have a dual camera set up, first camera was a BlackVue, now currently a Viofo A129 4k, and never had any issues with the radio signal,  the rear camera is below the brake light onto the glass.

30 minutes ago, Hamster59 said:

I have a dual camera set up, first camera was a BlackVue, now currently a Viofo A129 4k, and never had any issues with the radio signal,  the rear camera is below the brake light onto the glass.

 

That's interesting because I have the Viofo A129 1080p where I also mounted the rear camera directly below the brake light onto the glass, and that killed my radio signal. Is your car the saloon/sedan or the estate? Did you run the cable along the top trim driver side?

Edited 24 April, 20224 yr by SomethingSuperbly

Estate, and I ran the cable along the headlining 

I think having the estate version might explain why you have a working radio signal, though I'm not sure what the specifics are. If you have some time, it would be interesting to see if your radio cuts out if you move the dash cam around the rear of the estate. I'm also wondering if the rear glass has the same style radio antenna elements?

 

I have the sedan version, and on either side of the brake light there are radio antenna elements, right above the defrost lines/heater elements. In my case running the USB cable near those radio antenna elements/radio amplifier in the plastic trim killed it.

On 24/04/2022 at 18:29, Hamster59 said:

I have a dual camera set up, first camera was a BlackVue, now currently a Viofo A129 4k, and never had any issues with the radio signal,  the rear camera is below the brake light onto the glass.

Also have a Blackvue 900x Dual Channel. Wires go through the headlining on the passenger side to the rear camera. No DAB problem at all.

43 minutes ago, SomeOfTheGear said:

Also have a Blackvue 900x Dual Channel. Wires go through the headlining on the passenger side to the rear camera. No DAB problem at all.

Crikey - Blackvue know how to charge!

5 hours ago, Berisford said:

Crikey - Blackvue know how to charge!

They do indeed. I waited and got a refurbished one from their UK Agent's eBay Shop. A little over £300 and it's mint. 🙂

The price for a brand new BlackVue DR900X starts at £530 for 32GB built in memory, going up to £800 for 256GB!

 

That being said it's a good thing that manufacturers are shielding their dashcams better to eliminate DAB reception interference though I'm not about to splash out that much for one. I'm just glad that the bracket works on the sedan, just trying to get used to all the TP interruptions now.

Anytime I have problems with solutions to mounting things and finding brackets I use the mouldable plastic that you put in hot water. You can make anything you want and reshape it if you need to.

You should try it

This really doesnt have enough attention, this is what we all need!

On 30/04/2022 at 09:36, SomeOfTheGear said:

Also have a Blackvue 900x Dual Channel. Wires go through the headlining on the passenger side to the rear camera. No DAB problem at all.

 

When you say go through the headlining how close to the side and how did you run the cable? 

 

I am thinking of running the cable through the headlining from the rear, to one side of centre, so it passes by the centre light and the front centre light assembley and comes out by the clip (not swivel side) of the passenger sunvizor - planning to use an electricians style cable puller thingy to push through from back to front.  I am currently working out how to do it and have a few ideas from looking (A) Skoda air bag safety brochure which shows where all the air bags are (2) the repair manual fpund on this site which shows how to remove parts and (3) the parts listings off catcar.info. 

 

My next step is to 'hang' the rear dashcam cable from the headlining (fasten a few strong cotton threads around the edges of various fittings) and experiment to check for interference.

On 23/04/2022 at 20:18, SomethingSuperbly said:

Hi all,

 

So when I upgraded to a dual camera setup and mounted the rear dash camera to the rear glass in-between the defrost lines, I found that I had lost all DAB reception. Recently I tried to buy some ferrite cores and mounted them on both ends of the USB cable and still had no reception. I'm also aware that there are some dash cameras companies that advertise that they have eliminated DAB interference but they want you to spend £200 or so on their new systems. 🙄

 

I got to experimenting and removed the mount, left the DAB radio on and then moved the rear dash camera while it was on, all over the rear glass to figure out where it cut off the DAB reception. If you mount anywhere on the glass you were going to cut off the signal. I found a nice spot (or so I thought) just underneath the top brake light right up at the edge of the plastic trim, but the problem was that my specific dash camera has a straight cable going out instead of something like a right/left-angle cable (and it's really not so easy trying to find a 6m left-angle to right-angle mini USB cable), so when I opened the boot door it would brush up and against the cable. If I had shut it without looking I'm pretty sure the cable would've been caught between the boot opening and damage both the cable and camera. Then there was another issue, that area below the top brake light gets really hot under the sun, so if you had a weak adhesive on the mount it'll probably fall off over time but the final problem was running the cable back to the C-pillar. I used the provided clips and mounted the USB cable to the top of the plastic trim and that's when the signal cut out again. I tried to shield the wiring using some layered aluminum foil (which I had planned to wrap around the USB cable if it had worked), unfortunately that didn't work and I'm aware that there are some EMF tape but those are very expensive to buy and experiment with. I've already wasted money getting various ferrite cores. Ultimately it looked like this wasn't going to work with any powered USB cable mounted on the plastic trim or rear glass, it all just seems to interfere with the DAB reception.

 

My working solution was something I had found on a bimmer forum.

 

Using what I had available I made this bracket (from a spare joist hanger bracket, lots of hammering, bending and satin black spray paint).

 

Here it is fitted, off centre as there is a plastic trim clip holding up headliner.

 

And here it is with the dash camera fitted and the cable tucked into the headliner and into the C-pillar.

 

I might take it back out and re-adjust the angle so that it fits into the headliner better (or remake it entirely). The only issues I have is that the rear view is off centre and further back than before. The view is also slightly obstructed by the upper brake light cover and parcel shelf. However I have full DAB reception now with this set up, so I can listen to some tunes other than my own (and traffic announcements). 😁

 

 

I like this idea.  Is it just clipped over the edge of the headlining?

 

I have a Karoq, and there is a 28mm diameter fir tree push in clip dead centre in the headling about 10cm from the rear edge - so I was thinking about something similar - take of the fir tree push in clip and use the hole to mount a flat plate, assuming the fir tree clip goes into a hole into a metal cross member of the rear edge of the roof.

 

Saves messing about with the rubber cable gaiters onto the rear window

4 hours ago, BramptonTrev said:

 

I like this idea.  Is it just clipped over the edge of the headlining?

 

I have a Karoq, and there is a 28mm diameter fir tree push in clip dead centre in the headling about 10cm from the rear edge - so I was thinking about something similar - take of the fir tree push in clip and use the hole to mount a flat plate, assuming the fir tree clip goes into a hole into a metal cross member of the rear edge of the roof.

 

Saves messing about with the rubber cable gaiters onto the rear window

I’ve done something similar on my Karoq taking the fir tree clip out - I did have trouble finding a suitable ‘plug’ to secure my plate - the hole is quite narrow to start and then opens out.

I didn’t route the cable through the headlining on account of me using a stand alone Viofo A119 - I’ve run the cable from the power source in the boot up the rubber door seal and had to accept a little loop of cable around the camera.

Whilst I’m quite pleased with my install I’ve been trouble with poor DAB reception, tried a variety of fixes and after several 5 mile circular trips around where I live I’ve isolated much of the interference to it being down to the 5v power supply device.

I've fixed mine on the boot trim:

 

 

With a slight mod to give it an OEM look (using an OEM inside review mirror trim) :