Stubby Ariel
Stubby Ariel
Hi. Brought a very nice looking one of the above which looks much better than the standard one which is around 12 inches high. The stubby one is about 3inches. Problem is reception. The stubby cost under £4 If I buy a more expensive stubby will I get better reception. Thanks
Re: Stubby Ariel
Put simply no
I'm on my 4th aerial including the OEM stubby and as far as I can see they're all rubbish. Form over function and all that.
I'm on my 4th aerial including the OEM stubby and as far as I can see they're all rubbish. Form over function and all that.
Re: Stubby Ariel
Reception on my oem stubby is ok where the signal is strong, but dodgy where the signal is a bit weaker. Doubt any of the stubby aerials are as good as the original (I wait to be corrected!), but they do look much better. A compromise as ever.
- Southernboy
- Joined: Thu 07 Oct, 2010 12:39
- Posts: 6437
- Location: Johannesburg
Re: Stubby Ariel
There is only one way to get a stubby to work as well as or better than an OEM aerial...
Here's the gist of it...The OEM part is as long as it is so that it will intercept 80% of a radio wave from trough to crest...as such it isn't bad....the shorter the aerial length, the less of each wave it can intercept...but it does catch reciprocal parts of subsequent waves as you move / drive...as long as you have a powerful signal in the area you're in.... As you move away from the signal source, the transmitted waves are more and more scattered...by hills, buildings etc etc..and you lose the signal to a greater degree... In fact, the Z3 reception would be even better if it had a 3 foot aerial... but as mentioned - form / function etc...
To overcome this you could add a lengthy coil under the boot lid extending from one side of the boot lid to the other in an elongated "S" fashion...Mercedes did this on one of their models in an effort to elliminate the long aerial...BMW and others have used micro wiring around the the roof which extends all the way round the car above window height...they have even extended this in a front and rear windscreen surround as well as running a second circuit in conjunction with the heated rear windows on some models....all of this does improve reception to some extent, but nothing beats a serious pole stuck to the roof of a car...But then, we're all subject to our sense of aesthetics, and we'd rather listen to iPods etc as alternatives for zero reception through a stubby..
At the end of the day...size matters...
Here's the gist of it...The OEM part is as long as it is so that it will intercept 80% of a radio wave from trough to crest...as such it isn't bad....the shorter the aerial length, the less of each wave it can intercept...but it does catch reciprocal parts of subsequent waves as you move / drive...as long as you have a powerful signal in the area you're in.... As you move away from the signal source, the transmitted waves are more and more scattered...by hills, buildings etc etc..and you lose the signal to a greater degree... In fact, the Z3 reception would be even better if it had a 3 foot aerial... but as mentioned - form / function etc...
To overcome this you could add a lengthy coil under the boot lid extending from one side of the boot lid to the other in an elongated "S" fashion...Mercedes did this on one of their models in an effort to elliminate the long aerial...BMW and others have used micro wiring around the the roof which extends all the way round the car above window height...they have even extended this in a front and rear windscreen surround as well as running a second circuit in conjunction with the heated rear windows on some models....all of this does improve reception to some extent, but nothing beats a serious pole stuck to the roof of a car...But then, we're all subject to our sense of aesthetics, and we'd rather listen to iPods etc as alternatives for zero reception through a stubby..
At the end of the day...size matters...
Re: Stubby Ariel
I put on a quality (Rover) stubby, the reception was not as good and tbh I prefer the look of the old one as with the stubby fitted the car looked as if it had 'something missing'.. so original is now back on and I feel a lot happier. Think the stubby look works better on the likes of VW Golfs.
1999 facelit Z3 Roadster 2.8 Auto in Cosmos Black aka 'Gloria'
- Southernboy
- Joined: Thu 07 Oct, 2010 12:39
- Posts: 6437
- Location: Johannesburg
Re: Stubby Ariel
I agree... I have a really stunning stubby...gathering dust in my "spares" cabinet... The OEM aerial is almost invisible on a black car...so doesn't bother me any... I still loose the signal from my fav radio station at around 120kms out...on the FM frequency...fortunately they also transmit MW simultaneously...so I switch over...It's not stereo transmission, but good enough...
- Southernboy
- Joined: Thu 07 Oct, 2010 12:39
- Posts: 6437
- Location: Johannesburg
Re: Stubby Ariel
BTW..." as your post title suggests - Stubby Ariel - I was expecting a mermaid with a shorter tail..........
Re: Stubby Ariel
I put a stubby aerial on mine so I no longer had to listen to some self opinionated blabber mouth, infrequently interrupted by songs I wouldn't choose to listen to.....
Reception is crap, so it works a treat....
Reception is crap, so it works a treat....
Z3 2.8 Progress Journal (Mine)
Z3 1.9 Sport Progress Journal (Wifey's)
I have an element of 'M-styling' on my car, If that's a good enough reason for the manufacturers to adorn a 320 with the M badge, then its certainly a good enough reason for me..
Re: Stubby Ariel
What's wrong with Chris Evans?gookah wrote:I put a stubby aerial on mine so I no longer had to listen to some self opinionated blabber mouth, infrequently interrupted by songs I wouldn't choose to listen to.....
Reception is crap, so it works a treat....
I have just bought my first Z3, and I am surprised how poor the stereo and speakers are. I just turn them off and listen to my 3 litre straight 6.
(I like saying 3 litre straight 6.... , and do so often.)
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- Joined: Fri 26 Jul, 2013 09:28
- Posts: 1733
- Location: Manchester
Re: Stubby Ariel
I have a stubby and the OEM aerial and both are the same. I actually think the head unit is the part of the system that will (or wont) make the difference. Get a good one - preferably DAB and everything will be fine.... That is if you wish to listen to the radio of course.
If the radio isn't your thing then a new unit will probably also have BT Audio (or at least a USB) meaning you can play your music from your ipod/iphone/mp3 etc... which also means that you can fund it buy selling your old CD's to music magpie....
If the radio isn't your thing then a new unit will probably also have BT Audio (or at least a USB) meaning you can play your music from your ipod/iphone/mp3 etc... which also means that you can fund it buy selling your old CD's to music magpie....