I have got a present to myself in the form of a Fusion Ms RA200....
Its a clever bit of kit as it can play FM and have VHF run into it too ( of course VHF is FM in real terms)
Now I dont have any 'proper' electrics on Streaker. so I'm wondering how I can get a (small) combined VHF & FM aerial.
A bit of music radio would be nice and if I can get the local VHF out of it too all the better. really only for Ch16 so if I need to hear it it will be strong CG broadcasts and not stuff going on 30 miles away - so having a high aerial for RX is not a concern. Am thinking ideally if I can get away with something inside the console it would be good.
Will the 'Raider' VHF aerial work ? for FM radio I wonder ??
Oh its a normal FM plug on the back of the unit - like the car ones....
I'm not sure I quite understand, the fusion has a vhf receiver built in? Does it need 2 aerials, one fm and one vhf? If not then I'd use a vhf aerial, at least then you are optimised for vhf and it'll still pick up fm broadcasts just fine.
Yep , built in VHF ....and yep hoping to get away with one aerial if I can.
I can live without the AM radio it has . Plan is to have the HH vhf for anything I need to say , but will be much better to hear things through proper speakers rather than the HH one ( which is small/weak in relation)
So maybe I dont need a splitter as I can get one VHF aerial stick a differant plug on it & off I go ?
I have a small car type amplified FM aerial in my console for my Fusion Radio. It picks up normal FM broadcasts really well. I'm not sure about your Fusion model, but it is worth noting the marine VHF is a higher frequency (160MHz or so) than FM broadcast. But having said that I would have thought one aerial would suit both frequency ranges well enough for listening only purposes.
The RX function of any radio does not need a ‘tuned’ aerial to receive a signal. The only consideration is that the height and resistance of the aerial will improve signal strength and quality. Thus a (metal) coat-hangar (as sometimes seen on cars) will probably receive adequately, although a bespoke aerial will almost certainly provide better quality.
It is the TX function which requires a ‘tuned’ aerial whereby the standing wave transmitted needs to be (within certain tolerances) the same as or (more usually) at a complete ratio of the frequency (half, quarter, one eighth etc). Transmission through an aerial outside of those certain tolerances can cause damage to the radio set and is not to be recommended.
Thanks David . I sort of recall learning about this stuff at university and for exams along the way ....too long ago now to remember .
I think I'll go with a cheap car type aerial and see how I get on. Luckily it is RX only so no risk of anything bad happening.
I had been getting lots of French conversations on Steves boat last week so his set up must be good .
We really must arrange to catch up for a drink ... Friday was all a bit hectic .. I ' think' the most number of customers Steve has ever done in a day ...!
Information picked up during my (unlicensed ) ham radio days in the 1980s!
Good to see Steve's boat full on Friday and trust that the punters enjoyed the Red Arrow's display: it was a lovely evening to watch them and great vantage point in Swanage Bay.
It would be good to meet up for a drink Perhaps a nacho run one balmy Friday evening before the summer finally ends? I'll give you a call soon to discuss possible dates to then put in a separate thread in the Upcoming Cruises section.
Perhaps a nacho run one balmy Friday evening before the summer finally ends? I'll give you a call soon to discuss possible dates to then put in a separate thread in the Upcoming Cruises section.
