Customer Reviews

Car Connect HD Radio Tuner

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

My title says it all: my Directed Electronics Car Add-On HD radio is a mixed bag - here's several examples:
THE GOOD: IF you are in a local, strong FM-HD signal area, then HD radio audio is decent, and you can receive an additional HD2 channel too! It seems like it is trying to decode analog AM stereo too - which would be a great feature, but it's not listed.
THE BAD: To receive AM-HD, you need a VERY strong signal. You have to be in the city where the AM transmitter is, or have a non-directional 50KW AM station to receive HD-AM; even at that, the HD-AM audio is a little raspy, and 'esssy' with voice-only stations.
THE UGLY: No way to switch to only analog AM or analog FM; if a station has their analog delay off, and your signal goes back and forth from analog to digital, it will drive you nuts hearing the same thing 5 seconds later, or before (it did me, for a fireworks music show).
THE GOOD: Nice display unit, and it shows FM analog stations' RDS information in the display that have RDS. Also, you CAN receive analog AM stations okay that were wiped-out by digital buzzing (20KHz off-frequency) from an HD-AM station on your regular radio. Excellent FM SELECTIVITY (meaning you CAN pickup an FM station just one channel away that you can't hear very well on your other regular FM radio.
THE BAD: Digital AM audio not as good as I expected, and only 1 station of 6 AM-HD stations here has stereo audio. No analog stereo indication for AM or FM. No stereo/mono switch. Poor AM sensistivity.
THE UGLY: You can almost fry eggs on the hot metal tuner module.

Anyhow, that's my opinion - it's close, but not quite yet; maybe they'll nail-it on an updated model. My guess is that an updated model WILL be worth the money, so ask them to make it for you!

The sound from this item is very close to CD quality provided you do not get out of signal range. Its usefullness is made even more beneficial since once you find an HD radio station and signal is aquired, you will notice some radio stations have more than one station on the frequency you are on. Setting the stations up should be done from a parked position. You will not be able to just surf easily through stations since there are 3 different ways to search. Read the user manual and you will get the best use out of this device. If you travel a bunch this item will require more time to station surf. And if signal is weak you will still here some static. The sound on a strong signal has much more depth than any conventional radio station. Its still worth the buy!

The receiver's reception is good, its easy to control and read. Unfortunately I tried two units and the line out was over modulated on both. One review I found suggested that grounding the unit or waiting to the unit warmed up would resolve the issue. Neither worked for me so I'm using the FM Modulation which works well, but it some ways defeats the purpose of listening to HD radio.

Everything you need to install it is included. Great reception (DC Metro area with plenty of HD stations). Works as advertised and looks great with my RAV's factory radio.