Bayliner 285 - poor antenna receptions-gctid816370

[Guest]

We have just bought a 285 from 2005. Great boat but there is a really bad antenna reception on the radio.

I thought that it was because of the old radio, but after replaising it with a new one, the problem still exists.

Does anyone know how the antenna cable is connected? Does it go to the VHF antenna?

Is there a diagram, showing the antenna cabling?

[Jeffw]

First, welcome to the BOC! The am/fm antenna usually consists of just a wire laying loose behind the radio. You can replace that with a real antenna with good results. Also, there are splitters made to attach the am/fm to the vhf antenna, but not recommended by anyone I know.

[captharv]

I am a retired antenna designer. The wire antenna, in itself, is not THAT bed, however, the morons at the Bayliner factory combined the wire into the wiring harness. The antenna is effectively a placebo. I took mine loose from the harness, and put a 6' extension cable on it (available atg a srtore selling vcar radios), and relocated it taped to the hull inside in a clear area. However, I would recommend the Shakesphere 4' model. It will work well on FM and somewhat on AM.

DO NOT splitter AM-FM to the VHF radio. If the splitter gets a hiccup, 25 watts down the throat of the music radio is guaranteed to fry it. The VHF antenna is for 156 to 158 MHz. FM is at 88 to 108 MHz. Moreover, many of the low end VHF antenna are a DC short, so at FM frequencies, its also a placebo....

I am a retired electronic professional, and I don't have any splitters in my boat. Not even on the TV antenna.Your VHF radio is your lifeline. Don't screw with it.

For those who have a splitter and are ready to pounce on me, when I error, its on the side of safety and/or reliability.

[Guest]

Behind the radio, the antenna wire is connected at the bottom, behind the closets and the sink. It is impossible to gent in there.

At the top of the boat, I have a disc antenna to television, but also FM. After disconnecting it, if found out that the radio antenna is not connected to the disc.

Do any of you know where I can find a diagram, showing the antenna wire, so that I can connect it to the disc?

[Flynny94]

Hey Von,

Great boat! I'm loving mine in our second season with it!

I just dealt with the same thing. captharv is right, the stock antenna is garbage. Abandon it and get something new. If you have a disc that says it will support TV and FM, I suppose you could try connecting it to that. But, I may have an easier solution that seems to work pretty well. Get something like this and attach it to the inside of the hull behind the microwave. You can remove the microwave to make access to this area much easier. Remove the plastic vent on the shelf above the microwave to expose the screws that hold the wooden blocks above the microwave. Then you just need to tilt and lift to get the microwave out.

I attached the wire to the hull with zip ties and self adhesive mounts like this, and stretched the antenna wire as far across the hull as I could. Seems to get pretty good reception, although I haven't had it far offshore. If you're venturing farther, you may consider an antenna like this and mount it just to the side of the foredeck.

By the way, while you have the stereo out, it may be a good time to upgrade to a bluetooth model. If you have the Jensen remote, this stereo is compatible, has tons of power, and is even compatible with a mobile app that lets you control all the functions of the stereo from your phone. http://www.jensenmarinedirect.com/je...p-control.html

[Hawk]

"Flynny94" post=818997 wrote:
Hey Von,

Great boat! I'm loving mine in our second season with it!

I just dealt with the same thing. captharv is right, the stock antenna is garbage. Abandon it and get something new. If you have a disc that says it will support TV and FM, I suppose you could try connecting it to that. But, I may have an easier solution that seems to work pretty well. Get something like https://www.westmarine.com/buy/dual-...e: <br /> this and attach it to the inside of the hull behind the microwave. You can remove the microwave to make access to this area much easier. Remove the plastic vent on the shelf above the microwave to expose the screws that hold the wooden blocks above the microwave. Then you just need to tilt and lift to get the microwave out.

I attached the wire to the hull with zip ties and self adhesive mounts like https://www.westmarine.com/buy/marin...e: <br /> this, and stretched the antenna wire as far across the hull as I could. Seems to get pretty good reception, although I haven't had it far offshore. If you're venturing farther, you may consider an antenna like https://www.westmarine.com/buy/dual-...e: <br /> this and mount it just to the side of the foredeck.

By the way, while you have the stereo out, it may be a good time to upgrade to a bluetooth model. If you have the Jensen remote, this stereo is compatible, has tons of power, and is even compatible with a mobile app that lets you control all the functions of the stereo from your phone. http://www.jensenmarinedirect.com/je...p-control.html

I have this Jensen radio, the antenna installed at build is basically a twin core cable run behind the panels, I have no idea how long it is or exactly where it runs but the reception is generally very good!,

This may only be applicable to the UK, but there are a couple of instances that noticeably reduce the reception quality:

1. The antenna runs close behind the Micro Wave Oven - When the Micro Wave is operating the reception quality slightly drops, not a major problem, but some form of shielding would probably cure this.

2. If a USB charger adaptor is connected to the 12v outlet and an iPhone/iPad is on charge the reception quality badly drops, this is common in a lot of cases, it also happens in both of our cars, apparently some USB charger adaptors are better than others, but I have yet to find one that doesn't affect the radio reception.

Hope some of this is helpful.