"First of all, all FM transmitters cause noise on the receiving end, if you turn volume up enough. And don't expect the sound quality to be better than your FM radio itself. It will be worse. If possible, use a wired option such as a "cassette connector" for car. That said, wireless transmitters do offer convenience, and some are better, while others are worse, depend mostly on unit's output power, range, and station selections. After trying out 4 of them personally, I found station selections to be the most important in getting good quality sound on your radio. Hence, the Belkin TuneCast II is the best out there. As far as I know (in the price range I search), it is the only one on the market that offers full frequency digital tuning (Arkon offers transmitters with full frequency analog tuning - SoundFeeder 150x).
Here is a summary of my review on the four transmitters I tried.
Belkin TuneCast II:
+ full frequency digital tuning with 0.05 stepping
+ 4-station memory
+ dual power (battery and DC)
+ auto on/off
+ good output and range
+ LCD display
+ cord storage on unit
- USB power will be nicer, as I have my own USB2DC adapter
- LCD not lighted
iRock 400FM
+ dual power (battery and DC)
+ good output and range
- only 4 preset stations
- dangling cord
- kind of ugly
Arkon SoundFeeder 250
+ good output and range
+ cord storage on unit
- only 8 preset stations
- battery power only (spec claimes 60hr, but I seriously doubt it as others with similar battery could only last 10-13hr)
SIIG Music Adapter Pro
+ dual power (battery and USB, could be tripple if you have your own USB2DC adapter)
+ ok output and range (volume is kind of low)
+ lighted LCD
+ cord storage on unit
- claimed to have 9 preset stations with autoscan, but it was so hard to operate that I could only verify 5 stations through manual stepping, and autoscan does NOT pick up the best station
- battery compartment very hard to open
- DO NOT BUY THIS, even though it looks good, and has good spec
Here are some personal tips on any FM transmitter setup:
1) If your radio and transmitter allows 0.1 stepping, choose an even frequency station such as 88.40, since very very few stations broadcast on even frequecies.
2) Make sure your MP3 files have loud enough volume, so you don't have to boost your MP3 unit or radio's volume too much. High volume magnifies noise. There are many software out there that fine tunes MP3, including volume.
3) If you have to boost volume, boost MP3 unit's volume instead of radio's. High radio volume causes more noise.
4) Always make sure you have new battery or are using DC adapter. Low power forces you to turn up volume, and it in turn causes noise.
5) In general, songs fair better with these transmitters than solo instruments, as noise could become more obvious on the later.
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139 of 168 people found the following review helpful:
Less than satisfactory, April 10, 2004
Reviewer: Pen Name (Columbia, SC) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)
I had been looking for a good FM Tuner to use with my Creative Nomad Jukebox Zen Xtra. I had heard good reviews about this product so I picked it up. Now, I wasn't expecting crystal clear CD-quality sound, but I was expecting something listenable, which explains my disatisfaction with this product.
The product is easy enough to use. You plug the Belkin into the headphone or line out jack of your player, then find a poor quality radio station, tune your Belkin to it, and hit play. The Belkin can run on 2 AAA batteries or off your car's cigarette lighter. My first problem with it, is that the cigarette lighter adapter would not fit securely into the Belkin. It fell out at the slightest touch, as the hole in the Belkin was just too big. I either had to tape it in their, or had to run off the batteries, which run down surprisingly quick.
My next problem, is with the general size of the device. The cord that connects the Belkin to your audio player is about 3 inches long, which means you have to keep it right next to the player. You can't attach it to your dashboard or anything like that. It made it very awkward to change the song or skip through something on the player because I had this tuner hanging down from it.
My final, and biggest problem with the player is the poor reception. I tried it with three different vehicles, and two different MP3 players. I tried every single radio station I could find. I tried every tip I found on the Internet to get good quality. I adjusted the volume on the player and in the car. I turned on the radio first, and then the player, and vice versa. I just couldn't get a decent sound from it. It would sound okay for a few seconds, and then static.
Something to note, is that the poorest quiality station won't always give you the best sound. I sometims found that I received the bst sound from a station that I could somewhat get a broadcast from, even though the manual tells you to look for the weakest stations. The other problem is that if you're in your car, the signal strength of the radio stations change depending on where you are, so the sound quality is going to always vary. I also found that I could only get real good quality when I held the mp3 player and Belkin in my lap, and held onto it. As soon as I let go, I get a little bit of static. The range for this thing in a car is realistically about 2 feet.
One thing I did get a good reception with was with home stereos, where the quality was decent enough to use. But this was pretty pointless for me because I can simply plug in my mp3 player directly into the stereo anyway.
Bottom line, if you can live with subpar quality and don't mind the awkwardness of the Tuner, this is probably the best tuner you will find out there today. Unfortunately, that doesn't account for much until technology provides for better reception in the future."
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