Radio mount

[RadioHowie]

You twisted phuquer!

 

[Tom of VA]

Do you like Howard? I bought his old limo this past summer. I made a deal with the Ronnie the limo driver which included some pictures and an autograph from Howard, plus a link from his web site to ours. I have a limo company and thought this deal would drive some traffic to our web site. So far Ronnie hasn't done anything and I've had the car since July. But, it is a really nice car and I can’t complain about the price. I think tomorrow is Howard’s last day on-the-air. I might put the limo back on eBay because I'm considering changing over from Cadillac to Lincoln.

 

[dobias]

Tom of VA,

I,too, tried to mount a Sony "pocket" receiver without success. Radio Howie described the problem correctly. The headset cord antenna is totally useless. I had even tried an analogue tuner with a long FM antenna with little success.

Where I live in NW Michigan, the reception is terrible even in a car.

I switched to Sirius on the bike last summer and can't find any real problems with the reception. True, there have been a few areas that have signal dropouts such as tree covered roads and even under gas station roofs. Otherwise , the reception is clear.

Good luck,

dobias <_<

 

[Tom of VA]

dobias,

Thanks, radio reception around here is great in my car but on my bike the walkman seems to have a feature that senses my interest level in the talk or music I'm listening to and automatically goes to static until commercials come back on. Everyone keeps suggesting a pocket MP3 or I pod. However I really prefer to listen to the radio and I want to be able to control the volume and stations easily with gloves on. I also wouldn't mind being able to see the display even at night. There is some nice looking wired remotes avail for marine apps that look like they will work but the unit they control is a regular DIN size unit. I refuse to dedicate entire side case to warehouse a receiver. I just can't believe no one make a compact radio unit for a motorcycle. I think I will try Sirius but have heard so many stories about crappy signals. At least the Siurius receiver is compact, easy to operate and illuminated.

PS: how's the weather in NW Michigan? When can you guys up there roll the bike back out of the garage?

 

[dobias]

Tom of VA,

...my feelings exactly about the DIN sized radio receivers! I have a Rolls TU78 "Pro"AM/FM tuner that is reasonably small (108mm Wx 70mm D x 23mm H)and has the needed FM whip antenna input jack. The trouble is it's a variable capacitor tuner (remember those?) and very sensitive. It vibrates off station without provocation. I've bought a vernier 5:1 dial that I hope will keep it on station. The Rolls TU78 tuners aren't made any more but I'd bet they could come up with a used one for you.

My Sony SRF M955 personal radio also has a headset antenna that is useless.

Alaska can't get satellite signals and one of our Forum members there has a "stealth" radio that's made for old custom cars. The receiver is mounted elsewhere and it has a remote dial/control for the dash. Unless you're willing to mount a DIN receiver in your trunk, you wouldn't be any better off.

Go with a 6 volt XM or 12 volt Sirius. You won't be disappointed. I had a battleship sized Jenson Sirius I had located under the seat after cutting up the tool tray. It has a remote on the end of a military grade curley cable. The antenna is dual input (ground and satellite) and large compared to today's single input antennas.

I just chose an Xact Sirius receiver that's a little larger than a deck of cards. The dial is on the edge and stations are selected with a knob. I plan on mounting it on the outside of the glovebox next to the fork triple tree. It'll clear OK.

dobias <_<

 

[RonBB]

I used the same Sony portable radio for a while. Fed it into the J & M CB system then into the helmet speakers. OK in town but 40-60 miles out from the station reception was unsatisfactory at least in the relatively flat farm lands of Missouri. I also experimented with antenna additions etc. My biggest problem with the unit was the lack of a "Scan" pushbutton when touring. Currently I am using a portable Radio Shack digital unit which has the scan feature but in truth the same range from the station applies. It is easier to let the unit find a station within range with the scan button now. I'm still searching as well for a better unit. I am trying to avoid the Sat. units. If anyone finds a unit with better range & the scan feature I am all ears.

 

[dobias]

RonBB,

Amen,brother, as long as it has a jack for an automotive antenna.

dobias <_<

 

[Bounce]

I used the same Sony portable radio for a while. Fed it into the J & M CB system then into the helmet speakers. OK in town but 40-60 miles out from the station reception was unsatisfactory at least in the relatively flat farm lands of Missouri. I also experimented with antenna additions etc. My biggest problem with the unit was the lack of a "Scan" pushbutton when touring. Currently I am using a portable Radio Shack digital unit which has the scan feature but in truth the same range from the station applies. It is easier to let the unit find a station within range with the scan button now. I'm still searching as well for a better unit. I am trying to avoid the Sat. units. If anyone finds a unit with better range & the scan feature I am all ears.

My audio is described here:

https://www.bikes-n-spikes.org/acc/cb/cb.html

I feed the Sirius (or MP3), V1, and GPS through a MixIt into the aux audio input of the above system. I can then control audio balance with each units main audio control, the total boost through the MixIt and then control the volume variability (while rolling or mute, off, etc.) from the control head of the Honda/Clarion system.

 

[Tom of VA]

Bounce,

I checked out your setup. It's really nice. This is exactly what I want, but with a FM receiver built in. Do you have a closer shot of the antenna mount?

 

[RonBB]

I have no issues with the function of the J & M setup. Like others I just want to find a good am/fm radio to input into my J & M system for touring & rural use.

 

[dobias]

Take a look at this:

Remote mounted radio system for most any ride!

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Audio-Vox Heavy Duty Systems Radio. Part of Hoppe's signature line of premium after-market products.

AUDIOVOX 100watt AM/FM/WB RADIO

Backlit Liquid Crystal Display

10 FM presets

5 AM presets

VHF N.O.A.A Weather band receiver. 6 channels.

Clock Display.

AAA battery backup for memory.

Radio has 4-speaker fader control, selectable.

Radio body measures 7"x6"x2".

Full 1year warranty.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Pricing Model Fits MSRP

HD-900 Your Bike XXXX $280.00 including 48 state shipping

To order, or if you have comments or questions call Hoppe Industries or email [email protected]

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hoppe Industries ph. (262) 552-2770 FAX (262) 552-2778

I don't like the size and don't want the power but maybe someone else would.

dobias <_<

 

[Tom of VA]

dobias,

I called the guy at Hoppe Industries. I sounded interesting but it was designed for speaker output only and not intended for helmet speakers. If this item had a slightly smaller remote and a jack for headset it would be what I'm looking for.

 

[sparky3008]

Sirius' version just hit the streets with 50 hours of recordable time - 300 bucks or so, IIRC. Good idea, 'cept all my gear is new...

TWN do you have a model number or anything more?

 

[Bounce]

I had am/fm with the past 3 bikes. it was lame when you travel around the country and have to keep hunting for signals and can only fine preachers or country music. With the FJR I went with MP3 because I could move my entire collection of CDs over to it and still have room left (over 200 discs). I could then randomize the songs and not get repeats for a long time yet always have music I liked.

You can feed anything you want into the aux-in, so a cheap walkman-type am/fm could fit in the tank bag and work just fine.

 

[twowheelnut]

Sirius' version just hit the streets with 50 hours of recordable time - 300 bucks or so, IIRC. Good idea, 'cept all my gear is new...

TWN do you have a model number or anything more?

S50

https://www.sirius.com/gs/s50/

 

[sparky3008]

Sirius' version just hit the streets with 50 hours of recordable time - 300 bucks or so, IIRC. Good idea, 'cept all my gear is new...

TWN do you have a model number or anything more?

S50

https://www.sirius.com/gs/s50/

Yea, I looked at that one and it is not for mobile satellite. It is to record and take with you.

 

[sparky3008]

I guess you could mount the dock on the bike?

 

[twowheelnut]

Nope, portable. Use in home, car or bike.

 

[sparky3008]

Nope, portable.  Use in home, car or bike.

Listen whenever and wherever you want. Get SIRIUS live with the included car or optional home dock or go portable with your Stored content. Just detach the Satellite Media Player and listen to your favorite commercial-free music, news, sports and shows wherever you go.

This is from their website TWN.

If you want it to work on the bike you would have to mount the dock??? Correct me if I am still wrong???

 

[Knifemaker]

I have been quite happy with my Delphi MyFi Xm2GO unit. It does recieve live XM , and can record 9 hours of music (the book says only 5 hours , but I timed mine). It comes with a home dock/charger , a car dock kit , an extra external antenna, and the neccessary wires to hook it up to almost anything. The unit also has a built in FM transmitter, so you can have it play through any FM radio. (Handy if jumping in someone elses car)

The unit is small and easy to read. Up until recently I just stuck the thing in the breast pocket of my leather jacket, and the tiny external antenna sucion-cupped to the back of my helmet.

I got mine when they first came out, but the prices have fallen a bit now.

The only real problem I see is that RAM does not make a mount for this model. I made my own, but was told that RAM will be coming out with a larger AQUA box to hold the unit soon.

KM