DAB with Bose
 

Hi Everyone

I have a standard DAB radio in my A8. I am not sure, because it is a 2005 car whether poor reception is due to the specification of the unit fitted, or the performance of the aerial, which I presume is within the shark fin on the roof.

In cities and populated areas it is pretty good, but as I live in the sticks and consequently make many rural and sparsely populated journeys it drops out for mile after mile

Can the unit be upgraded via VCDS or similar, can the aerial specification be improved or am I simply stuck with this, unless I replace or upgrade entirely

The aerial is within the rear window lines, the odd ones at the top. There is an amplifier above that too. DAB is the UK is garbage apart from in cities, it was designed by BBC anorak radio ham fanatics rather than by a commercial operator who wanted it to work well and be future proof we were early adopters of DAB and ended up with an over-budget, underpeforming infrastructure with low qaulity streams (due to the codec) (just about everwhere else in the world uses the more robust and much higher quality DAB+).

Thank you for the information. I also own a Shogun with a 2017 Kenwood DAB unit which is much less prone to dropping out. Mind you it alternates between DAB and FM in poor reception areas, which is great except the delay can be up to five seconds.

I think it looks like I will have to put up with it as it is. Thanks though

The A8 should alternate between FM and DAB too, if it isn't maybe it needs tuning and the stations storing. I guest there must have been some technological improvements over the years.

There has, to be honest the D3 DAB was hit and miss. The D4 reception was better, places that the D3 would cut out or switch to FM the D4 worked.

My Q7 is better again, and supports DAB+, which most of the stations I listen to are now broadcast on!

So probably not a fault I'm afraid, just the way it is....

Was dab fitted at the factory in 2005, I know my 2006 doesn't have it.
Just thinking if the dab tuner was retro fitted the Ariel and system may not be optimised for dab..... Maybe????

I had it on a 2005 55 plate from the factory, was an option for sure +++

I retrofitted DAB on mine, didn't need to tell the car anything. It spotted the tuner in the MOST loop and added the relevant menu option automatically. Reception was no different to any of the other cars I have with factory DAB. I did add the coding later on but it made no different operationally.