I've noticed that a station I listen to that's in the very low end of the tuning band (88.9) seems to have a vastly exaggerated sound, as opposed to the other stations further up. Is this generally a tuner issue, a radio station issue, or something to do with Clear Channel transmission (I saw it somewhere, don't understand that part of it very well).
OK, maybe "vastly exaggerated" wasn't the proper term. It seemed like the loudness button was activated for that station, especially with the bass being very heavy, and occasionally distorted, and this was NOT a rap station or heavy rock station. No, it's a public station devoted to mainstream jazz (old and new). The other stations I listen to (a couple "oldies" rock stations, and a classical station much further up the dial) do not exhibit this characteristic.
Then I would say you've found a station that prefers a certain EQ for their output signal. Possibly a college or community based station that plays other formats at some time of the day?
There is no reason for the broadcast frequency of the station (low or high on the dial) to affect it's EQ. Broadcast frequency will affect just how well your antenna receives the station depending on the antenna type and length, but that will ultiamtely affect signal strength and the ability of the station to properly decode the multiplex signal to get decent stereo reception.
Distorted sound can result from several possible causes. The first is signal strength. I assume you have a sufficient amount of signal strength to want to listen to this channel. Too much signal can also result in distortion. More on this later. The next most likely culprit is multipath distortion. This is a result of the type of antenna you're using and the location of your antenna relative to the broadcast antenna. Multipath distortion usually results from reflections of the original signal arriving slightly behind the stronger original signal and not having sufficient time differential between the two for your tuner to discriminate which is the original and which is reflected. If you have any tall buildings, radio or electric towers, trees or hills between you and the station, you will usually have multipath problems.
Here in Dallas most of our stations' antennas are located South of the city at a location called "Signal Hill". Those people living immediately South of Downtown have a problem with multipath since they receive the signal from the antenna (coming from down South) and then they get the reflection from the Downtown skycrapers which come as a reflection from the North. As I go into houses in that portion of Dallas nearest to Downtown, the radios have severe multipath distortion on multiple channels. By the time I get home just a few blocks away, the multipath has cleared up as the arrival time between original and reflected signals have extended to the point where a decent tuner can pick out the two signals as separate from one another. If you are using an omni-directional "T" type dipole antenna, you will have the most severe multipath problems since the antenna picks up multiple reflections. The answer to multipath problems is a directional antenna that might require some way to rotate the orientation of the axis in order to pick up just the signal you want and reject all the rest.
More typical still is a station that over modulates its signal to compress dynamics and drive a "louder" signal to your antenna. This is normally what you get from more pop oriented stations trying to catch your attention as you cruise the dial. Being too close to the broadcast antenna also gives the same effect due to excessive signal strength and you will overdrive the front end of your tuner which sends it into distortion. If you can see the broadcast antenna from your home, you probably have the latter situation at work.
Give the station a call and ask if they have a preferred EQ setting for their broadcasts. If the problems of multipath or being too close to the broadcast antenna don't apply to your location, ask if they highly modulate their signal to get maximum signal strength. Maybe they're trying to use the heavy bass content and a higher than normal signal strength to catch a listener's ear as you cruise through channels at the stop light. It's up to the station to decide how they want to broadcast their signal and there's nothing you can do to possibly affect a change other than complain.
Thank you, Jan. Sorry to take so long to get back to you. I needed a clearer head (like a friend of mine in South Beach always says) to assimilate your explanation fully.
The station is actually run by the Milwaukee Public School system, and plays jazz all day. But I have no idea where their antenna is. I'm not close to downtown, so the tall buildings (we do have a few!) wouldn't be a problem . I have a big old Chinese elm right by the deck (the wooden kind!) which I don't think is causing a problem. As for my antenna, it's one of those things I picked up at Radio Shack, which I think is supposed to be omni-directional, and has two switches on it to supposedly enhance the signal. Perhaps I should fiddle with those a little, as well.
I'll probably give the station a call, and see if I get an intelligent response. Also, I'm getting a new receiver soon, and it'll be interesting if there's any difference between that and the Sansui. If I think of it, I'll let you know what's what.
Well, Jan, put me down as a dufus. Won't be the first time for me, and probably not the last. I don't know how, but I HAD inadventently activated the loudness control on my Sansui, hence exaggerating the sound of the station.
I also learned to fiddle with my existing antenna a little better, and was able to boost the signal a bit more (especially for my classical station).
So, anyway, the FM is now pretty good.
Thank you very much for your help. Sorry to have wated your time. Really!