Is DAB dead?

[Cricketbat70]

My new to me car 2021 mazdaCX30 has DAB the first time I've had a car with DAB. Now I know in my little town we cannot get DAB and with the advent internet radio I think any plans to upgrade our local transmitter, which itself is only a booster transmitter, have long been shelved.

I needed to go to Preston on Saturday which is around 30 mile along the A59 from where I live. I thought I'd try the DAB in the car.

Just as I passed the sign post for leaving my town I got DAB reception for about 5 seconds, half a mile along the road I got reception for about 2 seconds and so it continued, reception every mile or so until I'd travelled about 15 miles along the A59 and finally got full reception.

In my house if I stand in a specific point in the attic and hold a DAB radio above my head with the aerial fully extended so it's nearly touching the ceiling I can get very limited reception.

I remember when DAB was first introduced getting a phone call from some organisation trying to sell me a DAB radio. I explained we couldn't get DAB and no one was sure when and if we'd get it. The bloke on the other end of the phone said you can get it you're in a Blackburn (BB) post code.

I wish I'd had told him do proper research, we are right on the edge of BB postcodes, in fact another half mile and it would be a Bradford postcode, we don't get our signals from the transmitter that all the rest of the BB postcodes used.

Towns just 3 miles away from us have had DAB since it's launch, we still can't get it but again with internet radio it doesn't matter, so my question after my long winded post. Has the idea of getting the country fully DAB covered been abandoned is DAB effectively an obsolete technology/service?

 

[Messiah]

No idea about coverage but I use it where I am - Hampshire.

The quality of DAB though, that's a different matter. 😁

 

[Cricketbat70]

No idea about coverage but I use it where I am - Hampshire.

The quality of DAB though, that's a different matter. 😁

When I finally picked it up in my car it was good. I dare day it's just our little enclave of towns and villages along the lancs Yorks border and part of the Ribble Valley, who have always been left out that can't get it. I mean I think Chanel 4 had been on air for over a decade before we got it 😂.
I was amazed when we got full fibre to the property I thought by the time we got it, it would be obsolete.

Hampshire beautiful place Rach is originally from that kneck of the woods. A little place called Four Marks.

 

[Messiah]

Hampshire beautiful place Rach is originally from that kneck of the woods. A little place called Four Marks.

Ah. Cool.

Been there a couple of times (although many years ago). It was nice.

 

[Gray]

Is DAB dead?
It was never alive as far as I'm concerned.
I got a 'goodie bag' from somewhere and still have a pink frisbee - it tells me that DAB is 'the future of radio' 🙂

They were pushing take-up quite hard at one time - not least the BBC, but all that seems to have gone quiet - and I'm not the least bit surprised.

Lisa Nandy has inherited the power to do the previously promised FM switchoff.......I hope she leaves it as it is.
Then FM can be the future of radio in my house - long live the accurate pips* and Big Ben on Radio 4 🇬🇧

*Once again reminds me of our famous family story....brother's girlfriend heard the pips and said, "What's that noise?" 😆

 

[Friesiansam]

My new to me car 2021 mazdaCX30 has DAB the first time I've had a car with DAB. Now I know in my little town we cannot get DAB and with the advent internet radio I think any plans to upgrade our local transmitter, which itself is only a booster transmitter, have long been shelved.

I needed to go to Preston on Saturday which is around 30 mile along the A59 from where I live. I thought I'd try the DAB in the car.

Just as I passed the sign post for leaving my town I got DAB reception for about 5 seconds, half a mile along the road I got reception for about 2 seconds and so it continued, reception every mile or so until I'd travelled about 15 miles along the A59 and finally got full reception.

In my house if I stand in a specific point in the attic and hold a DAB radio above my head with the aerial fully extended so it's nearly touching the ceiling I can get very limited reception.

I remember when DAB was first introduced getting a phone call from some organisation trying to sell me a DAB radio. I explained we couldn't get DAB and no one was sure when and if we'd get it. The bloke on the other end of the phone said you can get it you're in a Blackburn (BB) post code.

I wish I'd had told him do proper research, we are right on the edge of BB postcodes, in fact another half mile and it would be a Bradford postcode, we don't get our signals from the transmitter that all the rest of the BB postcodes used.

Towns just 3 miles away from us have had DAB since it's launch, we still can't get it but again with internet radio it doesn't matter, so my question after my long winded post. Has the idea of getting the country fully DAB covered been abandoned is DAB effectively an obsolete technology/service?

You just need a better aerial:

 

[Gray]

I think it was Planet Rock that seemed to think that 92kbps MONO was good enough on DAB.
And they wonder why people aren't interested.

 

[Cricketbat70]

😂

You just need a better aerial:

😂😂😂

 

[Cricketbat70]

I think it was Planet Rock that seemed to think that 92kbps MONO was good enough on DAB.
And they wonder why people aren't interested.

The one thing I do remember saying to the chap that tried to sell me a DAB radio is that "it's supposed to be better quality radio but from what I've read they are just cramming the available band width more stations instead of using it for quality" (I'd read it in What Hifi back in the day) He tried to convince me It was better quality.