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[email protected] jurb6006@gmail.com is offline
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Default Selectivity vs. sensitivity

You want these stations in your car ? Well, a buddy has a Ford Taurus with a radio with extreme sensitivity and doesn't exhibit that noise like older tuner due to the digital signals etc. on the carrier.

Some tuners vary the IF bandwidth with signal strength or even multipath reception. (Shotz ?) this gives you the low distortion of the wide bandwidth on better signals and limits distortion on weaker or much reflected signals.. A quite good design I say.

When you are dealing with a weak signal, narrow bandwidth is almost always the choice as noise goes up with bandwidth, and it of course affects selectivity. It affects THD especially in stereo because the sidebands are blocked. Sure, you can get by with a +/- 75 KHz bandwidth but it sounds like ****.. How picky are you ?

So you have questions that sales is not going to be able to answer here, I don't know what to tell you. Look at audiophile specs on these tuners if you can get them. the quieting curve, THD vs. signal level. No way can they quantify how it handles multipath, but that is usually less of an issue with a signal originating farther away. (unless you are in NYC itself)

So in the end, both parameters you ask are important. I tighter bandwidth will shield out local stations that are stronger. If you have them 200 KHz away you definitely need the utmost in selectivity. Sensitivity is related but shorter bandwidth will result in better quieting. Thus a tuner with shorter bandwidth will measure better in selectivity with all other things equal. I used to custom align IF strips on old tuners for that.

Another factor is that the frequencies you mentioned are at the low end of the band. that means the varactors are operating at higher capacitance and inaccuracy and drift are worse. this is almost impossible to tweak, I would not attempt it and lack the equipment to do it anyway.

As such, an in person audition ight be necessary. Go to the store whether you buy there or not and search the lower end of the FM band on various units. if you find one with really superior performance buy it, and insist on getting THAT ONE, not another one in the box. that may be the only way to do it.

Anyway, that is my take on it, take it or leave it.