What's that annoying noise?

July 31, 2011 8:08 PM

[SoCal Filter] What is that static that interferes with my car ipod player around Long Beach and Mojave? I use the kind of ipod adapter that transmits from ipod to car radio on FM, and it works very well other than this.

I use 87.9 FM frequency and it works GREAT everywhere else . . . just near Long Beach and near Mojave the static/interferrence is TERRIBLE (sounds like loud white noise that goes away when you pause the ipod). The specific locations are 405 near the Long Beach Freeway and near Mojave on the 14 and 58. The Mojave noise is only there on my afternoon/evening drives home, never on my 3am drives out to Mammoth.

But, no problems near LAX, so not an "airport" thing?

Any ideas? It's not a disaster, more just annoying, but I'm really curious, and google failed me on this one.

Thanks in advance!

posted by bluesky78987 to Technology (8 answers total)

K-Jazz broadcasts on 88.1 at the top of Signal Hill, you might be getting some interference from that. Don't know about Mojave, though. KCRW has a repeater out there, but I don't know what the frequency is.
posted by hwyengr at 8:19 PM on July 31, 2011

Just checked, KCRY (the KCRW repeater) also broadcasts on 88.1 in Mojave. That's probably it.
posted by hwyengr at 8:21 PM on July 31, 2011

Driving around LA is hell on those iPod transmitters. Every region has collegiate, local, semi-local, the major stations, etc on down the line and it's just a huge mess. Trying to find a band that's clear across any given 10 miles of the greater metropolis is futile. You're better off buying something that uses bluetooth or a direct jack.

Does your transmitter have memory settings? You can set one for one area and then find another band that works where that one doesn't. If your kit doesn't, it might be worth it to look into getting one, and make sure it's one with a bunch of memory slots.
posted by carsonb at 8:31 PM on July 31, 2011

And just 'cause I'm bored, here are the Gmap locations of the two transmitters from the FCC database.

KCRY-FM, Mojave, CA
and
KKJZ-FM, Long Beach, CA
posted by hwyengr at 8:35 PM on July 31, 2011

I don't hear any music, or remnants of voices, or anything like that like one does when one radio station is interfering with another . . . just static. Still think it's that?

And really, I have literally had zero problems in any other areas. If it was radio stations interfering, I would think I might have had at least some minor or barely noticeable problems in other areas, or I would hear some sort of talking, music or something when the ipod was paused, wouldn't I? The car radio doesn't know when I pause the ipod -- it just receives 87.9 all the time, so if there was some other signal, wouldn't it pick that up? (I don't know much about radios, obiously).

Thanks y'all.
posted by bluesky78987 at 8:43 PM on July 31, 2011

Yup. Try turning off your adapter when the static starts, and see what you hear with your radio still tuned to 87.9. If you hear a weaker signal of the 88.1 stations, that's what it is. The signal is the strongest when you're right next to the transmitter, so you're only going to have problems when you're right by them. The signal power drops off dramatically the further you get from the transmitter, so your iPod adapter would then overpower the weaker signal.
posted by hwyengr at 8:57 PM on July 31, 2011

Definitely radio stations. I gave up on using my MP3 to radio transmitter in LA (and every other major population center) for this exact reason.
posted by SMPA at 9:18 PM on July 31, 2011

Huh. Ok, I'll try that. Thanks all!
posted by bluesky78987 at 9:32 PM on July 31, 2011