Radio Reception Issues

[Paul_A/V]

jamin87ss, this other update, do you have a TB# to go with that?

[jamin87ss]

jamin87ss, this other update, do you

have a TB# to go with that?

Op code 2810335 also a number 287454020 not sure what they mean

[Paul_A/V]

Thanks, I am gathering as much information on this issue as possible before I go to my dealer with this issue.

[GMCustomerService]

Thanks, I am gathering as much information on this issue as possible before I go to my dealer with this issue.

 

Hi Paul_A/V,

 

I am sorry to hear that you are having radio reception issues. If you would like for me to provide you additional assistance and contact your dealer on your behalf, please private message me.

 

Best,

 

Anthony Z.

GM Customer Service

[Jesse Davidson]

 

Hi Paul_A/V,

 

I am sorry to hear that you are having radio reception issues. If you would like for me to provide you additional assistance and contact your dealer on your behalf, please private message me.

 

Best,

 

Anthony Z.

GM Customer Service

These "GM Bots" are beyond annoying and are absolutely no help, i don't know why they even bother to post here

[jamin87ss]

Lol, I am confident in a resolution from GM for me, with no less then some substantial trade assistance, anything less and it will be my last new GM, can't say my last GM because I like old cars lol

[WLC]

Lol, I am confident in a resolution from GM for me, with no less then some substantial trade assistance, anything less and it will be my last new GM, can't say my last GM because I like old cars lol

I have called and pmed customer care many times. Best they offered me was Sirius radio free for two months.I bought three new trucks and a aciadia. Bought my daughters and mothers cars also from GM. Last purchase was a Durango for the wife with great headlights and radio.

[Paul_A/V]

I've been around and driving GM cars my whole life. My father was a General Manager of a number of GM dealerships over his lifetime. GM radios always had excellent FM reception able to lock onto radio stations that others couldn't. Of course that's when the GM radios were made by Delco. Turns out Delco has a unique and optimum way of tuning FM stations (see the article "FM Tuners: The Present State of the Art of FM Reception" in http://www.biline.ca/audio_critic/mags/The_Audio_Critic_23_r.pdf . It's rather technical so not for the laymen.). This article is old but it gets the point across. GM needs to rethink their new vendor selection for the radio tuner.

 

I haven't gone to my dealer with this problem yet. I plan to when I take the truck in for the next routine maintenance. I'll hit up this GM Customer Service Representative as well for the hell of it.

[tnchevy]

I have to strongly disagree that GM tuners have always had "excellent" reception. My 2002 silvy had good reception but I also owned a tacoma and a jeep during the same time period and both would pick up stations that were further away than my 02 model would and the closer stations would be clearer on those vehicles.

[GeorgeMJ]

I just signed up to see if there is still interest in this topic? I'm currently doing some testing on the 2016 radio that seems to be somewhat deficient on FM and a little on AM.

[pappas pit]

There's plenty of intrest. I just think we all understand chevy will do nothing to help withe the radio's

[Jesse Davidson]

http://alpine-usa.com/product/view/x108u

the only direct fit replacement that I know of. save yourself the headache and swap yours with this.

[GeorgeMJ]

OK. I've done some testing and I'm going to do more. I've been in love with automotive radios since my Dad's 1956 Buick, his first car to have a radio. I hope to attract some engineering minds to this subject to fill in what I don't know so as a start, anybody that is interested might want to review the AMAX standards that were developed for stereo AM, there is a Wiki on it if you search "amax radio", and the NRSC-1-B standards for radios, pops up as a PDF on a search. If some of you are used to the new as well as the old radios, you'll notice the difference that these standards have made in radio performance.

 

I've been chasing poor radio performance problems for a few years now due to the 2007 Pontiac G5 GT that I also drive. It has a rear mounted antenna mast which causes similar problems to what I'm experiencing in my truck due mainly to the long length of shielded wire from the antenna to the radio. This results in increased capacitance in the "lead in" wire shunting or attenuating the signal from the antenna. Driving me nuts. I've improved the AM reception by adding a top hat to the antenna but I'm going to try an FM antenna preamp to improve the FM. This radio is not usable on weak FM stations. I've never heard a lot of complaints about these so maybe people are just getting used to poor performance, or maybe I have a really bad one. If you lived in a city with this car, you would not have noticed a problem.

 

The Pontiac problems may not apply to the Silverado radio problem just yet, but my testing shows that I may have a problem in my truck's antenna. I also found that maybe 2 feet of 100 Ohm coaxial cable, the Silverado antenna wire to the radio, is coiled up just under where the mast is mounted in the engine compartment. There is even a sticky cable holder mounted there to hold the excess. I would like to know if others have this on the 2014 and 2015s. This cable also measures 165 pF, (pico Farads), where a 5 foot cable should measure only around 68 pF. I've tested a 2001 GM truck radio connected to my 2016 truck antenna and, standing still, the FM sensitivity appears the same, AM a little better on the old radio. I have provisions to test them with a signal generator but didn't have time yet. I'm going to drive 25 miles away from the city transmitters today so I'll post the results when I get a chance. I don't have a lot of time to devote to this so bear with me.

 

Disclaimer: These are my opinions as the result of my testing on my vehicles and using my equipment. If anybody has any suggestions, please speak up. If I'm doing something wrong please tell me.

 

I understand how annoying a bad radio is and I would like to find out why it is bad or what is bad. I've owned my truck since February and have less than 3000 miles on it. I have a notice of a software update available to add an Android music app but haven't had that done yet. I have not complained to the dealer yet since I've read of the results of that, very little success. Maybe some of the guys with the 21014 and 2015 trucks can take a test drive and try the radio in a 2016 to see if the problem is the same. From reading the posts, some of the 2014s are really bad and maybe some are good or the owners just live near a city, probably impossible to sort that out.

[WLC]

My trucks have bad radio reception. One is worse. Lose hd signal 10 miles from the big city and the complete station within 15 or twenty miles. If traveling on vacation all you do is hunting for another station. Had the update and new radio put in my dealer but did not help. Asked GM for lifetime Sirius radio with no luck.I am now paying for Sirius. Works good. This issue is not important to GM just like the bad headlights. They wil not get another purchase from me and I tell anyone who asks about my trucks.

[glcbn]

 

Maybe some of the guys with the 21014 and 2015 trucks can take a test drive and try the radio in a 2016 to see if the problem is the same.

 

If GM got rid of HD in the '16's, that wouldn't be a good comparison..........right?