You can't listen to FM/DAB on Virgin Trains!
Bill Clinton
Posts: 9,389 Forum Member
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Went down to London for the budget day protest, one of the fun things I like to do is listen to all the different stations down the West Coast Main Line, get their RDS etc and see how far I can listen to them for and so on. I had a pocket DAB with me and a Sony Ericsson FM radio with me (until I dropped it down a loo in Chester station with too much in my hands!). Then as I realised I was on a Virgin Train, I knew things would be bad as I had to resort to the FM radio on a Samsung Galaxy S4 Mini which is great for having RDS and even reading Radiotext but for some reason is the lousiest phone yet for FM reception whilst the Sony Ericsson is almost as good as a car radio for a handheld! I got the replacement off Ebay now but I had an almost radio free day in London, I briefly marvelled at how great their DAB choice is with no less than 3 local multiplexes full of stations I wouldn't mind having here and in my car such as Gold and Absolute 70's and more community radio and Asian options. I briefly got the Herts, Beds and Bucks multiplex for about 10 seconds on the train.
What is the technical explanation for why Virgin Trains screens out FM and DAB so completely, yet Arriva and London Midland trains don't, I'm sure I will be in a tinier minority than those who hoped the Monster Raving Loony Party could have won a seat in the election just gone in preferring other trains for this reason alone! Presumably it isn't deliberate, unless it is to promote their onboard train wi-fi which sources mobile internet off multiple networks, because I was also finding it pretty difficult to connect to EE 3G/4G along the way too!
What is the technical explanation for why Virgin Trains screens out FM and DAB so completely, yet Arriva and London Midland trains don't, I'm sure I will be in a tinier minority than those who hoped the Monster Raving Loony Party could have won a seat in the election just gone in preferring other trains for this reason alone! Presumably it isn't deliberate, unless it is to promote their onboard train wi-fi which sources mobile internet off multiple networks, because I was also finding it pretty difficult to connect to EE 3G/4G along the way too!
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http://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/binaries/research/telecoms-research/not-spots/rail-not-spots.pdf
Page 16 (or 24 based on the PDF page numbers) gives this explanation:
He was going to protest against the budget. I doubt he would pay those evil capitalists at Virgin Trains for WiFi!
Yes, probably the metal film in the windows, South West Trains carriages are exactly the same, radio reception is virtually impossible, unless the transmitter is line of sight, and nice and close.
Depends on the train company. CrossCountry uses the same trains as Virgin, and they make you pay for their wifi, except in first class. You generally can't use 3G either as the same RF screening works wonderfully against mobile phone signals too
Yes !! I tried streaming BBC radio using SWT's WifI service, it lasted about 30 seconds, before I was blocked (It states that streaming is not permitted when you initially log on)
You are kidding? AM signals are completely blocked too by the faraday cage effect, and then all that's left is the electrical interference from the train traction & fluorescent lighting.
Well they used to work better than FM for me, though I haven't much recent experience on trains to be honest so things may have deteriorated, which if so is a pity. Still better than FM/DAB on long car journeys though!
Bit annoying but a good time to catch up on podcasts!
One tip is that some of their Meridian trains have carriages that are part first and part standard class. Sit in there and you can usually connect to the free first-class WiFi signal.
Not sure why that would be unless something in the build.
Steve
Errr, lots of steel ?
Yes, but - how much bandwidth does that offer? Presumably the Wifi gets its internet connectivity through (one or more) 3G/4G connection(s), and that's shared between the users on the trains. My experience on FGW - where we don't have metal-coated windows,and 3G works OK - is that the wifi can often be slower.
I'd have thought the opposite, it makes the idea of a factory fitted Sat Nav easier to sell.
Why would the car manufacturers damage that potential source of income ?
The HSTs are being fitted with it (and a lot have been).
I have personally used FGW wifi a few times between Cornwall and Plymouth
It was part of the 'climate' options pack (air con, eletrically heated windscreen and heat blocking glass). I guess people stopped buying it, by the time I replaced my car the special glass was no longer included in the climate pack.