DAB is here

[etmax]

Does anyone with a Model S had DAB+ working?
I cannot see it on my 2018 MS 75D - and really actually need it as LTE drops out for me all the time around the foothills.

I have a model S from mid 2017 and have the latest update 2020.36.16. I don't see any DAB channels.

I can understand that Tesla doesn't want to bother with AM any more, within 5 years there will probably be no more transmitters, but FM is still a dominant medium for music (at low quality) and talk shows/races/sports etc. but DAB is a very good medium for quality music and is far more reliable than any streaming service. I was just in my car to see if DAB was there and could get no Tunein, no spotify nada. The only music that works in the car is BT from my phone and sticking in a USB stick. I find it inexcusable that Tesla can market a luxury car and not provide a usable radio experience. They just offered me to update my entertainment system for $4000 and I will lose radio all together, what sort of an offer is that? Then later in the year I can spend another $500 to get radio back. That's just simply nuts.

I bought my Tesla because while it was an expensive car the ongoing costs would be low. Now find that just to maintain the sound system I need to factor in $1500 per year.

I'm very disappointed in the price gouging mentality that Tesla seems to be adopting.

 

[P100D_Me]

Bringing this thread up from the dead, but apparently the European delivered Model S/X has had DAB for years, I have no idea why Australia missed out and continues to miss out. You'd think if the Euro cars had the hardware in there then for the price the Aussies pay they could afford to put in that $10 part as well !

 

[Vostok]

Bringing this thread up from the dead, but apparently the European delivered Model S/X has had DAB for years, I have no idea why Australia missed out and continues to miss out. You'd think if the Euro cars had the hardware in there then for the price the Aussies pay they could afford to put in that $10 part as well !

Model 3 here has DAB+, the hardware was there from the first shipments. But for some reason, it took a later software update to activate it. DAB+ was turned on in Model 3s here in April 2020 with software version 2020.8.2.

I don’t know what the story is with Model S/X though. If they still don’t have DAB+ here that is absolutely inexcusable for a car that expensive.

 

[Shallowal]

My first experience with DAB in the M3 over this last weekend. It was absolutely terrible. I cant believe that some people actually wanted it to happen.
Sydney listening to local ABC , kept cutting out and I thought it was the station. Then realised I had tuned to a DAB station (you cant differentiate on the list between DAB and FM) and it was the broadcast cutting out.
Canberra, same thing, cant listen to local ABC because it AM, but it listed on DAB service. Keeps cutting out so I switch to DAB commercial station and the same thing happens. Finally get so pxxxd off I manually tune in a local FM station frequency and get clear FM transmission.
Is this the normal situation with DAB transmission?. Is it always cheap and nasty junk compared to a long range AM or FM transmitter?.

 

[louco73]

My first experience with DAB in the M3 over this last weekend. It was absolutely terrible. I cant believe that some people actually wanted it to happen.
Sydney listening to local ABC , kept cutting out and I thought it was the station. Then realised I had tuned to a DAB station (you cant differentiate on the list between DAB and FM) and it was the broadcast cutting out.
Canberra, same thing, cant listen to local ABC because it AM, but it listed on DAB service. Keeps cutting out so I switch to DAB commercial station and the same thing happens. Finally get so pxxxd off I manually tune in a local FM station frequency and get clear FM transmission.
Is this the normal situation with DAB transmission?. Is it always cheap and nasty junk compared to a long range AM or FM transmitter?.

I have a similar experience on the Gold Coast with black spots for DAB in my M3. I don't use it because it ruins the listening experience making it useless for me. I've never had DAB before, so don't have another car to compare the experience.

 

[moa999]

DAB like any digital signal is either on or off, so in marginal areas it will be a poorer experience then FM which might get static..

It's also not re-transmitted in tunnels - that's FM only..

That said I've had no issues with reception other than in tunnels. Ive got about 10 DAB and one backup FM channel on my favourite list

 

[P100D_Me]

Keeps cutting out so I switch to DAB commercial station and the same thing happens. Finally get so pxxxd off I manually tune in a local FM station frequency and get clear FM transmission.

I have it in two other non Tesla cars, yes it is not as stable as regular FM but generally around town it doesn't tend to drop out in those cars. However if you are on a long trip then it is first to stop working, then FM as long as you can deal with the static then good old AM hangs in there for as long as you need.

 

[Vostok]

My first experience with DAB in the M3 over this last weekend. It was absolutely terrible. I cant believe that some people actually wanted it to happen.
Sydney listening to local ABC , kept cutting out and I thought it was the station. Then realised I had tuned to a DAB station (you cant differentiate on the list between DAB and FM) and it was the broadcast cutting out.
Canberra, same thing, cant listen to local ABC because it AM, but it listed on DAB service. Keeps cutting out so I switch to DAB commercial station and the same thing happens. Finally get so pxxxd off I manually tune in a local FM station frequency and get clear FM transmission.
Is this the normal situation with DAB transmission?. Is it always cheap and nasty junk compared to a long range AM or FM transmitter?.

I can’t say that’s my experience of DAB in Sydney. Very rarely it fades out for 5-10 seconds if the signal strength is poor or there’s tropospheric interference, but that is really the exception not the rule. The vast majority of time I find it is brilliant with noticeably better quality than FM.

I have an October 2019 LR.

 

[Shallowal]

I can’t say that’s my experience of DAB in Sydney. Very rarely it fades out for 5-10 seconds if the signal strength is poor or there’s tropospheric interference, but that is really the exception not the rule. The vast majority of time I find it is brilliant with noticeably better quality than FM.

I have an October 2019 LR.

I was driving through Western Sydney at the time and the sky was perfectly clear. Same in Canberra.
Glad the stations at home are all FM so I dont have to put with this awful technology.

 

[cafz]

DAB's been working fine for me for more than 12 months, but literally just this morning it started to play up. ABC has apparently been rolling out upgrades this month which require rescanning - I had to remove my favourites and re-add them. I've had it drop out since then as well though, fixed by tuning away then tuning back... which is less than ideal...

 

[Vostok]

I was driving through Western Sydney at the time and the sky was perfectly clear. Same in Canberra.
Glad the stations at home are all FM so I dont have to put with this awful technology.

Tropospheric ducting occurs during stable weather patterns - typically clear, high pressure cells. So it fits.

The DAB transmitters in Sydney are in Sydney City, Redfern, Willoughby, Artarmon, Collaroy, Bilgola, Campbelltown, Penrith and Bonnet Bay. They all operate on the same subset of frequencies 202-206 MHz so under the “wrong” conditions could interfere with each other and cause dropouts (although the channel reuse is designed to minimise that risk). I don’t drive much in western Sydney so its possible that phenomena is more likely to occur in the west than in the areas I normally drive, so I experience problems far less often.

Canberra just has Black Mountain so unless terrain obstructed should be fine.

I think DAB technology is “great” not “awful” so... YMMV.

 

[Ezito B]

DAB is here. I know some people were desperate for it and it's now here in 2020.8.1

Works well, its under Radio > Stations tab. It's not in a seperate section.
It'll say DAB in the top left of the card when it's in use

I have a 2018 model 3 (USA) does it come with DAB ? because i only get FM?

 

[Vostok]

I have a 2018 model 3 (USA) does it come with DAB ? because i only get FM?

Cars made for the US market do not have DAB+ radio hardware in them. DAB+ is not used in the USA.