Belkin TuneCast II FM Transmitter for MP3 Players (Black) Review

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(More customer reviews)First of all, all FM transmitters cause noise on the receiving end, if you turn volume up enough. And don't expect the sound quality to be better than your FM radio itself. It will be worse. If possible, use a wired option such as a "cassette connector" for car. That said, wireless transmitters do offer convenience, and some are better, while others are worse, depend mostly on unit's output power, range, and station selections. After trying out 4 of them personally, I found station selections to be the most important in getting good quality sound on your radio. Hence, the Belkin TuneCast II is the best out there. As far as I know (in the price range I search), it is the only one on the market that offers full frequency digital tuning (Arkon offers transmitters with full frequency analog tuning - SoundFeeder 150x).
Here is a summary of my review on the four transmitters I tried.
Belkin TuneCast II:
+ full frequency digital tuning with 0.05 stepping
+ 4-station memory
+ dual power (battery and DC)
+ auto on/off
+ good output and range
+ LCD display
+ cord storage on unit
- USB power will be nicer, as I have my own USB2DC adapter
- LCD not lighted
iRock 400FM
+ dual power (battery and DC)
+ good output and range
- only 4 preset stations
- dangling cord
- kind of ugly
Arkon SoundFeeder 250
+ good output and range
+ cord storage on unit
- only 8 preset stations
- battery power only (spec claimes 60hr, but I seriously doubt it as others with similar battery could only last 10-13hr)
SIIG Music Adapter Pro
+ dual power (battery and USB, could be tripple if you have your own USB2DC adapter)
+ ok output and range (volume is kind of low)
+ lighted LCD
+ cord storage on unit
- claimed to have 9 preset stations with autoscan, but it was so hard to operate that I could only verify 5 stations through manual stepping, and autoscan does NOT pick up the best station
- battery compartment very hard to open
- DO NOT BUY THIS, even though it looks good, and has good spec
Here are some personal tips on any FM transmitter setup:
1) If your radio and transmitter allows 0.1 stepping, choose an even frequency station such as 88.40, since very very few stations broadcast on even frequecies.
2) Make sure your MP3 files have loud enough volume, so you don't have to boost your MP3 unit or radio's volume too much. High volume magnifies noise. There are many software out there that fine tunes MP3, including volume.
3) If you have to boost volume, boost MP3 unit's volume instead of radio's. High radio volume causes more noise.
4) Always make sure you have new battery or are using DC adapter. Low power forces you to turn up volume, and it in turn causes noise.
5) In general, songs fair better with these transmitters than solo instruments, as noise could become more obvious on the later.


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