In many areas, buildings and land features mar radio reception, producing static or background hiss. A dramatic improvement can usually be made by installing an FM antenna. FM antennas are often combined with television antennas. If you have a television antenna, check it; if it includes an FM antenna, simply wire your radio to it, running the wire through a splitter.
Mount an FM-only antenna in the same way you would a television antenna following the manufacturer’s directions. To minimize signal loss, connect the antenna to the radio with 300-ohm wire instead of coaxial cable.
The boom of an antenna should face the origin of the signal. If you want to pull in broadcasts from more than one sending station, install a rotor motor, which lets you turn the antenna toward the signal you want.
If you live in an apartment, where mounting an outside antenna is impractical or prohibited, get an indoor antenna—either an inexpensive dipole antenna, which is mounted on the wall, or freestanding “rabbit ears,” which can be fine-tuned. If you want to pull in some hard-to-get stations, try an amplified antenna.
To connect any antenna, simply loosen the screws marked Antenna or Ant at the back of the radio, slip the spade lugs on the antenna wire under the screws, and tighten the screws.
If you want to pull in faraway AM stations, install a 30- to 60-foot-long wire antenna as high as possible (at least 30 feet). Use insulators to couple the antenna to upright poles. Run a wire to the radio. Make sure the radio is well grounded.