Gee, maybe you got a dud?
Mine works great. Maybe the I-Pod is generating some digi-noise into it. I can go anywhere 75-100' around and outside the house without any probs. I couldn't find the link, but there is a fella over in the UK by the name of Tony that builds some great small, digitally controlled AM trnasmitters. My brother has one, and it broadcasts the highest fidelity I've ever heard over AM. As far as tuning goes, any transmitter worth it's salt is either going to have a dedicated crystal for it's frequency or be digitally controlled thru synthesis.