Out of curiosity I hooked up a talking house power supply (19V) to my Rangemaster.
The results are nice and allowed for better clarity than the stock supply (16V) has provided.
The best bass response by far has come from my bench supply which operates at 13.8V at 5A. I cannot remember the amp rating of the TH supply and I THINK the RM PS is 500mA or 1000mA.
I would like to buy a Variable output supply that can run at higher voltages than 13.8V, there are a few on Amazon I'm keepin' my eye on.
On the other end of the spectrum I have a 7.5 foot dish to put up in the yard for some C band stuff I need off AMC-8. Plus a 3foot ku dish for Galaxy 19 programming.
I kicked off the first-ever broadcast of "Radio Free Connecticut", my little station, today. Sounds pretty good to me!! 😀
I have had a lot of fun with my little station. It really is cool, when someone shows up and says they are listening to it. And with such low power, it is work to listen at times..
I did nothing today to better the station, just the usual daily updates to keep programming moving forward.
I did absolutely nothing to my station today or yesterday or ...yeah i am slacking.
Not really slacking, just have a ton of not so great things happen lately that has put a damper on plans for my part 15 and experimental license project.
I was hoping to at least get a more permanent antenna up for the SSTran before the snow flies here in E.Ky , hopefully the Old Farmers Almanac is correct (they usually are) about us having a mild winter this year.
Maybe i can wedge in some time to install the antenna with a suitable coil soon.
My plans were to have an easy disconnect between the transmitter and antenna so that i can use the sstran for the experiments.
Life tends to get hectic , dont it?
Barry of BBR Yardwide
This thread could go on and on just like the thread about what's playing now!
Received a CD in MP3 files of all Chickenman episodes and am in the process of getting them(at least 100 of them) onto my playlist picked at random in the mix.
For those not familiar with Chickenman, the greatest crime fighter the world has ever known also known as the feathered fighter and the winged warrior, was short 2 1/2 minute commedy-like radio plays created by a Chicago radio station in 1966 and was syndicated on 1500 radio stations in the 60s and 70s. All the parts were played by 2 people who had acting experience and could sound like different people. Dick Orkin was the creator and narrator.
You can look up Chickenman radio series and get the history and hear some episods.
Mark
I was hoping when I started this thread to generate some activity by encouraging everyone to share what they are doing at their Part 15. We learn about their equipment, programming etc. Almost like a bread crumb trail if someone is doing research on how to do it.
I like the sound of the chickeman episodes. I will look into that myself. It probably would be a good fit for my station.
The only thing I did on my station today was update some news broadcasts, and I am still working out the audio feed to the Rangemaster. I have determined it is definately not getting the audio level it needs to be 100 % effective. I can't push more drive to it from the mixer because I overdrive the stream computer ... I will hopefully catch a inovonics or compatible in the near future.. As a side note, I didn't have this problem with the AMT3000
I am going up on the roof to make sure I have maxed out the audio gain on the transmitter. I may install an elevator soon!
The couch is gone from the studio! My daughter and her significant other removed it yesterday.
Lumber has been purchased.
Today I will commence to frame in the new workspace, hopefully get the desktop in place, and maybe even start to set equipment in place, getting it off the floor, and every other flat surface where I could pile things up!
TIB
Be sure and photograph the progress!
I am in the studio today updating the weeks programming. I am also updating the daily weather and contemplating a motorcycle ride. We have a Toys for Tots event coming up, and I need to plot a path thru some rural areas. We have a 60% chance of rain today increasing as the day progresses. I know this because my staff meteorologist said it on the radio!!
I did snag an inexpensive DBX 266 from Ebay. I am hoping to level out some of my audio problems since the transition to the Hamilton Rangemaster. It sounds great at times, then not so great later... In my opinion, the Hamilton is a great device. But, I miss the features of the AMT3000, like built in compression. I am using more devices now to get the same sound quality.
I am now off to update the weeks nightly programming...
I've used the DBX266, its not a bad little unit but you will be dissapointed if that is all you are using for the airchain. I got pretty respectable results using it paired with an Aphex Compellor.
You might be using more equipment but don't be discouraged, you are going to get a far superior audio product than the AMT could ever hope to deliver with built in processing. My current recommendation is the new Inovonics 223 for some good serious processing that won't break the bank compared to other pro-grade gear. The hamilton can sound really great when fed with the right gear. At the moment I'm running an Aphex Compellor into an Inovonics 222 with great results, without the 222 the signal seemed to sound a bit dull compared to the others. (That being said you will be amazed how LOUD you can get with a DBX266 tied to an Aphex Compellor, it'll be slightly dull but it'll blow the doors off your car)
I am gaining one step at a time! Hopefully one will pop up that meets the budget requirements before long. If not, I may have to twist off and buy new!
Right now, I am just hoping to get some consitency. My stream computer handles the differences in audio levels, but the transmitter side does not, and I am having to drive it pretty hard to get close to where it needs to be for volume level. It doesn't sound bad, but not great. And of course, a lot of that depends on what radio you are using.
The old Magnavox consoles I am working on make it sound great.
I use a Symetrix 421 (mono) Expander/Compressor/Limiter in my audio chain and it has great sound - pretty amazing, in fact, considering that I only paid around $25 for it on e-bay. Usually they're more than that but it's old enough to be able to snag one relatively cheaply if something comes up for aution (everyone is after the type of equipment that Mighty mentions!).
I've used an Inovonics 222, and to my ear, the Symetrix doesn't sound all that much different.
I have no experience with the broadcast compression equipment, so I am at a loss.
I will add that to my list of possiblities!
"(everyone is after the type of equipment that Mighty mentions!)"
Man, ain't that the truth lol! Industry standard equipment tends to get hard to come by affordably. I've heard of the Symetrix stuff, used to be very common in radio studios and is still in use at many stations. I'd venture to say the 421 is more similar to the Aphex Compellor. The Ino222 is for the most part just a compliance processor with a brickwall limiter. The 223 is a full-blown processor.
For those of you that CAN access the HB site there are a few audio demonstrations of my Part 15 with various audiochain configurations. They will be listed as "KDSX" or Mighty 1650.
The Inovonics 222 is a add on compliance box, to make old gear nrsc compliant, in regards to spectral mask.
Used barefoot it sounds awful, any more than a couple of db limiting, and it soon gets squashy, and the pre emp limiter is very noticeable.
The 222 does need some compressor before it, so as to limit the 222 range as above.
I see that the Inovonics 223 is a multi broadcast processor, so can be configured for AM and Fm.
On Am how does the 223 stack up against the 235 3 band nrsc box ?
I suspect the performance for nrsc is very similar.
Paul.