I've experimented with the Rangemaster and the sound quality of the broadcast signal is actually quite good (with a decent audio chain). Depending on your source material, AM can even be preferred - we play a lot of old 20's/30's Jazz, Old Time Radio, obscure Doo-Wop from marginal sources, and it can sound better on poor old AM - the lack of high frequencies gets rid of a lot of noise in the recordings.
That being said, unlicensed FM is useable up here in Canada, as we're allowed 4 times the field strength of the U.S.
In legal parlance a "Non Profit Organization" is not the same as a "Not-For-Profit Corporation," but I think either type can legally apply for LPFM. Back when, in the past, I founded a Not-For Profit with IRS 501-C3 status, which meant that contributors could take a tax deduction. We were not LPFM. We contracted with a 12.5kW public FM station to provide 40-hours-per-week of free programming with volunteers, I was the nominal "manager" of the org.
There were two problems that are classic with Not-For-Profits of all kinds. Since no one owns the organization but the Board is in charge, the board membership must be very carefully vetted.
On our board the treasurer decided he could take it over by competing to have the contract switched over to a college where he was a big-wheel and he would be in charge. I was stuck with a traitor on my board, but to fire him I needed a Board vote, which gets sticky.
The volunteers can be unexpectedly troublesome. They steal things, damage things, believe not-being-paid is a license to say and do ANYTHING under their idea of "free speech," and they can be vindictive.
DON'T DO IT unless you are an ex-Marine.
There is no such thing as either a NPO or an NFP from a Federal perspective. The IRS calls all of these "Exempt Organizations" and the status, nature, mission and deductible nature of contributions are identified on two levels.
First is whether the EO is a public charity or private foundation, determined by where operating capital comes from. If most of the incoming funds are from contributions from the general public then the IRS recognizes the EO as a public charity, otherwise it's a private foundation.
The next level of designation is in the suffix soup that follows the EO designation.
For example:
501 (c)1 is a Federally chartered institution like a Federal credit union
501 (c)3 is a EO formed for charitable, religious or educational purposes, with deductible contributions
501 (c)4 is a EO that performs a social service, raises its funds through grants or exempt businesses like thrift shops, without deductible contributions
527 is a political organization
The whole story can be found in IRS Publication 557, located at http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p557.pdf . Pub 557 is the gospel on all EOs and a great read if you are really, really interested in doing something in this arena.
The NFP, NPO and other designations are from state corporation regulations usually handled by either the Secretary of State's office, the Division Financial and Incorporated Institutions or whatever office your particular state might have.
An EO must register with the state in which it is principally located and it is that process that carries the NPO, NFP and myriad of other designations that arise from state administrative codes.
As it's related to LPFM, the FCC states:
"LPFM stations are available to noncommercial educational entities and public safety and transportation organizations, but are not available to individuals or for commercial operations."
In my experience and opinion, there are huge opportunities in partnering with an existing EO and getting that group excited about LPFM - much easier than starting a new EO. In a previous job I researched the number and range of EOs in a medium sized city. This city had over 500 EOs over and above churches, local chapters of national groups and similar types of EOs. Of those 500, 250 were general enough in purpose to apply for an LPFM.
Carl is absolutely right about the day-to-day nightmares of operating an EO. Much has been written about the perils of managing volunteers. Dealing with boards has great potential to lead a person to life-threatening levels of substance abuse!
There is no such thing as either a NPO or an NFP from a Federal perspective. The IRS calls all of these "Exempt Organizations" and the status, nature, mission and deductible nature of contributions are identified on two levels.
First is whether the EO is a public charity or private foundation, determined by where operating capital comes from. If most of the incoming funds are from contributions from the general public then the IRS recognizes the EO as a public charity, otherwise it's a private foundation.
The next level of designation is in the suffix soup that follows the EO designation.
For example:
501 (c)1 is a Federally chartered institution like a Federal credit union
501 (c)3 is a EO formed for charitable, religious or educational purposes, with deductible contributions
501 (c)4 is a EO that performs a social service, raises its funds through grants or exempt businesses like thrift shops, without deductible contributions
527 is a political organization
The whole story can be found in IRS Publication 557, located at http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p557.pdf . Pub 557 is the gospel on all EOs and a great read if you are really, really interested in doing something in this arena.
The NFP, NPO and other designations are from state corporation regulations usually handled by either the Secretary of State's office, the Division Financial and Incorporated Institutions or whatever office your particular state might have.
An EO must register with the state in which it is principally located and it is that process that carries the NPO, NFP and myriad of other designations that arise from state administrative codes.
As it's related to LPFM, the FCC states:
"LPFM stations are available to noncommercial educational entities and public safety and transportation organizations, but are not available to individuals or for commercial operations."
In my experience and opinion, there are huge opportunities in partnering with an existing EO and getting that group excited about LPFM - much easier than starting a new EO. In a previous job I researched the number and range of EOs in a medium sized city. This city had over 500 EOs over and above churches, local chapters of national groups and similar types of EOs. Of those 500, 250 were general enough in purpose to apply for an LPFM.
Carl is absolutely right about the day-to-day nightmares of operating an EO. Much has been written about the perils of managing volunteers. Dealing with boards has great potential to lead a person to life-threatening levels of substance abuse!
The last two posts only reinforce my decision and lack of desire to apply for a LPFM station!
I don't want to get into the politics of getting a board together. Sometimes you can get a good group of people together, but often times it never works that way ... especially after what I like to call "The Honeymoon Phase."
I've dealt with -- and know people who have dealt with -- stations that have been run by boards. It's not pretty. Often times, you're having to deal with people who want to "take charge" (which is not necessarily a bad thing to have go-getters) and get their feathers ruffled if you don't do things THEIR way. It really doesn't matter if it's a station run by a university, or a non-profit station run by a religious organization. I've experienced both scenarios.
I'll stick with the part 15 route. Yes, it's a sacrifice in power and the range of your signal, but I'd trade that for the hell I'd have to go through when putting together a board of trustees for a LPFM station.
But if only I could have just a wee bit more power! Oh, well. This will be a more interesting, fun and challenging endeavor!
-Andre
The last two posts only reinforce my decision and lack of desire to apply for a LPFM station!
I don't want to get into the politics of getting a board together. Sometimes you can get a good group of people together, but often times it never works that way ... especially after what I like to call "The Honeymoon Phase."
I've dealt with -- and know people who have dealt with -- stations that have been run by boards. It's not pretty. Often times, you're having to deal with people who want to "take charge" (which is not necessarily a bad thing to have go-getters) and get their feathers ruffled if you don't do things THEIR way. It really doesn't matter if it's a station run by a university, or a non-profit station run by a religious organization. I've experienced both scenarios.
I'll stick with the part 15 route. Yes, it's a sacrifice in power and the range of your signal, but I'd trade that for the hell I'd have to go through when putting together a board of trustees for a LPFM station.
But if only I could have just a wee bit more power! Oh, well. This will be a more interesting, fun and challenging endeavor!
-Andre
As a fellow of the "radioinmyblood" condition, I have been considering sort of a "reverse board" where you work out arrangements with people along a geographic path, such as down a main street, and enlist them to become "relay stations" for your station. They couldn't "take charge" because they would be happy beneficiaries of a home radio station that you "installed and owned."
Once each person agreed, you would do what SCWIS talked about in another thread... pay a few bucks to have a spare IP address assigned to the person's internet service, you would install a Baris Exstreamer to receive your private online stream, you would install an outdoor transmitter and antenna with the homeowner's permission, and bingo. They would inherit a good station on their radio dial, and you could "hear yourself" everytime you drove by their house. Every once in awhile you could have them over for a bar-b-q at "network headquarters."
I have yet another idea, but I'll wait until it's my turn again.
As a fellow of the "radioinmyblood" condition, I have been considering sort of a "reverse board" where you work out arrangements with people along a geographic path, such as down a main street, and enlist them to become "relay stations" for your station. They couldn't "take charge" because they would be happy beneficiaries of a home radio station that you "installed and owned."
Once each person agreed, you would do what SCWIS talked about in another thread... pay a few bucks to have a spare IP address assigned to the person's internet service, you would install a Baris Exstreamer to receive your private online stream, you would install an outdoor transmitter and antenna with the homeowner's permission, and bingo. They would inherit a good station on their radio dial, and you could "hear yourself" everytime you drove by their house. Every once in awhile you could have them over for a bar-b-q at "network headquarters."
I have yet another idea, but I'll wait until it's my turn again.
Carl:
I actually had thought about that the other day as I was thinking about the placement of some transmitters. I have some relatives in town that I know would be willing to place a transmitter in their house. I thought about synching some transmitters over the Internet via a private stream, too.
I'm open to any reasonable suggestions, as I want to know what others have tried and been successful with.
-Andre
Carl:
I actually had thought about that the other day as I was thinking about the placement of some transmitters. I have some relatives in town that I know would be willing to place a transmitter in their house. I thought about synching some transmitters over the Internet via a private stream, too.
I'm open to any reasonable suggestions, as I want to know what others have tried and been successful with.
-Andre
Carl ...
"In legal parlance a "Non Profit Organization" is not the same as a "Not-For-Profit Corporation,"
Well, if we're going to nit-pick, a Not For Profit Corporation is a type of Non-Pofit Organization, except that an NPO (which is only an acronym) can also be a partnership, as opposed to a corporation. It's like saying all Cognac is Brandy, but not all Brandy is Cognac.
I'm sorry you had a bad experience, but I do not believe it's typical. There are many thousands of LPFM stations ...
... which doesn't even include Alaska, Hawaii, or Puerto Rico & The Virgin Islands, and which are in operation every day, whose experience may be much different than yours. And there will be many more due to the latest LPFM Community Radio bill, which allows more such stations in closer proximity via the findings of the FCC that third adjacent channel interference is much less than the previous regulations provided protection for.
Having said that, yes, personalities on any board can be troublesome, so you MUST allow your supporting community in on the process every step of the way. That's the biggest problem on San Juan Island here because the organizer and president of the board is a man so heavily invested that he will NOT let the public into meetings and discussions (and other related ego problems which have alienated many former supporters).
In very stark contrast, KLOI 102.9 LPFM http://www.kloi.org/ on Lopez Island did the exact opposite ... they threw open the meetings to the community to help decide what they wanted to do, got qualified volunteers, did everything as COMMUNITY. It's mostly a farm community, so like having a 'barn raising', they had an 'antenna raising', complete with BBQ party. They followed the advice of Prometheus volunteers who walked them through the process and got them on the air in less than 2 years. It's a great little station with a used 18-watt TX and a kit-built antenna, albeit you might not be interested in much of their programming, because it's all about their LOCAL community. But it's been in operation for more than 2 years, and is now for the first time, campaigning for underwriters (everything has been strictly listener supported). I expect nothing less than success from that group, but like all good things it takes careful consideration, planning, and time.
I think any, repeat ANY, effort in establishing a small radio station today is going to take a lot of patience. The learning curve is steep and fraught with obstacles, but never-the-less it can, has been, and will ... be done. A regular-licensed FM station has to be basically a minimum of 100 watts, a regular licensed AM station minimum 250 watts.
Now, I know there has been discussions on the loosy-goosy 87.9mHz frequency, but please read on:
You can also currently have a licensed 50mw FM station operating on the TV channel 6, 87.9mHz, but it's restricted to LIVE broadcast events, plus it requires you own another broadcast station or are a producer of TV programming (which for me, BTW, is another good reason to get into Internet video, which I'm doing) for a license fee of $135 for either a 4 or 8 year term. You can have an antenna with up to 6db gain, but not like an array or such. There are some other gear req's, but I think it's doable. Besides those, the only other restriction is that it cannot interfere with a regular licensed FM station or licensed LPFM station. However, Part 15 stations may NOT interfere with it. There is no 'window' for application filing, you can do it any time.
There are currently only 3 licensed stations operating on 87.9 in the U.S.
http://www.fcc.gov/fcc-bin/fmq?state=&call=&city=&arn=&serv=&vac=&freq=87.9&fre2=87.9&facid=&class=&dkt=&list=1&dist=&dlat2=&mlat2=&slat2=&NS=N&dlon2=&mlon2=&slon2=&EW=W&size=9
I haven't read up on whether or not a single person or entity can have more than one license at a time, though.
Carl ...
"In legal parlance a "Non Profit Organization" is not the same as a "Not-For-Profit Corporation,"
Well, if we're going to nit-pick, a Not For Profit Corporation is a type of Non-Pofit Organization, except that an NPO (which is only an acronym) can also be a partnership, as opposed to a corporation. It's like saying all Cognac is Brandy, but not all Brandy is Cognac.
I'm sorry you had a bad experience, but I do not believe it's typical. There are many thousands of LPFM stations ...
... which doesn't even include Alaska, Hawaii, or Puerto Rico & The Virgin Islands, and which are in operation every day, whose experience may be much different than yours. And there will be many more due to the latest LPFM Community Radio bill, which allows more such stations in closer proximity via the findings of the FCC that third adjacent channel interference is much less than the previous regulations provided protection for.
Having said that, yes, personalities on any board can be troublesome, so you MUST allow your supporting community in on the process every step of the way. That's the biggest problem on San Juan Island here because the organizer and president of the board is a man so heavily invested that he will NOT let the public into meetings and discussions (and other related ego problems which have alienated many former supporters).
In very stark contrast, KLOI 102.9 LPFM http://www.kloi.org/ on Lopez Island did the exact opposite ... they threw open the meetings to the community to help decide what they wanted to do, got qualified volunteers, did everything as COMMUNITY. It's mostly a farm community, so like having a 'barn raising', they had an 'antenna raising', complete with BBQ party. They followed the advice of Prometheus volunteers who walked them through the process and got them on the air in less than 2 years. It's a great little station with a used 18-watt TX and a kit-built antenna, albeit you might not be interested in much of their programming, because it's all about their LOCAL community. But it's been in operation for more than 2 years, and is now for the first time, campaigning for underwriters (everything has been strictly listener supported). I expect nothing less than success from that group, but like all good things it takes careful consideration, planning, and time.
I think any, repeat ANY, effort in establishing a small radio station today is going to take a lot of patience. The learning curve is steep and fraught with obstacles, but never-the-less it can, has been, and will ... be done. A regular-licensed FM station has to be basically a minimum of 100 watts, a regular licensed AM station minimum 250 watts.
Now, I know there has been discussions on the loosy-goosy 87.9mHz frequency, but please read on:
You can also currently have a licensed 50mw FM station operating on the TV channel 6, 87.9mHz, but it's restricted to LIVE broadcast events, plus it requires you own another broadcast station or are a producer of TV programming (which for me, BTW, is another good reason to get into Internet video, which I'm doing) for a license fee of $135 for either a 4 or 8 year term. You can have an antenna with up to 6db gain, but not like an array or such. There are some other gear req's, but I think it's doable. Besides those, the only other restriction is that it cannot interfere with a regular licensed FM station or licensed LPFM station. However, Part 15 stations may NOT interfere with it. There is no 'window' for application filing, you can do it any time.
There are currently only 3 licensed stations operating on 87.9 in the U.S.
http://www.fcc.gov/fcc-bin/fmq?state=&call=&city=&arn=&serv=&vac=&freq=87.9&fre2=87.9&facid=&class=&dkt=&list=1&dist=&dlat2=&mlat2=&slat2=&NS=N&dlon2=&mlon2=&slon2=&EW=W&size=9
I haven't read up on whether or not a single person or entity can have more than one license at a time, though.
"I thought about synching some transmitters over the Internet via a private stream, too."
I'd like to know your ideas on that. I've researched it until falling asleep at the console many a day and night. So far, I've concluded that the Internet cannot be used for synchronizing transmitters. There are too many variables to account for, considering the sync has to be dead-on or it won't work. The Internet clock is basically useless for the type of sync we're talking about.
"I thought about synching some transmitters over the Internet via a private stream, too."
I'd like to know your ideas on that. I've researched it until falling asleep at the console many a day and night. So far, I've concluded that the Internet cannot be used for synchronizing transmitters. There are too many variables to account for, considering the sync has to be dead-on or it won't work. The Internet clock is basically useless for the type of sync we're talking about.
On the other hand, those three stations all have this blurb on their query pages:
Use of Channel 200 87.9 MHz is restricted to existing
displaced full service Class D noncommercial educational
stations. See 47 CFR 73.501. Channel 200 is not available for
use by other station classes and services.
...so forget what I just said ... waste of bandwidth ... sorry. They probably get to keep them because they already have an investment in their stations. They're certainly more than 50mw.