TheLegacy, I wish I had a "secret sauce" formula or a "special plan" to accomplish something with FM, but that's not the way it is.
I stopped using FM for broadcasting "beyond the walls" because most radios can't hear it at the micro-minnie-teensy-eeny-bitty nano-drip allowed by 15.239.
I only use FM for INTERNAL use, mainly as audio links from point A to point B within the house.
But living WITHIN THE RULES I still need clear frequencies and the damn translators keep popping up and evicting me from the rare frequencies I've been able to find.
For example, 101.5 is used to send audio to my C.Crane Plus radio for audio editing. I don't use computor speakers hooked by wire, I only use FM channels for local signals to indoor FM radios.
So when I heard that yet another translator had started using 101.5 I checked it out and luckily that translator is JUST OUT OF RANGE so that I can keep using my frequency, but it's the closest shave yet in the fight for a channel.
I do a lot of listening outdoors over a 200-foot area, and FM is no good for that because rugged outdoor portables can't hear it. Only AM works out there in that space. I don't use the TECSUN PL-310 outdoors except for testing, because it isn't loud enough for listening unless it's held in the hand.
Hey Carl Amazon has a TECSUN 600 I think it was called I seen it on Amazon for around $75 and it has SSB capabilities. Makes it nice for SW Listening and listening to hams and all sorts of good FM too since the sensitivity of this Radio is very good. Also you may want to get one of those Radio Shack amplified speakers and connect it to the TECSUN PL-310 then you could listen to your stuff outside and use the FM at close range for a link. The Whole House FM Transmitter does have better range than that C.Crane does and it too is certified. I've read reports about this transmitter compared to the C.Crane nd there is a tremendous difference in range as reported by many using the out of box power level and the stock Rubber Duck antenna. But since the TECSUN PL-310 is so sesitive on AM as well for some of what you do it may be better to just use AM and an amplified speaker for your TECSUN PL-310 while you work outside. Since your AM TX gets out a mile there is really no reason to buy an FM Transmitter unless you need Stereo for what you are doing and since the TECSUN PL-310 has only one speaker you would only need a simple battery powered speaker maybe 4 to 8 inches. Radio Shack use to sell a nice one I sue to connect to a portable police scanner. Made it sound really nice.
The Legacy your suggestion of rigging up several components for outdoor use is something I never thought about, but I like the idea.
The radio, the amplifier, the speaker, could all be installed in a toolbox with feet and a handle for outdoor durability.
During a riot it could be used as a battering ram for self-defense. Luckily there's not going to be a riot at this location, unless it's neighbors wanting my blasphemous radio station shut down.
I think I mentioned that I am going to run an FM transmitter broadcasting my program stream simulcasting with the AM, just for the bragging I can do - "Who me? Yes, I own an AM FM Combo. Let's have lunch sometime. You buy. "
You could put the Amplified speaker and your Radio in the box and it would allow you to listen whereever you want while working. It may even attract a few listeners to your station too. They hear and see your running a station that they may be able to pick up why not. God this reminds me so much of the 70s AM Transmitters sold and kids would play with them sometimes figuring out how to get some REAL nice range with them.
This topic has a lot of useful theory's, what you all need to do is concentrate on buildings in your local area that house a large number of families.
Get to know one of the tenants and explain your proposal of adding an FM radio service to their location. Offer them time on the air and training in return. Either offer them a transmitter or convince them to buy their own.
The choice of FM transmitter used is either up to you or your carrier. How you get your audio feed to them can be done several ways. If you're already streaming on line, half your job is done. If not, Barix makes devices that sends or picks up the stream over the Internet.
If you use Barix equipment, you can eliminate the need for a local computer, otherwise, you'll need a computer with Internet access and logged into your IP address or music player.
Once you have this transmitter in operation, post a banner some where, where the residents can see it, or if your local carrier person is well known in the building, have them let their neighbors know by word of mouth to tune to your operating frequency.
Now you have an increased LEGAL audience. Think about it, if the range is a legal 300 feet, and your proposed listeners live in the same building as the transmitter, the walls, floors and ceilings may be thought to reduce the range of your signal, but, there is a difference no one is acknowledging here. Although you are not using actual carrier current with your Decade MS100 FM transmitter by using the included telescopic antenna, your transmitter device and your listener's receiving device are still common ground to the entire building both are powered up by through the mains supply.
The only listeners that will be depending on your antenna's signal are those that live outside your apartment building. If they are close enough and the transmitter has exposure to that area, there stands a good chance they will get your signal in FM stereo.
The next possibility, which requires a water tight enclosure, is to place the transmitter up on the roof. This eliminates the obstructions caused by the outer walls of the structure, thereby allowing your signal to reach neighboring homes that are within legal range.
Your listeners that live in the building below that transmitter can still get your signal through the mains supply. Think about it, most people who have FM radios in a home, will use the AC power supply over batteries. So the reception they get will be 100% even if the transmitter is 600 feet in the air on a 600 foot tall sky scraper building. Of course, if your transmitter was 600 feet in the air on a tall building in let's say NYC, your neighbors outside of the building will get close to nothing for a signal, but those on the first floor of the same building will still get the signal as long as they are connected to the same mains supply.
Being a good neighbor or being well known in your community is a good start. Plus your intentions are to serve your community right? So, assess your local township, focus on buildings that were built to house a lot of families. Try to get a transmitter in that building, then focus on another building. Your best bet is to go after buildings that have the largest number of apartments and get a transmitter in that building!!!
Bruce.
Your idea is great for apartment complex's with multiple families where more than 20 different apartments are in a complex. Our town is sort of an old retirement type town but is starting to get a lot of young people. The older folks 35+ listen to some Album Rock, but most young folks around here don't know what Album Rock is so getting those people to put a transmitter in their home to transmit Album Rock? Not unless they can play some Busta Rhymes. Not gonna happen on The Legacy as our station once again is against all Rap in fact our Web Site makes that perfectly clear. So I'd have to find other Album Rockers to do this and some are close but far enough that there would be dead spots for a few miles. If AM were acceptable you could probably get every Album Rocker to run a Talking House AM Transmitter and that would help. If I ever live in a multiple family complex that would be ideal since the main power is shared and the TX would be heard on FM through the entire complex and if there was another complex near by I could get an Album Rocker to put in a transmitter in their apartment and spread the signal. The circular antenna would have been a good idea too. It was why I was so interested in your concept. Now if I found a Bar a few feet down the road that was out of range or just in range and they had access to the Internet my station does stream on the Internet and therefore would be easy to keep the signal going a few more feet down the block. I'll have to give that one some thought but I don't really see it happening here. Worst came to worst if AM was acceptable to portable Radio's and they had good AM the present Talking House AM Transmitter would work and I would have that mile range on just one. I can already see the AM rules change and if that were to happen I'd just run a 100 foot wire and stick it out the window and I'd really transmit far. Best case scenario would be to get a few people to connect to my station on the net and relay it. People around here are not that tech savvy and the Album Rocker's I know are poor meaning they barely have enough money for food because of lack of jobs here. And unless your a Bible thumper station I don't see the city paying for the station maybe I'm wrong because I do hear a few people drive by blaring Classic Rock. The whole purpose is to attract listeners and if they like the station they will tune in via my website's player.
I really think it was awesome how you done this for you had to have been in the right city block for so many people to have gone in on it. But unless I was willing to play Rap on my station (which I'm not) I don't see the under 35 crowd here doing that because it just is not the in crowd thing here to have an FM Transmitter.
Thelegacy, you're never limited to JUST your block if you are streaming on-line. Okay I realize your locals are spaced apart and some potential participants will want RAP crap! That does not stop you from getting participants in another town or county. We did have one transmitter located in Montville Connecticut, which is about 4 miles south of Norwich, Connecticut. This transmitter was located in a trailer park and had 6 trailers that got the signal in FM stereo, 4 more that got it okay and one guy went to Radio Shack and got himself an outdoor FM antenna just to get the signal 8 trailers away. We played nothing but album rock and also went as far as playing music from the early 50's. No big band music just music that was the early versions of what became rock n' roll.
If I ever get myself back together and try on-line streaming, I'll tell you how to listen in, I do have an account setup for streaming, I just have not activated it as of yet.
Edited to add: I just got a shipment of 800 45 RPM records I won on ebay, shockingly they were all in the original picture sleeves or stock sleeves and all are in 100% playable condition and date back to the early 50's to 1988. I can't wait to play these gems!!
Bruce.
One of the things I do on air is say Break Free of the Shackles of Top 40 and Rap and help your neighbors break free. You can transmit our station on a blank frequency on FM by purchaseing a Whole House FM Transmitter 3.0 or SainSonic AX-05B Part 15 certified Transmitter. And I even give the link over the air so people who have empty stations on FM can re transmit my station. I also stress Radio Locator and tell folks that if they use a frequency that is not 100% fff that they will be fined and put in jail. And I also tell them to use 1,3,5,7,9 after the number not 2.4.6,8. And I even said if FM is too crowded to purchase a Talking House AM Transmitter on Ebay. That way Album Rockers can help de polute FM. And I tell them DON'T BUY A 7 WATT OR 40 WATT transmitter sold online because it is TOO powerful and you'll get busted. Not only that but they get HOT if you try and run an indoor antenna on them. This way I'm not getting folks to do stupid stuff on FM.
Your ideas are good just have to be sure that people don't go wild with it. It was a post about 10,000 of these things are sold all the time and if we make it too well known it may become a problem. Actually should we even tell people how to run part 15? That too is a question. If we do every kid could own one and I've always been a fan of an age limit on these transmitters. I'm not big on hell raising on FM though some may think I am.
I'd keep it limited as to what is said over the air about operating a part 15 station. This could get you some competition and also cause others to try and step on your station just as how things sometimes go with Citizens Band radio.
Keep it word of mouth with trusted individuals only and share what has to be done with serious people, not a bunch of yahoos who'll cause you headaches in the long run.
The only people I shared anything with were people I knew and spoke to before I mentioned anything about part 15 broadcasting. After I knew I could share with and trust these people, I began talking about the network and what my goals were with it. They listened and liked what I had to offer. I then showed them my studio and what I did with it. Allowed them to be present during a live show. I really didn't have the staff or abilities to offer local news as some local part 15 stations offered, such as Wolverine radio in Griswold, CT did, I was mostly tied up with adding to the automated programming play list that I never had time for gathering local news. Wolverine radio had a 100 song play list that never was updated beyond that, so he had tons of time gathering local news and added that audio track to 'station play list' to play every 30 minutes. I did give the best up to the minute local weather reports based on my own analysis of weather maps and satellite images. Other stations got their weather from a television station 50 miles away and often people in my town were being told it was raining outside when in fact, that was the real case where the television station was located. Radio stations do not always have equipment in studio for weather forecasting. Usually they depend on a television station who does have the equipment on hand for the local news cast. In my area, Hartford and New Haven television stations are the only locations that have that type of equipment. So as I said, if Hartford has rain, our local forecast says rain, even if that rain has no intentions of moving into our city. So, one thing was for sure, if we said NO rain today, there was NO rain. While the other stations said we'll have rain today.
Retracing my words, I do not advise over the air announcements to get potential participants, keep it face to face word of mouth with trusted people who have your back. That is how we did it.
Bruce.
I'm thinking of taking the links down to the part 15 Transmitters because I don't want kids to get them. If the wrong one were to have got one yes we'd have Rap on FM more than we do now and I'm not for that. I was think Album Rocker's were like me and would be cool about it since most folks listening to my station were over 35 but again the trolls (yes I got it right this time lol) who read these forums to try and kill micro broadcasting may have a fun time with that one too. So you sort of highlighted what was going through my mind after I done it and now I'm gonna take it down. Again I don't want folks buying 40 Watt transmiters and putting these on air or even those 7 Watt ones sold online because I know 7 Watts would cover 10 miles and would kill my station if someone had an idea to transmit on my frequency. Yup not a good idea at all.