Hey,
Hey,
I currently own an internet radio station on Live365 and was interested in starting up a lpfm station. I need some help on what I need to do this to set one up for under $500 (preferably $300). Any help would be great.
I was also wondering if I need to pay royalties or not? And also how far I am legaly allowed to go before I need an FCC License.
Thanks!
First,an explanation of LPFM and Part15FM,two completely different animals!!! LPFM is a licensed FCC non-commercial service available to churches,local governments and organizations,not to individuals.The licensing process will curl your toes and grey your hair! Better have $15,000 just to start the licensing procedure-forget about it! Part15 is a low power,unlicensed service that is at risk,that is you have no rights to anything and can be told to shut down if you cause interference.You can program it any way you wish,even sell advertising. The limited range allowed is measured in feet (300 to 600 typical)and wont cover much area legally.There is also Part15 on the AM broadcast band with different limitations. You are allowed 100milliwatts of output into a 3 meter antenna system which includes the feedline(if any) and ground lead.Yet another band is shortwave and more on longwave and vhf with different limitations. All of these have limited range and have the condition that you do not cause interference to any other station or service and no rights to any use of a specific frequency. Having said all that,the AM can yield a range of a couple of miles with a super tuned and tweaked system. These can be built for a few hundred bucks if you are handy at building your own. See the post archives and learn what you need to know. Regards,Lee
Thanks. I'll look into it more.
In addition, with Part-15 broadcasting there is no limit to the number of transmitters you can use provided the transmitters are Type Accepted by the FCC. This would be the Rangemasters for AM and the Decade MS 100 for FM. It's been reported that Radio Sandy Springs has 11 of the Rangemasters in use. For those not Type Accepted, the limit is five.
C5
Its too bad the MS-100 is mono and not full stereo,bummer!
Are there any stereo units that are type accepted???
Regards,Lee
Decade has a type-accepted stereo unit. It's $100 more than the mono unit.
Frank
www.easthillradio.com
You could always try and appeal to your local congressman as this nevada station has.....
http://www.pahrumpvalleytimes.com/2007/Feb-02-Fri-2007/news/12344648.html
Thank You,
Rev. Robert P. Chrysafis
Universal Life Ministries
http://www.ulc.org
Moderator Hunterdonfree
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/hunterdonfree
as far as P15 Fm certified tranny's go these are great....
offers balanced +4dbu option as well.
Thank You,
Rev. Robert P. Chrysafis
Universal Life Ministries
http://www.ulc.org
Moderator Hunterdonfree
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/hunterdonfree
It must be a secret,their website says the Decade stereo unit is not available in the USA...
Regards,Lee
I believe it's the MX-75 that's unavailable in the U.S.
Frank
www.easthillradio.com
Hi Robert,
Do you have any personal experience with that device?
Do you know who makes them?
Do you know where to look up the FCC Certification?
Many thanks.
The Landmark transmitters offered by gear123 on Ebay are factory "seconds",meaning they have problems. I know,I bought one and it has a bad solder joint on the line in pot,the dc power jack is in crooked and the pll oscillates at about 5 to 10 hertz causing bad things to be broadcast. It was severe enough to unlock the pilot and it even tripped the protector circuit in my G-9000 monitor receiver! The picture on his site also does not match the unit,the pic clearly shows a mic option while the units being sold has none. Avoid this idiot! Can you say negative feedback??? I will be sending it back for a refund and will order something else. Maybe a couple more EDM's!!! Regards,Lee
Lee,
I had considered ordering one but I first checked with the seller last week by email before bidding. He was fairly forthcoming and did point out to me that the units were "surplus" evaluation models. (He also cautioned that the range was less than other units on the market.)
I asked about FCC certification and since he was away travelling he could not check the FCC sticker at that time. He returned yesterday and checked and advised me that there was no sticker. The unit for sale had been based on a certified device, but had been modified (to not transmit below 92 MHz) and had NOT been sent to the FCC approved lab for re-certification. I guess that would make it Part 15 "compliant" but not "certified."
Have you asked him for a refund, based on the device being defective? He seems to be back home and I would be interested in hearing how he handles your case. He did advertise "Money back if not delighted." Sounds like you are "not delighted." Please let us know what happens.
He is offering a cheerful refund so back she goes. I believe he has misrepresented these as first quality units when they are actually factory "seconds" that were rejected during testing. He stated they were cosmetically defective,which is a lie. Mine had the real deal FCC certification sticker on it,but I doubt it deserved one. Thats why I wanted one in the first place. In emails with him,he seems like a strange unit with inability to communicate well and avoided answering my questions once he knew I was not happy. I will wait for the refund and carry on,posting negative feedback and a complaint with ebay. Its a shame because the range was great and the audio quality was superb,but the separation was really poor. Range was equal to my EDM10,about 6 blocks. Way overpriced!
Regards,Lee
Lee,
Did you adjust the modulation level trim controls to try to deal with the PLL oscillation?