Has anyone tried one of these outfits?
http://www.radioassociates.com/
I'm intrigued. It appears it can be used with NO connection to the feedline for Part 15, hence wasting no prescious power. The only reviews I can find are from hams who all seem to love it. I do have the ability to test one vs a Belar in a commercial radio setting, but maybe someone has tried one?
As modulation is very critical to sound and coverage we need a good way to determine that we're putting out what we can. I've noticed that just a slight adjustment to lower volume (hence lower modulation) makes a noticeable difference in coverage area and clarity of signal. But how far can we go before distortion moves in? It's hard to determine just listening on a radio. The quality of the radio is so much a determining factor. I'm hoping this device/computer setup might give us an accurate gauge to determine modulation.
Tim in Bovey
The Modulation Monitor is a very attractive package.
The choice of monitoring either the RF antenna feed or taking a signal off-the-air is an appealing feature, although my quick reading leaves me wondering where the off-the-air-signal comes from. I'll have to go back and read more closely.
Thanks again Tim for your wonderful discoveries.
Looks like you simply use a wire or similar antenna near the transmitting antenna to pick up signal. Needs 100 mV out of the air. Also, to do it "off the air" rather than off the feedline, you need an additional unit priced at $199, so for Part 15, "off the air" monitoring, it's about a $400 investment + you need a computer of course. Says you can also use a receiver, tapping into the i.f. But since I could also use this in my commercial work it might be worth checking out. There's an interesting thread about these on a ham radio board I frequent:
http://amfone.net/Amforum/index.php?topic=34069.0
I notice too that the page for the mod monitor also references the Hamilton Rangemaster with a link -- for more about Part 15. So that's a nice plug for the "industry" but makes me wonder if there's any connection between Hamilton and Radio Associates -- not that that's bad by any means, but made me curious.
Tim in Bovey