Hi guys, new to the forum and to broadcasting equipment. I'm the head announcer at a local race track located in Canada. We're looking to add an FM transmitter to our arsenal because 500hp modifieds seem to be drowning out my speakers. The plan is to maintain our current set up and add the transmitter so people can use headphones or thier car radio in the tail gate area.
I'm currently running ubuntu with audacity to edit my sound bites and interviews. I've read the open source "Internet DJ Console" is pretty decent software, and should be more than enough for my purposes.
I'm thinking all I'll need is Artisans Decade MS-100 plugged into my soundboard right?
Any suggestions would be great, thanks guys.
You'll want to run mono on that Decade MS-100 for greatest range. And you'll want the transmitter/antenna up as high as possible, and located to minimize any obstructions. I would also recommend doing some testing to make sure that you'll get the distance you want (not sure how big a race track is, you're not going to get nearly the distance to a portable radio that you will with a car radio).
Placing a quarter-wave or half-wave antenna outdoors near the desired listening location can be done via high-quality coaxial cable run from the transmitter safely inside the building.
By using a "T" connector you can run coax to a second location and place a second antenna, and so on.
Artisan, will that work?
We seem to over look these two options in favor of transmitters with antennas.
Carl, the Decade has a fixed telescopic antenna. Plus I doubt that even if you could get that to work, that it would be legal in Canada.
Industry Canada does provide for special event licenses that would allow you to broadcast within a specified area, such as a racetrack. The Decade is certified for that use (tuned for higher power, of course - I believe it's 1 milliwatt output). That could be an option if the unlicensed route doesn't give you sufficient range, although it might be a pain to get them (I'm not sure if you have to get one for each event, or whether you might be able to get a blanket license for, say, a racing season). I'm also not sure of the costs involved (but it does let you avoid getting that highly expensive and difficult to get CRTC license as well).
As for leaky cable and/or carrier current, I doubt that that would be any more suitable for this application than a transmitter with antenna (you're dealing with a large, open area).
Carl: That is not a good idea.
By using a "T" connector you can run coax to a second location and place a second antenna, and so on.
a fm transmitter feeding leaky coax strung around to the stands and public area's and another decade for the pit crew area might work
Hey sorry guys, I thought I would get an email when I got some replies. Alright, so it will work. I can keep it on Mono, and we have 100 acres, so I should be able to bump up the signal some without ever leaving the property.</
[Sorry your posting was delayed...it shouldn't happen again..Neil]
There are several venues here in Florida (Pirate Capital of the US) that use as much as 1 watt to cover events, race tracks, drive-ins. etc.. Enforcement is only 35 miles away. No problems after years of operation. Do not interfere with a licensed broadcaster and be sensitive to the the 1st adjacent channels.
The guys at Decade are great to talk to (either over the phone or via e-mail). I'd explore with them the various alternatives - I'm sure that they can give you the benefit of some real world experiences in Canada.