I did not do any major testing on it. Just a walkman to the external input with a agc/limiter in between.
I had a SSTRAN at the same time. the SSTRAN kicked the Talking House II a**.
the advantage to the talking house II is it's transmission range with it just plugged into a wall and a 3m antenna tacked to the wall is better then the sstran.
The SSTRAN has better audio, but requires tinkering to get the range.
maybe a SSTRAN type design with a autotune output using a large roller inductor and air variable cap would get good range right out of the box and have good audio.
I have heard a lot of talking houses around here in different area's of the county and they all have sucky audio.
Thank You,
Rev. Robert P. Chrysafis
Universal Life Ministries
http://www.ulc.org
Moderator Hunterdonfree
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/hunterdonfree
As mentioned befor, out of the few THs that I have personally owned, only two were messed up audio wise, I buy these through ebay so who knows what the transmitters were subjected to or whos hands were in them that may have had something to do with the messed up audio. Also I have found that good quality audio going in gives good quality audio comming out. In addition even though these units are supposed to have built in AGC or some kind of limiter the circuit if so, it is dosent seem to respond like any limiter or AGC I have come across, it must be more of a limiter than an AGC and hard for me anyway to tell when it starts clamping down, maybe if I saw the modulation envelope on a scope it would be more apparent. All I can say is once I set up an outside antenna, and had it propely tuned, I got rid of a lot of bad audio on no matter what AM brand of transmitter I am using. I have the Ramsey AM 1, AM 25, Panaxis AM 1, Knight kit Broadcaster, Various TH models, an older Graymark transmitter. I have found It really helps to get the antenna outside away from the transmitter no matter what the transmitter is, and probably a better help to get the audio away from the transmitter as you may have found if you put the transmitter out by the antenna, althought I have had good luck running a short lenght of coax to the antenna. As far as the TH ATU, get one if you can find one, excellent turn key antenna/tuner system, but you can acheive the same range with a whip and good loading coil so nothing magic about the TH ATU, but very nice system easy to use ready to go no hassle. I have one , tested it ,impressed by it, save it for special applications, but still use a short long wire with loading coil for the home staton. Would like to add more but I am sure there are thousands of listeners out there wating for me to go on the air so have to "tune up" for the morning show!
Radio Joe
I got an SSTRAN AMT3000 a few days ago, and have compared it side by side with my Talking House.
The TH puts out a MUCH stronger signal with just the wire antenna. On the same frequency, the TH completely wipes out the SSTRAN. With the SSTRAN transmitting a program, plugging in the TH the SSTRAN signal is gone - completely wiped out. The TH signal can be heard CLEARLY all over my house (upstairs and downstairs) night or day. The SSTRAN has static downstairs during the day, and can barely be heard downstairs at night. Yes, I peaked the C5 trimmer for best signal, and set all the switches correctly.
Winner for signal off the wire antenna: TH.
The SSTRAN sounds better, but not that much better. As I said before, my particular TH sounds great. It's a 4.6 model. I have a model 4 that sounds not nearly as good, mainly because the AGC is too aggressive. The SSTRAN is capable of good sound, but it requires fiddling with the knobs, and the "optional" treble boost jumper S6 is absolutely required for good sound.
Winner for sound quality: SSTRAN.
The TH is a breeze to setup and use, and the frequency can be changed while you are blindfolded. The frequency is clearly displayed on the front panel, and it self-adjusts the output/antenna for the best signal. The SSTRAN requires manual DIP switch settings for frequency, then manually tweaking a small adjustment screw on the board, while you watch the reading on your own meter that you plug into 2 clearly marked points on the board. Quaint, but it works.
Winner for ease of use: TH by a mile.
The TH comes in a metal cabinet with slots top and bottom for ventilation, and so runs very cool. The SSTRAN comes in a small plastic case with no slots at all, and so runs quite warm because the 15V regulator gets very hot. I've been running mine with the case top off to keep it cool.
If you just want to transmit to your own radios in your house/yard, IMO the SSTRAN is a poor choice due to the bad signal off the wire, the relative difficulty of setting/changing frequency, and the high price when buying it assembled. The kit is much cheaper, of course, but I had no interest in building it myself. Also, once you find a good frequency you never have to mess with it again, but the initial setup is more complicated with the SSTRAN than with the TH.
The TH is a good choice PROVIDED you get a good one. These things have widely varying sound quality, and you will be quickly disappointed if you get a bad one. They are currently going for around $50 - $80 plus shipping on eBay, so for the price of one assembled SSTRAN you could get 2 or 3 TH transmitters with careful shopping.
I have no experience/interest in using either with a separate, outdoor antenna. My application is strictly broadcasting music/internet radio/OTR MP3s to my own radios. If all you transmit is OTR, then the better sound of the SSTRAN will not be noticed. It sounds better when broadcasting modern talk/music, however.
I also have a "Whole House FM Transmitter", which works surprisingly well given its tiny size - about 1/3 the size of the SSTRAN. It is stereo, can be powered with 3 AA batteries/computer USB cable/AC adapter, sounds great and also covers my entire house with a good signal. About $70 on eBay. If I didn't have a bunch of old tube AM only radios, this would be all I would need.
Well, maybe 2 or 3 of them. I currently have all 3 transmitters going, broadcasting music, internet radio and OTR all over the house. 1120 AM, 1560 AM and 107.9 FM.
If your thinking about a Talking House transmitter, befor you bid ( ebay) check to see if the seller is selling a TH 5 talking house transmitter, the model number is located on the bottom of the transmitter on a paper sticker.
The TH 5 gives a nice full sound, I also have other model numbers of TH transmitters and they work good too, but I have found the TH 5 which I think is the latest version has good consistancy in audio and range. I use a TH 4.6 around my place and am happy with it. I also have a couple earlier versions also they all perform the same as far as range, but audio quality may differ between model numbers.
A small EQ is all you need to bring them up to good full sound if the one you get dosent sound the way you like it to sound. I am not sure of the real differences between models, they all look the same from the front, Looking at the boards there are differences but nobody has schmatics so hard to tell just what the real changes are.
Radio Joe
I just purchased a TH-2 from eBay for $45 including shipping. It appears to be brand new and never used. Upon powering up, the display flashed between "1670" and "CAL" and the motor ran continuously for several minutes; as others have experienced. I powered down the unit and opened the case, then powered back up and watched the automatic tuner...it did not appear to be obstructed or broken, nor did it sound as if the motor was labored; it just moves a fraction of an inch, then rolls back and starts again. I powered down again and put a very small glob of white petroleum on the small white gear wheel directly underneath the motor on the automatic antenna tuner assembly, then gently but firmly forced the assembly about halfway through its range of motion inside the coil. When I powered up again, the tuner assembly smoothly rolled the rest of the way into the coil, then out again, stopping and fine-tuning at the correct frequency. You might try this before you start the hassle of trying for an eBay refund or trashing the unit.
My theory is that these are not lubricated at the factory, and/or get slightly stuck at the extreme open end of the range of motion; or it might be possible that they sometimes get jarred during shipment, causing the gearset underneath the tuner motor to become slightly unmeshed/out of sync.
Incidentally, my particular variant of the TH2 does not have a switch on the back for turning off the memory buffer and broadcasting from the live feed; but if the unit detects any input signal from the RCA jack it will automatically broadcast from the live feed and automatically switch back to the buffer when the input signal is removed.
I have read in other posts that input volume is a problem. In my case, I have a stereo to mono connector at the sound card, connected to a 1/4" mono to RCA mono adapter, to a single RCA cable, to the unit. The input volume from my soundcard was too much and was causing distortion....about a 20% volume level is optimal to broadcast to a 1934 Philco Model 84-B and voice and music sound excellent anywhere in the house. In a car radio, the signal is faint just outside the house and vanishes at anything farther than about 20 yards.
The following is an e-mail I received from Radio Systems, the new owner of the patent of the Talking House transmitter:
Tony:
Thanks for the call Friday. I wanted to double-check my information so I "dug" out the patent for the TH-5 transmitter and external tuning unit this weekend.
Cleverly, the patent for the TH-5 tuning unit includes wording which goes directly to the Part 15 issue. "The external ATU is the final output stage to the transmitter when selected". This patent was included in the Part 15 filing. In other words, this means the coax cable betweein the TH-5 and the ATU is NOT transmission line. The antenna itself is 96", so care must be made to ensure that the ground lead doesn't put the antenna system over 3 meters in length.
However, nominally the TH-5 with external ATU does, in fact, comply with Part 15.219 since the final RF stage is the ATU.
Hope that helps,
Gerrett
--------------------------------------------------
Gerrett H. A. Conover
Vice President, Radio Systems
601 Heron Drive
Logan Twp, NJ 08085
856-467-8000 Voice
856-467-3044 Fax
856-803-1060 Direct
--------------------------------------------------
Thanks for passing this along, it clears up several questions that have come up about the TH!
Interesting as there is no active device in the ATU, only an RF transformer, loading coils, meter circuitry and some miscellaneous parts.
But hey, I'm not gonna argue the point. I'm tickled pink that someone got a response from the company supporting my original hopes.
I can see how it could be claimed that the ATU is the output stage but to do so may not fit the conventional use of the word "stage" when used in the electronic professions. A stage customarily contains an active device along with passive components which together perform a specific function.
It could be argued, and perhaps it is, that the ATU coils and such are part of the final amplifier STAGE, especially if viewed from a block diagram point of view rather than the physical location. It could also be said that the ATU is the final stage and the RF power fed from the coax is the power input to the final stage. Or it could be said that the ATU is part of the antenna as is a base mounted loading coil. Or maybe as is the case with the Rangemaster the loading coil looks as if it is part of the transmitter and not the antenna.
The quote from the patent "The external ATU is the final output stage to the transmitter when selected" is interesting but the patent is not the governing legal document, part 15.219 is. And even with this, part 15.219 doesn't clearly define what is meant by "output stage". As you probably can agree, a lot is left up to interpretation.
If the TalkingHouse was certified with the ATU together as a system then the answer is clear. Otherwise, I think things are not resolved and I wouldn't personally take much comfort from the letter from Mr. Conover.
I am not a legal beagle so the above is just opinion.
Neil
"The external ATU is the final output stage to the transmitter when selected" should read "The external ATU is the final output state to the transmitter when selected". I thought it was a typo, and I thought I would correct it.
Neil brings up an interesting point, however, and has shown me the error in my judgement. Sorry for the confusion. I really did get the e-mail form Mr. Conover. No other edits took place! Honest!
Please note that Mr. Conover stated later in the e-mail: "However, nominally the TH-5 with external ATU does, in fact, comply with Part 15.219 since the final RF stage is the ATU."
When I spoke with him on the phone, he did tell me that the ATU and Transmitter were certified together. Upon examination of the ID in the FCC database, it's difficult to verify that completely. No other exhibits are available, aside from the grant.
I'm not sure if that clears things up, or confuses things further...my apologies, and Happy Holidays!
tbone903,
Thanks for the additional information. Reference the "typo" I have no idea what the "output state" means in this context other than with reference to how the system is configured. I cut and pasted what I quoted from your post and the "output stage" makes sense, especially since this is the phrase used in part 15.219.
I did some snooping and learned from a post at another site that it is rumored that the ATU and the transmitter were certified together which agrees with your information. The post also mentioned that this would be added to the Radio Systems' website shortly.
I found, as apparently did you, that the FCC ID Search using their certification number yielded no answer to this question.
I tend to think that when the FCC uses "output stage" in the rules that they are referring to the amplifier (active device) stage since they mention "filament" as in a tube amplifier. The ATU is not an amplifier and again maybe it could be considered part of the amplifier stage. I would be OK with this if it were physically close to the amplifier but the use of a coax transmission line linking the two at a distance makes me less confident of this especially since the transmission line length is mentioned in the rules. Perhaps good documentation regarding the certification from Radio Systems will put my concern to rest.
Neil
Sooo if we ran a double link with coax from a coil link coupled (ala 1920's transmitters) to the sstrans and link coupled to the antenna loading coil at the antenna could we keep the transmitter inside for protection from the elements and theft. The rule limiting coax never made any sense to me (unlike the 3 meter rule that makes perfect sense)? Is that what I'm reading? What follows is sarcasm: I suppose if the atu is a "stage" then the motors in any atu unit are limited to 100mw 🙂 The driver stage to the atu can run 250 watts as long as the atu power is limited to 100mw. 😉 Future part 15 station now that that pesky ground thing is possibly gone and the atu is a stage: 250 watt driver link coupled through coax to 9 foot whip on top of 2000' foot tower with 100mw motor powered atu. Should be capable of covering a couple of states.. Dave
I have had a Talking House Transmitter THII for just over a year. I tried yesterday and today to set up a new message, but I can only get 2 1/2 minutes (150 secs) of message and then it stops recording. On replay I hear my message but then there is a 2 1/2 minute silence. I have tried to get newsletters mentioned by another contributor which mentioned some realtor newsletters of 2004. However that site is no longer available because a new company called i_am have taken the Talking House company over. Does anyone have hardcopies of the instruction manual or newsletters that will help.......or some general words of advice.??
Manual
http://part15.us/files.p15/TH_instruct.pdf
Tech Newsletter
http://part15.us/files.p15/TH_tech_NL.html
I removed the plastic strip and changed the switch to outdoor but get no output at all Any ideas?
Tested on my Motorola service monitor.