The reason groups like the SBE, FCC, NAB and the rest are so "evil" in the eyes of many here, is because there are a hell of a lot of pirates out there. Just ran across this:
http://fcc.github.io/pirateaction2/
That's an awful lot. These are NOT legal Part 15 operations. You can click on the NOUO tab on the right and get a list and click through the links for the details of each case. I read many and didn't see ONE that wasn't substantially over the Part 15 limits.
These people are also OUR enemies. They give US a bad name. And they bring out the powers that be in droves.
There seems to be a lot of jumping on the ol' bandwagon slamming the NAB around here. LIke any organization they have their good and bad points and always points of disagreement. However, it is their mission to assist and protect radio and televsion broadcasters. ALL of them who choose to join. There are members from Clear Channel jukebox powerhouses, to Mom and Pop 500 watt daytime stations. All these NAB members are often referred to here as money grabbing scumbags. Ya know what? There are thousands of AM, FM, and TV stations in this country, employing tens of thousands of people like ME. Not to mention all the people in support industries, from engineers to tower painters, to IT guys to manufacturers of broadcast equipment, all of whom have families to feed, and all of whom need cash to survive, keep their business runing, and invest in advancements in technology. Did you know most broadcast equipment manufacturers are small businesses? All those little odds and ends that a typical engineer uses in a year have to be made by someone. The broadcasting industry involves a lot of people from the little guy to the network executive. To put the NAB into a money grabbing rich group of corporate assholes is not right.
I live in a part of the country where I can, without too much trouble, count 50 "Mom and Pop" type radio stations. Where I know the owners, or people who work their, or the engineer, etc. I also know that cities like Topeka, KS has ZERO locally owned and opereated radio stations. But you know what -- they ALL employ people, and all have a crapload of bills to pay, and most are NAB members. There are hundreds of indepentend stations out here, and many of theme are NAB members.
Any concept of what it costs to operate a radio station these days? How often do you get your power bill and it's over $7000? EVERY month. How would you like to drop $20,000 a year to license your music? Who do you call when a bulb burns out on a tower? Or it needs painting? What do you think PA tubes cost for that 30 year old Harris the Mom and Pop station has kept running all these years? As much as $2000. Plus the cost of the engineer to put it in and tune the transmitter. What happens when your tower gets hit by lightning? Happens all the time. It's expensive. What do they pay in taxes? Especially an AM, or a DIRECTIONAL AM! With all that real estate? They NEED their money to pay for all this stuff. Wanting the NAB and the SBE to protect their interests is what they NEED. Then WE get pissed off because THEIR need to feed their kids might interfere with our little 1/10 watt hobby station?
People around here seem to like to bash radio today, about how it sucks and about how computers have taken over and there's no local programming. Most station owners I've run across who have stations like this would LOVE to have a full air staff and a news department. Any clue what it actually costs to add a staff member? You can take the salary and double it -- at LEAST. So if you have say, 6 announcers to cover 7 days a week, 24 hours a day, and say, 5 sales people, and you pay them all 30,000 a year (which ain't much) there's 330,000 in salaries. Now, double that to cover social security, workmens comp insurance, if they happen to offer some sort of retirement plan, maybe some health insurance, and you've turned that into 600,000+.
Running a radio station is a HELL of an expensive proposition. There are several hundred things I didn't even mention. Then ya'll bitch about those money grabbing NAB people. Know what, they're protecting their ass, and the asses of thousands of people in the industry. I can guarantee you the NAB does not have the FCC in their pocket. But they DO have the power of organization, and can petition the FCC with the strengh of THOUSANDS of members behind them who want to make a living and protect their interests and investments. The FCC can't just whip up a rule because the NAB asked them to. Rules changes involve Notices of Proposed Rulemaking, public comment, and a lot of other BS before they go into the books. The SBE has the main concern of protecting these stations and providing them with competent engineering to keep THEM legal and operating on a cost effective basis.
A pirate fires up the tubes across town and it's like the enemy ship lobbing a canonball. Look at the hundreds of pirates on that map. Yes, it's very likely that some Part 15'ers are going to get caught up in the battle, which is why we have to be LEGAL, and why I believe WE need to band together into a solid group much like the NAB or the SBE, etc. Maybe the ALPB could be that group. I don't know. I DO know that there is power in numbers. We HAVE the numbers, we're just not "official". And the fact that between this group and the group over at Hobby Broadcaster always bickering and insulting each other and acting like the other doesn't exist, and all that BS is slicing a large group of Part 15 minded people into two weaker groups. Yes, I believe the two groups have two different mindsets, but I believe we're all acting with the same mission.
This is why any sort of petition for new Part 15 rules really need to be carefully approached, well organized, and sould have references to other laws (such as Canada) and how this did not impace their industry, and should have actual engineering data showing potential, or lack of potential, or interference, etc. And would be best presented on behalf of a large and serious group.
Your real enemy is not the FCC, the NAB, or the SBE. It's the real pirate operators who give US a bad reputation. I believe efforts need to be made to educate the public and the industry that there IS a legal form of broadcasting that doesn't need a license. A group such as I refer to would write a letter, on letterhead, to law enforcement, such as those in Florida, advising them of their misguided law and informing them that Part 15 broadcasting is fullly legal for citizens of the USA. We would make efforts to educate industry and the public. And most importantly band together for the good of Part 15 radio broadcasting. WE should be out there HELPING them stop the pirates!
As for me, I'm busy writing a letter to the SBE. In their July (I think) magazine they had a follow up article on Pirate enforcement and how they need to really crack down. I'll be reminding them that Part 15 broadcasting is real, legal, and not that unusual, and reminding them that the FCC actually certifies transmitters for this purpose! And just perhaps some of their members should consider helping out the Part 15 guys.
OK, off the soapbox. I'm pooped.
Tim in Bovey.
Tim, thank you for pooping yourself in the name of part 15.
I guess that didn't sound right, but you are, in so many ways, the right voice at the right time for the world's smallest cause, that of part 15 radio broadcasting.
As I often say, the most sophisticated hobby in the world is Part 15 radio broadcasting, with close seconds being model railroading and flying drone cameras.
In a sense, this current drive to upgrade 15.239 to match the Canadian BETS standard is like wanting to gain right-of-way to lay track through your neighbors yard for an HO guage train route.
It's like wanting to attend a city council meeting by remote controlled drone camera.
Those may be imperfect examples, but trying to perfect them is tantamount to perfecting the language of our pleading to the FCC.
Dear FCC: Please give us a few more slices of the slice!
Do NOT get me wrong, for I do not condone EVER breaking the law, and yes, pirates are a thing that part 15'ers do need to be wary of, but we can easily convince them to join the part 15'ers leagues, so that we can both join forces and gain more members. BUT...
I'm sick and tired of people thinking that pirates are out there to cause damage and harm to other legal stations. Look, we're stuck with flea power here, and these guys just want to get a little bit more of an audience, and whilst it is illegal, our founding fathers reiterated that if as citizens felt a law is illogical, that it is our DUTY to fix it. While openly flipping the bird to the FCC might not be the smartest way to do so, it is however disgusting to think that some Part 15'ers feel it's fine to go out make enemies. How the f*** do we expect to get things done if we're busy complaining about pirates? Pirates AND part 15'ers are the troubadores of radio. You, Tim, might be lucky to live in an are suronded by Mom and Pop stations, but most aren't, and the pirates and part 15'ers are out to fill the void. Pirates have done so much good rather than bad, and I applaud them for being risky enough to try and bring a stronger signal to its audience, and honestly, just like 15'ers, do radio the way it was meant to be. A small, low budget but well sounding operation with its only goal to please and inform its audience. Pirates, for the millionth time, ARE NOT EVIL PEOPLE out to interfere and disrupt people. There's maybe one or two of them out there that its sole purpose to mess things up.
I strongly suggest that the pirates and part 15'ers join forces (with us trying to convince them to lower power to legal levels) because we do the EXACT SAME THING as they do. We're both community oriented, low budget oeprations that are trying to fill a void. The ONLY thing that seperates us is our power levels to theres.
PLEASE, FOR GOD'S SAKE- Do not call them the enemy. That is absurd.
Atrain's Rant just now excites me to saying a few things.
Part 15ers are confined by guys like Rich pointing always to the limits and never commenting toward improvement of the status quo.
But endorsement of radio pirates as patriotic persons of civil disobedience is reckless and sloppy, ignoring the important step of checking on the intention and content of the pirate station.
Sorry, but a pirate station intent on forcing "album oriented rock" or "Haitian Voodoo Music" is the kind of pirate that deserves to be closed down.
Being driven by music is no more than a low grade addiction deserving only of being confined to a local problem by being taken off the air and treated in a clinic.
On the other hand a pirate station set out to warn the American public of the danger of a Donald Trump presidency is a vital voice in the struggle for world supremacy and other dangers yet to be expressed by writers who will follow me.
The U.S. government intentionally operates fake pirate radio stations in an attempt to further criminalize the practice, and eventually this will result in doors being broken down and dogs shot.
If Rich doesn't know this, he's not in the loop.
There is no way the other sites that are ran by SBE engineers are ever going to stand for the notion and they will not endorse any conceivable notion of a field strength increase on FM. They have made themselves quite clear on that first in or around the month of March of this year. Again after I had started the idea after hearing some of the members of the NAB talk about it and Now with the law in Florida which is already a Police state. Let us not mention the statement on the other site almost gloating they had bad news for us 1 Watt dreamers. So if that sounds like they will ever go for a power increase on FM or even allow our petition to be taken seriously by the FCC I think the contrary is the fact. They will try to discourage us from even getting the petition on the FCC's list of considerations. I know they have bills to pay at the NAB and SBE. If they can't afford to hire a real news caster here is a thought why not let part 15 operators run the show. I mean they want to make Radio better often for FREE. OK I get running a Radio station the way businesses have ran them cost a fortune. Here is another thought why not run cellular type Radio stations. Put transmitters on top of traffic lights, poles, billboards. Regular Radio stations could run several smaller transmitters to cover the town. No huge tower needed and or have many part 15 stations all over the town. What they won't admit is Embarrassment. They get embarrassed when Johnny quarter mile can get listeners and for a fraction of their cost. So the only thing they know to do is like a video game. Kill or be Killed. Piracy may be a problem when stations like Rika FM interferes with them, but what about the folks at the ranch who's signal didn't really leave their property by much and yet an NOUO. What these people don't realize is that the genie is out of the bottle. If part 15 don't compete with them it will certainly be Internet Radio. So what is the next rabbit they should pull kill that too? Or maybe work with the ISP's who have customers that run stations and tell them that they have to invest in a business class Internet service costing well over $200-300/Month. I'm not just blowing smoke and mirrors here. Where does the attempts to eliminate competition end. Why should there be 7 God casters receivable on FM in the same city and worse yet playing the same programming. Now you have those translators for AM stations on FM and often enough the AM station is more than receivable in the area that they put those translators. Back in the early 70s you had an AM station and maybe a sister FM station. Often your AM station went off the air at night unless you were the one granted a clear channel and those were the huge companies that had the clear channel allocation. Its all about money I get it. I can already see the need for a pert 15 lobby group with plenty of cash to throw around to keep part 15 Radio alive. I want to have FM increased, but now its going to be really hard to convince the FCC when you have two financially back organizations barking Pirate Pirate Pirate in the FCC's ear at every turn. Sorry I still stand behind my statement that if the NAB is so afraid of a few lost listeners by Johnny quarter mile then its time to fold up and call it the end of your career in Radio for your services are no longer necessary to the public Interest. Truth is that is the thing these folks fear the most. Can't wait till unlimited smartphone data is a true reality then they will want to eliminate cell phones from streaming Internet Radio. Here is a thought to the NAB and SBE since I'm on the subject of Smartphones. Do you realize that the Samsung Galaxy S3, S4, S5, S6, Note 1,2,3,4 all have the FM Radio chip in them? Now look at the thousands of folks streaming Radio everyday in the USA who's greedy cell phone carriers disabled the chip to make a killing on data when a person streams their local Radio station on their phone. Wow here is a no brain idea instead of working so hard on Piracy and killing off hobby Radio why not petition the FCC to stop the carriers from monkeying around with the FM Radio's BUILT INTO THESE SMARTPHONES? But no we have to try and hurt someone who is not making any money from their little station. And now you NAB and SBE folks think your going to make more money by stomping out hobby Radio? Instead your going to have a Radio Riot! That is the problem with the business model they think money makes them God. News flash for them IT DOESN'T! The RIAA has spent how many years on trying to kill p2p now? When they could have joined forces with Napster and or Kazaa and made money for themselves and the artists they claim to support via ad supported file sharing. Now is the time ror the NAB and SBE to figure a way to work with hobby Radio operators to make a revenue. Why not pipe hobby broadcasters into their programming and Internet. No that is too simple. I'm sure their going to pretend like they are our fathers and tell us we can't do what we have been doing legally for decades now. Yes their scared I get it they are shaking in their boots. If you think they'll stop and nothing to kill hobby broadcasting I ask you to re evaluate the facts. Can we be friends or on the same side? I only wish that were going to happen. But my better judgment from the evidence shown before us its doubtful. I do admire Tim that your willing to write a letter. Maybe that one voice among the thousands of voices who want to kill off hobby Radio could provoke some out of the box thinking by folks who think of profits and enemies of their profit making scheme.
Stop, Look, Listen!
My 2 cents.
There may be some pirates 'out there' that know what they're doing, go out of their way to not cause interference to licensed stations, and have the best of intentions for their community. The problem is that they're breaking the law.
If Part 15'ers and Pirates get together, guess who immediately has that law breaking aura rub off on them? It's doubtful that we as Part 15 practitioners will be be able to get anything done with the FCC and the NAB if the perception is that we support pirate activity in any way (perception is reality, unfortunately). We're going out of our way (and this is one thing I can agree with Hobbybroadcaster on), in fact, to demonstrate to the world that we operate legally.
One thing you all have to remember must every one forgot. The other site made a bold blanket statement and said anyone that broadcasts on FM and goes more than 200 Ft is a blatant Pirate. We were the ones who put a bullet hole in that statement with facts both with software and mathematics. We also showed here at this site that height makes the difference and after the tests of what a true 250 uV/M @ 3 meter transmitter will put out on FM I'm willing to bet we will also prove that these popular certified transmitters are well under the max. Tim in Bovey has really done some good for part 15 FM by giving some hard and true facts so we can use to present to the FCC. Then hopefully he'll adjust a transmitter to be on the nose of 250 uV/M from the transmitter. Next drive tests and different Radio's should be used to show range. I suggest a youtube video of the test to show once and for ALL the United States to see what you can do with the legal power we are allowed on FM by the FCC as of Today's date. Then next we have a hard road. WE first must clean up the mess these two organizations have caused and the myths that anyone who is broadcasting without a license is a Pirate. Again the myths of folks running around scared of Hobby Radio and their precious dollar must again be debunked and we MUST show the US and the FCC that these are over exaggerated statements made on purpose in hopes to kill off hobby broadcasting. You see first its FM next AM too. I for one am sick of hearing how Pirates are hurting Radio. Out of all the drives around the country I've not ran into that many stations running true Pirate. Even part 15 Radio until now I thought was scarce. Out of all these FM transmitters sold you don't hear that many Pirates even at night during an inversion and we have a lot of these at night here in North Carolina. Now lets talk about the difference between a Pirate and a Johnny Punk (A term I made up and I hope more will use). Johnny Punk: Think Rika FM. They caused interference to another station and blatantly transmitted over the top of a translator. A Johnny Punk just wants to be heard. Sometimes a Johnny Punk will jam a part 15 station by purchasing the very same brand and model transmitter he has and jams his station playing a different format for example Rap over the top of an Album Rock station. Johnny Punks often too will use foul language on air and dare the FCC to do anything about it. A Pirate uses a transmitter WAY over the part 15 limit and laughs at part 15 transmitters calling them toys. I visited one Pirate Radio site that done that. Pirates often run as much power as possible I've heard 100 Watts and MORE!! All they want is fame and don't care how they get it. The difference between a Pirate and a Johnny Punk is huge. Pirates often will stop if they know their causing harm. They need to start with the Johnny Punks first like Rika FM's behavior is important. Some Pirates can be educated into going part 15. Ask some Pirates how far they want to reach and some will say Oh 3 miles or so. (And please don't anyone come to the site and preach about a LPFM license and waiting for a Window to open. Besides that hobby Radio operators don't have $85K in spare change for a Radio Station). You have a better chance at turning them to AM. Instead of busting them here is a thought Give them an AM Transmitter and help set it up and show them they can have that Range they want and Give Them AM Stereo too if possible. Maybe have an amnesty program where they can trade their FM Transmitters in for a better transmitter on AM with tech support to help set up. Get the Pirate FM stations to at least try AM and you'd have a better relationship with a Radio head than busting them just because you can and you love the power trip. I mean I won't say but a member of the ALPB has almost got me convinced to try AM because of the range I want and told me that even if 500mW is legal AM will do better with only 100mW and a good home brew antenna. At first I didn't like the notion of AM but I thought about the CB Walkie talkie days and the distance I had with 100mW. I re visited my knowledge I gained about the lower the frequency the less power you need. Everyone wins. The way the NAB and SBE is going about things is wrong I'm sorry dead wrong. Just as FM Transmitters are popular the job should be to make AM more attractive to hobby broadcasters and that would mean youtube videos of Range and possibly Stereo mods for AM transmitters and more affordable AM Transmitters hopfully more Stereo ones. If not Stereo a nice clean Mono signal with good clean Audio. The only thing all the Pirate talk does is to attract more activity of that nature instead of discourage. Think of pot smoking. When people told you it was illegal and its not acceptable to smoke it ask yourself did that stop you? For some of you the more you heard about pot you wanted to try some there is that Rush of getting away with it. Same goes for Pirate Radio. Kids will try it if they hear about it long enough. So these organizations need to work with us and make a better plan. They can try to work with us now or suffer the same fate that the RIAA has when they tried to stop file sharing. Its only taken them since 2003 and yet they have hard heads and don't want to consider a change of their business model which no longer works. The business model for the NAB and SBE is in jeopardy that part may be very true. As technology changes and people turn to their smartphones, the less they will be willing to stand for a medium prone to static and limited diversity of music which is something the NAB fears once again for part 15 operators don't buy the latest copy of Billboard magazine and hang it in their studio and follow that top 500 chart to the letter. Part 15 operators dare to be different. Some have talk shows and do as well as the pros. And all this talk about having to hire announcers to keep your station alive? There are plenty of part 15 operators just waiting for a station to air their Radio shows. Here is a thought instead of busting Johnny quarter mile pipe his DJ software into your mixing board via the net and you have a Radio station and a FREE DJ willing to play what they believe is different and will drive listeners to your local station. Let the notion of chart Rock go and lets try what the hobby stations are doing so well at. I know we are an embarrassment to your egos as well as our wallet and asking a part 15 DJ for help is way mutch beneath you. I say Get Over It. As they say history keeps repeating itself and some hard headed organizations will have to learn through decades of unnecessary arrogance on the part of their behalf.
Wow. That is a lot to read first thing in the morning. 🙂
Okay WDCX is right that is a lot to read.
I see valid points on all sides in this here topic.
Including the advice of obtaining a LPFM license.
I've been there, tried that.
Only opened frequncy was 92.9 MHz and a minority group took that claiming there was no hip hop music in the market area, also lied about being an educational facility, There are no educational facilties in down town New London Connecticut on Bank Street!!!
Then we get a new LPFM in Norwich with spanish music on 104.5 MHz called bomba 104.5 FM or La Bomba! Great now we have more junk on the dial.
What's left? NOTHING.... NADA! All FM channels are taken or protected!
When you're faced with this rude awaking, what do you do? Bribe an FM station to sell their license to you for half of a million dollars or more? There's no options left. AM? Tell me when the FCC is going to offer a new applicant a license for AM broadcasting....likely never!
I know I operated a radio service and was not even in control of the transmitters that carried my service and that other site focused on me, because I was the easiest to concentrate on. My mention of FM over there put me in the pirate spotlight right from the start.
Than comes those accusations that I operated or participated in an illgeal pirate radio operation. Major mistake I made was mentioning FM as my choice for broadcast. So whether anything was illegal or not, just my being an FM affiliate made me instantly guilty. Why? Because I was providing a service that occupied that precious real estate called FM radio.
I am sure if we used AM with an ERP of 50 watts, no one would have gave a damn.
So Tim, I see your point, but, from my personal experience, even if I wanted to own a legal licensed station in my area, I'd have to buy out an already licensed station and I believe that to be totally impossible when we have Iheart Radio with the buying power that I'd never, ever come up with in my lifetime.
As for pirates causing inteference, the trouble there is it's tough to buy an FCC part 73 certified transmitter, most companies will deny your sales unless you show you have a valid Construction Permit from the FCC, so people get stuck buying those Chinese transmitters that cause interference.
But I can understand the impact interference can cause, so I am not against stations that cause interference from being approached by the FCC. I do not personally believe every unlicensed radio station intends to cause harmful interference, they may not have the spectrum analyzer handy to check their carrier for spurs. The market just makes buying the right stuff cost prohibitive. Anything broadcast equipment related is above anyone's budget!
I can't even get my hands on a good broadcast mixing console without offering $25,000 only to get out bid afterwards by some rich slob! So imagine me owning a spectrum analyzer!
I do not condone breaking the law, but some people do not have any other options to serve their area with what the big broadcasters refuse to offer, even when their listeners tell them what is best for them, they still pipe in that network crap no one wants to listen to.
Please excuse any typos, Microsoft's Edge browser does not support spell check...yes I made the switch to Windows 10 from Windows 7.
Bruce.
Today I checked my frequency of 96.3 and I can still hear the country station in Morehead City. Its strength is faint at times but still there and I won't transmit over the top of a licensed station. I've been looking at 87.9 Mhz and found quite a few stations listed on the Internet on 87.9 Mhz. There is very little other choice here as all other frequencies get used at night or their too close (Not one channel clear above and below). So 87.9 may be the only other frequency I can use without causing interference to another station. I'm wondering if 96.3 jacked up their power? Suddenly its coming in in the afternoon. If this keeps up I'll have to use AM because I don't want to cause trouble on FM. I've invested in this transmitter and want to use 87.9. At low power I experimented with it for a brief time around 2AM-4AM. I walked around my house and the signal was better at the -48dbm level about 15 nano watts. What use to only go 10 feet increased to 30 to 50 feet before fade. It still don't go far beyond my house at low power so it would not cause any interference if I done that but again there are part 15 stations using this frequency. Why must I take a chance and use a frequency where I have to keep checking every hour or so when I can use 87.9 Mhz and no it does not cause interference to the cable like my old transmitter did in Michigan years ago. I'm thinking when I was a kid I must have had a 5 watt transmitter and didn't know it hence the 3 mile renge with a police scanner antenna and a Radio Shack antenna which was a beam antenna. When the coax came lose the transmitter burnt out. These nano watt transmitters Today nothing would probably would happen to it. So again I had something far more than 100mW and didn't know it. If I do 87.9 it may be temporary till I get an AM transmitter where I know I'm safe. It just sucks. That is why some do what they do is because of the unwillingness to allow low power Radio for a few hobby stations.
The difference between a Pirate and a Johnny Punk is huge. Pirates often will stop if they know their causing harm. They need to start with the Johnny Punks first like Rika FM's behavior is important. Some Pirates can be educated into going part 15. Ask some Pirates how far they want to reach and some will say Oh 3 miles or so.
That is what I am trying to say. Johnny punk wants to f s up, but a run of the mill low power pirate (1-5 watts) just wants to play his radio safe music and get a tad further than a regualr 15'er. He does not want to step on anyone shoes or cause interference. Those types of broadcasters should be embraced by the hobby broadcast community and hopefully we can tell them to go to p 15 levels. Again, I do not advocate illegal activity, but sometimes if you want to get your signal heard by just 5 people, especially if you live in rural areas, you haven't a choice.
87.9 MHz? The second reason my station was accused of being a baltant pirate!
Enough said.
Bruce.
And this is what my initiative for increased FM is all about Atran Radio. Because no one wants to waste money on a few feet out of their driveway. Most of your wives (If you have one) will expect your station to reach ¼ mile to 2 miles. Its hard to convince your Wife that its cool to spend your hard earned money on something that is a toy and won't reach your immediate neighborhood. So some push the limits a tad. Technology has changed from when part 15 was first introduced. Even the planet DJ toys back in the 70s could reach far better than 500-600 feet. For that matter there were toy FM stations sold in Christmas catalogs in the 70s around 1975 (a neighbor kid next to Grandma's house had one in New Port Richie, FL and I heard him on the Radio and wanted Grandpa to buy me one). Id go to his house to play with it at times. You could hear the thing clearly several houses down. It came with headphones to DJ and a mic. It was modified to be wired directly into a Radio Shack mixer and we had a ball with it. Even took requests too. I guess all the kids that had one was a Pirate back then. It was a Toy sold in either JC Penny or Sears or Wards can't remember. It was one of the first FM toy transmitters out there. People just want to be heard and not wanting to step on toes. But the folks on the other sites and the FCC at the moment give little choice. So you want to know why I'm so much into this initiative that is why. With certified transmitters properly filtered as apposed to the transmitters that are not properly filtered will cause less interference. Jealousy crying because Johnny didn't pay $150,000 for his station should not cut it with the FCC. The fact that Radio is only for the Rich should be a good valid reason but as said before the RCC don't give a rat's F about us. So statics showing the number of transmitters sold from China and how this could be greatly improved by simply allowing more strength so that the public can do what was intended back in 1975 (with data showing the reason we need to get 4 times the strength we needed in 1975) should help that.
Bruce its sad that that other site takes sides on the 87.9 issue for some of those fighting for AM are currently using 87.9 Mhz as stated on their website, they have an AM petition to the FCC so I'd assume the FCC knows well and good about their 87.9 Mhz station. It took me a long time before I decided to transmit there. Fought with myself googled and found a lot of loop holes in 87.9 Mhz. One agent will say illegal, the other may not. Why should I have to buy a part 74 transmitter that does have the ability to adjust the audio for 87.7 or 87.9 Mhz when I can simply use mine. Plus at Walmart there are car transmitters that clearly go there. I suppose all Walmart shoppers can expect NOUO's for their Scoche transmitters which go down to 87.9 Mhz. A few more than Scoche will go there as well. I've read more comments about WXTZ on some other boards by googling 87.9 Mhz like this “87.9”+”legal” and “87.9”+”part 15” and even saw part 15 stations still on that frequency. Its gray for now. But from what I see you had a jealous person, a trap site and some over activist hams who hate micro broadcasting. I mean I could go back to 96.3 Mhz just to satisfy the over zealous folks, but what would that solve I'd be cutting into the station in Morehead City and there are a few friends of my Wife who already mentioned that they listen to the station when it comes in. Her Dr at the office has heard my station when he drove by. He asked her to ask me to move my station because his car Radio could pick up Thunder Country on 96.3 and when he drove to the areas around the library guess who he heard instead? The Legacy. Any other frequency I'd be stepping on someone. I'm already surprised I didn't get a NOUO. My Daughter in laws car Radio didn't pick it up only when we had a temperature inversion. This station is more than 150 miles away but people like the station and want to hear it even though it is weak here. I decided it was best to move my station because I was asked politely may I add to move it. He could have cursed me out or worse went to the FCC minus calling my Wife to ask me to move the station. He knew it was me because my Wife talked about The Legacy. I'm glad he didn't call the FCC on me. But someone else would have. We do have nice people here who don't want to hurt me having fun.
While googling my dsp1424P I seen a link at HB and it turned out to be a topic I started regarding audio processing equipment. Really, that's all my topics were pretty much about over there, audio processing. Nothing about running a pirate station. So just for spite, I clicked the link.... I seen under my user name MrBruce the status: "Banned for the greater good." LOL! What a JOKE! That's an insult! I will likely have my lawyers look into it and have anything to do with me removed from that site.
But pretty much everything you said TheLegacy is pretty much right on!!!
Bruce.
The poster in question was calling Mr. Bruce names and accusing him on another site too. People who lived in Norwich and listened to WXTZ 87.9 stated “Where is that supposed station who made the complaint?” The second harmonic would be on channel 7 and there is no channel 6 so no one was harmed by interference.” The people in your area stated that your station was not a Pirate station and the fact that he was nothing but a trouble maker and won't be tolerated on a different website other than the one your banned from lol. Its funny how some folks from SBE can have double standards. Its cool if one of their friends transmits on 87.9 Mhz. Its cool if they build a FM Radio station for a camp their friends either own or set up. Its OK to fudge the FCC rules and say 250 uVm @ 3 meters from the property line (don't get me wrong I'm glad for the fudge factor) if its the SBE doing the install. But we do it and talk about it on their website OMG we are a bad person and we'll be turned into the FCC. I'm just saying that you sometimes have little choice. And oh yes AM was talked about and the fact that WXTZ talked about AM and their listeners complained about mono as most Album Rocker's will off the bat. AM is a hard sell for them. Even if you had AM Stereo receivers and you went AM Stereo the noise floor in Norwich was too high. Where I live almost the same. WE have electric noise here so it would probably take a lot to get over it. No matter what you do some are gonna gripe. Its a lessor of the evils and you have to weigh them all in. What your friends done with the transmitters by setting them to 87.9 Mhz was a good call in my book. It should make no difference if someone has their Scoche iPod transmitter in their car they bought from Walmart and that transmitter the one Carl has goes far more than a few inches from the antenna like the Belkin does and further more the range can be increased by buying an extension cable to extend the audio cable so the transmitter don't just hang from your smartphone. Keep in mind if a person buys the cable they might not be trying to extend the range in a car. So imagine 800fT of range in a car while driving along. Scoche done the right thing by having 87.9 Mhz and a lab in which the FCC trusted certified the unit. So again don't shoot the person operating on a frequency your certified transmitter has the ability to go to. Its funny how I was searching for something else and still more websites talk about WXTZ. Its even more funny how some of his people are starting to defect as they see the double standard. WE as hobbyists have a very rough road ahead that I can tell you. The persecution will only get worse till someone does something about it. I'm like you here and stand by what WXTZ was and I just think someone was jealous and looking for trouble. I seriously doubt the FCC would have done much as most of the signal was inside the buildings of each transmitter. This is another reason for the part 15 initiative I'm trying to start and get passed. Its not just about AM as it isn't going to work for everyone just as FM won't work for everyone.