For those people who are new to Part 15
radio, I decided to take a look around
YouTube and see if I could find out what
some Part 15 stations look like. I think I
may have seen some of these videos before.
However, with only partial vision (you know -
the detached retinas) it's hard to tell.
Here is a list of phrases that can be typed into
YouTube. Thanks to my buddy Herb for helping
me with this. Here are the phrases:
1) My Part 15 micro power AM radio station
2) WNBGS North Bennington
3) A.M. 1512 kHz Antenna - Ramsey AM25
(This guy is in Europe, and it may not be quite
Part 15, because the transmitting antenna is
elevated. But he is not operating under U.S.
regs anyway. However, he is quite close to Part 15, and
it is an interesting antenna set-up - so we put it in.)
4) AMT3000 range check Part 1. (There is also
a Part 2, I think.)
5) LPAM transmitter SSTRAN Kit Part 7 but will
it work?
Herb and I will look for some more videos on YouTube
that seem to be Part 15 stations. This is just meant
to be sort of a rough guide of what these stations look
like and that's all. This is not a guide on what is legal
or what is not. For whatever it's worth.
This might be helpful to some people. It is only scratching
the surface, that's for sure.
Bruce, The Dog Radio Group
The guy sitting in the studio says his listener
is next door, and that there is another listener
on the other side, or something like that. This
would be about right for FM Part 15.
The studio is the thing.
This is a HUGE retro studio! He probably
uses it for a recording studio most of the
time, I guess.
The phrase to type in is:
NEON ONE Part 15 FM Radio
It will be about the third video down
from the top of the page.
Bruce and Herb, The Dog Radio Group
here is my studio and part 15 tx/antenna
Your antenna looks especially interesting. What a clever way to have a top hat.
Is there a desriptive name for that type of antenna?
Wow!
What I've always dreamed of.
And I love that Autogram board.
Bruce, The Dog Radio Group
i just added an aphex 320d to the processor lineup. removed Telos AA encoder which is now up FS/FT
YOUR ANTENNA IS VERY INTERESTING.
IS IT YOUR OWN DESIGN?
THE CIRCULAR TOP HAT IS AN ATTRACTIVE FEATURE.
HOW DID YOU GET THOSE TINY SCREWS SO NEATLY INSTALLED UP IN THE CEILING? DID YOU DO THAT YOURSELF?
WHAT IS THE NAME FOR THIS TYPE OF ANTENNA?
WHAT KIND OF PROGRAMMING ARE YOU DOING AT 1670 AM?
DO YOU DO A SHOW YOURSELF, OR ANY ANNOUNCING?
WHAT KIND OF AUDIO EDITING SOFTWARE DO YOU USE?
WHAT IS YOUR SCHEDULE EVERYDAY?
DO THE PEOPLE LIVING NEARBY KNOW ABOUT YOUR STATION?
HOW DID YOU GET THOSE TINY SCREWS SO NEATLY INSTALLED UP IN THE CEILING? DID YOU DO THAT YOURSELF?WHAT IS THE NAME FOR THIS TYPE OF ANTENNA?
i wasn't sure if they would go into ceiling and stay but they did andf hold pretty strong.
antenna came about because there was not enough room to put the entire antenna vertical or stretch it across the living room. xyl considerations is what caused that arrangement to come about along with lowering it's visiual impact.
WHAT KIND OF PROGRAMMING ARE YOU DOING AT 1670 AM?
classic hits/oldies (50's, 60s, 70s, 80s, disco, funk, R&B, Soul, Motown)
DO YOU DO A SHOW YOURSELF, OR ANY ANNOUNCING?
not yet
WHAT KIND OF AUDIO EDITING SOFTWARE DO YOU USE?
cool edit 2000
WHAT IS YOUR SCHEDULE EVERYDAY?
just music, psa's on 15 and 45, id's/liners at TOTH and BOTH
DO THE PEOPLE LIVING NEARBY KNOW ABOUT YOUR STATION?
i have told some of my neighbors yes.
Stream?
i have pulled the internet stream because of licensing considerinations and it was too much of a pia keeping it up and accessable. it was a free provider and i do not have the budget for live365.
Hello Robert:
Thank you for the full report on your radio station at 1670 AM, and especially the novel antenna.
I would love to hear the results of an experiment in field distance with and without that "top hat on the ceiling" which looks so cool.
And I recognize that super transmitter in your photos is the AMT5000, and that is the real key to getting a useful signal that covers so many apartments.
Too bad about internet streaming being made so impossible by the unfriendly difficulties imposed on small broadcasters. They really don't want us on there.
That antenna is different enough that it should have its own name.
here is more pics featuring the updated processing rack. the compellor and inovonics 235 are whats feeding the sstran amt5000. the dsp9024 is feeding a semi private stream over my engenius long range wifi setup using aac+ @ 40kbps.
the wifi is open but not connected to anything but my stream and a splash page when people connect and open a browser they are greeted with the spash page that basically says how to connect to my stream using their pc, wifi radio, or smartphone.
it's a local test prototype for my community radio over wifi concept. eventually i would like to get hosts elsewhere in complex to host mesh nodes to extend range of the wifi system.
pics....
These days I wonder what I'd say to someone who asked for a tour of my radio station. There is very little to show. A single computer workstation is used to generate the audio, a few transmitters tucked here and there, and some blended antennas that do not impose, except for the FM bamboo tripod tower on a stool.
Time was I maintained a two room studio with a glass window built into the wall between rooms, plenty of mics for interviews and round table discussion, a double sized rack loaded with blinking gear. This was for both commercial recording work and a non-commercial feed by 15kHz phone-line to a 12.5kW public station.
That experience taught me to avoid having "volunteers" coming and going, because property had a way of vanishing and there were cigarette burns in carpeting and cup stains on wooden furniture, even a grease stain from a whopper burger on a conference table.
Now the interviews I do are either by phone or over at a restaurant that has no objection to my PZM microphone and Zoom recorder, and which keeps their ceiling music at a low volume.
One client wanted to stage talk shows in my home and even offered to buy all new furniture for the right look, but no way. With that furniture sitting there I'd never be able to back out.
Private and personal, that's part 15 radio for me.
Hi this is Sean
Wow I hope this is the correct web site. It looks different
than I use to remember. Please tell me I am on the correct website.
I think this is where I use to hang out on. Is the site Neil and the
rest use to hang out/
Thanks
Sean
First to Sean, yes, it is the same site. It got a makeover tecently.
Second, I am in the process of moving my station from its previous two-room set-up in the house to a single 26 foot long office trailer. At this point, everything is in the office trailer except for the on-air control room. That means my desk/office, production, music library and everything not critical to on-air is next door.
I have been going gangbusters developing my format as a 24/7 country and classic country station. I do break from the format for a gospel show on Sunday mornings. I also do live shows most weekdays, although next week (May 20) I will have family visiting so I won't be live for a few days after this Thursday.
I have some pics at
The programming is streamed at http://www.live365.com/stations/alanmccall and can be found by searching for Big D Country on the TuneIn app.
Alan
Its amazing how much my studio changed after this video was made...
This was my original bare bones setup, also before the lightening strike.
Enjoyed the tour of your early station of the past.