Hi,
I bought the Talking House AM Transmitter due to talks about the quality of transmitter power although it is only 100mW. I heard about transmitter distances of 900 meters, etc even with the build-in antenna. Unfortunately, I have never experienced my transmitter to transmit beyond the boundaries of my yard. I live in a security complex. My yard is 12 x 15 meters. It is surrounded by a concrete wall about 1,70meters high. Within this boundaries I do not have any problems. The signal is crystal clear with good quality sound. The moment I go outside my yard the signal fades away rapidly with no reception about two to three meters outside my yard. Did someone experience 900 meters of transmitting distance with the build-in antenna, if so, why not me?
Regards
How high is your wall again?
"..Did someone experience 900 meters of transmitting distance with the build-in antenna, if so, why not me?.."
My guess is the house/building wiring was better with that guys install. The talking house makes ground via the three prong plug which goes in the wall.. also he might have lived in an area which has better overall ground conductivity than your area, his transmitter could have been on the second or third story of the building.. There's so many reasons why one install might be better than another. And maybe that wall of yours isn't helping.
Location and surroundings always is a substantial factor towards performance.
Uh.. like Radiolegend said: How high did you say that wall is????
RichPowers thanks for the comment. The concrete wall around my house is 1,70 meters high. Is it possible that this has something to do with the transmitting distance?
1070 meters or 1.7 meters?
Depends On What "Security" Means
Are you saying it is a government security complex?
Or perhaps a residential complex with high security?
If it is the former, there might be anti-RF metal screening in all the walls to prevent spy-waves from getting in or out.
Also, belaboring the height of the outer wall.. what kind of a number is 1,70 ?
Not 1070 meters! It is 1,70 meters. It could also be 170 cm. Hope this makes sense. Please use a converter to make sense in terms of inches, etc. I am living in a private security complex.
That's about 5 1/2 foot. It's possible it could be hindering your signal if you transmitter is on the first floor, but it's hard to guess if it's really a problem. You know all kinds of things come into play with part 15.. I've had experiences where simply moving an install about 10 feet made a big difference, I had moved it only out of convenience in getting to it, but it resulted in improved range - I couldn't make sense as to why! Part 15 can be funny.
For a few years I had moved out to Ellabell, the entire area was heavily wooded trees and I was suspecting the range would suck because it's said leaves absorb your signal, but I was able to get a semi consistent mile radius of listenable signal there... Later, with the exact same transmitter I'm able to get only about 1/4 mile radius where I am now.. no trees here to speak of, but lots of buildings and business and powerlines, so evidently this causes the range to suffer.
Location and luck is two big factors with part 15 AM. I don't know what else to say.
A simple answer!
Take the radio and go outside the wall, Take a small ladder or step ladder and get the radio a few feet above the wall on the other side and see if the reception changes. You will then have your answer.
If there is steel mesh in the wall then I'd say yes the wall is blocking the signal.
Thanks for the advise Mark, it makes sense, I will try it out.
Yeah good idea. Makes sense, they say line of sight isn't a factor with AM but nobody can tell me it that it isn't a major factor when it comes to the minuscule AM signals of part 15.
Also: Keep the antenna vertical. You might have to tape it to a broom handle or something like that