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I have not had the best luck with keeping my Part15 equipment.. About 5 years ago someone stole my Rangemaster. All my other equipment I then safely packed up and stored it “safely” away in a store room at the pier, where it sat since. Last month I went to look it over, and everything was just fine as I had left it.
A few days ago I received my new Rangemaster and proceeded to go get my stored equipment. I am flabbergasted and sickened that the steel storage door had been bent, beat and forced open and EVERYTHING gone.
It’s feels unbelievable that it was fine for 5 years and then it disappears sometime in the past 30 days right before I’m getting ready to put it back in operation again.
Anyway, I don’t have much money to play with this time but must get some replacements..
I can’t say I really knew what I was doing the first time, but I did a lot of reading, spent maybe too much money, and tried to get the right stuff.
But I needed a refresher course on setting up my airchain, and found what seems to be the best overview on Keith Hamiltons own site at http://www.am1000rangemaster.com/amprocessing.html (Proccessing for AM Transmitters) – It’s very well written and a good read. You should read it all the way through if you haven’t already.So I need to get these basic items and would like advice..
1. A Leveler.. (I just bought a Aphex Compellor 301 on ebay for that).
2. A Limiter.. (Not sure which to get, want good but cheap! Advice please?)
3. A Microphone.. (Last time I spent around $350 for one.. not this time, can’t do it.)
4. A Sonic Maximizer (Never see anyone mention these, but I was very enthused about my last one.. it really made the station sound bright and clear.)
5. Connecting cables and misc.
6. Phone patch set up of some kind (last time I had a TI-101 Phone Hybrid Interface)Ok, last time I was set up with tape decks, turnatable, cd player. But this time it will be primarily just the computer as the source audio. (previously did not utilize a computer in the airchain!).
To sum up my questions..
A. What limiter should I buy to use along side the Aphex Compellor?
B. What’s a cost effective means of getting phone calls on the air with good quality.
C: Hasn’t anyone else used the BBE Sonic Maximizers in the setup? They’re great!
D. Is there anything I’m overlooking?
Total posts : 45366Sorry to read about the theft. That hurts beyond just the material loss and I hope you can put it behind you and move on. You might be able to buy back your stuff from local pawn shops but that depends on how much time you want to spend on this.
I can’t give much advice re audio chain equipment since my station is computer based but one of your comments caught my interest. The cost of cables is getting to be a major investment to the point where I have returned to my old practice of building my own. I buy surplus shielded cable for about 10 cents a foot and reasonable quality connectors for about a dollar. I am transitioning away from the unreliable RCA “phono” plugs and jacks in favor of 1/4 in phone plugs and jacks. I have had so many bad connections with the RCAs and never a problem with phone plugs and jacks that it is worth the effort. Costwise, this is about the same as buying RCAs but it is my choice to spend some effort and convert.
Don’t wait until everything is replaced to get on the air. You can add things along the way.
Best of luck with this.
Neil
Total posts : 45366The Compellor series by Aphex are very interesting devices. Your Model 301 is a monaural unit and mine is a Model 300, which is stereo.
Back when I chose this unit for a special use, the distributor allowed me a trial, and I was ultra impressed by its performance with musical material. It was used as a processor between 15-inch-per-second master tapes and duplicated audio cassettes which I produced for clients. The Compellors job was to compress the wide volume and frequency ranges tightly into the more limited headroom of a standard audio cassette, and it did so perfectly.
The inputs and outputs can be wired for -10dB consumer levels or zero-to-+4dB professional level, and configured for unbalanced or balanced in any combination.
The compression is hard wired for music, but there is an instruction in the manual for changing a resistor so the compression favors spoken voice. I’d imagined adding a switch for this, but it seemed like a difficult surgery because there is no convenient place to mount the switch, so it never got done.
The Compellor has a peak limit circuit, so you may not need another limiter.
Total posts : 45366Thanks for the replies.
Yes the theft is discouraging, but while I have a few dollars I am putting it back together, and almost have everything I need enroute… I wish I could get that Inovonics 222 that ArtisanRadio is selling, but suspect it will go higher than I can.. But I’m watching it!What I do have coming is a Apex Compellor, a BBE Sonic Maximizer 402, a Yamaha MG10/2 Mixer, and a MXL 990 Condenser Microphone.
I’m taking Carls word for it that the Compellor should also serve as a the limiter, so I don’t need another .. Thank God, cause I’ve already gone over budget.
But got some good deals. So far spent w/ shipping a grand total of $250.. not bad when you consider the compellor alone was $100Still need some kind of phone patch.. still debating on $$ to spend.
After that, I think it’s about covered.Oh still need cables… Neil, what would you sell some of your home built ones for?! .. I’m not even sure what I need.. damn!
And Carl appreciate your comments on the Compellor, I know something more about it now.
Total posts : 45366Rich,
Sorry, but I don’t build and sell but would be glad to advise if needed.
Perhaps your experience with the RCA phono connectors differs from mine but I have had trouble with them over the many years of using them. Unfortunately they do not fail hard and I usually catch problems when I notice one channel is not at the same amplitude as the other or I notice distortion. Wiggling or resetting the plugs makes the problem either better or worse in which case the cable goes to the trash. After having some one opportunity recordings ruined in this manner a better means is being implemented.
The problem is what to do with equipment which uses RCA phono jacks. It’s not pretty but I open the cabinet and solder shielded wire into the circuit and run it through any vent hole or even the jacks themselves (takes small wire) and solder the 1/4 inch jacks to the whip wire.
Neil
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