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Hello everyone,
So I have been looking into improveing my station since I got a Part 15 Music station. Looking for better transmitters I see a lot of people are happy with their SSTRAN and seem to get good range out of it along with better audio quality. I right now got the Talking House 5.0 and have been happy with it however since the music I play is a big varity I always need to tweek it so it sounds nice.
What I would like to know for those of you who went from the talking house to SSTRAN were you happy with it?
Whats the range it gets out of the box?
Would you recomend the AMT3000 or AMT5000 and what are the major diffrences in them? Audio Quality? Range? or both?
Thanks 🙂
Total posts : 45366Good Morning winter4w from the center of North America where big windstorms MISSED US last night as they passed further south.
I will totally endorse the transmitters from SSTram(dot)com, I use mine daily and love both models.
Audio Quality: Both the AMT5000 and AMT3000 have beautiful audio quality, they each have unbalanced double inputs with an L+R combiner (mixer) built in so you can input stereo and have the transmitter mix it to a mono signal. The AMT5000 has an additional audio input that accepts a professional balanced mono audio line. Both transmitters have modulation controls so you can set to the very peak of 100% modulation, and both have compressors so the average volume level can be raised for a louder signal on the dial.
Signal Quality: The AMT5000 has possibly the most efficient output design of any part 15 transmitter with a built in loading coil to bring a 3-meter antenna to maximum resonance. My installation reaches 1,000-feet because of a few ground radials being added, and I am in the process of building a more efficient antenna in a better location which is expected to reach over a mile. Also, the AMT5000 has a power output control so that the transmitter can be fine-tuned for exactly 100 mW to the final. The control has a range of about 34 mW up to 400 mW, I love to run mine at the lowest setting to give the signal that “far away” quality.
The AMT3000 offers two paths… out of the box it is good for very local broadcasting because it’s built-in filter circuit protects against harmonics but leaves room for improvement. The improvement, which I have done, is to build a loading coil according to the instructions which peaks the output for longer range. My transmitter puts a very strong signal on my property with a ground wire clamped to an I-beam in the basement which connects to electrical and water-pipe grounds. The signal will go farther when I add ground rods.
The Talking House transmitters that get talked about so much are a fair starter unit but are not capable of the total broadcast quality of AMT5000 and 3000.
Total posts : 45366I moved from a TH5 to a AMT3000. The audio quality was immediately improved. My range is decent, and in fact an improvement over the TH5. I had transitioned to a coil and telescoping antenna as part of my Part 15 installation. The exact same antenna and coil were being used with the TH5 and now with the AMT 3000 with improved distance.
I would like to experiment with a AMT5000 to see how it differs in my setup using the same antenna and coil.
Good luck with your project!
Total posts : 45366craigf said: “I would like to experiment with a AMT5000 to see how it differs in my setup using the same antenna and coil.”
The good news is that although the AMT5000 comes with a built in loading coil, the manual gives instructions for bypassing the internal coil for people who prefer to add their own loading coil!
And best of all, then you can compare the performance using the internal coil vs. the external coil!
Total posts : 45366I did this ten years ago. I just did it again, after my 2nd TH failed. I bought a 3000 and will build it. So easy to build, yet as robust as a Gates Exciter board! I love the sound of these. I live up on the hill over downtown, so that’s all I really need to cover.
The TH covers much more than that, roughly a mile. But a half mile of rich sound is desireable overall, and the SSTRAN delivers! KLW-Augusta is on 1560 at the moment. I may tweak that…
Doug
Total posts : 45366How do you tweak the power down on the AMT5000 sir? Is it like a POTS capacitor or something you turn? Sorry to be stupid.
Total posts : 45366KRNI there is no such thing as stupid with part 15. None of us knows much.
Luckily I know the answer to your question: “How do you tweak the power down on the AMT5000“
The AMT5000 has a power variable resistor control (a potentiometer) that supplies a power range of about 34 mW to 340 mW, with instructions for setting it at 100 mW (FCC 15.219).
Of course the power can also be lowered by de-tuning the loading coil or shortening the antenna.
Total posts : 45366Oh ok very cool thank you Carl. I was thinking about upgrading from the Talking House to a SSTran myself. Heard it gets out better because of the coil and sounds better.
Total posts : 45366From Reply 7:
… the power can also be lowered by de-tuning the loading coil or shortening the antenna.
Just to note that either/both of the above adjustments may reduce the power _radiated_ by that system, but won’t necessarily affect the d-c input power to the final r-f amplifier of the transmitter [limited there to 100 mW by FCC §15.219(a)].
For one example, an unlicensed transmit system operating in the AM broadcast band using 500 mW of d-c input power to the final r-f amplifier would be non-compliant with FCC §15.219 no matter how de-tuned its loading coil and/or how short its antenna system.
Total posts : 45366Operating under Part 15.209 one may have a final input power in excess of 100 mW and be compliant as long as the overall system meets the specified field strength.
That of course just takes an antenna system which is very inefficient i.e. short antenna out of resonance.
Total posts : 45366Polly wanna cracker?
Total posts : 45366Make mine a Ritz…
Total posts : 45366I sure do want to play with on of those. My AMT3000 works great, I am just wondering how much better the AMT5000 will do with my external coil and the ability to tweak to full legal limit of 100 milliwatts.
I have a motorcycle trip scheduled for next week to ride the jeep trails of Colorado near Lake City.
Perhaps if I don’t spend all my money on wine, women and hospital bills! The only part of this statement that is remotely true is the hospital bill part, and perhaps a wee bit of whiskey!
I just really don’t like building kits. I have enough other things to do, but I see it coming about, and the price is right.
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