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Drive-in church

frankberry said:


87.7 and 87.9 would work well for short-range "neighborhood" broadcasting in most areas.
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I usually tried to use those frequencies for my MP3 transmitters for my car when I used them and it worked well most times except for when I was in areas with a station on channel 6, mainly Paducah, KY and Memphis. The station in Memphis (WPGF-LP) is still on analog as a Franken FM.

kenglish said:
There are plenty of DTV stations, including full-power, operating in the VHF bands. Even the low-band has a couple of dozen, often in mid to major markets. In the western states, there are lots of Class-A and LPTV, and lots of both digital and even analog translators.
The broadband folks would love to re-pack again, and force OTA all down in to VHF.
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During the TV repack stations at least in the low VHF band (2-6) should have been required to move. WMC NBC 5 in Memphis didn't have to move and they still have a terrible signal. They have apparently made no effort to move and apparently don't care as long as they're carried on cable. Hopefully that will change with ATSC 3.0 in the future.
 
frankberry said:
I wasn't writing about Part 15 broadcasting (it wouldn't cover enough area anyway). I was writing about a new class of very low power neighborhood broadcasting. Something perhaps, limited to one watt with an antenna height no greater than ten feet, designed to cover a few blocks at most.
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The UK has something like that, under several different categories.

"Restricted Service Licenses" are for very low power FM stations, and last for 28 days.

Low Power AM Radio: These have a power of one watt (!!) and operate on 1134, 1251, 1278, 1350, 1386, 1431, and 1575 kHz.

Low Power FM Radio: These make US low power FMs look like flamethrowers, as the UK versions run 50 milliwatts!!! These are mostly on 87.7 kHz and would be the closest thing to what Frank is proposing. Britain also has "Community Radio" which is more like American LPFMs operating with similar powers.

Community Audio Distribution Systems: These operate on 27 MHz CB channels, airing church services and community events. These may operate only a few hours per week, and have made themselves an interesting target for shortwave DXers.

I have vaguely heard of similar stations in a few other countries, but have never dug into the details. More research needed!
 
My church has resumed in-person services in the parking lot. I haven't gone to any yet. They're too early so it will be cool (er) so I watch the Youtube video that is supposed to be the same thing from the pastor's office. When it is actually cool maybe I'll actually go.

I don't know how many churches use FM but mine does. I don't know how they got a station or who makes it work, but maybe it's the man who runs the sound system.
 
vchimpanzee said:
I don't know how many churches use FM but mine does. I don't know how they got a station or who makes it work, but maybe it's the man who runs the sound system.
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It's probably a nominally part 15 transmitter. I forget what the power limit is for Part 15, but I think Part 15 is supposed to cover an area of a few hundred yards.
 
PTBoardOp94 said:
It's probably a nominally part 15 transmitter. I forget what the power limit is for Part 15, but I think Part 15 is supposed to cover an area of a few hundred yards.
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See my Post #10 above. A legal Part 15 FM transmitter will give you a radius of about 30-50 feet max. AM will do a bit better, but not by much.
 
I finally went to a service this morning. The pastor and the person who normally runs the sound were under the type of tent they use in cemeteries for funerals. Attached to that podium the pastor spoke from was a large sign that said 90.5 FM. I didn't need a radio because I could hear just fine. A pickup truck was backed up to where they were but I didn't get a good look at any of the equipment.

I also couldn't see the sign that well. I just watched a video that the pastor did last week for those who did not attend, and he did say 90.5. This is strange because 90.7 is a strong frequency around here.
 
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This morning I remembered to switch to 90.7 so I wouldn't hear other church services on the way to my own. Actually, all I'm trying to avoid is the shouting preachers who have this narrow interpretation. I did miss hearing organ music on the way home but forgot about that until I had gotten home.

In the parking lot I could hear 90.7 even though my church was using 90.5, but as I got closer to the equipment on the way out, I did experience some interference.
 
My church had reopened for a few weeks in June and July, but went back to online services because some people caught the virus. They had an outdoor service today, but I didn't go and watched online.
 
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