Thanks, JBraddock, I think that was the answer I was looking for. The advantages of one over the other. Makes perfect sense now.
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C.Crane Part 15 FM Transmitter 2
- Thread starter Schroedingers Cat
- Start date
25+ years ago I recall building and operating a Ramsey FM-10 transmitter. I constructed a J-Pole antenna (1/2~ end fed vertical) for it and installed on the roof of our home, so approximately 20ft. This setup worked great within a quarter-mile radius, and was "receivable" out to about 2 miles or so (Could tell it was there, but quite weak).
Most of these self-contained transmitters operate with antennas that are far less than optimal. I have a small micro FM transmitter that is mounted on the end of a gooseneck with a cigarette lighter plug on the other end. The 12" metal gooseneck actually serves as the antenna for the transmitter as originally designed. Replacing this with a 31" piece of wire GREATLY improved the range. I use it in my shack, connected to one of my rigs to monitor the 6m calling frequency during the summer. I can go about my business around the house/yard and monitor for openings with a Walkman or portable radio. Covers my 1.5 acre yard and a little beyond just fine even though I operate it from indoors below grade (in my basement).
Be smart, choose where you operate carefully and don't have unrealistic expectations. By the way, not condoning modifying equipment or violating FCC rules concerning part 15 operation in any way.
Most of these self-contained transmitters operate with antennas that are far less than optimal. I have a small micro FM transmitter that is mounted on the end of a gooseneck with a cigarette lighter plug on the other end. The 12" metal gooseneck actually serves as the antenna for the transmitter as originally designed. Replacing this with a 31" piece of wire GREATLY improved the range. I use it in my shack, connected to one of my rigs to monitor the 6m calling frequency during the summer. I can go about my business around the house/yard and monitor for openings with a Walkman or portable radio. Covers my 1.5 acre yard and a little beyond just fine even though I operate it from indoors below grade (in my basement).
Be smart, choose where you operate carefully and don't have unrealistic expectations. By the way, not condoning modifying equipment or violating FCC rules concerning part 15 operation in any way.
@K8PLW : A pal of mine used to wire Sparta (?) FM transmitter kits for snots and giggles. They were, iIrc, .8 watt jobs. He made two or three of them. 'Richie' was a CE at a few stations and always very 'wired' as it were, being an Army brat from Germany and assembling flawless N- or TT-gauge model railroad sets at like age 7 before his family moved back to the US.
He had been using some sort of blond plastic whip antenna to get his 'home' Sparta out on 87.9 -- again, just for fun, although he was more interested in the fidelity.
Well, a friend of his, also an enginner of sorts, once suggested some bunch of coiled wire inside a PCV pipe for an antenna. My pal said he had it on the lawn and leaning against the side of the house and the station got out crystal all around the lake where he lived, which had a circumference of some 4 miles.
Have you heard of any such yarn ? Outgoing plastic plumbing pipe with some form of bell-wire or Tuffy scouring sponges inside them ? I can't locate the name of the friend of his who suggested it.
Just for the sake of preserving anonymity, I'll just call my pal Edward Michael Richard Seney (sih-NAY), okay? 'Richie' brought a Sparta out this way once, all .8 watt of it, tuned to 87.9 and attached to some convenient junk ham-antenna I put on the roof. The signal was zero-quiet all around the town. About 4 years ago Richie passed at age 57 -- sudden heart attack. Among many things, especially with Holidays here, I'll never lose recall of his computer tips, audio programs, and the time he and I plus ANOTHER pal were working on getting my Ramsey *AM* transmitter to be directional from under the tree and Holiday decorations, with a lobe toward the kitchen.
Joyeux Noel, Happy Chanukkah and Season's wishes to all of you fine folks!
He had been using some sort of blond plastic whip antenna to get his 'home' Sparta out on 87.9 -- again, just for fun, although he was more interested in the fidelity.
Well, a friend of his, also an enginner of sorts, once suggested some bunch of coiled wire inside a PCV pipe for an antenna. My pal said he had it on the lawn and leaning against the side of the house and the station got out crystal all around the lake where he lived, which had a circumference of some 4 miles.
Have you heard of any such yarn ? Outgoing plastic plumbing pipe with some form of bell-wire or Tuffy scouring sponges inside them ? I can't locate the name of the friend of his who suggested it.
Just for the sake of preserving anonymity, I'll just call my pal Edward Michael Richard Seney (sih-NAY), okay? 'Richie' brought a Sparta out this way once, all .8 watt of it, tuned to 87.9 and attached to some convenient junk ham-antenna I put on the roof. The signal was zero-quiet all around the town. About 4 years ago Richie passed at age 57 -- sudden heart attack. Among many things, especially with Holidays here, I'll never lose recall of his computer tips, audio programs, and the time he and I plus ANOTHER pal were working on getting my Ramsey *AM* transmitter to be directional from under the tree and Holiday decorations, with a lobe toward the kitchen.
Joyeux Noel, Happy Chanukkah and Season's wishes to all of you fine folks!
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Not sure what type of antenna he was using to produce such outstanding coverage. I do recall building an FM BC 5/8~ vertical some years ago and enclosing it in 3/4" PVC. And of course it did contain a small matching coil at the base. I can confirm the scouring pad antenna is actually a real thing-- copper pads CAN be picked apart and used when there is absolutely nothing else available. This conversation brings back some great memories. I've built several of the Ramsey AM transmitters as well over the years for friends. Pretty sure I built at least one antenna for the AM transmitter using a length of enameled wire, a toilet paper tube and 102" whip.
With all the technology we have at our disposal it's easy to lose sight of the simple things. Radio is still magical to me, even after all these years.
Happy Holidays!
Same. I flew to my parents' place this past week to visit for Thanksgiving. Though I never got much into SW, in their storage I got to see a lot of the stuff that first stirred my interest in CB radio communications as a kid....A 23 channel Midland mobile that had a leather cover that slid over it and had a spot for AA batteries to be inserted in the top so you could power it from 12V in the car, or use AAs to run it as a mobile. I was able to mount that on one of my motorbikes with a small whip antenna and thought that was the coolest thing ever as I'd ride up to the top of the surrounding hills and see who I could listen to and talk with. My first base was a small 40 channel Realistic, and my later, favorite base - A Royce is still there as well, along with the Astatic lollipop mic I bought but never wired up. Out in back of their place, the ground plane antenna I bought used for $20 is still sitting on the ground after they took down the mounting pole when replacing their roof a few years back. Seeing all that stuff sure brought back some memories of a time that was indeed magical. And that all started my interest in radio communications, which I of course parlayed into the radio broadcast profession.
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Somebody must be using one of the aforementioned FM transmitters in my town, as on Sunday, I discovered a pirate on 87.9. Looks like it gets out 2.5-3 miles in each direction from somewhere east of me. It's overmodulated and relaying a webcast of a mostly-Spanish music outlet some 15 miles away. I wonder if that outfit even knows about this. The website has tremendous sonics; the station, hardly.
I only discovered it because of the chatter about reception of 87.9 car transmitters. Voila! A new log.
I only discovered it because of the chatter about reception of 87.9 car transmitters. Voila! A new log.
Not surprising given the easy availability of FM BC transmitters at power levels that far exceed anything legal under part 15. "Back in the day" a pirate operator would have to build the equipment themselves. No longer, just go on Amazon. Ive seen transmitters freely available for purchase there (And other places online) with power levels of up to 10 watts!
A great discussion here but can some recommend to me what to get? C.Crane or Whole House or something else? I've been looking towards the Whole House but I'm just not quite sure.
As someone who has used both, I would say the Whole House Transmitter. The C.Crane one is great, but the range of the Whole House Transmitter can’t be beat. I have used the Whole House Transmitter 2.0 so I am not sure how the new 3.0 is. Maybe some other posters can weigh in on the new Whole House 3.0 version.
I can only speak to the Whole House and not the C Crane. I don't have any experience with the C Crane transmitter. But I think of C Crane as a trusted brand. I couldn't be happier with my C Crane Skywave radio, and I think others here have made generally positive comments about C Crane products.
What I would do is ask myself two questions.... 1.) How much distance do I need? And 2.) How crowded is the FM band at my location? If you are looking for both distance and a product that can stand up to moderate or strong signals, I'd go with the Whole house. If you don't need much distance (25-50 feet) and there are multiple empty channels at your location, then try the C Crane. If you're not happy with it, send it back and get the Whole House.
If you have a smartphone, you might want to download an app called Clear FM which can help you find optimum empty channels available channels using your phone's GPS function.
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