No kidding!
It seemed like, for its problems, it was a simpler time, and one could get away with more fun, but legally iffy stuff without getting in trouble. Unless one was actively causing negative interference with someone else's signal, it seemed like they simply didn't care that much.
c
That's good to know. I only experiment on that frequency occasionally to see how far I can reach with my current setup; 1610 kHz is really noisy here because there's a TIS station somewhere nearby that is off-frequency and operating somewhere around 1609 kHz. The result is that there is a low rumble that basically jams the frequency, so my setup's effective range is reduced to almost nothing.
Unfortunately, the band here is so congested that there's basically nowhere else to go except 1710 (1700, the highest possible fully legal frequency, is OK in the daytime, but skywaves from XEPE come in at night and clobber everything else).
Incidentally, there is a signal on 1710 around here. It's a TIS-like station being broadcast from Travis AFB in Fairfield, which I can hear clearly from more than 30 miles away. That shouldn't be legal, yet the AFB is doing it? Are they allowed an exception because they operate as part of the federal gov't and supersede the FCC somehow?
I think this is what I will do for maximum legality. I like the novelty of broadcasting in C-QUAM Stereo, but I'd rather stick to mono (unless it's possible to easily and legally modify either of these to broadcast C-QUAM) than risk being fined, imprisoned or both.
That said, if anyone knows where I can find either of these used for an affordable price, let me know (if it's not against forum rules, that is), as I'm finding new prices somewhat difficult to afford.
c