thinking of stating a part 15 station

[buzzrockradio]

how does it work? also what is the signal strenth, how far does it go?

 

[dbdigital]

Here is an overview of FCC requirements for unlicensed operation:

http://www.fcc.gov/mb/audio/lowpwr.html

You can acheive more with part-15 AM than FM.

Here is a company that manufactures probably the best solution for broadcasting part-15 AM over a large area:

http://www.am1000rangemaster.com/

Here is a good general article describing part-15 broadcasting:

http://digitalsyndicate.tv/part15.html

Here is a commercial radio station actually doing it:

http://www.radiosandysprings.com/

These are good places to start researching.

db

 

[WDCX]

Ditto on the Rangemaster. Not cheap but.........You get what you pay for. Follow the installation EXACTLY. Take no shortcuts. You cannot shortcut your way to success with a Part15 station. You will be rewarded for your hard work.

 

[tjthedj]

The Rangemaster kicked my (legal) station signal 4 miles this morning (Sunday). There is generally ALOT of neighborhood "factory noise" during the week. Must be that the factories were not operating this (Sunday) morning.

Rangemaster and legal antenna /orban processor/ots ROCKS!

 

[Grrrradio]

I've never done much experimenting with Part 15 AM, so I'm always curious as to what sort of signal strength Part 15 ops are referring to when they make their maximum-distance reception reports. Is the standard generally to use "full quieting on a car receiver" coverage; "noisy but tolerable with the car running"; "copyable once you shut the car off"; or "specialized tuner with well-matched antenna will render something faintly recognizable"?

Also, what field strengths approximately correspond to the above reception qualities? (I realize that this varies significantly from receiver to receiver, so even the roughest subjective notion based on "the average car that one has dealt with" will be helpful here. ) And in a related inquiry, to what field strengths do the red, purple, and blue contours on Radio-Locator correspond for AM signals? (If memory serves, FM is 1 mV/m, 316 uV/m, and 100 uV/m...)

 

[tjthedj]

My 4 stations are AM. The (fcc legal) Rangemaster coverage is always better than a mile radius. The other transmitters are ok but inferior to Rangemaster.

 

[kenhawk1160]

My 4 stations are AM. The (fcc legal) Rangemaster coverage is always better than a mile radius. The other transmitters are ok but inferior to Rangemaster.

Do you simulcast the same signal over all four of your stations? If so, what's your frequency spacing among the four? I heard about that little Part 15 in Sandy Springs, Georgia and after hearing it and reading this thread, I definitely want to learn more. I don't think you can go wrong doing this if you've got a business head for how the industry works.

 

[tjthedj]

There are 2 Catholic stations that broadcast the same thing 12 hours in English and 12 in Spanish, a couple of miles apart, serving 2 parishes.

There is a "beautiful music" station that serves a senior home, with usa network news on the hour, weather bulletins from the nws, and a push to talk microphone in case the administrator wants to announce something, and the station at my home is 50's and 60's oldies.

None of the 4 have overlapping signals. All stations are automated in various ways. They hae been on the air now for 3 years with very few problems and mostly twice weekly maintenance. 2 were built by an engineer. I copied his design at the other 2.

If you want to talk, e-mail me at [email protected].

 

[kenhawk1160]

There are 2 Catholic stations that broadcast the same thing 12 hours in English and 12 in Spanish, a couple of miles apart, serving 2 parishes.

There is a "beautiful music" station that serves a senior home, with usa network news on the hour, weather bulletins from the nws, and a push to talk microphone in case the administrator wants to announce something, and the station at my home is 50's and 60's oldies.

None of the 4 have overlapping signals. All stations are automated in various ways. They hae been on the air now for 3 years with very few problems and mostly twice weekly maintenance. 2 were built by an engineer. I copied his design at the other 2.

If you want to talk, e-mail me at [email protected].

Thanks, man. I'll do that.