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Turning on Transmitter with show


Bjorn74

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I'm running a .25W FM transmitter with the display but I dion't want it to run all day. I thought I could give it a channel and run a background sequence that was a constant on for a minute to loop in the background part of the show. What's been happening with that, though is the channel takes a while to come on and the music is missing for a minute or so of each sequence because it shuts off after each sequence in the show. As a work around I readded the channel to my sequences and made it a constant on throughout the show. This is working with only a minor blip of static between songs. This works ok since it sounds like applause, but it still isn't doing what I'd like.

Does the Background tab not work as advertised or might I need a software upgrade? I'm certain I'm on the latest release available.

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I leave mine on all the time.

Simplest (and cheapest, if you already use X-10) way to turn it on and off with the shows would be with an X-10 channel. If you don't already use X-10 I think you'll find the small initial investment in the CM11A controller is well worth it for turning on/off static items like this without burning up LOR channels...

-Tim

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My solution is very simple. I just bought a cheap timer, plugged the radio power into it and set it to come on 10 minutes before the display time starts. It turns off about 15 minutes after the display ends.

Tom B. (the other one)

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Keep the transmitter on a channel in the background sequence as you did. Then create an animation (non-musical) sequence about a minute long and have it be your startup sequence.

The background and startup sequences will start at the same time, giving your transmitter time to warm up, and after the startup sequence is done, the musical sequences will start.

If you want your first musical sequence to start at a specific time, then after creating a 1-minute startup sequence, simply adjust the schedule to start your show 1 minute earlier.

Your startup sequence could do something like a "light test" in which it turns on every light in sequence. This would be an indication that the show is about to start.

I used an X10 channel for my transmitter, and another for an audio amplifier, but if you have plenty of extra LOR channels, you could use those.

By the way, .25W is pretty strong for a light show transmitter. You might want to test it by driving your car slowly past your house. If you can still hear it 2 blocks away, you may want to reduce the power so as not to interfere with someone else. There is another LOR user about 2 miles away from me. I picked the same frequency, but made sure my signal only goes about a block.

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I leave mine on 24/7. I just make sure it is unplugged from the audio output on the computer so the listening public doesn't hear all the computer noises, beeps, errors, etc..

If I did turn it off, I would run it on a separate timer - freeing up a LOR Channel for more lights.

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Dale W wrote:

I leave mine on 24/7. I just make sure it is unplugged from the audio output on the computer so the listening public doesn't hear all the computer noises, beeps, errors, etc..

If I did turn it off, I would run it on a separate timer - freeing up a LOR Channel for more lights.


We run ours 24/7 too. I used to run music 24/7 even with the lights off. Now I don't, but we use a dedicated show computer so I don't have to worry about extraneous computer noises (unless I'm mucking with the schedule or something...)

-Tim
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  • 2 weeks later...

First year, LOR and transmitter are on my covered front porch about 9 feet up. Walk outside, reach up, and push button on transmitter before show starts. Who needs all this fancy technical stuff anyhow? :(

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Dale W wrote:

I leave mine on 24/7. I just make sure it is unplugged from the audio output on the computer so the listening public doesn't hear all the computer noises, beeps, errors, etc..




There is a "commercial" radio station in Bismarck North Dakota owned by Clear Channel, where those computer error sounds and beeps are common place on the air.:shock: It's really annoying during Rush's show, ding, boink, Windows shutdown music, later Windows startup music while ON THE AIR!
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basis21b wrote:

My solution is very simple. I just bought a cheap timer, plugged the radio power into it and set it to come on 10 minutes before the display time starts. It turns off about 15 minutes after the display ends.

Tom B. (the other one)


Heh, so I'm not the only who thinks cheap.

I like the x-10 idea though. That way I could turn the accent lights back on after a show. (time to post at the x-10 forum)
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Bjorn74 wrote:

Or do you guys not care about leaving the transmitter on the whole time?


I leave mine on all the time. It's no big energy loss. In fact, during the day, I am running a sequence which plays repeatedly (no lights of course). It gives information about show times, dates and other related info. This way, there is always something going on at that radio frequency so that when people drive by during the day, they can tune in to hear what is going on.

Tim has a good suggestion with the X10 control if you don't want to run the transmitter all the time. If using X10, you need to have a good one because some X10 devices aren't very good at switching on very low loads such as a tranmitter. Or you might consider just a cheap $10 time from the hardware store.

By the way, I think you mean to say you have a 25 milliWatt unit, not .25 Watt? If you running more than 25 milliWatts in the USA, then you are running it illegally.

Richard.
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Richard Hamilton wrote:

By the way, I think you mean to say you have a 25 milliWatt unit, not .25 Watt? If you running more than 25 milliWatts in the USA, then you are running it illegally.



You're right. It's 25 milliWatts. I forgot to put the zero in.
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tpooler wrote:

First year, LOR and transmitter are on my covered front porch about 9 feet up. Walk outside, reach up, and push button on transmitter before show starts. Who needs all this fancy technical stuff anyhow? :)

Who needs all the technical stuff??? That's what we live for!!!!!

I have a 2 pole relay with a 110v coil I have on 1 channel. 1 side is for the transmitter, the other is for a small receiver I have in the garage hooked to a speaker at low volume. Helps for troubleshooting sequences during the show, and for anybody walking by can hear the music at low volume.
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