FCC enforcement action on unlicensed FM broadcast station

[TJ Hvasta]

Clay, there are several websites that have the online tests.. http://www.qrz.com/p/testing.pl is the first one that comes to mind. When I was upgrading I took the online tests a whole lotta times so I could see most of the questions and be prepped for the test... Take the Technician test over and over until you've seen just abt all the questions.. I did that for all the tests.. Technician, General, Advanced and Extra.. Extra was really the easiest, Advanced was waaaaay harder thant any other..

I got the wife into ham radio also.. she got her General ticket so she could talk to me on HF when I was driving to JFK from Norfolk and while I'm flying..

[Guest guest]

TJ Hvasta wrote:

Extra was really the easiest, Advanced was waaaaay harder thant any other..

I got the wife into ham radio also.. she got her General ticket so she could talk to me on HF when I was driving to JFK from Norfolk and while I'm flying..

Extra much easier than Advanced...seems like that hasn't changed. I did Advanced and Extra in one sitting, and after sweating thru the Advanced, I was terrified of the Extra..and breezed thru it. I would also say the Advanced was as tough as the General Radiotelephone, and a lot more up to date.

Luckily I never had problems with the code...and when I was active, exams meant a drive to the FCC field office in Detroit, so a 200 mile round trip. Extra incentive not to fail...

Reality is, I've had my Extra since sometime around 82 or 83, and probably don't have 5 ours of active operating time since then. Other than AE4DW (changed from WD8QXM when I finally settled in FL) on my license plate, my activity is nil. I sometimes do yearn for the days of 15 meter DX (worked almost 100% CW) on a Saturday morning....

[Max-Paul]

George Simmons wrote:

Greg Young wrote:

I am not sure why that stuck with me for all these years...

A brain quirk of some kind, no doubt. 7T01C209900 - the serial number of my '67 Mustang (which my brother demolished in the early 70's when he used it to try to move an oak tree.) I can't remember where I set the book I was reading this morning, or the last goofy thing that Max has said, but that serial number doesn't seem like its ever going away.


Thanks for the info Greg.

I see you are missing me George. Was that an attempt to get me to post in this thread? OR just so you could see my quote of your statement in my sig line?

[Guest guest]

TJ Hvasta wrote:

Clay, there are several websites that have the online tests.. http://www.qrz.com/p/testing.pl is the first one that comes to mind. When I was upgrading I took the online tests a whole lotta times so I could see most of the questions and be prepped for the test... Take the Technician test over and over until you've seen just abt all the questions.. I did that for all the tests.. Technician, General, Advanced and Extra.. Extra was really the easiest, Advanced was waaaaay harder thant any other..

I got the wife into ham radio also.. she got her General ticket so she could talk to me on HF when I was driving to JFK from Norfolk and while I'm flying..

Thanks TJ. Got that url bookmarked now and will check it out. I just may give this another whirl when I get some more time.

[TJ Hvasta]

Ah, ham radio, yet another hobby to sink money into!! As you see, there are a number of us here that are hams too, so if you have any questions, ask away!

Don.. when I was living in Norfolk VA, and commuting (driving) each week to JFK (NY), I'd have the Atlas210x on in the car so Diane could call me from home on the Kenwood430 if she needed me (this was in the 80's/90's before cellphones took off). I'd chat way with anyone during the 7hr drive.. When we moved out to AZ, I only talked on HF in the planes between Phoenix and Hawaii. Now, I'm only on 2M during the Drive-time nets early in the morning when I'm taking the youngest random-noise generator to school.. It's been almost 2yrs since I've been on HF but I still have the -706's in both cars.. only use the 2M side..

'havent heard of any FCC trucks running around the streets of PHX, sniffin'.. but I'm not going to give them a reason to.. the transmitter I got is only 250mw and is positioned downstairs(split-level house), it doesnt really go past the 9th or 10th house in either direction with more than an S3 or so.. and drops off btwn 300'-350'. I did check that if it's on the main floor (kitchen) it can be heard at the end of the block abt 1/4mi).

TJ, KD4QOB, N2STE, NN2J, NS2E..

[greenie95125]

Greg Young wrote:

Ok Orville, sounds good! I remember those CB days well.

In fact I can still remember my CB callsign (KBCV1809)! I am not sure why that stuck with me for all these years, as I haven't used it since the 1970's...

I just wanted to make sure folks who run stations that exceed the range a bit didn't misconstrue the intent of my posting, and get concerned. It wasn't addressing that type of operation, rather those with an excessive range due to higher power/higher gain external antennas...

Greg

LOL! KPP2810... I was the Bionic Mosquito. Funny how I can remember stuff from 35 years ago, but can't remember what I had for lunch yesterday!

Back to FM. I'm broadcasting using a 20w rig with a j-pole antenna in my garage. Since the antenna is at almost ground level, I get at best a mile.... 1/2 mile clear. I'm sure that if I had that antenna on the roof (wife said, "are you NUTS?"), I'd get at least 5 mi. I'm in a dense suburban area...lots of homes in the way at ground level. If the antenna was higher, I could lower the wattage. It's adjustable from .5 to 20w.

3 years now with this rig, and no visits from the black vans. I'm on a clear freq, and only broadcast from 5-11pm during show season.

[TJ Hvasta]

..just one question... Can I have your controllers when the guys in black vans show up? 20watts.. 20watts, really? Really? Why 20watts? Doesnt' it go any higher? Is your town short on radio stations playing Christmas music? even a J-pole in the garage aside.. and you get a mile with that? Why? People can see your house a mile away? Even if you were in rural Montana, there isnt a reason (or license) to run that power for that, the higher the power, the higher the fine will be.. I'm jus' sayin'... just takes one neighbor to anger with that.. a mile huh.. amazing.. (not in a good way I mean.. shakin' head..)

[rwertz]

TJ Hvasta wrote:

..just one question... Can I have your controllers when the guys in black vans show up? 20watts.. 20watts, really? Really? Why 20watts? Doesnt' it go any higher? Is your town short on radio stations playing Christmas music? even a J-pole in the garage aside.. and you get a mile with that? Why? People can see your house a mile away? Even if you were in rural Montana, there isnt a reason (or license) to run that power for that, the higher the power, the higher the fine will be.. I'm jus' sayin'... just takes one neighbor to anger with that.. a mile huh.. amazing.. (not in a good way I mean.. shakin' head..)

[rgardner518]

What is the way the fcc tests? I would like to test the same way to make sure I'm not over doing it! I have no way to know what wattage mine is. Is there a cheap way to test?

[rwertz]

ny_yankee_25 wrote:

What is the way the fcc tests? I would like to test the same way to make sure I'm not over doing it! I have no way to know what wattage mine is. Is there a cheap way to test?

The FCC limit is basically worded as a certain amount of signal strength at a specified distance from the transmitter. I believe the correct test method involves measurements at several locations with a "field strength meter". This is something that only your local radio lab would be able to perform with any accuracy (if radio labs even exist any more).

But you can get a good idea how strong your signal strength is based on how far you can cleanly receive your transmission. If you can receive it more than a couple blocks away, you are probably over the limit by some amount (unless you live in a very deserted area). If you can receive your signal a half mile away, you are probably well over the limit.

Keep in mind that the original intent of this thread wasn't to scare somebody who is slightly over the limit. It was intended to point out that if you are running high power (oh say 20 watts for example) and can be heard all over town, the FCC will probably not be very understanding when they come out to investigate an interference complaint and find your signal.

[rwertz]

I had posted this on PC earlier. If anyone thinks the FCC will never have a reason to investigate their FM signal, just one call is all it takes.

1-888-TELL-FCC
http://www.fcc.gov/cib/consumerfacts/interference.html

[Guest guest]

ny_yankee_25 wrote:

I have no way to know what wattage mine is.

Can't you locate your Transmitter manufacturer on-line and get a "Technical Data Sheet" for it that gives this info?

I couldn't recall what wattage or milliWatts(sp?) my Eclipes 4000 was either, so I went to the Mobile Black Box website and looked up the Tech Spec sheet and found it's set at 500mW. I'm not sure what or if there is even a specific mW rating that these FM Tranmitters are set at for FCC limitations for "Hobbyist usage", but I do know that WITHOUT an attenutor on mine between the MBB E-4000 box and the antenna, it can transmit 5+ miles very easily in really good weather conditions, also transmits that distance due to I live across from a Lake where it's wide open spaces to the back neighborhood where, again WITHOUT the attenuator, I could pick up my transmissions all the way back there, which is a good 5-7 mile distance from my house. (My house faces the lake and only has one house to pass through before the lake area.)

So I spent $9.99 on an attenuator to cut my signal WAY DOWN, I still get out about a half-mile, but it's usually pretty broken up and staticy at that distance. Signal starts breaking down by the time I get to the end of my block at the STOP sign, about 2/10 of a mile away.

How I checked to see how far my transmission was getting out right after I bought my units Audio input into my computer speaker output and play some MP3 files that wouldn't normally be playing on a radio station, then drove around to see just how far I could get the signal in all directions. It was crystal clear all the way around in a 5 mile radius, that WAS definitely OVER the FCC Limits and that's when I found out, from a lot of folks here and at PC about what I needed to do or get to bring the signal down to the legal limitations. Attenuator fixed my issue with that/

This is the attenuator I used: (hope the url works as they may not have them now, they only had them in "limited quantities" and the company does require a $15.00 minimum order.)

http://www.mpja.com/prodinfo.asp?number=16547+TE

Just checked, they still have 9 in stock as of this posting 11:35pm - 11/10/2010

[greenie95125]

TJ Hvasta wrote:

..just one question... Can I have your controllers when the guys in black vans show up? 20watts.. 20watts, really? Really? Why 20watts? Doesnt' it go any higher? Is your town short on radio stations playing Christmas music? even a J-pole in the garage aside.. and you get a mile with that? Why? People can see your house a mile away? Even if you were in rural Montana, there isnt a reason (or license) to run that power for that, the higher the power, the higher the fine will be.. I'm jus' sayin'... just takes one neighbor to anger with that.. a mile huh.. amazing.. (not in a good way I mean.. shakin' head..)

Nope, you can't have my controllers after that. And no, I don't continually broadcast at 20 watts. I simply made a statement regarding my range with 20w and a j-pole in the garage. That was to compare my range with someone with 1 watt who was getting well over that. My car can go over 100mph, so do you assume that's the speed I drive all the time? Should I not drive it because it's capable of breaking the law?

When I was researching transmitters, I wanted high quality sound, stereo, quality components and RDS. I looked at a LOT of rigs, and read tons of reviews. It just so happened that the rig I settled on was capable of transmitting at 20w.

I read a lot of posts here about AC hum, or static, or interference from the controller, etc, etc. I have none of those problems. I'm happy with my purchase, even if you are not.



--Mike

[rgardner518]

Orville wrote:

ny_yankee_25 wrote:

I have no way to know what wattage mine is.

Can't you locate your Transmitter manufacturer on-line and get a "Technical Data Sheet" for it that gives this info?

I couldn't recall what wattage or milliWatts(sp?) my Eclipes 4000 was either, so I went to the Mobile Black Box website and looked up the Tech Spec sheet and found it's set at 500mW. I'm not sure what or if there is even a specific mW rating that these FM Tranmitters are set at for FCC limitations for "Hobbyist usage", but I do know that WITHOUT an attenutor on mine between the MBB E-4000 box and the antenna, it can transmit 5+ miles very easily in really good weather conditions, also transmits that distance due to I live across from a Lake where it's wide open spaces to the back neighborhood where, again WITHOUT the attenuator, I could pick up my transmissions all the way back there, which is a good 5-7 mile distance from my house. (My house faces the lake and only has one house to pass through before the lake area.)

So I spent $9.99 on an attenuator to cut my signal WAY DOWN, I still get out about a half-mile, but it's usually pretty broken up and staticy at that distance. Signal starts breaking down by the time I get to the end of my block at the STOP sign, about 2/10 of a mile away.

How I checked to see how far my transmission was getting out right after I bought my units Audio input into my computer speaker output and play some MP3 files that wouldn't normally be playing on a radio station, then drove around to see just how far I could get the signal in all directions. It was crystal clear all the way around in a 5 mile radius, that WAS definitely OVER the FCC Limits and that's when I found out, from a lot of folks here and at PC about what I needed to do or get to bring the signal down to the legal limitations. Attenuator fixed my issue with that/

This is the attenuator I used: (hope the url works as they may not have them now, they only had them in "limited quantities" and the company does require a $15.00 minimum order.)

http://www.mpja.com/prodinfo.asp?number=16547+TE

Just checked, they still have 9 in stock as of this posting 11:35pm - 11/10/2010

I found the spec's for mine, But I have no clue how to understand them! Anyone willing to translate it for me? Also after reading the spec's do I need a attenuator?

[align=left]Technical Specification
[/align]

• Power supply voltage: DC 9-15V (12V recommended)
  Operating current: Less than 0.5A
  Frequency range: 88 ~ 108Mhz
  Frequency step: 100kHz
  Frequency stabilization method: PLL
  Frequency stability: ± 10 ppm (-10° C to +60 ° C )
  Frequency Deviation: Less than ± 75kHz (100%)
  Working method: Continuous
  Clutter and Harmonic: Less than -60dB
  SNR: 60dB
  Stereo Channels Crosstalk:-50dB
  Audio frequency response: 20 to 15000Hz
  Audio distortion: Less than 2%
  Modulation: 15%
  Input Level:-15dBV
  RF output impedance: 50 Ohm
  RF output power: 0.5~1 W (near the center frequency of 5MHz
  Reference range: 100m - 1Km (A barrier-free environment)
  Dimensions: 100mm(L) *80mm(W) * 30mm(H)

[Guest guest]

ny_yankee_25 wrote:

I found the spec's for mine, But I have no clue how to understand them! Anyone willing to translate it for me? Also after reading the spec's do I need a attenuator?


[align=left]Technical Specification
[/align]

• Power supply voltage: DC 9-15V (12V recommended)
  Operating current: Less than 0.5A
  Frequency range: 88 ~ 108Mhz
  Frequency step: 100kHz
  Frequency stabilization method: PLL
  Frequency stability: ± 10 ppm (-10° C to +60 ° C )
  Frequency Deviation: Less than ± 75kHz (100%)
  Working method: Continuous
  Clutter and Harmonic: Less than -60dB
  SNR: 60dB
  Stereo Channels Crosstalk:-50dB
  Audio frequency response: 20 to 15000Hz
  Audio distortion: Less than 2%
  Modulation: 15%
  Input Level:-15dBV
  RF output impedance: 50 Ohm
  RF output power: 0.5~1 W (near the center frequency of 5MHz
  Reference range: 100m - 1Km (A barrier-free environment)
  Dimensions: 100mm(L) *80mm(W) * 30mm(H)

As near as I can tell from that infomation, it can go up to 1 Watt of power output, mine is only 1/2 that at 500mW, so I would think your best bet would be to add an attenuator between the antenna and the antenna jack on the unit. Always better to be on the safe side.

Mine was spelled out for me on the MBB website. So if I'm incorrect in what I'm seeing, I'm sure some of the other folks here that have a wee bit more knowledge of how to read that output power will chime in and let you know wether or not you really need the attenuator. Near as I can figure it out, I'd say chances were good you probably do.