FM Transmitter Delema

[mmais68569]

I am new this year & want to buy an FM Transmitter for my show but I have looked at so mine I am confused I have narrowed it down to 3;

1 The ramsey 35BTw look at link ;

http://www.ramseyelectronics.com/cgi-bin/commerce.exe?preadd=action&key=FM35BWT

2 The .5 Stero FM transmitter from China on Ebay see link;

http://cgi.ebay.com/0-5W-STEREO-FM-TRANSMITTER-LCD-ANTENNA-POWER_W0QQitemZ150271243217QQihZ005QQcategoryZ4675QQtcZphotoQQcmdZViewItemQQ_trksidZp1742.m153.l1262

3 The whole house FM transmitter see link;

http://www.wholehousefmtransmitter.com/whole-house-fm-transmitter-gold-edition-p-39.html

I really do not want to spend that much money for the Ramsey BUT I do want a unit that will not only last this season but may sesons to come. I would appreceate any & all feed back on these units.

Also how do I get & post the LOR logo at the bottom of my posts.



Thanks Mike:)

[Jeff 1S.A.H.D.]

http://www.ccrane.com/radios/fm-transmitters/fm-transmitter.aspx


Did you look at this



Jeff 1S.A.H.D.

[mmais68569]

Yes but I thought it was a cheap price & would not last a while.

Mike

[zman]

Ramsey is a great option, but I would query EDN on this site. They have a great product and has been discussed a lot, so you can find great data about it.

[Steve Saunders]

Here is a link for the sale that Taybryn had set up with EDM. I think he was going to bring it back a little latter this year when intrest picked back up. http://lightorama.mywowbb.com/forum81/16278.html

-Steve

[Jeff 1S.A.H.D.]

Had mine for 3 years now and works great


Jeff 1S.A.H.D.

[ItsMeBobO]

I got the FM100B from here at a good price. I have met the owner Jeff and he is a stand up guy http://thefrighteners.com/FMStereoTransmitters.htm

Took me three tries to get something which worked. First I tried a whole house retransmitter (not any brand discussed in this thread) which was limited to two frequencies. Both had nearby stations here in St Louis so it had a range of about 10 feet.

Next I tried the Ramsey fm10 which reached the street but the tuning was difficult and drifted. Finally have something rock solid with the FM100. It was a challenge to build and test however.

[T34 Flyer]

I have tried 3 transmitters for industrial applications. I find the Ramsey FM100B to be the rock solid no drift leader.

[John Hertig]

You want a unit with PLL (Phase Locked Loop) so that the frequency you are transmitting on won't drift with changes in temperature. You also want one which covers the whole FM frequency range. 7 choices around 106 and 107 may be too restrictive.

The Whole House only has 7 frequency choices, 106.7 to 107.9. IF one of those works for you, it may be ok, but if those frequencies are taken OR someone complains that you are 'causing interferance', you may not be able to transmit.

Ramsey is a well known company. Their 25B model seems a decent choice for this purpose at a reasonable price. They have fancier models, but those seem like overkill, and I'm not sure if they lose their settings when powered off. The technical reviews of the Ramsey tend not to be thrilled by their specs, but it should be adequate.

.5W is a bit much power for an unlicenced FM transmitter. You are restricted to a certain broadcast power at a specified distance, which is real difficult to measure. If the ebay transmitter does not have a power adjustment, I would avoid it since FCC violations are very expensive. Also, make sure it covers the entire band, not just a few select frequencies.

From all I read, the top EDM model seems the way to go.

[mmais68569]

What do you use for power on the EDM unit, specs say it only has a 12V power cord?

Mike

[cmoore60]

It comes with a wall wart powersupply. I purchase one of the units and quite happy.

Chuck

[javerill]

Mike,
I bought my transmitter from the same company from China about two years ago. Great service and the transmittter works great!

I have the .5W transmitter. No problems!

[taybrynn]

There is a sale on the EDM transmitters now for members only. I was getting a lot of private message expressing interest in restarting the sale ... so I did. THis sale ends 11/30/08 ... so that folks will all get theirs in time for Christmas. I don't advise waiting that long.

See the sale thread here:
http://lightorama.mywowbb.com/forum80/16823.html

The EDM comes with its own power supply and is included in the unit sold to LOR members at the sale link above.

The chinese (aka hk) units are actually quite decent, but way overpowered for what is needed. And unfortunately, the power is not adjustable for part15 FCC compliance. So that leads me to reccomend most folks to the EDM for a 'no regrets' transmitter at a relatively budget friendly price. Sure, if your on a really tight budget, then go for the Belkin and don't expect miracles ... but it works ok. I don't reccomend anything other than the ramsey, edm and belkin modded units ... but have heard the mobileblackbox is decent ... but for the money spent, I'd just get an EDM instead since the MBB is mono-only and relatively obscure and spec-wise, very inferior to the EDM.

I've sold to guys with both Ramseys and these chinese (hk) units ... and
all told me they quality on the EDM LCD was as good or better. The noise
is significanly lower on the EDM than on the hk units ... range about the same,
amazingly.

Keep in mind that most members own and will reccomend the Ramsey units ... which are fine units, but rather high priced by comparison and the kits significantly more complex to assemble.

Stay away from that wholehouse transmitter -- sure, it works ok, but as already mentioned, it has limited FM frequency choices ... and that makes that unit very likely to break FCC Part15 rules by over-transmitting existing stations ... not a good idea and a great way to get a knock on your door someday.

Regards,
Scott

[Guest wbottomley]

Scott... more than likely after the season fires up, I might get one as a back-up. The size of it is key.

[Bubba in NV]

I got the Ramsey 25B last year. I hooked up the GE Mr. Christmas to it. It gave everyone a good show also.

I now have the LOR 16 channel for this year. Same lights but more fun.

The Ramsey gave me no problems running 9 hours a night for 37 days last year. It transmitted about a 2 mile radious. (which covers my whole town).

I live in a culdesack and had cars parked for hours all last December out there.

[taybrynn]

FYI

This is the EDM group buy sale thread. You can save 10% on the EDM LCD and its feature and quality comparable to the Ramsey FM30B, but a lot easier to build, less money ... and double the warranty.

http://lightorama.mywowbb.com/forum80/16823.html

[pdowns]

I recently bought the Ramsey FM30 kit. It's half the price of the FM35. It works great but I would not recommend it unless you have electronics experience. The FM35 has too much power if you care about being legal in the U.S. (and you should)

My general advice is to go with a preassembled transmitter.