F.M. transmitter

[walter davidson]

I am new getting into this area, we have a 128 channel lor coming in and we would like to know what is the best radio transmitter to use? Our house sits 200 ft. off the road and any help that anyone can give us will be appreciated.

Thanks Cheryl and Walter Davidson

[JimCanfield]

Try this thread: http://lightorama.mywowbb.com/view_topic.php?id=19034&forum_id=79&highlight=transmitter

[zman]

I have a Ramsey FM100B and a EDM, I formerly had a Ramsey FM30B that I sold to a buddy as well. I have 2 so that I have a spare, and early on, wanted the features of the FM100B (live mic, dual input). Either of these companies products are outstanding. You can pay less for other products depending on what your budget is.

You can find Ramsey as kits on E-bay very reasonable prices, or if you look around, you can find one assembled.

[DavidPeterson]

I've been happy with my Ramsay 25B that I got assembled from Christmasincruces.com. I think he might have a PlanetChristmas discount. I'd just avoid the 10C, it doesn't have a frequency lock.

[PreludeRM]

I bought the FM transmitter that they sell here on lightorama. The first time I tried it I only got in my house. I opened it up and soldered a new antenna with a length or 110 inches to get a full band FM signal. Now I can transmit easily 2 city blocks. More than enough for what I need.

[DavidPeterson]

Careful on boosting the signal. In the US at least, getting that kind of power can cause the FCC to come knocking. I don't think Canada is all that different in that regard.

[PreludeRM]

Extending the antenna didn't boost the power it just allows the transmitter to transmit a full FM band wave. I have read about some of the other FM transmitter kits some members have can do 40 city blocks. Now thats power.

[-klb-]

Actually, the FCC limit is on radiated energy at a specified distance. Increasing your range will increase the measured radiated energy at that distance, even if there is no change in power from the transmitter.

But, the key thing in the US is to not give anyone the reason to call the FCC in the first place. Do not run a dirty transmitter that might have harmonics and enough power to interfere with aircraft frequencies. That can get two agencies on you really fast. In the same way, don't interfere with police and fire radios. They can also exist in ranges where dirty transmitters can throw off a lot of harmonic energy, and they can also get the FCC's attention pretty quickly. And also don't interfere with anyone who is currently listening to a commercial radio station. If there are listenable stations to either side of the frequency you are using, make sure you don't interfere with their signal. When looking for a good station to use, you might avoid the frequency that has a weak NPR signal with no other stations competing in the same frequency, and choose one with more total signal to talk over, but where it is two different distant stations, such that neither one is listenable. Back to the NPR station, you don't want to annoy somebody who put up an antenna just to be able to listen to that weak, but uncontested signal. They, or the station may know where to go to get the situation investigated. Low population density can be a double edged sword. There are fewer people to notice if you do interfere with a commercial station, but they are more likely to have made an effort to be able to hear it, and thus more likely to report it.