Questions, Comments Answered & Tips

We will try to post as many questions as we can to help you in your decision and set-up

Use our contact form to send your questions or ideas. We will respond FAST!! Answers to good questions are found below.
If you would like to contact others who have been doing this for years please visit: www.hobbybroadcaster.net

The AM1000 RangeMaster is tried and true, with many satisfied users (See the testimonials and of course do your own research). The AM1000 was designed to be professional broadcasting equipment and is fully assembled (not a kit). Most Real Estate type transmitters, non- professional transmitters, and kits are only designed to reach the road (1/4 mile or less) with poor sound quality, good enough to do the job of selling real estate.

See popular questions just below the youtube videos.

Contact Form Page (link)

Watch our Help Videos Below!

 

Not familiar with antenna tuning? Here is a short sample of the DVD you get to help in tuning. The beauty of this transmitter is that there is no feedline to to a remote antenna to fiddle with. Once you are grounded and the unit is mounted and wired - you just tune the final drive system then adjust your audio.
Everything you need is on this site and in the instructions.
It doesn't have to be too complicated if you start somewhere.

Simple commercial break process with liners we make here.

Remote station set-up

Testimonial:

I used 5 am 1000 range masters, for my lpam in nv, they were on a billboard 60 feet high, they more than covered the town 4 miles by 3 miles, and my station sounded like a 1kw these are the best xmtr's you can buy, and they are worth every penny, I know, I have set up stations all over the u.s.

Brad
California

 

Our company recently installed a Rangemaster AM1000 to provide community radio in our area. It has exceeded our expectations! Not only do we have superb range, but coupled with an Inovonics 222 AM processor, we actually sound better than the large FM stations in our area! The craftsmanship of this unit is excellent and its performance is every bit as good as our regular broadcast equipment. I highly recommend the AM1000 to any organization that wishes to provide quality “ON AIR” programming for a small community or other application. In our opinion, it’s the best on the market!

Old Dominion Broadcasting
Norfolk, VA
www.khib.tv

 

My name is Tony DeNicola, a professional radio engineer and owner of a AM 1000 transmitter operating on 1710 in Edison, NJ.  I also own and operate my licensed 1KW AM station in VA and work for Clear Channel Radio in New Jersey. I have to say that this transmitter stands right up to the sound of a Harris or Nautel  when you use professional audio equipment like a CRL, or Optimod.  I must say I’m very impressed with the coverage of the signal with such a low output power. The high Q gain of the output circuit really is incredible into a CB whip. My AM 1000 is mounted on my patio wood fence and is 10 ft off the ground and gets out 3 miles with great sounding audio using a Compellor and CRL compressor along with c CRL NRSC filter. I must give my thanks to radio engineer and also  owner of a AM 1000 to Dave McCrork who told me about Keith’s AM 1000. After I heard his station on 1620 in PA I was sold and purchased one.  I plan to broadcast Adult Standards along with Big Band music and news 24/7 by the summer of 2006 once I install the transmitter in my back yard away from the house on a 50 ft. telescopic mast. Thanks Keith for making it possible to broadcast to my local community legally.  I have pictures on my website.

Tony DeNicola
www.tonydeeradio.com

Questions Answered

4/2/2009
QUESTION:
There are so many compressors. I want a good sound but which one should I use? What's the best thing for the money?

ANSWER
Thanks for asking as this is easy.. You get what you pay for but there are a couple models which are on the low end which work very well. DBX by the way seem to have poor results.
I recommend the Behringer Autocom Pro MDX 1600. These range from $140 to $55 new or used. Search Craigslist, Ebay and your local music stores.
Update: A recient post on Hobbybroadcaster.net posted this thread on a new $40 preset Behringer which worked better than expected. Please look over this post found here: http://hobbybroadcaster.net/smf/index.php?topic=223.0
This is the Behringer Minicom-800 modeling compressor. Excellent and simple to attach for a basic interface before the transmitter.

 

3/11/2009
QUESTION:
I have people emailing me that I can get a talking house, or a hlly transmitter that would do the same as your set up, but for cheaper. Yours seems to be more powerful though, but what sets yours apart from these systems?

ANSWER
The talking house transmitter is nothing more than that - A talking house. You cant hear it from across the street in most cases. Assembled from very low quality parts it's not even worth typing about. No frequency control - audio squeals just out of the range and does not offer any technical help.
This unit does not transmit even at the 100mw level and does not allow for 100% or more modulation. It's worth about $20 which is the same as a MR. Microphone you could buy in the 1970's.
Don't take my word for it - read the Hobbybroadcaster forum and see for yourself. It's pretty sad when people give this advice when they dont know..

Also no antenna options. I own one of their units as well as a local realtor who uses one. Call me if you have more questions on this.

2/13/2008

QUESTION:
I live outside of a 60,000 size town in Texas. Would I be better off working on that area or the closer 25,000 population town?

ANSWER:
Good question. If it were me I would go for the 25K pop town because one or two could cover the entire town and there likely isn't a station there now. This will unite more people for more solidarity for your quest to wake people up. Also likely you could get on a home or two for free. I have had several people allow me to mount these on homes as they were patriots and knew of what I was doing through others.

Just think what happens when someone scans through the dial as everyone eventually does and your signal is the strongest 24/7?

You have other options too. You could microwave two sites, you could find a commercial location where you could separate the two units by 50' and tie them together or just one unit and spend more time grounding them up well. Many towns have a water tower and would charge $50 or less per month to use if no other options were available.

Make sure all the motel alarm clock radios are set to your station!

 

2/9/2008

COMMENT:
I like the concept, but the cost is too high. Being an engineer, I understand the engineering aspects and the compliance engineering required to meet the FCC rules for intended radiators, but the cost is too high for your typical reader, IMHO.

I would kit this, then you get away from the FCC issues, the cost comes down significantly and you sell many more, and as you said, you are in it for the information dissemination.

Then I write up an article on remotely powering this and stream data to it on hilltops/rooftops via wifi, making it almost throw away. If you could tune this thing digitally, you have some black ops potential here.

ANSWER:
Actually being certified gets you away from the FCC issues. The FCC states that they don't like kits period. They do like homebrew though as long as you stick to the rules.
And as you said the price is too high for your typical reader - It seems that way but the installation is also too difficult for the average reader too but these are designed for people with knowledge on the subject which over the years after using the Rangemaster they come to the same conclusion that no other device exists which covers this distance for the time and effort involved. A kit becomes a hobby totally masking the initial intent! Just read the supporting forums on this subject. The only people hanging around with questions and research are the kit builders trying to get more out of their units. Without a background on circuit board fundamentals there is only so much one can get from all the existing kits which are limited to 100% or less modulation.

I suggest you do as we did - research then you will come to the same conclusion. More distance, more options and better flexibility. It's posible to cover an entire county with this unit if you so desired.

A kit limits your abilities, distance allowed legally and the windings on the coil are way beyond even the most experienced kit builder. Kits also require you own a scope, freq counter, tone generator and spectrum analyzer which these are fully tested before sale. These are not made in China and are high quality devices. Many of the parts are no longer manufactured in the USA so they are carefully selected from Germany. The circuit board is built in North Carolina by the same man who builds underwater sonar transmitters. All assembly and work is designed for all temperature extremes. I've been on air with 7 now at -30F in the Dakotas.

If in kit form - this unit has built in a special phase timing microprocessor which allow for the multiple units (sync-signal) so to further align one needs a logic analyzer not to mention some knowledge of the theory. What we have here is all explained in the manual and DVD for anyone.

Every kit on the market will have you wishing you had something you could fully modulate with positive peaks, crystal tune, and attach an antenna without all the retapping into the coil.
We also don't have the staff for the back and fourth corrections for kit building errors and lack of equipment. A KIT will land you a fine if you are ambitious as there are microvolt limits per foot. Buy the $100 kit and you will be spinning your wheels. If one wants to fight the Infowar you need to be represented by quality. Look at all the forums out there just for one of the kits. People tweaking and trying to pump out more power - better coils, better audio, re-soldier, feedback noise, RF problems, wide filtering problems and LARGE circuit boards to do so, etc. Is that what we need or how about a club serious about putting these up like in OR, OK and LA making it a team effort to get the power on and the word out? Just one man in 50,000 is all it takes to make it happen.

Anyone can operate remotely any want they can - SCA, FM, AM retransmit. IP, microwave, satellite, MW, RTTY.. All features you mention are possible with this unit and digital auto tuning is being designed now for those who want to mount higher out of reach. That also includes modulation monitoring as requested by HI-FI Audiophiles - Again, this is the unit they use (professional veteran disk jock's)

This is for people who want to get the broadcasts out with full quality and expansion of a serious nature. I've been over the pricing numerous times with the two engineers and the cost all comes down to parts and importing from Europe. But we suggest the person team up with their local group to chip in. These units are selling well as they work and fill the gap where nothing existed before. I bought and tested the other AM Certified transmitter built in Canada just for example and the performance was no different that the kits, cost $600 and only reaches about 15 house while their PLL synthesized tune design (to save costs) interferes with the correct frequencies.

Bottom line, the kits become the focus in themselves and nothing accomplished. I think the kit builder would give up and abandon the project eventually.
Trust me - I am not making money on these. I have to sell quite a few to pay for the ad here. I love my constitution too much to be greedy. I want a future. I also offer discounts if you buy more than one and can even travel if you are not to far or will do my best to find someone close to the buyer to help them if they need it.. I am so impressed and excited with the quality here and the potential. Motown tunes for example sound like FM except not stereo through this thing. Full 10KHZ fidelity at 125%. No other radio will work in a system environment with the potential to cover an entire town.

What's more important? Waking people up or possessions which will have little value or purpose in the near future?

I hope this helps clear up the kit issue.

 

Difficult to pick up the signal? Is your listener on the edge of your coverage area? This will help