community radio station

[dasola]

Dear buddies,
I'm to build an FM community radio station for the University as my final

year project. Please kindly help. I'm to build in stages that is the different stages

involved from the mixer, modulation, amplification, should be distinguishable. The

range is supposed to be about 15 to 20km radius. Please help.

thanks so much.
Dasola

 

[Nigel Goodwin]

You're not likely to find much help on this, as the requirements are fairly specific and not usually done.

You need high quality, high stability, and a VERY clean output, and presumably stereo encoding as well?.

Most FM transmitters you will find are either cheap crappy 'bug' types, or amateur radio NBFM types.

 

[stevez]

Most of the time universities or other entities plan to operate in a way that is compliant with all of the applicable laws. Radio transmissions are usually regulated and you should begin there. Frequency, stability, bandwidth, deviation, antenna, among other things, are likely to be regulated. You'll also need to understand the program material. From this an other information you'll start to understand the requirements of your transmitter. The first test might be whether or not you can even do what you want to do within the framework you've defined.

 

[Electrode]

If you are allowed to utilize any kits, try these guys:
http://www.ramseyelectronics.com/ click under Professional FM

 

[Hero999]

You also need a license to operate an FM transmitter in most areas.

 

[Papabravo]

Dear buddies,
I'm to build an FM community radio station for the University as my final

year project. Please kindly help. I'm to build in stages that is the different stages

involved from the mixer, modulation, amplification, should be distinguishable. The

range is supposed to be about 15 to 20km radius. Please help.

thanks so much.
Dasola

It would surprise me greatly if you could achieve this goal with an expenditure of less than several tens of thousands of dollars. Have you accounted for the test and monitoring equipment that will be required to monitor the signal and the studio equipment required to produce the programming?

The HF tower project for our club station is going just north of $30,000, for just the antennas, the tower, and mounting to the roof of the EECS building.

 

[dasola]

Campus FM station

Hi guys, thanks so much for the replies on the FM transmitter. I really appreciate it.
I quite understand the issues raised as regards the budget & license. the university will handle the license issue and if I can prove that work will suffice for the requirements (campus wide coverage ) then funding should not be a problem.
As regards the use of Kits, I Think its an option but it would mean I may not be able to understand the workings of the circuit.

I don't hide the fact that I'm a newbie but pls help in any way possilbe. Reference to books (online or otherwise) will be highly appreciated.

thanks so much.

 

[stevez]

Your original post suggests that you intend to construct the transmitter and possibly other parts of the system. Explicit or implied in your text is a willingness to be properly licensed and operate within the confines of that license as well as within the universities guidelines and policies. Good job so far.

Now, let me offer that the regulations are likely to govern many aspects of the transmitted signal including things like bandwidth, frequency, spurious emissions, etc. These things are a part of all transmitters and are influenced by the design, construction and operation. The regulations may not allow you to construct your own equipment - or if it is, that a properly qualified (maybe licensed) technician must test and verify that the system is compliant. As a licensed amateur I have to stay within the regulations which are somewhat demanding in terms of emissions. In my opinion, the regulations for amateurs are somewhat relaxed - possibly because of intermittent operation. It takes a lot of work to design, build and operate a compliant transmitter. Before investing too much time/money you might want to understand the entire committment. It certainly is possible for you to do this but there's a lot to it. The regulations are likely to be stricter than what I am used to for amateur applications. Without some knowledge of your location there is really no way for me to comment on that.

What you might do is contact people who manufacture this equipment. That would be in addition to reviewing the regulations for your location. The manufacturers often provide a good summary of the regulations or requirements in a way that can make sense for your situation. Once you understand the regulations you might then proceed in some kind of direction.

I know this seems like nothing more than a wet blanket but its the help that I can offer. Someone could offer you a design that looks good but only after investing a lot of time and money would you learn that it isn't acceptable. If I were your professor(s) I'd be looking for a good, overall planning effort on your part that extends beyond the schematic. I'd think the university board would expect the same before handing out money.

 

[dasola]

campus fm

Thanks so much stevez, I really apprecite your contributions they are in no way to be considered a wey blanket. I'll talk to my supervisor about the responses so far.