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The place to chat about audio/video devices & software, computer hardware & software, and other electronic gadgets.
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Turkeytop
- Posts: 2501
- Joined: Mon Aug 16, 2010 9:27 pm
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by Turkeytop » Tue Feb 18, 2014 9:10 pm
Do any of you have one of these?
I just got one and I have to say its a disappointment. Their suggested range of 70 ft is a gross exaggeration. Out of the box, mine had a range of about 3 ft. I found on the internet a modification that can be made to boost the power and that got me up to about 25 ft. I tested it outdoors away from any structures and was using a high quality receiver for the test. Out of ten, I would score this thing at about 2.
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Radiogoon
- Posts: 12
- Joined: Mon Dec 06, 2004 12:33 pm
- Location: Detroit...In a van by the river.
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by Radiogoon » Mon Feb 24, 2014 9:31 am
If you are adept at soldering, Ramsey Electronics has a nice selection of FM transmitter kits.
"To announce that there must be no criticism of the President, or that we are to stand by the President, right or wrong, is not only unpatriotic and servile, but is morally treasonable to the American public." (Theodore Roosevelt, in 1918)
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jry
- Posts: 1268
- Joined: Sat Dec 04, 2004 8:14 am
- Location: somewhere in the former boonies
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by jry » Mon Feb 24, 2014 6:41 pm
I agree. It is junk. 70 feet is a pipe dream.
There is a guy on the net, i think he lives in Oakland County. He sells a Whole House FM Transmitter.
Much better than Cranes. I think it's cheaper and it covers my whole house and yard.
I just found one of the good ones:
http://wholehousefmtransmitter.com/home ... Mwod5SAAzQ
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Turkeytop
- Posts: 2501
- Joined: Mon Aug 16, 2010 9:27 pm
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by Turkeytop » Mon Feb 24, 2014 9:11 pm
That's about double what I paid for the Crane, but worth every nickel if it works.
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leadsquirter
- Posts: 10
- Joined: Sat Mar 05, 2005 12:50 am
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by leadsquirter » Fri Feb 28, 2014 12:51 am
I have the Rangestar FM transmitter and I love it. I've had it for over a year now and broadcast online radio or my music library to any radio on my property. Great when mowing the lawn or snow blowing with a portable FM headset. I operate mine on 87.9 where there is nothing in the area. The unit has two settings 0.1 watt and 0.5 watt. The low power setting carries about one city block in stereo on the car radio before breaking up. On the higher setting about a 1/4 mile before breaking up but can be heard over a half mile away and I live in a hilly area with a lot of trees. Of course, I use the low setting and it gets the job done. This is using the provided stick antenna and the unit located on the first floor of my house.
http://www.dagcoelectronics.com/store/5 ... nsmitter-2
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audiophile
- Posts: 4053
- Joined: Sat Dec 04, 2004 9:21 pm
- Location: Between 88 and 108 MHz.
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by audiophile » Fri Feb 28, 2014 8:57 am
No way that is legal, lead.
Ask not what your country can do FOR you; ask what they are about to do TO YOU!!
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Turkeytop
- Posts: 2501
- Joined: Mon Aug 16, 2010 9:27 pm
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by Turkeytop » Fri Apr 25, 2014 9:36 pm
Maybe I was a little hasty in writing this thing off. I bought it and did my initial testing while I was in Florida. At that time, I pretty much concluded that it was useless. But now that I'm back home I've tested it here, where the FM band is less crowded and where I'm not surrounded by metal buildings, like I was at the Mobile Home Park. It works OK here.
I stand by my original assertion that Crane's suggested range of 70 ft is a gross exaggeration. But with it set up in my basement I can get a satisfactory signal anywhere in the house an out back on my patio.
I originally scored this product at 2 out of 10. I'll now change that to 5 out of 10.
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bmw
- Posts: 861
- Joined: Sun Dec 05, 2004 1:02 am
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by bmw » Mon Apr 28, 2014 8:19 pm
How good is the audio quality on the CCrane unit? I've been considering buying one and I don't need much range for my application, but I want the best sound quality I can get without spending a fortune and based on other reviews I had read online it sounds like this one sounds pretty good.
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Turkeytop
- Posts: 2501
- Joined: Mon Aug 16, 2010 9:27 pm
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by Turkeytop » Tue Apr 29, 2014 2:53 pm
The audio quality is good. But even if you don't think you need the extra range, I would recommend that you do the modification shown here anyway. I've read that without this enhancement it can't even transmit a decent signal from inside the car to the car's antenna.
http://www.outlawradio.us/CCrane_Mod.html
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k8jd
- Posts: 286
- Joined: Fri Jun 28, 2013 3:35 pm
- Location: Commerce, MI
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by k8jd » Fri May 29, 2015 2:18 pm
The key to success is finding an unoccupied channel, and that is almost impossible in a metro area where the "rebroadcasters" and LPFM stations have filled in all the interchannel gaps. The next thing is finding a connection for the home transmitter's output to go to a well designed dipole antenna on a coaxial extension wire to a high point maybe on the roof. This will blanket the area with enough signal to cover one of those lower power interchannel stations.
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jry
- Posts: 1268
- Joined: Sat Dec 04, 2004 8:14 am
- Location: somewhere in the former boonies
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by jry » Mon Jun 01, 2015 3:31 pm
The beauty of the whole house unit is i can take an even channel. I use 102.2. Most of my radios will tune to the "evens".
