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Post by part15engineer on Nov 7, 2018 15:09:23 GMT
Ready to Rock and Roll doing projects.
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Post by mark on Nov 7, 2018 16:22:01 GMT
Are you not doing radio anymore?
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Post by Boomer on Nov 7, 2018 22:10:02 GMT
Nice workbench setup, it looks like you're ready to build and repair.
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Post by part15engineer on Nov 8, 2018 16:16:58 GMT
mark mom put the radio station off the air till i can pay her an extra 150 / mo to cover the electric it uses, this is partly why i'm opening this electronics repair / IT shop to generate extra income to get the station back on the air
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Post by mark on Nov 8, 2018 23:25:41 GMT
Here's my current set up. An automated station can be as simple as this and you won't use $150 a month worth of electricity. To save even more you can shut it off between 5 and 7PM weekdays when they jack up the price in the high usage times.
I will post picture but don't know how it will come out on this forum.....yours looks OK. So I will describe the set up.
First a small 11.6" laptop is all you need with a celeron processor that is quite power efficient with Zara. Works fine with the celeron and 4 gigs RAM.
The second thing is a headphone pre amp with EQ to have bass mid and treble with Zara from the output of the computer. Then a "mini" compressor(not the large 2 channel rack kind) and then to the Decade transmitter.....in your case a Procaster.
Runs 24/7 and since no internet connection is needed no update interruptions. The whole thing fits on a shelf by the window. OH YES...set the computer screen to go off after 5 minutes and even less power is used. No need for the screen to be on all the time.
Looks like it came out good....click for larger pic.
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Post by thelegacy on Nov 9, 2018 18:46:11 GMT
I 2 Laptops 24/7 365+Sean Cuthbert C-Quam Stereo TX, Sean Cuthbert Audio Processor and might I add I run an Atholon A8 processor and 8GB RAM
my electric bill is only $70-$90 MAX!! So this means either two things:
1. your TX is not at all efficient.
2. Your mixer is NOT efficient.
3. You running in excess of 7 Watts out of the TX (Even when I had a 7 Watt FM TX my bill was NOT even NEAR THAT MUCH). So I would have to multiply 7X4 which is 28 Watts TPO to the final. So Hmmmmm!!
4. This is what I really believe YOUR PARENTS ARE LYING AND JUST WANT TO CHARGE YOU EXTRA!!!!!!!!!!
No way in HELL would a LEGAL part 15 station ever jump your electric bill up $150 higher unless your using some tube transmitter whereas it takes 200 watts of power but only gives you 100 mW out. In that case jun solid state.
Somehow some facts are not disclosed so not accusing anyone of PIRATE Radio here nor would I care. Just can't understand.
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Post by part15engineer on Nov 9, 2018 23:01:36 GMT
My Setup,,, i run a procaster for transmitter
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Post by mark on Nov 10, 2018 1:02:16 GMT
OK I saved your set up pic. to refer to it while I write this post. I just illustrated with my pic of my set up that you can have a great part 15 station that uses 4 pieces of gear and fits on a shelf and is very power efficient. In fact, the procaster has on board compression/modulation that's adjustable so you don't need the separate compressor. The transmitter itself uses little power.
You have a lot of gear there....a whole room full just like a commercial station and I can see how it's quite power hungry. Those 3 desktops and large monitors are using 10x more power than the one small laptop that would do fine. How come you need 3 desktops? There's also several power consuming pieces of equipment to the right of the keyboard which I'm sure are not needed. And the equipment on top of the desktops on the left....what is that for?
I see you are not simply automated and have a "live" studio and have the mics and need some extra gear for processing with the mics but I'm sure it could be streamlined to use less power, or, go automated for a while till you get to a situation where you can handle the extra electricity cost. My illustration shows a great part 15 station needing little space and little ongoing costs. Automated, but still you can do what you love doing. That's all I'm saying here.
Nice studio though!
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Post by thelegacy on Nov 10, 2018 5:35:17 GMT
You can still use an automated broadcaster set up like nextkast which has a line input and with two sound cards you can have a guest DJ be able to speak along with you.
A simple mixer like a Radio Shack mixer which only is about 12 volt and has a couple of Mike channels would even give you more flexibility plus it has a few extra channels for auxiliary input. Again not super professional-looking but it would do in a pinch as I done this years ago when I lived in Michigan.
I know that Tim in Bovi Minnesota uses a procaster for his am transmitter and I'm willing to bet he has figured out ways so his electric bill does not shoot up $150 more.
If those large looking monitors are plasma monitors and not LED or LCD that could also take a lot more power as well. Again I'm just trying to understand what in the world could be eating up so much power and I think Mark has it nail right on the head.
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Post by sparepart on Nov 10, 2018 13:55:38 GMT
Numbers seem off:
Get your cost per kWh, total up all of the nameplate values (or pick up a kill-a-watt meter from one of the big box stores) and plug the data in.
Load is 1100W. That includes the audio chain, computers, and network switches. I excluded the audio power amps as they don't run 24/7. Even with all the stuff at CDL, the cost is $50.29 a month
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Post by mark on Nov 12, 2018 1:07:49 GMT
Based on the cost calculator that Sparepart posted, I calculated my electricity cost of my station as set up in the picture I posted.
The total power consumption of the small laptop, little headphone amp/equalizer that's powered by the computer, compressor, and transmitter to be about 75 watts, give or take a few watts.
It runs 24/7 and we'll say 30 days a month. At the peak times of the weekdays the cost of electricity in Toronto is 13.2 cents per KWH. In off peak times like weekends and evening and night it's half that but I calculated the cost at the highest rates all the time.
So, running my station 24/7 365 the cost is $85.54 a year! or $7.13 a month! I repeat.....$7.13 monthly. At the highest cost of 13.2 cents a KWH.
And that's not considering the vast majority of the time the price is half of the cost of the peak times, which is 7 to 11AM and 5 to 7PM weekdays. I would think that in Colorado the cost of electricity wouldn't be much different, maybe lower. Something is not jiving here. You should have no problem having a part 15 station.
Now if I have the computer screen on all the time that would bring my approximate estimated wattage to 100 watts total at 13 cents a KWH is still only $9.50 a month.
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Post by part15engineer on Nov 13, 2018 22:03:23 GMT
in addition to repair, i'm offering a mail order kit assembly service for anyone interested
forumsNotify AT gmail D0T com
any kind of electronics kit from Audio to RF, flat fee for simple to medium level kits and a hourly fee for complex kits plus shipping to / from my location.
i offer this service to the membership
Thanks
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