[AlbertRoss]

anyone shed any light on ****-u-radio??? they are broadcasting online but also on fm in Ipswich area.

They claim that they are legal as there are changes in the legislation regarding low power transmissions and the EU?

[tvhamster]

Which frequency?

And it probably is...

[AlbertRoss]

107.9 website at www.funkuradio.co.uk


It['s relatively low power... strongest around Ransomes Area

[Tabbythecat]

Originally Posted by AlbertRoss

107.9 website at www.funkuradio.co.uk


It['s relatively low power... strongest around Ransomes Area

Having DJ after everyones name? arent they called presenters now?

[east_boy_16]

How is it legal for them to broadcast on FM? They are basically a pirate radio station.

But saying that, I was listening to Kiss on 106.4 in Ipswich on Friday afternoon and it kept getting cut out with another station over lapping. I'm wondering if it is this station.

I was getting pretty annoyed as there was some decent music on Kiss worth listening to lol and Radio 1, Town & Heart weren't of any interest to me at the time .

[DJPT]

Originally Posted by AlbertRoss

www.funkuradio.co.uk

Tacky effects and dreadful colour scheme = oh dear

[SuffolkRadio]

no doubt mr rees at town 102 will be straight on the phone to ofcom about this pirate...anything that has a chance of stealing his listeners and he will get stroppy....just like with Energy FM

[east_boy_16]

Originally Posted by SuffolkRadio

no doubt mr rees at town 102 will be straight on the phone to ofcom about this pirate...anything that has a chance of stealing his listeners and he will get stroppy....just like with Energy FM

Does David Rees still work at Town 102? I thought Tom Kay was now PC there.

[dynamoe88]

Originally Posted by AlbertRoss

anyone shed any light on ****-u-radio??? they are broadcasting online but also on fm in Ipswich area.

They claim that they are legal as there are changes in the legislation regarding low power transmissions and the EU?

There was changes in the UK and EU, but that was just a decision made by Ofcom for the UK, not necessarily a new law created by Govt. Ofcom along with the EU just harmonised criteria for legalising low power FM transmissions.

This basically made it legal to own those low power MP3 FM transmitters for personal use. The maximum legal power limit though is 50nW (nanowatts). That's a power level that requires doubling 14 times to even get to about 1 watt.

I think it's safe to say that the FM broadcast for this station is not legal, despite what they are saying. The 50nW transmitters barely cover 10 feet with good stereo in free space.

I wonder how long this one will stay on though. There was a transmission of CNN TV for months last year on 107.9 in Ipswich. However that wasn't likely to take listeners from the other local music stations, so even if they did know about it they probably wouldn't have bothered. Someone doing the same thing with music might be seen differently though.

EDIT:

In fact looking at the map, if the strongest signal is around the 'Ransomes' area, that is roughly the locality of the CNN broadcast, which was traced to the Cliff Lane area iirc.

[Funk-U-Radio]

Hi there Guys,
Here's a novel idea. Why don't you just simply speak to Funk-U-Radio and the station manager (Tony Wrightley) and ask him HOW he is legally broadcasting ?

Why all the sneaking and pussy-footing around placing posts asking for general information ?

For obvious commercial reasons I do not want to publicise how this is possible otherwise ten other radio station wannabees will jump on the band wagon :-)

Much of the information is available via our website under the News & Events menu and also 'Advertise with Us'.

Please search SRD's in Google as well as ETSI standards and you will see that it has been legal for a while now to broadcast with a power of upto 500 milliwatts (or half of one watt). It used to be jusy 5o milliwatts and no farther than one could spit. But since the UK became EU members ofcom and the Telegraphy Act had to be revised to allow for Ipod FM and mp3 car FM transmitters that allow one to listen to their mp3 player on their car stereo. Essentially, anyone with one of these SRD devices IS broadcasting to all their neighbours whatever they happen to be listening to.

With 500 milliwatts tied to an FM Dipole antenna one can broadcast around 3 - 5 miles.

The FM aspect of Funk-U-Radio is simply a by product and an optional way to receive our broadcasts. Ultimately to entice listeners to tune in on their PC or Mobile Phone. We also have a Live Stream on the Nokia Network (and all Nokia Compatibles) and have near on 1,000 listeners via this medium alone Worldwide. (And growing).

As I am based in Ipswich I felt it only right to let my fellow towns people (or are we a City yet) know about FUR FM. hence we have approached Ipswich24 magazine as well as a few other publications.

Please do check the sources I have mentioned above on Google before placing any more comments that might make FUR look, how shall I put it, 'dodgy' - Thank you.

[Funk-U-Radio]

Originally Posted by AlbertRoss

anyone shed any light on ****-u-radio??? they are broadcasting online but also on fm in Ipswich area.

They claim that they are legal as there are changes in the legislation regarding low power transmissions and the EU?

Please scroll to the bottom for the posting by Funk-U-Radio - Thank You.

[Funk-U-Radio]

Please see my posting in this thread - The new levels are 500mW (half of one watt) Just search ETSI standards on Google and click on the Radio Tab then SRD's... And that's what we use.. An FM Ipod Transmitter connected to an FM Dipole Antenna ! Such a massive threat I guess to other local radio :-)
Kind Regards,
Tony

Originally Posted by dynamoe88

There was changes in the UK and EU, but that was just a decision made by Ofcom for the UK, not necessarily a new law created by Govt. Ofcom along with the EU just harmonised criteria for legalising low power FM transmissions.

This basically made it legal to own those low power MP3 FM transmitters for personal use. The maximum legal power limit though is 50nW (nanowatts). That's a power level that requires doubling 14 times to even get to about 1 watt.

I think it's safe to say that the FM broadcast for this station is not legal, despite what they are saying. The 50nW transmitters barely cover 10 feet with good stereo in free space.

I wonder how long this one will stay on though. There was a transmission of CNN TV for months last year on 107.9 in Ipswich. However that wasn't likely to take listeners from the other local music stations, so even if they did know about it they probably wouldn't have bothered. Someone doing the same thing with music might be seen differently though.

EDIT:

In fact looking at the map, if the strongest signal is around the 'Ransomes' area, that is roughly the locality of the CNN broadcast, which was traced to the Cliff Lane area iirc.

[SuffolkRadio]

Using a dipole is still illegally amplifing the 500mW coming out of the 'transmitter' ...

[Funk-U-Radio]

Thanks for the feedback. There is no amplifier connected to our aerial. Its just teh aerial connected straight to it and only transmitting 500mW... which is within the law.... Why is everyone so negative about this ? Nothing to hide here, all transparent, basd in Ipswich, with offices etc etc.... Founded the station in June of this year, no problems or resistance encountered until we approached Ipswich24 magazine...
Kind Regards,
Tony

P.s. Besides which, one MUST connect an antenna otherwise it can burn the unit out with no aerial as the power gets reflected back in...

Originally Posted by SuffolkRadio

Using a dipole is still illegally amplifing the 500mW coming out of the 'transmitter' ...

[Rossall]

Originally Posted by Funk-U-Radio

The new levels are 500mW (half of one watt) Just search ETSI standards on Google and click on the Radio Tab then SRD's... And that's what we use.. An FM Ipod Transmitter connected to an FM Dipole Antenna ! Such a massive threat I guess to other local radio :-)
Kind Regards,
Tony

That's one hell on an I-Pod transmitter you have there.

[Funk-U-Radio]

Originally Posted by Rossall

That's one hell on an I-Pod transmitter you have there.

Yes, indeed. Perhaps I should clarify :-) Yes, it's an Ipod FM Transmitter available from everywhere inc Maplins etc around £4.00 plus a 500Mw booster (£15.00) then connected to the aerial. The Ipod on its own only has 50mWatts...

So we are using the maximum allowed by law...actually, only about 400 milliwatts most of teh time, no point running an engine at 100mph constantly ! Hope this clarifies. In light of the negativity received on this forum about our little ole Ipod Transmitter, I will contact OFCOM tomorrow to make enquiries just to put everyone at ease - I am certain they will say that FM Ipod Transmitters ARE legal otherwise thousands of people could be raided in their cars :-) (Even with 500 milliwatts booster - Unless they go round snapping off the car antennas !!!
Kind Regards,
Tony.

P.s. Or will they confiscate my car ?!?

[SuffolkRadio]

well at least at that power the rig theives wont be after you....lol

[suffolkblue]

Originally Posted by east_boy_16

Does David Rees still work at Town 102? I thought Tom Kay was now PC there.

dont you mean tom i am a big head and think no one is better than me kay.I say good luck and wish you were here in lowestoft instead of ipswich good luck guys.

[Powerplay]

Originally Posted by Funk-U-Radio

Yes, indeed. Perhaps I should clarify :-) Yes, it's an Ipod FM Transmitter available from everywhere inc Maplins etc around £4.00 plus a 500Mw booster (£15.00) then connected to the aerial. The Ipod on its own only has 50mWatts...

So we are using the maximum allowed by law...actually, only about 400 milliwatts most of teh time, no point running an engine at 100mph constantly ! Hope this clarifies. In light of the negativity received on this forum about our little ole Ipod Transmitter, I will contact OFCOM tomorrow to make enquiries just to put everyone at ease - I am certain they will say that FM Ipod Transmitters ARE legal otherwise thousands of people could be raided in their cars :-) (Even with 500 milliwatts booster - Unless they go round snapping off the car antennas !!!
Kind Regards,
Tony.

P.s. Or will they confiscate my car ?!?

What is the gain on the dipole you are using as the aerial? What I mean is, the amount of power you put into the aerial from the transmitter, isn't the same as what comes off the aerial into the air! Sorry to be anal.

What is the aim of the station? I presume you will be getting advertising from Ransomes Europark?

[dynamoe88]

Originally Posted by Funk-U-Radio

Please see my posting in this thread - The new levels are 500mW (half of one watt) Just search ETSI standards on Google and click on the Radio Tab then SRD's... And that's what we use.. An FM Ipod Transmitter connected to an FM Dipole Antenna ! Such a massive threat I guess to other local radio :-)
Kind Regards,
Tony

Show me the webpage where it says that on VHF Band II 87.5-108MHz it is legal to use upto a 500mW transmitter. This is different and distinct to saying "25MHz to 1000MHz SRD ranging upto 500mW". There's a lot of spectrum between 25MHz-1000MHz, with lots of different uses amongst it all. Saying a wireless UHF mic can use 500mW on something like 880MHz is not saying it's ok to use a 500mW FM transmitter on 88-108.

ETSI are a standards institute that deal with EN quality issues, not making laws & acceptable use. THe ETSI follow the guidlines set down by Ofcom & others - then ETSI make the EU wide conformity (ie EN series standards harmonisation) for manufacturers to conform to. This is like saying the BSI (British Standards Institute), who deal with BS kite marks, will also allow 500mW on 87.5-108MHz.

It's guff I think, unless you've got anything to show to the contrary.

Originally Posted by Funk-U-Radio

Yes, indeed. Perhaps I should clarify :-) Yes, it's an Ipod FM Transmitter available from everywhere inc Maplins etc around £4.00 plus a 500Mw booster (£15.00) then connected to the aerial. The Ipod on its own only has 50mWatts...

So we are using the maximum allowed by law...actually, only about 400 milliwatts most of teh time, no point running an engine at 100mph constantly ! Hope this clarifies. In light of the negativity received on this forum about our little ole Ipod Transmitter, I will contact OFCOM tomorrow to make enquiries just to put everyone at ease - I am certain they will say that FM Ipod Transmitters ARE legal otherwise thousands of people could be raided in their cars :-) (Even with 500 milliwatts booster - Unless they go round snapping off the car antennas !!!
Kind Regards,
Tony.

P.s. Or will they confiscate my car ?!?

So you're using a 50mW transmitter, and then a 9dB power amplifier? Does that sound correct, because what you've said seems a bit thin.

Then you've got a 400mW output, which then goes to either a single dipole, or a folded dipole which will give no gain over that figure. Then there's the losses through the coax etc.

It's not exactly crime of the century, but there's no article, or ETSI 'law' or standard that make it legal to use anything over 50nW on 87.5-108MHz.

That's my thinking on this.

[Funk-U-Radio]

Short Range Devices (SRD) are radio devices that offer a low risk of interference with other radio services, usually because their transmitted power, and hence their range, is low. The definition 'Short Range Device' may be applied to many different types of wireless equipment, including various forms of:

• Access control (including door and gate openers)
• Alarms and movement detectors
• Closed-circuit television (CCTV)
• Cordless audio devices, including wireless microphones
• Industrial control
• Local Area Networks
• Medical implants
• UWB Sensors & Radars (such as ground probing radar)
• Remote control
• Radio frequency identification (RFID)
• Road Transport Telematics
• Telemetry.

Short range devices often benefit from a relaxed regulatory regime compared with other radio communications equipment. As general principle, a user is licence free to operate such equipment, some specific cases may require an individual license.

EN 300 220-1
Short Range Devices (SRD);
Radio equipment to be used in the 25 MHz to 1 000 MHz frequency range with power levels ranging up to 500 mW
EN 300 220-2
Short Range Devices (SRD); Radio equipment to be used in the 25 MHz to 1 000 MHz frequency range with power levels ranging up to 500 mW; Part 2: Harmonized EN covering essential requirements under article 3.2 of the R&TTE Directive

[dynamoe88]

Originally Posted by Funk-U-Radio

Short Range Devices (SRD) are radio devices that offer a low risk of interference with other radio services, usually because their transmitted power, and hence their range, is low. The definition 'Short Range Device' may be applied to many different types of wireless equipment, including various forms of:

• Access control (including door and gate openers)
• Alarms and movement detectors
• Closed-circuit television (CCTV)
• Cordless audio devices, including wireless microphones
• Industrial control
• Local Area Networks
• Medical implants
• UWB Sensors & Radars (such as ground probing radar)
• Remote control
• Radio frequency identification (RFID)
• Road Transport Telematics
• Telemetry.

Short range devices often benefit from a relaxed regulatory regime compared with other radio communications equipment. As general principle, a user is licence free to operate such equipment, some specific cases may require an individual license.

EN 300 220-1
Short Range Devices (SRD);
Radio equipment to be used in the 25 MHz to 1 000 MHz frequency range with power levels ranging up to 500 mW
EN 300 220-2
Short Range Devices (SRD); Radio equipment to be used in the 25 MHz to 1 000 MHz frequency range with power levels ranging up to 500 mW; Part 2: Harmonized EN covering essential requirements under article 3.2 of the R&TTE Directive

Show me the webpage where it says that on VHF Band II 87.5-108MHz it is legal to use upto a 500mW transmitter.

This is different and distinct to saying "25MHz to 1000MHz SRD ranging upto 500mW".

There's a lot of spectrum between 25MHz-1000MHz, with lots of different uses amongst it all.

Saying a wireless UHF mic can use 500mW on something like 880MHz is not saying it's ok to use a 500mW FM transmitter on 88-108.

Have you actually read the pdf documents that show these standards?

There seems to be jack all about anything to do with any part of the spectrum between 25-1000MHz. There's no distinction between any type of device over another, and there's no distinction between any part of the sub-band between 25MHz to 1000MHz over another.

As I said, the ETSI is just a standards body. These standards (EN 300 220-1 & EN 300 220-2) are just for the makers of the equipment to conform to. It's not about using a 500mW Tx on 87.5-108MHz.

I think the place you should be looking for clarification is the Ofcom website and the EU Parliament.

[Powerplay]

But why are you doing it?
Is it just anorak value or are you hoping to make financial gain from it?

The range can be no more than a quarter of a mile surely? No harm in a bit of fun, but I'm assuming you want the signal the cover the retail park for a reason?

[jezcarter]

Originally Posted by Funk-U-Radio

Short range devices often benefit from a relaxed regulatory regime compared with other radio communications equipment. As general principle, a user is licence free to operate such equipment, some specific cases may require an individual license.

Just adding some clarity to the "legislation" you quote.

[Funk-U-Radio]

Originally Posted by dynamoe88

Show me the webpage where it says that on VHF Band II 87.5-108MHz it is legal to use upto a 500mW transmitter.

This is different and distinct to saying "25MHz to 1000MHz SRD ranging upto 500mW".

There's a lot of spectrum between 25MHz-1000MHz, with lots of different uses amongst it all.

Saying a wireless UHF mic can use 500mW on something like 880MHz is not saying it's ok to use a 500mW FM transmitter on 88-108.

Have you actually read the pdf documents that show these standards?

There seems to be jack all about anything to do with any part of the spectrum between 25-1000MHz. There's no distinction between any type of device over another, and there's no distinction between any part of the sub-band between 25MHz to 1000MHz over another.

As I said, the ETSI is just a standards body. These standards (EN 300 220-1 & EN 300 220-2) are just for the makers of the equipment to conform to. It's not about using a 500mW Tx on 87.5-108MHz.

I think the place you should be looking for clarification is the Ofcom website and the EU Parliament.

Thank you for your input. Within the ETSI website there is much more information and a section relating to Ipod Transmitters 87 to 108MHZ and saying 500Mwatts use is permitted. I HAVE researched this extremely well.

As a side bit of info, Asutralia and New Zealand Governments have already ratified Micro Broadcasting and it is an accepted norm now. (Has been for a few years I beleive).

Re the ETSI website, from what I've read, its the other way round. i.e The UK and Wireless & telegrapghy Act have had to come in line with the European ETSI standars that they set. (Not the other way round).

500mW into an FM Dipole has got us 3-5 miles. All depends how how high the Antenna is rather than the actual power used. But in any case, the FM side of Funk-U-Radio is only there to atrract 'domestic' listeners to their PC or onto their Nokias. We have a live stream on Nokia (and all Nokia Compatibles) and we're upto almost 1000 listeners via this medium alone. Plus the online listeners and those on Java enabled phones. (The FM is just a bonus which we can do without if needs be)..
All the best,
Tony