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bonny

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A friend of mine is setting up a radio station for her business studies project (obviously not a really radio station ** laughs out loud **) and needs a list of equipment required. She asked me to help and after I reeled off a few items I realised I don't have a clue about what you need for broadcast ** laughs out loud **.

 

What I have so far is

 

Mixing Desks

Microphones

CD Players

Computers

Compressors

Rack Mounts

Microphone Cables

Patch Cables

Studio Monitors

Amplifiers (for the monitors)

 

 

Please correct me if I'm wrong and add anything to the list.

 

Thanks

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Hi Jonny,

 

I tried to reply to this using the Fast Reply.....wrote a nice post and then lost it by navigating away from the page....damn....so I'll try again!

 

Firstly, you need to decide if this station is to broadcast over the internet only, AM / FM, or even DAB. With that in mind, you will be able to proceed further. The next important consideration is how playout will be arranged - PC automation? or just CD/MD? Don't forget things like a sustainer, news feed, audio distribution to other parts of the building (like reception and offices), radio clock, furniture and other things like this as you wish. Also, depending on how the project is set up, you may need to consider production as well.

 

There is certainly quite a bit to be considered. A lot of useful information can be found over on the Student Radio Association Forums. The chaps are quite friendly there too! (like here...)

 

Hope that is of some help,

 

David Lea

Technical Director, BURST

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Get her to email me and I'll send her a standard quotation. We build radio stations!

 

Andy Bantock

Station Z

 

A friend of mine is setting up a radio station for her business studies project (obviously not a really radio station ** laughs out loud **) and needs a list of equipment required. She asked me to help and after I reeled off a few items I realised I don't have a clue about what you need for broadcast ** laughs out loud **.

 

What I have so far is

 

Mixing Desks

Microphones

CD Players

Computers

Compressors

Rack Mounts

Microphone Cables

Patch Cables

Studio Monitors

Amplifiers (for the monitors)

 

 

Please correct me if I'm wrong and add anything to the list.

 

Thanks

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telephone balance units (TBU's)

satellite rx for news feeds in

editing software - fast edit, sound forge, wavelab etc

cue lights

cans

digital playback for ads, spot fx and jingles

jingle package (big budget item)

link rx/tx for ob's

portable recorders

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Oh yes.... our on air sign - 50W red light in a (permanently borrowed) outdoor, glass lamp holder with a power supply from a relay triggered by a microswitch bodged onto the inside of the broadcast desk.... yours for less than £10 with HOURS of tweaking to get the damn thing to work!
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Oh yes.... our on air sign - 50W red light in a (permanently borrowed) outdoor, glass lamp holder with a power supply from a relay triggered by a microswitch bodged onto the inside of the broadcast desk.... yours for less than £10 with HOURS of tweaking to get the damn thing to work!

 

No mate, thats the Mic Live light that takes ages to get right!

Use the same microswitch to duck the monitors.

 

Still at least the advent of large hard disks has removed the need for the long play video recorders (logging) and nab carts (never ending alignment and cleaning pain).

I won't miss either of them.

 

BTW: For free automation software check out http://www.salemradiolabs.com/rivendell

(Disclaimer, I am one of the developers).

 

I have even used this thing to run theatre sound effects on occasion. The sound panel component of rivendell is very nice when running panto for dropping in incidental effects!

 

You have all forgotten the biggest expenses of running a station however.....

 

PRS/PPL Licenses (unless you are radio 4), these tend to be expensive and ongoing,

Bribe^hFees to ofcom,

Staffing the damn thing, many don't, but a computer does NOT do as good a job as a real person in a studio.

Power, a 10KW FM transmitter will pull somewhere around 15-20KW of power all the time it is operating, that adds up.

Purchasing externally provided shows not covered by PRS/PPL.

 

Seriously the gear is not the major expense.

 

Regards, Dan.

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