Tuesday, March 9, 2010

Turn an FM Transmitter into a Micro Pirate Radio




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Illustration: Lab Partners'Corporate radio is preprogrammed junk. But don’t curse the DJ; seize the airwaves! With a soldering iron and a cheapo FM transmitter — the kind used to play an iPod through a car radio — you can transform your humble Honda into a Radio Free Civic that can broadcast your tunes up to ... 100 feet.



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Step 1. Pry open the transmitter’s case with a putty knife and remove the internal antenna (often labeled ant).



Step 2. In its place, solder a telescoping antenna or a piece of copper wire — no more than 35 inches long for broadcasting within the standard FM transmission spectrum.



Step 3. The transmitter may have a resistor, typically marked with an r, to limit the power of the signal. Replace it with copper wire to boost the transmission.



Step 4. Slap a bumper sticker on your ride advertising your station’s frequency. You’ll soon build a grateful audience of fellow commuters suffering through that traffic jam.



Contributed by Mathew Honan

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