i. The various pieces of equipment in this document are only for use permanently at a pre-defined location with a license or authorisation from the radio spectrum regulator in your country or EU member state.
ii. The installer must have competent RF engineering skills at their disposal, be EMC aware and understand radio frequency systems. The final installation should be in accordance with the site engineering document at https://www.aareff.com/ETR132.pdf The radio station management must assign a responsible person to the transmission equipment and installation.
Qty | Description | Item |
1 | Stereo coder audio limiter / 1 watt or 100mW FM driver exciter 15V DC (ALSCB & 1WPLLB/100mWPLLB) | |
1 | MPX audio lead | |
2 | DC to DC Lead (DC connection from ALSCB to 1WPLLB/100mWPLLB) |
If the 1W/100mW transmitter is supplied as a single stand alone unit, or with a 100W or 200W amplifier, then it will include this power supply.
Qty | Description | Item |
1 | Power Supply 15V DC |
If the 1W/100mW transmitter is supplied with a 12W amplifier or 4 Way Distribution Amplifier, then it will use the power supply and cables included with the 12W amplifier shown below.
Qty | Description | Item |
1 | 60W Power Supply 15V DC | |
1 | BNC to BNC lead (RF connection from 1WPLLB/100mWPLLB to 12WNTA) | |
1 | DC to DC Lead (DC connection 1WPLLB/100mWPLLB to 12WNTA) |
If the 1W/100mW transmitter is supplied with a 30W amplifier or 8 Way Distribution Amplifier, then it will use the power supply and cables included with the 30W amplifier shown below.
Qty | Description | Item |
1 | 90W Power Supply 15V DC | |
1 | BNC to BNC lead (RF connection from 1WPLLB/100mWPLLB to 12WNTA) | |
1 | DC to DC Lead (DC connection 1WPLLB/100mWPLLB to 12WNTA) |
This equipment is two separate units that can be used stand alone, independent of each other. The first unit, ALSCB, contains two audio limiter modules that have fast attack on high peak audio levels to prevent excessive FM deviation. The two left and right audio signals are converted to a single MPX output. The second unit, 1WPLLB/100mWPLLB, uses a low power VHF oscillator amplified to 1 watt/100mW of power. It is phase locked to a reference quartz oscillator. The 1 watt/100mW RF signal is low pass filtered at the final output. The two sets are housed in metal enclosures fully screened to protect the user from direct contact with RF voltages and to prevent unwanted emissions, local interference and provide the RF unit with adequate immunity for the proper functioning in an industrial environment.
This transmitter includes internal audio limiting which will limit audio and in turn the maximum FM deviation. The final adjustment for this limit on maximum deviation must be made by the customer or operator, it is not something we can factory set as it depends on whether other sub carriers such as SCA or RDS or being used. The deviation, including, pilot tone and if sued RDS and SCA, should be set to maintain compliance with the FCC rules and technical requirements. More information on this is at is in section 2.1047 Modulation characteristics and section 2.1049 Occupied bandwidth at:
http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/granule/CFR-2011-title47-vol1/CFR-2011-title47-vol1-sec2-1047/content-detail.html
This transmitter includes internal audio limiting which will limit audio and in turn the maximum FM deviation. The final adjustment for this limit on maximum deviation must be made by the customer or operator, it is not something we can factory set as it depends on whether other sub carriers such as SCA or RDS or being used. The deviation, including, pilot tone and if used RDS and SCA, should be set to maintain compliance with EU standards. More information on this in section 8 Audio Processing Limiter at https://www.aareff.com/ETR132.pdf
This product complies with EMC directive of the European Union. To meet this directive the user or installer must follow the wiring instructions in the this user manual
This equipment is not intended for installation by an unqualified end user, the installer must have competent RF engineering skills and EMC knowledge at their disposal. The whole transmission system, including the antenna system and external audio limiting, should be installed in the EU in accordance with document ETR132, a copy of this is available at https://www.aareff.com/ETR132.pdf
The RF output of this unit should be connected to:
Under no circumstances should the RF OUT be left open and unconnected if the power output of the unit is set higher than zero.
Ideally the antenna should be mounted at least 20 meters high and clear of any surrounding objects to get maximum range and more importantly to reduce risk of radio frequency radiation to personnel. When an antenna with 3dBi or higher gain towards the horizon is mounted at least 20 meters in height off ground and using up to 200 watts of transmitter power, power flux density measurements made at ground level directly under the antenna show less than 1 W/m2. Several European countries use a value for the power flux density of 10 W/m2 as a basis for considering whether or not an area is safe. The issue of radio frequency radiation limits is a contentious one and work in this field is continuing worldwide. Under no circumstances should an antenna be mounted and used at ground level or within a few meters of personnel.
Under NO CIRCUMSTANCES should the antenna be mounted and used at ground level next to personnel.
If this transmitter is going to be connected directly to an antenna, 50 ohm coaxial cable should be used. The antenna should present a return loss ideally of 16dB (SWR 1.4) or better at the operating frequency. The RF plug should be PL259 (UHF), N type or BNC, depending which is fitted to the transmitter.
Ensure that all antenna connections are sound, this is important as poor connections and soldered joints can cause RF burns to personnel, severe noise to the transmission and excessive RF bandwidth. Do NOT connect the antenna to the transmitter yet.
1 | Transmitter Model |
2 | Manufacturer |
3 | Power Indicator |
4a | Ch1 Audio Input -6dBu AGC Onset |
4b | Ch1 Audio Input -6dBu Limiting Onset |
4c | Ch1 Audio Input -6dBu Hard Limiting |
5a | Ch2 Audio Input -6dBu AGC Onset |
5b | Ch2 Audio Input -6dBu Limiting Onset |
5c | Ch2 Audio Input -6dBu Hard Limiting |
6 | Power Meter and Lock Indication (RED unlocked, BLUE locked) |
7 | Frequency Counter |
1 | Antenna Connection Warning |
2 | CE Marking |
3 | Restrictions in EU |
4 | MPX INPUT 0dBu 10K |
5 | DC INPUT 15V |
6 | Auxiliary DC OUTPUT 15V |
7 | Output 1W/100mW 50 Ohm 15V |
8 | DC INPUT 15V |
9 | Auxiliary DC OUTPUT 15V |
10 | OUTPUT MPX 0dBu |
11 | Input 0dBu Standard Audio |
12 | Input 0dBu Standard Audio |
13 | Manufacturer Brand |
14 | Manufacturer Address |
15 | Web Address For User Manual |
VR2 | RF Power Control / RF PWR. ADJ |
Stepping Buttons | Two buttons for stepping freq. Up or down. |
VR1 | Deviation Control DEV. ADJ |
Locate VR2 RF PWR on the bottom panel. BE CAREFUL not to be too heavy handed, these controls are only small pcb mounted pots and switches and can be damaged with excessive force. You will need to use a small electrical screwdriver to adjust these controls.
Turn VR2, carefully, anti clockwise, until it reaches the stop. At this position there should be no RF output when the DC power is applied.
The DC INPUT and DC AUX OUT on both ALSCB and 1WPLLB/100mWPLLB are simply connected together inside the units. The purpose of this is to allow other DC equipment to be connected in “daisy chain” and share the same power supply. The current capacity of the DC connectors is 5 amps, so if the external power source can provide 5 amps and exciter consumes 0.6 amps, this leaves 4.4 amps of power available for other equipment using the AUX OUT DC. The DC input connectors are 5.5 mm in outer diameter and 2.1 mm in diameter in the central pin. The central pin is positive and the negative or ground outside. Both units have reverse polarity protection.
Locate the two buttons (they are shown as red on the picture above but they may come in black on the unit you have). These buttons are used for stepping up or down in selecting a frequency. As you press the up or down buttons, you'll notice the frequency on the digital display change. It's important to select your frequency correctly, if you don't, it's possible to transmit on an unauthorised frequency.
Double check the power is reduced to minimum as described in A) above. At this point the RF OUT should still be disconnected.
Go to the back panel:
Observe the front panel power meter, it shoud be reading zero. If it is not zero, disconnect the 15V DC power supply immediately and double check the power is reduced to minimum as described in A) above.
The power meter light should light up RED, this may change to BLUE after a few seconds, if it does great, if it doesn't, don't worry at this point, this is also normal.
When the driver is initially powered up, the front panel meter will show red for a few seconds. After this it will show blue indicating it's locked precisely to frequency.
In the previous section D) Powering the Transmitter, the MPX Audio Lead was connected between MPX OUTPUT and the MPX INPUT. If you wish to use an external audio processor or RDS unit, it can be inserted into the MPX signal at this point.
Apply your stereo audio signal at standard line level of between -10dBu and +20dBu to the unbalanced RCA/Phono inputs AUDIO INPUT (1) and AUDIO INPUT (2). If the level is correct you should see the AUDIO CHANNEL 1/2 LEDs flashing on the front panel.
During manufacture and test the audio deviation will be set broadcast standard line of +8dBu peak for +/-75KHz peak deviation at 88.0 MHz. There is a high possibility that this will not be the same level as the audio source feed from your studio, external audio processing device, MPX stereo generator and/or RDS generator. You need to check this as excessive deviation can cause adjacent channel interference to other users of the radio spectrum.
WITHOUT TEST EQUIPMENT
Audio deviation is difficult to measure without proper test equipment and the method described here cannot replace proper test equipment, however if your regulator permits this method it is possible to check the deviation very close to correct level by using a relative comparison. Use a radio receiver tuned to a known high quality, high budget and reputed radio station. For example in the United Kingdom this would be a national BBC station. Feed the audio output of the radio receiver into some VU meter or level indication on a mixer or other audio equipment. Look carefully at the metering level peaks. You will notice the meter peak constantly at a specific level, make a note of this. Place the antenna of radio receiver as close as possible to your transmitter enclosure. Re-tune the radio receiver to your transmitter frequency. Look at the metering again. Adjust VR1 DEV. ADJ. so that your audio constantly peaks at a little lower than the level you noted. When you have achieved this your deviation is a little lower or close to the legal level. The reason for this setting is that it is legal to under deviate, but not-legal to over deviate, with a lack of test equipment
WITH TEST EQUIPMENT
Connect the transmitter via a coupler and dummy load to a Spectrum Analyzer, Modulation Analyzer or Deviation Meter. Adjust VR2 RF PWR. to full. Adjust VR1 DEV. ADJ. for the correct deviation on the test equipment.
The power meter should be showing zero, if not section c) above Reducing The RF Output To Zero.
If the power meter is showing zero, then connect to the external amplifier input or plug the antenna cable into the transmitters BNC RF OUT connector. Make sure this tight as poor and loose connections can cause RF burns to personnel, severe noise to the transmission and excessive RF bandwidth.
Locate the power control VR2 RF PWR. ADJ. and set it to full. The power meter should indicate close to 100mW/1000mW if the the antenna or amplifer load is 50 ohms or has a SWR of less than 1.5. THE TRANSMITTER IS NOW ON AIR!
This unit does not need any regular maintenance, it's internals are completely sealed from the outside environment. You can expect 10 years of continuous 24/7 use from this unit.
We sell this equipment to professionals and organizations in good faith it will be used correctly and legally. Nearly every country in the world require licensing for this type of equipment. It is the customer’s responsibility to check relevant laws, directives, regulations and licensing requirements before installing or putting this product into service with an antenna system. You, the customer or user agree to defend, indemnify and hold harmless Aareff Systems Limited, it’s employees and agents, from and against any claims, actions or demands, including without limitation legal and accounting fees, alleging or resulting from improper or unlawful use of this equipment.
(All stated measurements were made at 220VAC at 26 Degrees Celsius ambient temperature unless stated)
RF and AF Parameters
Power Output Adj. | 1mW to 100mW/1000mW into 50 ohms |
Freq Range | 87.5 to 108 MHz |
Spurious Emissions | Less than -66 dB ref to carrier |
Harmonic Emissions | Less than -66 dB ref to carrier |
Out of Lock RF Muting | Less than -66 dB ref to carrier |
Freq Stability | Less than +/- 2 KHz between -20 and +40 C |
Freq Fine | Adj +/- 1000 Hz |
Freq Adj. Accuracy | +/- 50 Hz |
Deviation Sensitivity Stability | +/-2 % max |
Residual AM | Less than 0.5 % |
Synchronous AM | Less than 0.5 % |
RF Output Connector | BNC Female 50 ohm |
RF Ruggedness | Any VSWR, phase, length of time |
MPX Audio Input | Connector Phono/ RCA type unbalanced |
Pre-emphasis | (50uS/ 75uS/ None) |
MPX Audio Input Sensitivity | Nom. 0.775 V rms for +/- 75 KHz Dev. User adj. |
MPX Signal To Noise Ratio | More than 72 dB rel. +/-75 KHz dev. |
MPX Audio Freq Response | Less than +/-0.5 dB between 30 Hz and 76 KHz |
MPX Audio Distortion | Less than 0.2 % THD |
Operating Temp | -20 to +40 Deg C |
DC Power Requirements
Input Voltage | 12-15 V DC |
Input Current | Nominal 500mA, Absolute Max. 800mA |
Ripple and Noise | Requires less than 2% to comply with EU Standards |
AC Power Supply (optional extra)
Model | Meanwell GE12 15-P1J |
Input Voltage | 90~264 VAC 47-63 Hz 135~370 VDC |
Input Power | 12W max. |
Output Voltage | 15V DC +/-3% |
Output Ripple and Noise | 150 mV p-p or 1% |
Working Humidity | 20 ~ 90% RH non-condensing |
Safety Standards | UL60950-1, CSA C22.2, TUV EN60950 -1, AS/NZS 60950.1, CCC GB4943 approved |
EMC Emission | Compliance to EN55022, EN61000-3-2,3, FCC part15, GB9254, GB17625.1 |
EMC Immunity | Compliance to EN61000-4-2,3,4,5,6,8,11, light industry level, criteria A |
Withstand Voltage | I/P-O/P:4242VDC |
Isolation Resistance | I/P-O/P:100M Ohms / 500VDC / 25 / 70% RH |
AAREFF TRANSMISSION SYSTEMS SL
AVDA ANDALUCIA 1
LA ALFOQUIA-ZURGENA
04661
ALMERIA
ESPANA.
Paul Hollings
In Zurgena, Almería, Spain on 01 of November 2009, hereby declare:
European Union
This equipment meets the essential requirements of the R&TTE directive, EMC directive and the LVD by compliance with the following standards in the sections applicable.
• ETS 300384 or ETSI EN 302018-1 V1.2.1 (2005-12) when used with the audio compressor limiter included with the product.
• EN 301489-11 V1.3.1 (2006-05) EMC Electromagnetic Compatibility when used with 1 meter AC mains cord supplied. If the installation engineer needs to extend this cord, this and the audio input cable should be no more than 3 meters in length to remain in compliance with EMC directive.
• 2006/95/EC Directive (2006-12) LVD Low Voltage Directive.
Equipment compliance is possible using equipment from and in conjunction from other manufacturers, but since this is beyond the control of Aareff Systems, Aareff Systems cannot or be expected to guarantee compliance in this situation.
United States
This equipment has not been independently tested by an FCC recognised listed laboratory and for this reason it is not certified. The following list are the technical requirements for the certification of this transmitter. We hereby declare and verify that this transmitter complies with the following FCC technical requirements.
47 CFR Chapter I Federal Communications Commission sections:
• 73.1560, 2.1046 RF Power
• 73.1545, 2.1055 Frequency Stability
• 73.317, 2.1049 (e)(3) Emission Limitation, Emission Mask
• 73.317, 2.1057, 2.1051 Emission Limits, Spurious Emissions at Antenna Terminal
• 73.317, 2.1057, 2.1053 Emission Limits, Field Strength of Spurious Emissions
All components used in this apparatus are RoHS compliant and do not contain above the specified limits in any of the following restricted substances:
• Lead
• Hexavalent Chromium
• Mercury
• Cadmium
• Polybrominated Biphenyls (PBB's)
• Polybrominated Diphenylethers (PBDE's)
This apparatus must NOT be disposed of with other domestic waste.
We are fully committed to maintaining our responsibilities to the environment. Owners of apparatus that has reached the end of it's useful life can return it to us for recycling, recondition, reuse or proper disposal. You will be required to pay lowest cost postal service available to ship the apparatus to us. Before shipping please contact us for more important information.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Aareff is a trademark of Aareff Transmission Systems. All contents of this document including, but not limited to the images, logos, text, illustrations are protected by copyrights, trademarks and other intellectual property rights which are owned and controlled by Aareff Transmission Systems or by other parties that have licensed their material to Aareff Transmission Systems. This document in part or whole may not be copied, reproduced, republished, uploaded, posted or distributed in any way, including by e-mail, ftp or any other electronic means
Every care has been taken in the preparation of this document, errors in content, typographical or otherwise, may have occurred. If you have comments concerning its accuracy, please contact Aareff Systems Limited (UK)