Ok, just got it assembled after getting emailed again the instructions. Think my junkmail filter stopped it the first time.
Anyway, very quick response from EDM - cheers!
Onto the unit....
This is the LCD unit (no direct link, sorry) - attached are the assembly and operating instructions just in case someone else's email gets blocked off.
When tweaking the settings, make sure you place the transmitter a fair distance away from your PC.
Besides that, follow the operating instructions - very well written.
The station sounds GREAT!!!!! Awesome in stereo and awesome range. Best unit by far!!!
One very small detail - I'd prefer to have an on-off switch for it (you have to plug/ unplug it) - but don't let that stop you from picking up this unit.
I've tried the following:
Had the PCI Max 2007 card. Hate to say it, but I think it's one of those great concepts that doesn't work well in practice. The drivers were horribly built - I've built probably built from scratch 20 or 30 PC's with installations from Windows 95 to XP (current OS) to Ubuntu Linux - and I could never get it working.
However, they really will work with you to try and get it to work. Great experience with support doesn't put candy in the stocking though, if you know what I mean!
I've also bought the Mobile Black Box 's V6000 - great unit but sent back because it was only in mono and I didn't realize what a difference it made.
Pretty cool solution though if you were to do a Christmas car or bicycle and drive around town broadcasting your X-Mas Cheer while dressed in a Santa Claus suit.
I thought EDM's LCD was hype..but I'm a believer now!
What about the Whole House Transmitter? Has anyone had any experience with this product?
I really want to add a transmitter this year but I have no interest\time to assemble one from a kit... and I do not want to spend a lot of money. (I want my cake and to eat it too!)
I read this entire post from the beginning and the opinions either way are insightful but still seems to involve some experience\knowledge of the hobby.
What do y'all recommend for someone who wants plug and play for under $100.00 or am I just dreaming?
Welcome! I am new here also and will be making this my first year animating lights with LOR. All the info I ever needed I've gotten here without even asking any questions, (love that search button) and everyone here is very helpful no matter what the question is when you do ask.
Last year I had a GE Lights & Sounds of Christmas to control my lights. I ended up buying a Whole house transmitter Gold Edition and hooked it up to the unit so people could hear it from the car. Believe it or not it actually worked fairly well and I am planning on using it again until I budget for an upgrade (lights & extension cords are priority now).
The down side is the limited amount of channels. I live where that's not much of a problem so I took that into account when I ordered it. Other people have had issues with that limitation. As far as range I spliced some wire to the existing antenna from the unit then ran it through a basement window and up the front of the house. Line of sight range was about +500' from the house aprox. More than enough for the cars driving through. Also for the way it was set up I thought the sound was quite good. It didn't sound like I was listening through a tin can and string.
The down side was the interference that would come and go from having it hooked to the speaker output of the GE unit. Lots of 115V wires running in the same area as the transmitter wire. You could kinda hear a fuzzy pulsing sound in the background as the lights would turn on and off. Unlike the feedback that I have gotten from other people I didn't get interference from having it plugged into a wall outlet. Most of the time it was crisp and clear. Also, 100' of wire running through the yard and over cords into the basement and back out again didn't help the fore mentioned problem. A few people came to the door to ask about the display and they said it sounded just fine.
For the money I give it a thumbs up but every situation is different. It's not the one I want to end up with down the road but for now it works just fine.
If you were an audiophile like me, you would not be happy with the mono sound (easy to find out if you do or not - just flip any radio from FM to FM Stereo. If the sound is ok, then you'll be ok with the Mobile's sound) - but then you would be willing to shell out a lot more.
To help your decision, I had never soldered before. Didn't get it right the first time, but then used some soldering braid to wick some of the first try off....
But the soldering braid really didn't work too well. Instead, I just continued to melt my massive, globulous solder down....and eventually it filled the entire hole (s).
Once the power plug's 3 sections were filled in completely, it worked like a champ.
Just make sure you get a low wattage soldering iron per their instructions, and you'll be good to go.
EDM really replied very, very quickly, so that's a great sign if you did have any follow-up questions....
As long as your using the recommended soldering iron ( I bought a switchable 15/ 30 watt version from Radio shack), you can solder it up - and then remove the solder, until you get it right.
Just remember to have the antenna attached when you turn it on....not quite sure why, but easy enough to do...
SteppedUp wrote: Just remember to have the antenna attached when you turn it on....not quite sure why, but easy enough to do...
Radio Frequency (RF) energy behaves differently than the low-frequency in our electrical sockets.
When the transmitter is generating RF power, it has to go somewhere, preferrably through an antenna into the airwaves.
If the antenna isn't connected, the power ends up back in the output transistor, and will damage it.
I am looking to get a transmitter. Not for this season, but I want to be able to use it in the off season as well. From what I have found most (if not all) are happy with the EDM. I would like a little more info on some of the H/K stuff from ebay. Which unit from HLLY are people using? Most seem to be a wee bit over the legal limit. I also saw a reference, but can't find the post again (I think from one of the Jeffs) about an ebay transmitter that needed a case. I found one from MDfly that might be the unit in question and wondered how it was holding up and what power supply and antenna were used.
I can only tell you I've sold the EDM LCD to over 160 members who have owned Belkin, Ramsey FM25B, FM30B, FM100B, Vaseltec, HLLY, CCRANE, mobileblackbox, whole house, panaxis and others ... and they are now using the EDM in their display and to listen around the house ... and rave over the difference (improvement) in sound quality.
Probably the best testimonial I have is from a guy with 4 transmitters, one being the 100B and a Vaseltec ... and he's using the EDM now. That said it all to me.
If thats not enough, EDM has a 3 year warranty. Everyone else is 1 year. And the stuff from China is lucky if its not DOA half the time.
Why the EDM such a great deal? Better design. And being made in S. Africa ... your getting so much value ... due to the currency conversion (USD vs. SA RAND) being so lob-sided.
Plus they have documented how to add RDS without any noticable loss in quality. It does invalidate the 3 year warranty, however.
The pirate radio folks should know ... you don't need to waste money buying them all yourself ... get the EDM and don't look back.
Last edited on Wed Dec 10th, 2008 06:03 am by taybrynn
I can't yet speak for the EDM, but I will in the spring. Right now my failed Ramsey is my backup. I can't rely on that. The number of DOA boards from Vastelec has me wary of purchasing any more from them, even though mine was perfectly fine.
It seems to me that EDM is a step forward, and most of the rest are two or three in reverse. Get an EDM, do the RDS mod, transmit from your show PC without fear of a failed set with no range. I still wish I could turn back time on my purchases...
Jeff
____________________ Evan... Are you at home resting yet? I'm very glad you're feeling better!
You can"t beat EDM. I ordered one from TAYBRYNN. I put it together and it failed to operate. Between TAYBRYNN and EDM I had 20 emails in less then 3 days. I could not fix it, I shipped to EDM rep. in California they fixed it and returned it to me in less then 2 weeks. Found the crystal was damaged. cost to me $0. Customer service was great, just like Light-O-Rama.
