RADIO STATION and BROADCASTING EQUIPMENT

There are many doubts a broadcaster's mind is filled with when he first approaches the Broadcast Market.
Typically, a broadcaster is not a telecommunication engineer, and specific skills are required when approaching the purchase of professional broadcast equipment. Furthermore, the FM Radio is a niche industry, and it is difficult to find engineers specialized in this vertical sector, and it is of fundamental importance to be able to rely on a competent supplier with years of experience behind them.

That is why we have created this COMPLETE GUIDE for you.

First, let's look at some common questions.

Frequently Asked Questions about building a new Radio Station,
and updating, expanding or modernizing an existing one:

• How much does it Cost to start a radio station?
• What is the Meaning of broadcast?
• What kind of Equipment is used in a Broadcast Radio Station?
• May I have a List of Radio Station Equipment?
• What does Broadcast Equipment mean?
• Which are the best Manufacturers of Radio Station Equipment?
• Where can I find the Best Suppliers for Radio Station Equipment?
• What are the different Types of Broadcasting Equipment?
• What are the Characteristics of broadcasting equipment?
• May I find a Complete Package of Broadcast Equipment? Or must I buy the items from different Suppliers?
• What equipment do I need for a low power FM Radio Station?
• What Studio Equipment do I need to improve the Sound Quality?
• What is the difference between PA live/Musician Studio Equipment and Professional Broadcast Radio Equipment? How do you compare the two?
• How can I increase the Coverage of my FM Broadcast Radio?

A Complete Guide to our selection of FM Broadcast Equipment and FM Radio Station Equipment:

Summary

1. List of Broadcast Equipment to start a Radio Station
2. First of all: What does the word "Broadcast" mean?
3. Selecting the right Equipment for the right needs: a Comparison between Broadcast Equipment and PA live/Studio Musician Equipment
4. The right Radio Station Equipment for the right Radio Station setup
5. What kind of Radios should we build?
6. How much do I need to spend to build a Radio Station?
7. Conclusion

2. First of all: What does the word "Broadcast" mean?

To broadcast is to cast, to throw something in all directions at the same time.

A radio broadcast program transmits airwaves for reception by anyone who is tuned in to the right frequency.

The term “broadcasting” evolved from the agricultural method of sowing seeds in a field by casting them broadly about.
In fact, some synonyms are: send, distribute, diffuse, propagate, spread, disseminate, transmit.
In other words, "Broadcast" means transmitting a program from ONE to MANY.

3. Selecting the right Equipment for the right needs: a Comparison between Broadcast Equipment and PA live/Studio Musician Equipment

Some synonyms for Broadcast Equipment are:
FM Transmission Equipment, Broadcast equipment for FM Radio Station, Broadcast Products, FM Broadcast Equipment, FM Radio Equipment, FM Radio Station Equipment, Radio Broadcasting FM, Radio Station Transmitter.

People often wonder whether a piece of equipment is of broadcast quality.
It is implicitly understood that broadcast equipment, unlike consumer equipment, is a type of product specifically developed for Broadcast purposes, and is therefore of superior quality.

The difference is easy to understand: consumer or professional products are used only a few hours a day.
Let's think about how many hours a day we use our car, or our washing machine, or our camera.
If we compare these with the use of FM Broadcast transmitters, we can easily understand why the quality of broadcast equipment must be absolutely superior to that of consumer or professional products: it is intended to operate 24 hours a day, 365 days a year for many years.

Thereby: a broadcast product implies high quality and reliability.

4. The right Radio Station Equipment for the right Radio Station setup

Now we will answer a more frequent question: What Broadcast Equipment do I need?

You are ready to start an FM Radio Station and to build your FM Radio Studio?
Here we will go deeper into what you need in order to achieve this.

Radio Station Equipment generally consists of two varieties:

• Radio Studio Equipment
• Transmission Equipment

With this step-by-step guide we are also answering the question: How to select the right Broadcast Equipment to buy for an FM Radio Station?

We will show you what you need for each section of your radio and how it all fits together.
We will list all the necessary equipment for the different types of radios,

from:

• Small local radios with a very simple on air-studio, and transmitter sites with a small coverage local area.

up to:

• Big on-air studios for multiple guests, live callers, production off-air studios, and transmitter sites with a big national network coverage.

5. What kind of Radios should we build?

When we buy Broadcast Equipment to build an FM Radio Station there are three factors to be considered:

• The type of radio or type of program that the radio should broadcast
• The future we have in mind for the radio
• The budget we have available

There are different types of FM Radios: Local, Community, Regional or National; Commercial, Non-commercial, Educational or Religious.

There are FM Radio Stations that cover a small area with a radius of 10km or less; those that cover an average area ranging from 30 to 70km; and those with a very large coverage of more than 100km in radius.

There are radios that have repeaters and cover large areas. In this case, they cover the points with a high density of population thanks to a dedicated transmitter.

Last but not least, there are Streaming radios or Web Radios.

Radios can broadcast rock/pop or classical music programs. They can be religious or news radios. They can focus on music or on spoken material.

You also need to think about whether you are planning to work alone or with other collaborators.

Radios can be born with the idea to remain the same through the years, or with the ambition to grow, from local to regional, or even to become a national network!.

Only with these considerations in mind can we choose the most suitable material to buy.

6. How much do I need to spend to build a Radio Station?

The main aspect to consider in selecting the equipment is the economic budget.
The question is: do we need to buy high-cost devices to have a good quality radio?
The answer is: NO.

By carefully choosing the material and the supplier, you can build a good quality radio station with a limited budget.

For a small local radio just a 4-channel audio console, (the type used for music recordings), a microphone and headphones for a few euros, a table, a chair, a 50W transmitter and an antenna…
and with even just €3,000 you are on-air!

Moving beyond this first station, however, there are infinite nuances to be embraced:

• one or more On-Air Studios
• Guest location
• Off-Air Production Studios
• exclusive equipment for broadcast applications
• Digital Audio Mixer consoles of 24 or more Channels
• Hybrid Telephone inputs
• expensive Orban or Axia type processors
• high quality Microphones and Headphones
• Servers to store the media
• Software Automation
• Furniture designed for Radio Broadcast applications
• transmission sites with 40kW Transmitter
• Antenna systems up to 16 bay
• moto-generators…

...the minimum cost could start from €500,000!

In conclusion, starting with a small budget, choosing carefully, you can always set up a good radio: dignified and with a good quality.

After all, as in all things in life, what matters is: making the right choices and having high quality content.

7. Conclusion

Building a radio or modernizing it is not an easy task, but it is certainly an exciting activity.

We hope that with our help this work will be easier.

Our commitment is to help you make the right decisions and get the best results with the budget you have available.