Equipment Time

Well as I originally said when I started this blog, I hoped to talk about the nuts and bolts of internet radio. This is a huge topic. One can talk about it from a hardware point of view or with applications for our computers or simply websites. As I write this I am listening to Spin 103.8 in England. (I believe) This is secular music. I have not given up on real radio. This is a good teenage station. Today I want to focus on hardware. Really just my stuff. The real advantage hear is that my radio setup really did not cost me over 200.00 USD.

The little box that looks like a comic book jam-box is a Radi.osphy HD AM/FM radio that I got for about 100.00 USD. Like many HD radios you can hook external antenna to the FM and the AM side. In town this radio works well on the FM side with the rod antenna that it came with. As the HD FM comes in, a light comes on and you can tune the sub channels. (Alas we will cover HD later.) The radio comes with a loop for AM but pulling an AM HD station is not easy. I know the technology works. My car radio feasted on AM HD in Denver. In my market we get 1 Disney station in AM HD. (Sounds good too.) The radio also has a auxiliary jack that allows one to hook up anything that comes with a headphone connection. This is where internet radio comes in.

The teardrop component is an Aluratek Internet Radio tuner. This little radio can be found for under 100.00USD. It uses vtuner.com listings for station listings. It comes with a remote control that you use to operate it. You will need to hook it up to an amplification source. My Radi.osphy radio was perfect for that. One could use some old computer speakers or a whole stereo. I have hooked it up to a stereo and it sounds great. The Aluratek will need a source of the internet. I have used a cable wireless modem and a dsl wireless modem and it works OK. It does seem to have a limited wireless range. Occasionally you just need to turn it off and turn it back on for it to get a good connection. This is not a huge problem. It will show time only when its on. The display is very bright and only shows station info for a second before going to time. I have tried to find a way to override the time display. No luck. Once you power the unit up you have about 10,000 stations at your fingertips. Like the vtuner site the radio will display stations by country, genre or you can search for stations by name. You can also turn the display off so the brightness will not blind you.

The bonus concerning this rig is simple. No computer. The Aluratek does all the work and the Radi.osphy is perfect for low level listening or headphones. I like to listen at night with a simple pair of Sony headphones. With this rig I have heard great stations all over the world.

Oh yeah faith. With these simple things I hear stations and great information from around the world. Do you need some things to hear God's voice and direction. Sure. I would start with a heart focused on Jesus. I then would find a good bible to read. Right now I use English Standard Version. Its a great, readable translation. Next I would have a simple plan. Right now I am reading a chapter of Old Testament and a Chapter of New Testament. I try to do this daily. I pray between the readings. I use the ACTS prayer system. I have some verses about adoration, confession, thanksgiving and supplication in a notebook. Then I have a prayer list that I update often. On this list I can see what the Lord has done in response to my request. This is not a method I will do all my life. I may change versions, prayer method or may focus on the bible in a different way. It will take me a while to read the Old Testament and by the time that happens I will probably read through the New Testament several times. Like my desire to hear radio stations all over the world the sound I want to hear most is God's voice.

Please write me if this blog helps you. I love questions about faith. No question is beyond looking at. I love technology questions to. I taught computers and I have taught religion. No technology question is beyond a good look. Please email me at scotttalbert1963@gmail.com