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RF spectrum scans from around the world
I have begun to save RF spectrum scans. The FCC database is fine but always not quite complete. Additionally it doesn’t give the user an indication of what happens inside a venue or in other countries. Currently I am on tour in the USA, Australia and Europe and have the opportunity to collect a lot of scans.
I have added all the future scan sites for Australia and Europe for the tour I am with and they will be completed by Late March 2015.
Please see the page for contributing to this data. Two other RF coordinators have been sending their venue scans, Ryan Stotts and John Sulek. Ryan has contributed a bunch of files explaining how to do CSV files with a Rhode&Schwartz FSH3 and I covered getting the data using a TTi PSA spectrum analyzer.
https://www.bestaudio.com/spectrum-analyzer-setups
In addition to this page checkout the RF coordination page with lots of free information and links.
Pete Erskine
peter@bestaudio.com -
3 Replies
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Scans at sites / venues will change day by day, event by event, doing a scan is sort of worthless apart from getting the fixed frequencies in the area, and everything fits around those.
For example a local stadium would use 30-40 frequencies on radio mics, in ear monitoring and communications for an event and then the following day there would be nothing, with Multi function venues the possible variations are huge. -
You are so correct. The day to day local RF is vastly different. In my case I want to do scans when all wireless is off, just to see the naked spectrum.
The purpose of these scans is to define what TV stations and other more permanent users of these bands are actually in use and how powerful or weak the signals are inside the venue.
Newer communications RF operates in the 900 band and the DECT band (1920-1930 MHz in USA). The users of these bands are not listed anywhere so direct scans are the best way to plan.
The coordination software can fill in what the FCC website says is in use but most of the time it is not correct. Either a channel or two are missing or some channels you think are clear are in use. Also the FCC DB gives no indication of the shielding effect of the venue. Usually there are weak DTV stations which are only the barest noise within a venue and are therefore useful for wireless use.
legally you can’t have a wireless operating on a TV channel within their contour. On the other hand if the station cannot be received at all within the venue, I believe it’s OK, you can’t interfere with their reception.
Shows with a lot of wireless sometimes send a coordinator to the distant venue to advance the spectrum and do their own scans prior to coordinating and specifying the equipment frequency bands. Often this is not possible, especially when traveling to other countries.
My current show is a musical tour with 72 to 85 frequencies in use. Some cities are very hard to make them all work and the scans give us a chance to get replacement equipment on more clear channels.
Having been in the dark myself about a future venue, this db is my effort to help inform the community of RF coordinators.
Peter Erskine
peter@bestaudio.com
http://www.bestaudio.com -
Currently the total scans are up to 138 with 9 of them still to be done in Asia. Some sites have venue pix as well as inside and outside UHF/VHF scans, DECT, 900 mHz and FM
https://www.bestaudio.com/spectrum-analyzer-setups
Peter Erskine
peter@bestaudio.com
http://www.bestaudio.com
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