Introduction: Turn Your VCR Into an RF or A/V Transmitter
This is pretty simple. Shove an aerial in the back of the ouput of a vcr. And tune your TV in. However this method looks terrible and only works at about 1 metre.
This doesn't stop anyone from sticking in a TV Amplifier.
That would be illegal but only semi-illegal because the frequency used by the VCR is for VCR's so the problem of your signal clouding someone elses directly plugged in VCR, is not really a problem.
You can even use the AV input of your VCR and the AV or RF output of another VCR to send DVD around your house :)
Step 1: Another View of the Aerial
Step 2: Experiment Success!
Terrible reception though.
Step 3: Stick the Aerials Close Together
Like so...
Step 4: Much Better Reception
enter longer description for this step
30 Comments
2 years ago
What inputs/outputs do we plug it into?
7 years ago
Try the Raspberry Pi with OpenELEC :D PiRate TV
8 years ago on Introduction
Cool Idea it seemed to work although I used a coaxial cable and attached a wire to the end of it didn't want to mess up my equipment it seems though that it does need a amplifier don't know if that is legal or not the FCC doesn't allow Analog Broadcast. I had to touch the two antenna's together for it to work so is like hooking it up with a cable I don't know if the coat hanger works better didn't try it.
my VCR does have a FCC ID probably means they can trace it back to you.
14 years ago on Introduction
couldnt you use some rabbit ears to tranmit the signal too.
Reply 11 years ago on Introduction
Anold TV antenna is actually a Yagi-Oda Transmitting Antenna. Just hook up your old TV antenna to your choice of transmitter and your on the air. My nextdoor neighbor in Chicago did this and transmitted porn to our house right off the RF OUT on his VCR. If he had connected an RF Antenna Amp to it, it would have been a better signal. but not by much.
Reply 14 years ago on Introduction
yeah thatd work way better. didnt have 2 at the time though lol
Reply 14 years ago on Introduction
actually, i tried it yesterday evening, and it wasnt really as good....it probably be better than the coat hanger, if you were to use a signal amplifier though
13 years ago on Introduction
I was messing around with a TV in my car. Unfortunately, since the stupid government went to digital just because of military uses (what?), I couldn't get any stations. As for pirate TV, I'm all for it. I don't have the creativity to come up with anything people would watch. If anyone does this near Sulphur, Oklahoma, just know at least one analog antennea is waiting for your broadcast!
Reply 11 years ago on Introduction
Like it or not the trend towards digital, because digital allows for more users in the same amount of spectrum. In some area hams are going digital voluntary because they ran out of spectrum in many places. Pirate radio or TV is self defeating. The more people are aware of the stations, the greater likelihood the FCC will become aware of them. The FCC isn't about to allow the broadcast spectrum become a free for all.
Reply 12 years ago on Introduction
So everyone does no, I dont like it anymore than you do, but playing with the RF signals can get you a fine. You have to have a license to play with it, even if you are just playing around. FCC experimental license would be needed. Now I have heard of a loop-hole that you can transmit directly around your home, but, I dont know how true that is. Good luck, and be safe. ( course, I dont know how much they monitor that stuff either... )
16 years ago
It's called ingress. In the cable business it's called annoying. Your VCR is sending out a signal, just like the television company sends their broadcast over the air. It's not anywhere near as strong as them obviously. If you want to be technical about it, anything that has a RF output could do this. Be nice to your cable guy, don't do this. Use a piece of cable and save him 45 minutes of troubleshooting at your neighbors house trying to figure out why the neighbors pics are poor.
Reply 14 years ago on Introduction
could this really interfere with a neighbors when there using shielded coax I did this with a 2.5 watt rf amplifier and a big dipole and I just cant stretch it off of my suburban lot I really doubt it would interfere with neighbors
Reply 16 years ago
some vcrs have like 2 inputs one for male coaxial one for female. they are jsut connected your just putting the antenna as a transmitter and shit!! too laszy to tpe
14 years ago on Introduction
I used an rf amplifier the cable company dident take back when I switched to fios and got housewide service using a dipole
also you could get this thing
http://shop.ebay.com/?_from=R40&_trksid=m38&_nkw=Wireless+UHF+Audio+Video+Transmitter
which has a 500 foot range but thats no fun is it
15 years ago on Introduction
whats this??? cant understand...... please explain.... thnx.
Reply 14 years ago on Introduction
Basically all this is a video signal that is been transferred wirelessly via an RF cable. The TV antenna picks up wireless radio signals, so naturally it picks up this signal too.
14 years ago on Introduction
now all you need is a gigantic TV amp and an anoying nieghbor! XD
15 years ago on Introduction
nice,and i spy trebuchet03's cord repair!
15 years ago on Introduction
WOW I just tried this and it worked good I have my dvd / hd tv tuner hooked up to my VCR and it was cool I will be posting something soon so when I do I hope I get me a to-shirt haha.
16 years ago
"and only works at about 1 metre" I guess this is why people use SCART cables? Can this signal be boosted? Is it possible to amplify this and transmit over a greater range? Pirate radio - pirate TV. We could be going somewhere with this, if it wereen't for cable, satelite, digital...?