PNR: Welcome DJ Wachunga. What does "Wachunga" mean?
DJW: Thanks, It's nice to be here. The word wachunga is greek and I not sure of it's true meaning. All I know is, I would prefer death to it!
PNR: How long have you been a FM pirate ?
DJW: Since 1980, mostly we would broadcast from what ever party the Studboys were throwing? Our mixer also fed an old modified Sencore FM multiplex oscillator, pumped up to 100mw. Wow!
PNR: Studboys?
DJW: The Studboys of Lodi, heterosexual men who party hard, make George smile and chase the girls. Real men from Lodi California.
PNR: Where do you broadcast from?
DJW: Several hours a week from a hidden location in Lodi and about once a month or so from the Oakland Hills.
PNR: You broacast from the Oakland Hills?
DJW: Sure, Berkeley is the home of pirate radio. We honor those that came before us. We usally run 50-60 watts stereo from our mobile studio up there but in Lodi we run from a fixed location, so its 10 watts max.
PNR: What service area does Studboy FM 89.x cover from "up there" (Oakland Hills)?
DJW: 25 to 35 miles, easily most of the bay area. We've gotten mail from Santa Rosa to Stanta Cruz. Studboy FM 89.x is KING.
PNR: Why 89.x ?
DJW: It used to be a joke, the early gear drifted around a bunch. Now we use different frequencies at our various sites. So its 89.x, x being a variable.
10mw stereo exciter using a modified Veronica kit. 1. 12 volt dc regulator, 2. varicap diode fine tune, 3. bandpass 10mw amp.
PNR: What kind of show do you broadcast?
DJW: If we are live from a S.B.O.L. party, then its mostly old school (circa 1976-1984) hard core, punk and new wave. If I'm angry at the world, its the Dead Kennedys. Sometimes its just Pantera, if I'm in a southern fried rock mood.
PNR: Is that DEVO you are playing now?
DJW: Yes, it is. Devo, Wall of Voodoo, Big Black, Killdozer, Sex Pistols, Tuxedomoon, Stranglers, Fear, Buzzcocks, and the Rezillos are a few of my favorites. Iggy Pop too! Also Black Flag, Henry is god. Anything with Jello...
PNR: Have you ever had a close call with the FCC?
DJW: I'm not sure. We panicked once when we had a white ford sedan come up the hill and towards us. Down came the antenna and off we went! Like gone in 60 seconds.
PNR: What is in the future for DJ Wachunga and Studboy Fm 89.x?
DJW: A pair of 4CX250B power tetrodes. A "wide area" simulcast from both the bay and valley locations. A bevy of college aged cuties all clamoring for the attention of DJ Wachunga !!
PNR: That sounds sinister??
DJW: It is. Studboy FM 89.x is sticking it to the man! Hey W, this finger is for you!
PNR: How can listeners contact you?
DJW: We use the same mail drop in North Carolina that everyone else uses, search google. Thanks. :)
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"...the airways belong to the people. Corporate public radio is crap too, we need pirates to fill the void and kick some ass."
On location 3/04 STUDBOY FM 89.x - 1. 10mw stereo exciter, 2. 1 watt pre amp, 3. 10 watt final amp, 4. low pass filter.
PNR: What can you recommend to other aspiring FM pirates?
DJW: Easy, don't drift, don't overdrive and use plenty of low pass filtering. A drifty signal will cost you listeners. Spurious, splattering and harmonic heavy pirate FM transmissions will quickly get the attention of the FCC.
PNR: Where did you get your equipment ?
DJW: The Veronica FM kit is sold every where. Most of the other gear was built by myself. The plans and schematics for the amp stages and low pass filters came from the Radio Free Berkeley web site. The 10 watt amp is a modified Ramsey PA-1 ham radio amp that I purchased used, off of ebay for $14 total shipped.
PNR: How much money does it cost to build a pirate FM station ?
DJW: I'm a junk box kind of guy. I used alot of stuff I had laying aroung, parts and stuff. If you had to buy all the parts and bargain shopped a bit, probably $250 total. It's modular in design, so you can add stages of amplification and features on the pay as you go plan.
PNR: How do you get 50 watts of power ?
DJW: A pair of Motorola MRF-492 transistors. They run cool and loaf at 50 watts.
PNR: Please describe your antenna?
DJW: It's a simple vertical 1/2 wave dipole. Using "tape measure" elements and a 50 ohm feed, incased in 1" PVC pipe. It has 5 mhz of band width and a swr of under 1.5 to 1.
PVC pipe all weather broad band vertical dipole antenna. Easily made with items purchased at Home Depot.
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