The first two photos on this page are of Siren FM's original installation, before it became a full-time community station for Lincoln.
The studio and transmitter are at the Brayford Pool campus of the University of Lincoln. Brayford Pool is on low ground, and just to the north is a big hill with the cathedral on top of it. The result is that Siren's coverage to the northern suburbs of the city has been problematic. To alleviate the problem the old transmission aerial, a half wave dipole, was replaced in 2008 with a Jaybeam colinear and the mast was extended upwards. This didn't provide a complete solution, but it did result in a great improvement. However, transmitting from the roof of the cathedral has been mooted, and is under consideration.
The Jaybeam supertwig arrived in a cardboard tube 21ft long, and the unfortunate elderly installer had to convey this heavy item to the roof by holding it vertically in the stairwell at arms length and staggering up the circular stairway. It rained relentlessly during the installation work.
The only way a photograph of the whole length of the mast and aerial could be obtained was by the intrepid installer laying on the floor of the nearby plantroom and taking the shot diagonally. Having taken the photograph he found it difficult to stand, and remained on the plantroom floor for some time, groaning that aerial installation is a young man's game.
The installation as you see it here has evolved rather than anything else; hence the mast couplers and the rather strange configuration of the wall brackets. |
