Click on Photos  for Larger, Clearer View.

Note the new block wall and column at one end of the existing "fence" in the picture.  This area will house the air handling and filtering equipment for the new transmitter.  Behind the existing fence is air handling equipment for the existing main KNX transmitter.  When work is completed, the new construction will match the existing. (7/9/01)

 

This is the cabinet for the old G.E. BT50 transmitter's "dummy load".  A dummy load is an artificial antenna used to test transmitters.  While using it, the 50,000 watts of radio signal being applied to it during tests are turned into heat that is vented out of the building.  The interior heating elements from this old cabinet have been removed and the cabinet unbolted in preparation for dismantling.  7/9/01

The GE BT50 is operational at this time as an auxiliary transmitter, but we're looking closely at it in preparation for dismantling.  The DX-50 will sit in the same place as the BT50 sits now and will become KNX's main transmitter, replacing the Continental 317C now in service as the main transmitter.  In the photo, conduit panels have been removed from the base and top of the transmitter for inspection. 7/9/01

After almost 40 years of service, the BT50 (left) is old and ready for retirement.  A close look at interior wiring shows its age.  Insulation has become brittle.  Any work on transmitter wiring this old is generally a delicate process and can mean replacement of the wire.  Wiring terminals on the right show their age.  For a better look at the photos on this page, click on them. 7/9/01

Photo break.  This light show has nothing to do with construction at Torrance, but was worth looking at nonetheless.  It's a pre-sunrise event in the parking lot at Columbia Square in Hollywood.  The palm trees are a signature of our Southern Californian locale.