Good to know - FCC regulations

[wavley]

Speaking of soldering with no ventilation.  Has anybody seen Jimi lately?  He has been quiet.  MC

I saw him post some stuff this morning, I was starting to worry!

I need to add about my little rant that it was not FCC stuff that they were self certifying, it was FAA.

[italianguy63]

I need to add about my little rant that it was not FCC stuff that they were self certifying, it was FAA.

I wonder which governing body certifies Burst Boxes?  I expect the radiation from them is extremely dangerous.

[duck_arse]

I need to add about my little rant that it was not FCC stuff that they were self certifying, it was FAA.

I wonder which governing body certifies Burst Boxes?  I expect the radiation from them is extremely dangerous.

that would have to be IAEA. I saw one powered by plutonium.

[Govmnt_Lacky]

Has anyone seen compliance stickers on those funky gold or silver boxes with the weird horse-dude on them? Or, their red-colored offspring?   

[italianguy63]

For what they cost.. they should be able to afford the sticker.

[slacker]

The mojo in those pedals neutralises any harmful emissions.  Their offspring that Mad Mike now sells do indeed come with cute little FCC stickers.

[wavley]

I need to add about my little rant that it was not FCC stuff that they were self certifying, it was FAA.

I wonder which governing body certifies Burst Boxes?  I expect the radiation from them is extremely dangerous.

that would have to be IAEA. I saw one powered by plutonium.

I think that there is no one governing body that can certify all that is inside a circuit box with a burst button switch, it's going to look like a race car with all of those little stickers.

Do you think I need to get this box certified by the FAA?

[italianguy63]

WTF?

I saw one powered by plutonium.

It sure isn't powered by that.

I think you should donate it to the Boy Scouts, Peter Pan, or the YMCA.  Maybe George Michael is still making music someplace.... 

[Digital Larry]

Has anyone seen compliance stickers on those funky gold or silver boxes with the weird horse-dude on them? Or, their red-colored offspring?    

Those are all analog, eh?  So most likely no reason for FCC stickering.  However, maybe the EIEIO monitors pedals with farm animals on them.

[italianguy63]

KLOWNs have a charge pump.  naughty naughty.

[duck_arse]

but .... this.

http://www.diystompboxes.com/smfforum/index.php?topic=76932.msg965144#msg965144

right there on the label. and ....

Do you have to shove garbage in it to make it work? 

Still working on that mod. This is the older version that still runs on plutonium

[samhay]

^but .... this.
I wonder if it is finally time for a new kind of burst box - one that spits out a huge (FCC (un)approved) RF pulse whenever you stomp on it?

[italianguy63]

one that spits out a huge (FCC (un)approved) RF pulse

I think that is called an Old School pinball machine... I bet they make all kinds of RF racket.  Unshielded relays and solinoids and such... humbug.

[kaycee]

I seriously doubt that it is actually legal to sell any DIY pedal on the open market, in the UK at least.

The ROHS (restriction of hazardous materials) regs mean that any NOS parts are ruled out because they haven't ever been tested, and their manufacturing process can't be verified now. ROHS is meant to address the amount of environmentally harmful materials in an electronic device, so that when it goes to landfill or for recycling for disposal its not as toxic as it could be. Mainstream suppliers have to be able to verify that the components they have sourced comply with these regs. Mr. Chang's Hong Kong ebay emporium does not, so if you or your supplier gets their stock from him, your probably not complying, certainly can't prove that you are.

Next, if you think that you can just make and sell something that plugs (indirectly via a power source admittedly) into the mains without regard to the legal directives, specifications and testing of the relevant departments, you probably haven't heard of trading standards. If your pedal has a short, or causes a short and bursts into flame, gradually heats up and melts a carpet etc, etc once again, hot water. And if you think restricting to just battery usage is the answer, try shorting one and holding onto it for a while!

Possibly the DIY pedal selling universe is being more than a bit cavalier with the relevant laws and regs pertaining to the sale of electronic devices and mostly getting away with it because of the law of averages that disasters don't happen that often to draw attention to it.

 

[Lurco]

You never walk alone:
http://www.commlawblog.com/2014/04/articles/unlicensed-operations-and-emer/another-big-audio-manufacturer-makes-another-big-settlement/
http://www.commlawblog.com/2013/12/articles/unlicensed-operations-and-emer/fine-print-not-fine-enough-another-audio-company-settles-with-the-fcc/
http://www.commlawblog.com/2012/08/articles/enforcement-activities-fines-f/fcc-consent-decree-puts-whammy-on-fender/
http://www.commlawblog.com/2012/03/articles/enforcement-activities-fines-f/audio-manufacturer-pays-72k-to-settle-with-fcc/
http://www.commlawblog.com/2011/05/articles/enforcement-activities-fines-f/fcc-settles-for-big-bucks-over-audio-gear-wait-audio/
http://www.commlawblog.com/2007/06/articles/enforcement-activities-fines-f/1-million-equipment-fine-confirmed/

[armdnrdy]

It looks like the FCC has found a new "honey hole"!

Very sad that these companies are preyed upon by such sharks!

[R.G.]

In feudal-system Europe, and probably other places, the king's tax collector wandered the countryside with his gang of armed "protection" officers, and collected taxes. He collected all he could, and then kept whatever was over what the king demanded.

In the private enterprise system there are things that are "profit centers", aka "cash cows", but at least there are competitors. Governments quickly notice that they have no competitors to underprice them.

Has anyone else noticed the rise of independent "regulatory agencies" showing up with SWAT-team armed enforcement agents? The EPA just pulled this scenario. It's becoming the norm for agencies to show up not with the local police for enforcement, but their own military-armed agents.

Does this bother anyone else? Or am I just getting spooky in my old age?

[Ice-9]

I'm just glad I won't be around in a few hundred years' time when the whole planet is ruled under a totalitarian system and no one is able to do anything remotely independent of what we are told to do. Oh and of course the backdrop has to be dark and sinister. 

[amptramp]

I'm just glad I won't be around in a few hundred years' time when the whole planet is ruled under a totalitarian system and no one is able to do anything remotely independent of what we are told to do. Oh and of course the backdrop has to be dark and sinister. 

You will be due for reincarnation by then.

[aron]

OK that was funny in a weird sort of way.