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My goal is to be able to "rebroadcast" FM radio over the internet.

What I mean by this is connect some kind of FM radio board to the raspberry pi, and receive the audio in software (i.e. python). Then set up a website that streams that audio.

What I need help with is reading that FM audio stream in something like python. From that point I can figure the rest out on my own.

I imagine it very similar to a microphone except the audio stream originates from FM radio waves.

I assume I need some kind of breakout board that connects to the PI and then hopefully a library to communicate (i.e. set frequency) and receive the audio from that board.

Links to such a board and a library would be great.

In addition, how fast of a CPU would I need if I wanted to do the same thing with a microcontroller?

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    the first thing you need to do is check the legality of doing such a thing - in most countries, it's completely illegal to do that without permission of the original broadcaster - then you can use a radio tuner USB and something like icecast
    – Jaromanda X
    Commented Mar 28, 2021 at 22:13
  • Interesting, I didn't know that. In my case I am the one broadcasting. (using a little microphone to FM transmitter module).
    – Steve
    Commented Mar 28, 2021 at 22:16
  • Even more so then. Are you licensed as a 'radio ham' in your country or using publicly available frequencies (e.g. CB style equipment)?
    – user130616
    Commented Mar 28, 2021 at 22:23
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    Oh, OK, then don't worry about the legality issue - many cheap analog TV USB dongles can handle FM transmissions as well - another option is Software Defined Radio dongle (they can be very cheap to very expensive) - and then use icecast to handle streaming
    – Jaromanda X
    Commented Mar 28, 2021 at 23:31
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    Yes, please let's not get hung up on the legalities of FM transmission here. For one thing, the rules differ a fair bit from country to country (eg. I think in Australia they are very strict whereas here in Canada we are more laissez faire), for another in most of the contexts we see here this is a very theoretical concern...you are going to have to add some serious wires and amplification before a pi makes it into the "ham radio" category.
    – goldilocks ♦
    Commented Mar 29, 2021 at 18:15

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You're asking some interesting questions (IMHO), but you're not likely to get the best answers here because your question is somewhat "off topic". Understand that just because Raspberry Pi can be applied to some computing task, does not make questions about that task relevant here. As a ludicrous example, consider the fiendish plan by one of our admins here to use RPi to administer electro-shock therapy to users asking off-topic questions :)

Perhaps the best answer I can offer is to do a bit more research; try to formulate an approach to your objectives by reviewing what others have done first. To that end, a search along these lines may help with determining an approach to the Internet Radio Station part of your plan?

Wrt reading that FM audio stream, you may find help under another search term, or perhaps look into using the RPi as a SDR. The GNU Radio Project is a great source of information on software (and hardware). And speaking of hardware, the ubiquitous (and inexpensive) RTL-SDR dongles may provide the hardware basis for your receiver. Once you begin doing a bit of research on your own, you will find no shortage of resources (incl Python code) to help you implement this (and yes - your idea is definitely "do-able").

I hope you understand... this is the place to ask detailed questions, learn, and help other people by sharing your knowledge - not the place where you come in and ask for a detailed plan to follow some idea you've had. I think you'll find this "do your homework before asking questions" requirement a common one - and necessary when viewed from a resource allocation perspective.

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  • Hey @Seamus, thanks for the detailed reply. I'm sorry if this is off topic, I thought it would be in the realm of the pi ecosystem. I admit I took a bit of offense since you seem to suggest I didn't research before asking this question. I did, and most if not all articles and even YouTube show how to transmit radio. Almost none go over receiving. I'd elaborate more but char limit. Stackexchange was my last resort. This is my first question and I created an account specifically for it because I just couldn't figure it out. Either way, thank you for the feedback, I'll do better next time :)
    – Steve
    Commented Mar 30, 2021 at 21:15
  • You shouldn't be offended - there was absolutely nothing personal about my "answer". My apologies if it came across that way.
    – Seamus
    Commented Apr 2, 2021 at 5:15

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