April 18,2005:
AM:IBOC
From AMFMTVDX List:
WOWO's breaks mention new HD signal and their nite IBOC is a big nuisance here in the Chicago suburbs. Bothering a strong WHAM on the car rx ND antenna and making it next to impossible to here my Chicago SS local on 1200 thru WOAI QRM.
The end of this hobby as we know it is near if something isn't done about nighttime IBOC.
No, the end of the hobby is coming if they don't ever sell IBOC radios. So far no one wants to sell IBOC radios. The destruction from this and the failure of IBAC will dwarf the debacle of AM Stereo if no radios are sold soon.
IBOC will make XM and Sirius rich. You can have digital radio now but it will come from a satellite.
We're in for a period of significant change. If nighttime IBOC persists, and radios are sold, then many many stations will go silent. But I think IBOC is a fad idea, and I think consumers will resist buying new radios unless the car manufacturers make the switch, and my bet there is with satellite ... really, some kind of Internet/computer-based wireless/satellite technology. I see this as the general, ultimate direction.
I see in the future of DXing an eventual opening of the AM band, with some temporary aberations and barriers such as IBOC, followed by the ultimate demise of the band. Once the dust settles this way, FM will go the same route.
My hunch...
Terrestrial radio is for the most part dead. I believe that the figures that people use are incorrect. I believe they are vastly inflated. Once people step out of the car, they watch TV and videos or go on the internet.
Were it not for sports on TV, I would not watch TV. If I want music, I listen to CDs or turn on XM. The radio has become a DX appliance and losing ground there in a hurry.
The problem with DXing, at least in Phoenix is that there are no open frequencies. Rimshots are popping up everywhere on FM here in the last month and AM is plagued with noise because, here in the USA, the LAWYER led FCC, who have NO CONCEPT of engineering practice, has allowed every noise making device on earth to be sold under the guise of being a part 15 radiator.
IBOC will get the people in cars to turn off the radio because of all the noise and they will play CDs or turn on the XM / Sirius.
If I owned a terrestrial radio station, I would be selling it about now. There is not much of a future in it.
From AMFMTVDX List:
IBOC is a way to piggy back a digital audio signal onto an existing analog signal. The problem is that it requires a lot more bandwidth. In what I've seen of it in local tests, it almost triples the bandwidth of the station using it. Picture this....the FM band is allocated every 10 mHz....but with IBOC, all the signals are now roughly 25 mHz wide. Get the point?
Awful! Checked Aug 15 at 0457 UT and there was equal noise on 690 and 710 wreaking havoc upon KGGF and KCMO. It would slowly rise and fade, and sometimes apparently go off; since WLW is rock solid here on 700, I doubt the IBOC (obviously really meaning in-band, OFF channel) hash fading was due
to propagation. If this is what we have to look forward to, goodbye mediumwave.
IBOC does the same thing on FM. This is why I have said repeatedly that you can kiss this hobby good-bye if it ever gets adopted. You might also make a case that outside of major metro areas, you might also kiss most radio listening good-bye. If most stations ever go IBOC, you would probably only get a listenable signal from nearby transmitters....everything less than a local signal would get killed by IBOC from adjacent channels...
Give IBOC a listen to on WLW....note the sidebands and how they interfere with the adjacents on both sides. With IBOC, you won't have an AM signal 10 kHz wide...it will be 30 kHz wide for all practical purposes. On FM, it will be 3 channels wide. How many weaker but listenable signals will this take out if it's adopted on a widespread basis????
The digital hash is well under WLW's analog audio, but it takes enough bandwidth to make adjacent frequencies unusable. Sounds a lot like the hash that my computer generates.
Wouldn't it be easier to use an FM sub-carrier for this? Or even the empty space between FM channels- 88.2, 88.4, 88.6, etc? Methinks that would work a lot better than current idea they're testing.
Maybe I'm being overly optimistic, but I expect IBOC to die the same death as AM Stereo. The only people that stand to gain are the those pushing the broadcast equipment and possibly the receiving equipment. I really don't expect the public to buy into it. There is too much existing equipment out there and the buying public won't throw away what they have for a boatload of new stuff.
Historically, the only way to get the public to buy a new radio technology is to do it on a new band. FM needed a new band instead of displacing AM, AM stered(the other IBOC-died), the DTV debacle(ongoing, but struggling). DBS-new band-successful, Sirius-XM, new band(ongoing, we'll see).
They intend to use the space between FM channels for the FM version of IBOC.
In any case, putting this on FM would tend towards equalizing the coverage of AM and FM stations, and giving AM stations equal day and night coverage. That's not acceptable to the owners of large FM stations.
As I see it, the adoption of IBOC as currently proposed would indeed equalize the coverages of AM & FM: at about 10 miles or so interference-free, or, maybe 20 if neither is low power. I'm thinking that there's probably nobody who would want that outcome.
Based on what I heard on IBOC tests, yes, it would decrease coverage of most FMs to the of an AM. But their logic leaves me speechless..... They want to do it by generating so much interference on the band as to cut the coverage area of an FM to maybe 15-25 miles??? (What would a 3 kw. have.....10 miles?) And in doing so, areas that might have, for sake of arguement, 50 listenable signals (a few locals but most stations at distances of 25 to 60 miles) might end up with only a half dozen usable signals.......
As a for instance, there's an area of Central N.J. around South Brunswick/Princeton that's about 45 miles from both NYC and Philly and stations from both markets are quite listenable (with the exception of those cases where NYC and Philly are both on the same frequency like 100.3 and 101.1). These stations are also on adjacent channels to each other (like 102.7 and 102.9). If everyone adopts IBOC, they should destroy each other totally. Wonder how the population in that area would feel about that....but the FCC doesn't seem to care what the public thinks anyway.
Send e-mail, stink bombs, brickbats, whatever to these addresses but make sure you send something telling them what you think!
wlwam@clearchannel.com
http://www.700wlw.com/contact.html
This is the addresses. Make sure you let them know. This is the one and only chance we have to derail this mess.
All the people said they didn't want it. They didn't like that they would have to buy new radios.
All the corporations said its wonderful. We are gonna screw the hell out of the people and take their money and they won't have any say. IBOC is great and the people will love it because they will have no choice and we can take their money.
Think about how nice your digital cell phone is and how that drops out. IBOC's gonna be something else. IF they do that hybrid crap, its gonna be PATHETIC. We will all be DXing HF stations. That WLW IBOC test was an utter and complete failure for all the interference. What a friggin joke.
Thats about the way it went.
From AMFMTVDX List:
Bloomberg News reports (via Tampa Tribune 17 October 2001) that the FCC will auction spectrum used by TV channels 60 through 69 on next June 19th. The previous scheduled date was 10 May 2000 and has been delayed four times due to complaints that the frequencies are occupied. Verizon Wireless and other mobile phone carriers seek the frequencies, which will be freed as digital TV arrives. Lowell Paxson (chmn Paxson Communications) is proposing that wireless companies pay the 100 TV stations using these channels to move ahead of congressionally mandated schedule. His statement said "broadcasters are poised to complete arrangements required for early clearing of the band as well as furthering the transition to digital television". The deadline for ending analog broadcasting is in 2006.
"The following was taken from the National Radio Club list."
OK, here's a dumb question: from which direction do loop antennas receive, along the axis of the loop or perpendicular to the axis? I've heard them described as receiving in a "broadside" direction but I'm unclear on what that actually means in real terms. How about ferrite loops? Same orientation as well?
***First remember that the conductor in the loop is what matters, even though with a box-type air core loop, we tend to think of the idea of broadside as respects the physical frame.
A ferrite core loop nulls off the ends. A spiral-wound air core loop, where the wire is wound in a spiral creating a flat surface, peaks 'broadside because the windings and frame are uniformly broadside. A box-type air-core loop nulls when the loop frame is broadside to the station. But, before you start to think that this is an inconsistency, remember that the wire on a box air core loop is arrayed in such a way that the windings are around the outside of the frame, and thus are wound in a perpendicular manner with respect to the frame. Consider this as really being the broadside of the winding ( which it is ) and it is consistent after all.
[[View:A]] I've been actively soliciting FM station verifications for over 50 years, and lately I have seen the percentage of stations replying increase. And this is from a person who generally does not include return postage with my letters (reception reports).
What I have always done is not just ask for a "verification," but ask specific questions. I think being downright nosy helps. I always ask, even of a station within 100 km of me, "is this report of reception from northeast Minnesota the greatest distance you know of this FM station of yours being heard?"
I go on to ask what other FM stations they may own locally, and I may ask if they are on 24 hours. I never ask anything technical, and I invite anybody reading the letter at the station to reply. Sometimes I ask about their profitability--almost anything that will elicit a reply. I say very little about myself. Letters should be short, and why brag to a station?
Since we have free long-distance on Friday, I will often call stations that have not verified to try to get them to promise to reply. This will be followed by a FAX of my original reception report if they do not remember hearing from me. My failings include a lack of time to do many calls, and not know how long to wait before "bugging" a station for a reply. I have copies of reception reports from the mid-'60s I have not followed up on! I also encourage verifications by e-mail and FAX, so I've tried to keep up with modern technologies and to adapt.
[[View B]] There have been some excellent points made regarding verification of reception (QSL cards), etc.
As some of you know, I have been in charge of verification reports for WSM AM and FM and WWTN-FM for quite a few years, and have always been more than willing to respond appropriately to anyone who sent a report. I continue to handle that task even after retirement.
On occasion there were obvious attempts at deceit; sometimes people copying dated information from various sources in attempts to convince us that they did indeed hear one of those three stations. Their requests were denied and they were notified of the status and why.
Many other times there is insufficient information (and I'll go a long way to give someone the benefit of the doubt). In such instances we have send a form letter stating that we cannot confirm their report; another form showing a sample log which would be acceptable; and a request for them to try again with ample information. In at least 50% of those cases a second try nets a QSL card.
BUT..........ALL OF THAT IS ABOUT TO END.
I am preparing to suggest to WSM management that the station(s) discontinue the practice of reception confirmation for the reasons Bill Hepburn cited. With on-line streaming audio 24/7, it is simply too easy to fake a reception report. They are indeed meaningless.
How many of us ever dreamed we would see the day that such a dilemma would evolve?
[[View:C]] The editor of this page believes there are several factors responsible for the decline in verification of FM broadcast station reception reports. There are:
Increased competition in the broadcast market, thus resulting in less staff doing more, hence less time for unimportant tasks such as QSLing.
Networks; with increased competion less local staff are employed (especially local announcers) & many broadcast stations run a very tight ship. Many staff are multi-functional. E.g. The station technician might also wear the announcer & promotions cap & the Station Manager also serving as sales rep, news reader & weekend announcer. Some staff take several months to write back to a listener due to the hectic scheduling. Many foreign media companies have entered the Australian & New Zealand markets & dominated them, buying up local stations by the bucket load, retrenching staff & stream-lining programming with networked programs with less staff with sole broadcast emphasis on wheel-barrowing maximum dollars off shore. What chance does a reception report have?
New stations. New stations most often mean new staff. Many of these staff will obviously be young or new to the broadcast industry & most wouldn't be aware of what a reception report is & what a radio verification or QSL is! So what chance have you with a report in their possession? Very little, unless you ring a person at the station & explain what the hobby is all about & kindly ask if they could comply with your QSL request. Many station staff don't have any idea about VHF propagation & thus don't appreciation the fantastic catch you made on your radio or the enthusiasm you have for your hobby. Many will be left confused still wondering what you want or why would you bother us writing. It's just exasperating isn't it dear dxer!
New licencing. In Australia we have seen the recent introduction of a new radio broadcast licencing catagory called a 'Narrowcast Licence'. Most of these station operate with only 2 watts of power. Many people from all walks of life have started a radio station on one of these licences. "What's this letter in my mail". "What's all this about". "Arrh...too hard, not important, don't have time, where's the garbage bin, ah over there...............bugger.. missed it". The same kind of thing applies to community FM radio in Australia except it is often difficult for the vuluntary staff to take responsibility in replying to such letters. Often I receive a response of the like "we don't have a process for handling such letters" or "I gave it to him to reply, oh... he must not have replied".
Less DXers today, thus less reports to stations, thus less familiarity with reception reports. Simple.
[[Does anyone have any suggestions
for outstanding DXing FM tuners? I'm looking
for something extremely good with regard to
selectivity and sensitivity.]]
I sold audio products for almost
twenty years in high-end salons in the
Midwest and South Florida. Manufacturers
routinely submitted products for audition in
hopes that we would represent them. This
afforded an opportunity to evaluate many
great tuners over the course of my career.
Although today's musical offerings have left
me listening to mostly AM talk, FM DX was my
passion between 1970 and
1992.
Generally speaking, any tuner
produced by a reputable company between 1975
and 1985 that incorporates two or more IF
bandwidth settings is a candidate for your
consideration. The manufacturers usually
included this feature in only their top-line
performers, so this is a very good yard stick
for evaluation. Also, with one or two rare
exceptions, you want to stay away from
digital tuners altogether. These generally
have tuning steps that are too large for the
slight de-tuning we sometimes use to separate
weak adjacent signals from strong locals.
Here, in no particular order, are a few
proven classics from memory:
Tandberg TPT 3001(A)
Pioneer TX 9500II
Pioneer TX 9800
Sansui TU 9900
Kenwood KT 917
Kenwood KT 815
Kenwood KT 8300
Kenwood 600T
McIntosh MR78
Yamaha CT 7000
A search of pawn shops and yard
sales can still occasionally turn up one of
these old wonders. There are also specialty
shops across the country that still traffic
in these whenever sources can be found. The
older high-end tuners are much coveted by
users who understand their performance
advantages over what is generally produced
today. They are usually in reasonable
operating order when you find one, although
the electrolytic power supply capacitors
might need freshening after so many years. I
find the RF performance to be generally still
intact, but a thorough checkout is mandatory
before purchasing.
[[My current DX rig is a
rack-mounted Sony XRC-520 ES with a 57"
stainless whip. Changing out the antenna
isn't really an option, as I live in an
apartment building and I'm lucky no one has
spotted the whip sitting on the end of my
balcony.]]
If you have any flexibility in
decor, here is an old trick I used to share
with customers in your predicament. Get a
directional FM YAGI antenna, and mount it on
a pole lamp placed adjacent to your stereo.
You need the directionality to peak those
weak DX signals while reducing multipath from
the locals. The pole can easily be turned by
hand to replicate the function of a rotor.
These installations often work surprisingly
well. I have seen this trick used to
routinely tune stations one hundred miles
away. And visitors will usually offer
interesting comments on your unusual taste in
lamps!
August 19, 1999
adds:
September 8, 2002:
AM:IBOC
October 21, 2001:
TV Spectrum:60-69
March 11, 2001:
LOOP Question
August 21, 2000:
PROS & CONS Of QSLing
September
27, 1999:
add:
((i have a
g.e. superadio III, i
also use a select-a-tenna for dxing.
is there any way to modify the sr3 so you can
install a recording jack? does anyone or any
company do this? i'm not far enough into my
electronics degree pursuit to risk this
myself.
i would like to catch recordings off this
radio instead of just slapping a microphone
in front of the speaker and pressing "record"
if an input jack is not possible, what type
of microphone would work that won't make me
file for bankruptcy? (read: inexpensive) ))
Easiest way would be to go through
the earphone jack of the SR-III with an
attenuating patch cable connected directly to
the microphone input of the recorder. I have
used one of these, and it does work... I
think that there's something like 10K ohms of
internal resistance built into the cable, and
it helps to lower the speaker output level as
well as to match impedance between the two
devices.
I'm not sure if Radio Shack still
sells one of these, but a good specialty
electronics shop ought to have them in stock
(or you might want to look into mail order).
You just need to make certain that you
specifically ask for an *attenuating* patch
cable. They should have them with 3.5mm plugs
on both ends, which will fit both the tape
recorder's microphone input and the radio's
earphone jack without any problems.
The only disadvantage to this setup
is that you will not be able to hear the
radio while the cable is plugged in, unless
your recorder is something like a hi-fi tape
deck, and your receiver has a "tape monitor"
function. I just thought of that as I was
typing this. I guess that, if it were me, and
all that I had was the SR-III and a "cheapie"
monaural portable tape recorder, in addition
to the attenuating patch cable, I'd get a
3.5mm male to two 3.5mm female "Y" adapter,
and would plug mono headphones into the one
side of the "Y" and the attenuating patch
cable into the other. That should not have
any really significant impact on operation,
and you'd be able to listen to the radio as
you were recording. Or you could plug a
speaker wired to a mono 3.5mm plug if you did
not want to wear headphones (though
headphones are better for serious DXing
anyway). Radio Shack
DX-375
Best way to improve your FM DX
reception is to use a directional outdoor
antenna. Should be an easy beginner mod to
add an antenna jack to the DX-375, grab
yourself an FM antenna or even a TV antenna
and hook it all up. Not sure of the
characteristics of the FM section of the
DX-375, you may need to attenuate the signal
to prevent overload from strong stations.
Tilt Stand
for Portables FYI
I have 3 portables and have always
hated the built-in tilt stands. I guess
they're ok if you are sitting at attention at
your desk. But me, I have to be slouched in
my easy chair (beverage in hand) with the
radio beside me sitting on a wooden snack
table. Anyway...I was in office depot when I
stumbled upon the answer for me...a
bookstand! It's the Fellows Booklift (#21100,
cost $10). This thing adjusts to 9 different
angles and is strong enough to hold my Sat
500. It's roughly 9"X12" and the ledge is
flat and almost 2" deep . It sure works for
me!!! Just thought some of you might want to
know.
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