HD Radio News and Information

BE to demonstrate broadcasting of four programs simultaneously on one HD Radio station April 19, 2006 08:29

HD Radio Station Update April 19, 2006 09:08

 
One of my readers, who is Chief Engineer for Clear Channel stations in Milwaukee, was kind enough to send me an update on HD radio and HD2 channel broadcasting in his area.

He reported that stations WMYX and WXSS are up and running with HD Radio and WKKV is broadcasting an HD2. channel. He also said that WRIT will be up and broadcasting HD Radio in about 2 weeks with an HD2 channel as well. Also, in Chicago, WGN-AM is broadcasting HD Radio and so is WRLL-AM.

ibiquity says this brings the total number of stations in the U.S. now broadcasting HD Radio to something in excess of 700.

If you don't know, iBiquity is the sole source for HD Radio technology in the U.S. It is not so much a corporation as it is a privately-held consortium consisting of the nation's largest broadcasters, along with manufacturers of consumer electronics and broadcast electronics, who have joined together to advance HD Radio through the introduction of new receivers and transmission equipment.

HD Radio improves AM radio to the point where it sounds as good as today's FM radio, and FM Radio to he point where it sounds almost as if you were listening to a CD. In short, it is broadcasting's free answer to satellite radio. (Go to URL)

If HD Radio is having a problem, is it HD Radio or the broadcasters? April 21, 2006 09:57

 
I've seen criticism of HD Radio in some of the broadcast publications. Boston Acoustics's HD Recepter Radio has been especially singled out because for reception problems. Some of these criticisms were definitely warranted as the company initially shipped the unit with a really dumb antenna. Plus, the HD Recepter is the only tabletop radio available so it was sort of an easy target.

However, broadcasters themselves are beginning to admit some of the fault may be theirs. I found an article in a recent issue of RW Online where radio manager Paul Marszalek said, "Broadcasters, particularly engineers, can't treat their HD signals like they don't matter (and I know that many do). The time-alignment has got to be right, the processing has got to be right and the coverage has got to be the best it can be." Otherwise, he said, early adopters will rightly decide that HD Radio isn't worth fooling with, and that will spell disaster for the technology."

In other words, if you do own a BA HD radio and have been having signal problems, it's not the radio that may be at fault. It might be a result of sloppy broadcastings.

Here's another thought. There might be just one tabletop radio available, but there are at least six companies out there offering HD Radio-enabled car audio systems, and we never hear a peep from anyone owning one of these units.

So, if you have one of these car radios, please let me know about your experiences.