Accurian HD Radio

[Ace Purple]

HD2/HD3 is nice to have, particularly with 1510 WLAC simulcasting on 105.9 WNRQ HD3. Here in the suburbs of Nashville, 1510 WLAC has static even at 50kw/50kw, which makes the HD3 channel a perfect option with great clarity to go with it.

It's something along the lines of WLAC being the perfect anti-example for antenna or ground-system design....something like the groundwave and skywave cancelling each other from 30-70 miles out (which describes a good chunk of "Nashville" these days) and nobody being able to do a darn thing about it

The groundwave/skywave cancellation would make sense -- it's odd that WLAC has so much static since Smyrna, TN isn't *that* far away from Nashville. 650 WSM (the other clear channel 50kw night station in Nashville) comes in just fine here. Whatever the case, WNRQ-HD3 is a great way for me to pick up WLAC, so I'm not complaining.

[AmpedNow]

Somewhat related, I noticed an interesting ID on WSB the other night.

"WSB Atlanta, WSRV HD-2 Gainesville"

I wonder if IDing the HD-2 is now required by the FCC, or if it's mainly to draw attention to HD Radio...

KTRH Houston never mentioned they were on KLOL HD-2.

[Ace Purple]

Somewhat related, I noticed an interesting ID on WSB the other night.

"WSB Atlanta, WSRV HD-2 Gainesville"

I heard the WSB/WSRV-HD2 legal ID last June (it's online here).

I wonder if IDing the HD-2 is now required by the FCC, or if it's mainly to draw attention to HD Radio...

I've looked and looked and not found anything definitive about the HD2 and HD3 stations. This page on the FCC website reveals that stations that have HD simulcasts "may identify their digital multicast programming streams separately if they wish" which is the closest I can find. I think of this more of, say, WKDF/Nashville and WKDF-HD1 Nashville, but perhaps it could be interpreted for stations that simulcast on another frequency's HD2 or HD3 feed. Some clarification from the FCC would be nice.

KTRH Houston never mentioned they were on KLOL HD-2.

It's possible that KTRH splits from KLOL-HD2 at some point for KLOL-HD2 to legally identify itself. Or perhaps the KLOL-HD2 is buried in a stopset somewhere else within the hour?

[engineer]

...sure it processes the HD amazingly, but it will also add much welcomed life to your analog signal....

That's where we will have to disagree.

I have yet to hear the analog audio of a well-processed IBOC station sound good in comparison to the analog audio of a well-processed non-IBOC station. "Plastic" is the best way I know to describe the IBOC analog audio. I HAVE heard watered-down analog audio in order for the blend to HD sound "dramatic". I also have heard digtal artifacts in just about every IBOC station. Does anyone really care? Probably not. HD-2...don't get me started.

Although I'm not a fan of the interference, AM IBOC is a more "dramatic" improvement to the average listener.

I think we can officially say HD FM is dead, and AM HD is buried. The WVRC FM flagship in Morgantown advertises that you're listening to crystal clear HD sound. Also, WVU games are in High Def sound or something like that. Problem is their HD has been off for several weeks. A Chicago engineer reported his HD FM was off for a week and nobody called. Stories like these go on and on. At the rate HD radios are selling it will take 100 years to match the analog radios out there. And still, HD radio is yet to be a standard on most new cars. It's done.

[Cameron]

...at least the Accurian HD Radio has C-Quam AM Stereo. Something to fall back on after Ibuzz.

[AmpedNow]

If you ever took a HD radio to a large market, you would see that it's far from dead on FM.

I can see HD-AM going by the wayside eventually, unless the tech improves. But HD-FM has reached the point where there's been too much invested in it to let it fail.

Radio production will ramp up this year. More manufacturers will make the radios and the price point is coming down on the 1st gen chips. Samung's 2G chip is coming out this year, with a decent reduction in heat and power consumption, making portables possible.

The trick all along has been to just get the chips into as many radios with as little cost as possible. This is finally beginning to happen.

In case you're wondering, I'm not "pro-HD" per se, I'm more pro-consumer than anything else. The more overall choices, the better. HD included.

[engineer]

If you ever took a HD radio to a large market, you would see that it's far from dead on FM.


Radio production will ramp up this year. More manufacturers will make the radios and the price point is coming down on the 1st gen chips. Samung's 2G chip is coming out this year, with a decent reduction in heat and power consumption, making portables possible.

The trick all along has been to just get the chips into as many radios with as little cost as possible. This is finally beginning to happen.

I agree the FM HD is not dead in the terms you describe. People will keep it running just because they spent 100k for it. It’s dead because nobody is listening. Report after report has HD1's, 2's, and 3's that have silent carriers, looped programming, and other nonsense. The HD signal is not matching the analog as the brainchild’s thought. Now, they want to boost the power again. That will probably not happen because the years, and I mean years as in decade, of study by Ibitchity and USA digital all were based upon the current power level. Just talking about another 10 dB has people on edge. The only way I can get the local NPR HD is to go outside. The other local HD is off for weeks at a time.

"This year the price of compatible chips is reaching an acceptable level to begin widespread manufacturing. Next year we will concentrate on smaller and more portable devices." Taken from Ibitchy online brochure September 2003.

"We foresee standard equipment saturation from the automobile industry by summer 2005." Ibitchy NAB 2003.

[Ace Purple]

Report after report has HD1's, 2's, and 3's that have silent carriers, looped programming, and other nonsense. The HD signal is not matching the analog as the brainchild’s thought.

It's a shame, but so far the HD2 channel product that I've heard has been pretty uninspired. Clear Channel has a CHR in Nashville, WRVW, with "new music" on its HD2 channel branded as Future Radio. Unfortunately it features a series of non-imaged segues between songs, and while there is some new music, it's never anything truly daring or unknown. Maybe they began playing "Crack a Bottle" by Eminem a week before WRVW's main station did. But it's hardly anything truly breakout or particularly many new artists.

The only station identification is that this is "Future Radio" and then the legal ID at the top of the hour. Hell, I just heard "Promiscuous" by Nelly Furtado on there, which was a #1 hit in 2006. I hear more truly new music on Sirius' Hits 1 than I hear on WRVW-HD2, at least from my observations. But it is nice to have commercial-free hit music available -- I'm not complaining about that. It's just that so much more could be done with it without, I'd think, having to necessarily spend much more money to do it. It would take just one really creative MD/PD to take a national format like this (truly new and upcoming music) for Clear Channel to make it really shine.

"We foresee standard equipment saturation from the automobile industry by summer 2005." Ibitchy NAB 2003.

I'm curious on how things went wrong here. Does anyone knows the details on that?