Radio World

The author is director of product management, Nielsen Audio.

In today’s modern landscape, there is no company or industry that has not considered moving some portion of its operation to the cloud.

The modern vernacular for data operations is cloud-based, and most things now operate from the cloud, including shopping, email, banking and many other conveniences in our modern lives.

The release of the Nielsen Audio Software Encoder will now bring your station’s PPM encoding to the cloud.

If you are well-versed with PPM encoding, you are likely familiar with the dedicated rack unit, industrial-grade hardware encoder that is offered today. You probably have a rack full of these in your facility, with each one playing a critical role in ensuring your station’s audience is properly counted.

The Nielsen Audio Software Encoder was born out of the simple idea to give you, the radio broadcasters, more options when it comes to your station’s PPM encoding and to be ready to meet you in the cloud when your station(s) are ready to make that transition.

Simple idea

The concept behind the Nielsen Audio Software Encoder is simple.

We took the PPM encoding algorithm (Enhanced CBET) out of the hardware that it lives in today and made it available in the form of a software development kit (SDK). This SDK is then made available to industry participants enabling them to integrate PPM encoding into their products.

Once an integration is complete, Nielsen works with the manufacturer of that product to perform a rigorous certification process. This certification process ensures that the PPM encoding generated by the manufacturer’s product meets all of Nielsen’s encoding quality standards.

 

Today, the broadcast radio industry primarily utilizes an on-premise broadcast audio chain, and the initial Nielsen Audio Software Encoders have been largely with products created for that world. Additionally, Nielsen has been working with top audio processor manufacturers to integrate the Nielsen Audio Software Encoder into their products.

To date, we have certified integrations across a variety of Orban, Omnia and Wheatstone audio processors, with many more in the pipeline.

Three-phase rollout

In the near term, the Nielsen Audio Software Encoder will enable you to perform your station’s PPM encoding in products from leading audio processor manufacturers that you have trusted with your station’s sound for decades, while also providing the opportunity to reduce the footprint (rack space) consumed by each of your stations.

As we continue to evolve our industry and station playouts move away from single-purpose dedicated hardware in favor of either channel-in-a-box architectures or straight to cloud based approaches, the Nielsen Audio Software Encoder will be ready to power your station’s PPM encoding.

Nielsen will release this capability in three waves: first AM, followed by FM and then streams. Each of these releases will be preceded by successful completion of a field evaluation using certified integrations on that platform.

We released this capability for AM stations at the end of 2020. We anticipate the release for FM to be in mid-2021, with streams to follow in the back half of the year.

As you continue to think about how your station’s facility may evolve, I’d urge you to stay connected with your Nielsen client engineer via phone at (866) 767-7212 or email to encoding@nielsen.com, or through the Nielsen engineering portal https://engineeringportal.nielsen.com, to ensure that you are up-to-date on the latest Nielsen certified software encoder integrations.

Whether the future of your broadcast playout remains on-premise or moves to the cloud, Nielsen, together with the industry, has innovative PPM encoding solutions that are ready for the next generation of radio broadcast facilities.

 

The post Nielsen PPM Is Ready for the Cloud appeared first on Radio World.

June is microphone month at Radio World, and we get a head start on it with a big special feature in which we ask a bunch of radio folks to tell us about their favorite mics.

Also, is time running out at last for FM6 stations, aka “Franken FMs”?

Nick Mannion of Nielsen Audio describes the rollout of the Nielsen Audio Software Encoder.

And John Bisset helps you build an LED fixture dimmer circuit.

Read it here.

 

The post Inside the May 26 Issue of Radio World appeared first on Radio World.

Veritone wants you to think of synthetic voices as being available on demand — “Voice as a Service” — and it recently launched a product to that end called Veritone MARVEL.ai.

The company considers synthetic voice to be “a disruptive technology” and said it will wants to participate in developing best practices for synthetic content.

It said its new system enables users to “create, manage, license and monetize” synthetic voices.

“Veritone MARVEL.ai supports both text-to-speech and speech-to-speech processes and offers the first complete, end-to-end suite of voice capabilities and features –– including creation and usage; management; production workflows; licensing, compliance and clearance; and monetization,” the company said in a release.

[Related: “Create Synthetic VOs Just by Typing”]

Here’s more of how the company is pitching it:

“In an increasingly digital world, brands and media companies are struggling to produce content at the rapid rate consumers have come to expect, due to constraints related to talent, production, personalization and licensing. Veritone MARVEL.ai bridges this content gap, allowing brands and media companies to expand and streamline advertising and content production to connect and keep customers engaged, while also finding new revenue opportunities, reducing time-to-market, and easily managing compliance and clearance for synthetic voice content.”

It said users can create and personalize voices to” different tones, dialects, accents and languages,” so “celebrities, influencers and athletes can amplify their own unique synthetic voice … then manage, license and monetize” it.

It’s built around Veritone’s aiWARE operating system and artificial intelligence technology.

 

The post Veritone Ramps Up Synthetic Voices appeared first on Radio World.

If you are involved in your state’s Emergency Alert System plans, this item is for you.

The Federal Communications Commission announced that its Alert Reporting System, or ARS, is now open for filing of state EAS plans.

The ARS online filing system combines the FCC EAS Test Reporting System, or ETRS, with a new electronic one for the filing of state plans, one that the commission says has been streamlined.

The deadline to file electronically has not been announced, but it will be a year after the publication of a pending notice in the Federal Register.

State Emergency Communications Committee members can access the ARS here (click on the ETRS icon to access).

“When the commission adopted the ARS, it also amended its rules regarding State EAS Plan content and defined current EAS designations to ensure that SECCs are able to use those designations to help them describe their respective state’s EAS alert distribution hierarchies in their State EAS Plans,” the commission continued.

“Compliance with the new State EAS Plan content rules and EAS designations will become required at the same time as the filing deadline for electronic submission of State EAS Plans in the ARS.”

The announcement was made by the Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau of the commission. Questions should be emailed to David.Munson@fcc.gov.

 

The post ARS Is Now Open for Filing State EAS Plans appeared first on Radio World.

Peter Rothfuss will take the helm in Audacy’s Gainesville/Ocala, Fla., market starting June 1.

He’ll succeed Dick O’Neil, who is retiring.

[Visit Radio World’s People News Page]

Rothfuss will oversee WKTK(FM), WRUF(FM), WSKY(FM), WRUF(AM + FM translator). He has been the market’s general sales manager for five years.

Past roles include marketing and sales positions at Audacy Wilkes-Barre; sales management at Townsquare Media; chief operating officer for The Advertising Agency in Winter Park, Fla.

The announcement was made by Regional President Claudia Menegus.

Send your people news to radioworld@futurenet.com.

The post Audacy Promotes Rothfuss in Gainesville appeared first on Radio World.

PromoSuite announced integration between WideOrbit WO Traffic and WO Automation for Radio and its PromoSuite Production radio workflow system.

“This solution will provide many benefits to radio stations using PromoSuite Production,” it said in a press release, “including speeding up the order entry process, streamlining cart number assignments, eliminating duplication, and reducing overhead associated with dubbing audio files into WO Automation for Radio.”

The announcement was made by WideOrbit’s Dub Irvin and PromoSuite’s Rey Mena.

[Read Radio World coverage of other recently introduced products]

The integration has three “connection points.” When an AE enters an order for a client and needs a spot produced, client information is populated into PromoSuite Production, which the company says eliminates duplicate effort in communication.

“Second, cart number assignments are immediately synced between the two systems. Third, audio files are directly dubbed into WO Automation for Radio.”

 

The post PromoSuite Integrates With WideOrbit appeared first on Radio World.

Sennheiser has unveiled its latest lavalier microphone, an omnidirectional clip-on mic aimed at content creators. The XS Lav Mobile mic is available in separate versions with TRRS connector and a USB-C connector, respectively, and the USB-C version is also sold as part of a larger Mobile Kit.

The XS Lav USB-C Mobile Kit includes the mic as well as an additional Manfrotto PIXI Mini Tripod and Sennheiser Smartphone Clamp.

[Check Out More Products at Radio World’s Products Section]

The lavalier microphone is intended to help emerging users upgrade their audio beyond use of onboard mics in cellphones and other capture devices, allowing content creators the ability to mic a sound source (such as themselves) closer and thus help isolate that source.

The mic ships with a 2-meter/78-inch cable for plugging into a device; a standard USB-C to USB-A adapter will make a XS Lav ready for legacy products, too. For video conferencing, users may want to choose a XS Lav USB-C, as the 3.5 mm jack on XS Lav Mobile will disable a device’s audio output.

Frequency response is listed at 50 Hz–18 kHz.

All XS Lav mics include a microphone clip, removable foam windshield and a draw-string storage pouch as a standard.

The XS Lav (with TRRS plug) is priced at $49.95, while the XS Lav USB-C runs $59.95 and the XS Lav USB-C Mobile Kit is $99.95.

Info: www.sennheiser.com

 

The post Sennheiser Launches XS Lav Mobile Mic appeared first on Radio World.

IBC 2021 is being pushed back.

Last month the show’s organizers had said they planned to have the event in September as scheduled, but also that they had plans in place to allow the option of pushing back to December if necessary; and they’ve now triggered that option.

So the show at the RAI Amsterdam Convention Centre will take place Dec. 3 to 6.

IBC CEO Michael Crimp said that, against a background of optimism about the pandemic, the show board met yesterday. “We’ve pleased to announce we’ve decided to hold IBC 2021 in December. The reasons are mainly safety and readiness to engage.”

Crimp said it was important for participants including exhibitors to have a final decision as soon as possible.

As we reported earlier, this year’s event is expected to have more of a festival feel, with a large perimeter to the site that will enable attendees to move around more freely. Attendees are to have their temperatures checked, and there is to be no physical onsite registration.

Crimp said those plans are still in place, though they could be eased if the health environment improves further in the interim.

Crimp said surveys of the show community showed sentiment for the December date.

He said the decision will allow “more vaccinations, clearer systems and more confidence.” He characterized the later date as the “strongest of two [schedule] opportunities.”

“We also had to consider the ability of the supply chain to deliver a high-quality event. We believe that key services such as airports and airlines, and hotels will have established smooth operations and be able to provide a more streamlined service by December.”

The post IBC Show Postponed til December appeared first on Radio World.

Jackie Bart

Radio advertising support services company Quu has named Jackie Bart and Joe Marshall to newly created roles that will work with operations, sales and programming teams on the local level.

Bart will become customer success manager and Marshall will be technical success manager.

[Visit Radio World’s People News Page]

Quu’s software and services give radio stations the ability to publish visual programming and sales messages on vehicle dashboards.

Joe Marshall

Company Chief Executive Office Steve Newberry said, “Jackie’s deep training experience with Arbitron and Scarborough Research as well as Joe’s technology experience with Harris/GatesAir demonstrate their tremendous professional credentials.”

Send your people news to radioworld@futurenet.com.

 

The post QUU Picks Bart and Marshall appeared first on Radio World.

Caroline Beasley will receive the National Radio Award this October.

The CEO of Beasley Media Group will be honored during the opening session of the Radio Show on Wednesday Oct. 13.

Six years ago her father George was honored with the same award.

In its very early years, the award tended to be given to on-air talent; Howard Cosell, Larry King and Gary Owens were the first recipients.

But it evolved to an honor usually given to radio executives. Last year’s recipient was Russell M. Perry; past recipients have included Lowry Mays, Jeff Smulyan, Ginny Morris and Mary Quass. A few recipients have served radio in other ways such as Erica Farber and John David.

A full list appears below.

NAB President/CEO Gordon Smith saluted Caroline Beasley for her “business savvy and extraordinary leadership” and “her passion for radio.”

Beasley joined the company that was founded by her father in 1983 and rose to be named CEO in 2017. But she also has a highly visible presence in the commercial U.S. radio industry more broadly. She is chair of the BMI Board of Directors and a member of the FCC Diversity and Inclusion Committee and the NAB Leadership Foundation Board of Directors. She is immediate past chair of the Joint Board of the NAB and a former NAB Radio Board Chair.

George Beasley received the award in 2015.

The Radio Show is co-produced by the Radio Advertising Bureau and the National Association of Broadcasters. This year it will be co-located with NAB Show in October in Las Vegas.

Recipients of the National Radio Award: 2021 Caroline Beasley 2020 Russell M. Perry 2019 Mary Quass 2018 John David 2017 David Field 2016 Don Benson 2015 George Beasley 2014 Bayard “Bud” Walters 2013 Ginny Morris 2012 Dan Mason 2011 Steve Newberry 2010 Charles Warfield 2009 Ed Christian 2008 Bruce Reese 2007 Jerry Lee 2006 David Kennedy 2005 John Dille 2004 Clarke Brown 2003 Erica Farber 2002 Dick Ferguson 2001 Larry Wilson 2000 Jeff Smulyan 1999 Bill Stakelin 1998 Lowry Mays 1997 Mel Karmazin 1996 Ed McLaughlin 1995 Nancy Widmann 1994 Dick Harris 1993 Ted Snider 1992 Martin Beck 1991 Bill Clark 1990 Robert Hyland 1989 Ray Livesay 1988 Ben Hoberman 1987 Douglas Edwards 1986 Gary Owens 1985 Larry King 1984 Howard Cosell

 

The post Caroline Beasley to Receive National Radio Award appeared first on Radio World.

The author is chairman of Digital Radio Mondiale.

This often-rehearsed question resurfaces periodically, as radio is facing an uphill struggle against the digital giants ready to grab the dashboard. Hybrid radio is presented as a survival solution on the move, as cars remain a key driver of audio listening. The term, meaning many things to many people, is very fashionable just now, a bit like “digital,” “convergence” and the “multimedia” mantras of some years back.

Hybrid radio is a mixture of analog radio and digital broadcast sources, like streaming, or a mash between digital radio (mainly of the local variety) and IP-served radio services.

The current orthodoxy goes that, unless good old-fashioned radio or audio also gets all the “bells and whistles” offered by known digital companies and mimics the commercial streaming services provided by the Googles of this world, radio is doomed and will be eliminated from the automotive infotainment landscape.

[Read: Hybrid Described as Radio’s Best Chance]

In the U.S. car listening remains king and accounts for more than 50% of all radio listening. According to the recently unveiled annual 2021 Techsurvey Jacobs Media and Veritone, 58% of the 40,000 U.S. respondents listen to AM/FM radio in the car, 18% to satellite radio while personal music rates some 3%. Smartphones only come in second, after cars. But more interesting are the ranked reasons for radio’s enduring attraction: easy to listen to, familiar hosts, available for free (i.e. no money), while almost half the listeners agreed that being local is radio’s primary advantage.

Hybrid radio definitely addresses the challenge of “easy to listen to”: press a button or voice-activate your car radio and you are in business. If you leave the coverage area, an IP stream will ensure you can continue to listen to your favorite station or presenter, provided the station stream can be accessed and coordinated with the over-the-air broadcast service.

Hybrid can also paper-over the transmission gaps if your car is fitted with an analog or digital local coverage standard which is sometimes unavailable in the targeted coverage area.

And there are other positive considerations, too. Linking terrestrial broadcasting with IP ensures continuity and enhanced service, personalized and visually rich. This is all enabled by the metadata (song title, branding labels, ads, etc.) that accompany the audio on the mobile broadband connection. Above all, hybrid offers the attractive possibility of a back channel. If the hybrid receiver had, or will have in the future, an extra button for notifications: information, ads, tickets etc., these could be sent directly to your phone or email.

The two-way connectivity is the one thing radio has not been able to offer easily until now. The other is offering reliable data about who is listening to what and for how long. This is less of interest to listeners and more to advertisers and broadcasters. It is also the most valuable and remunerative information hybrid radio could provide.

[Read: Audi AG Launches Hybrid Radio in U.S. and Canada]

The proponents of hybrid radio stress that all these attributes, plus the podcasting possibility, are essential for radio’s survival and relevance on the new and flashy dashboards securing its place in the unequal battle with the apps, satellite and Big Tech services.

There are though some big caveats and questions on hybrid radio:

• Are stations prepared to foot the bill for the streaming fees linked to the smooth transitioning from terrestrial to IP, not to mention the possible copyright fees incurred while the streaming runs in the background ready to pounce only when terrestrial fails?
• Are broadcasters ready to share the streaming URLs and metadata and to make them available to open platforms or commercial entities, be they big patent companies or even car manufacturers?
• Is the provision of podcasting essential, considering that in the latest Techsurvey, 6 out of 10 U.S. radio listeners are not bothered by this hot product still not flying after 15 years, not to mention that podcasting does not enhance radio listening but possibly diminishes the radio listening time.
• If hybrid radio is the way forward, is this a U.S. and developed world project and commercial venture? According to the information released on the United Nations World Telecommunication and Information Society Day (May 17) 3.7 billion people, almost half the world population, remain unconnected to the internet.

From my own DRM perspective, the simpler question is: why hook up with IP, using extra effort and costs, analog and digital radio, when at least one digital radio standard, DRM, fulfills and satisfies already many of the aspirations of hybrid? DRM already includes SPI and what RadioDNS offers. It can connect broadcast and online, benefits from Journaline to ensure rich services, interactivity and personalized content.

A DRM receiver, in car, on a cell or in the kitchen can carry useful information: logos, maps, pictures, weather, traffic, disaster alerts and education material, addresses and ads.

DRM broadcasters can transmit on any analog frequency (AM or FM) up to three audio channels and one data channel, saving both energy, spectrum and money. One or two , or all three audio channels can be flexibly reassigned to data, so that less audio and more data is presented to users by easily programming the “four digital lanes” of DRM on one 96 kHz (FM) frequency or on an existing AM frequency. RSS feeds can be presented on DRM receivers without the need to publish and give somebody else your streaming URL and metadata information.

Does this mean that the big hybrid radio push will suddenly stop? Of course not, radio needs modern digital clothes, future proofing but also a reality check. Why reinvent the wheel when digital radio, DRM, has everything to benefit listeners and broadcasters?

If a camel is a horse designed by a committee, then hybrid is still a cute camel, not a horse yet.

 

The post Is the Car Dashboard Radio’s Next Battlefield? appeared first on Radio World.

Cryptocurrency symbols — Bitcoin, Ethereum and Dogecoin.

The author is executive director of the National Federation of Community Broadcasters. NFCB commentaries are featured regularly at www.radioworld.com.

This has been a wild week in the world of cryptocurrency. Hints that the U.S. government will tighten up regulations and China’s crackdown sparked a precipitous fall of Bitcoin prices over the last few days. While there has been a mild recovery, attention on the speculative nature of this buzzy digital money persists.

For noncommercial radio stations, many of which rely on donations, the realm of cryptocurrency may seem weird. Indecipherable terminology and cryptocurrency named after memes are among the sideshows. Yet, thanks to Elon Musk, cryptocurrency has seen mainstream media coverage and massive growth. Is it too risky for noncommercial radio?

Cryptocurrency is all the rage in the nonprofit world. There’s Crypto Giving Tuesday to accompany the annual day of giving. This week, NPR joined the cryptocurrency movement as a verified publisher with Brave. Brave, a secure internet browser based on the Chrome core, has set up a plan where a publisher can accept a form of crypto called a Basic Attention Token. Users can opt to “tip” a publisher with BAT coins, which can then be traded for U.S. dollars and other real currency.

[Read: Community Broadcaster: Urgent Action]

As public media goes, the move is astonishing. Remember, this is NPR we’re talking about, not a fly-by-night unit. It may not be Tesla (which walked back its own jump into the crypto world), but for the biggest name in public radio to accept donations in this manner is unique.

What might a noncommercial broadcaster need to know if managers or the board of directors wants to get into accepting cryptocurrency in your donation portfolio? First, it is essential to understand that the finance community’s concern is based on crypto’s volatility. At this writing one Ethereum, a popular form of cryptocurrency, is worth $2,800. Less than two weeks ago, it was worth $1,000 less. That’s a bigger swing than even the riskiest stocks, and unfortunately its worth can be affected by far more random forces, such as tweets or Reddit speculation. Cryptocurrency can be exciting, but it may not be something to base a radio station’s capital campaign on, for instance. Consider it a long-term account that could be incredible in 10 years, or could be worth very little.

Setting up acceptance channels for your noncommercial radio station is not as cumbersome as creating other accounts, but will require diligence and forethought. Crypto “wallets” and other repositories for your donations may require complex security protocols. If you lose your passwords or other “keys,” you could lose access to everything.

Your radio station may wish to visit with your bank to see if they deal with cryptocurrency or have vendors they interface with, or recommend. There are many service providers that will accept crypto for your nonprofit and automatically convert to cash, if your banking institution shies away from it.

Your station may also wish to experiment with donation platforms, which make the setup for accepting cryptocurrency donations seamless. The trading site Binance is among many that provide a means for noncommercial radio stations to engage.

Cryptocurrency has taken many hits this week, but the hype is not going away anytime soon. Noncommercial radio looking to expand donation choices for audiences have a fascinating option, surely.

The post Community Broadcaster: Going to the Doges appeared first on Radio World.

H&A has unveiled its new AC50 Studio Broadcast Microphone, primarily intended for use on podcasts, broadcast, studio, vocals, narration, fish pole use and instrumentals.

Featuring a cardioid pattern, the mic is top-address, eschewing off-axis noise, making it appropriate for broadcasting, podcasting or vocal performances. Inside the mic, along with the mesh shielding, the internal pop filter helps eliminate distortion and allows for instant control of plosives when talking close to the microphone.

[Check Out More Products at Radio World’s Products Section]

A low-cut filter switch allows users to reduce low frequencies by –10 dB in order to maintain an overall flat frequency response when needed. The microphone features a shielded all–aluminum construction. With a dynamic capsule, it does not need phantom power.

The microphone ships with a mic clip, a standard mount adapter, and a molded ABS protective case lined with impact resistant foam for storage and transportation.

Available exclusively at Adorama, the H&A AC50 Studio Broadcast Microphone is available for $99.95.

Info: www.adorama.com

 

The post H&A AC50 Studio Broadcast Microphone appeared first on Radio World.

Cumulus Media is giving all-digital AM a go by launching Digital AM 1230 HD WFAS(AM) in White Plains, N.Y., on Monday. The station is just north of New York City and can be heard in the northern suburbs of what is the top media market in the United States.

The 1,000 watt AM station, which is also changing to an all-news/talk format on Monday, has been informing listeners of the pending change on its website. Once WFAS switches to all-digital operations, only radios equipped with HD Radio technology will be able to receive the radio station. WFAS will no longer be available on analog-only radio, according to its website.

[Read: Cumulus Stations Support DTS AutoStage]

Conrad Trautmann, SVP, technology and operations for Cumulus Media, led the all-digital conversion process for the broadcaster and said a lot of technical consideration went into the project beginning with the existing tower.

“In order to run digital bandwidth through an AM antenna you need the antenna optimized. We worked with Carl T. Jones [a consulting engineering firm] to redesign the existing antenna so it would support running IBOC HD Radio,” Trautmann said.

The WFAS antenna is a “folded unipole, so it’s a grounded 450-foot tower with a skirt and the skirt stood 16 inches off the tower,” Trautmann said. “However, the modeling we did showed the skirt had to be 36 inches off the tower. That meant buying all the components and parts to stand it off further.”

It was also determined the tuning network in the antenna tuning unit was no longer usable for the broadband signal, he said, and had to be redesigned. “We ordered all the parts from Kintronic. We basically rebuilt the ATU at the base of the tower.”

The all-digital station will use a new Nautel NX3 all-digital transmitter and a Telos Omnia.9 audio processor with HD output, Trautmann said.

Cumulus engineering staff spent part of last week testing the all-digital signal and was “very satisfied with the results,” Trautmann says. The station’s website has been advising listeners of the coming changes and touting the advantages of all-digital AM: “Broadcasting in digital can eliminate static and interference and improve sound quality to equal FM radio. In addition, it can extend the range for clear AM reception.”

[Read: WWFD Conducts More HD2 Testing]

“In analog we typically had about 15 miles of Grade A signal, or city grade signal. WFAS is only 1,000 watts. On the drive testing we did with the all-digital signal it is solid all to the way 25-mile mark. So it seems we have added 10 miles of radius to the signal, which results in quite a bit of population coverage in the northern suburbs of New York City,” Trautmann says.

That increased signal reach will mean more penetration into the Bronx and Queens and the northern tip of Manhattan, he said, “but it’s by no means a New York City signal.” In addition, the test signal sounded like FM, Trautmann says, with “all the lows and highs. And it’s louder on the dial than the other AMs.”

The radio station is telling listeners they can find the station on Monday using an HD Radio-capable receiver, using the online stream or via its mobile app on a tablet or smartphone.

Trautmann, who had help on the project from Bud Williamson from Digital Radio Engineering, says Cumulus had been looking for a good candidate to experiment with all-digital AM and WFAS was chosen since it “wasn’t getting any ratings and not generating much revenue.”

WFAS featured the CBS Sports Radio Network prior to its Monday launch of all-digital. The station will now offer all talk programming, including “The Dan Bongino Show,” which debuts Monday on the Cumulus owned Westwood One.

Trautmann says Cumulus wants to see how WFAS performs before it commits to any more all-digital AM conversions. The project does coincide with Thursday’s announcement that Cumulus is partnering with Xperi’s DTS AutoStage connected car platform. The broadcaster says it will integrate its 415 radio stations into the hybrid radio system available on Mercedes-Benz S-Class vehicles.

[Read: Sweeten the Pot to Entice AM Digital]

“We are really hoping to see if the hybrid radio component of this becomes beneficial. If we get people to tune in and then when they get out of signal range have the car radio switch to the stream then we can demonstrate how AM radio can sound as good as any other platform. The switching from the over the air to the stream is really critical for that,” Trautmann said.

WFAS appears to be the third radio station in the country to convert to all-digital AM since the FCC authorized AM radio stations to do so. WWFD(AM) in Frederick, Md., and WMGG(AM) in Tampa, Fla., are the others.

 

The post New York Cumulus AM to Go All-Digital appeared first on Radio World.

The 415 radio stations owned by Cumulus Media, one of the biggest U.S. commercial ownership groups, are now integrated into the DTS AutoStage connected car platform.

DTS AutoStage is a hybrid radio system that Xperi Corp. is positioning as a global platform, supporting operations in 60 countries so far. As we’ve reported, the system is coming to market in the new Mercedes-Benz S-Class.

[Read: Xperi Has Big Ambitions for DTS AutoStage]

Other U.S. groups participating include Audacy, Beasley and Cox. International broadcasters onboard so far include BBC, Bauer, Global Radio, NPO, Commercial Radio Australia, radiko, FM World and SWR.

The Cumulus agreement was announced by Xperi Senior Vice President, Business Development, Broadcast Joe D’Angelo and Cumulus SVP, Technology Conrad Trautmann.

Trautmann was quoted saying that the user interface provides listeners with “the most cutting-edge features in the dashboard of any automobile.” He highlighted the service-following feature of hybrid radio that “essentially makes the coverage area of our radio station’s signals limitless,” with streamed content serving listeners who move out of a station’s signal coverage.

Broadcasters can participate in the program at no cost. Station metadata is represented to the listener through artwork, artist and album info, songs, playlists, station logos and other features. The system also provides discovery and personalization features.

 

The post Cumulus Stations Support DTS AutoStage appeared first on Radio World.

Avantone Pro is launching Gauss 7, an active full-range, two-way reference monitor that aims to evoke a vintage sound with the addition of modern technologies. Cetex Gauss, based out of Sun Valley, Calif., was best-known for its tape duplication equipment, but its short-lived speaker brand of the early 1970s is being used as a jumping-off point for the new line.

The Gauss 7 features a 2.5-inch (65 mm) GAU-AMT aluminum-etched PET (polyethylene terephthalate) film-folded membrane high-frequency driver that offers a response up to 22 kHz. The assembly is mounted in its own enclosure to avoid back wave pressure from the woofer.

[Check Out More Products at Radio World’s Products Section]

Woofer-wise, the Gauss 7 includes a 7-inch (178 mm) ferrite motor GAU-7MLF low-frequency driver. It draws from Avantone Pro’s AV10-MLF “white cone” construction. The woofer cone is a pressed design, fabricated from the same proprietary blend of wood pulp and glass fiber found in the AV10-MLF woofer, but with increased materials providing extended low end. The woofer’s motor structure is made of low-carbon 1008 steel.

The rear-firing passive bass port gives the Gauss 7 a “controlled yet punchy low end with a tight response,” the company.

On the power front, there is a 120 W power amplifier for the low-frequency driver and 60 W high-frequency driver amplifier power. Specs include 103 dB (peak) SPL; and 0.5% THL delivered from an enclosure measuring 381 mm (15 inches) H x 235 mm (9.25 inches) W x 212 mm (8.35 inches) D. Weight is 18 pounds.

It also includes balanced XLR and 1/4-inch TRS inputs, plus a three-position “acoustic placement” switch, a three-position high trim switch and a gain control.

Gauss 7 will be shipping in early June for $799 per pair.

Info: www.avantonepro.com

 

The post Avantone Pro Introduces Gauss 7 Studio Monitors appeared first on Radio World.

Getty Images/Madans Click

Occasionally we query Workbench readers as to the most useful piece of test equipment; the cellphone camera usually wins out.

Dan Gunter is the owner and principal broadcast engineer of Alabama Broadcast Services LLC. He shares photographic proof of the immense value of a phone camera, not only for documentation purposes but as a tool in troubleshooting.

One of Dan’s client stations recently experience a mysterious trip of the 100 amp AC circuit breaker that fed the high-voltage power supply (HVPS) on a Harris HT25FM transmitter. Unfortunately Dan was out of town that day, as was his backup colleague Terry Harper.

Thus it was the station’s chief operator/assistant GM who wound up running over to the site. With instructions from Dan he reset the tripped breaker, which got the transmitter back on the air without a breaker re-trip.

Dan had experienced a similar off-air trip with another of that client’s transmitters, a problem that kept occurring sporadically. This was resolved by giving the arc gap in the HVPS some much needed attention — cleaning and re-spacing the gap per the manufacturer’s specifications.

Because that had worked earlier, Dan decided to do a “wee hours of the morning” shutdown on the trouble transmitter and check the arc gap. He found that it was at 0.3745 inches, nearly twice the recommended setting of 0.1875.

Only the camera knows what’s hiding behind these power supply components.

As pictured above, Dan noticed that the HVPS had a considerable amount of dust and debris, so he decided it was time for a thorough inspection and good vacuuming. After turning off all AC breakers and discharging the components, Dan set out to work.

Unfortunately, there are some places you simply can’t see without spending another half hour or more to remove the rear cover from the power supply, such as behind the transformer, choke and filter capacitor. Dan’s solution was to use his phone’s camera to shoot photos in the hidden crannies.

And that’s when he found the little problem seen here:

In case it isn’t clear what’s amiss, the image below offers a closer view behind the capacitor.

Dan says he doubts this was a factory-installed part.

Apparently, this rat snake had managed to crawl into the power supply through a gap at the lower left corner of an ill-fitting front cover on the cabinet. Dan suspects the critter managed to slither across a couple of wrong points in the HVPS and had a really bad day, also tripping the breaker.

Rat snake or not, Nautel’s Jeff Welton calls them all “rattle-headed copper moccasins.” And they don’t belong in transmitters.

Dan sent the assistant GM photos of his findings and work; he also put the dearly departed critter in a box, labeled it and placed it on the desk in the transmitter building, where the manager could inspect the evidence first-hand and dispose of it as he wished. (Let it not be said that Dan takes things from client sites without their approval.)

Dan visited the site a few weeks later and the box was still sitting on the desk, unopened. Imagine that!

As an engineer, you see a lot of strange things. Take pictures of these encounters to help management understand your value.

At one station where I was chief, I put a small bulletin board in the station lunchroom, and posted a “Picture of the Week.” from my site visits. Try it and see the reaction.

Shine a light on it

Like many engineers, as I’ve gotten older, I’ve required more “light” to see details like the numbers on a chip or a resistor color code.

Here is a flexible LED garage light, a replacement “bulb” that actually consists of three adjustable panels and screws into a standard light socket above my garage workbench, throwing off 6,000 Lumens!

Fig. 5 shows some of the possible configurations.

Find it at Amazon, it’s the best $36 you’ll spend.

John Bisset has spent over 50 years in broadcasting and is in his 31st year of Workbench. He handles western U.S. radio sales for the Telos Alliance. He is a past recipient of the SBE’s Educator of the Year Award.

Workbench thrives on your snake stories and tech tips, which count toward SBE recertification. Email johnpbisset@gmail.com. 

 

 

The post Workbench: How to Get a Peek Into Hard-to-See Places appeared first on Radio World.

Nielsen Audio issued data this week indicating that U.S. weekly radio listening is at its highest levels since the pandemic began, though not yet to pre-COVID-19 levels.

“The April 2021 PPM survey revealed new gains in radio listening across the aggregate of markets for the second month in a row,” it said in a press release. “As America continues to reopen, consumers are returning to radio in numbers not seen in over half a year.”

[Read: Nielsen Reports “Big Gains” for Radio Listening]

“Radio’s weekly reach is now at its highest levels, 121 million weekly consumers, since March 2020 when COVID-19’s impact began to take hold. Since the beginning of 2021, radio has added more than 5 million new weekly listeners.”

The company issued this graphic that shows the monthly trends, including a rise last summer and fall, followed by a decline around the holidays and “surges,” as well as a recent “rebound.”

It also said U.S. radio’s Average Quarter-Hour audience in April was back to where it was in November, though again not yet back to pre-COVID levels. “AQH audience levels have jumped 10% in the past two months as vaccinations and a gradual return to pre-pandemic routines have proliferated.”

Nielsen said that from a weekly reach perspective, the radio audience in April is 14% larger than the same month from a year ago, while for AQH the audience is 31% larger. The April listening gains were spread across times of day.

The research company also issued some observations about trends in formats.

It noted that the urban adult contemporary/R&B format recorded its highest share of listening in several years in April. It attributed this to national interest in the social justice movement including a verdict in the trial of Derek Chauvin. It said April gains “may have been driven by what was happening between the songs, as much as the music cycle itself during such a milestone moment.”

Some other formats are showing expected seasonal changes. “Country radio is reporting higher shares of audience heading into the summer, following its usual seasonal pattern. Classic hits is also gaining ground, another annual occurrence. Meanwhile, the return of Major League Baseball along with other live sports is boosting the all-sports format near its fall football season levels.”

 

 

The post Nielsen Highlights Encouraging Radio Trends appeared first on Radio World.

It’s time again for the U.K. audio industry’s annual tech and engineering event — in a new interactive, virtual format.

Aimed at broadcast engineers, technologists, managers and program creators, Radio TechCon 2021 is set to take place Monday Nov. 29. Through a series of speakers and masterclasses, the one-day conference will dive into the technical challenges and opportunities facing the U.K. radio and audio industry.

“Radio TechCon is vital for ensuring that the technical industry in radio and audio is able to come together to share ideas, learn and celebrate successes during these complex times,” says Aradhna Tayal, director of TBC Media Ltd., a radio and audio event company and organizer of Radio TechCon.

David Lloyd at a previous TechCon.

This year’s conference will be a virtual one due to ongoing concerns about the coronavirus pandemic, she said.

In preparation for this year’s event, the Radio TechCon team has released videos from previous TechCon events on their website, including sessions on audio acoustics, wireless technology, voice control and radio wattage power issues.

 

The post Radio TechCon to Host Virtual Convention appeared first on Radio World.

There’s a list of “the good, the bad and the ugly” when the Federal Emergency Management Agency migrated the nation’s IPAWS system to the cloud this past April.

According to IPAWS Engineering Chief Mark Lucero during a webinar on the transition, there were many reasons to move the IPAWS system from the legacy, on-premises data center into the Amazon Web Service (AWS) cloud environment. The cloud offers new levels of redundancy and native tools that will help IPAWS function faster, better, stronger and cheaper, he said.

But like any migration from a standalone on-premises system to the cloud, there were bumps along the way. There were also several smart moves that FEMA and the Department of Homeland Security made. For one, Lucero said, FEMA successfully handled upfront planning, architecture design and in-depth planning with stakeholders. The cloud also gives the agency more rigorous redundancy. “We have redundancy on top of redundancy on top of redundancy,” Lucero said. “If a server goes down in flames, there are two more buildings within 100 miles that can pick up the slack and continue working as if nothing has happened.”

[Read: FEMA Dials up IPAWS Playbook]

The cloud environment also offers a faster turnaround time for adding new features and functions. “In the past it would take us several months to implement a change,” Lucero said. The cloud also offers the agency a new, centralized control system. “One of the great things that we’ve done by pushing into cloud is that we’ve centralized control,” he said. “Now we have more control over more aspects of it. There’s still a lot of oversight and security requirements that DHS puts on us; however, we have [fewer physical assets] to go to if we need to fix something.”

That’s the good. But speed bumps were in there too. Lucero said the agency struggled with deadlines, with removing bugs, with network connectivity and with coordination with broadcasters when it came to testing code. “When trying to swing over 11 systems operated by cell carriers that had their own priorities, we made a projection as to how long this would take and we were way off,” Lucero said.

He said that FEMA could also do a better job of anticipating how a delay here might affect a deadline over there. That led FEMA to reschedule its go-date a few times. “The original plan was to get this done in calendar year 2020,” he said.

Then there was the ugly, Lucero said. He said there was scant guidance from FEMA on cloud implementation when the cloud conversations first began back in 2018. Another issue: at the same time that FEMA was working on its cloud transition, it was also trying to make updates to the legacy IPAWS environment. “That was kind of tough because we had some delays … and those delays directly affected our cloud migration timeline and made things difficult,” he said.

Lucero said that paperwork requirements, approvals and security evaluations put the project somewhat behind. And the transition team struggled with retooling its testing procedures. “On the government and contractor side, we need to do a better job of defining how that process is going to take place,” he said.

Lucero was speaking as part of a cloud transition webinar set up by the IPAWS Program Management Office. Information on upcoming changes — including URL upgrades, information on when the older system will be decommissioned and what broadcasters need to know next — is contained within the nearly hour-long webinar.

 

The post IPAWS Transitions to the Cloud appeared first on Radio World.