[BC] Wow, I wonder if y ou feel the same way about AM?

[Jeff Welton]

On Tue, Feb 2, 2010 at 12:27 PM, Dana Puopolo <dpuopolo at usa.net> wrote:
>Jeff, in the fully spaced FM world YOU live in that might well be true

Caveat - I realize I'm not the Jeff referenced above :)

I'm not sure if I would call 50 miles west of metro Chicago a "fully spaced FM world", but hey, my geography might need a tuneup...

All I've been hearing since Friday amounts to the same old, same old - many are in favor of the increase, some realize it's here and we need to make it work to the best of our abilities (whether we approve or not is irrelevant), others are opposed - some for valid reasons, others not so much.  Still others go totally off the deep end with little or no basis. I'll leave it up to the various individuals to determine which shoe fits best.

Speaking for myself, I've heard properly set up stations running HD Radio technology on both AM and FM and, while I'll acknowledge that they are currently in the minority (especially on AM), I'm cautiously optimistic that someday folks will learn that the bulk of the problems are not with the technology itself, they are with the equipment being used (transmitter, antenna system, etc.) and/or the end users' implementation of the technology (IBOC doesn't play nearly as well if the mod monitor doesn't move, especially if you're barely meeting mask with no audio).  Then again, I won't listen to a station that doesn't have some noticeable amount of dynamic range either - which might explain why I exercise the OFF switch more than the tuning or volume controls in most rental cars! 

Of course, I've also heard some unique content - Entercom's classic blues on HD2 is where the Insignia stays locked anytime I'm in a market that plays it... I'm fortunate to have three or four of those markets in my territory. But that's a case of one man's poison... others might not appreciate Muddy Waters so much, and where I'm transient, I'm not usually in an area long enough to hit the end of the playlist. Point being that it CAN work and work well, so rather than wasting energy telling folks who accept that possibility that they don't live in the real world, how about pitching in and helping the rest of us make it work. 

Whether it is the best choice or not, whether it will save radio or not, whether the sky is blue or azure are all political and philosophical debates that have absolutely nothing to do with the science of the system.  As much as we bring up the laws of physics here, if I can drop the intermod products into the noise floor, you can't tell me it's causing interference because of a flaw with the technology. We aren't there yet - but we're getting close - and at that point this "trashing your real world" argument becomes null and void. I guess it comes down to the fact that the people who say it can't be done are starting to annoy those of us who are busy doing it.

By the way Dana, some might argue the concept that LA represents the REAL world :)  It is certainly an area where any potential issues will be magnified by short spacings and multi-station site layouts, but there are several other parts of the country where that should be the case as well - can we hear from those areas too? I'd be interested in specific examples (offline if warranted) - I'd be especially interested if any of our gear is involved, as there might be suggestions we can make.  Of course, being a sales guy, if anybody else's gear is involved, I could also make a suggestion or two <g>!.

Best,

the other Jeff