Another terrible LPFM in the Los Angeles market is KQEV (web site, radio locator). I don't scan past it often enough to give accurate statistics, but for at least one year, it seems that every third or fourth time my radio lands on its signal, it is broadcasting continuous dead air. During my most recent encounter with the station, its modulation was through the roof. I used my DX-286 as a sort of poor man's bandwidth analyzer, and had to open up its receive to over 300 kHz before most of the distortion I was hearing vanished.
-
Get involved.
We want your input!
Apply for Membership and join the conversations about everything related to broadcasting.
After we receive your registration, a moderator will review it. After your registration is approved, you will be permitted to post.
If you use a disposable or false email address, your registration will be rejected.
After your membership is approved, please take a minute to tell us a little bit about yourself.
https://www.radiodiscussions.com/forums/introduce-yourself.1088/
Thanks in advance and have fun!
RadioDiscussions Administrators
Worst LPFM sound quality you've heard?
- Thread starter SnottyNose799
- Start date
It's been eons since I've listened, but KMEC-LP 105.1 in Ukiah sounds pretty terrible. Perhaps some of you (@michael hagerty ?) know of it
As I recall, it sounded kind of compressed and gritty. I don't recall any distortion, however, and the loudness was OK, so I think it was mainly a badly configured audio processor combined with low quality source material.
The main issues, I believe, lie with the management. Or, perhaps I should say, a lack thereof.
Several times over the years, various people offered to help improve the situation (during my two years there, myself and an older friend who was an accomplished NASA engineer that knew a decent amount about audio tried to help, a few years later another friend who was a classmate of mine tried for awhile, and at one point even the Mendo College Recording Arts and Music department head himself, who has a Ph. D in the subject, offered to help), and all were refused. I concluded long ago that they must really just like sounding half-broken all the time; most of their equipment was well-used, second-rate junk and barely worked half the time, and the so-called "IT guy" created a computer system so elaborate and unreliable, that only he could understand it and fix it if anything happened, and he deliberately locked it down so only he had access, leaving everyone helpless if it broke down while he was away from the station, which was at least 98 percent of the time.
If, someday, I ever end up having the opportunity to run a station like that, it's gonna be managed far more professionally, with decent used equipment (or new, if the budget allows), plenty of documentation for it all and a well documented computer system with a clean, simple configuration and multiple levels of admin access so everyone knows what to do and how to do it if anything goes wrong for any reason. And, above all, it's going to sound good, with crisp, clean audio on a strong, well-modulated signal.
Isn't that how a station should be run?
c
As I recall, it sounded kind of compressed and gritty. I don't recall any distortion, however, and the loudness was OK, so I think it was mainly a badly configured audio processor combined with low quality source material.
The main issues, I believe, lie with the management. Or, perhaps I should say, a lack thereof.
Several times over the years, various people offered to help improve the situation (during my two years there, myself and an older friend who was an accomplished NASA engineer that knew a decent amount about audio tried to help, a few years later another friend who was a classmate of mine tried for awhile, and at one point even the Mendo College Recording Arts and Music department head himself, who has a Ph. D in the subject, offered to help), and all were refused. I concluded long ago that they must really just like sounding half-broken all the time; most of their equipment was well-used, second-rate junk and barely worked half the time, and the so-called "IT guy" created a computer system so elaborate and unreliable, that only he could understand it and fix it if anything happened, and he deliberately locked it down so only he had access, leaving everyone helpless if it broke down while he was away from the station, which was at least 98 percent of the time.
If, someday, I ever end up having the opportunity to run a station like that, it's gonna be managed far more professionally, with decent used equipment (or new, if the budget allows), plenty of documentation for it all and a well documented computer system with a clean, simple configuration and multiple levels of admin access so everyone knows what to do and how to do it if anything goes wrong for any reason. And, above all, it's going to sound good, with crisp, clean audio on a strong, well-modulated signal.
Isn't that how a station should be run?
c
SnottyNose799
Banned
The station I mentioned with no bass is now back to dead air since just after that last post.
Just about no programming/ID in two months but hey at least it's on-air.
Just about no programming/ID in two months but hey at least it's on-air.
I guess that counts for something, but the FCC doesn't like dead air very much, so they're going to have to get things in order or else consider just going dark and turning in their license.
c
How quickly, on average, does the FCC establish contact with stations violating technical rules such as dead air and overmodulation? I am really quite amazed by how long the KQEV people in particular have been doing it.
I don't know. When my mother and I first started at KMEC, we were scared into thinking that the FCC would come banging down the doors instantly if we had so much as a few seconds of dead air, which is obviously hyperbolic in retrospect.
I think a healthy respect for the FCC (and the royalty juggernaut that is ASCAP, BMI, et.al.) and good-faith following of the rules as closely as is practical goes a long way toward ensuring an easy existence. To do otherwise would probably not matter too much in practice, especially nowadays given the seemingly indifferent and uncaring attitude most government regulators have developed, but why tempt fate?
The rules are there for a very good reason. What's the harm in following them?
c
That average will approach infinity. The FCC's field agents are not roaming from town to town scouring the broadcast bands for licensees running 110% modulation levels. If you're in Topeka and overmodulating, you'll very likely never hear about it.
SnottyNose799
Banned
Programming on the dead air station is back, volume is fine but still the music is with no bass. It sounds like a transister radio in my car, but not with the IDs and liners... So they apparently modified the music files because they don't have a good processor? OK... LOL
SnottyNose799
Banned
No audio on the same LPFM again going on a week. 
Have you called the station and told them. Some never monitor their station.
I don't know if WHIN's FM Signal 100.7 counts but I would list it (Gallatin-Hendersonville, TN.).
A city-owned two-LPFM simulcast, KZCC-LP and KZCW-LP, in Conroe/Willis, TX.
Hilariously undermodulated audio, and the stations are discretely fed off of what sounds like a headphone splitter. One station gets the left channel, the other gets the right channel. Currently, KZCW has been running dead air with a stereo pilot for months. Great use of tax dollars.
Hilariously undermodulated audio, and the stations are discretely fed off of what sounds like a headphone splitter. One station gets the left channel, the other gets the right channel. Currently, KZCW has been running dead air with a stereo pilot for months. Great use of tax dollars.
I can add two more to the bad audio list. KZKA-LP Los Angeles runs extremely low audio. The 99.1 timeshare group KZUT/KFEP/KLDB-LP are distorted all the time.
not an LPFM
SnottyNose799
Banned
The station I mentioned has a sister station too from my guess (Concrete Truth is both their names), but so far as I can tell is not run by the city or anything.
Praise 95 used to be Urban Gospel until shut off earlier this month for some reason. https://fccdata.org/?facid=&call=kc...=&lmspl=&party_type=ELMFA&latd=&lond=&lang=en
Urban Oldies 98.5 is still dead air, hopefully they will fix their music soon, or better yet add some bass. https://fccdata.org/?facid=&call=kp...=&lmspl=&party_type=ELMFA&latd=&lond=&lang=en
I don't know what the FCC is going to do if anything. I did gripe once to them about 98.5's lack of bass a few years ago but nothing.
Praise 95 used to be Urban Gospel until shut off earlier this month for some reason. https://fccdata.org/?facid=&call=kc...=&lmspl=&party_type=ELMFA&latd=&lond=&lang=en
Urban Oldies 98.5 is still dead air, hopefully they will fix their music soon, or better yet add some bass. https://fccdata.org/?facid=&call=kp...=&lmspl=&party_type=ELMFA&latd=&lond=&lang=en
I don't know what the FCC is going to do if anything. I did gripe once to them about 98.5's lack of bass a few years ago but nothing.
You say you griped about a lack of bass on 98.5 to the FCC. Nothing in the rules about too much or too little bass.
Keeping your transmitter on with no audio is an issue the FCC would at least inquire about but you'd need to provide proof (ie:video showing your radio with volume and time dated).
If a station goes off air and you don't see a filing on the FCC site after about a month, send them a complaint with evidence. The FCC will request power bills for the times they were off and a few months prior. If the power bill is quite different, the FCC will ask why and may fine them while starting the clock. If they're no back on in a year, the license is revoked.
Keeping your transmitter on with no audio is an issue the FCC would at least inquire about but you'd need to provide proof (ie:video showing your radio with volume and time dated).
If a station goes off air and you don't see a filing on the FCC site after about a month, send them a complaint with evidence. The FCC will request power bills for the times they were off and a few months prior. If the power bill is quite different, the FCC will ask why and may fine them while starting the clock. If they're no back on in a year, the license is revoked.