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AM's Future

R

radiorob2.0

Think about it....

-Most home stereos today have detachable AM antennas and are mostly used as an FM antenna. An AM radio with no antenna receives nothing unless you’re under the tower.

-The media players with radios only have FM. If you think about it, AM reception wouldn't be possible anyway.

-Let's not forget about those Part 15 monsters, not only monitors and computers but power lines. I live in a town where this wasn't maintained and AM reception, even the local signals, barely exist over the noise.


Discuss.
 
The reason why AM is doing so poorly is because of the following:

1. Limted Power (Less than 5000 watts, especially in the smaller markets)
2. A Bad to Horrible Sound Quality (Most of the time Humming in the Background)
3. Outdated Broadcasting Equipment and/or Transmitter (Which gives the station a limted coverage area and causes distortion to be heard)
4. No one hardly listens to AM, unless they want to be informed and/or Ministered to.

Just my two cents.

R.D.P. <><

P.S. The first three best describe the AM stations, we have in Selma and I detest it. Hope the WJUS move in, will be different and not have issues two and three, when they sign on.
 
If you go around this board, there are a lot of complaints about the FM stations in major markets. No matter what the format they seem to play the same tired old hits and for those with more varied musical tastes, a switch to satelite radio may be a good option.
But AM can take advatage of the failure of the larger stations to know their audiences. I truly believe that there are a number of opportunities for AM stations to be successful but one may need a variety of formats. For example, why can't oldies, classic rock, and classic country be combined so the playlist doesn't get "moldy?"
With better speakers in home and car audio systems AM doesn't sound bad. You can at least hear the words to a song.
In conclusion, a shrewd AM operator can carve out a very profitable niche if they can take advantage of U,S, census data, know their audience better than their competition and outsmart/outwork them. AM's future is good, if not bright.
 
Just tonight my 6 year old son wanted to listen to AM. He got enjoyment out of being able to hear stations from distant cities like NY, Louisville, Chicago, Atlanta, OKC.

If it goes away; that is what I will miss. Just to bad that many of the stations are playing just talk.
 
You've missed my points, let me elaborate.

First off, many of today's AM receivers lack an internal antenna. An FM antenna without an antenna will still receive the strongest of signals. An AM receiver without any antenna receives nothing unless the receiver is sitting next to the transmitter. It doesn't matter what programming "hole" you want to fill with an AM signal. If a listener doesn't have the knowledge to hook up an antenna, the programming is useless.

Since our world is going to computers, AM radio will lose. Media players offer only FM tuners since AM would not work in that electronic environment. The same can be said about tuner cards for computers, they are only available for FM for the same reasons.

Then there is the issue of fidelity. An AM transmitter is able to produce fidelity, but it is lost in translation to the millions of narrow band radios. Even the Bose Wave Radio includes a cheap AM tuner. However, a wideband AM tuner through the Wave Radio's Aux inputs will yield amazing quality. But the point is moot today due to IBOC and its limited analog bandwidth.

The grand stations of the AM band like KDKA and others are sinking in the rating. The rest of the band, in some cases, has become the broadcast equivalent of the Flying Dutchman. The modulation meters are moving but hardly anyone notices.

Don't get wrong, I have a soft place in my heart for the senior band. But the future is bleak when you weigh in all of these factors. IBOC will not be the "Hail Mary Pass" to save the game; it will likely only kill off the band.
 
Re: last post-I also own a Bose Wave Radio and I'm most disappointed with the FM tuner wihich will only lock on in stereo to only the strongest stations. As for the AM tuner, the radio regularly pulls in stations from beyond the daytime fringe contours of the radio locator maps all over the country. In Englewood FL in October, I managed to pull in 850 KOA on 2 nights and 1200 San Antonio and 820 Ft. Worth are consistent at night. It got 1030 KCRA Corpus Christ during the day across the Gulf. Not great but not bad either. I found that you really have to reposition that radio to pull in the weaker stations. Yes the sound will never equal FM but for some it's not the sound, it's what is being played; a smart shrewd AM operator has the opportunity to know their audience better than the suits at the major conglomerates and capitalize on their mistakes and assumptions.
 
Combine Classic Rock, Classic Country, etc on one station?

You could have done it in 1966...it's not viable today.

Why? There were fewer radio stations in 1966. A "Top 40" station could play adult standards, rock and roll, black crossover, etc. And, do news, sports and traffic around the clock. With fewer stations, you could be more things to more people.

When FM came into vogue in the early to mid 70's, there were more stations. Docket 80/90 put more on the air, too. More stations meant more "specialization" and more "narrowcasting".

I hear all these complaints about short playlists. Yet, some of the biggest ratings the big AM top 40 stations had came at a time when their "current" lists were 15-20 songs total.

Music on AM? Unless digital can be made to work, it's a dead issue. Not that one or two here or there can't get away with it, but the examples are few and far between anymore.

I am amazed by the number of people on this board that think radio managements and programmers are stupid. Everything you guys suggest will be the "salvation" of radio (big playlists, jocks with no control over them, etc, etc, etc) has been tried...and failed...before. And, a lot of us have tried it and had to find new jobs because of it.

I'm not gonna suggest everything is perfect in this business. Certainly, it's not. There's lots of room for radio to improve, especially with the hopeful acceptance by the audience of HD and the potential programming choices it can bring. Yes, radio needs to pay attention to bringing up new, young talent. I can't speak for
every broadcaster, but I know I don't go to work everyday with blinders on and my eyes and ears closed.
Neither do my colleagues. Neither does the company I work for.

But, read your history books. Stop talking "theory" and take a good hard look at what works, and what
doesn't. Consolidation has had nothing to do with this.
 
I love the AM band!!

But with all the crap today spewing all kinds of interference on the band (IBOC,etc) its getting harder to enjoy the DX,etc....

Very upsetting!!
 
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