"Consumers expect radio, they expect digital.."

[Carmine5]

So says Bob Struble. But do consumers expect radio to be digital? Yes, one-to-many is definitely in radio's favor but will consumers put up with mode hopping or sudden drop outs in the HD Radio signal?

I really question the veracity of his reasoning as to why stations must convert to digital or as he says: "if you don’t upgrade to HD Radio Technology, you won’t be playing in the connected game".

His reason for going digital:

"How will John Smith feel when he reads the owner’s manual of his new VW Jetta, gets excited about seeing album covers, but sees nothing because his local stations haven’t implemented it yet? Not a solid first impression of radio’s digital capabilities." Frankly, I don't think John Smith cares about seeing album covers. What he will definitely care about is receiving a steady, solid signal. Anything less and his new Jetta goes into the shop.

After a lengthy absence it seems Mr. Struble is back at it, beating the drum for HD Radio. Admittedly I was kinda missing his little fireside chats.

Does this mean that the return of the HD Radio station conversion scoreboard is near?

http://www.ibiquity.com/about_us/bobs_column_thoughts_on_radios_digital_future

 

[KB1OKL]

So says Bob Struble. But do consumers expect radio to be digital? Yes, one-to-many is definitely in radio's favor but will consumers put up with mode hopping or sudden drop outs in the HD Radio signal?

I really question the veracity of his reasoning as to why stations must convert to digital or as he says: "if you don’t upgrade to HD Radio Technology, you won’t be playing in the connected game".

His reason for going digital:

"How will John Smith feel when he reads the owner’s manual of his new VW Jetta, gets excited about seeing album covers, but sees nothing because his local stations haven’t implemented it yet? Not a solid first impression of radio’s digital capabilities." Frankly, I don't think John Smith cares about seeing album covers. What he will definitely care about is receiving a steady, solid signal. Anything less and his new Jetta goes into the shop.

I don't know about John Smith but when I drive I listen to the radio and look at the road.

 

[dumber than a box of hair]

If Bob Struble thinks that having album art displayed in a moving vehicle is a plus, he is certainly more clueless than I initially gave him credit for. One would think he'd be hard at work on figuring out how to fix HD Radio's shortcomings instead of brow-beating broadcasters into installing something that a first-year engineering student wouldn't even propose without getting laughed out of class.

Oh wait...that's not a bug...that's a feature...

 

[Carmine5]

Yeah, what responsible person is going to be staring at album art while bombing down the freeway (or expressway depending on what part of the country you're from) at 65 MPH?

I have yet to find any data which shows that consumers place a high value on seeing album art--whether online or in a vehicle. Ibiquity trying to force terrestrial radio into becoming a third rate imitation of the internet radio experience (custom playlists, pause-start streaming, album art) is a FASTROAD to hades.

Terrestrial radio has many strengths--one-to-many transmission, free, local origination. That's what broadcasters need to continue to focus on. Not go into hand-wringing mode because they are the only analog service on an otherwise digital dashboard.

 

[landtuna]

Personally, I learned my lesson from the DTV fiasco. Should analog radio ever go digital I'll just toss all the radio's in my house without replacing them.

 

[Play Freebird]

Note that the Ford and VW HD screens (shown in Bob Struble's column) are limited to identifying the station by its four-letter FCC callsign, rather than the eight-character PS name which is available in RDS.

RDS can easily handle up to a 64 character "Title and Artist" field as radiotext.

 

[TheBigA]

Yeah, what responsible person is going to be staring at album art while bombing down the freeway (or expressway depending on what part of the country you're from) at 65 MPH?

I don't know, but apparently a lot of people think it's fine to text while "bombing down the freeway." It's become such a huge problem that a few states have even made it against the law. However, I am here to testify that even in those states, people continue to text.

I know a lot of radio geeks think the public wants internet in cars so they can listen to Pandora. The fact is that the majority will use it to check and write email while speeding at 65MPH. Or watching videos from YouTube.

What I'm sayin' here is people aren't responsible.

Do they expect radio to be digital? Maybe. Most of the music they hear on the radio was recorded digitally. Most of the radio stations have digital transmission systems within the facility and to the transmitter. But then it hits the airwaves, and we're transported back to 1939. Not that there's anything wrong with that, but it is a bit of a shock.

This is not to say that Bob has the best solution to the digital situation. I think you all have already reached a decision on that.Certainly HE thinks he does, and that's why he wrote this commentary. But it would be nice to come up with some kind of system that incorporates modern audio solutions between the transmitter and receiver. We can put a man on the moon, can't we?

 

[Carmine5]

Note that the Ford and VW HD screens (shown in Bob Struble's column) are limited to identifying the station by its four-letter FCC callsign, rather than the eight-character PS name which is available in RDS.

RDS can easily handle up to a 64 character "Title and Artist" field as radiotext.

Yeah, those screen shots are misleading. Of course, RDS can show song title and artist information just as easily. As for the album cover art--it's a postage stamp. You have to squint to see it. Even if the idea is for stations to sell that space to clients, what advertiser would buy a display ad that tiny (unless it's offered as a value-added thing)? Sure, you can put the station's logo there, but is that worth the cost of going HD?

Maybe a compelling argument can be made for radio going digital (other than a government-mandated analog cut-off). But Struble has yet to make one.

 

[KB1OKL]

Yeah, what responsible person is going to be staring at album art while bombing down the freeway (or expressway depending on what part of the country you're from) at 65 MPH?

I don't know, but apparently a lot of people think it's fine to text while "bombing down the freeway." It's become such a huge problem that a few states have even made it against the law. However, I am here to testify that even in those states, people continue to text.

I know a lot of radio geeks think the public wants internet in cars so they can listen to Pandora. The fact is that the majority will use it to check and write email while speeding at 65MPH. Or watching videos from YouTube.

What I'm sayin' here is people aren't responsible.

Anyone who watches a YouTube video while driving is beyond irresponsible, he's an idiot.

Do they expect radio to be digital? Maybe. Most of the music they hear on the radio was recorded digitally. Most of the radio stations have digital transmission systems within the facility and to the transmitter. But then it hits the airwaves, and we're transported back to 1939. Not that there's anything wrong with that, but it is a bit of a shock.

Many of us have had this argument before too, I submit that digital does not necessarily sound better than analog in fact I believe analog sounds way better than digital when done properly. You may think this is a bad example and it probably is but I have a pretty good turntable, pretty good receiver and pretty good speakers not high audiophile stuff but better than average and I have some LP's that most CD's would beg to sound even half as good. A good LP can sound just like the band is in the room, they are very realistic and natural. I haven't heard a really good sounding AM in a long time but there was a time when AM sounded as good if not better than FM, it had a rich sound years ago. C-Quam AM stereo sounds good too.

This is not to say that Bob has the best solution to the digital situation. I think you all have already reached a decision on that.Certainly HE thinks he does, and that's why he wrote this commentary. But it would be nice to come up with some kind of system that incorporates modern audio solutions between the transmitter and receiver. We can put a man on the moon, can't we?

Yes, we can put a man on the moon so we can make analog sound which is already ubiquitous in this here world sound great on AM and FM.

 

[dumber than a box of hair]

But then it hits the airwaves, and we're transported back to 1939. Not that there's anything wrong with that, but it is a bit of a shock.

Why is that a shock? I don't know about you, but my ears and brain can only make sense of analog. "Digital" is nothing but a buzz word these days...utterly meaningless to 99% of the public, especially when you see such moronic labels as "Digital Ready!" on a pair of headphones which are *not* designed to emit ones and zeros.

Until they invent humans whose brains know how to decode digital, saying that radio "has to be" digital ranks right up there with the marketing hype for New Coke and Microsoft Bob.

 

[Savage]

Technology is already fixing the texting-while-driving problem (and it IS a problem. In June 2008 we had 5 beautiful 17 and 18-year old girls - fresh high school grads, on their way to a summer-launch party - who died in a fiery head-on crash with a tractor-trailer because the driver was texting.) Our local talk host, who is also an EMT, appeared on O'Reilly to talk about the issue.

My new Droid Global has voice-to-text. Just speak into the phone and it generates the text - and with astonishing accuracy. I've got to believe this is going to be SOP with smartphones in the future, from every manufacturer. As older phones are retired and replaced with smartphones you won't need to look at the phone any more to text.

IMO if John Smith "gets excited" about looking at album art on his receiver, he needs the ol' proverbial Checkup-From-the-Neckup.

The Stroob's comment is instructive, however, because it graphically illustrates the myopia, stubbornness and disconnect-from-reality frequently displayed by the lonely gaggle of remaining HD supporters.

 

[TheBigA]

Why is that a shock? I don't know about you, but my ears and brain can only make sense of analog. "Digital" is nothing but a buzz word these days...

OK...so we'll take you and the other 5% of the analog geeks with their vinyl records and eliminate them from what I said.

 

[mmnassour]

As was told to me by the chief of the local NPR .....

"Digital does not necessarily mean better....it just means digital."

 

[flashback]

there is nothing wrong with analog am and fm radio.in fact when i think about digital tv it makes me hope a major shift to digital radio never happens.

 

[WPPCProductions]

there is nothing wrong with analog am and fm radio.in fact when i think about digital tv it makes me hope a major shift to digital radio never happens.

I hope not.but I think it will happen later in our life time.

 

[TheBigA]

there is nothing wrong with analog am and fm radio.

Nothing wrong with a horse either.

 

[jhardis]

As was told to me by the chief of the local NPR .....

"Digital does not necessarily mean better....it just means digital."

Don't forget, Morse Code is digital.

 

[landtuna]

Don't forget, Morse Code is digital.

Actually, it's not. Listen closely to the "hand" of a Morse operator sometime and it sounds almost like music.

 

[KeithE4]

Don't forget, Morse Code is digital.

Actually, it's not. Listen closely to the "hand" of a Morse operator sometime and it sounds almost like music.

Of course it's digital. You use your "digits" to operate the key, don't you? ;D

 

[landtuna]

Don't forget, Morse Code is digital.

Actually, it's not. Listen closely to the "hand" of a Morse operator sometime and it sounds almost like music.

Of course it's digital. You use your "digits" to operate the key, don't you? ;D

Actually, it's called a fist. ;D ;D