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Is it ME... Or does WIBC's audio sound like POO?

H

hipporadio

One of the finest examples of AM audio (despite the complex DA) now weighs in as a real “notch-master”. WHAT’S UP? Analog quality thrown to the passed-gas wind in favor of a “buzz saw” running in the sidebands that all of four people in the the Emmis building can listen to? Oh, that wonderful IBOC “HD” audio that sounds like RealAudio via the internet from the late ‘90s. I was back in Indiana this week, and the once-fine WOWO stinks also... All for the latest corporate science-fair project. Great AM audio used to be an art – it seems to have joined the current programming “art” and become 'puter-centric. Interesting, that the finest AM audio on my C Crane and Tivoli radios reside at the top of the dial on little 'ole 250-watt oldies WIFE in Connersville!
 
I always thought Bob Hawkins could produce some great audio. That's why Connersville sounds so goof.
 
Thanks for the kind words...I'm sometimes accused of catering to those with good AM radios, but it's just the way I see things. Making AM sound as close as possible to FM quality is what I strive for. Of course, the fun will come to a grinding halt if those who champion a 5khz HF limit prevail. Until then, let the good times roll... BTW, WJCP 1460 in North Vernon has an identical air chain and sounds exactly like WIFE.
 
Oh so it’s Bob Hawkins???... Now I know the rest of the story. Connersville DOES sound awesome – possibly the best AM audio on a music station I have heard. The “Bob factor” explains it all... So Rogers has hooked with Gary Havens AND Bob Hawkins – GREAT company! “Hire” them both if youb dare!
 
Bob's the only guy I know that can not only make a radio station sound great, but can somehow make ham radio sound broadcast quality!
 
AM broadcasting is a decent way to transmit audio. Remember how good it once sounded on
those old floor model radios from the 1930's and 40's. The good news is that there are again
radios made with wide band audio reception. Yes AM can sound quite good.
Glad Bob is taking pride in WIFE in Connersville. I am with those who say leave digital
to the internet which is worldwide.
 
I remember a story about Bob that’s nearly 30 years old – NO – not the WWWY Marti remote “classic” featuring a certain “GM” and a clandestine intervention from a McDonalds parking lot. This story features the old art of making “travel tapes” on cassette. Allegedly, Bob preferred to pass his music thru a pair of DBX 160 compressors on the way to the recording process... And I thought I was the only one suffering that malady. I bet they were GREAT SOUNDING tapes too! Bob managed to win my permanent affection when he confessed that the best FM audio in that era was on WKRQ in Cincy.

You only need $120 and an account at Amazon to get Tivoli’s “Henry Kloss” analog-tuned table radio. Believe me – the 5:1 gear-reduced rotary tuning is a dream... So is the AM audio. WIFE sounds SOOOO SWEET on that little brick. If just a few more radios shilled at the Best Buy, and a few more owners who hire guys like Bob were out there, AM radio would not suffer its unfair reputation as “Anciently-Modulated radio”.
 
Believe it or not WZZB in Seymour is still broadcasting music in C-Quam stereo and they still sound as good as WIBC and WOWO ever did during their AM Stereo days. I gues it is worth mentioning that Bob Hawkins maintains that airchain too.
 
bigtime said:
AM stereo didn't last, but it actually sounded pretty good on some stations.
Click to expand...

It sure did...I had a Chevy S-10 truck that had a factory AM stereo radio in it, and I used to listen to a station on the east coast late at night as I was either going to or coming home from my overnight shift at an AM station at the infamous Hawthorne Lane location, and it sounded darned good...I am wanting to think the call was WCAU, but I could be wrong...I believe they were doing oldies at the time and I was amazed that AM could sound that good. Too bad it never caught on, then the music formats slowly disappeared for the most part. WIBC sounded pretty decent back then as well. I cannot remember if any other Indy stations were running stereo besides them. I've also seen the Kloss radio you described...excellent piece of work! It's good that there are guys like Bob out there that really go the extra mile to keep those stations sounding great. As for WIBC, besides the IBOC stuff, I don't know why they sound so bad at times. The engineers there are very competent, and the equipment in that place is amazing.
 
"I cannot remember if any other Indy stations were running stereo besides them."

WNDE was also C-Quam at the time. PD Kent Jones had a Tandy receiver that really made the oldies there sound sweet.
 
It seems like a bit of a contradiction to rail against WIBC or any other AM station for using IBOC technology. I will admit it does seem to have an adverse effect on the sound of the analog signal, but on my HD home receiver, their HD signal sounds as good as any AM broadcasting in IBOC that I've heard to this point. WIBC and other AM's are sacrificing a little on the analog side, to gain a lot in terms of audio quality with HD radio. My advice for those complaining about the sound of WIBC these days is get an HD radio, I think IBC sounds great in HD.
 
I think IBC sounds great in HD.

I completely agree!! WIBC, on my HD car radio, sounds phenomenal! I have a hard time getting WIBC's HD signal near Greenwood but when I do finally lock it in, it sounds great!
 
I must respectfully disagree.
I have an Alpine HD radio in my wife's Jimmy and personally, I believe HD radio on AM sounds bad.
I believe Ibiquity released a new codec a couple of months ago, and both WIBC and WLW sound better then they did, but they still sound like low bit rate MP3's to me. The artifacting is horrible and the crispy highs grate on my nerves.
As I've posted earlier, the range of WIBC's HD signal barely covers Marion county, and my Alpine has a very low tolerance for dropped data bits.. meaning that it blends back to analog frequently, even in Marion County.
Whenever I drive under noisy power lines, it blends back to analog and I hear the static from the power lines.
I was reading on the Florida board that during their frequent thunderstorms, the HD radios practically stay in analog, so the crackle of lightning still blasts during Rush.
I haven't listened for a while but last time I did, WIBC, WNDE and WLW were all broadcasting everything in mono.
I am speaking for AM only, but where's the benefit in buying an HD radio?
Not to mention it's killed my Cubs games. I used to be able to listen to them during the day on WGN, but now WLW's buzz saw sidebands kill WGN's signal down here.
 
jimbo700 said:
I must respectfully disagree.
I have an Alpine HD radio in my wife's Jimmy and personally, I believe HD radio on AM sounds bad.
I believe Ibiquity released a new codec a couple of months ago, and both WIBC and WLW sound better then they did, but they still sound like low bit rate MP3's to me. The artifacting is horrible and the crispy highs grate on my nerves.
As I've posted earlier, the range of WIBC's HD signal barely covers Marion county, and my Alpine has a very low tolerance for dropped data bits.. meaning that it blends back to analog frequently, even in Marion County.
Whenever I drive under noisy power lines, it blends back to analog and I hear the static from the power lines.
I was reading on the Florida board that during their frequent thunderstorms, the HD radios practically stay in analog, so the crackle of lightning still blasts during Rush.
I haven't listened for a while but last time I did, WIBC, WNDE and WLW were all broadcasting everything in mono.
I am speaking for AM only, but where's the benefit in buying an HD radio?
Not to mention it's killed my Cubs games. I used to be able to listen to them during the day on WGN, but now WLW's buzz saw sidebands kill WGN's signal down here.
Click to expand...

Listen to the Reds? A few affiliates carry the Cubs. 6 outside of WGN. Most in S IL. WSJD Princeton. Can't hear it in the car.
 
Yes... I miss that great PROCESSED and PUNCH of a great AM... John David Obergainer alway had little 250 watt daytimer 1170/KJAS in Jackson/Cape, MO sounding so clean and major market.. He beat KGMO in the local ratings with a AM daytimer over an AM-Daytimer/FM-Fulltimer! Barney Webster had a punchy 500 watt daytimer at KYMO in East Parairie/Sikeston, MO.... I even thought we had a good local sound on 1340/KLID in Poplar Bluff, MO in the early 80's (with AC day/CHR night music)..
But, Jim Loupus was our consultant at 1280/WGBF in Evansville....Man "Loop" made "Super-CFL" sound sweeter than WLS did from 275 miles south of Chicago (listening at night in Evansville)..... ;D
 
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