Drew1480 said:
As for the idea of moving the small market AM's to FM:
We have one FM and two AM's. the idea of moving the two AM's to an expanded FM band (76-88) would render the current facilities worthless: The new solid state 1 kw transmitter-upgraded about 4 years ago, the optimod 9200 and that 150 foot tower (quarter wave at 1480) would have to be replaced entirely with a taller tower to get the same range (about 30 miles daytime). Not to mention having to move to a frequency that no current radio can pick up!
And if I understand the concept we'd have to cram 116 channels into 12 mhz reducing the bandwidth into less that half what he current FM's use. Ludicrous!
I am a self confessed fan of local radio. I've spent most of my life living in Top 6 markets, and I've traveled extensively all around the world. I live in a rural area by choice. I think a lot of other people do too. There is a place for local and down to earth radio as you describe. It might not float in Philadelphia or NYC, but most small towns really welcome a radio service they can call “their own.” The station doesn't have to be anything fancy. Just do good broadcasting and be an important part of your community. That will do it. AM can, and traditionally has done a good job of that.
Recently, the NAB as advocated FM translators for small AM stations. I'm not sure what they have been smoking... It certainly contradicts what they have been saying for years about the FM band being too crowded.
But, never mind that. I am a fan of local radio; I think this might actually be a good idea, if someone can figure out where to put the new stations. That's the rub. It seems odd to me that NAB vigorously opposed LPFM, which really is "local radio," but now they want local radio to have FM translators. That seems quite out of character.
The FM band is pretty crammed full of stations, even in rural areas. There is plenty of available space in rural Wyoming and Montana, but more populated states will have trouble accommodating any more stations, even at very low power. If you are going to do it, the logical place to put some of these things is in an expanded FM band now occupied by TV channel 6.
Not too many channel 6 TV stations are planning on exercising their option to return to their analog channel when, in a couple of years, DTV becomes all there is. Working from a "greater good" point of view, I think the FCC should force the Channel 6 occupants to keep their current UHF DTV channels, and reopen those old frequencies for radio. I know that the TV station owners won't be pleased, but realistically about 80% of TV is delivered to homes via cable or satellite. It really doesn’t matter what channel they actually broadcast on. Only a small minority views TV broadcasting off the air so it should have little impact to most people
The real down side for the former Channel 6 TV station is in their electric bill. It takes more power to go the same distance on UHF as it does on VHF channels, but their new digital transmitters are much more efficient than their old analog counterparts, and it does not require as much power to get an acceptable digital signal. It may be a wash.
For the proposed AM to FM translators, and any other new services that the additional bandwidth might allow, there would at least be a place to go. If they can't be accommodated in the conventional band, each small AM station would get a free expanded band frequency. You would also keep your existing AM channel as it is, in glorious analog. There would be nothing lost. As you point out, right now, nobody in this country has a radio that can pick up TV channel 6. Nobody has an IBOC radio either, so we are starting from more or less the same point. An analog expanded band FM radio would be cheap. So far IBOC radios are quite expensive.
Actually, now that I think of it, I have a radio in my bathroom that does pick up TV, including Channel 6, so I'll bet there are more than a few radios out there. In any case, there is a ready supply of these things. Japan and other countries use the lower frequencies for broadcasting right now, so it is just a matter of importing the radios. They are not cost prohibitive. They are priced about like a conventional radio, model for model. You could probably afford to use them as station give-aways. A $10-20 radio a day for a few months shouldn’t break the bank, but it would get some good buzz going in your community.
Nobody would force you to use the FM frequency if you don't want to, but I can't imagine why you wouldn't. Assuming you already have some kind of tower, a 300-watt FM transmitter, an antenna and some feed line can be bought in the vicinity of $5000. If you want to go First Class, it might represent a $10,000 investment. In any case, it is a fraction of what IBOC would cost, and I believe would deliver a lot more 'bang for the buck" for both the broadcaster and the listener.
It could work.
