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Tampa HD Radio

A

altsped

Guest
I understand that Cox now has three of thier Tampa FM stations running in HD, 94.9, 97.1 and 101.5.

With WFLA and WUSF, Tampa now has five HD stations.

Has anyone heard how it sounds?
 
> I understand that Cox now has three of thier Tampa FM
> stations running in HD, 94.9, 97.1 and 101.5.
>
> With WFLA and WUSF, Tampa now has five HD stations.
>
> Has anyone heard how it sounds?

Hmm...Interesting....The www.hd-radio.com website doesn't list the Cox Tampa stations as "on" yet, just as pending...But that doesn't surprise me...There are stations there that have indeed signed on that do not show yet as completed. Does someone have a way of knowing for sure if Cox is on the air with HD in Tampa?

Yes I have heard it...I'm very impressed myself. Alot of it boils down though on how you process the signal, that will 'make or break' the quality of the digital audio and be the difference between a digital signal that sounds better than the analog, or yes, worse than the analog. There are FMs in my market that outshine their analog signal, and FMs that make you go "Man, the analog is better". It's only 96kbps, but the codec used makes for a very good sound, one that, to my ears, actually exceeds the quality of the Eureka-147 that I heard in Canada which used 224 kbps.

AM, same story.....One station runs it and I can't say I like what I hear...Another one runs it and you're really impressed to the point of "Oh, Wow!"....And for mediumwave the bitrate is only in the 30s.

Final selling point that really makes HD Radio wonderful in my book is the Stereo separation, on both AM and FM, not sure how much but it's a very high db rate.
 
> > I understand that Cox now has three of thier Tampa FM
> > stations running in HD, 94.9, 97.1 and 101.5.

> Yes I have heard it...I'm very impressed myself. Alot of it
> boils down though on how you process the signal, that will
> 'make or break' the quality of the digital audio and be the
> difference between a digital signal that sounds better than
> the analog, or yes, worse than the analog.

Will HD impact how much reach the 97.1 signal has in Tampa? I'm not particularly up to speed with HD radio, and I know that signal range is signal range, period, but will HD help 97.1's signal in buildings and such where it sometimes has trouble? I hope so...<P ID="signature">______________
Lou Pickney
Tampa, FL
RadioHotTalk.com & VarietyHits.com</P>
 
> will HD help
> 97.1's signal in buildings and such where it sometimes has
> trouble? I hope so...
>
I don't think it'll have any effect -- to utilise the benefits of "HD" radio, you'll need a special receiver, which is still pretty expensive.

And if you're having a hard time getting 97.1 now, you may still have a hard time getting the signal with an HD receiver -- like digital TV, digital radio's an "all or nothing" deal.
 
There are "white papers" that detail the structure of HD radio (for both AM and FM), at www.ibiquity.com....But I believe they were done with the old PAC codec, and not the HDC codec which is what is being used now...Took me several times to read, and I still don't get all of it, but it's interesting and not everyone has 'got it' yet, so now is the time to get in on the ground floor of the 'book larnin'. How HD Radio deals with terrain issues, etc, is also covered in the papers.


Basically, for AM, and FM, there are different "modes", the more advanced for which will allow for better sound quality and more data services....Also, as you advance in modes, you will eventually shed the analog signal and go for an all digital broadcast.

Again, I think they're already outdated since the codec now in use is a better one.
 
FM analog can sound BETTER than IBOC if you could just convince managment to dump the processors. Dont compress and then limit the audio to the point there is no dynamic range left. And the real problem is that most of todays music is stepped on real hard by the record companies now. When you run it thru an Omnia or Optimod set up for max loudness it really makes is sound like hell. Just wait till they start smashing the digital signal and take a way the dynamic range in the name of loudness. If you go into the engineering room and look at the mod monitor and it doesnt go below 95%, you know you are destroying the sound in the name of loudness. BTW, 97.1 is only a rimshot and barely a class C FM. IBOC will only make reception areas smaller not larger.





> There are "white papers" that detail the structure of HD
> radio (for both AM and FM), at www.ibiquity.com....But I
> believe they were done with the old PAC codec, and not the
> HDC codec which is what is being used now...Took me several
> times to read, and I still don't get all of it, but it's
> interesting and not everyone has 'got it' yet, so now is the
> time to get in on the ground floor of the 'book larnin'.
> How HD Radio deals with terrain issues, etc, is also covered
> in the papers.
>
>
> Basically, for AM, and FM, there are different "modes", the
> more advanced for which will allow for better sound quality
> and more data services....Also, as you advance in modes, you
> will eventually shed the analog signal and go for an all
> digital broadcast.
>
> Again, I think they're already outdated since the codec now
> in use is a better one.
>
 
> FM analog can sound BETTER than IBOC if you could just
> convince managment to dump the processors.

Funny thing, the station I'm involved in is running IBOC, and our station's digital sounds better than alot of the others in my market that do...The difference?? We *DO NOT* process the digital signal *at all*. This is part of what I meant when some of the HD FMs in my market sound better on the analog end than in the digital.

Another issue is the form of audio storage...Many stations today use compressed (in terms of audio storage) audio..Clear Channel, for one, and MP2s on Prophet..Our station still plays CDs, and .wavs...Personally I think that is also an issue for good IBOC.
 
Agreed. However you don't need to dump the processors...just don't light them on fire. The Omnia is still one of the cleanest boxes out there PERIOD! The sampling rate is poor and the clipping inside the new Optimod is just too dirty. It's actually more white noise than distortion. Until someone finally says....you know maybe it would be nice to sounder cleaner for once instead of a wall of sound. THAT JUST WILL NOT HAPPEN ;-) . The loudness war will always be around. Still a MAJOR problem today is the fact that most folks do not know how to use thier prcessor in the first place. Engineers included. It's not thier fault either!! People don't have the time to set down and read the 1000 page manuals anymore and that can only lead to bad things. We're all doing 5 peoples jobs and time is tight. I make the time and learn every in and out of those damn things. There is always something someones not telling you in processing. Other ways to manipulate the box OR a BETTER way to clean up, yet not lose loudness if that is your main goal. You've just gotta dig and tweak.

Better yet...where's my Audimax and Volumax damnit...LOL!

r
 
> Better yet...where's my Audimax and Volumax damnit...LOL!

ROFL... especially at the Volumax! Better still, how 'bout an old Orban 8000?

I know an engineer who used to get inside the Volumax and did something (his secret, he sez) to really speed up the attack time. I've only worked at one station, a long time ago, that used a Volumax, and maybe because my ears were young, but I remember that station always sounding like s**t.

Ooooh, wait... how 'bout an Inovonix Map II?!?
 
> > Better yet...where's my Audimax and Volumax damnit...LOL!
>
> ROFL... especially at the Volumax! Better still, how 'bout
> an old Orban 8000?
>
> I know an engineer who used to get inside the Volumax and
> did something (his secret, he sez) to really speed up the
> attack time. I've only worked at one station, a long time
> ago, that used a Volumax, and maybe because my ears were
> young, but I remember that station always sounding like
> s**t.
>
> Ooooh, wait... how 'bout an Inovonix Map II?!?
>
There was a resistor in the unit that could be replaced to speed the attack time. And, putting the right value resistor in there would really make that baby pump!
 
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