WHAS IBOC Noise is BAAAAAACK!

[KR4BD]

Was tuning the AM dial last night around 1 AM EST and found WHAS OFF the air. This morning, around 5, I noticed they were back on the air with IBOC! I guess I won't be listening to KOA-850 anymore as long as this interference lasts. I thought WHAS "saw the light" when they killed this intentional interference a year or more ago.... IMHO, HD has no business in the AM band where it is totally incompatible with traditional analog broadcasters.

 

[radiotrumpet78]

I noticed that too when I turned on the truck this morning. Kruze man sounded like he was on an FM station again.... Then I saw the HD light on my radio... and said the same thing you did.... It's baaaaack!!

 

[radiorob2.0]

Here in Western Kentucky 840 is noise at night because of WCCO's noise generator at 830. For what it is worth, a couple of years ago I brought my Sony HD table radio to Lexington while visiting family. I actually wanted to hear WHAS in HD. From my parents' house in Southwest Lexington I had full signal strength but the receiver would not lock in an HD signal. Back in the day I could listen to WHAS in AM stereo from the same location but HD won't even activate. So will someone again please explain why this is such an awesome technology?

 

[KR4BD]

I also live in SW Lexington and can tell you that WHAS does not always have a steady analog signal here at night. Now that winter conditions have arrived, I have found KOA-850 to be a regular visitor, but that's not gonna happen anymore with the hash from WHAS. Another interesting IBOC mess is WLW vs WOR at night here... They mutually destruct each other... and the Clears on 1020, 1030 and 1040 "do a number" on each other here as well. In the BIG PICTURE, I have no problem with HD radio except on the AM band where it is totally incompatible with what's been there for generations. Just find some new spectrum to do it... Heck, the FCC recently opened up tons of spectrum when Analog TV was forced to digitize...

 

[BobOnTheJob]

What a shame...Clear Channel is reducing staff again, yet they somehow found money for this garbage.

 

[microbob]

I was listening when WHAS suddenly went off the air last night. No ID just signed off in the middle of Coast to Coast. Any bets on how long it will be before it will break down again?

 

[Bengalsfan]

Terry Meiners in HD is still crap.

 

[Tri-State Media]

I also live in SW Lexington and can tell you that WHAS does not always have a steady analog signal here at night. Now that winter conditions have arrived, I have found KOA-850 to be a regular visitor, but that's not gonna happen anymore with the hash from WHAS. Another interesting IBOC mess is WLW vs WOR at night here... They mutually destruct each other... and the Clears on 1020, 1030 and 1040 "do a number" on each other here as well. In the BIG PICTURE, I have no problem with HD radio except on the AM band where it is totally incompatible with what's been there for generations. Just find some new spectrum to do it... Heck, the FCC recently opened up tons of spectrum when Analog TV was forced to digitize...

I can tell you that listening via my walkman (Cut me a little slack, I'm an 80s kid) WHAS sounds like total crap except when pointed to the west-southwest. If I turn the thing any more than 1", I get noise...and lots of it.

 

[greg.hahn]

For what it is worth, a couple of years ago I brought my Sony HD table radio to Lexington while visiting family. I actually wanted to hear WHAS in HD. From my parents' house in Southwest Lexington I had full signal strength but the receiver would not lock in an HD signal. Back in the day I could listen to WHAS in AM stereo from the same location but HD won't even activate. So will someone again please explain why this is such an awesome technology?

Well WHAS was a mighty poor example of HD radio, at least in their first incarnation. They would drop in and out of HD in Shelbyville, only 15 miles from their tower. And they'd do the same thing on Bardstown road and several other places.

Comparing their HD coverage to WLW-HD was a night and day difference. WLW was rock solid in Dayton and in northern Kentucky.

It seems to me that something was terribly wrong with the WHAS HD transmission the first time around. Maybe they did it right this time.

 

[Bengalsfan]

It seems to me that something was terribly wrong with the WHAS HD transmission the first time around. Maybe they did it right this time.

I seem to recall hearing they were having antenna problems. The antenna wasn't broad enough to pass the HD subcarriers. I guess time will tell if they have been able to beat it into submission.

 

[wakyjr]

What a treat to have IBOC fidelity on any AM station. If anyone wants to listen to an AM station next to an IBOC station that is thousands of miles away away listen on the internet.

 

[Bengalsfan]

What is gained by having a talk radio format in HD? Nothing. I can understand if HAS were gonna start playing music, but it's talk. Terry Meiners in HD is still foolish and asinine.

 

[greg.hahn]

It seems to me that something was terribly wrong with the WHAS HD transmission the first time around. Maybe they did it right this time.

I seem to recall hearing they were having antenna problems. The antenna wasn't broad enough to pass the HD subcarriers. I guess time will tell if they have been able to beat it into submission.

Well you know how hard it is to make a phaser cabinet and all those ATUs for all those towers wide band enough to pass HD.

Oh, wait.

 

[secondchoice]

There are several types of antenna systems that the FCC allowed. A “good” efficient set up 60 or 70 years ago even if well maintained might not be HD friendly now. I am surprised that CC with all of its HD AM stations nationwide has not figured out a fix for this.