Will translators hurt HD radio?

[richstrunck]

Radio station HD subchannels are being carried more and more by translators, is this a good or bad way to promote HD radio or does it matter?

 

[RadeoEngineer]

It doesn't matter pertaining to HD. It might matter pertaining to getting some additional listening, but it has nothing to do with HD at all.

 

[richstrunck]

Thats what I mean pertaining to attracting listeners. It seem that by putting HD stations on translators it would distract people from getting HD radio?

 

[nd2023]

If the translator's signal is weaker than the parent station's HD signal, it will encourage sales of HD radios, if the translator has a unique format.

 

[SirRoxalot]

Translators are probably the only way that 99.999% of listeners would become aware that there was an HD-only format in most markets.

 

[tomservo]

And the way all the HD-2 on translator stations I've heard are doing it, none make mention of the HD feed except during legal IDs. If then. So awareness of the HD version will remain low.

 

[DarkStarPDX]

Here in Portland, translators are actually helping HD radio. A local community station purchased a translator and then leased and HD-2 feed in order to legally provide programming to the translator. So the idea being that you'll hear the translator while flipping around stations, then be enticed to purchase a HD radio in order to hear a much better feed for the station.

I wouldn't be surprised if we didn't see a lot more of this in the future.

 

[spunker88]

It helps out HD Radio by making the overall number of stations greater. I'm sure there are stations that would drop HD the second they were forced to get rid of HD analog translators. Many of these HD translator stations use the frequency of the translator, look at the Ithaca, NY market with 98.7 The Vine and Hits 103.3 are both HD subchannels of WYXL 97.3

 

[Savage]

So, people like what they hear on an analog FM translator. And that's going to motivate them to buy an overpriced glitchy new receiver to hear the same programming....just because "it's digital?" And you expect "a lot more of this in the future?" Haw, haw, haw! That's a good one.

So, "will translators hurt HD Radio?" Hmmm....if they dug up Elvis and I hit him over the head with the shovel, would that make him deader?? ;D

 

[KB1OKL]

I thought the subject was a joke until I clicked on the thread.

 

[rbrucecarter5]

Not just translators, but stations wanting a second frequency. A good example happened in Houston, where KUHF bought KUHA so they could broadcast classical - which was previously on HD-2.

It just happened again. KSBJ just bought KNTE, and speculation is that they will put their popular HD-2 NGEN format on it, because they already have a station with similar coverage there.

I expect an acceleration of migration of popular HD-2 formats to second frequencies and translators, due to the complete failure of HD radio to penetrate the marketplace.

 

[iyiyi]

I believe virtually all HD2 and HD3 that show in ratings are paired with at least one translator. 2 in Atlanta, 2 in Detroit, 1 in Baltimore, 1 in Hartford is pulling a 1.6... Results are slowly starting to trickle in.

Please keep in mind the proper context here. It is a bitch trying to grab decent numbers with a class A FM. These guys are going for it with an HD 2 or 3 and a whopping 250 watts (max) translator or two.

Saw the same basic rolllout with FM. 1340's or daytimer 1110s with class B FMs getting all the ratings and paying all the bills. Wasn't til the mid 70's before FM started to become accepted by people who were not hippies, jazz or classical mavens, or dentists.

I'll hazard a guess that one year from now there will be numerous more HD/translator combos popping up in the ratings. Wouldn't be too surprised if a couple of HDs sans translators actually started showing in the ratings with their own merits by then.


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[Savage]

HD subs showing up in the ratings. On their own. In a YEAR.*

Oh, ABSOLUTELY. No question.... :

* (Or ever....)

 

[Tom Wells]

It's hard to think of any real-world influence, trend or situation that does NOT hurt HD radio.

This is the hallmark of kludgy engineering. It's not stable or robust in any way.

Perhaps what is hurting HD most is time itself. Waiting for buffering, waiting for the delay to be synced up again,
waiting for the signal to rebuffer over and over, waiting for the coverage to improve, waiting for
a way to overcome the interference to the host signal...waiting for converter boxes instead of requiring
consumers to buy new radios....etc.

 

[w9wi]

I would argue that translators will in fact help HD radio, in an indirect way. In that, they provide broadcasters an incentive to install & maintain a HD signal.

Further, since that HD signal must be maintained, when someone buys a HD radio by mistake, they find something to listen to... OK, the latter *might*, *maybe* lead to a literal handful of new HD buyers (nationwide) in a year, but that's still more help than hurt for HD supporters...

 

[MoldaMania182]

The HD/Translator thing is nothing more than shortcut way of trying to stick a LPFM in a market, nothing more nothing less.

 

[Savage]

Yeah - not only that, but an LPFM on which you can sell commercials. IOW, a full-fledged commercial radio station.

 

[nd2023]

I would argue that translators will in fact help HD radio, in an indirect way. In that, they provide broadcasters an incentive to install & maintain a HD signal.

Further, since that HD signal must be maintained, when someone buys a HD radio by mistake, they find something to listen to... OK, the latter *might*, *maybe* lead to a literal handful of new HD buyers (nationwide) in a year, but that's still more help than hurt for HD supporters...

Not all may even maintain the HD signal. I've heard an analog translator stay on the air even when the parent station's HD is off or when the HD2 is broadcasting dead air.

 

[w9wi]

Not all may even maintain the HD signal. I've heard an analog translator stay on the air even when the parent station's HD is off or when the HD2 is broadcasting dead air.

At least in theory, they're required to. Time will tell how thoroughly the FCC will hold stations to that.

I think brief outages of a day or two, where the primary station can show some kind of intent to bring the HD back up, (for example, parts have been ordered) probably won't be a big deal before the Commission.

FWIW, for translators relaying an AM station, the regulations specify that the AM station must have operated in the previous 24 hours. (I'm sure that provision is intended to allow for the translator of a daytime-only AM station to operate overnight when the AM transmitter is off) I would guess (and this is only a guess) the FCC would interpret things the same way for translators of HD subchannels -- that an outage of the HD for more than 24 hours would require shutdown of the translator. And again, I think they'd probably tolerate a longer outage if the station could show a reasonable effort to repair the HD.

But yes, I think we'll see someone test this sooner or later -- someone will leave the translator on while the AM or HD2 primary is off for an extended period of weeks or months. We'll see what the FCC does. I give them a 50/50 chance of doing nothing. At which point, indeed, translators will cease to provide an incentive to maintain HD.

 

[diymedia]

Yeah - not only that, but an LPFM on which you can sell commercials. IOW, a full-fledged commercial radio station.

It's even better than an LPFM - 2.5 times the allowable power plus no pesky third-adjacent channel protections.

Translator proliferation - especially since 2003 - simply boggles my mind.