WNYC-FM now in stereo full-time

[satech]

For the past few days I've noticed that 93.9 has been transmitting in stereo full-time, even during talk programs. It's nice to hear the bumper music and sponsorship promos in stereo, but there is a noticeable increase in hiss and multipath in fringe areas on receivers which don't have overly aggressive stereo blend (like my car radio, which requires you to practically be parked right under the station's tower in order to hear any stereo!).

 

[BiggieFats]

For a second there, I thought this was a thread resurrected from 30 years ago.

 

[pqgeorge]

It's about time! There's really no reason not to be operating in Stereo these days. IMHO, I find mono FM to be kind of dull and lifeless in sound. The bumper music in Stereo adds a nice dimension to that sound. Here in Boston, we've got the 100,000 watt WGBH who is talk by day, Jazz at night. In comes the Stereo generator at 8:00 PM. During their news and info block, they switch to mono. None of the bumper music is broadcast in Stereo (which off the bird IS in Stereo). The other station in town (WBUR) only puts their Stereo generator during "Con Salsa" (late Saturday nights) and during selected programs such as "Marsh Chapel" and some NPR music based programming on Sundays.

I always thought WNYC-FM/93.9 was one of the earlier converts to Stereo back in the 70's. Oh, well. Most FM receivers have that God forsaken "Stereo Blend" circuit that only allows you full Stereo separation within the 60 dBu contour (City Grade). Most FM station have a usable coverage area well beyond 60 dBu. Before the days of the blend circuit, I was able to get a totally usable Stereo signal out to the outer fringes of the coverage area. In my neck of the woods, most Boston FM's can reach about 80 miles, almost to Palmer (about 20 miles east of Springfield). Once you get toward the higher elevations on the east side of the Berkshires, the Boston FM's come back in their full Stereo glory for about another 10 miles or so (almost 120 miles away from the transmitter sites).

 

[RadioFixerCLE]

WNYE was the last NYC station to convert to stereo. I believe they did it back in 1999 or so. ???

Didn't take that long for them to hop onto the HD bandwagon, though. :

 

[pqgeorge]

WNYE was the last NYC station to convert to stereo. I believe they did it back in 1999 or so. ???

Didn't take that long for them to hop onto the HD bandwagon, though. :

WNYE-FM switched to Stereo back in the mid 90's. Before the City started to operate WNYE-FM directly, it was the station of the Board of Education for the City of New York, with their transmitter in Brooklyn. It is one of the oldest FM stations in the country. Up until the early 90's, WNYE-FM would only operate until 10:00 PM every night. Up until the late 80's, after 10:00 PM, the pirates would roost on 91.5 FM quite often. Of course now, WNYE-FM is 24/7. Today, WNYE-FM is part of a media umbrella operated by the City of New York including WNYE-TV and several lesser known cable channels. Once the City sold the WNYC stations, I'm sure much of the proceeds of the sale allowed the City to upgrade the WNYE stations. They've come a long way ever since!

 

[Laurence Glavin]

I believe that WBUR-FM in Boston turns on the stereo exciter for the 7:00 am airing of "It's Only A Game"; I don't know if they do so for the 7:00 pm repeat. I wonder if they mean to say that the rest of the NPR/American Public Media shows they run (whether WBUR-produced or not) merit such treatment, but it appears that way.

 

[DToTheJ]

For a second there, I thought this was a thread resurrected from 30 years ago.

You mean, some twenty years before Al Gore invented the Internet? ;D

 

[Ai4i]

Are WNYC and WGBH doing HD without analog stereo?
I believe that since the acquisitions of WQXR and WCRB, the afore mentioned stations are simulcasting the later mentioned stations on their HD-2's.