WYDE-AM 1260 going all-digital?

[PTBoardOp94]

Are electric vehicle manufacturers removing AM digital from their cars? If so, why?

To my knowledge, the only top 10 manufacturer without AM radio is Tesla. They removed it several years ago because their customers don't use AM radio.

Ford announced they were dropping AM radio for model year 2025, and inadvertently poked a hornet's nest so they backed down.

 

[kevtronics]

To my knowledge, the only top 10 manufacturer without AM radio is Tesla. They removed it several years ago because their customers don't use AM radio.

Their customers don't use radio, period. You don't get FM or SiriusXM in a Tesla, either, unless you pay extra for the "radio upgrade package".

Infotainment Upgrade | Tesla Support

Upgrade your Infotainment system to access new features, and for a more advanced and smoother user experience.

www.tesla.com

 

[tomservo]

Must have been some kind of temporary test then. Can't believe I missed it. Everytime I've gotten it to lock it still had the KTSN call sign in the name. And they were still Sun Radio?

This was when it was still on 1490, so maybe? Unless I am just going crazy, which is a distinct possibility.

 

[passtheword]

WYDE-AM has evidently changed over to all digital today. My portable radio is displaying the red tuning light on AM 1260 as usual, indicating a broadcast. No audio but the hash, however..

This morning I've been listening to one of the live shows on WYDE (via the internet)
The hosts mentioned the calls have been more sparse today. I wonder why... 🙄

 

[Kent]

If the WYDE-AM license were eventually surrendered, is it possible Crawford could legally feed 95.3 FM with WDJC HD3 since their HD3 channel is supposedly already airing the WYDE-AM programming? I have heard that W237EK is one of those FM translators "married" to the AM (for a minimum of five years?).

Depends on which window the translator originated. If it was a move-in during one of the revitalization windows, the AM can be dismantled after the required time, and the translator can be fed by alternate means. The Ft. Myers market lost a couple of legacy AM's a year or two ago partially because they were no longer required to feed their translators. If it came in the final window when translators, if available, were given to an AM outright, the translator goes if the AM goes.

This morning I've been listening to one of the live shows on WYDE (via the internet)
The hosts mentioned the calls have been more sparse today. I wonder why... 🙄

If WYDE ditches the analog only to go back, it won't be the first. An AM in Indiana thought most of its audience was on its translator and tried to go all digital with the AM only to reverse course after a larger than expected number of listeners complained.

 

[HTX]

If WYDE ditches the analog only to go back, it won't be the first. An AM in Indiana thought most of its audience was on its translator and tried to go all digital with the AM only to reverse course after a larger than expected number of listeners complained.

I know WMGG in Florida was digital only and now they're analog only.

 

[ContinuousWave]

I've only experienced one all digital AM so far, and that is (was) KTSN "Sun Radio" in Austin. It's just 1 kW from a stick right in the middle of the city so reception outside the urban core was pretty spotty. The audio quality didn't really seem any better or more immune from dropouts than the hybrid digital mode from what I remember. It was especially difficult under highway overpasses.

At night, reliable HD decoding was limited to maybe two blocks around the tower. And I know, because I drove all around it looking for the cutoff point! Like WYDE, it's a graveyard frequency so I expect nighttime digital to be equally useless on 1260.

That said, 1260 is at least 5kW during the day so that might help. Crawford's 850 is probably the best sounded AM HD I've heard anymore so maybe they can work some magic on 1260.

I understand that KTSN has now moved to 1060 and 1490 in Austin is doing a Jack FM feeding a translator. Still in full digital, as far as I know.

??? KTSN was never all digital iirc...IBOC probably but not all digital..

 

[tomservo]

??? KTSN was never all digital iirc...IBOC probably but not all digital..

Yep, you're right. It looks like what happened was my car's radio was just going blank (no audio) instead of playing the analog audio when the station dropped out of digital, so I assumed it was all digital since I wasn't hearing anything. I experienced this again recently on another station, so it must be a bug in the radio. When I turned off the HD manually the analog audio came back.

Weird thing is it only has done it twice that I know of, and never on FM.

 

[tomservo]

So, do I get to be the first on the thread to hear WYDE 1260 in full digital? While scanning the dial early this morning with the SDR, I saw the telltale signs of 850's sidebands, then checked 1260 to see a pretty pronounced single narrow digital channel. Went out to the car and after a few minutes of static-muting-static-muting I got about 30 seconds of what sounded like a gospel tune being played live. The fidelity was actually much better than I was anticipating but still not great.

I never saw any program data pop up, not sure if that's them or my car's radio. It got a software update the other day and now all the FM and AM stations in the market have formats, logos and slogans plastered on the screen that can't be turned off. It overrides RDS but not HD PAD. When tuned to 1260 it was the logo for the talk station way out in Fort Walton Beach.

I also tried 850 but only got the HD light to flicker. Not surprising with a local on 840 pounding away. I'm about 220 miles south of the TX site.

 

[Charles1]

So, do I get to be the first on the thread to hear WYDE 1260 in full digital? While scanning the dial early this morning with the SDR, I saw the telltale signs of 850's sidebands, then checked 1260 to see a pretty pronounced single narrow digital channel. Went out to the car and after a few minutes of static-muting-static-muting I got about 30 seconds of what sounded like a gospel tune being played live. The fidelity was actually much better than I was anticipating but still not great.

I never saw any program data pop up, not sure if that's them or my car's radio. It got a software update the other day and now all the FM and AM stations in the market have formats, logos and slogans plastered on the screen that can't be turned off. It overrides RDS but not HD PAD. When tuned to 1260 it was the logo for the talk station way out in Fort Walton Beach.

I also tried 850 but only got the HD light to flicker. Not surprising with a local on 840 pounding away. I'm about 220 miles south of the TX site.

On the way to work, I listened to it for a few minutes last week out of curiosity. My route takes me from Shelby County, through Bessemer and then into Homewood. I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of the audio, but I was mordantly terrified by the quality of the programming, (OK, southern gospel music has never been my favorite...and southern gospel music that has influences of southern rock....sheesh!)

Is digital AM on par with with FM? Not by a long shot, but the audio quality on WYDE-AM is a zillion percent better than any other AM station in Birmingham.

 

[tvallred]

Perhaps WYDE AM has turned off HD?? Or reverted to hybrid? I was driving through Birmingham Monday night around 11 and heard southern gospel on 1260 on my analog truck radio. Tuned to 92.5 to verify programming and it definitely was WYDE.

 

[passtheword]

Perhaps WYDE AM has turned off HD?? Or reverted to hybrid? I was driving through Birmingham Monday night around 11 and heard southern gospel on 1260 on my analog truck radio. Tuned to 92.5 to verify programming and it definitely was WYDE.

I'm surprised you could hear WYDE at that time considering the mere 41 watts they broadcast with at night. 30+ years ago, I remember barely being able to hear the station in Homewood.

Listening to WYDE today at 9:45 am. No analog. Just the digital noise on 1260 as usual. I doubt WYDE had any sizable audience when it was still broadcasting in analog/hybrid. I imagine their listeners are miniscule now since they have gone entirely digital, given the vast majority of the population has no idea HD radio exists or owns an HD radio receiver.

 

[tvallred]

I'm surprised you could hear WYDE at that time considering the mere 41 watts they broadcast with at night. 30+ years ago, I remember barely being able to hear the station in Homewood.

I was on 65, Just north of Greensprings headed south. The audio seemed kinda low, but was there. Still makes no sense how I was able to hear it analog, though.

 

[tomservo]

Maybe they're only running the HD when on day power?