• Get involved.
    We want your input!
    Apply for Membership and join the conversations about everything related to broadcasting.

    After we receive your registration, a moderator will review it. After your registration is approved, you will be permitted to post.
    If you use a disposable or false email address, your registration will be rejected.

    After your membership is approved, please take a minute to tell us a little bit about yourself.
    https://www.radiodiscussions.com/forums/introduce-yourself.1088/

    Thanks in advance and have fun!
    RadioDiscussions Administrators

WZLX to Go 5.1 Surround

T

tjm_pro

From Radio World Magazine:http://www.rwonline.com/dailynews/issue.php?w=2006-04-24WZLX to Go 5.1 SurroundWZLX(FM), Boston plans to try out the MPEG 5.1 Surround system.Telos/Omnia said it would become the first station to go 24/7 surround using the MPEG Surround technology.The change is expected to occur within the next 90 to 120 days.The companies hope the move will attract the attention of Boston-based receiver makers such as Boston Acoustics and Bose, as well as other stations, to get them excited about MPEG Surround sound capability, said Steve Church, chief executive officer of Telos Systems and Frank Foti, president of Omnia.“This is going to create a significant boost to radio’s aural impact and will be an important motivation for consumers to buy HD Radios,” said Church.At the Telos/Omnia booth here at NAB, attendees can hear a preview of what WZLX will sound like in a car and home theater setting. Fraunhofer Coding Technologies, Philips and Agere Systems cooperated on the development of MPEG Surround technology.
 
I dont know how much sense that makes considering that much of the music ("classic rock" was recorded in analog so the average listener probably wont be able to tell the difference BUT it'll sound good in their imaging!.
 
Time Traveler said:
I can remember back in the early '70s, when some Rock stations, including WAAF, were broadcasting in "Quad". (Quadraphonic)
Click to expand...
Yes, WBCN did that for a little while too. Still, even at the height of the fad, not many records were recorded in actual quadraphonic, so it was kind of a "fake" synthetic quadrophonic using phase differences to send certain frequencies to the rear speakers. It sounded a little weird in regular stereo, and it didn't sound very good on a mono radio due to phase cancellation.
 
"QUAD".LMAO that is hysterical, i remember going into Strawberries when i was a kid and seeing the Quadrophonic LP section, it was like one row deep and unless you had a quad reciever (which was a complete scam) the records wouldn't be heard in "Quad" I remember having the police "Zenyata Mondata" in my hand, the regular LP was like 7.99 and the "QUADROPHONIC" version was like 24.99!..................HUGE. HUGE scam, you took it home and it just sounded slightly out of phase!LOL
 
YOu are too funny, you need to do a morning shwo someplace,.if youre not already!LOl ::)
 
Wait, you said I was funny, what would a morning show in Boston want me for? I suppose I could write knock knock jokes for Lauren and Wally (moderator edit) ;D
 
Every time I see a posting about how technology is attempting to "better" the sound of AM/FM radio I have to laugh. Yes, HD and in this case Surround have their benefits. However, If a station is trying to better their sound quality maybe they should start by taking a look at the source of the problem? MPEG files. At the station I work for they do EVERYTHING in mp3. Commercials, the image voice is sent via mp3, production sessions are saved as mp3's. It drives me nuts!!! Thank god the music is not MPEG because that would push me over the edge. I am not in a position to fix it so I have to accept it. If were going to go higher resolution and offer digital services then let's concentrate on our source material first. Thanks for letting me rant.
 
The first step in this process is to get the record labels to understand that these overly clipped and processed CD's that are being produced these days sound like garbage on the air. When you take a highly clipped CD convert it to MPEG and then send it through the air chain it truely sounds horrible.
 
One exception, the new Nickelback Album! That is (sonically) one of the best albums I have heard in a long time. God bless Pro Tools!
 
This is actually a very good system, fully discrete and not at all like the fake phase trickery of the 1970s.The Classic Rock format makes sense because a great deal of the source material released in 5.1 surround are classic rock standards like Pink Floyd's "Dark Side Of The Moon", and stuff from The Eagles, Steely Dan, Moody Blues, Queen, Springsteen, Fleetwood Mac, Doobie Brothers, Santana, The Who, and a host of others. These commercial releases were taken from the original 16 or 24 track masters and remixed for completely discrete surround. Donald Fagan's new "Morph The Cat" was released in a simultanious surround version, and the entire Talking Heads catalog is due in surround shortly. From what I understand, WZLX will be the "test station" to help determine a standard for surround broadcasting over HD.
 
They can't give away HD radios as it is, and now they need to push 5.1 radios to receive and decode the broadcast.

I know some of you have them, but I ,who has nooo trouble spending my wifes money on useless things such as Harley Davidson motorcycles and flight time can't bring myself to drop the money on one. I have 4 XM radios, and I don't have a problem with that expense, but HD, I'm not buying it yet.

The HD Alliance sux IMHO.

Until the radios are standard equipment in cars, they are not going to catch on. XM and Sirius are the perfect example of if it isn't free or close to free, Joe SixPack isn't going to embrace it.

And as long as the technology is not public domain, and Ibiquity gets money from all parties involved, the radios will not be standard equip. in cars, unless the Feds mandate it.
 
ZRXOA 5248 said:
Until the radios are standard equipment in cars, they are not going to catch on. XM and Sirius are the perfect example of if it isn't free or close to free, Joe SixPack isn't going to embrace it.
Click to expand...

They are being introduced in a few models (most notably Ford, which is making them a factory-installed option beginning with the 2009 models), but until they decide that they must do what satellite radio did (make the car manufacturers "partners" and spiff them), they will be playing catch-up.

ZRXOA 5248 said:
And as long as the technology is not public domain, and Ibiquity gets money from all parties involved, the radios will not be standard equip. in cars, unless the Feds mandate it.
Click to expand...

See above.
 
Vistrion, (spelling?) Fords electronics supplier ( the old Philco Ford?) is making the radios for factory install of 5.1

There is a dealer installed kit, very similar to the AudioVox XM kits that use the factory radio controls, that became available last fall for HD radio in newer ford vehicles with auxiliary inputs on the back of the radio. Uses the same ports as the dealer installed Sirius kits.

The non 5.1 dealer HD add on kit with IPOD connectivity is about 300 list. Pretty cool you can run the IPOD off the radio head unit and steering wheel controls.
No IPOD cable lowers the price 40 bucks IIRC

But the Ford factory radio is still going to be an option, probably on a higher end system, and they still have to get people to part with the bucks for it.
 
Status
This thread has been closed due to inactivity. You can create a new thread to discuss this topic.


Back
Top Bottom