Wzlx

[HHH]

Webcastboy:

The MPEG surround system only uses 5 kp for steering info for surround, so this does not impact the capability of doing multicast. WZLX will be multicasting HD-2 AND doing surround on HD-1.

For the record: Telos has NO--repeat NO---financial interest in the MPEG system. It indirectly benefits the Axia studio gear because the Axia studio gear is surround-ready. STL additional is minimal. Receivers would need a couple of special components and a license from FhG (NOT Telos!) but this is no different than licenses from Dolby, etc.

Neural is the one with the direct profit connection.

Their private pitch (believe me on this) has been "yeah, its not as good as discrete, but so what. Its close enough and you don't need special receiver mods, etc. The public is not that discriminating".

OK, so here we go with another inferior American system (remember Quad??). The guys at Telos are ex-broadcasters. The company has always pushed innovation (the first with a practical Codec--The Zephyr. The first with a breakthrough phone system, etc).

The Neural surround scrambled the stereo and mono like crazy, and leaked all over the place in surround.

Foti challenged Neural to a shootout, playing the same pieces of music side by side. They did not take him up on the offer.

That says it all right there.

 

[Lucylu]

Wow. WZLX blew through their A to Z pretty quickly (and that's with stopping in the over-night. Maybe it was too confusing for Al Cole?) :

I'd have to say that the whole thing didn't reflect the station's 'massive library' very well. It should have taken a month!

 

[truthandjustice]

I agree for 'A Massive On-Air Library'. There were many songs missing during their A to Z.

 

[Neggy]

when XM does thier history of rock & roll, they play every song released in the decade, and it takes them around 3 months to go thru 50's to 70's

I did enjoy hearing Celluliod Heros on ZLX though... brought back lots of memories

 

[Eli Polonsky]

Wow. WZLX blew through their A to Z pretty quickly (and that's with stopping in the over-night. Maybe it was too confusing for Al Cole?) :

K&M didn't participate in the mornings either.

 

[Lucylu]

They probably wanted to wait until people were listening to the station to start back up for the day.

 

[Varulven]

Is it safe to say the morning team is not happening on this station?

 

[wkrpfm]

Wait--where will all their carts go?? or did Beau drag them to Denver with him???

 

[mgpt6]

Dear HHH, is ZLX only going to use only 48kbps for the 5.1 audio on HD-1, and still have an HD-2? I know that codec have improved with decent stereo at 48 kbps , but 5.1 that low a rate?
mgpt6

 

[HHH]

mgpt6:

Yes, the only way that MPEG 5.1 surround would be accepted in the USA by broadcasters would be to make it functional at lower bit rates so that multicasting could be possible. Also remember, as pointed out in the current Radio Ink surround article, a station can request 122 kp (instead of the typical 96) with notice to the FCC and Ibiquity permission (they have yet to deny), so headroom exists if needed.

MPEG looks like it will eventually be the standard: http://www.rwonline.com/pages/s.0100/t.1600.html

 

[Lucylu]

When did Professor Frink join the board? Glaaaaaaaavnin!

 

[mgpt6]

Hi HHH, did the ZLX staff ever consider buying a Dolby 2 Pro-Logic Encoder to do matrix 5 channel surround on the main FM analog ? Never have understood why FM has not done more matrix surround. NTSC analog TV has done matrix surround for over 15 years with no problems , and NTSC TV audio is "L+R" for mono and "L-R" for stereo difference signal like FM stereo.

 

[HHH]

mgpt6:

If you talk to the TV guys at the standards committee they have never been all that thrilled with any matrix setup for broadcast transmission, but went ahead because it was the only way possible at the time. The MPEG system is a relatively new development and a major breakthrough, which takes a completely different approach with a very high level of channel isolation and control. The standards committee is extremely interested and is currently reviewing the system for television application.

As far as FM stearing clear of any matrix system, it has to do with the competative nature of commercial FM in the USA. Any matrix system which attempts to get collapsed back to 2-channel and mono raises serious issues (especially when used in music-dominant programming) about competative processing and/or strange stereo/mono mixes resulting in the collapse. In other applications, a stereo or mono collapse does not happen at all (a theatre) or is not that critical (dialog in a TV show or film).

MPEG, as mentioned, is an 8-channel system, with 5.1 surround totally isolated from the standard stereo mix (channels seven and eight). They are never mixed. And in the surround mode--unlike any matrixed system--it is completely air-tight between the channels.

Again, the demonstrations at the NAB by Telos and FhG of Germany where they A-B'd both systems was pretty dramatic. It is amusing to see the FUD from the matrix boys who flatly REFUSE to participate in a side-by-side shootout, even when offered (by FhG) that they supply all source material, since one of the Neural matrix FUD counters is that the MPEG source material was corrupted on purpose to make the matrix system look bad! What complete nonsense. What are they afraid of?

 

[mgpt6]

Hi HHH, I might use tha analogy of last weeks Grammy Awards. Those who heard the broad cast on WBZ-DT heard discrete Dolby 5.1 Those who heard and watched on WBZ-TV4 heard matrix surround, which , of course , is not as good for 5.1 TV becuase of HDTV/ATSC is much further along than FM HYbrid IBOC for surround on radio. Radio is in 2007 where TV was in 1998. However, many people have 5.1 receivers with Dolby 2 Pro-Logic decoding , but will not have IBOC/MPEG capablity at home for sometime.

 

[Eli Polonsky]

I agree for 'A Massive On-Air Library'. There were many songs missing during their A to Z.

I finally splurged and bought an HD digital tuner. $200 for the Sangean HDT-1 at "You-Do-It" in Needham, and a "President's Day" only 20% off coupon brought it down to $160.

The mix on WZLX's HD-2 "Lost Classics and Deep Tracks" channel sounds kind of like AOR radio from 20 to 30 years ago. I'm enjoying it, for the most part. There's some stuff that didn't make their "A to Z" on the regular station. There's also a fair amount of blues and blues-rock in the mix, Carter must've programmed it. (And, no K&M!)

 

[TravisWMLN]

I agree for 'A Massive On-Air Library'. There were many songs missing during their A to Z.

I finally splurged and bought an HD digital tuner. $200 for the Sangean HDT-1 at "You-Do-It" in Needham, and a "President's Day" only 20% off coupon brought it down to $160.

The mix on WZLX's HD-2 "Lost Classics and Deep Tracks" channel sounds kind of like AOR radio from 20 to 30 years ago. I'm enjoying it, for the most part. There's some stuff that didn't make their "A to Z" on the regular station. There's also a fair amount of blues and blues-rock in the mix, Carter must've programmed it. (And, no K&M!)

do any of the HD stations have live jocks or is it all pre-programmed?

 

[JustinT]

do any of the HD stations have live jocks or is it all pre-programmed?

In Boston, every station is automated. You'll often hear the main station's personalities doing IDs and such; you hear Dan Justin all the time doing liners on 106.7's smooth jazz HD2.

I believe WHTZ 100.3 in New York has voicetracked content on its HD2, and Greater Media's WRIF 101.1 HD-2 in Detroit has personalities in some form. Those are the only two in the country that I know of, there's probably a few more.

 

[Eli Polonsky]

I believe WHTZ 100.3 in New York has voicetracked content on its HD2, and Greater Media's WRIF 101.1 HD-2 in Detroit has personalities in some form. Those are the only two in the country that I know of, there's probably a few more.

I think that the CBS-owned Jack station in Chicago had jocks from their previous incarnation as an oldies station continuing the oldies format on their HD-2, or at least it did for a while after the main station flipped. I don't know if that's still happening.

I had read that Paul Perry (now back in Boston on WROR afternoons), who CBS had shipped out to their Chicago oldies station when WODS replaced him with Dale Dorman a few years ago, was doing oldies on their HD-2 out there after they flipped their main station to a jockless Jack format.

None of the HD-2's here have live jocks. It doesn't make much sense for stations to pay jocks for a service which still can't make any money yet at this point.

 

[JustinT]

I think that the CBS-owned Jack station in Chicago had jocks from their previous incarnation as an oldies station continuing the oldies format on their HD-2, or at least it did for a while after the main station flipped. I don't know if that's still happening.

I had read that Paul Perry (now back in Boston on WROR afternoons), who CBS had shipped out to their Chicago oldies station when WODS replaced him with Dale Dorman a few years ago, was doing oldies on their HD-2 out there after they flipped their main station to a jockless Jack format.

Yes, that's true. When 104.3 WJMK dropped oldies for Jack in 2005 (same day as WCBS-FM), the oldies format, in addition to the entire WJMK airstaff, began streaming online and extended to WJMK's HD-2 in August of that year.

Perry only stayed on with the 'new' WJMK for a few months in mornings, though, and following budget cuts at CBS Chicago last summer, WJMK's HD-2's entire airstaff was axed on July 12, though automated oldies remain to this day. The station's evening personality, Dick Biondi, has ended up at ABC's crosstown "True Oldies" 94.7, where former afternoon host Fred Winston has done some fill-in work, Perry of course is at WROR; not sure what happened to their midday personality.

 

[scooty430]

Wow. WZLX blew through their A to Z pretty quickly (and that's with stopping in the over-night. Maybe it was too confusing for Al Cole?) :

I'd have to say that the whole thing didn't reflect the station's 'massive library' very well. It should have taken a month!

One of the worst A to Z things I've ever heard, though admittedly I only listened to an hour or two of the Ms online.

ZLX is one of the more boring stations in one of the more boring formats, classic rock. I grew up in Boston, and every time I visit my hometown, I am amazed not only that ZLX is still there, but how dull it is.

Remember how fresh the classic rock thing seemed when it started in 1985 or 1986? ZLX was one of the first in the nation - actually beginning as "The Kat."

If you work at ZLX, have your boss give KLOS Los Angeles a call. While they ain't XM, they play a really fun A to Z every year or two that is full of great surprises. Maybe they can give you a tip on how not to be WZZZZZZLX.