Industry News

In a series of articles, we’ve been exploring the question: ‘What should radio console buyers know about developments in this product class?”

Henry Goodman is director of product development at Calrec. An earlier version of this interview appeared in the RW ebook “Trends in Consoles.”

Radio World: What’s the most notable trend in console design, as seen in recent models or those coming soon?

Henry Goodman: The radio industry is a fast-paced dynamic environment, where stations need to be flexible enough to continually change and develop the programming they deliver. The ability to reconfigure and reshape the operator interface to meet the needs and styles of different program workflows and operator preferences is seen as key to success. Being able to present differing control interfaces to meet the needs of a simple self-operator set up one day, and a more complex multi-guest environment the next, without having to change your hardware, has clear advantages.

Creating very modular hardware with soft user-definable elements opens up the opportunity not only to change the console interface depending on the type of show being produced but also to tailor the interface to the needs and desires of individual operators.

It is clear that IP and touch technologies will enable the flexibility for consoles to customize complex workflows yet present them in a simple and efficient interface.

The widespread acceptance of open IP standards has also provided the opportunity for manufacturers to create a very stable and flexible backbone that can be used across multiple radio operations.

As a console designer and manufacturer, Calrec’s challenge is to create a product that exploits this opportunity to create products that work for multiple workflows, from small simple solutions to large complex networks. Manufacturers are looking to design things that can integrate into many environments yet be simple and easy to use.

RW: As a manufacturer, what demands do you hear from buyers today that are different from years past?

Goodman: Today there is a much greater expectation of what an audio console does. It is no longer just about the number of input and output channels but much more about how it works within the station environment. This covers many aspects, from how easy the installation is to how well the console interacts with the other equipment and software. Integration in the widest sense.

Centralization of operator controls and condensing multiple systems into a united workspace to simplify operation allows talent to focus on content rather than creation. This demands an open approach to how consoles work with other systems so that tighter integration can be achieved.

IP is an enabler for many modern console innovations. Tighter integration with third-party systems such as playout and phone systems are essential in any new installation — in fact, as manufacturers we are a far more closely-knit community than we were 10 or 15 years ago!

Being able to communicate with third-party equipment simplifies workflows, and customers are looking for centralized control over these systems on the console surface UI. Initiatives like user-definable soft panels are forward-thinking features that can place as much control as possible in one place.

RW: What will the console of the future look like, if we use one at all? 

Goodman: Consoles are so much more than audio controllers, and as we hurtle towards interoperability, the traditional idea of what an audio console is will be less and less relevant!

In the future there is likely to be more of a shift to decentralization of facilities and operator environments. As is so often the case, IP is a facilitator; it enables initiatives like the BBC’s VLOR project to experiment with how they control information and how they prepare for broadcast. It gives customers the ability to be more geographically diverse, with a core in one state and a mixer in another state or country — it breaks down physical boundaries and barriers.

Consoles will have to be flexible to provide a way of interacting with all this information from wherever it is — it may be from a more traditional studio environment with a physical surface, or it could be a web-based GUI that is accessed from anywhere. Operators may need a very simple user interface, or all the controls needed for a full production console. Consoles will have to mold to what is needed, and as a station’s requirements evolve, the console will need to evolve with it to provide customization across networks and changing control protocols, as well as surface personalization. Calrec’s Type R guarantees stations are not only able to keep pace with changing demands but provides the opportunity to ignite their audiences with new and innovative programming.

RW: What does the next generation of user interface look like? 

Goodman: We use a lot of the same words to describe how customers interact with technology: flexible, adaptable, virtual. Traditional user interfaces for consoles are already limiting how customers can adapt to new opportunities that rapidly changing technology is providing.

For example, this year the effects of Covid-19 have accelerated and amplified a need for more virtualized control surfaces, and we have been working with customers all over the globe to help virtualize their productions. This give people the opportunity to work from home or from other safe locations and access the same broadcast-specific features they need to mix program.

This is how it should be — user interfaces should be able to provide whatever the customer needs. On a basic level, this might be just limiting access to features that an operator doesn’t need, such as loading different setups between shows so everyone can feel comfortable operating it. Calrec already does this using soft panels that can be laid out to present just what the operator wants to see down to the individual control level.

On a larger scale, we’ll see the same core hardware with multiple elements, which can be flexed to be anything the customer needs. This might be more or fewer physical fader panels, or the opportunity to use an entirely browser-based UI. Panels with user-defined access to features depending on who is using the studio, what the program is, or what the operator needs to achieve. More faders which can be added for a live band mix, or no faders for a fully automated setup.

The user case for the next generation of user interface will be defined by the application, not limited by the hardware.

The post Consoles Will Have to Mold to What Is Needed appeared first on Radio World.

Radio World has sought to broaden our contributor family during my tenure as editor. We have not always been successful at it, but it has been my goal.

It’s my belief that we owe it to readers and advertisers to always be seeking new and diverse industry views and voices to present. I feel we do a good job of this in our opinion pages and choice of topics to cover, but that we need to do better in our writer pool.

Never has it seemed more important than in this year of fresh and urgent discussion about the issues of race and opportunity in our society, including but not limited to the Black Lives Matter movement.

So I want to make you aware, first, that I welcome outreach from all prospective writers who have technical radio interests. And second, that Radio World and our parent company Future plc are deeply committed to fostering a transparent, diverse and inclusive workplace and freelance environment, and that people of color and other minorities are strongly encouraged to apply for such writing opportunities.

If you have an interest in writing about radio engineering, technology and products, write to me at radioworld@futurenet.com.

You should also know what our parent company has committed to.

Future issued a statement on Twitter in June: “To stay silent is to be complicit. We believe that #BlackLivesMatter. We stand with communities across the U.S. who are angry and in pain. We’re going to play our part as a plc and do better.”

The company, under its dynamic leader Zillah Byng-Thorne, committed to diverse representation in our original and stock photography. It issued diversity targets for contributor spending, ensuring that writers and creatives of color have a voice across its portfolio. It committed to further investment in training about inclusiveness and diversity, from the way it recruits to how our team members interact with one another.

It also is supporting the latest PSA from Love Has No Labels with donated media, digital and social support. And it gave $1 million of advertising space across its brands to organizations supporting Black Lives Matter.

We want the Radio World community to be as vibrant and inclusive as possible. Thanks for being part of it.

The post Wanted: Many Voices, Many Views appeared first on Radio World.

Voting begins Monday for a new class of the Radio Hall of Fame. The organization just announced 24 nominees; winners will be announced next month.

This year’s induction ceremony will be done as a live radio broadcast from several locations instead of a physical event; details of that aren’t out yet. The lists are below:

NOMINEES TO BE VOTED ON BY VOTING PARTICIPANT PANEL:

Longstanding Local/Regional (20 years or more)

Mark & Brian-KLOS-FM

Bobby Rich-KFMB-FM San Diego & KMXZ-FM Tucson

Bob Rivers-KJR-FM Seattle

Donnie Simpson-WMMJ-FM Washington D.C.

Active Local/Regional (10 years or more)

Angie Martinez-WWPR-FM New York City

Matt Siegel-WXKS-FM Boston

Elliot Segal-WWDC-FM Washington D.C.

Bob Stroud-WDRV-FM Chicago

Longstanding Network/Syndication (20 years or more)

Sid Mark-Host, Sounds of Sinatra

Joey Reynolds-Host, WOR Radio Network

Cokie Roberts-Political Reporter, NPR

Suzyn Waldman-New York Yankees Radio Network

Active Network/Syndication (10 years or more)

The Breakfast Club-Charlamagne Tha God, Angela Yee, DJ Envy, Premiere Networks

Larry Elder-Salem Radio Network

Jaime Jarrin-Los Angeles Dodgers Network

Kim Komando-Host, Kim Komando Show, Westar Radio Network

NOMINEES TO BE VOTED ON BY LISTENERS/RADIO HALL OF FAME NOMINATING COMMITTEE:

Music Format On-Air Personality

Whitney Allen-The Big Time with Whitney Allen, Westwood One

Bob & Sheri-The Bob and Sheri Show, Westwood One

Sway Calloway-Sirius XM Shade 45 Channel

John Boy & Billy-The John Boy & Billy Show, Premiere Networks

Spoken Word On-Air Personality

Glenn Beck-The Glenn Beck Show, Premiere Networks

John & Ken-The John & Ken Show, KFI-AM Los Angeles

Stephanie Miller-The Stephanie Miller Show, WYD Media

Wait Wait…Don’t Tell Me-NPR

(end of list)

Craig Kitchin is chair of the Radio Hall of Fame and Dennis Green heads the Nominating Committee.

Nominees in four industry-voted categories are voted on by a participant panel of 600 industry people. Winners in two listener-voted categories are determined by the public nominating committee. The outcome of the listener vote will count as one vote among the committee votes.

The post Who’s Next Into the Radio Hall of Fame? appeared first on Radio World.

From Radio World’s “Application Notes” page:

StreamGuys said it helped New Orleans public station WWOZ(FM) meet a “massive” live streaming demand for its program “Jazz Festing in Place.”

Pandemic restrictions cancelled the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, so WWOZ aired and streamed an “in place” version using StreamGuys’ content delivery service.

[More Application Notes: “Arkansas Broadcaster Puts WebDAD to Use”]

“Over the years, WWOZ — and its parent organization, the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Foundation, which sponsors the annual festival — had amassed a huge media archive of live Jazz Fest appearances by such jazz greats as Ella Fitzgerald, Fats Domino, Allen Toussaint, Professor Longhair, Dr. John and Irma Thomas,” StreamGuys said in a press release.

The station showcased the performances during the dates and times that Jazz Fest would have taken place. “In addition to the live broadcast on WWOZ(FM), which blankets the New Orleans metro, the station streamed the event live over StreamGuys’ global content delivery network to reach jazz aficionados worldwide.”

It said the streamed version drew a listenership more than 20 times the station’s typical daily audience size. StreamGuys quoted WWOZ New Media Director David Stafford saying the supplier increased its capacity 10-fold, “enough to handle 50,000 concurrent streams.”

The post WWOZ Used StreamGuys CDN for “Jazz Festing in Place” appeared first on Radio World.

This is part of Radio World’s series exploring trends in radio broadcast consoles.

Ben Palmer is sales manager and engineer for Arrakis Systems. An earlier version of this article appeared in the RW ebook “Trends in Consoles.”

Radio World: What’s the top trend in consoles for radio studios?

Ben Palmer: The broadcast radio market is becoming more and more competitive every day. As such, stations are needing equipment that is more innovative, flexible and cost effective. The tools need to make the staff’s life easier but more dynamic. All the while, the installation needs to be user- and engineer-friendly.

Our ARC series analog boards broke the price barrier years ago. And adding features like USB, Bluetooth, Cat-5 wiring … it has continued to meet most studios’ needs. The ARC series has continued to be feature-rich, and helped keep new installation costs down.

AoIP has been a great step forward in our industry. It has simplified wiring, and has amplified flexibility. Our personal focus has been to make AoIP more affordable, and available to all. We introduced Simple IP over 4 years ago, and now pair it with our DARC Virtual Software Console & DARC Surface line. These are extremely cost-competitive for the AoIP market and, with Dante and AES67 protocols, will work with any system.

The DARC Virtual is a software-based board, and it is becoming more and more common for studios to use touchscreens. Yet we are finding that an equal portion are wanting a physical surface, which is why the DARC Surface does so well.

We feel like software consoles will become more and more affordable, and will add to the flexibility of the modern radio studio. The hardware interfaces will become more and more affordable, as we continue to innovate the manufacturing process and development. It is an exciting time in radio.

RW: What demands do you hear from potential buyers?

Palmer: Connectivity. People want to connect themselves, and their devices easily, while being inside and outside the studio. When we introduced Bluetooth to our boards, we found that the majority of our users want the ability to wirelessly connect their devices. It made it so simple to pair a phone, a tablet or a recording device. It was much the same with the USB channel on our ARC boards. Connect your Windows or Mac PC, and play anything you want. No need to mess with complex wiring or switches.

Owners, along with their talent, are also wanting to be able to reach their studio from anywhere. We are seeing this with the software consoles, such as the DARC Virtual. With it, you can sit at home and manage your studio’s board remotely. People want their devices to easily connect, but also want to control their board from anywhere.

RW: What role does the console play today when planning a broadcast studio?

Palmer: The radio console is the main hub and foundation for your studio. It is where any engineer should start for their design, and should meet the current and future needs of your buildout. Considerations should be made for what a studio will need 5 to 10 years down the road. But don’t stress about this. Realize that you can start with what is needed today, knowing that expandability is very feasible while utilizing AoIP.

RW: How vibrant is the marketplace for analog consoles? How long will manufacturers of analog consoles support them?

Palmer: Analog consoles and equipment will be around for a long time. The beauty of AoIP is that you can connect any analog equipment to your network using nodes, such as Simple IP. So if you buy an analog board today, and expand your studios tomorrow, you can easily utilize AoIP with any existing analog studio. As it stands, you’ll need analog interfaces for your mics, headphones, etc. And even though touchscreens have helped foster the use of software consoles, there are still many who prefer the feel of a physical interface.

I believe that we will see analog boards for a long time, but we’ll continue to see a growing cohesion between digital and analog, such as with Bluetooth, USB, AoIP, etc.

RW: Any other thoughts for someone who is setting out to make a console system buying decision?

Palmer: Don’t put off replacing your old board, or buying that new studio. We often hear of stations nursing 30-year-old boards, or getting used boards off Ebay. The cost of your time, stress and energy maintaining old equipment adds up fast. Whereas, high-quality brand-new boards are extremely affordable today.

The best part is, new boards are now future-proof. You can easily start off with a smaller system, but then expand using AoIP. For example, you purchase an ARC-10 console today. A couple years down the road you add a couple new studios and want the DARC Virtual console while utilizing AoIP. Just add a Simple IP (or Dante AVIO) node which connects your ARC-10 sources to the Dante network. With a simple ethernet network, you just connected multiple studios and your audio is accessible anywhere.

With the affordability of new equipment, and it being future-proof, there is no reason to wait. Don’t be intimidated, and make the move.

The post With Consoles, It’s All About Connectivity appeared first on Radio World.

There’s a plan in the works to build a new international shortwave radio station in Illinois, one that would use the Digital Radio Mondiale modulation system. But now several prominent members of the U.S. shortwave community are asking the Federal Communications Commission to take a closer look first.

Parable Broadcasting Co. in April asked the FCC to allow it to build the station in Batavia, Ill., west of Chicago, using the call sign WPBC. It wants to offer “broadcasting and data services.”

Specifically, Parable wrote that the station would “serve the areas of Europe that may be authorized by the commission. The planned broadcast content includes religious and educational programming, as well as data content provided by third parties.” It added that it wants to “take advantage of the recent push by the National Association of Shortwave Broadcasters to develop and provide content for the growing DRM market.”

Now three individuals, collectively called the High-Frequency Parties, filed an informal objection. It’s that wording about data content that concerns them.

Bennett Z. Kobb, Kim Andrew Elliott and Christopher D. Rumbaugh said international broadcast stations in the U.S. are intended “to be received directly by the general public in foreign countries.”

Now they told the FCC that it is impossible to tell from the Parable application whether all of the data services and data provided by third parties will qualify.

Elliott is a former VOA employee who produces the program “Shortwave Radiogram” and is active on Twitter. Rumbaugh publishes the DRMNA.info website. Kobb has held various roles in radio and telecommunications including launching a telecom newsletter and writing books about spectrum allocations. He currently is a government contractor. The three have filed joint comments to the FCC before.

They wrote to the commission: “Various elements of the application and its geographical location suggest that the station will be engaged in the provision of point-to-point data services for hire, a common carrier or private carrier of messages not ‘intended for direct reception by the general public’ and not ‘to be received directly by the general public in foreign countries.’”

Nothing in the rules allows non-broadcast service, including ancillary or auxiliary services, they continued. “The applicant proposes to use the Digital Radio Mondiale (DRM) standard. All data messages from this station must be in a form readily decoded by ordinary DRM receivers and rendered as publicly accessible content without encryption or obscuration of their purpose or meaning. While Section §73.758 authorizes ‘datacasting’ to stations using DRM, it does not allow any form of datacasting that is not also broadcasting.”

[Related: “U.S. Shortwave Broadcasters Eye Digital”]

They said they’re definitely not against international data broadcasts or to DRM. (“Our members pioneered such services at the Voice of America and have operated DRM promotional websites recognized by the DRM Consortium for more than a decade.”) But they said someone wishing to conduct commercial HF point-to-point messaging for third parties should do so in a service dedicated to that function; if none exists they should petition the FCC for one.

While the FCC has authorized international data stations experimentally, those were “never conceived to engage in revenue operations indefinitely as an alternative to regular spectrum allocations and transparent, public license assignment procedures.”

In a separate email to Radio World, Kobb noted recent news coverage of shortwave applications for private data communication services such as instant stock trading; examples are here and here. Kobb emphasized that the objectors have no reason to think Parable is associated with those particular projects.

But regardless of audio programs that Parable may transmit, the three told the FCC that licensing a point-to-point message facility this way would be “an impermissible excursion around formalizing an international private data service or updating existing rules to accommodate it.” So they say the commission FCC should require Parable to certify that “no nonpublic, non-broadcast, nondisclosed, encrypted, confidential or clandestine data messages shall be sent over the proposed station.”

They added that the FCC needs to update its “hoary Part 73F rules, some dating from the 1930s and now without any articulable public interest basis.” These include “excessive” minimum required power level and a prohibition on domestic service. “Rule changes might embrace data communications under an expanded scope of service.”

Radio World invited comment from Parable via its attorney, Donna Balaguer of Fish & Richardson P.C. She replied in an email: “We have just received the informal objection and require time to review it.  However, Parable Broadcasting Company proposes to provide valuable cultural and educational content overseas, as intended by the FCC for International Broadcast Stations. Parable’s application complies with FCC rules in all aspects.”

The application lists a Virginia address for the company and lists Stephen J. Bartlett as president. Its consulting engineer is Stephen Lockwood of Hatfield & Dawson Consulting Engineers, whose engineering work can be seen in the application. [Read the Parable application including technical filing.]

Parable’s facility would operate on the 5.9–15.8 MHz international shortwave bands with 15 kW power. Two 10 kW Amplifier Systems transmitters (main and standby) would feed 550 feet of 5-inch Comscope pressurized coax to a “super high gain” TCI log-periodic antenna system. The latter would consist of three towers, including two at 184 feet, with antenna power gain of 18.0 dBi, which the application notes is “a multiplier of 63.1.”

The post Proposed Shortwave Station in Illinois Prompts an Objection appeared first on Radio World.

For the first time in 64 years, the popular Broadcasters Clinic, held annually near Madison, Wis., won’t take place this fall thanks to the pandemic. But there will be a virtual version.

Until now, the organizers of the engineering-oriented event had been hoping that they could still conduct a physical conference in October.

“With the decisions the state made this past weekend, we just can’t move ahead with an in-person Clinic,” said Linda Baun, vice president of the Wisconsin Broadcasters Association, in an email.

“With its 60+ years of service to the engineers and industry, I personally am saddened by the turn of events. However, I will do everything within my power to see that the engineers are served to the best of my ability.”

The annual event nominally is a state and regional one but it has drawn attendees and vendors from around the United States and remains a popular local conference that has outlived many others sponsored in the past by other states’ associations.

Baun said the organizers are now turning their efforts “into planning a stellar virtual Clinic.” Details will be announced later.

The post Broadcasters Clinic in October Will Be Virtual Only appeared first on Radio World.

The author is with law firm Fletcher, Heald and Hildreth, on whose blog this article originally appeared.

The Federal Communications Commission has just released a Public Notice that impacts operators of C-Band (3.7-4.2 GHz) earth station dishes to receive or transmit programming or data. Previously, the FCC reallocated the lower portion of that band for auction, with incumbents earth stations entitled to reimbursement for their expenses to move their operations to the upper part of the band. In order to be eligible for reimbursement, a C-Band earth station must meet certain qualifications:

(1) The earth station must have been operational as of April 18, 2018, and remained operational; and registered (receive-only) or licensed (transmit/receive) in the 3700–4200 MHz band.

(2) If unregistered or unlicensed before April 18, 2018, registration or license applications must have been filed by Nov. 7, 2018.

(3) If registered or licensed before April 18, 2018, the registrant or licensee must have:

1. Certified the accuracy of the registration/license information in the International Bureau Filing System (IBFS) by May 28, 2019; OR
2. Filed a modification/update to the registration or license in IBFS during the April 19, 2018–Nov. 7, 2018 filing window; OR
3. Filed a timely renewal application for the existing registration or license by May 28, 2019.

[Read: C-Band Plan Aims to Limit Broadcast Disruption]

FCC staff has analyzed its database and produced a list of the incumbent earth stations in the continental U.S. (lower 48 states) entitled to reimbursement. The list includes name, call sign, technical data, etc. The FCC has asked C-Band dish operators to review the list, and by July 16, send in any corrections to the data on the list, as well as corrections regarding the omission of earth stations that should be but are not on the list.

If you have a C-Band dish that you believe is registered or licensed in the continental U.S., check the list. If your dish is not listed, or if the data listed contains errors, check with your attorney right away.

The post FCC Seeks Confirmation of C-Band Earth Stations Entitled to Reimbursement appeared first on Radio World.

What should buyers of radio broadcast consoles know about important trends?

Jason Ornellas, CBRE, is director of engineering for Bonneville International Corp. in Sacramento, and a member of the NAB Radio Tech Committee and SBE national board of directors. This is one in a series of interviews with industry console experts. An earlier version of this article appeared in the RW ebook “Trends in Consoles.”

Radio World: The topic at hand is consoles. What’s the most important design trend, in your view?

Jason Ornellas: I see consoles becoming more of a touchscreen with virtual layers and a smaller physical footprint. Thinking of the younger folks in the industry, and today’s kids only know touchscreens, so it would make sense if we saw studios have touchscreens only. As much of a pain it would be to support a fully touchscreen type studio, I’m sure they will be common within 10 years or less. Also, with software being the backbone of these consoles nowadays, I can see consoles becoming very small, the size of a laptop, think RODECaster Pro.

RW: How could equipment manufacturers make your life as a user and buyer of consoles easier?

Ornellas: I think the console manufactures do a great job with the layout, hardware selection and color selections of consoles already. They constantly make different flavors of the console with various size and price, so they unanimously know their audience and buyers.

I think, as an industry, it is configuring the equipment or console that gives us the biggest headache or is the most time-consuming. I would like to see more coders and programmers to work with the vendors to make the user interface as seamless as possible while navigating it and configuring your AoIP system.

RW: What role does the console play today when planning a radio studio? 

Ornellas: The console is still the heartbeat of the studio, but so many other factors play bigger roles within the design and planning of a new broadcast studio. I believe they will become more automated and smaller in size as things move virtually within the studio. The days of having big consoles, fully loaded with faders are not the future of studio design, especially for music format stations. I can see how a news talk format may still want a more traditional style console, but with AoIP making switching sources I believe time will change that mindset as well as part of the design.

RW: What will the next generation of user interface look like? 

Ornellas: I think the next generation of a user interface will be very animated and powerful. I think we have already embraced in some instances that we will not be using a physical console for some studios and take everything virtual. Think out of the box. And could facial recognition be a way for a user interface to log in and interact or control the layout of the GUI? All of this is a true possibility with enhancement of technology and where we are going as humans, with everything being virtual and dependent on AI.

[Related: Watch our interview with Jason Ornellas as part of the Radio World webcast series “Broadcasting From Home.”]

The post Ornellas: Today’s Console Is Tomorrow’s Touchscreen appeared first on Radio World.

What should console buyers know before shopping these days?

Eric Hoppe is owner of Progressive Concepts and head of sales and marketing for master distribution of D&R products in the United States. This is one in a series of interviews with industry console experts. An earlier version of this article appeared in the RW ebook “Trends in Consoles.”

Radio World: What is the biggest trend in console design?

Eric Hoppe: Today’s consoles have most of the features customers are looking for. The only trend I could possibly see is the need for more network sharing in larger studios. The D&R consoles we handle are for small to mid-size studios that mostly use stand-alone broadcast mixers. For this reason D&R mixers include integration with music playout software very elegantly.

RW: What demands do you hear from potential buyers?

Hoppe: These days, most music content comes from playout software rather than tapes, vinyl or CDs (though there are still a good number of studios using these other mediums). For that reason, D&R has implemented a USB interface for audio communication in all of their mixers while maintaining both analog and digital ports for interfacing with legacy types of equipment.

[Related: “Progressive Concepts Takes on RVR”]

RW: What role does the console play now when someone is planning a new studio?

Hoppe: Today, the mixing console is still the centerpiece of the studio’s operation and thus needs to be very easy to understand and use, because not all studios today employ professional DJs.

RW: What functions and features are being offered on new models that engineers who haven’t bought a console in a while should know about?

Hoppe: They should ask themselves, “What do I really need to make my radio program work?” and not select a console with too many gadgets or features as to complicate its function. Progressive Concepts is very good at helping the client find the right board for their needs.

RW: What will the console of the future look like, if we use one at all?

Hoppe: Generally speaking, DJs still want to use hardware with physical faders to control their content. Some products have the entire control surface on a touchscreen monitor, which I believe is getting a little far removed from the feel of an actual mechanical fader.

RW: How vibrant is the marketplace for analog consoles? 

Hoppe: I believe there is still a market for analog only mixers; however, D&R consoles and mixers include a hybrid design of digitally controlled analog audio mixers that provides tremendous value in terms of sound quality and reliability for their price point.

RW: Any suggested best practices for someone who is setting out to make a console system buying decision? 

Hoppe: Seek out a supplier who can help you find a mixer or console that fits your needs and who provides friendly service to help you set up your console.

The post Buying a Console? Focus on What You Really Need appeared first on Radio World.