Industry News

GatesAir says it is extending the proven operational benefits of its liquid-cooled UHF transmitters to VHF and DAB digital radio with the global debut of its Maxiva VLX-OP Series.

The high-efficiency, frequency-agile transmitter line covers DAB/DAB+ radio, low-band VHF (Channels 2–6) and high-band VHF (Channels 7–13). The VLX-OP Series offers the same software-defined modulations as Maxiva VAXTE air-cooled transmitters to support global analog and digital standards.

According to the company, like the Maxiva ULXTE liquid-cooled UHF transmitters, the VLX-OP Series integrates redundant, liquid-cooling pumps that efficiently move transmitter-generated heat to building exteriors. The system minimizes cooling requirements inside RF shelters, and especially reduces utility bills at medium-to-high power levels. It also offers the power density of Maxiva transmitters to reduce size and weight, and hot-swappable modular designs to streamline maintenance, according to the company.

Info: www.gatesair.com

 

The post GatesAir Rolls Out New VHF and DAB Transmitter appeared first on Radio World.

Techsurvey 2020 from Jacobs Media is out, and as usual some trends are as expected, but there are always surprises. Overall, the future looks bright for AM/FM radio.

The media pyramid shows AM/FM with 90%, surpassed only by smartphones with 92% and TV/video with 95%. The bad news is radio has dropped by 1% for the past two years. The pyramid also shows radio’s popularity almost evenly divided between men and women.

What’s the main reason for listening to AM/FM radio? At the top of the list with 69% is easiest to listen to in the car. The next most popular reasons — it’s free, DJs/hosts/shows, hear favorite songs/artists and feeling a connection with radio.

“One of radio’s primary advantages is its local feel.” Forty-five percent of Techsurvey’s respondents strongly agree with this statement, while 42% agree. Even more interesting, the percent that strongly agree and agree has risen from 77% of respondents in TS 2016 to 88% in TS 2020.

“I really feel a sense of connection to the station that sent me this survey.” Seven in 10 of those surveyed strongly agree or agree with this statement, again suggesting how important localism is. There is a slight gender difference, with 69% of men and 74% of women agreeing.

There is some very revealing information for commercial radio in the Net Promoter Scores (NPS). This number is derived by asking respondents on a scale of 1 to 10, how likely they would be to recommend the station that sent them the survey. Christian and public radio lead the NPS scores with 77% and 71% respectively, even though they are not commercial radio, and not part of this Jacobs survey. Rock is the top commercial NPS radio format, trailing with 55%. Whatever Christian and public radio are doing, commercial radio might be well advised to do more of it as well.

Finally, the survey asked about station bumper stickers. They generally fell out of favor during the 1980s, but maybe it’s time to bring them back. More than one in four say they would put their home station’s bumper sticker on their car if it were available. Of that group, most listened to rhythmic urban, 49% and rock, 47%. Clearly, some stations haven’t given up on bumper stickers, because 3% of respondents said yes, they already have one.

 

The post AM/FM Holds Fast in a Volatile Media Landscape appeared first on Radio World.

Zach Wiedenfeld of Sound Devices shows off one of the new shields.

Sound Devices manufactures portable and installed production sound and video products for professional applications. Now the Wisconsin-based company also has begun to make face shields for healthcare workers to help protect them from the COVID-19 pandemic. The company is selling them at cost to hospitals. Radio World asked co-founder Matt Anderson about it.

Radio World: What kind of gear is involved, and how did this come about?

Matt Anderson: We’re making disposable face shields to help protect the health care workers who are on the front lines taking care of patients. The design for this shield is an open source project, which can be read about here. Luckily, we’re right near the University of Wisconsin, and these are local businesses are friends; we are indebted to them for the design.

We got on board after I read about the shortage of these in the news. I came in last Monday and asked our sales folks to call some hospitals and they verified the need, so we started buying materials that day and were producing them en masse 32 hours later.

RW: Radio station engineers know Sound Devices for audio equipment. How hard is it to adjust your capital plant and workforce to produce these types of products?

Anderson: Converting our lines was not too difficult, in that our workers and the folks who run the plant are phenomenally flexible and hard working. At present the assembly of these items is all manual, and we’re able to produce about 5,000 per day. We’re working on tooling up the assembly process to dramatically increase these numbers.

One of the most difficult aspects of making high volumes of this product is procuring enough material, especially in this unique business climate. Fortunately our purchasing folks are very determined. Last week two of them were driving from store to store throughout Wisconsin buying up all of the elastic they could find. And added to this, we have longstanding relationships with the suppliers of the foam and the plastic material as these are suppliers we use every day for gaskets etc. for our audio products.

RW: How will these products be sold or distributed?

Anderson: We are selling these products direct to hospitals at our cost to make them. Hospitals can reach out to sales@sounddevices.com. We’re also now selling them on our web store at www.sounddevices.com.

RW: What else should we know?

Anderson: It’s been a humbling experience to see everyone step up and pitch in for this cause. My engineers and I worked this entire weekend each day via Zoom, from 8 a.m. until 10 p.m. on designing tooling to ramp up production. I’m happy to say that I emerged from my garage with all digits still intact and with a fully functioning “shield press.”

Though the workers at our company are normally very hard-working, they are really going to the next level — from sales, to purchasing, to production, to engineering — and absolutely no complaining, just dedication. Though this situation we’re in is terrible, it is gratifying to see how much positive human spirit can come out of such a situation.

The post Q&A: Sound Devices Now Making Face Shields for Health Care appeared first on Radio World.

The author is vice president of engineering for Riverbend Communications.

IDAHO FALLS, Idaho — One of our stations was operating with an older Harris transmitter, which was no longer supported, and it was due for replacement. We have two transmitters operating in the room, and it was so noisy you couldn’t have a conversation in there. I was interested in replacing the transmitter with something that would run quietly. I have experience with one brand of solid-state transmitter, and it is definitely not quiet. And, naturally, I expected a new transmitter to bring cost savings in terms of using less electricity, reduced air conditioning costs and not having to purchase replacement tubes. The Harris needed a tube which would cost nearly $3,000 rebuilt.

I surveyed the market for a solid-state transmitter that would check all my boxes. This meant considering liquid-cooled transmitters — a leap of faith for a guy used to working with forced-air cooled transmitters for 40 years. I knew the high-power UHF TV guys have been using liquid cooling with their high-voltage tubes for years but most of them seemed nervous. It was an attitude adjustment.

I reviewed the details for two brands of liquid-cooled transmitters, one of them the Rohde & Schwarz THR9, as well as the air-cooled transmitter I was already familiar with. I obtained price quotes for both the liquid-cooled units.

I did not pursue the air-cooled transmitter because it did not meet one of my requirements, since it exhausts all its heat into the room, it does not reduce the need for cooling. It required the same amount of air conditioning that the previous Continental tube rig needed.

The liquid-cooled transmitters have an external heat exchanger that installs outside the building, and the heat goes there. There is no need to draw in outside air or provide tons of air conditioning. I ended up selecting the R&S THR9 20 kW transmitter, based on three factors: the splendid worldwide reputation of Dr. Ulrich Rohde and his company which includes high-end test equipment and VHF TV transmitters; the favorable price quotation; and warranty coverage that provided peace of mind.

The THR9 comes with enough coolant hose to install the heat exchanger up to 60 feet from the transmitter cabinet- it can be located further if necessary. I decided to locate it just outside the front of the transmitter building, and the THR9 sits in the middle of the room. It is compact and I wanted to retain access to all four sides of the cabinet, a decision I do not regret. The old Harris remained in place as a backup transmitter. It wouldn’t have been possible to remove it anyway — it must have been installed before the walls went up.

R&S assigned a factory tech to support our installation, and he contacted me by email. He gave me a useful tip or two, but I did not find it necessary to contact them further during the install, which took me about one day after the electricians finished the AC hookup. I did read the factory manuals thoroughly before proceeding — they are translated from the German, and Google Translate was my friend.

Now that the THR9 is in operation, the transmitter room is much quieter than it was. The only sound in the room is the soft whoosh of the forced-air cooling in the grounded-grid transmitter of our other station at the site. The R&S transmitter is virtually silent. The only way to tell if it’s running or not is to read its meters. And it has no physical meters. The front panel has an LED touchscreen with metering and control, which retracts inside the cabinet when not in use. This screen is available remotely and we can view it anywhere. The transmitter has two network connections available to use.

There are two coolant pumps inside the single cabinet. If one is removed from service the remaining pump will carry the load. Similarly, the heat exchanger has two cooling fans and if one fails, the remaining fan is sufficient to carry the load. There are four power amplifier modules in the 20 kW transmitter, and if one fails, the remaining amps pick up the load and operation continues uninterrupted. Amps can be easily and quickly removed without losing a drop of coolant.

We have two years of experience with the R&S THR9 transmitter now, and I am thrilled with its performance and reliability (and silence). And when the grounded grid transmitter is replaced, it will be with another THR9.

 

For information, contact Rohde & Schwarz in Maryland at 1-410-910-7800 or visit www.rohde-schwarz.com.

The post User Report: Rohde & Schwarz THR9 Is Cool and Quiet appeared first on Radio World.

Lawo Power Core MAX is a new version of the Power Core AoIP mixing engine that can support multiple physical or virtual mixing surfaces — two, three, or even four mixing interfaces per engine, depending on mixing requirements.

Power Core has 96 available DSP channels, 80 summing busses, an internal 1,920 x 1,920 routing matrix, plus 128 dual-redundant MADI channels and 128 AES67/Ravenna channels, standard.

[Check Out More Products at Radio World’s Products Section]

Operators can use the eight rear-channel I/O expansion slots to accommodate more analog, digital, AES67 and Dante audio signals. There’s also ST2022-7 Seamless Protection Switching for dual-redundant AoIP network connections, and ST2110-30 compliance for seamless interoperability of audio and video equipment in combined radio / TV broadcast plants.

Lawo says that these capabilities, plus the ability to connect to as many as four independent Ruby mixing surfaces, makes Power Core MAX perfect for large multi-studio projects. In addition, broadcasters with medium-size or smaller facilities can use it as an I/O gateway and mixing engine for an entire radio station.

Info: www.lawo.com

 

The post Lawo Powers Up appeared first on Radio World.

The Congress has approved and President Trump has signed a $2 trillion coronavirus relief bill aimed at offsetting the economic impact of the spread of COVID-19. In that package was an additional $75 million for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting “to maintain programming and services and preserve small and rural stations threatened by declines in nonfederal revenues.”

This support is very welcome among the many rural stations the National Federation of Community Broadcasters interacts with. Yet the reality is stations across America need much more.

How serious is it? COVID-19 is the sort of financial calamity that threatens to wipe out community media.

[Read: Community Broadcaster: To Pledge or Not to Pledge]

Many of our country’s most vital stations rely on local underwriters, community events and listeners for the means to provide news, culture and education. What happens to these stations when businesses shutter, donors lose their jobs and our towns’ traditional gathering spots are no more? And, as critically, what happens to the life of a city when a community radio station dies?

Right now, there is not simply anxiety about the coronavirus cases stations are hearing about in their respective states. The stress about local economies is quite evident. There is hope the stimulus package will boost many communities. Hope, however, is not a promise. And in a pivotal year, where illness and elections bewitch the public consciousness, noncommercial media needs that promise now more than ever.

The cynic might say people can find their news on the internet. Still others would question whether these outlets playing music and local talk shows are relevant today. Yet the truth is that radio remains crucial to the overwhelming majority of Americans. Why? If the argument about ubiquity holds, wouldn’t hundreds of millions of people just be satisfied with getting their online channels of news and music?

A few are, but more are not, because they agree with people like Free Press’ Craig Aaron. Choice, localism and democracy are dear to all of us. “People need trustworthy news and information that isn’t hidden behind a paywall and more educational resources for kids who will be home from school for the foreseeable future,” Aaron writes. “This money isn’t for ‘Downton Abbey’ reruns. It should be earmarked specifically for emergency support, education, and especially local journalism.”

What’s more, increased federal and state attention on community radio stations should come with an appreciation for its effect on a city. Stations contribute to local creative economies and spark employment. The art galleries, restaurants, bars, live music venues and public spaces that find fellow travelers in community media make towns into destinations. Like businesses, noncommercial media must stay around.

CPB is incredibly valuable in this dialog, and its standards are an important starting point. However, as necessary are concerted investments by states and federal agencies into stations around matters like emergency preparedness and core infrastructure. In addition, the attitude of institutional and regional funders must change from the strictly transactional – you do this news story, you get this money, and somesuch — and more toward longer lasting community partnerships and investments that go 10 years and longer. Finally, I echo my colleagues who believe local journalism deserves greater support. The problem with an unnuanced approach is that media organizations with significant monies such as universities, or the networks disproportionately get major journalism funding while community radio is left to fend for itself. This is why long-term investment is necessary.

The coronavirus pandemic affects everyone and this situation is not changing soon. Emergency funding is excellent. It is also the prompt for new conversations on how states and regional leaders can fund on-the-ground media where it is much needed.

 

The post Community Broadcaster: COVID-19’s Threat to Community Radio appeared first on Radio World.

Henry Engineering’s SuperLight is a logic/control interface for controlling low-voltage studio tally lights. It can directly power 12 V DC LED tally lights that draw up to 500 mA. SuperLight includes a flasher circuit, as well as a DPDT relay output that can be used for any low voltage switching, speaker muting, or other utility use.

[Check Out More Products at Radio World’s Products Section]

It is compatible with WheatNet Blade, Axia xNode and similar network protocols. Cat-5/Cat-6 interface can control multiple units using one cable.

The LED output can supply 12 VDC at up to 500 ma; it can also “sink” up to 2 amps if used with an external power source. The LED output can be set to “flash” when on for use with on-the-air warning lights. All control, relay output, and LED output connections are via plug-in Euroblock connectors. Two RJ45 connectors are also provided for control wiring compatibility with WheatNet-IP Blade and similar installations that use Cat-5/Cat-6 wiring.

Info: www.henryeng.com

The post Henry Engineering Turns on SuperLight appeared first on Radio World.

The National Association of Broadcasters welcomed the historic federal stimulus package, and has posted a list of key provisions of interest to broadcast businesses.

“NAB is grateful to Congress and the White House for passage of the coronavirus relief package today,” said President/CEO Gordon Smith in a statement. “Allowing businesses with fewer than 500 employees to gain access to forgivable Small Business Administration loans will go a long way towards keeping many broadcasters and local businesses afloat during these difficult times.”

Smith said the devastation to local businesses “and to local broadcasters who support those businesses to drive commerce in hometowns across America” is unprecedented. He said NAB plans to advocate for further relief for broadcasters.

Examples of details called out by NAB in its summary of relevant provisions:

• The Small Business Administration Loan Program will support loans of up to 250 percent of average monthly payroll, up to $10 million. This effort is targeted at small businesses, nonprofits and veteran organizations with up to 500 employees; self-employed and “gig economy” individuals; and other specific industry sectors. The loans are to available immediately through SBA-certified lenders (banks, credit unions, etc.).
• Corporate tax changes will allow employers to defer payroll taxes incurred through the end of 2020, with half to be repaid by the end of 2021. There will be Treasury loans for “distressed industries” from a $454 billion pool. This is designed to target entities that might not otherwise be able to secure lending.
• The Treasury Department is being asked to implement a program that provides low-interest financing to lenders that make direct loans to eligible businesses and non-profit organizations where uncertainty of economic conditions makes loan necessary to support ongoing operations. Funds will be used to retain at least 90 percent of workforce until Sep. 30, 2020, with other requirements.
• Other points include enhanced unemployment insurance payments; an additional $600 per week for every person applying for unemployment benefits, over and above normal state benefits; and an employee retention tax credit program.

Find the full list here.

The post NAB Highlights Key Provisions in Stimulus Package appeared first on Radio World.

Here’s a Friday review of how broadcasters are innovating and adapting with new sources of content and new challenges in a news cycle and daily lives dominated by the realities of the COVID-19 pandemic. Don’t forget to let Radio World know about your station’s strategies, and be sure to share stories about how radio is helping out our communities.

— SiriusXM says daily White House Coronavirus Task Force are now available on demand via SiriusXM’s streaming services and satellite channel 121 and Pandora. The satcaster-streamer also says it plans to add state government COVID-19 briefings soon.

— Voiceover talent Harry Legg collaborated with Benztown to create this COVID-19 promo for Local Media San Diego’s XHRM. Listen below.

— This is the time of year when baseball would normally return to the stadiums and the airwaves, so many sports radio stations are getting creative to avoid dead air and keep fans tuning in.

Dickey Broadcasting‘s Ed Kennedy shared one idea on Facebook, saying that Atlanta’s WCNN(AM) aired a live-but-simulated Atlanta Braves vs. Arizona Diamondbacks game Thursday in lieu of the scheduled Opening Day broadcast. That’s an innovation combination of esports and radio that other broadcasters may turn to as the pandemic continues.

— Nielsen is out with new numbers showing how radio is faring under the coronavirus “stay home stay safe” directives. Check out the chart below to get a sense of how audio is being consumed in the current environment.

Also, 42% of consumers indicated that radio has helped them deal with the outbreak, and another 46% agreed that radio helps them know what stores are open and where to shop locally.

— In New York, iHeart Media’s Z100 is teaming up with the Empire State Building to provide new entertainment for those sheltering in place. At 9 p.m. Friday March 27 through Thursday April 2, the station will broadcast and stream Alicia Key’s “Empire State of Mind,” which will be synced to a light show as part of the new iHeart Living Room Concert for America. A new show will then begin April 3.

The post New Ways to Hear On-Demand COVID-19 Briefs, Broadcasters Play Ball and More appeared first on Radio World.

A U.S. federal agency is giving broadcasters special consideration to help assure continuity of operations during the coronavirus national emergency.

The National Communications Coordination Branch of the Cyber and Infrastructure Security Agency issued two letters in mid-March, letters intended to help broadcasters maintain access to their facilities. One specifically mentions the ability to obtain fuel, the other addresses access to facilities and travel freedoms.

The National Association of Broadcasters is recommending broadcasters keep the letters to show to law enforcement if curfews are put in place or fuel supplies interrupted for generators or other critical equipment.

CISA is part of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. It listed eligible workers, including communications sector workers “who support radio, television and media service, including, but not limited to front-line news reporters, studio and technicians for newsgathering and reporting.”

In part the CISA letters state: “Critical communications facilities are necessary to ensure first responder, emergency responders, public messaging and 911 communications providing lifesaving capabilities are functional during this period of National Emergency.”

The bearer of the CISA letters “may travel and access the infrastructure facilities during curfews and restricted travel periods” in order to prevent loss of service or restore of critical communications services, according to the letter.

NAB says it has shared the CISA letters with its members. Copies can be found online in NAB’s Coronavirus Response Toolkit at www.nab.org. The letters are under the Operational and Editorial Resources tab. State broadcast associations have also been circulating them.

NAB noted, “CISA’s guidance is advisory in nature and not a federal directive or standard. In the end, final discretion whether to grant access to broadcast facilities and other locations rests with state and local emergency management authorities. Broadcasters are encouraged to coordinate with their state or local authorities regarding their need to access facilities and other locations in order to continue providing critical emergency information to their viewers and listeners.”

In addition to the declaration of a national emergency, some states have ordered non-essential workers to stay home during the coronavirus pandemic, and CISA makes it clear that “state, local, tribal and territorial governments are ultimately in charge of implementing and executing response activities under their jurisdiction.”

Federal law already defines broadcasters as “essential service providers” and allows such providers access to their places of operation in order to “respond to an emergency or major disaster.” Most industry observers believe that the provision allows essential broadcast station personnel access to their studios, transmitters, towers and other places of business for purposes of staying on the air. An NAB official Radio World that the association “believes that is a fair interpretation of the law.”

Also, some states have programs that designate “first informers” and “essential broadcaster” credentials to help assure broadcasters access to facilities and guarantee fuel deliveries to auxiliary site.

A senior NAB official says the current situation is “like nothing we’ve seen” and requires “preparation, planning and a great deal of flexibility” on behalf of broadcasters.

“Each station or community is likely to face different challenges depending on resources and how individual states, municipalities and authorities are responding to the pandemic. Broadcasters will need to take the necessary precautions and utilize all the tools in their tool chest to maintain operations,” the official said.

The post CISA Letters Support Radio Stations During National Emergency appeared first on Radio World.