HD Radios at "Best Buy" for $39

[Don Juannn]

My experience with IBOC (with a Boston Acoustics receiver) thus far is this:

The Boston Acoustics receiver is a piece of junk...and was part of the first generation that came to the market.  It was a disappointment Get rid of it.

There has been many more units that have come on the market since.

Try one of those.

[necrat123]

My experience with IBOC (with a Boston Acoustics receiver) thus far is this:
1. The sound difference on F.M. is hardly noticable.
2. There is a difference on A.M. but whether or not the analog signal is topping out @ 5kc. could be a factor.
3. There's only 1 receivable A.M. IBOC signal in East Providence: WHJJ.

My experience in East Providence is much different than yours. I get three AMs in HD (550, when they were on the air), 1030, and 920.

4. The IBOC signals are so damn fussy & brittle it's like a highwire balancing act with fine china to place the antenna.
5. There were 3 HD2 stations that were receivable in E.P.: 93.3-2, 94.1-2 & 101.5-2.  Nothing on 89.7. 

How close are you to the WHJY tower? I think youre getting overload from it. Where I am in EP, Pawtucket Avenue near the Knights of Columbus (I walk down that way quite a bit), I can get the HD2s of the three you listed, plus 89.7, 98.5, 102.5, and 103.3, all using my Insignia portable. My "porch side" antenna picks up a few more. Get further from the WHJY tower (say in Riverside), and 94.5's HD comes in, again using the Insignia Portable. No fancy receive antennas or gear.

7. 93.3-2 occasionally has D.J.s but they sound like national filler.  94.1-2 hasn't had any that I've heard & 101.5-2 isn't operational anymore.  It was some lame "comedy" channel (Joke Joke or something).

101.5-2 is indeed operational, its classic rock  94.1 and 101.5 both air Premium Choice programming, which have jocks, albiet from somewhere else. (I believe theyre in Cincinnati)

8. Ever since 101.5 installed IBOC, 101.9 has had a harder time coming in.

Only on the cheapest of cheap radios. My $30 alarm clock I bought from Nobody Beats the Wiz in 1996 has no problem picking up WCIB in my bedroom, which faces towards Rehoboth from the 3rd floor. In fact I don't think any of my radios have any problems with WCIB. I know they listen to WCIB in the Riverside Post Office using a Boom Box, without any problem.

9. From Taunton no A.M. IBOC signals were decodable.  F.M. may have had marginal success but 93.3 was analog only.

In Taunton, I can hear everything from Boston in HD, and Providence, as well as Fun107, and WUMD. That is in Downtown Taunton using my in-dash player.

So I dont know , your experiences sound like the other extreme from what i've found.

[N1WVQ]

A. Don's saying the radio's junk (good thing I didn't pay for it)
B. The 101.9 interference has been on at least 3 car radios that otherwise have good F.M. reception (as well as A.M.).

The E.P. location is off of S. Broadway, about a mile west of the water tower & about 2 miles from 94.1/95.5/1110 & 790.  550 nor 1030 could lock although the HD light flashed, it failed to lock.  As for Taunton we're about a quarter mile up 140 from the Taunton Green.  The only digital TV signal received over there was Channel 22, er, "28" so it does appear to be an R.F. pit.

101.5-2 has been received in E.P. in the past but wasn't as of 14:00 yesterday.  Maybe somebody saw this thread @ C.C. eng. & turned it back on.  I do want to add that 92.3 is IBOC as well but with only the one feed.  No sidechannels. 

One place where the radio has had good luck receiving Boston was in Cumberland in Lippitt Estates (north of 295 & west of 114/Diamond Hill Rd.) when hooked to rabbit ears.  103.3, 104.1, 102.5, 89.7 & others were heard with additional side channels.  Conversely, in Woonsocket about a year or so ago, 106.3's IBOC wouldn't lock unless we hung the wire antenna near the window & bent it a certain way.

When you mentioned WHJY & I wrote about 1110 it got me thinking.  Could 1110 be overloading 550 (sub-harmonic) & 1030 on the B.A. (Boston Acoustics)?

[necrat123]

I know exactly where you are. Sometime measure the signal level of WHJY and WBRU there.
To put a non technical label on it. "Blow the doors off" strong.

You do have some terrain shielding to the east there, which would hinder WCIB, but that has nothing to do with WWBB or their HD. I was listening to WCIB in the parking lot of the WPRI transmitter, with no problem at all, and the WWBB signal is very very strong there (much stronger than in EP).

[jeffryan]

So they're getting stations to play these spots free of charge. But how do you think they ultimately get paid for? Santa Claus?

DO you know anything about the radio business?

How do they ultimately get paid for?  They don't get paid for.

Uh, I WORK in the radio business, thank you.

Do you know how to read? Clearly you didn't read the TWO articles I posted links to. The stations are still spending money on the licensing for HD radio... and where do you think that money goes? Nothing is truly free.

But wait, HD radio was at one time "new technology", was it not? They couldn't sell radios when they launched them, let alone now that the technology is over 5 years old.

They have been selling the technology of HD radio...which the public doesn't care bout.  What they care about is choice...and more formats.  HD has made the mistake of not telling people what new formats are available...but instead, promoting the "new technology" which makes no difference to people.

People aren't going to buy HD radio when they find out what formats are available. It's still not a selling point. If the technology is flawed, the programming doesn't matter. If you can't hear it in the first place, what's the point? HD radio's technology is inferior to analog radio. The average listener will not put up with trying to get the stupid thing to work. This technology has to be "plug and play" for the average media consumer.

HD radio's failure is not attributable to the marketing of the product. HD's failure is the product itself.

 Every HD radio station I've ever seen has no talent and just music.

Then you need to get out more and know more about the subject you are talking about.

Are you for real? I mean, seriously.

YOU need to show me which HD radio stations have live on-air talent. I have NEVER heard of even one single HD radio station that had live talent exclusive to that HD channel. Most HD stations are off the air for weeks at a time. (And interestingly, one on occasion when that happened, we got ONE complaint!)

Go ahead. Name me a handful of HD radio stations that have live talent. You can't do it. Seriously, someone show me where an HD channel has a live on-air host. This will be the biggest shock of the year.

These HD radio discussions are pointless. Nobody except a handful of radio geeks listen to HD radio. It was DOA on day one, and 5 years later it continues to be DOA. The radio industry continues to embarrass itself by promoting something nobody wanted from the very beginning. And it continues to bankrupt itself by believing that one day the public is going to come around. There's nothing they can do because it's just not going to happen. Radio needs to focus on more fruitful efforts in gaining audience and revenue and abandon HD radio entirely. Save the licensing fees, engineering costs and focus on what works and/or focus on new media.

[jeffryan]

So please be so kind as to tell me why someone who just purchased an iPod would also turn around and purchase an HD radio... considering your argument that they're so different.

Still waiting for an answer here.

[MarcB]

YOU need to show me which HD radio stations have live on-air talent. I have NEVER heard of even one single HD radio station that had live talent exclusive to that HD channel.

WMRQ 104.1 HD-2 in Hartford. LaBomba 97.5 - they simulcast on 97.5 W248AB. Does that count?

[OhioMediaWatch]

YOU need to show me which HD radio stations have live on-air talent. I have NEVER heard of even one single HD radio station that had live talent exclusive to that HD channel.

WMRQ 104.1 HD-2 in Hartford. LaBomba 97.5 - they simulcast on 97.5 W248AB. Does that count?

If I'm listing these stations, I'm not counting the stations that use the HD2/3 feeds to feed an analog FM translator.

Back when CBS killed oldies in Chicago on WJMK, they actually staffed the HD2 (with no analog simulcast, but with streaming) for a year or so.

[fullabaloney]

Jeff, no one is going to win an argument about HD against Don. He gets into them constantly so for whatever reason he has some sort of stake in this because no one could be that concerned about it without having some sort of stake. I don't even know enough about the subject to jump in but feel HD is not an answer to the reason people are leaving radio. It doesn't address the motivations for leaving.

[jeffryan]

Back when CBS killed oldies in Chicago on WJMK, they actually staffed the HD2 (with no analog simulcast, but with streaming) for a year or so.

This is what I was looking for. There's one station with live local staffing exclusive to the HD channel. One. And it's no longer.