Dr. Barry Blesser Talks Voltair

Audio over IP – Take a Lesson from Radio

Even as AES67 levels the playing field in the broadcast space for Audio over IP (AoIP), there is still reluctance within the television industry to fully embrace it.  We should take a cue from our brothers and sisters in radio who have adopted AoIP with open arms.  Many in television think that as soon as you start talking about IP technology, it infers video over IP, and cannot see the benefits of AoIP.  While video over IP still has a way to go before it reaches acceptance, that doesn’t mean that we need to wait to deploy AoIP. For decades, audio systems in broadcast facilities have been cumbersome and often over-engineered, but, that can change.  Audio over IP has been tried and tested in the radio sector — these same solutions can be adapted for television.

Leveraging Radio Engineering with Daniel Hyatt

Daniel Hyatt is finding ways to leverage his radio engineering experience. From his Director of Engineering position in Denver, Daniel is running a large DJ business, Sound and Light company, does global sourcing, and is even manufacturing custom LEDs for niche projects. What can we learn from Daniel’s entrepreneurialism?

Sounding 9x Better at WBHM

Broadcasting from the campus of the University of Alabama - Birmingham, WBHM is north central Alabama's NPR news station. WBHM features a variety of local programming, as well as offerings from NPR. It is also where we find Systems Administrator/Chief Operator Darrell Pierson McCalla, who recently purchased an Omnia.9. After using it for two and a half months, he's enthusiastic about the improvements to the 90.3 Mhz FM signal.

How AES67, the New Audio over IP Standards, will Bring the Convergence of Telecommunications, Studio Audio, and Intercom

AES67 is a new industry standard for interoperability of high quality audio over IP networks from the Audio Engineering Society, published just under two years ago (September 2013). This standard was quickly embraced by all of the main broadcast audio equipment vendors, and compatibility modes announced by all of the major competing networking audio vendors: Livewire, Q-LAN, Ravenna and Dante. Outside of broadcast, there has also been a high level of audio industry acceptance.

Digital Signage Technology with Jeff Schick

Digital signage technology is showing up everywhere - from swanky elevators to shopping malls to restaurants. Now, some radio stations are using this tech to inform station visitors, on-air talent, and station staff. As engineers we’ll be called upon to implement such systems. Jeff Schick joins Chris Tobin and me to explain what to look for in digital signage.

What is IEEE BTS?

The 2015 IEEE Broadcast Symposium will be held next month in Orlando, Florida. The symposium is one of the premier technical conferences on broadcast technology, and this year's program offers tutorials and technical sessions, as well as the opportunity to network with broadcast engineers from across the globe. Many of these broadcast engineering experts will be on hand to present, including our own Greg Shay and Dr. Barry Blesser.

Recently we sat down for an interview with Paul Shulins of Greater Media Boston, a Broadcast Symposium committee member, to find out more about IEEE and the IEEE Broadcast Technology Society, as well more details on this year's event.

LPFM Proposals with Kevin Fodor

A lot of us saw this coming - Low Power FM stations are seeking more flexibility in operations and some protection for their licenses. Two petitions are before the FCC, asking for power increases, the right to sell commercials, and even to buy and sell LPFM licenses. Kevin Fodor, Program Director for Gray Fox Broadcasting, talks with Chris Tobin and Kirk Harnack about the proposed changes for LPFM.

Streaming: Then and Now

So what’s it all about?

By this point, most of us have heard the stories a million times…Streaming, streaming, streaming. Some have gone so far as to suggest that IP based streaming over cellular networks will one day overtake traditional broadcast as a delivery medium. Whatever your viewpoint on that particular sentiment, there is no question that adoption of streaming by consumers has continued to increase at a staggering pace.

Radio's Local Future with Tom Churchill

Tom Churchill believes that radio’s future must include localism, customization, and that connection of familiarity with listeners. Lower budgets and smaller on-air staffs can reduce localism, but Tom offers ideas and services that maintain localism around the clock. Chris Tobin joins Kirk Harnack talking with Tom Churchill of Virtual Voice Technologies.