TWiRT 365 - EAS In Times of Trouble - with Rob Dale
The Emergency Alert System - EAS - suffers a love-hate relationship with most broadcast stations. Radio folks may love the fact that EAS handles the burden of alerting the public to life and safety threats. But sometimes the program interruptions are just too much, and the audio quality is often just terrible. Rob Dale is the Regional Planner at the Ingham County, Michigan, Office of Homeland Security & Emergency Management. He’s also a broadcaster and meteorologist. Rob joins us to discuss the state of EAS, training, and where we might be headed.
Read More
Topics: Broadcast Engineering, Streaming Audio, audio, audio quality
TWiRT 363 - Alexa, Tell the Studio I Hate That Song!
What’s Interactive Radio? It’s when listeners have real-time input to the on-air talent. And what could be a more natural interaction than the human voice? Dan McQuillin at Broadcast Bionics introduces interactive radio using Amazon Echo or Google Home. His company’s code and service, added to Alexa Skills, brings instant listen feedback and sentiment to any radio show.
Read More
Topics: Broadcast Engineering, Streaming Audio, audio, audio quality
TWiRT 361 - Custom Multi-Casting with Marcos O'Rourke
We’re live from KWAVE Radio in Santa Ana, California. KWAVE runs similar, yet thoroughly customized programming in 3 different markets - San Diego, Los Angeles, and Las Vegas. The various interconnections use several different forms of Studio-Transmitter Links. Marcos O’Rourke joins us to talk about the challenges and solutions. Plus, Chris and Kirk talk about the recent total solar eclipse.
Read More
Topics: Broadcast Engineering, Streaming Audio, audio, audio quality
TWiRT 360 - Moving My Samoan Stations
After 18 years in Pago Plaza, Kirk’s Samoan radio stations are moving - to a better studio and office location. This means reconfiguring three STL paths and adding an IP Radio link to the mix. Plenty of photos and video of rebuilding studios and a rack room on a tropical island.
Read More
Topics: Broadcast Engineering, Streaming Audio, audio, audio quality
TWiRT 359 - Help Us Help You
Do you dread contacting Tech Support? Or do you look forward to getting the help you need quickly? There are ways to get the most from Tech Support at almost any company. Jamey Miller, Jake Alderman, and Bryan Jones are Support Engineers. They join Chris Tobin and Kirk Harnack for some real-life advice on getting what you need to solve your radio tech problem.
Read More
Topics: Broadcast Engineering, Streaming Audio, audio, audio quality
TWiRT 358 - Dangerous Towers with Tom Ray
Tom Ray visits a lot of radio stations. He’s a full-time broadcast engineering consultant, and an inspector for New York State’s Alternative Broadcast Inspection Program. One troubling trend that Tom sees is the deterioration of broadcast towers. Tom joins Chris Tobin and Kirk Harnack to warn us and bring us some good advice.
Read More
Topics: Broadcast Engineering, Streaming Audio, audio, audio quality
TWiRT 357 - Audio Heard by Millions with Matt Aaron
Are drones more than “big boy toys” for broadcast engineers? Well - YES! Sam Wallington is VP of Engineering for Educational Media Foundation. He’s using drone video and photography to locate trouble spots and prep for tower repairs, saving return trips.
Read More
Topics: Broadcast Engineering, Streaming Audio, audio, audio quality
TWiRT 356 - Practical Drone Use with Sam Wallington
Are drones more than “big boy toys” for broadcast engineers? Well - YES! Sam Wallington is VP of Engineering for Educational Media Foundation. He’s using drone video and photography to locate trouble spots and prep for tower repairs, saving return trips.
Read More
Topics: Broadcast Engineering, Streaming Audio, audio, audio quality
TWiRT 355 - The Way We Do Things
Let’s examine a couple topics and explore “how we do them”. Chris Tobin discusses mics, pre-amps, and techniques for recording live music at WBGO-FM. Then we see how PC platforms have moved into the equipment space that was only purpose-built equipment. And just how far is that concept going?
Read More
Topics: Broadcast Engineering, Streaming Audio, audio, audio quality
TWiRT 354 - Vintage Microphones with John Holt
The first microphones were invented as far back as the 1870’s, but that’s before there were any tube amplifiers! We’ve come a long way, though most mic inventions occurred 70 to 90 years ago. John Holt is an expert on vintage microphones and gives us a fascinating look and lesson.
Read More
Topics: Broadcast Engineering, Streaming Audio, audio, audio quality