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Has anyone noticed...
- Thread starter TSBench
- Start date
Thank you for your interesting post.
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LOL !
Hey at least there is some activity here.......
It used to be that internet forums were how we discussed things in the new age of the internet
that was after Alt and Usenet ...
But now a lot of it has migrated to social media.
I am the moderator of a pretty active group of 6,477 people on FB that discusses radio, a couple of people who regularly post here are regular contributors over there, and I know my little group is just one of thousands of radio and broadcasting forums of every type .... whatever your special interest is, chances are there is a social media group for it.
Even "the other" Boston board is dead, as in it makes this one look busy.
I miss the days of the previous incarnations of this website, where there was always new content and really good discussions by adults without name calling and other distractions.
I hope that this site can stay up and running, I'm sure the software, servers and other expenses are not cheap and revenue is hard to find these days.
I do appreciate those of you that contribute, and the moderators that keep the place neat and tidy
T
Tilden
Guest
Too many corporate back pockets ???
Or perhaps Boston has lots of successful broadcast operations.
Tilden, Please don't troll. If you have nothing constructive to post, please don't post snarky comments.
Frank Berry
Or perhaps Boston has lots of successful broadcast operations.
Tilden, Please don't troll. If you have nothing constructive to post, please don't post snarky comments.
Frank Berry
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The whole place is dead.
You have been a Member since May, 2015 and you have written a total of 14 posts.
Do you see the connection?
Do you see the connection?
There is an increasing and general apathy about anything radio these days. All of it. AM, FM, Ham, CB, SWL, DX-ing, Scanners...you name it!
Whe that may be understandable in the new world of telecommunications, in most markets Boston included, there are no more format fights, interesting contests, funny dj's, creative programming and fewer and fewer on-air personalities) and what few we have are intentionally bland!)
That leaves two topics left to discuss:
A) Hiw good radio used to be. i.e...the good old days...
B). How radio really sucks now.
lol.
Whe that may be understandable in the new world of telecommunications, in most markets Boston included, there are no more format fights, interesting contests, funny dj's, creative programming and fewer and fewer on-air personalities) and what few we have are intentionally bland!)
That leaves two topics left to discuss:
A) Hiw good radio used to be. i.e...the good old days...
B). How radio really sucks now.
lol.
Thank goodness for Sirius/XM. Where I live (25 miles from Boston), I can only receive WRKO and a local Spanish station on the AM band. Everything else...even WBZ...is full of static and unlistenable. On FM...well remember when FM was where you went to get a cleaner sound and maybe 6 spots an hour?? Not any more...I clocked one station recently with 9 minutes of commercials in a row. No thank you!
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Excellent, Wimmmex; you said a mouthful here.
You are indeed correct; interest in what we know as "radio" - that includes everything you listed - is not evident among millennials. I know; I teach them, and there was almost zero interest in the analog and digital communications courses I taught. The only communications with which they are even remotely familiar is what takes place on what they hold in their hands. (So WHY the obsession to reach this demo with the god-awful music "programming" CC, CBS, GM keep offering them?)
So, yeah, we need to keep the discussion going on how good radio was in the good old days vs how much it sucks today, especially on the FM band, once the go-to band for "quality" listening.
Heck, 1960s AM radio knocks the socks off of what passes for "radio" today.
Which brings me to WRKO on Saturday evenings. Can someone please explain to me WHY the audio is so muddy? I love listening to Jeff's program, but come on, over-the-air audio on the REAL 68 'RKO back in the 1960s sounded way better than what I'm hearing right now. The muddy sound is evident whether I listen on my iMac, iPod, 93.7 HD-2, or AM 680 itself, so I'm guessing it's not 'RKO's compression and/or STL audio chain per se, but I could be wrong. Anyone care to comment?
In so many ways these "good old days" comments are inaccurate and inappropriate.
I think back of the radio I did in the 60's, and realize that while it was great at the time, it has no connection with today's audiences save for a few ultra-geezers living in the past. And, for the record, I am thinking back on top rated stations that were top billers, too.
Add in the fact that those big high-rated Top 40 US AMs in the 60's were running upwards of 18 minutes of commercials an hour, had to run high percentages of FCC-mandated news and public affairs that we all new most of our listeners did not want to hear most of the day.
Obviously if you are looking for music on an AM station that is a throwback to 60's Top 40 station, you are in an incredible minority.
And one of the likely causes for the audio sounding as you describe is that the entire WRKO audio chain is set up for talk, not music.
Because teens are not the audience CHR stations are aiming for. It's the 24-35 crowd, and that "god-awful music" is what they like. That's why those songs are in a CHR format; they are contemporary hits. Pop music, ephemeral by nature, changes stylistically with each passing generation, and what you hear on CHR today is the sound of the current generation.
Where, 25 miles out of Boston can you only pick up 2 stations without static?
What station is this?
Funny, though, when you look at the Sirius/XM ratings, the only formats/channels that get any real audience (besides Howard) are stations that mimic what you can get on broadcast radio. 80's, 90's, 00's, CHR, AC, etc.
I am guessing a couple of things. Jeff is generating the program from a laptop with a "stock" (not professional) soundcard....which is probably acceptable for oldies...but even the jingles sound muddy.
Also, WRKO today is processed much different from great AM processing that was used during the music era of the Big68.
There are those of us who regard Facebook as evil and will never use it. Give me a Web forum or a mailing list any day.
I do miss Usenet.
The biggest factor limiting my participation here is that I work in radio. I generally can't talk about any of the stations I work for, nor about any station who might potentially be a client in the future, lest I inadvertently put my foot in my mouth.
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So, to you, Mr Has-Done-It-All, our comments about the "good old days" of radio are "inaccurate and inappropriate"? Gee, I guess we need to run our comments by you and others in the know before posting.
Sixties radio has "no connection to today's audiences"? Now I know why I can't connect with today's audiences: I'm an "ultra-geezer living in the past", part of "an incredible minority".
You're telling me that in these days of programmable compressors/equalizers no one can be bothered to change WRKO's settings from "spoken word" to "pop"? Bull. Someone else responded to this and his answer supported what I had suspected: the Saturday night oldies show is done with a laptop with inferior audio hardware.
But, hey, thanks for weighing in. You will let me know if anything I wrote is inaccurate and/or inappropriate now, right?
Thanks, again, Wimmmex. I suspected that some "internet radio" hardware was behind this. I couldn't believe there was little WRKO can do to make this sound good, and it turns out it's not really their fault.
Jeff, if you read this: have someone help you improve that audio, please. it really is not "acceptable (even) for oldies". Our memories and hearing are sharper than one might think.
Oh, get off it David.
It's an emotional opinion/comment....and how many people feel. From many perspectives it's completely accurate...and completely appropriate on an internet message board populated by people who love radio and it's history.
But if you analyze the comment, it's really about the music, not "the radio".
The poster is saddened / distressed / upset because the music of the 60's has no home on the radio anymore, so therefore radio sucks.
As I said to Wimmex, your distress is with the music more than with radio.
Sure, a station could change the presets but it's not as easy as you think (in other words, not a toggle switch) and likely too risky if left to whatever staff is available on a Saturday evening. In most situations, stations do not use presets for anything but a base for customization as no preset can take into account all the variables in a station's audio chain, right down to the frequency response of the transmitter.
I am not as ready as you to believe that a home studio is not capable of broadcast quality audio as I hear lots of very professional stuff done on fairly basic laptops and desktops... even iPads. There may be issues with dueling codecs, there may be issues with the delivery method, there may be many other variables.
Likely the station does not care all that much as Saturday evening radio listening is the lowest of the entire week and probably nobody even listens... it might be better to write to the talent and see if they can take steps to improve the quality if you really enjoy the show otherwise.
That's because I do not think the station is going to pay much attention. It's a show for an unsalable demographic, in an unsalable daypart. It's great that it has some fans, but the station probably sees no gain in spending time and money on it... so working from the "pride in my show" aspect of the talent is likely the best path. Have you tried that?
Sure, there is a lot that is wrong with radio today. But providing programming for people over 55 is not something radio can spend much time or money on as advertisers dictate the sales demos, not radio.
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