All posts by Pete
Below are all of Pete's postings, with the most recent are at the bottom of the page.
Michael : There is still no excuse for Radio 4 going into MONO on DAB most evenings, depriving licence fee payers of programmes they have paid for to be made in STEREO (such as Radio 4's flagship drama THE ARCHERS, FRONT ROW, ANY QUESTIONS & THE FRIDAY PLAY), but these RADIO programmes can only be heard in STEREO on the TV and on line and on FM. If FM is switched off most car drivers will only be able to hear these programmes in MONO. If BBC Radio 4 could broadcastb these programmes in STEREO up to and including 2012, why not now, especially when their former controller Jenny Abramski promised on Feedback with Roger Bolton that this would never happen (I still have a tape with her saying this).
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I think you will now find the 2015 SWITCHOVER won't be happening until 2020 (AT THE EARLIEST). Quite rightly so with DAB / DAB + in such a mess and FM offering superior sound quality on some national stations in the evening and overnight
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Brian what is this number ****764044 which is now appearing at the end of my messages ?
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Finally bought a car with DAB in it. One think I have noticed is when you switch to FM how poor the quality of FM is on the DAB radio compared with the FM/AM radio in my previous car. Are DAB manufacturers lowering the FM quality to make DAB sound better. This was also true of my PURE EVOKE radio before it collapsed after just five years use. My FM / DAB Technics tuner on the other hand purchased in 1999 is still going strong and if anything FM sounds better especially when DAB is less than 160 kbps or less. Only one station broadcasts abbove 160kbps and that is BBC RADIO 3 DAB, which has a relatively small listernership compared to the other national stations on FM & DAB with the exception of BBC Radio 1 Xtra (128kbps) and BBC Asian Network (which only broadcasts with a very low 64kbps anyway).
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Make that "thing" not "thinK" apologies, I must proof read my messages in future.
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I'LL TRY AGAIN WITH AN EXTRA BIT ABOUT THE DEALER :
I finally bought a car last month with a DAB radio in it. One thing I have noticed is that when you switch the DAB radio to FM, how poor the quality of FM is on the DAB radio compared with the FM / AM radio in my previous Toyota. Are DAB manufacturers lowering the FM quality to make DAB sound better, it would seem so. This was also true of my PURE EVOKE radio before it collapsed after just five years use. It's FM mode was pathetic even just 1 mile away from the East of England transmitter in Elton.
My FM / DAB Technics tuner, on the other hand, purchased in 1999, is still going strong and if anything FM sounds better on it, especially when DAB is 160 kbps or less. Only one station broadcasts above 160kbps and that is BBC RADIO 3 DAB, which has a relatively small listernership compared to the other national stations on FM & DAB, with the exception of BBC Radio 1 Xtra (128kbps) and BBC Asian Network (which only broadcasts with a very low 64kbps anyway). Absolute (formerly Virgin Radio) used to broadcast with 160kbps but now its down to 112kbps and has given bits to sister stations such as Absolute 70s and 80s all in VERY poor quality and some in mono. Useless for a music station.
The Toyota dealer had already swapped my brand new car DAB aerial for an FM aerial before I had even started the engine and was amazed that I spotted this immediately. The big clue was I can actallly see the DAB Winter Hill transmitter from my estate but initially my car radio couldn't pick up one single DAB station. This cost Toyota a full tank of petrol, so as not to get an unfavourable survey result on their performance.
No wonder we don't trust car dealers who always quote prices excluding VAT unlike everyone else !!
All the above is not helping DAB sales in the slighhtest.
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Catch-up 7-day BBC Radio is now slowly being withdrawn from YOUVIEW (from TalkTalk). It was terminated on most Smart TVs and Humax boxes in July 2014.
At the moment we are in the bizarre position on YOUVIEW where BBC Radios 1, 1 Xtra, 2 & 5 Live have already gone (displaying the NOT AVAILABLE message), but Radios 3, 4 and 4 Extra are still providing the 7 day catch up.
On a more positive front BBC Live radio online is significantly increasing its bitrate on most channels to 320 kbps from this week also available on some aps and tablets. The BBC have greater control over this than other broadcast platform capacity.
BBC World Service is now in stereo overnight on Radio 4 FM and Radio 4 DAB, but not on its own DAB channel and Radio 4 DAB is in mono from 7pm until at least 10pm most evenings, so it broadcasts the World Service in better quality than its own station on DAB in the evenings.
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This is why I finally went for FREESAT, too many changes to Freeview, which I can receive as my new tele has it built in inc HD but 99% of the time I opt for Freesat which has recording facilities with my HUMAX FREETIME box which is excellent and no Murdoch money required. You can also record any ITV region by swapping post codes !! BBC HD National regions are already there from 972 onwards, useful if BBC ONE SCOTLAND broadcasts the late film later and you decide you like it in England after 15 mins :)
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I drove to Cornwall and Wales last year and the BBC National stations were with me for the entire journey, Sadly BBC RADIO 4 is in MONO now in the evenings on DAB, so I had to switch to FM at 7:02 and 40 seconds pm to hear THE ARCHERS in ((( STEREO))). Isn't it odd that BBC RADIO 4 DAB can broadcast the WORLD SERVICE in ((( STEREO))) overnight from 1am to 5:20am, even the World Service DAB with the correct programme listings on smart TV and DAB is itself in MONO, but Radio 4 DAB can't broadcast its own channel in ((( STEREO))) most evenings.
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Saturday 18 October 2014 12:19PM
Speaking to someone from the Department of Culture Media & Sport this week, bidding is currently taking place for the National multiplex that Channel 4 Radio failed to secure due to lack of funding a few years ago. Any idea if the BBC are part of this process ? There is apparently some DAB+ capacity on this multiplex ?
Any more info out there on this. Trying to squeeze info on DAB is worse than getting blood out of a bloodless stone. Until DAB sound quality improves its uptake will be low, especially if people feel their old DAB sets may be redundant if DAB+ takes off. Analogue sales are still very healthy and the batteries in my new white little Roberts AM/FM radio (which I take with me on countryside walks in the Peak District) last 600 times longer than its new Digital equivalent which uses more power even when switched off !! and goes off completely STILL about 30-40% of the walk locations, whereas the FM/AM picks up some signal everywhere, even if I have to retune frequencies..