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The 'AM death watch' thread...


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Old 19-12-2015, 16:53
Colin_London
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I suspect that service is dead cheap to keep running, it's just a wire radiator dangling off the Crystal Palace mast, with the Tx in a shed within the compound of the tower and site. It'll probably carry on until Droitwich 198 is shut down.
Too many questions in the house would result from those Chelsea based MPs unable to listen to The Shipping Forecast with their Horlicks.
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Old 19-12-2015, 16:56
Mark C
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Too many questions in the house would result from those Chelsea based MPs unable to listen to The Shipping Forecast with their Horlicks.
I bet they miss the years when R4 720 was at Lots Road then !
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Old 20-12-2015, 00:42
jimbo
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These are the stations closing at 23.00 UTC on 31/12/15

Nordkirchen 549 kHz (100 kW)
Thurnau 549 kHz (100 kW)
Braunschweig 756 kHz (200 kW)
Ravensburg 756 kHz (100 kW)
Neumuenster 1269 kHz (300 kW)
Heusweiler 1422 kHz (400 kW)

These transmitters will close at 2255 UTC on 31 December, not 2300 as previously thought.
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Old 20-12-2015, 00:43
jimbo
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Can anyone provde a list of the low powered transmitters added along the A9 mentioned in a previous post? What is the station on them, and what frequency qand power and locaton etc?

Thank for your help.

And, does anyone have the exact date of the Bristol closure on MW? Thanks.
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Old 20-12-2015, 09:40
commseng
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.....
And, does anyone have the exact date of the Bristol closure on MW? Thanks.
I think it is only announced as "February 2016" currently.
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Old 20-12-2015, 09:56
lundavra
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Can anyone provde a list of the low powered transmitters added along the A9 mentioned in a previous post? What is the station on them, and what frequency qand power and locaton etc?

Thank for your help.

And, does anyone have the exact date of the Bristol closure on MW? Thanks.
Correction, I thought the new Radio sites also carried Radio nan Gaidheal but see they only carry Radio Scotland.

Shows that I have never bothered tuning for them them!
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Old 20-12-2015, 10:16
kev
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Can anyone provde a list of the low powered transmitters added along the A9 mentioned in a previous post? What is the station on them, and what frequency qand power and locaton etc?

Thank for your help.

And, does anyone have the exact date of the Bristol closure on MW? Thanks.
BBC Radio Scotland

Crubenmore: NN666904; 93 FM

Dalnacardoch Wood: NN720714; 94.2 FM

Blair Atholl: NN894658; 93.1 FM
http://www.bbc.co.uk/pressoffice/pre...nsmitter.shtml
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Old 20-12-2015, 22:18
Redcoat
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Not sure about that. 882KHz is about the only thing you can get in a lot of the more mountainous areas of Wales. It's also receivable in about half of England.
There's also quite a few parts of Northern Ireland where because of terrain MW & LW can reach where FM struggles, Radio Ulster on 1341kHz in particular in places deep in the Antrim Glens and also the Sperrins (I'd suspect the Mournes too). A lot of MW & LW groundwave coverage in hilly & mountainous areas depend on soil conductivity and the rock formation - undulating hills with peaty and/or wet soils that are slow draining are more easy to cover on groundwave that large rock formations with sandy/easy draining soils with deep valleys in between.

I suspect with Radio Ulster there might be an easy case for closing Enniskillen on 873kHz especially when most of it's service area have few/no problems receiving 1341kHz blasting out 100kW - Radio Foyle's outlet on 792kHz might also get the chop with the station now a full time service on DAB & DVB-T, and that areas served by 792 where DAB & FM reception would be poor should again be able to fall back on 1341 albeit without the Radio Foyle opt-out.

However I can see the 1341 outlet at Lisnagarvey keep going for a few years yet as it reaches parts neither FM or Bauer's NI DAB ensemble on 12D currently reach.
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Old 20-12-2015, 22:25
swb1964
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However I can see the 1341 outlet at Lisnagarvey keep going for a few years yet as it reaches parts neither FM or Bauer's NI DAB ensemble on 12D currently reach.
It's the Heineken of radio transmitters, then?
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Old 21-12-2015, 08:29
hanssolo
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A lot of MW & LW groundwave coverage in hilly & mountainous areas depend on soil conductivity and the rock formation - undulating hills with peaty and/or wet soils that are slow draining are more easy to cover on groundwave that large rock formations with sandy/easy draining soils with deep valleys in between.
Thanks for how this affects N ireland.
A lot of Wales is porous sandstone so 822MW goundwave will get into many valleys, however much of N Wales and Scotland has rock which prevents ground wave so the need for FM repeaters (and maybe later DAB if Bauer want to get their stations there) along the A9?
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Old 21-12-2015, 13:18
countyboy
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I heard an announcement that BBC R Bristol is to close it 1548Khz AM transmitter in Feb 2016. At the same time they will be opening four new local DAB transmitters to provide a stronger DAB signal or in other words they need at least four new DAB transmitters to try and match the excellent coverage provided by the AM transmitter at Mangotsfield. Has anybody else heard of any announcements of BBC local radio AM closures to come?
Interesting. If they do the same in areas like Derbyshire and Gloucestershire, they are going to need to stick up loads more DAB transmitters to meet their current AM coverage.
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Old 21-12-2015, 13:20
MikeBr
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Interesting. If they do the same in areas like Derbyshire and Gloucestershire, they are going to need to stick up loads more DAB transmitters to meet their current AM coverage.
They don't have to match their current AM coverage, they only have to cover their editorial area.
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Old 22-12-2015, 00:36
countyboy
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They don't have to match their current AM coverage, they only have to cover their editorial area.
Whose editorial area is it? The BBC local's is usually countywide.
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Old 22-12-2015, 07:42
hanssolo
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Whose editorial area is it? The BBC local's is usually countywide.
Local radio was first Cities then larger areas, but not always counties, there is a map from 2008 which has changed since. http://news.bbc.co.uk/nol/shared/bsp...lick02_466.gif
Then there has been several reports where editorial and coverage areas have tried to be defined. In one it was said coverage in the Forrest of Dean is challenging and needed 10 tv relays. There is currently no funding for DAB at these and many other similar sites in the UK to replace AM and FM coverage if a DSO goes ahead, say 2021, but several small DAB transmitters at existing TV and mobile phone masts might be cheaper to run than AM, so funding for new transmitters and DSO might be addressed with the BBC charter review and participation of commercial companies?
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Old 22-12-2015, 09:13
Mark C
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Local radio was first Cities then larger areas, but not always counties, there is a map from 2008 which has changed since. http://news.bbc.co.uk/nol/shared/bsp...lick02_466.gif
Interesting, it shows possible local stations (opt outs from R.Wales/Scotland ?) for Cardiff, Swansea, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Dundee, and Aberdeen
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Old 22-12-2015, 11:23
Vectorsum
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Whose editorial area is it? The BBC local's is usually countywide.
It's that of the mapped local mux, if that's less than that of the corresponding BBC local. Here are the coverage maps for Gloucestershire and Derbyshire. The latter shows the new editorial area that chops off much of the Peak District to the north-west and includes the brand new Step 1 TX at Bolehill (on air 29th Sept 2015). You can judge for yourself whether the local mux coverage is adequate relative to the soon-to-disappear BBC AM coverage but to my eye Gloucestershire looks a bit ropey, especially given that if you live there, that's yer lot - nothing planned in either Step 1 or 2.

Interesting, [the local areas chart] shows possible local stations (opt outs from R.Wales/Scotland ?) for Cardiff, Swansea, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Dundee, and Aberdeen
Don't think they're opt-outs, as the 'Scotland' label is plonked exactly where Radio Highland serves. Also Orkney and Shetland, coloured Glasgow omnibus orange for 'Scotland' opt-out to, erm, Radios Orkney and Shetland.
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Old 22-12-2015, 11:36
swb1964
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Looks like the Derbyshire MUX could do with transmitters in Buxton and Ashbourne to finish it off. Neither should be too difficult to achieve, both towns have existing transmitter masts.
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Old 22-12-2015, 16:17
MikeBr
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This is the 2011 proposal for local radio mediumwave closure:

"Medium Wave transmission for BBC services would end in areas of England where coverage duplicates FM. Subject to further technical analysis, across the UK the stations which BBC management would expect to continue to transmit in Medium Wave include Radio 5 Live, BBC Asian Network, BBC Radio Jersey, BBC Radio Guernsey, BBC Gloucester, BBC Derby, Radio Scotland, Radio Wales and Radio Ulster/Foyle."

I couldn't remember whether Gloucestershire was included in those expected to continue, I knew Derby was. BBC Cumbria made what seemed to be at the time a good case that they would have gaps in coverage if the medium wave transmitter was closed down. Many of the complaints when BBC Radio Merseyside's mediumwave transmitter was closed down for some weeks came from outside their editorial area.

I don't know whether the situation has now altered due to changes, or projected changes, to the local/regional DAB multiplexes BBC local radio is carried on or additional FM transmitters.
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Old 22-12-2015, 16:38
MikeBr
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English article on the closure of RTL 1440.

https://backstage.rtlgroup.com/publi...sdate=21122015
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Old 22-12-2015, 16:53
swb1964
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I notice it says "The national anthem of Luxembourg will be broadcast for the last time on medium waves on 1 January at 01:00. "

Interesting- I wonder if anything is planned between 00:00 CET and the final shut down at 01:00 CET? (remember that would be 11pm-midnight UK time)

If I don't get an invitation to go out for new years eve, I might well tune in.
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Old 22-12-2015, 22:20
jimbo
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I notice it says "The national anthem of Luxembourg will be broadcast for the last time on medium waves on 1 January at 01:00. "

Interesting- I wonder if anything is planned between 00:00 CET and the final shut down at 01:00 CET? (remember that would be 11pm-midnight UK time)

If I don't get an invitation to go out for new years eve, I might well tune in.
It may just be the regular schedule of CRI which ends at 0000 UTC (0100 CET) then the national anthem then off air.

It may be there won't be anything substantial about it. Shame really if that is to be the case.
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Old 22-12-2015, 22:40
swb1964
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It may just be the regular schedule of CRI which ends at 0000 UTC (0100 CET) then the national anthem then off air.

.

Ah, sorry, I did wonder if normal programming finished at 0000 CET, but looks like I'm wrong.

It really will feel odd having all these gaps on the medium wave in the new year...
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Old 23-12-2015, 09:20
ex pirat
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It seems to me we are about the only country in Europe not shutting down AM stations ?
It cannot be cost affective for absolute radio broadcasting on AM given just how few people listen on AM these days.
Given there coverage on DAB & FM in London & west Midlands?..
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Old 23-12-2015, 09:23
radamfi
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It seems to me we are about the only country in Europe not shutting down AM stations ?
AM is still big in Spain.
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Old 23-12-2015, 12:35
hanssolo
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It seems to me we are about the only country in Europe not shutting down AM stations ?
It cannot be cost affective for absolute radio broadcasting on AM given just how few people listen on AM these days.
Given there coverage on DAB & FM in London & west Midlands?..
Must be mostly car users still using AM. Might change in 2016 as Absolute's owner Bauer is involved with this.
http://www.pure.com/press/november-2...tegic-partners
The focus of the partnership and on-air campaign is Pure’s new in-car digital radio adapter, due to debut early 2016 to coincide with the Sound Digital launch. An information campaign aimed at encouraging new listeners to retune their radios to receive the new stations will also be a key part of the promotional activities.
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