No meeting for SBE Chapter 36 for July 2012. See you in August!

Thanks to those of you who took time out from your day to attend my first SBE presentation.

I talked about Part 101 radios and their relevance to broadcasters as well as the importance in reserving spectrum for your wireless STL/TSL links.

A copy of the presentation is here. Please contact me with any questions.

National broadcast preparedness expert Richard Rudman comes to San Diego May 16 to update Chapter 36 members and guests on the updates to the Emergency Alert System, EAS. What are the new FCC rules and how were they derived? What is the Common Alerting Protocol (CAP)? When and how will it be implemented in the southern California region? If you have questions regarding the EAS, this is a good time to ask.

Please plan to attend this important meeting Wednesday, May 16 at noon at TV Magic, 8112 Engineer Road in Kearny Mesa, San Diego. This no-host lunch will cost $10 for a sandwich and soft drink. As always, SBE members and guests are welcome.

About Richard Rudman

Richard has been Vice-Chair of the California EAS State Emergency Communications Committee (SECC) since 1995. He was also Chair of the Los Angeles EAS Local Emergency Communications Committee (LECC) from 1996 to 2002. He was Chair of the FCC EAS National Advisory Committee (NAC) 2000-2002 and Vice-Chair 1998-2000. That committee provided information to the Commission on the operation of the EAS and assisted State EAS Chairs and emergency managers with EAS training and problem-solving.

He authored chapters on communications facilities emergency planning and preparedness for the NAB Engineering Handbook and CRC’s Electronics Engineering Handbook.

Richard was Director of Engineering at KFWB Radio in Los Angeles from 1975 until 2002, and national President of the SBE from 1985 to 1987, and is now a Fellow of the Society.

The first time I laid eyes on an Orban product was when we had moved a newly purchased FM station in Eugene, Oregon in 1977, upgrading it to stereo, raising it by 1500 feet elevation, and dropping the elevator music in favor of a new brand of FM top 40. I set the new Orban 8000 at about 5 dB of compression and walked away. That, and a set of new heads for the Revox tape decks made “K-Sound” really sparkle, even though my successor would turn up the gain to trade off some of the fidelity for loudness. He understood the business better than I did.

Orban’s chops in the broadcast radio and TV realm are certainly undisputed. The company continues to address the needs of current broadcast technology, with processors to address specific needs for digital side channels, streaming, and the new TV loudness rules. Our next meeting features two of the rock stars of broadcast audio. Orban Founder and VP of Engineering Bob Orban will discuss the workings of the new Orban Optimod-TV 8685 for Surround Sound and loudness control. Also, Orban VP of New Product Development Greg Ogonowski will discuss the latest in streaming technology offered by Orban.

This is your chance to meet Bob and Greg and ask those nagging questions you have about audio processing. Let’s give these guys a big welcome Wednesday, March 14 at noon at TV Magic, 8112 Engineer Road in Kearny Mesa, San Diego. As always, members and guests are welcome.