To date, the best spectrum for studio and field wireless microphones and IFBs has been unused TV channels. With the recent FCC spectrum auction, much of that spectrum disappears next April in San Diego. But there remain a few places to use your wireless devices, and we’ll cover that.
Gary Stigall, contract broadcast engineer for Signal Wiz and NFL frequency coordinator since 2012, spoke about the disappearing spectrum and gave some solutions you can use for your TV or radio station.
Many thanks to iHeart Media for the meeting space and to Chapter 36 for the lunch.
Regardless of the brand of EAS device you use, you need to update the IPAWS certificate authority file to keep your incoming CAPS notifications valid. Here are some links to help you update your IPAWS CA:
Two San Diego LPTV outlets have requested new channel assignments after having been displaced by telecom taking over 600 MHz telecom spectrum that had been UHF TV channels 38 through 51. Digital LPTV stations have until May 15 to request a displacement channel. Continue reading Displaced San Diego LPTVs Ask for Relief – UPDATED 6/7/2018→
The June 12, 2018 presentation covered Orban’s approach to automatic, CALM-Act-compliant loudness control as embodied in the Optimod-TV 8685 Surround Loudness Controller. Many thanks to Bob Orban for the teleconference and lunch, and to iHeartMedia for hosting.
According to Director of Engineering J.R. Rogers, the San Diego Entercom station cluster is all nestled into their new facilities across the street from iHeartMedia at 9665 Granite Ridge Drive.
New studio at Entercom for KWFN The Fan 97.3, San Diego. Photo by Steve Cilurzo.
Unlike their cramped studios at CBS on Linda Vista Road and Entercom (formerly Lincoln Financial) on Murray Canyon Road, the new location has 14 studios, including a performance hall, video production and edit suite, five live FM studios, five production-edit studios, and two voicetrack studios.
The Entercom suite, with Sunny FM (KXSN 98.1), Alt 949 (KBZT 94.9), and KSON Country (now at 103.7), moved first at the end of 2017. The old CBS cluster, The Fan (KWFN 97.3) and KYXY 96.5 joined this year.
J.R. said of the project, “We began moving in the first part of January and continued to move stations until March. It was a difficult move because we were still building while moving stations in. Our former landlord in Mission Valley refused to extend our lease so we had to move ‘Ready or Not.’ We are not finished with the build as yet. We are out of the panic build stage and into the ‘What’s Missing’ stage. With that, there is also quite a bit of new technology that has to be learned and mastered.”
New studio at Entercom for KXSN Sunny 98.1 , San Diego. Photo by Steve Cilurzo.
That “new technology” included SAS and their Dante AoIP as well as WideOrbit automation that neither station group had used before.
Integrator on the project was PME of Chicago.
In addition to J.R., the local technical crew includes Bill Eisenhamer, Chief Engineer for KBZT, KXSN, and KSON; Mike Prasser, Chief Engineer for KYXY and KWFN; and Steve Cilurzo, Assistant Chief Engineer to Mike and Bill.
