This Week In Radio Tech (TWiRT)

Those who know Troy Pennington would say he’s a true gentleman. Engineering for a world-record-setting FM radio station in Birmingham, Alabama, certainly kept the pressure on. The #1 station had to sound great and be reliable - as did all the stations in his employer’s Birmingham cluster. Later, in Nashville, Troy helped build out several world-class studios for national music and talk shows, plus kept the local transmitters on-air. Oh, and his peers elected Troy to be President of the Society of Broadcast Engineers.  You can bet that Troy has some tales to tell - and he does just that with Chris Tarr and Kirk Harnack.

Show Notes:

* Troy was elected President of the SBE for the term from 2001 to 2003Chris likes this affordable IR Imaging “Gun” with built-in display:And here’s another IR Gun for a bit less money

Guest

Troy Pennington - SBE Past President & USMC Retired

Hosts

Chris Tarr - Group Director of Engineering at Magnum.MediaKirk Harnack, The Telos Alliance, Delta Radio, & South Seas Broadcasting

Follow Kirk on Twitter - @kharnackFollow TWiRT on Twitter - @TWiRTshow and Facebook

Sponsored by

Nautel and the continuing informative live webinars. Sign up for free!Broadcasters General Store, with outstanding service, saving, and support. Online at BGS.cc.Broadcast Bionics - making radio smarter with Bionic Studio, visual radio, and social media tools at Bionic.radio.Nautel and the regular Transmission Talk Tuesday series of online engineering roundtable e...

It’s inevitable; the next generation of broadcast engineers will need to have IT skills in addition to audio and RF knowledge. Noah Chilliah is certainly in that next generation, and he’s using the IT skills he’s developed to build content and broadcasting infrastructure. TWiRT co-host, Chris Tarr, worked with Noah a few years ago in a mentor/mentee relationship, passing on valuable radio-centric information and skills.

Show Notes:

* “Ask Noah” is Noah’s computer help podcast and radio show.

Guest

Noah Chilliah - President at Altispeed.com

Hosts

Chris Tarr - Group Director of Engineering at Magnum.MediaKirk Harnack, The Telos Alliance, Delta Radio, & South Seas Broadcasting

Follow Kirk on Twitter - @kharnackFollow TWiRT on Twitter - @TWiRTshow and Facebook

Sponsored by

Nautel and the continuing informative live webinars. Sign up for free!Broadcasters General Store, with outstanding service, saving, and support. Online at BGS.cc.Broadcast Bionics - making radio smarter with Bionic Studio, visual radio, and social media tools at Bionic.radio.Nautel and the regular Transmission Talk Tuesday series of online engineering roundtable events.Angry Audio - with StudioHub cables and adapters. Audio problems disappear when you get Angry at AngryAudio.com. And MaxxKonnectWireless - Prioritized High Speed Internet Service designed for Transmitter Sites and Remote Broadcasts. Look for in-depth radio engineering articles in Radio-Guide magazine.

Russ Laferty is the kind of broadcast engineer that more stations need. He’s from the rough mountains and “hollers” of Eastern Kentucky - Auxier, Kentucky - to be precise. But he also travels Tennessee, Arkansas, West Virginia and beyond to get broadcasters back on the air, always working to improve their equipment reliability and effectiveness. Today we caught up with Russ at the new transmitter site of WDTL-FM, licensed to Indianola, MS. It’s a second-hand prefab building at the base of a 1,000’ tower near Skene, Mississippi. An ice storm was forcing Russ to run the new Nautel transmitter at a lower power level.

Show Notes:

* In July, 2022, Russ got WKCB back on-air after flooding destroyed the studios.

Guest

Russ Laferty - Broadcast Contract Engineer

Hosts

Kirk Harnack, The Telos Alliance, Delta Radio, & South Seas Broadcasting

Follow Kirk on Twitter - @kharnackFollow TWiRT on Twitter - @TWiRTshow and Facebook

Sponsored by

Nautel and the continuing informative live webinars. Sign up for free!Broadcasters General Store, with outstanding service, saving, and support. Online at BGS.cc.Broadcast Bionics - making radio smarter with Bionic Studio, visual radio, and social media tools at Bionic.radio.Nautel and the regular Transmission Talk Tuesday series of online engineering roundtable events.Angry Audio - with StudioHub cables and adapters. Audio problems disappear when you get Angry at AngryAudio.com. And MaxxKonnectWireless - Prioritized High Speed Internet Service designed for Transmitter Sites and Remote Broadcasts. Look for in-depth radio engineering articles in Radio-Guide magazine.

Jack Scott's résumé includes the following: Author, Brand Ambassador, Consultant, Technologist , Broadcast Engineer, Pilot, Broadcast Journalist, VO Talent, Serial Entrepreneur, Wacky Radio Guy - and he's on TWiRT! Jack started in radio at age 12 when he exclaimed to the station owner, “Hey, I’m not famous yet!” Jack went on to be a station engineer, and then built several radio and TV stations before getting into the burgeoning home

Show Notes:

* Jack’s streaming ventures include, AHNYX.COM, AHNYX.TV, and Scott Web Graphics

Guest

Jack Scott - CEO at Jack Scott Media & Jack Scott Merchant Services

Hosts

Chris Tarr - Group Director of Engineering at Magnum.MediaKirk Harnack, The Telos Alliance, Delta Radio, & South Seas Broadcasting

Follow Kirk on Twitter - @kharnackFollow TWiRT on Twitter - @TWiRTshow and Facebook

Sponsored by

Nautel and the continuing informative live webinars. Sign up for free!Broadcasters General Store, with outstanding service, saving, and support. Online at BGS.cc.Broadcast Bionics - making radio smarter with Bionic Studio, visual radio, and social media tools at Bionic.radio.Nautel and the regular Transmission Talk Tuesday series of online engineering roundtable events.Angry Audio - with StudioHub cables and adapters. Audio problems disappear when you get Angry at AngryAudio.com. And MaxxKonnectWireless - Prioritized High Speed Internet Service designed for Transmitter Sites and Remote Broadcasts. Look for in-depth radio engineering articles in Radio-Guide magazine.

George Whittam - I call him “Engineer to the Stars” - is back on TWiRT! This time he’s brought photos of home studio design and construction. George talks about some challenges in the layout and building of these home Voice-Over (VO) studios. We also get George’s opinion on headphones and microphones, and a look at what makes the Apollo audio interfaces so sophisticated; it’s a lot more than I had imagined. Kirk Harnack interviews George Whittam on this episode of TWiRT!

Show Notes:

* George’s web site - GeorgeThe.Tech - with Tools, Tips, and Testimonials for VO spaces

* George has always like the Beyerdynamic DT 770 PRO headphones

* George speaks highly of the Austrian Audio Hi-X15 headphones

* When asked about wireless noise-canceling headphones, the 1MORE Sonoflow came up

* Handheld mics were discussed and George likes the Sennheiser e965

* Universal Audio Apollo Audio Interfaces

Guest

George M. Whittam - Founder at GeorgeThe.Tech

Hosts

Kirk Harnack, The Telos Alliance, Delta Radio, & South Seas Broadcasting

Follow Kirk on Twitter - @kharnackFollow TWiRT on Twitter - @TWiRTshow and Facebook

Sponsored by

Nautel and the continuing informative live webinars. Sign up for free!Broadcasters General Store, with outstanding service, saving, and support. Online at BGS.cc.Broadcast Bionics - making radio smarter with Bionic Studio, visual radio, and social media tools at Bionic.radio.Nautel and the regular Transmission Talk Tuesday series of online engineering roundtable events.

Ready to learn some surprising facts about audio processing? David Reaves - known by many for the Ariane audio processor - is guest! We're talking, of course, about the famous Ariane audio processor, but also the CBS Audimax and Volumax. Did you know the Audimax had a "memory module" that was key to its “intelligent” audio leveling action? Pretty slick for early 1960's design!

Show Notes:

* Recent projects from David are on his web site, DavidReaves3.com

* CBS Audimax and Volumax circa 1964 from Preservation Sound

Guest

David P. Reaves III - DSP Audio Design Engineer

Hosts

Kirk Harnack, The Telos Alliance, Delta Radio, & South Seas Broadcasting

Follow Kirk on Twitter - @kharnackFollow TWiRT on Twitter - @TWiRTshow and Facebook

Sponsored by

Nautel and the continuing informative live webinars. Sign up for free!Broadcasters General Store, with outstanding service, saving, and support. Online at BGS.cc.Broadcast Bionics - making radio smarter with Bionic Studio, visual radio, and social media tools at Bionic.radio.Nautel and the regular Transmission Talk Tuesday series of online engineering roundtable events.Angry Audio - with StudioHub cables and adapters. Audio problems disappear when you get Angry at AngryAudio.com. And MaxxKonnectWireless - Prioritized High Speed Internet Service designed for Transmitter Sites and Remote Broadcasts. Look for in-depth radio engineering articles in Radio-Guide magazine.

Frank Foti is well known within the broadcasting industry for his digital audio processing innovations. Those of us who know Frank personally know that he is a huge fan of 5.1 audio recordings, and that he has often lamented the scarcity of available material. But unlike the rest of us, Frank actually has the skills to do something about it. He’s been developing DejaVu for several years and says it’s finally ready. Frank explains how his artistic upmixing technologies led him to Abbey Road studios in London, and how this tech is now easily available on several platforms.

Show Notes:

* Frank Foti presentation during some early days of Surround Sound, from 2004

* SVG News: Foti’s New Surround Sound Upmixing Technology Transforms Music Mixes into Enveloping Surround Sound

* Cleveland Beat Interview - Frank Foti, Syndicate of Sounds

* Radio & TV Business Report: That ‘Z100’ Chief Engineer, And Omnia Founder, Creates an Upmixer

Guest

Frank Foti - Founder & Executive Chairman at Telos Alliance

Hosts

Chris Tarr - Group Director of Engineering at Magnum.MediaKirk Harnack, The Telos Alliance, Delta Radio, & South Seas Broadcasting

Follow Kirk on Twitter - @kharnackFollow TWiRT on Twitter - @TWiRTshow and Facebook

Sponsored by

Nautel and the continuing informative live webinars. Sign up for free!Broadcasters General Store, with outstanding service, saving, and support. Online at BGS.cc.Broadcast Bionics - making radio smarter with Bionic Studio, visual radio, and social media tools at Bionic.radio.Nautel and the regular Transmission Tal...

Armed with another treasure trove of broadcast engineering tips, tricks, and advice, John Bisset is here for our year-end episode! Plus, John is having a little contest (or is it “challenge”?) for your best transmitter site tips. One early entry to John advises, “Don’t knock on the transmitter door because that’s how we call the alligator!”

Show Notes:

* Mr-Label® US Letter Sheet Self-Adhesive Cable Label

* Wireless Endoscope, WiFi Borescope Inspection Camera 2.0 Megapixels HD Waterproof Snake Camera

* FLIR One Pro LT iOS Pro-Grade Thermal Camera for Smartphones

* No Escape Mouse Magic Ready To Use Place Packs

Guest

John Bisset - Western US Sales at Telos Alliance and “Workbench” columnist in Radio World magazine.

Hosts

Kirk Harnack, The Telos Alliance, Delta Radio, & South Seas Broadcasting

Follow Kirk on Twitter - @kharnackFollow TWiRT on Twitter - @TWiRTshow and Facebook

Sponsored by

Nautel and the continuing informative live webinars. Sign up for free!Broadcasters General Store, with outstanding service, saving, and support. Online at BGS.cc.Broadcast Bionics - making radio smarter with Bionic Studio, visual radio, and social media tools at Bionic.radio.Nautel and the regular Transmission Talk Tuesday series of online engineering roundtable events.Angry...

Cornelius Gould began nearly 40 years ago considering audio processing and its effect on how we perceive music and voice. His “Chameleon” audio processing algorithms began with analog circuits, but are now fully emulated and perfected in Digital Signal Processing (DSP). What makes audio more pleasing to our ears and brains? What might a psychoacoustic expert say about the treatment of audio so we hear and appreciate it more enjoyably? Chris Tarr joins Kirk Harnack to discuss these topics and questions on today’s TWiRT.

Show Notes:

* Audio Processing Fundamentals

* Audio Processing and CODECS

* Omnia.11 G-Force - The Background Story

Guest

Cornelius Gould - Audio Processing Architect at AngryAudio

Hosts

Chris Tarr - Group Director of Engineering at Magnum.MediaKirk Harnack, The Telos Alliance, Delta Radio, & South Seas Broadcasting

Follow Kirk on Twitter - @kharnackFollow TWiRT on Twitter - @TWiRTshow and Facebook

Sponsored by

Nautel and the continuing informative live webinars. Sign up for free!Broadcasters General Store, with outstanding service, saving, and support. Online at BGS.cc.Broadcast Bionics - making radio smarter with Bionic Studio, visual radio, and social media tools at Bionic.radio.Nautel and the regular Transmission Talk Tuesday series of online engineering roundtable events.Angry Audio - with StudioHub cables and adapters. Audio problems disappear when you get Angry at AngryAudio.com. And MaxxKonnectWireless - Prioritized High Speed Internet Service designed for Transmitter Sites and Remote Broadcasts. Look for in-depth radio engineering articles in

Like many of us broadcast engineers, Sascha Ludwig builds and maintains somewhat traditional broadcast studios while implementing server-based virtualized solutions as well. Sascha is based in Germany where the talent appreciates traditional hardware user interfaces. But he’s implementing more of today’s technology for these content creators. As a software developer, he maintains and update the OnAirScreen software package appearing in radio control rooms everywhere. Chris Tarr joins us for a good discussion and comparison of some German engineering and how we’re doing broadcast engineering in the US.

Show Notes:

* OnAirScreen from AstraStudios

* OnAirScreen on GitHub (for those who know what to do)

* Sascha uses Zabbix software to monitor computers and applications

Guest

Sascha Ludwig - Broadcast Engineer, IT Admin, & Creative Leader at AstraStudio

Hosts

Chris Tarr - Group Director of Engineering at Magnum.MediaKirk Harnack, The Telos Alliance, Delta Radio, & South Seas Broadcasting

Follow Kirk on Twitter - @kharnackFollow TWiRT on Twitter - @TWiRTshow and Facebook

Sponsored by

Nautel and the continuing informative live webinars. Sign up for free!Broadcasters General Store, with outstanding service, saving, and support. Online at BGS.cc.Broadcast Bionics - making radio smarter with Bionic Studio, visual radio, and social media tools at Bionic.radio.Nautel and the regular Transmission Talk Tuesday series of online engineering roundtable events.Angry Audio - with StudioHub cables and adapters. Audio problems disappear when you get Angry at AngryAudio.com. And MaxxKonnectWireless - Prioritized High Speed Internet Service designed for Transmitter Sites and Remote Broadcasts.