![]() ![]() VHF Stereo, and by doing this the standards required for AM services are covered. ![]() It is because all radio stations in the UK broadcast on VHF as well as medium wave that the technical standards are set for the higher quality medium, ie. If you have the right equipment, it is possible to hear programmes which are indistinguishable from the original studio sound. The FM system of transmission allows near perfect reproduction of broadcasts in stereo. AM radio will always sound dull compared to the other type of broadcasts on VHF bands. AM broadcasts are transmitted on medium wave and the limiting factors of quality lie in the receivers everybody uses, coupled with a need to cram as many radio stations as possible into a limited wave band. The COP forms part of the contractual agreement between the Independent Broadcasting Authority and the local radio station and it ensures that the technical quality of local radio will always be consistently high.Īnother important point to remember is that radio in this country provides a dual service. The COP specifies the minimum standards that radio stations in the ILR network must achieve on a day to day basis and it covers all tape recorders, grams, cartridge players, radio links, landlines, microphones, loudspeakers, acoustic properties of studios etc. Of the two broadcasting administrations in the UK, the technical parameters of commercial radio are contained in a published document called The Code of Practice, or COP. Local radio is not the 'poor relation' of the industry, in some cases it actually sets the standard that others follow. Perhaps the biggest surprise to most people is that both national and local radio adopt virtually the same high technical standards, and that these are probably the best in the world. First let's look at local radio in this country, the methods used to broadcast material, and why quality is so important. So, let's look at where a demo tape can let you down on quality, how you can improve matters and how this will help persuade your local (or national) radio station to give you some airplay. Unfortunately "Technical Quality" covers a multitude of sins, and it is the most subtle of points that will let you down. It is a fair bet that the technical quality of the recording let you down, which may sound crazy these days as most home studio equipment is better than professional equipment was 15 years ago, yet old records are still played. The reason nothing happens is likely to have nothing to do with the song, its lyrics, your playing or the musical taste of the radio station's Programme Controller. Having sweated buckets over the writing, bust a gut in the playing, spent a packet in the recording and writhed in ecstasy on the hearing, isn't it disappointing when you send the demo tape of your songs to the local radio station and nothing happens? ![]()
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