HD Radio – Extra Digital AM/FM Radio Stations in your Area
HD Radio – Extra Digital AM/FM Radio Stations in your Area
In this video I talk about Hybrid Digital or HD Radio. HD Radio is the trademark name of the IBOC radio standard set by the FCC back in 2002 for digital AM/FM radio. It offers crystal clear digital audio extra stations in many areas. What areas have HD radio stations? What kind of music do they play? Where can you find HD radios?
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I remember first finding out about HD radio and sub-channels back in 2009 or 2010 when I bought a Zune HD, the one with the touchscreen. Up until then, I had never even heard of HD radio, so there were tons of radio stations that were broadcasting in my area that I never even knew were there. That was the first and to date, only HD radio that I’ve ever had. Now I have to go out and buy another one lol.
Got hd radio stock on my 2016 subaru forester
so nice to have!
good video but just moved to SC from NJ (near Philly) and there are 4 HD stations here 1 hip hop and 3 religious not anywhere near the amount I got in Philly area. Also none here are in my preference to listen to but will keep an ear out to see if there are any additions in the future
I have aboslutely no problem with youtuber ads. I have a problem with youtube ads. The ads i get from youtube themselves are never relevant to anything i need or want. I dont care for the bachelor. I have never cared for that stupid, worthless TV show. But one thing I do care for, my internet quality. So that router is something thats actually beneficial to me. Hope the ads do well.
There is the analog AM radio station WOAI at 1200 on the AM dial in San Antonio, Texas that has a powerful transmitter sending out their radio signal for 100 miles or more. WOAI is also linked to the I Heart group of radio stations that can be heard on the internet.
Many new cars do not have HD Radio in them except a few models. Many now do have SiriusXM in them.
I have the same HD content in my area (Atlanta), and quite a bit of it, that you have. Nothing I would listen to.
DAB+ is way better for digital audio, more channels and no loss of quality
OK so a question about the router: can you edit the TTL setting? Thanks for your thoughts and reply.
I have an HD radio (Sangean HDT-20) and I love it! I’m in Atlanta, and my top 2 favorite stations turned out to be HD substations with no commercials! Oldies on WRAS HD3 and New Wave/Alternative on WSRV HD2. There is no static at all on an HD radio signal, either you get it or you don’t. The sound quality is usually better than analog FM, and roughly comparable to a Sirius/XM broadcast signal.
I tend to think that my Sangean deck has a bit of the "HD radio self noise" that is mentioned in the wiki article about HD radio. For analog only stations, it seems like I get a clearer signal on the same antenna from my 20 year old Onkyo receiver than I do from the Sangean deck, but there is an off chance this is due to antenna orientation. All that said, I’ve had great results with the Sangean deck for accidental DXing…. picked one up a rock station (analog) from 130 miles away.
I’m a big HD radio fan. I have two Sony HD radios. Unfortunately, there are way less HD channels in my market than there used to be. The one problem I have with HD radio is I cannot get the channels in my basement without running an antenna line from upstairs.
I. gave up my local NPR. kills my normal sports. jazz. because npr bleeds ontop
I bought a Sangean HD tuner about 10 years ago that I hooked up to a Sansui receiver. When the signals came in HD radio sounded great. Almost CD like sound quality. But it drove me crazy because the HD signals were constantly fading in and out. I tried probably 5 different indoor FM antennas with the same results. I got so fed up I disconnected the Sangean and it’s been in a box in my basement for the last 9 years. I’m ok with regular FM but who knows I may someday try hooking it up again. Think I’ll need to get a way better antenna first.
Just bought a 2014 is350, and while I don’t use radio too often, I became curious of HD radio, and it’s capability of having subchannels.
I’ve been an HD Radio listener in my cars since 2009 via an aftermarket head unit. Finally buying a new head unit again (old Jensen one still works, but is in a different vehicle) finding an aftermarket head unit with HD Radio capability, or even "HD Ready" needing a special tuner dongle thing was ridiculously hard. Pioneer I think has only 2-3 double DINs out with the capability, and only 1-2 single DINs. JVC and Kenwood are about the same as well. Some automakers are even not putting in new cars, and most new cars only ever included it in "premium" audio systems. So while I love HD Radio I feel it’s on borrowed time. Some of my substations have gone away over the years, too.
I actually support the AM switch to HD as long as it does remain optional. I think that could end up reviving HD Radio to a higher degree than FM can and get more widespread adoption of the format. The compressed subchannels are perfect for talk radio, sports, etc. As I understand (from wiki) the issue with adoption is the HD Radio decoder chip wasn’t an open format, and to make the decoder chips you needed to pay licensing fees per chip, so while the actual hardware never cost significantly more to make, it really curtailed adoption. I think at this point whoever is in charge of the licensing structure of it all should make it free just for adoption purposes, or change the model to a one time fee or something like that. I really liked the format and thought it could be a real game changer, but almost nobody I know beyond who I tell even knows the format exists, or if they do, how to get it, etc.
I’ve had HD radio for at least 10 years now and it’s really hit or miss. You need high C/NR to maintain the HD signal and stations have inconsistent power levels for the HD signal vs. their analog. WOGL used to be terrible with this, but they seem to have increased their IBOC signal in the past year or two. Inconsistent programming is also a staple of HD subchannels. They change formats like underwear and rarely mention the HD subchannels on their main station. As I type this now, WLEV has nothing but dead air on their HD2, a painfully low-fi simulcast of their main station on HD3 and a slightly better quality spanish music stream on their HD4. Many have incorrect or missing song/title/artist info as well. HD could be so much more, but many just let it go to crap. It’s worth exploring if you’re a radio nerd like myself, but get good confirmation that there’s something worthwhile before investing in a standalone HD radio.
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I love HD Radios I have quite a few my favorite one is by Directed DMHD-1000 I got it on eBay for $25
I use it with a cheap Wingard HD-6010 with a Motorola plug (also from eBay) and a 12VDC power supply (my "junk" pile)
The one bad is it needs like 100% signal to actually lock-on to the sub-channel when I had a power outage I can;t believe how many more I’m able to get without all of the extra noise from everything electronic these days!
I also got a Kenwood KDC-BT958HD that I made a boombox out of an old cooler and a spare 12V SLA battery (that is what I used in the power outage) along with a cell phone charger I also integrated (with a volt meter also!)
Why not list radios available from C. Crane? They offer a great line of AM/FM and HD radios.
I have a 2020 Hyundai with HD Radio. Does anybody know if the AM section of this radio also is HD? I have no local AM stations broadcasting in digital format. I would have to travel to Chicago, 175 miles away to see.
Unfortunately most HD FM stations apply heavy volume compression followed by excessive digital compression to squeeze in more channels. Result: Bad sound that is inferior to the analog FM. Quantity over quality, yet again.
as an AM DX-er, i find the AM band quite entertaining.
of course, these days i’m not so much interested in content as i am in the station’s identity.
All HD Radio channels are on the internet just as are all AMFM analog radio channels, and there appears to be no regional restrictions AFAIK like there is for TV stations. This realistically means that for those who have Roku, FireTV, AppleTV, etc, there’s are various Radio apps that stream 1000s of radio stations. But for those who like being off the grid 100%, then a standalone radio is the to go.
Locally, HD has been hit or miss. Local NPR switched from 3 to 4 digital signals back in December to add a Christmas channel, now HD4 just will either simulcast HD1, or go do something random.
Possibly the most successful HD combination here is a Country HD1/Variety HD2 set up on KOLT.
From there, the rest of the HD stations are either NoCo or Denver.
I can reliably pull in 10 subchannels from 4 stations (KUWR, KXBG, KOLT, KWBL), and the rest is spotty at best.
I would love to get into more HD radio, however the tides of society doesn’t seem to be into it right now. I think allocating unused spectrum to full power HD would help reach it’s full potential.
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I have to agree with the rest of the commenters. AM shouldn’t and doesn’t sound that bad normally. Time to go rural, my friend! Also, equipment is important: There are modern reciever(s) [Really, Autocorrect] that has an adjustable bandwidth up to 6khz for a more accurate sound.
I have been really interested in HD radio for year but there are not too many stations in the york/harrisburg pa area that really pull me in. The cost too is a but much.
+5 years ago or so I got a Grace Digital radio that one hooks up to the internet via ethernet cable (or wifi), and it goes home (Grace) and gets updated lists of internet radio stations so one can hear them through the device. See https://gracedigital.com/ This is good for me because I like podcasts and checking out foreign stations (BBC, for example), though I do prefer to download podcasts if possible and listen on my own time. I haven’t listened to the radio lately (though it does have a useful digital clock), because the one website broadcast I listened to changed format for one I don’t like. I’ll have to rehook up the radio and see if it still works (it is an older model, and within 6 months the speaker connection died under warranty, but the earphone plug still works, so… ). I think some people do have internet radios as part of stereo systems, but for me while the sound is good it’s the content I’m after, though I can also find that via my computer’s internet browser. So internet radios are another option, and they are a bit like old shortwave receivers but are not effected by seasons or sunspots.
I like your channel. I have been an Antenna guy (hobby) for a long time. I was raised in north western Oklahoma where there was no such thing as TV. I put up an 60 foot break over pole with a directional rotar and a booster. I could pick up one channel very fuzzy if the weather was right. This was in the late 70s and early 80s. There was no such thing as VCRs or satellite TV. In 1983 my dad bought an 8 foot satellite dish. Life was good. Before that A.M. Radio is all that I had. When the sun went down the stations would start coming in. It was my only interaction with the real world. I could pick up stations in Colorado and Missouri, Kentucky, Louisiana, Texas and on nights when the ionosphere was is good I could pick up Canada and Mexico. I had a GE super III radio.So I am still fond of a.m. radio. I love pulling in Distant stations to this day. So don’t be so hard on us old guys. Look up 73840 on antenna web and you’ll see what a hell hole in the middle of nowhere signal looks like. Keep up the good work. James in Louisville Kentucky
I will stick with FM Radio, they are just trying to move us into pay for Radio.
AM forever!!!!!! SW into the next millennium!
I stopped listening to "oldies" stations about 30 years ago. Based on their limited (I’m being nice) playlist, you’d think in the entire decade of the ’60s only 10 songs were ever recorded and 5 of those 10 songs were by the Beatles, 2 by the Supremes, 1 Beach Boys, 1 Marvin Gaye and 1 Rolling Stones (Satisfaction). That’s it.
K9SJD Car radios are equipped with HD and are generally better receivers than table top radios. 12 volt power supplies and speakers are readily available. I use one and it’s also hooked to a car battery in case of power failure. Most car receivers have a USB port. Crutchfield is a good source
AM radio will sound even better with a 40" loop aerial.
I listen to AM, everyday! It’s been my companion since the "music radio" days of 77 WABC! Even though some days it’s got more static than others…I’ve learned to live with it, and see no reason to stop now! Owning a Terk AM antenna helps too 🙂
No one is going to run out and buy an AM digital radio or an FM HD radio unless they are given good and a lot more content and/or no or few commercials and better reception coverage and quality of sound. People will also don’t want to put up outdoor antennas. There are also too many non HD FM and conventional AM radios already owned, 100s of millions which work as well as when they were new. Pretty stupid to charge a fee of $3.00 for each FM HD radio and expect it to catch on. I wonder if the same is the case for AM stereo and digital AM. A digital conversion for AM and widespread FM HD may require a government mandate just like it did for the conversion from analog TV.
There are a whole bunch of new citizen band radio purchasers, could you do some videos showing how to setup for people. How to adjust swr and how to run cable for them. If yes great if not thank you for reading my message.
It’s really too bad how compressed many of the stations sound. I’ve listened to some HD Radio stations that actually sound better when forcing the receiver to analog FM mode. Adding subchannels only makes it worse! If I wanted 96kbps MP3 quality, I’d just fart while I sing in the shower. Instead, I am more interested in clear treble and minimal artifacts.
Having listened to Radio constantly since the Pirates went on the air in 1964 i do enjoy DAB radios and actually have one in each room in my place.
Marc in Bletchley Towers G6XEG Amateur Radio Call
I lost hope after learning about Leakage Current…. Today’s Portable Cell Phones drain the battery’s too fast. Thermal Generators are gaining Popularity. using the Heat from the Human Body to Recharge is a great hope.
Dear Antenna Man, I LOVE what you do with antenna information, but you are SO wrong about AM radio and it’s potential for great sound.
Please don’t represent (AM) broadcasters as sounding "bad" again! By representing AM radio as unlistenable which you did at least twice in this video, you’ve done a dis-service to broadcasters and have spread MISinformation. AM radio CAN sound wonderful. It’s likely the fault of non-caring broadcasters themselves, mainly large corporate owners who treat AM like the bastard child of their FM ownership portfolios who have given you this impression, or local stations not maintaining a good physical plant (air chain from microphone and console to the transmitter.)
AM radio can have excellent fidelity with (usually private, not corporate) owners who CARE about their physical plants and audio sources. 10khz bandwidth is just FINE for good fidelity, (and is the allowable bandwidth we are to use) and, in many cases when properly processed can fool listeners into thinking that they are hearing not "your" perception of AM, but actually a high fidelity signal. It takes good source material, not pre-compressed satellite or internet delivered crap being shoved on the air, followed by a clean air chain, PROPER processing and a transmitter kept tuned-up. There is absolutely NO excuse for AM owners to not do this. If our small, privately owned station can create excellent on air AM sound, any corporate station owned by the big (often in bankrupcy reorganization) monstrosities CAN do the same…as can other private owners. It can be done without thousands of dollars, and better still, it can be done with properly refurbished or well cared-for equipment from recent decades. AM can even be analog stereo! Yes, there’s talk about going all digital. A handful of stations have done so since the FCC approved it. Who wins there? Nobody. AM’s have to turn off their analog signal to go all-digital. Then, they are limited to the range of an "FM translator" if they happen to have one to serve the digitally-challenged listener. Translators have limited effective radiated power. Translator licenses are also not "protected" by the FCC and if someone can prove the means to put a full power station ‘on’ a local translator’s frequency, the translator must move frequencies or shut down. Not a good gamble in some areas of the U.S.
Meanwhile, all-digital AM can only be received currently on the HD radios of which you speak which, as you said, are not readily available. AM may not be what it was decades ago, but neither is any media. HOWEVER, (analog) AM radio can sound clean, pleasant, have "punch" and a reach to areas where FM may not travel well.
If you want to hear what AM can be, listen online at http://www.i1430.com . or on any stereo internet device by asking for our stream. ("Play WION radio") We’ve been putting out wideband AM analog stereo for many years, and while availability of Cquam AM stereo radios may be limited (similar to HD radios in that aspect but some HD sets render analog AM stereo with limited bandwidth) …the care we take to MAKE the stereo sound so good benefits those who listen in mono. Furthermore, by STREAMING AM stereo from a real AM stereo tuner, over the years, we’ve held the banner high for what AM can sound like when properly processed, and have had many radio engineers inquire about HOW we make it sound so good! It CAN be done.
Generalizations about AM are not going to help our industry, or any AM station owner in our country. Yes, my station has two FM translators, however…we were alive, well, and making money YEARS before the FCC considered allowing AM’s to own FM translators, further proving that care in sound processing and, as a broadcaster: knowing your community/audience is the recipe for success, with or without a partnered FM signal. Our (AM) station was brought back from the dead with no listeners when we began in 2004 with no accounts receivable, no adverisers, and no inherited consistency. We overcame EVERY obstacle and have proven AM can be a success, even in small town America where very few corporate dollars flow and advertising support comes from Mom and Pop businesses for the most part.
The pendulum is slowlly swinging back from corporate radio being dominant, to independent owners who care. Please help us by not generalizing our product in a bad light. I’ve not addressed HD on the AM side because it’s been a failure. It produces "hash" noise on adjacent channels, and costs the analog signal half the avaialble bandwidth (sound quality) which can be offered to analog-only listeners. A poor design, with most (AM) stations shutting it off over the past few years.
Radio survives by serving the public properly, and caring about everything that goes IN to the air chain before it goes out on any antenna. AM can sound excellent. It just takes owners deciding to care, and not treating their (AM) signals like they are simply throw away stops on the dial for any garbage used to fill time.
All of that having been said, I want to add once again congratulations on the success of your channel. I find your reviews, facts on TV reception, tests of antennas, equipment, and opinons accurate, helpful, and hopefully they are keeping people from wasting money on junk antennas and TV antenna scams. For that, I thank you for your service! You are providing information that helps consumers in an honest and likeable manner. Please continue! (YouTube) channels like yours on the web are needed and appreciated.
If HD radio existed outside of north america, i’m sure you’d see cheap chinese alternatives everywhere. If there was no royalty fee for manufacturing these, I bet every new radio would have it. If you’ve got an older car, you can pick up single din HD radios for pretty cheap on ebay. There used to be a bunch of good HD stations here, but they all turned into news/religious repeaters. What a shame. DC 101 in D.C. used to have a good rock station on HD 2 that had no commercials, but that’s long gone. There’s a station in southeast virginia that has a great rock/classic rock playlist called K94. It’s on 94.9 HD2 in virginia beach and runs very very few commercials, and they play songs that mainstream FM stations do not. I stream it every day at work.
I have friends that don’t now the radio in their cars are capable of tuning HD Radio and know nothing about it.
In my radio market (Green Bay, Wisconsin), we have the bare minimum when it comes to HD Radio.
HD Radio stations found Green Bay, Wisconsin as of 2021:
WPNE-FM 89.3
89.3-1 – Wisconsin Public Radio
89.3-2 – Classical Music
WBDK-FM 96.7
96.7-1 – Adult Contemporary
96.7-2 – Classic Country
I prefer my SiriusXM .
No such thing as HD radio. HD stands for high definition a carry over from tv.
Right now in my area we’ve only got 6 HD radio stations… Maybe in the future there will be more…
When I first started listening to radio back in 2014 to keep myself sane on my commute home from work in the morning, I bought a head unit for my car that had HD Radio built in. It’s crazy how it makes AM sound like a really good FM signal, and it makes FM sound like a nice crisp online stream.
Yes but this can’t be successful because many people listen to the radio in their car and the car is always moving
My pioneer radio in my van is hd and sxm and bluetooth and cd player plus pandora compatible
My car has that symbol that lights up on certain stations. I really don’t know what it’s doing.
HD radio is a scam
I like radio, am, fm & hd…… but, now I stream everything ….. Sonos, Apple, Sirius/XM etc …… I have them all, and they are all great!