Re: WLNG-FM (was WCBS-FM 101.1..)

[Shawn Mamros <mamros@MIT.EDU>]

>Plus don't forget--They continue to broadcast in MONO!!  From what I
>understand, they have the ability to broadcast in stereo, they just choose not
>to.

Many of you (at least those who are technically minded) probably already
know this, but...

In some situations, there are advantages to broadcasting an FM signal in
mono.  When all other factors (power, HAAT, terrain, etc.) are equal,
an FM mono signal is listenable at greater distance than an FM stereo
signal is.  That's true to a degree even when the station is in stereo -
that's why many stereo tuners pop into mono mode when a stereo signal is
weak, because there's less noise to deal with when the tuner only has to
demodulate the mono (L+R) carrier.  But there's a penalty to be paid at
the transmitter when one has to modulate the stereo pilot and subcarrier
(L-R) too (no such thing as a free lunch!), so starting out with a mono
signal gives a station greater range than it would have with stereo.

Obviously for any sort of contemporary (loosely defined as anytime in the
last 35-or-so years) music format, the benefits of stereo sound outweigh
the signal penalty.  But if you're broadcasting all talk or music that
was recorded/mixed monaurally, and especially if your station doesn't
have as much power as your competitors, turning off the stereo generator
makes sense.

- -Shawn Mamros
E-mail to: mamros@mit.edu

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