BBC Radio 1 is available to listen on DAB Radio, Digital TV, 97-99 FM, Online and Mobile. It is distributed in these different ways to help gain a larger audience, BBC radio own an app called BBC iPlayer radio that allows users to listen to radio shows likewise the website is full of radio broadcasts and videos live performances which is another way BBC radio 1 distribute their content. As well as the station being available on DAB and FM radio meaning its available on all radio devices and built-in radio devices it is also available on digital TV which is a fairly common way of listeners to listen to the radio.
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Kiss distributes their broadcasts on 100 FM in London, 101 and 97.2 FM in the Severn Estuary, and 105.6 - 106.1 - 106.4 -107.7 FM in East Anglia however they also distribute their broadcasts online, on digital TV and on mobile which includes a 'Kiss Kube' app that users can download and effectively have the Kiss FM website a.s an app.
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Heart Cambridge broadcasts to Cambridge on 103.0 MHz and DAB Digital Radio also broadcast is available in Newmarket and Haverhill on 97.4 MHz. Heart Cambridge is also available on TV as long as you are in the Cambridge catchment and they also have a website where listeners can listen to live broadcasts and also catch up on broadcasts they may have missed.
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FM FM, which stands for frequency modulation, is also known as VHF (very high frequency). FM is used worldwide to provide high-fidelity sound over broadcast radio. Also FM broadcasting is capable of better sound quality than AM broadcasting, it is used for most music related broadcasts because of the better sound quality. |
DAB DAB, which stands for digital audio broadcasting is a digital radio standard for broadcasting digital audio radio services, it is used in countries across Europe, the Middle East and Asia Pacific. DAB is more efficient in terms of bandwidth than analogue FM radio as it can offer more radio services within the same bandwidth as FM also DAB is more robust with regard to noise and multipath fading which makes it better suited towards mobile listening. |
I gained responses from the audience which has helped me understand how the majority of people use the radio. My first question simply asked the audience where/how do you listen to radio, this was a multiple choice question so the audience could pick from in the car, on the TV, on a specific radio device, on the phone or on a radio app. My responses showed that the majority of people listened to the radio in the car but also some people listened to the radio at home, from personal experience I know that the radio is really quick and easy to put on in the car especially if you are in a rush or haven't got time to set up a personal playlist etc. Also a lot of people have the radio on when going to work or coming back home because its just habit to have it on in the background. |
My second question asked the audience which location would they be in where they would most likely be listening to the radio e.g work, in the car, at home. Again, like the feedback from question 1 it was apparent that the majority of people listen to the radio in the car and again some do at home but it doesn't seem to stem further than that or if does it's a small minority. |
My third question asked the audience how often they listened to the radio e.g. daily, monthly, yearly. I asked this so I could gain an inkling of how often people actually listen to the radio. My responses were that mainly people listen to it daily but others listen to it either weekly or monthly. This tells me that radio is still something that is listened to and desired on a daily basis.
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My fourth question asked the audience what time they usually would listen to the radio e.g. morning, lunchtime etc. The response I got from this question was an equal response between in the morning and in the evening which is what I was kind of expecting due to the fact most people admitted to listening to the radio whilst in the car going to/from work or college. |
My fifth question asked the audience what radio stations they mainly listened to, I asked this because I wanted to know the different stations that people listened to and if there was any correlation between them. I got mixed responses however most people admitted to listening to BBC Radio 1 the most and then stations such as Kiss, Heart and Capital FM I believe this is because these sorts of stations are upbeat and fun and also provide chart music and modern day songs with modern presenters which appeals to a mass audience. The stations such as Classic FM and BBC Radio 4 didn't come out as common, I think this is because I surveyed younger people who probably wouldn't be interested in the type of shows that they broadcast as they much prefer chart and modern music shows. |
My sixth question asked the audience what type of radio shows do they prefer to listen to e.g. talk shows, news shows, music shows etc. The response I got were that all respondents preferred music shows whether that be live music or just normal music shows over anything else, I think the reason for this is because when most people listen to the radio they listen to it for background noise whilst they are concentrating on other things such as getting ready or driving therefore they don't have the time to concentrate and follow something like a radio drama or talk show. |
My last and final question simply asked the audience why they listened to the radio, I wanted to ask this so I understood the reason behind people listening to it. My response to the question was that the majority of people listen to it for something on in the background whilst they are doing something else and others said that they listen to it for entertainment. I believe these two responses come hand in hand because if someone is at home doing housework they probably want something on in the background to entertain them or just be there as company.
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Radio 1 broadcast from their eighth-floor home called New Broadcasting House in London. The building includes six On-Air studios, two news studios for Newsbeat and then a 'Live Lounge' which includes all the technology they could wish for. The six new studios are fully equipped with state of the art equipment which helps provide a good quality audio and enhanced visual radio productions for the audience. Every studio is equipped with new desks, CDJ’s, mixers and pioneering visualisation equipment. Also the Live Lounge contains hi-tech equipment for bands/artists to perform live to the best audio quality.
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This is a radio 1 studio mono mic which is a large type of microphone that one presenter can speak into. The environment on these microphones are carefully controlled meaning that it only picks up the presenters voice and is good at shielding out background sound which is why they are perfect for presenting on a radio. There are several microphones dotted around the studio so that more than one person can use them, this is ideal for Radio 1 as they usually have guests or even two presenters at once so there are enough microphones to cater for guests as well as more than one presenter.
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The headphones are a key piece of equipment for the radio broadcasts to go ahead, it allows the presenter to hear what is being broadcast, it is also important for the sound technicians on the radio set wear these so that they can hear the broadcast and be able to identify any issues with the sound recording that might need to be fixed.
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Sound desk A sound desk is another key piece of equipment for a radio broadcast as it is home to the audio panels, the sound desk is used to control various outputs such as faders used to control the presenters microphone, jingles, music. It is also used to combine sounds such as call ins into the broadcast
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Speakers are used in the studio for two reasons, the first being a source of sound output so that the crew can hear whats going on air without headphones because the sound of the speakers tend to be high quality therefore they can hear out for any issues with sound. The other reason why speakers are used is to let the announcer hear the audio such as the practice audio so that they can preview the audio quality.
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Level meters are used in the studio to ensure the output of Radio 1 is consistent in terms of volume. The announcer or panel operator will keep an eye on this to ensure the levels are kept consistent, there are multiple meters that show different points of levels in the signal chain. These are really important because the output doesn't want to be too loud or too quiet and it has to follow the stations levels.
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Playout system is a computer based system that plays music, ads, jingles they allow continuous playback of audio and have a granular control for programme directors. The playout system contains the log which is the playlist including all of the music and commands that are scheduled to play at a certain time. The system also includes music databases, hot keys, an audio editor, segue editor and a lot more. Radio 1 use a Pioneer DJM900 Nexus mixer which is configured to the playout system in order for music to be played in good quality and combine ads etc.
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BBC Radio 1 shows all start with a running order which is essentially a script which contains the music, where the news-beat features, music facts, where the guests fit in etc. The presenter learns the running order and once they are live they can control the outputs via the sound desk which is situated in front of them, they use the faders which allow them to play all of the music or other elements that are scheduled in the show.
The presenter is often situation near the playout system which contains all of the music that will be scheduled to play throughout the broadcast, this system includes a music database that helps the presenter when announcing the song as it includes the name of the song and the length - it is important that the presenters know the length of songs so that they can fade out the song at the right moment. The playout system also contains the cart wall which contains beds, jingles which are played throughout the show, these usually run off four faders that are situated on the sound desk. The presenter also gets a view of the level meters that allow the presenter to know if they song is being played too loudly or too quietly, there is a certain level which is usually 5 to 6 for music where a song should be at on the level meter which allows the right output of volume. All of the technologies that the studios contain all help make the shows run smoothly and to plan, different shows contain different uses of technology such as live shows there will be more sound checks taking place as live music tends to be trickier to broadcast due to all of the wires and microphones involved but usually the sound technicians and engineers that work in the sound gallery take responsibility of this whilst the presenter is talking about the live band etc. |