Internet Radio

[Simon350S]

This week I recieved my first lot of demo gear 'Sonos Multiroom' for the new business and its introduced me to the delights of internet radio

I've never listened to it before, never paid it any attention to be honest, but I now find myself obsessed with a new radio station I'd never have had the pleasue or listening to if this gear hadn't have turned up.

'Martini in the Morning' is my new favourite music source, its a station based in New York and its really chilled me out, I've got it on right now (currently playing Michael Buble' I've got you under my skin) and will have it on whilst I drop off to sleep later, when I wake up and set up for the day in the office it will be back on again...

So, do you listen to internet radio?

If so what station do you listen to? i'd like some more ideas, I can't listen to this one for ever and theres a lot of rubbish to filter through.....

If not why not?

If you don't have anything to listen to it on, I can sort that out for you, just get in touch I'll do you a good deal!

Edited July 11, 2010 by Simon350S

[rogerch]

BBC Radio 3, sometimes the cricket, the Proms Concerts, that's about it, waiting for some decent Internet TV.

[Simon350S]

Internet TV will get better...

I'm guessing not many people have heard about it, I know of no one who uses it in their homes streaming direct to their TV's.

It will get better, theres no question about that. Theres a lot of interesting functions that can be streamed via it, e.g. videos, catch-up TV and other online services from news, game, traffic and weather providers which will all be available.

How quickly it catches on I don't know, but for now I'm just over the moon with internet radio, were now on Roberta Flack-Tenderly, never heard it before, its great

This year is the year of 3D TV though, saw demos of it at a trade show a few weeks ago and its ace! Its come on a long way from when I was a kid with funny cardboard glasses sat on me conker!!! SKY HD is broadcasting HD content to pubs and clubs and will be launching a domestic service this autumn, apparently at no extra cost! Its on test right now!

So any really good Auzzie radio stations?

[USAndretti42]

My son does an internet radio programme on Tuesday nights from 8 in the evening until 11. I have to admit that I don't know the name of the station. He's won't tell us. Been doing it for a few years.

[fmxa]

I have a fondness for www.entranced.fm and http://somafm.com/groovesalad

[rogerch]

Something I have done recently, I have this little black box which accepts either SD card or USB, interfaced via RCA to my Matrantz Amp, and digital TV, I have currently 617 MP3 files on an SD card, these are symphonies and movements, so that's a lot. I got feed up with having to go to the lounge room to change CDs when all I really wanted was background music, this SD card has been going 3 days and I haven't herd the same track yet ! It will also play AVI, DVX most video formats, as well as slide shows from the SD card direct out of my camera.

Good stuff

[Mark Blanchard]

Planet Rock for me. It has all the old classic rock songs .

[Backmarker]

I recently moved over to DAB and am currently tuned into Absolute 80's

[arbell9]

Radio Chill form Warsaw in Poland, I kid you not.

[Simon350S]

Is that ChilliZET 106.8(Chill)?

Just found it an will see how it goes...

I do plan to listen to all the suggestions, be stupid not too as that was the whole idea!

[Bibs]

What's the deal with DAB? Has it floundered and lost it's footing? I hear that at least in car reception is questionable at best.

[Backmarker]

I can only say that for me the signal is crystal clear. Knocks spots of FM

In addition you get the digital readout telling you about the song/artist etc.

The analogue signal will be switched off shortly ( as with the TV ) so perhaps soon you'll have no choice

[oneshot]

I heard that they had delayed the switch off of digital radio due to the poor uptake of the medium.

How many on here have a digital radio unit in their car? Hmm that's what I thought! Turn off the analogue system and you have many motorists who will be fuming.

[Backmarker]

Like you Dave, I do recall talk of a delay in switching off the signal but I think the date is now set.

Are manufacturers fitting DAB radios to new cars or if I buy a new Ford today ( God forbid ) will it still come with an analogue unit?

I'm not too sure our Government will be too concerned about a few fuming motorists though.

I rarely listen to the radio in the car nowadays, it's usually music from a memory stick or SD card.

[MPx]

I heard that they had delayed the switch off .....

And they also noticed that they will have to find landfill space for a gazillion analogue radios that work perfectly well - not quite the greenest move they could make - they haven't found dumping places for all the analogue TVs or scrappage cars yet.

On a related (off topic) theme, my new digital TV service is pants. On a good day its fine, but add in some wind and rain, or alternatively just heavy muggy thundery feel and the picture breaks up. At least with analogue the picture quality just dropped off a bit, now with digital the sound just squeaks, the picture breaks up and it becomes totally unwatchable. Added to that, our location seems to get a stronger signal from somewhere in Wales than our local transmitter (Mendip) so my kit keeps tuning itself to the wrong area. I then spend ages manually tuning in the stuff I want, only for it to tell me "new DVB services available - retune?" immediately after I finish (and every time I subsequently switch on). There's progress for you!

I reckon I'd be a great candidate as an early adopter of internet TV. But with a measured 1.4Mb speed on an advertised 8 (or 20)Mb broadband service I dont fancy my chances of quality viewing via that route either. So looks like satellite then....anybody found a way of installing that without a dish (planning wont allow it)??

[arbell9]

Is that ChilliZET 106.8(Chill)?

I use the app tunein radio on the iphone, 40000 stations available over the net, pop the phone in the stereo dock and i listen to chill music as I go to sleep.

Just use the word chill in the search function. The US chillout jazz lounge is quite cool too.

Also , digital radios consume more power than FM radios. Bloke said so on radio, also talked to government culture bod who said there is no date set and that there is unlikely to be in the near future. The economics of it as stated above are decidedly dodgy.

[Backmarker]

From this months "Electronics Weekly" ............. the aim still remains 2015 but it's not set in stone

With the publishing of its Digital Radio Action Plan, the new Government has clearly bought into digital radio switchover, with a subtle change of emphasis to what's gone before.

Gone is the barely optional headlong dive for 2015, which was promoted by the previous Government's Digital Britain Report.

According to Communications Minister Ed Vaizey, the new Government will coax public acceptance of FM switch-off, rather than forcing the pace of transition.

"The Digital Radio Action Plan I am publishing today sets out our clear commitment to make progress towards digital radio switchover. But I am not setting a date," he said. "The industry believes 2015 is an achievable target date and we will work to support that ambition. And when the weight of public opinion is behind it, with more than half of all radio listening digital, then we can take the decision on when the country will be ready for switchover."

[oneshot]

In addition you get the digital readout telling you about the song/artist etc.

This happens on FM as well but not on many stations in the UK! When I was in Germany and the US it is common to get the title/artist displayed along with other messages and this is still on FM.

[rogerch]

Forgot to wish you luck with your new venture, so good luck Simon

[Rick Edwards]

This happens on FM as well but not on many stations in the UK! When I was in Germany and the US it is common to get the title/artist displayed along with other messages and this is still on FM.

This is restriction on what RDS can be used for in the UK. We are limited to station names and the display is not allowed to scroll whereas in mainland Europe they can have all kinds of things like presenter names, phone in numbers etc etc. Its actually possible to take the music info from the playout system logs and send that to the text service too. Which is fine so long as the presenter sticks to the logs There is a radio text service on FM in the UK which sometimes has a station message such as "more music variety" or something but there seems to have been very little take up or radio text as it co incided with DAB.....BTW watch this space for DAB 2. on a radio near you soon so don't go splashing the cash on a DAB tuner yet (or at all really)

[Bibs]

Am I right in saying that the USA doesn't even use RDS?

[fmxa]

It's in use in the US

[USAndretti42]

It's just not as common over here. It seems to be more common on the east side of the country than on the west as well but it is definitely available and often shows the song and artist.

[Simon350S]

They are very nice to have and give you a much better options list that conventional FM, as already stated though its not the most environmentally friendly idea shutting off analogue and forcing everyine to digital, the resultant rubbish pile would be massive....

I for one have not stopped listening to it since it turned up, not used our iTunes once or a CD, this is mostly due to the online radio but also partly down to the streaming of napster through the system which gives us access to pretty much any song we want, wherever we want it in the house, whenever we want to listen to it..

Cheers for the best wishes Roger