Broadcast Electronics is turning 50 soon.
The RF and audio equipment manufacturer is noting the anniversary coming up in June. It is giving broadcasters a chance to qualify for a free STX LP solid-state, low-power FM transmitter or AudioVault FleX studio automation software.
The company was founded in 1959 and made its early mark in broadcast cart machines. “BE made history in 1965 as the first to introduce a multi-deck tape cartridge machine, and again in 1978, when it introduced the first microprocessor based program control system,” it stated in a historical summary.
“BE’s early forays into automation led up to an industry milestone in 1989, when BE introduced the first automation system based on the open PC platform, which several generations later carries the BE AudioVault brand.”
In RF it introduced the first single-tube high-powered FM transmitter in 1979. “BE entered the highly competitive FM transmission market with a patented folded half-wave cavity design, the first of its kind capable of eliminating plate-blocking capacitors and sliding contacts. At the same time, BE introduced an innovative FM exciter design that later developed into BE’s current FXi exciter line, which continues to lead the market in RF performance with the use of a direct-to-channel RF frequency generation.”
It expanded further into HD Radio in the 2000s and developed and acquired technology for the introduction of new data services for HD Radio. The company is headquartered in Quincy, Ill.
