KCSN Is Testing IBOC Booster in L.A.

KCSN(FM) has begun testing an HD Radio booster to fill in its 1 μV/m contour in West Los Angeles. The California State University station in Northridge has experimental authorization from the FCC to conduct testing of a main and booster HD Radio system operating in hybrid mode.
Broadcast Electronics HD Radio transmitters, exciters and signal generators are being used for the test.
KCSN has matching grant money from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting for its digital conversion. The station wants to convert both the main and a proposed booster site. The Santa Monica mountain range has blocked its signal from reaching part of its licensed coverage area, and if the tests are successful, the booster would fill in that portion of its coverage contour.
The station anticipates getting one-third of its coverage from the booster.
“Converting to HD Radio on just the one may have made the aural experience less than it should be,” states Mike Worrall, chief engineer for KCSN(FM), a classical/eclectic station, in the announcement released by BE.
Broadcast Electronics supplied an FMi 73 HD Radio transmitter with Fxi 60 digital FM exciter and FSi 10 HD Radio signal generator for the main antenna site in Northridge and another identical BE transmission system for the booster site in West Los Angeles.
The transmission systems are set up in a low-level combine configuration, with 480 watts analog output power for the main and 320 watts analog output power for the booster. Both systems are synchronizing analog and digital broadcasts on 88.5 MHz.
Uncompressed digital STLs are used to simultaneously feed audio to both transmission systems.
Field testing of KCSN’s analog and digital, as well as booster and main, signal areas will be conducted this month.