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When Your HD2 Dies, Do People Notice?

There's been scant attention given to the question of quality of service on digital broadcasts, particularly multicast channels. I think that’s because most observers believe that few consumers are in a position to be affected, given the low number of

There’s been scant attention given to the question of quality of service on digital broadcasts, particularly multicast channels. I think that’s because most observers believe that few consumers are in a position to be affected, given the low number of receivers out there. But based on anecdotal comments, I think that’s beginning to change.

For instance, one engineer noted on Broadcast.net’s Radio-Tech listserv this week (and subsequently confirmed to me): “A few months ago at the public station I worked at, the STL for the HD2 and HD3 locked up on Thanksgiving Day. The studio actually got quite a few calls over it. They had only been on the air at that point for just under two months.” He was echoing a comment from another engineer who’d had a similar experience.

Withh something like a million receivers now in the market (or so we’re told), I suspect we’ll hear about more such listener comments, and that’s a bit of good news for digital radio proponents.

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