RadioBanter - KOA STL

dxAce wrote:
KOA, Denver Studio Link:

** U S A. 25950 FM, KB99696 Denver CO; 1759-1806+, 26-Nov; U of CO vs
U of NE FB game call; ID at 1800, "News Radio 8-50 KOA". Good to
zilch. Tnx Liz for alert. First one of these studio links heard in a
couple of years (Harold Frodge, MI, MARE Tipsheet via DXLD)

25950 [FM] USA KOA, 1835-1925 Dec 4, thanks to a tip from Tom Williamson noted
this cue link station with coverage of high school football championship game,
local ads, plenty of IDs. Fair to good in FM mode with periodic deep fades.
(D'Angelo-PA, NASWA Flashsheet)
===================================

Just to be pedanticgrin, this almost certainly is NOT a
studio=transmitter link. A 26MHz STL would be subject to "skip"
interference from other 26MHz broadcast auxiliary signals (not to
mention the "freebanders" who seem to infest the entire 25-30MHz
spectrum) which would of course be rebroadcast over KOA's 50,000-watt
transmitter.

This transmitter is probably an IFB (interruptable foldback)
transmitter. The on-air announcer(s) listen to the 25.95MHz signals on
a small receiver with an earpiece, and normally hear the KOA air signal
(including their own voice) in their ear. However, a producer is able
to interrupt the KOA air signal and give the announcer cues - "you have
10 seconds before we need to go to commercial", etc.. This also allows
the announcer to hear commercials, news, promotions, and scores of other
games that might originate back at the main KOA studio.

If the KOA broadcast signal is on delay (or if the 950MHz
studio=transmitter link is digital, which will impose a delay in the
audio) then the 25.95MHz IFB signal is probably NOT on delay. The use
of the IFB signal allows the announcer to hear what other announcers
(the guy in the locker room, the reporter on the field, etc.) are saying
without hearing a time-delayed copy of their own voice. It is nearly
impossible to speak while hearing yourself on time delay.

While the IFB signal is still subject to interference, it's a lot less
likely. KB99696 is licensed for mobile operation - the transmitter is
probably located inside KOA's live remote truck, within a few hundred
feet of the announcers. The consequences of interference to IFB are
also a lot less than the consequences of interference to the transmitter
link!
--
Doug Smith W9WI
Pleasant View (Nashville), TN EM66
http://www.w9wi.com