Paid OTA TV Expanding - How it Impacts Free OTA TV

So YOU’RE the one!

My new Onkyo 7100 doesn’t receive HD radio. My previous Onkyo 805 required an external box for that. Not an option for the 7100.

Great hordes of people gather to protest this lack. NOT.
 
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Getting access to HD Radio is a pipe dream for many

Picked up this portable unit from Sangean on Amazon. Testing it out now; it found all available HD radio stations in my area, including a nice smooth jazz one on a .2 of 99.7. Durable construction, nice quality sound.

Currently on sale for $101.

Amazon product ASIN B01BY7YIOQView: https://www.amazon.com/Sangean-HDR-16-Radio-FM-Stereo-Portable/dp/B01BY7YIOQ/ref=sr_1_2?crid=3LO435LBZSX0I&keywords=sangean+hd+radio&qid=1644439839&sprefix=sangean+hd+radio%2Caps%2C105&sr=8-2
 
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Picked up this portable unit from Sangean on Amazon. Testing it out now; it found all available HD radio stations in my area, including a nice smooth jazz one on a .2 of 99.7. Durable construction, nice quality sound.
I think harshness might also be referring to a lack of HD Radio transmitters, which is a real problem in much of rural America. HD Radio is considerably more expensive to run for the broadcaster (and also for the consumer) because it is a patented protocol, requiring custom DSPs running proprietary firmware on both ends. Often the only HD Radio station on the dial is the local NPR affiliate, as they got loans from NPR to pay for the expensive upgrade.

But! if you listen to a lot of radio and are nearby a major metro area, an HD Radio is absolutely worth the investment. I'm on the fringe of the Seattle metro, and I'm able to pick up many stations crystal clear on HD which otherwise are very staticky. The subchannels are also very nice... 24 hour ad-free jazz, blues, alternative, metal, and electronica, with codecs that sound much better than SiriusXM.
 
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Is it a low power station? The jazz FM I'm listening to is 100,000 watts so it carries pretty far.
Most of the stations that serve my area are located 50 miles away in Portland. There is one 2.6KW Spanish language station that shares with a local community access station but neither particularly appeal to me. At such low power, I expect that HD Radio won't survive the 6+ mile trip from the tower since I don't have LOS.

They were pushing HD Radio hard at the local Best Buy in the beginning but they stopped abruptly when they were getting all the radios returned.
 
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My only access to HD radio channels is through streaming. All of my "local" broadcast stations that offer HD Radio broadcasts are too far away.

I live less than five miles from my state's capitol building.
No HD radio where I live. A lot of local advertising for it though. If you travel a lot, it might be something to have or you could do SiriusXM. I'm not sure if I could tell the difference between "normal" radio and HD radio anyway.
 
"Static" isn't typically an attribute of FM radio

Oh come on now, all you have to do is be on the fringe of an FM signal to get static. It's analog, like "Santa Claus in a snowstorm" from analog TV days.

I suspect what you're referring to is the "digital cliff," where any sort of interference (or distance too far from the tower) cuts the HD radio signal off completely (usually long before the analog signal fades away).
 
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Another site told me that the radio in most cars is HD radio. But I don’t believe that. I do know that the radio in my 2014 Odyssey identifies the song title that is currently playing on many stations. But I don’t believe that makes it a HD radio.

My Christian radio station WEEC 100.7 in Springfield Ohio broadcasts HD radio. Initially they were trying to get their audience to buy HD radios since they would be able to listen to all 4 streams. I don’t own a HD radio but I listen to their broadcasts on the internet or using an app on my phone or with Alexa. They have 4 different streams.
HD1 is the over the air broadcast of Christian music.
HD2 is Southern Gospel.
HD3 is Traditional Music (old hymns).
HD4 is Christian Teaching.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
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Many car radios (including all current Honda models) support HD Radio. GM is not able to outfit their pickups at the moment because they're spending too much time pitching themselves as the leader in electric vehicles and not enough acquiring parts to build anything.
 
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