TWiRT 515 - The Next Best Thing 2020

The “Next Best Thing Media Tour” is rolling onward, having visited two dozen markets to date, and with a long list to go before concluding around Thanksgiving. It’s a traveling outdoor equipment expo intended to help engineers and others see equipment or talk to vendors in person, in this year without an NAB Show. Cities just visited include Nashville, Dayton, Cincinnati, and Indianapolis, with Dallas, Houston, Miami and Atlanta coming up. The organizers include Greg Dahl of Second Opinion Communication, Dave Kerstin of Broadcasters General Store and Jeff Williams of Yellowtec.

Show Notes:
See the remaining schedule and RSVP here…
The Next Best Thing Facebook Page

Guests:
Greg Dahl - Second Opinion Communications
Paul Stewart - Summit Technology Group
Jeff Wiliams - YellowTec
Shane Finch - ENCO
Ed Bukont - E2 Technical Services
Dave Kerstin - Customer Service at Broadcasters General Store
Jason Cooper - Radian Corporation
Chris Crump - Comrex

Hosts:
Chris Tobin, IP-Solutionist
Kirk Harnack, The Telos Alliance, Delta Radio, & South Seas Broadcasting

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Nautel - offering informative webinars at Nautel.com/webinars. 
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TWiRT 515 - The Next Best Thing 2020

TWiRT 514 - Wildfire! with Mike Everhart

Being Director of Engineering for a large radio broadcaster is challenging enough these days. Doing that while fighting forest fires is downright heroic! Mike Everhart is Director of Engineering at Alpha Media AND he fights wildfires. We’ll see the incredible damage done to a steel-walled transmitter building and its contents, plus the clever replacement shelter to get back on-air just 3 days later. Finally, David Bialik joins us with highlights of the on-demand sessions available in the Broadcast track of this year’s AES Show.

Show Notes:
Chaparral burns particularly hot in the Western wildfires. 
KUIC-FM is the focus of our discussion of a burned transmitter site; a real hometown station
Here’s the KUIC transmitter site on Google Maps
Mike Everhart is a Volunteer Lieutenant at the Molalla Fire Protection District
Alpha Media
AES2020 Show - listing of sessions and events by track. Broadcast and Online Delivery is the section referenced by David Bialik.

Guests:
Mike Everhart - Corporate Director of Engineering at Alpha Media & Volunteer Lieutenant at Walalla Fire District
David Bialik - Consultant to the streaming and broadcast communities

Hosts:
Chris Tobin, IP-Solutionist
Kirk Harnack, The Telos Alliance, Delta Radio, & South Seas Broadcasting

Follow TWiRT on Twitter and on Facebook

TWiRT is brought to you by:
Broadcasters General Store, with outstanding service, saving, and support. Online at BGS.cc. 

Broadcast Bionics - making radio smarter with Bionic Studio, visual radio, a social media tools at Bionic.radio.
Angry Audio - with StudioHub cables and adapters. Audio problems disappear when you get Angry at AngryAudio.com.
Nautel - offering informative webinars at Nautel.com/webinars. 
And MaxxKonnectWireless - Prioritized High Speed Internet Service designed for Transmitter Sites and Remote Broadcasts.

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TWiRT 514 - Wildfire! with Mike Everhart

TWiRT 513 - A Lifetime of Achievement with Mark Persons

In fifty-six years the Society of Broadcast Engineers (SBE) has awarded only ten John H. Battison Awards for Lifetime Achievement. This tenth and most recent one was just bestowed upon Mark Persons, CPBE, CBNT, AMD. Since Mark got started in radio and had an engineering curiosity from an early age, we wanted to know about his early experiences that have informed his career as a broadcast engineer. Mark takes us through his early years and military duty, and describes how he “never had a Plan B”.  Also, AES Past President, John Krivit, tells us about the 7 Audio Wonders of the World Tech Tour. 

Show Notes:
From the SBE: Society of Broadcast Engineers Presents John H. Battison Award for Lifetime Achievement to Mark Persons
Radio World article: Mark Persons Receives SBE Lifetime Achievement Award
Mark Persons’ Tech Tips - A huge collection of tips learned from a lifetime of engineering
Thirty years of broadcast engineering articles by Mark Persons
Chris Tobin’s Tip: NanoVNA-F Portable Handheld Vector Network Analyzer
Kirk’s Tip: Telos Alliance Support page for generating SDP files for AES67 stream subscriptions

Guest:
Mark Persons - M. W. Persons & Associates

Hosts:
Chris Tobin, IP-Solutionist
Kirk Harnack, The Telos Alliance, Delta Radio, & South Seas Broadcasting

Follow TWiRT on Twitter and on Facebook

TWiRT is brought to you by:
Broadcasters General Store, with outstanding service, saving, and support. Online at BGS.cc.
Angry Audio - your source for StudioHub cables and adapters, plus audio Gadgets and Gizmos. Audio problems disappear when you get Angry at AngryAudio.com.
Nautel - keeping you connected with your community, and offering informative webinars at Nautel.com/webinars. 
And MaxxKonnectWireless - Prioritized High Speed Internet Service designed for Transmitter Sites and Remote Broadcasts.

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TWiRT 513 - A Lifetime of Achievement with Mark Persons

TWiRT 512 - Brace Yourselves, Winter is Coming with Paul Montoya

Preparing for winter is a time-honored ritual in most temperate climates. Most of the USA - indeed most of the world’s population - fall in temperate zones, and that means winter weather is likely or possible. The “business end” of broadcast equipment is often exposed to winter weather. Paul Montoya, Director of Engineering at Wyoming Public Media, oversees operations and maintenance at transmitter sites that are difficult to access and exposed to harsh conditions while being considered “critical infrastructure”.  Paul joins us to discuss preparing for winter’s harshness to stay on-the-air - and to stay safe.

Show Notes:
Wyoming Public Radio
Wyoming Public Radio Coverage Map
Insulated Concrete Forms (ICF) explainer video from Matt Risinger
When in Laramie, Wyoming, we recommend you stay at Vista de la Luna B&B

Guest:
Paul Montoya - Director of Engineering @ Wyoming Public Media

Hosts:
Chris Tobin, IP-Solutionist
Kirk Harnack, The Telos Alliance, Delta Radio, & South Seas Broadcasting

Follow TWiRT on Twitter and on Facebook

TWiRT is brought to you by:
Broadcasters General Store, with outstanding service, saving, and support. Online at BGS.cc.
Angry Audio - your source for StudioHub cables and adapters, plus audio Gadgets and Gizmos. Audio problems disappear when you get Angry at AngryAudio.com.
Nautel - keeping you connected with your community, and offering informative webinars at Nautel.com/webinars. 
And MaxxKonnectWireless - Prioritized High Speed Internet Service designed for Transmitter Sites and Remote Broadcasts.

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TWiRT 512 - Brace Yourselves, Winter is Coming with Paul Montoya

TWiRT 511 - FM Antennas from Theory to Practice with Bill Harland

To most radio broadcast engineers, FM transmitting antennas are both slightly mysterious and rather fascinating.  There are several fundamental designs plus differences in materials, testing, placement, and operational maintenance.  Bill Harland from Electronics Research, Inc. (ERI) provides a wealth of information and photos to point out key concepts with FM antennas. This episode is packed with information that every radio engineer should know!

Show Notes:
Antenna Planning Tools
Antenna System White Papers
ERI “Rototiller” Antenna - Name controversy? [YouTube video]
TWiRT coverage of the Engineer's Seminar & Tribute to the FM Master Antenna
Video about ERI from the Economic Development Coalition of SW Indiana

Guest:
Bill Harland - Vice President of Marketing at Electronics Research, Inc.

Hosts:
Chris Tobin, IP-Solutionist
Kirk Harnack, The Telos Alliance, Delta Radio, & South Seas Broadcasting

Follow TWiRT on Twitter and on Facebook

TWiRT is brought to you by:
Broadcasters General Store, with outstanding service, saving, and support. Online at BGS.cc.
Angry Audio - your source for StudioHub cables and adapters, plus audio Gadgets and Gizmos. Audio problems disappear when you get Angry at AngryAudio.com.
Nautel - keeping you connected with your community, and offering informative webinars at Nautel.com/webinars. 
And MaxxKonnectWireless - Prioritized High Speed Internet Service designed for Transmitter Sites and Remote Broadcasts.

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TWiRT 511 - FM Antennas from Theory to Practice with Bill Harland