Clandestine radio stations would make for a nice counter culture. Judging by the website style I think I receive an appreciation for keeping it simple. In that spirit I'd say ditch the internet stream. Stick to FM.
Even with a smaller pool of listeners compared to 10 years ago, there are still a lot of people listening to FM.
Within your coverage area, you’re one of maybe 60 stations. That’s far better than being one out of 150,000 discoverable internet radio stations.
When you get on the air, be sure to set up RadioDNS and DTS Autostage, with service following, and Amazon Radio Skills Kit. They are great tools for converting on-air listeners into “captured” online listeners.
I'm probably looking at this a little naive, no doubt. It's just that (in my fantasy) a pure good ole radio could be a great medium for enthusiasts and odd balls (#cyberpunk). But as soon as there is an internet stream then the actual radio is going to be a gimmick. The whole experience changes if you actually _have_ to use a radio to listen. Of course, your audience is limited by design ... so, realistically there just might not be a sustainable audience in your FM radius. Anyway, cool project!
This whole thread makes me think of Pump Up the Volume. As a teen, we used to get together in one location and everyone would tune in to the same station and leave doors open or windows down so music was everywhere just like scenes in the movie. Doing that with streams makes this impossible. Even with the popularity of streaming, if there was a station with a show that catered to the teen hang out like this I can see it regaining popularity.
I wonder if more European pirates will appear on medium wave as commercial and state broadcasters abandon the band. Many countries have exited entirely already, meaning it's sometimes possible to hear these pirates at great distance. Most are from the Netherlands but I'm fairly sure every country has these 'hobby' pirates which broadcast sporadically.
Its /significantly/ more challenging to setup a medium wave station as you will need a giant antenna.
I absolutely love AM radio and would prefer to run an AM station but there is no realistic path, legally or technically, to doing it as a micro broadcaster, other then the Part 15 route which I have done.
solomonb|12 days ago
Also I am /much/ more interested in terrestrial radio but the reality is that the vast majority of listeners are online and not using a radio. : (
RF_Enthusiast|12 days ago
Within your coverage area, you’re one of maybe 60 stations. That’s far better than being one out of 150,000 discoverable internet radio stations.
When you get on the air, be sure to set up RadioDNS and DTS Autostage, with service following, and Amazon Radio Skills Kit. They are great tools for converting on-air listeners into “captured” online listeners.
raffael_de|12 days ago
dylan604|12 days ago
MisterTea|12 days ago
BoxOfRain|11 days ago
solomonb|11 days ago
I absolutely love AM radio and would prefer to run an AM station but there is no realistic path, legally or technically, to doing it as a micro broadcaster, other then the Part 15 route which I have done.