FrontPage >> Tips >> Tips for on-air people
This is a collection of tips for on air-people.
- Doing a show
- CDs and CD players
- EAS
- Remote live feeds
- Phone systems
- Sound monitors
- Lights
- Doors and door bell
WaveCart, feeds
Doing a show
Filling the log
3/11/03
Filling logs is much easier now than it used to be.
The station log, the only log left, is just for JoAnne's use (not for the FCC), and she simplified it considerably.
EC and Davide handle the FCC logs, so you don't have to.
All *you* have to do in the log is: BEFORE your show: - PRINT your real name, legibly, and start time (24 hour clock) at the top (that's NOT a signature we're asking for) - READ what the log says you must do (especially EAS, acknowledgements, features, giveaways) DURING your show: - as you do those things, place the TIME (24 hour clock) in the right column (JoAnne needs to know when you played an acknowledgement) AFTER your show: - PRINT your real name and end time at the top That's it!
Be up to date
10/2/05
Look in the Events and Promos Special folders of WaveCart for timely spots - play them
Look at the kgnu home page, listing What's Gnu, Events and Upcoming Specials - talk about them on the air
Read the log - take care of items that you must do
CDs and CD players
Skipping CDs
5/20/03
To state the obvious: there are 2 reasons for which CDs skip 1) the CD 2) the CD player When you see a sign on a CD player that says "Skips", it means is that a particular CD has skipped once in that particular player, and a DJ wanted to do you a favor by telling you not to use that CD player.
That sign by itself won't help me fix that CD player (assuming it's really broken), so the sign will stay there until it falls off.
What if the problem was a dirty or scratched CD, or a spec of dirt that is now long gone? Now all the other DJs shy away from that CD player and are deprived of its use! Pretty soon, *all* the CD players will be "out of order".
I am not saying that the CD players don't have any problems.
I am just asking you to read this tip so that you can really help fellow DJs and help me fix truly broken players.
Some CD players are more tolerant of marginal CDs, therefore a given CD may play in one player but not the other.
And the same player may skip a CD at one time, but play it fine now, because of a spec of dirt that was there before, but now is gone.
When I see a "skips" sign on a CD player, I try it.
I've done entire shows exclusively on "skips" CD players, without a single problem.
And, if it doesn't skip, what am I supposed to do? Repair it? But I don't see anything to repair.
Remove the "skips" sign? But if the CD player really *is* marginal, the DJs *should* be warned! If a CD skips for you, this is how you can help me repair a CD player that is really bad, and you can truly help your fellow DJs as soon as possible.
1) Is it a CD ROM? CD ROMS vary all over the place, depending on the blank CD and on the burner.
If a CD ROM skips, that's not an indication that the CD player is bad.
Don't put a "skip" sign on the player! 2) Is the CD badly scratched or dirty? That's the problem.
Please don't blame the CD player.
Note the track and the spot on the track that skipped.
Try cleaning the CD, then try the same track, same spot, same CD player.
If it still skips, put a sign on the *CD*.
Don't put a "skip" sign on the player! 3) Is the CD pretty clean? Try that same CD, same track, same spot in the track, in other CD players.
If all of them skip too, the CD is poorly manufactured.
Put a sign on the *CD*.
Don't put a "skip" sign on the player! 4) Is the CD pretty clean, and does it skip consistently in one CD player, but in no others? *This* is where I can help, if you first help me: place that CD in the engineering mail box, with a note specifying which studio, which player, which track, where in the track.
For example: "Skips only on CD1, Red studio, track 8, at 2:59".
Then I can 1) duplicate the problem, 2) tune that CD player, 3) test that I fixed it by checking that now that CD player does play that track.
BTW: CD1 and CD2 are used far more often than the others, so they degrade more rapidly.
Is that why they tend to have "skip" sign on them more often? Or is it because statistically they end up playing more dirty CDs?
Recording your show on CD
4/5/03
To record your radio show you can use the CD burner (in the Red studio, below CD2).
While KGNU can sell you blank CDs, it sells them at a hefty $ 1.50.
So it's much cheaper if you bring your own blank CDs.
I wrote simple (yet complete) sheet of instructions on how to record a CD.
It's in a clear green sheet protector, over the CD burner.
Note that recording audio CDs is a 2-step process: recording, and finalizing.
After you record your show, if you don't finalize a CD, a standard CD player won't play it.
Finalizing takes time! You can always go back and finalize a CD later.
A CD holds more than 1 hour of audio.
If you need to record more than that, when 1 CD is full, quickly change to the next CD.
Then, after the show, go back and finalize all the CDs.
By the way: while you can record your show using a production studio's computer, that's an inefficient use of the production studio, so please don't do it.
EAS
4/15/03
By law, KGNU must use the EAS (Emergency Alert System).
The EAS was designed to let the President take over all broadcast stations in case of a national emergency.
The EAS is a tree of interconnected radio statations, with the White House at the root, and KGNU as one of its many branches.
KGNU's equipment constantly monitors 3 radio stations further down the tree (KOA, KYGO and the National Weather Service).
KGNU receives the EAS alerts from those 3 stations, logs them, and may rebroadcasts them automatically.
Also KGNU must test the EAS on a regular basis.
We tried to make the EAS as transparent to you as possible, but here are still a few things that you need to know and/or do as a programmer.
National Alert - the President could start this, and it would take over KGNU automatially.
You wouldn't have to do anything for this.
Monthly EAS tests - one of the 3 stations that KGNU monitors starts this test, and KGNU relays it over the air, automatically, 5 minutes later.
You don't have to do anything for this test.
If you are monitoring Program (instead of Air), you may not even realize it happened.
Our listeners are puzzled by these tests, as they are sudden and unannounced.
Received Required Weekly Test - one of the 3 stations that KGNU monitors starts this test, and KGNU's equipment logs it automatically.
You don't have to do anything for this test.
Transmitted Required Weekly Test - *YOU* the programmer must start this, when the program log tells you to do so.
Use the EAS terminal in the Red Studio, to the left of the WaveCart monitor.
The instructions are right on it.
It just takes 2 key-presses! While you don't have to announce that you're about to do a test, it's a courtesy to our listeners to do so.
Weather Alerts - Through the EAS, the National Weather Services notifies us of significant weather events.
Unfortunately, those notices are buried in a barrage of other notices, making them hard to spot.
While KGNU is under no obligation to do anything about these, as a service to our listeners, you may want to report significant weather events for our area.
Unfortuately, the method to do so using the EAS is cumbersome.
{Personal opinion: while the concepts behind the EAS are debatable, it's execution is abismal, and has rendered it nearly useless in the few areas where it could be useful.}
Remote live feeds
4/8/03
You have 3 ways to bring live sounds from remote locations to KGNU (for example from a rally, a talk or a concert).
- Standard phone (easiest, acceptable quality).
Uses a regular phone or cellular phone.
Either call 442-4242 (Red or Blue studios), or have KGNU call the remote phone from a Silver Phone (Blue, Gray or Green studios).
- HotLine (requires some set-up, good quality).
This system's sound quality is good even though it uses standard phone lines (not a cellular phone).
It digitizes and compresses the sound.
A HotLine box is permanently mounted in the Red Studio.
An other one is stored in a suitcase in the News Office.
Bring the portable HotLine box to the remote location, plug it into a standard phone line and have it call the studios.
This only works in the Red Studio.
The Penny Lane program uses this system.
- ISDN (most complex, excellent quality).
This is the same technology as the HotLine, except that it uses ISDN (digital) phone lines.
It is capable of CD quality, stereo sound.
KGNU has an ISDN line and only one ISDN box.
The remote location must also have an ISDN line and their own ISDN box (not many places around town do).
This works in any studio.
Phone systems
3/27/03
The Red Studio has 2 phone systems: the call-in phone (442-4242) and the office phone (449-4665).
CALL-IN PHONE (442-4242) - Encourage people to call this number to talk to you, the on-the-air person.
- You must use this phone for call-ins.
- I strongly recommend that you use this phone for ticket give-aways, whether or not you want to handle the calls.
If you want someone else to handle the calls, ask them to answer them from the call-in phone in the hallway.
This gives consistency to our listeners, and avoids confusion.
OFFICE PHONE (449-4885) - Encourage people to call this number to talk to anyone else at the station.
- Use this phone to dial out, for general purpose calls.
- Please DON'T use this phone for Ticket give-aways, as it really confuses the staff, who may not be aware of your give-away, and ties-up sorely needed lines.
Note that calls to the 800-737-3030 number go to the office phone, so you can't put such calls on the air.
Sound monitors
Volume controls
3/23/03
In the red studio there are many volume controls for the monitors and headsets.
SPEAKERS ON THE WALL - The volume is set by the "SPEAKERS" knob on the right side of the board.
- If any mike is On, this volume is at a fixed level (enough so that others may hear what you're doing, but not loud enough to cause feedback).
(If you don't want that residual sound coming out of the speakers, press the "OFF" button in the speaker source selector.) - If the studio door is open, it limits the volume to a maximum level.
This is to limit the bleed-through into the production studios.
(One day we'll get better doors, and then we'll no longer need this obnoxious workaround).
SUBWOOFER - The volume control for the subwoofer is on the subwoofer itself (black box on the floor, below the board), on its back.
Please put it back where it was after your show.
- If you want to turn the subwoofer totally off, use the toggle switch on the right side wall of the area under the board (plugged into a power strip).
Please turn it back on after your show.
YOUR HEADSETS - The volume is set by the "HEADSET" knob on the right side of the board.
GUEST HEADSETS - The volume control is on the amplifier in the space under the board, on the back wall, towards the left.
Please put it back after your show (black arrow on knob pointing to black arrow on front panel).
CUE SPEAKER - The volume is set by the "CUE" knob on the right side of the board.
- If any mike is On, the cue speaker is totally off.
PLAYERS' HEADSETS - You may plug-in headsets directly into jacks in the cassette players, the CD players, the reel-to-reel players, etc.
Most of these have their own volume controls, near the headset jack.
Door switched volume
6/3/03
The Red studio has a gadget that limits the volume of its speakers if its door is open.
This limits the sound bleeding into the production studios, which could ruin the recording of an interview.
This is a stop-gap measure until we come-up with better doors for the production studios.
The gadget doesn't reduce the volume, but it limits it.
That is, if the volume is below a certain level, opening the door makes no difference.
It only affects the speaker volume when the "Monitor" knob is higher than about 1/2 way.
The sudden drop in volume when someone opens the Red Studio door can be disconcerting, so many DJs detest it.
Some have even resorted to sabotaging the gadget! (Remember that sabotage can be grounds for immediate dismissal!) I have now tried to make it sabotage proof.
Also, I tried to help the problem by making the volume change occur smoothly over 1 second, which is less disconcerting.
Lights
Small lights
3/18/03
- The turntable lights turn on automatically.
In the Red studio they turn on when either turntable is on.
In the Blue studio they turn on when you lift the cover of the "coffin".
Please keep them off when not in use, as the bulbs don't last long and are hard to replace.
- The light bulbs in the On / Off buttons of the boards don't last long.
Let me know if they need to be replaced.
- To save the life of the bulbs in the "ON AIR" signs, please turn off all mikes when not in use.
That's particularly a problem in the Gray studio.
OverHead Lights
3/13/03
- The track lights in the Red Studio are on dimmers.
If you look at the light switches by the door, you'll see tiny sliders just to the right of them; that's how you adjust the light level.
- Spare light bulbs are in the Engineering Lab, in the metal cabinet.
- If you need to adjust or replace the Red Studio's cable lights, do not touch the actual bulb, as your finger's oil damages it.
Doors and door bell
2/28/03
- Keep the two outside doors locked when all staff members are gone.
Otherwise you may end up with uninvited people - loitering, helping themselves in the CD library, walking into the air studio, using our facilities...
At best, it can be awkward, at worse it can be damaging or even dangerous.
- It takes a key to lock and unlock the South door.
If you use a key to come in that way, make sure you re-lock it.
The North door takes a tool, which is tied to the crash bar.
- Don't prop the doors open for longer than a few minutes.
The air conditioning relies on the doors being closed.
And, the last time the doors were left open, we had mice move in (the proof is inside the Green Studio board)! - After hours, visitors can ring the door bell.
Outside, to the right of each entry door, there's a door-bell button.
The bell chimes in the hallway.
In the Red Studio it chimes (unless a mike is on) and turns on a yellow light.
- If you hear the door bell, please do go and see who it is (the DJ may too busy).
If you don't recognize them, politely ask them "What's up?", and, if they aren't volunteers nor expected visitors, be prepared to ask them to come back during regular business hours.
changed October 4 '05 at 9:01 pm - RSS2/Atom - source - flashback
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