Radio age (May 1922-Dec 1923)

IS RADIO AGE— "THE MAGAZINE OF THE HOUR" Lockport and about forty miles from Chicago. Being short on entertainment, if there is any way we can install the equipment for a receiving set so that we could have the benefit of the fine concerts, lectures, as well as many other things coming over the air, it would be a great boon to us. "I would like to get you interested for it is a worthy cause, so to speak — and to have you give us advice, and if agreeable, lend your aid, so we could get the proper equipment at as low a price as possible. "Under the present administration of affairs here, with Acting Warden John L. Whitman in charge, everything possible is being done to have the men realize that they are men, and that they are expected to go out and prove it by making good. It is easy to see therefore, what great good a radio set would do here. "We have a dining hall, about 16x50, where the apparatus could be placed so the concerts, etc. could be heard. We have electricity, power furnished by the Sanitary District. Just what information you would want before giving us suggestions, as to what we would need, I do not know, but if you will give us an idea as to about what would be necessary, its probable cost, etc., I will be grateful." Bank Operates Giant Radio The most powerful radio broadcasting station on the Pacific Coast — and one of the most powerful in the United States — is now "on the air" in regular service on "Telegraph Hill," San Francisco. The station — officially known as KFDB — was established by the Mercantile Trust Company of California, and is the first in the West to be built, owned and operated by a bank. KFDB has a sufficient range to reach all points west of the Rocky Mountains. It is broadcasting every day (Sunday excepted) commercial, financial and agricultural information between the hours of 10 and 11 a. m., 2 to 3 p. m., with a musical program between 9 and 10 p. m. The first attempt at broadcasting from the KFDB station — made in August — developed an interesting problem in radio engineering. The power was supplied direct from a 2,000 volt generator, but the commutator hum of the generator prevented satisfactory radio reception. To eliminate this disturbing noise, it was decided to install a 2,000 volt 20 amphere hour storage battery, and use the generator for recharging the battery in series. The Philadelphia Storage Battery Company supplied 333 Philco Radio "A" Batteries for the purpose and regular broadcasting was started on November 1, Broadcaster Saves $56,000 ONE broadcasting station has been issuing for some months its weekly program to 30,000 "listeners-in." This has been mailed at great expense. The station has decided not to continue this method and we publish a letter the station issued a month ago, eliminating the name of the station for the reason that we have not received permission to use it. The letter comes to us from a fan who says the decision is "somewhat of a calamity," as having the program at hand assists in identifying the station. The broadcaster's letter follows: "Dear Friend: "This station has been vitally interested in the constructive side of radio transmitting. With this issue before us we are going to change one thing to better develop the other. "We have been publishing a weekly program; our mailing list on this program has now passed the thirty thousand mark. We estimate that if continued, it would cost us fifty-six thousand dollars per year to print, addressograph, and mail this program. This overhead expense in no manner improves the character or quality of our broadcast program, which is really 'the constructive side of radio transmitting.' "You do not listen in on the printed leaflet. It merely gives you the names of persons, selections, hours of broadcasting, etc. We believe there is a better way, at a very great saving to us, allowing us to put this saving into better radio transmitting, which is again 'the constructive side of radio transmitting.' "The station issues a weekly newspaper advance program sheet which is mailed the newspapers free. If your newspaper prints this daily or weekly, you get the names, numbers and hours just as well as though we sent it to you individually. A one-cent stamp takes it to the newspaper; the newspaper passes it on to thousands of listeners at no further expense to anyone, whereas it now costs four cents each week to reach each person in the thirty thousand. In order to get 'the constructive side of radio transmitting' to all the listeners in your territory, we ask that you make it your individual duty to cooperate with us on this change, thus saving us a tremendous expense and accomplishing the same end in another way. It will be put to you to see that your newspaper is placed on our newspaper program mailing list. It will also be up to you to see that this program is being published daily or weekly for the benefit of yourself and everyone interested, in your territory. The amount of public demand for this service will determine your newspaper's willingness to give space for the purpose. The cooperation of yourself and other listeners in your district with the newspapers in your locality is therefore necessary * "For reasons which are obvious, it will be necessary that the request to he placed on this list must come from the newspaper direct. "This station will continue with the very best programs, ever striving to improve the quality of its service to the public. It is obvious that the elimination of this one overhead expense and concentration of our savings and efforts upon the quality of our broadcast programs can only result in the improvement of that product. "Your correspondence is solicited, now as before. Your criticisms, suggestions, and advice have helped us materially in placing our station acehigh among the broadcasting stations of the country. We need your further cooperation to further improve our service. Very sincerely yours, "P. S. — The program enclosed herewith will be the last copy issued to individual listeners." Organ Recitals Through the courtesy of the Estey Organ Company, the Radio CorporationWestinghouse station, WJZ, Newark, N. J., has arranged to broadcast organ recitals at least twice a week during the coming winter. The organ, because of its extreme purity of tone and great versatility, has always been the most popular of musical instruments, and the radio audience has voiced its approval of the recitals now being broadcasted by several of the larger stations. Unfortunately, however, the average organ is not well adapted for radio purposes. For both structural and artistic reasons, it is installed in several different sections; and though the player can produce beautiful effects for his immediate audience by the appropriate use of these different sections, the variation in the volume of sound is too extreme to be entirely satisfactory to the radio audience. The engineers of WJZ studied all of the available organs with this fact in view and were delighted to find in the great Estey organ, installed in the general offices of the company at 1 1 West 49th Street, New York City, one that was not only of the highest musical excellence but that also seemed especially designed for radio purposes. In this organ, the sound chambers are so arranged that all of the tone emerges from a single point, regardless of which banks of pipes are being played. This greatly simplifies the transmitting problem and permits every sound intensity to be caught at its true relative value by the microphone. An unusual feature broadcast by WJAX, the radio station of the Union Trust Company, Cleveland, was the organ recital by Edwin Arthur Kraft, at the new Cleveland Public Auditorium on Tuesday evening, November 28. This program was of especial interest to radio fans because of the unusual character of the organ upon which the recital was played. The Cleveland Public Auditorium organ is the largest in volume of any organ in the world and has been the cause of much interest upon the part of musicians as well as much curiosity upon the part of the public. The organ was designed and built by the Skinner Organ Company of Boston, Mass.