Radio Broadcast (Nov. 1925-Apr 1926)

APRIL, 1926 DETAILS OF SOME BROADCASTING STATIONS 675 "Radio Suite" — on the twenty-fourth floor of the Palmer House, which, when the second section is completed, is expected to be the largest hotel in the world. The director of wjjd is Jack Nelson, one of the pioneer broadcasters of the Middle West. The new studio arrangement was not thrown together haphazardly, but was carefully planned by Mr. Nelson and the architects of the building. Under these conditions, the people in charge had a relatively free hand in arranging things as past experience indicated they should be. No doubt in the future many new buildings will include broadcasting facilities in the plans; Mr. Rothaphel's New York theatre, now in process of construction, is an example of this evolution. At wjjd there are two studios, to facilitate rehearsals and avoid delays in running off the programs. No one who has not tried to get a thirty-piece band out of a moderate sized room, with the air blank or desperately "plugged" until they could be got out and the next number set up, can appreciate what a help an auxiliary studio is to the program and operating staffs of a station. By means of buzzer and light signals the operator in the room between the studios keeps control of the proceedings. The artists in the studio are directed by means of electric signs reading, "Get Ready," "Broadcast" (in red), and others like "Too Loud," "Too Soft," "Too Much Piano," etc. A motion picture booth is provided for taking pictures of celebrities who broadcast. Here the necessary cameras and lights are stored, ready for use and out of the way, and cables leading direct from the main power switchboard of the hotel furnish the currents necessary. Microphone stands are considered passe at wjjd. Instead, the transmitters are suspended from eight-foot decorative wrought iron arms adjustable to any height and position. This eliminates microphone wires trailing around the floor, with the possibility of people tripping over them. Loud speakers placed in the Studio Parlor, each of the rest rooms, the Director's office, and the Control Room, permit the program to be followed at all of these points. The reception parlor is furnished on the style of a well furnished living room, with chairs and lounges for waiting artists and guests. The windows between the studios and the reception room are so draped that the guests can see into the studios, but the artists, while on the air, cannot be disconcerted by a view in the opposite direction. This arrangement gets around the difficulty encountered when the studio is glass enclosed on one side, of causing the artists to feel as if they were in an aquarium. A twenty-pair cable connects the control room of the wjjd suite to the public address control room of the hotel, so that public address service can be provided in any portion of the hotel on radio programs, and, conversely, the station can pick up broadcast material from any of the ballrooms, dining rooms, and other points reached by the public address system. For example, any one of the five orchestras which will play regularly in the Palmer House will be available in this way. One important item that is frequently neglected in broadcasting studios has not been overlooked in this instance. This is the matter of ventilation. It is stated that more than $10,000 was spent for ventilation in the new quarters of wjjd. WFBG WFBG is a 100-watt outfit at Altoona, Pennsylvania, owned and operated by the William F. Gable Company and the Times-Tribune Company of that city. Walter S. Greevy is the director; the chief operator is William K. Aughenbaugh. Wfbg broadcasts regularly from eighteen remote control studios, over leased wires, and about once a week they pick up a special program, using portable equipment. The shortest loop is 3000 feet and the longest about 4 miles, not counting central office wiring. A. T. & T. circuits are used in the main. The transmitter is a Western Electric 2A, with 100 watts output, fed by a 24A speech input amplifier and equipped with the 3B receiver and KS2253 power panel. There is also a set of storage batteries for plate and filament supply. The set reaches out 600 miles on evening programs. In making some pleasant remarks about this department in its relation to broadcasters, Mr. Aughenbaugh comments on the lack of books about land line broad THE CHICAGO STUDIO OF WJJD It is located in the New Palmer House and especially designed for the station cast transmission and broadcasting hi general. There is certainly a paucity of such works. However, many valuable papers have appeared in the Journal of the A.I.E.E. and the Proceedings of the I.R.E. A list of the more conspicuous ones was given in this department in the April 1925 Radio Broadcast. Every broadcast engineer and operator should read the articles therein named, if nothing else. However, a complete file of the journals mentioned for 1923, 1924, and 1925 would be a good investment. There are also valuable papers in the Bell System Technical Journal, G. E. Review, and other technical periodicals. We are thinking of summarizing one such article each month, in its practical aspects, for technical broadcasters who are so situated that the originals are inaccessible to them. But we can do that only if we have reason to believe there is a decided demand for such material among our readers. How do you feel about it? You can have what you like, but you must let us know what it is. WLS IN A town with an ancient and Mediterranean name, Crete, Illinois, there is situated the new 5000-watt transmitter of "the artists feel as if they were in an aquarium