The Basics of Broadcast Radio Station Antenna Systems

In this video, I'll teach you about some basic concepts surrounding antenna theory and what we do in broadcasting to apply it.

You’ll learn the very basics of the decibel or dB, wavelength, radio wave polarization, collinear antenna arrays, and effective radiated power.

[SmokeShadow]

I know that longer videos are harder and take a bunch of time, but your 'long' videos are much better than the 'shorts'. Keep it up, this stuff is fascinating.

[WECB]

Thanks for showing the "rototiller". 99.9% of listeners have never seen one up close, and also without the radome. Keep up the great work. 73

[HJCF]

Fantastic video as usual! Thank you for educating people like myself on broadcast engineering!

[danielpereira]

A year later and enjoying your videos once again on a Sunday morning.

[scovillesadventures]

LOVE your content. I was a broadcast engineer back in the early 2000s for a TV station and have moved into IT. I live vicariously through your content as it reminds me of those days. I LOVED broadcast engineering. Just didn't pay much in my market.

[danielpereira]

I love antennas, the geometry, size and complex designs just boggles the mind.

[greenongo]

After you turned up in my TT FYP… i followed and now subbed here.
UK ham….😊

[DavidTeerTheBackyardUfologist]

Wow you are me of the past cool engineers. I miss those guys. I am a radio personality retired. I'm in a community and started a cheap LpFM community radio station. 15 watts with a ground plain antenna. I'm no engineer but did help over the years when they did work. I had no idea what was going on they usually used me to do DJing... like a day timer AM at night after midnight old army surplus tx and almost 700' antenna with transmission line going across the field like 5 copper wires on small telephone poles. I've seen ready kilowatt several times back then especially when it iced over. It was awesome so much respect fur you guys. My room mate was chief engineer back in the 70's at two radio stations he got me my job at several different stations across the country back in my day. Big stations 50, 000 watt AM and 100, 000 FM and one in Ciudad Juárez
Chihuahua licensed to operate with a power of 150, 000 watts on a carrier frequency of 800 kHz at night in 1979. I lived in El Paso was 18 years old. Man I was in heaven. 50, 000 day 150, 000 at night. Clear channel. I think it was CKLW in Canada that fought back and forth in between. Lol:)
But ended up on FM after that AM was over for us rocking jocks. I have stories. My roommates were Mr. Leonard, Bg Brad Edwards (KISs Fm LA. Lee master ls WNBC well yes I was big time at one time. Lee just retired as CEO at NPR. Great guy. Back then anyway. We cooked. Anyway enough about me.
I am listening to as an engineer. I know there are SWRs and lengths of coaxial cable and going through my limiter and compressor... lol:) nit much. But it sounds good not much noise n the carrier FM 102.7.
Can you give sone pointers? I only have the antenna on side of house clearing the top of roof. I get out about a mile and a half but I go further and it comes back at 3 miles then gone. Antenna about 20' high. Hardly any wind load on it. So light. I should get out a little further with 15 watts. I know something is wrong. There are like 3 communities I want you to serve just announcements another HOA the Pool the club house the lake the skiing trail, list dogs, cats, yard sales the whole community takes part in. A lot of fun. And I play a lot of music you don't hear on the radio anymore. I rock it, I country it, I worked every format so knowledgeable music, songs to play fur our age group demographics. I'm 64 now. Old. lol:) so can you give me some pointers?
I mean I just gave the small transmitter and it a few electronic equipment. I do have a radio station a board all that but won't fit where so am. I divorced after 30 years moved from Connecticut back to Alabama. All my engineers I worked with are dead or long retired and gone. I been gone from Birmingham 30 years. Anyway no more 1st class licensed engineers... if I understand it's a general class license now. I have my 3rd class elements 1, 2 & 9 and can read plate current, plate voltage and amps lol:) ship to shore.
I had a provisional when I was 17. I go way back they took thus very seri auxiliary back then so did FCC. Which we got visited a little until my friend came in cleaned it up. He was like you a real engineer. Liked what he did. Like me a radio personality I liked what I did. I'm having fun with this. I want to automate it and go live when I want. 24/7 but yet to come. Thanks & subscribed....

[Rocketman]

Wow! & Wow! Wonderful job explaining the terms associated with FM broadcast antennas. I was a mobile FM radio technician for nearly six years. I had operated tactical microwave relay systems in Vietnam prior to that and in the early nineties decided to get a No Code Technicians Amateur Radio license. I love your content and gave you a thumbs up and subscribed. Can't wait to watch more of your videos!

[jeffreyyoung]

Great video! You did a good job explaining the antennas and without a ton of math to get people snoozing!

As a professional avionics tech for 36years, and an amateur radio operator since the early 70s, antennas of all kinds have fascinated me. I have a fan vertical that works from 160 meters to 6 meters and everything in between, including the WARC bands. It is a great antenna system, with over 200 radials put down over the years, to make it have better efficiency, being it is ground mounted.

I was entertaining the dream of making a discone antenna, but it would only work from 40 meters to 6 meters, and I do enjoy the 160 meter and 80 meter bands, so I have not done anything with my tower so far. I could put rotatable antennas on it, and use it to

Your explanation of the antennas and the difficulties of cross polarization is one thing I have to live with, as any radio waves arriving at my location will have bounced once or twice if not more times from the ionosphere, and the polarization will be a jumbled mess!
If I could make my antenna able to receive circular polarization, it would make life much better, but it is difficult at the lower frequencies! And you explain what happens very well, with the demonstration of holding the radios horizontal rather than vertical!

While I could build a dual antenna system for the dual diversity receiver (DDR) system popular with the rich hams and SW listeners, as well as the governments and broadcasting networks back in the 30s to 60s, such systems are too much hassle to mess with.

[thomasbrodsky]

Really great video!!! And all of the wizardry that goes into these antennas are to compensate for the less than ideal reception conditions that most listeners have. It also ensures your station has a competitive signal in the market!

[mikewalker]

I understood your info because of my ham radio licenses (all three licenses) . Your equipment is on a much bigger scale compared to my home shack!!! Enjoyed the video

[JoloNavarro]

Really great video! Informative as well!

[robertblake]

Worked at a few am 1 kilowatt stations years ago…one at 1350 kcs. And the other 1590. This explains the 300 ft tower for 1350 and the shorter one at 1590. Great explanations. Thanks!
Bob

[redthepost]

I am hooked. Thanks for the matchless overview. Seriously, you are good teacher. 73s.

[timothystockman]

A little bit of history: The unit which is used for power ratios is the bel, named after Alexander Graham Bell. One bel is equal to one order of magnitude, which is 10 times. It's logarithmic, so 2 bels is 2 orders of magnitude, which is 100 times, 3 bels 1000 times, etc. The decibel, 1/10 of a bel, is the most commonly used derivation of the bel. In my years of working at various stations, I never saw an ERI bay closeup; they were always up on the tower.

[santhoshjoseph]

Would you pls explain/share any details regarding array of mast radiators in AM station.(explained in 8:40 min).Recently I came across a AM station with many mast radiators during a vacation drive.I could not stop there and I searched entire internet to know the purpose of multiple antenna in a station which transmit single frequency signal.This is the only video I got some basic ideas regarding mast radiator array.If possible pls share more details regarding this.Thanks in advance:)

[jerrysinclair]

Good stuff. I am into ham radio and especially enjoy antenna theory. 73 de WA4CIF

[stevemumbling]

What were the orange sections of the circular polarization FM broadcast antenna you showed?

[Charlie-fcse]

Hello our church needs a little outside advice which is the best coverage antenna for our LPFM