KMFM’s signal is loud & clear: the future is digital
KMFM, a regional radio station broadcasting news and music across Kent, had an aim and a deadline when it first contacted Beaming.
Challenges
“We were faced with a couple of things,” explains the station’s IT manager, David Butler. “Our studio complex was ageing and we wanted to give it a refresh to improve the quality. On top of that, we knew that BT would withdraw support for its X.21 Kilostream service – the analogue circuits that take the signal to our transmitter sites – in March 2020. These networks were crucial and we knew that the replacement we selected needed to be high quality and reliable.”
KMFM decided to get ahead of the game and put a new digital network in place ahead of the deadline. It used the opportunity to make its service more resilient and improve sound quality to the point that its FM listening experience would match that of the major national stations.
Solution
The radio station chose Beaming to deliver that network.
Beaming installed a digital fibre optic network to connect KMFM’s studio with its eight transmitter sites across Kent. The network is monitored by Beaming technicians to optimise the flow of data traffic and resolve any potential problems before they can impact service. Beaming also put in place an automatic broadband backup connection to ensure the station remains on-air if there was ever a problem with its primary network.
“We chose Beaming because it came up with a really solid design for our network, giving us the resilience we need. As a 24/7 station we can’t have a fibre going down and be broadcasting silence,” added Butler. “Beaming came up with a design that gave us a solid fibre network, backed up by broadband. If a fibre ever breaks then we can continue broadcasting because our signal will be redirected automatically.”
KMFM’s new digital fibre network, alongside work from technical consultant Marc Bakos, has created the additional benefit of improving sound quality. Instead of sending audio to it transmitter sites over a legacy analogue, KMFM can now deliver the highest quality digital signal with the lowest levels of transmission delay.
Marc explains: “Psychologically for a listener, having an all-digital workflow to the transmitter means we can deliver the cleanest audio. With no analogue breakout there is less fatigue on the listening experience. Listeners will enjoy the music more, the longer they listen to it.”
About KMFM
KMFM is Kent’s largest independent radio station, with its studio in Strood connecting to eight transmitter sites that broadcast across the county.
Results
Like its signal, KMFM’s approval of its new network is loud and clear.
“Beaming’s network future-proofs us and provides an amazing foundation that allows us to grow. We sound amazing now, which from a listener’s experience is really important. You can now hear every little bit of frequency that you’re allowed to hear on FM,” adds KMFM’s Head of Broadcast, Rob Wills. “Knowing our network is monitored around the clock, and that an automatic backup connection is in place if there is ever a problem, means we are completely confident because everything is rock solid. Everyone should be looking at this kind of solution to transmission.”
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