Are there Internet Radio Stations which are still playing vinyl/records on air ?

Correction: Today is Sun. May 11, 2014. Been a hectic week.

 

Not a radio station and so far no vinyl but my GET THE CONNECTION focuses mainly on the vinyl era and I will try to play some during an upcoming program.

 

Nobody is doing it to be an audiophile.

 

Still, you can't get any sonic benefits by doing so, so there's no point, even if you aren't an audiophile.

 

People do it for fun. They do it because something isn't available on CD. There may be a lot of reasons. The whole world doesn't revolve around "sonic benefits", in case you hadn't noticed.

 

I get that fun thing. But, there are laws that govern what can and cannot be played. They can't just pick jut anything, you know. I'll bet just about all of those tracks can be found digitally somewhere, too.

 

Greetings,
It's a holiday weekend in the U.S. and Lost Planet Radio LIVE is back with a few shows you might be interested in listening in to.
Friday, May 23: From 6-8pm EDT (11pm-1am in London), "Music of Pink Floyd", featuring the music of Pink Floyd!
Saturday, May 24: From 5-7pm EDT (10pm-midnight in London), "Music of ELO and Related Songs and Artists", featuring the timeless music of ELO.
Monday, May 26: From 6-8pm EDT (11pm-1am in London), "Vinyl Only", featuring music only on actual records playing on the turntable! (Variety show, no format.)
The live chat and listen link is http://radio.thelostplanet.net/liveroom.html
As for playing vinyl, many of the original (and some newer)recording LPs/singles don't have added compression - and in some cases, different mixes. When I do my radio show, there is NO added audio compression added. Yes, the show may not be "audiophile", simply because it's a stream that's in mp3 format. But if I'm playing a record, other than running through the mixer and being digitally converted for the stream, no other EQ or compression is added. I do have to watch the levels on some material that is very dynamic. Some of my listeners (worldwide) enjoy hearing the dynamics intact and some of the original mixes - or even getting an idea of how the vinyl release is different sounding than the CD versions. Again, it's not "perfect" or "audiophile", but there are differences - and of course, the "fun" factor of playing a record.

Happy listening!

Bill..at The Lost Planet

 

I have some vinyl tracks interspersed on the current broadcast for my new radio station. Go easy on me as this is a work in progress and under construction and definitely not “audiophile" material and “green” right now but I’m working to improve. A DIY effort.

What I'm trying to do is recreate the musical variety and vibe of the free form progressive rock stations from the late 60's such as KSAN, WNEW etc. Track selection should be of interest to many on this forum have a listen when and if you can:
FREE FORM FREEDOM

 

I took a quick peak at this a while ago and will check it out again. I thought it was cool as it seems completely your own setup vs a hosted option. How do you deal with the royalty aspect if I may ask?

 

My station is on Live365, which covers everything. The live programs typically have less than 15 listeners (I do them for fun, not to have a huge audience). A while ago I read somewhere that limited/low listeners aren't a big deal - or at least weren't. That might have changed, but Livestream has a cap on maximum listeners/viewers on the live stream. I should check into the rules again and see what the newer ones say.
-Bill

 

Thanks Bill - Got it - I originally thought you were hosting everything - in which case even as a hobbyist you have to deal with the royalty issue - but like you said with live365 they take care of that in the fees you pay. Looks like fun - I'll have to check you out again. Thanks! Chris

 

Bill, A question for you. My station is on Live 365 as well and I'm new to that. How many listeners do you pick up on their stream ?

I do find them a bit awkward as they ask people to register and tho that is free I think some get turned off. Also I think one can still listen without registering if you click "learn more" on the pop up window and then "let me keep browsing".

Anyway my format shies away from the hits and I have everything from Kaleidscope to Pentangle to The Fall to Cat Stevens so it could be a uphill struggle for me but I'll plug away for a while.
FREE FORM FREEDOM

 

On Live365, there is a section where you can see your average (or maybe even total) listeners (listener hours) per time period you choose. (Day, week, month..). They changed things around and it's a bit more of a task to find where they put everything. (I'm a "founding member" and have been on there for over 10 years and it used to be much easier to navigate. Now there's ads everywhere and they stuck flash stuff all over the place.) Listeners also have the capability to rate songs and you can see the ratings in your master playlist. I check it from time to time, but have more fun doing the live shows. The last time I checked, I was getting 30-40 listener hours per week. The station isn't "big" though. I actually lowered my plan earlier this year because it didn't make sense to have a higher plan that wasn't being utilized.
-Bill

 

Thanks for a clear and concise explanation for those who need it about why some vinyl issue might be played over the air or net.

 

One more question for you what's your set up for the live broadcast ?

 

My thoughts exactly, but like Chip Stylus stated, here in Atlanta you can, but listen on FM and not the stream if you want any quality out of it.

 

You know, I wrote that message a long time before the emergence of iTunes Radio, and we've since found out they're streaking 256kbps AAC, which actually sounds very good. I'm not saying it's lossless, but I'm saying it sounds about 279 times better than Sirius/XM Radio (estimated to be about 64kbps).

 

Turntables, mic, CD, tape, audio computer line all go into an old analog mixer. The line out goes into the streaming computer with no added EQ or compression. The streaming computer streams it to Livestream or Live365. I do the mixing of the different inputs live and "old school", nothing is automated. I find it fun to do radio shows "the old way".
-Bill

 

Absolutely. I have been enjoying Spotify while knowing it is 320. I sold my early XM unit that I could use in the car or at home. I just couldn't do it as it sounded so bad to me.

 

I'm spinning vinyl on Lost Planet Radio right now. (Mon. 5/26/14 6-8pm EDT) Feel free to listen in. No added compression or EQ. No format, just vinyl playing on the turntables. http://radio.thelostplanet.net/liveroom.html

-Bill

 

Greetings again!
I'm doing another "Vinyl Only" today (June 7, 2014) from 5-7pm EDT (10-12m in London).
This is a variety show with no format, other than everything played will be on actual records (no CDs, tapes, digital..).
Suggestions are welcome during the show. The policy is "If I have it, it will get played!".
Listen live and join chat during the show at:
http://radio.thelostplanet.net/liveroom.html
I do have some of the "forum favorites" that I'd be happy to play during the show.

-Bill

 

Have you not heard the 320K Radio 3(uk) stream?

 

Album 88 (WRAS Atlanta, 88.5 FM) definitely still plays vinyl. It's available to stream for free on Tunein.com.

About 20 minutes ago, I heard a skipping Van Morrison song on Album 88, before the DJ nudged the needle ahead.

Unfortunately, it appears that Album 88 is doomed to turn into a part-time college radio station in a few weeks, turning into an NPR public radio affiliate during the daytime hours.

That means shows like the one I'm listening to now ("Charm Academy" - featuring 60s/70s "charming pop songs") and the one I'm about to listen to ("Quintessential College Show" - featuring a different DJ's idea each week about what a "quintessential" college radio playlist would be like; shout out to Lauren for being the best QCS DJ ever!!) will be disappearing soon. :-( :-( :-(

There's a petition out there, a nonprofit formed by alumni to fight it, etc. Obviously the Georgia State University decision-makers are catching a lot of heat for doing this, which so far has resulted in a month reprieve (it was originally going down at the end of May). But it's unclear whether ultimately the station can be saved as a 24 hour "student-run voice" of the university, or if its on its way to an inevitable conversion to a generic outlet for rebroadcasting various national and state NPR/GPB shows (which I also love, but isn't there room on the Atlanta FM dial elsewhere?!?).

Anyway, yeah it's fun to hear vinyl on streaming radio stations!

Craig.

 

No.

 

I host a radio program on my local community station. Some shows I put up online and obviously I'm not reaching out for sonics by putting them up. However, I am particular about my digital files. I do not like to play anything that sounds lossy. I have plenty of records and even when I do have the digital files, I may choose the vinyl over that. Each mastering, cut, file, has it's own sound. Sometimes a Capital Beatles tune is what I'd rather go for than the new mono remaster or whatever. Basically, I get music in whatever source is most reasonable with my budget. The only internet show I listen to is Andrew Sandoval's Come to the Sunshine. Certainly many of the tracks he has were obtained from vinyl. I can hear it and I love that he does it. If there's a point to the mess I just wrote, it's that DJ's should have collections and whatever format they choose to use is alright with me. Some DJ's on the station I volunteer at just go in and play stuff off Spotify and Youtube. These people IMO should not be on the radio unless they are pretty damned charming when the music isn't playing.