Modulation and Television

A starry-eyed few thousand owners of the latest fangled radio sets in areas around New York City, Boston, Washington, Columbus (Ohio), Chicago and Milwaukee, nowadays enjoy radio entertainment that is static-free, interference-free, does not wobble, fade or burst at the seams. The enthusiasts say that they hear music faithful to the topmost tweet, the bottommost woof; that speech seems to come from the next chair, instead of the next telephone booth; that if an announcer should scratch a match, listeners would hear it burst into flame; that between numbers there is no hum, no crackle, just black, velvety nothing. Said one marveling first listener: "Why, this thing can broadcast silence!"

This racket-free, high-fidelity performer is Frequency Modulation (FM) broadcasting, hailed by many as the radio technique of the future. Already in operation experimentally in the U. S. are 16 FM stations; some 80 others are licensed or have applied for licenses. General Electric, Stromberg-Carlson, Scott have sets for sale at $70 up. Zenith, Pilot, Stewart-Warner, others are preparing lines.

Grey-cast, billiard-bald Major Edwin Howard Armstrong, deviser of the frequency modulation system of broadcasting, has twice in his time revolutionized radio--first by the regenerative, or feedback, circuit, which outmoded crystal sets; next by his superheterodyne hookup, the basis for present-day one-dial tuning. His FM system has all the earmarks of another, and more sweeping revolution. Neither sunspots, lightning, electric razors, icebox motors, telephone dials, switches, bed warmers nor passing street cars can ruffle its calm.

FM varies the frequency of its radio waves, keeps the intensity (power) of the signal constant. Ordinary broadcasting (amplitude modulation) maintains a fixed frequency, varies the intensity. Since static is also a series of power variations, ordinary receivers pick it up as easily as they do Jack Benny. FM receivers do not.

Last week the FM crowd, headed by Major Armstrong, moved on Washington to argue before the Federal Communications Commission for air room in the radio spectrum. Chief aims: 1) exclusive rights to the 3,000-kc., ultra-short-wave band they now share plus a 6,000-kc. bite of television's 12,000-kc. claim, just beyond; 2) power increases; 3) commercial status. Hearings will go on for two weeks.

On the stand, FM Booster John Shepard III (Yankee Network) outlined a painless plan for ten-year absorption by FM of present broadcasting methods, with gradual changeover of transmitting and receiving equipment, and a shift of advertising revenue from the old to the new without spilling a drop. Not so merciful were Major Armstrong's remarks about television, which occupies the frequencies to which FM would like to expand. Said he: "I am convinced that the television people . . . will soon realize they can operate to better advantage in frequencies higher than those upon which they are now operating. ... If I hadn't been so busy showing the world how good FM is, I might have shown the television boys how to do it." Last fortnight, RCA lowered the prices of its television sets about one-third, bringing the lowest down to $99.95. Last week, in full-page advertisements in Manhattan papers, RCA offered its massive, modern $600 receiver for $395, "10% down and 18 easy monthly payments," invited the "participation of the public in this effort of American private enterprise to create a new art and a new industry."

FCC, fearful that the public might load up with sets that might soon be obsolete, promptly cracked RCA's knuckles, withdrew its recently granted "limited commercial" status from all telecasters, set RCA down for a hearing April 8.

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