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Welcome to a Brand New Sound
Welcome, new readers: If you've just heard about this blog, welcome to coverage of the best radio you've never heard. HD Radio, digital AM and FM, is likely to cause big changes in the broadcasting world. It's not yet clear, of course, whether it will be a great success or an also-ran, but it's now inevitable with receivers finally hitting the market that can tune in the higher quality sound. Over 1,000 stations, mostly FM, now push out HD Radio signals alongside their normal analog transmissions, and in 2007, millions of listeners will finally tune in--and that number of stations will likely double.
In my market, Seattle-Tacoma, 20 stations now offer digital programming. The same is true in most major urban markets. Next year, we'll see smaller markets, most likely college tunes, go digital as well (some already are) as competition will increase among stations.
If you're trying to get started with HD Radio, my top pick for a starter radio is the Radio Shack Accurian. At $200 and a $25 rebate until mid-January, it's the cheapest radio and has terrific quality. If you need more features than the Accurian offers, such as a clock alarm or even DVD playback, the options abound, and I'll be writing more about those receivers soon.