RRN Frequency & Format Design: The New RRN Dial

The RRN dial is changing.

As Reality Radio Network continues to grow, we have reached the point where the original frequency structure needs to be expanded and reorganized. What started as a relatively small collection of RRN stations is becoming something much larger, and the system needs to be designed with that growth in mind.

This is the new RRN frequency and format structure.

Before getting into the actual numbers, there is one important distinction that needs to be made.

RRN frequencies are digital dial slots. They are not claims to terrestrial radio frequencies.

Traditional terrestrial radio uses actual radio-frequency spectrum. In the United States, for example, the FM broadcast band is generally 88-108 MHz, while the AM broadcast band is 535-1705 kHz.

RRN's dial is different.

The numbers used by RRN are part of our own digital station-identification and presentation system. One of the goals of the new structure is to leave room for actual AM and FM stations to eventually exist within RRN without forcing those terrestrial stations into the same numbering space as RRN's internally established formats.

That distinction is going to become increasingly important as RRN begins accepting terrestrial stations that also provide online MP3 streams.

AM and FM vs. RRN Formats

There is a difference between a broadcast technology and a programming format.

FM means Frequency Modulation. AM means Amplitude Modulation.

Neither one inherently tells you what a station's programming has to sound like.

An FM station can be music-focused, talk-focused, personality-driven, or almost anything else. Likewise, an AM station can have music as a major part of its programming even though AM is often associated with talk, news, sports, and other spoken-word programming.

That is why RRN has separate designations for its own formats.

RM, TF, PF, and ASH are not replacements for FM and AM. They are RRN formats.

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RM - Radio Mastery

RM stands for Radio Mastery.

RM is designed to provide the experience of a traditional music-oriented radio station without requiring the station itself to be a terrestrial FM broadcaster.

An RM station can have music, personalities, DJs, shows, imaging, sweepers, promotions, live programming, and everything else that makes a radio station feel like a radio station.

The important distinction is that RM is designed specifically for the RRN digital environment.

In other words:

FM describes how a terrestrial signal is transmitted. RM describes how an RRN station is programmed and presented.

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TF - Talk Format

TF is different from AM.

AM describes a method of radio transmission. TF, or Talk Format, describes what the station is actually intended to do.

TF is designed specifically around talk and spoken-word programming.

That can include:

• Talk shows
• Podcasts
• Interviews
• Commentary
• Discussions
• News and information
• Other spoken-word programming

The purpose of TF is to create a dedicated home for programming where the spoken content is the primary focus.

An AM station could absolutely be a music station.

A TF station, by definition, is intended to be a talk-oriented format.

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PF - Playlist Only Format

PF stands for Playlist Only Format.

This format is designed around a very simple idea:

Turn it on and listen.

PF is intended to be a leave-on-and-listen format centered around music.

There are no personalities required.

There are no hosts required.

There does not have to be a DJ speaking between songs.

The music is the station.

Automation is a fundamental part of PF because the format is designed to operate continuously. Imaging, however, is optional.

A PF station can have sweepers, station identification, imaging, themed playlists, genre programming, mood programming, and other automated elements, but none of those things are required for the format to work.

PF is therefore closer in concept to a continuous music service than to a personality-driven radio station, while still retaining the identity and presentation of a radio station.

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ASH - Audio Sight Home

Then there is ASH, or Audio Sight Home.

ASH is designed to be something considerably different from a traditional audio drama or audiobook.

The idea behind ASH is to take the experience and structure of television and translate it entirely into audio.

Not television as it existed in its earliest days, but television as we know it as a medium of storytelling.

The goal is immersion.

The listener should be able to close their eyes and, through audio alone, feel like they are actually there.

That means ASH can make use of:

• Dialogue
• Acting
• Atmosphere
• Ambience
• Sound effects
• Spatial rendering
• Environmental audio
• Music
• Scene transitions
• Cinematic production techniques

The idea is that the production itself tells the listener what is happening.

There shouldn't have to be a narrator explaining every movement or explicitly spelling out every detail.

If a character walks into a room, the listener should hear the room.

If something is happening outside, the environment should communicate that.

If the story moves somewhere else, the listener should be able to experience that transition through the sound itself.

ASH is essentially film and television for the ears.

But ASH is also intended to take the scheduling philosophy of television and apply it to audio.

Instead of simply being a library of individual audio dramas, ASH will eventually have scheduled programming, recurring shows, time slots, rotations, and a larger network-style presentation.

The intention is to create something that can be turned on and experienced like a television network - except everything is happening through sound.

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The New RRN Digital Dial

With this redesign, RRN is dividing its digital dial into several major areas.

The new planned structure is:

Designation	RRN Digital Dial Range	Purpose
PFL	1.0-87.9	Playlist Only Format - Low
RMP	109.0-254.9	Radio Mastery Primary
TFP	255.0-534.9	Talk Format Primary
PFH	1706.0-1999.9	Playlist Only Format - High
ASHP	1-1,000	Audio Sight Home Primary

The gaps in the main digital dial are intentional.

They provide separation between RRN's own digital formats and the numerical spaces that correspond to traditional terrestrial AM and FM broadcasting.

The RRN dial should therefore be thought of as a network map, not as an RF spectrum chart.

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PFL - Playlist Only Format Low

1.0-87.9

PFL is the lower portion of the Playlist Only Format.

It provides a large block of digital station slots for automated, music-focused stations.

The lower placement also intentionally keeps PFL separate from the numerical area used for RRN's primary Radio Mastery stations.

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RMP - Radio Mastery Primary

109.0-254.9

RMP is the primary RRN Radio Mastery dial.

This is the primary home for RRN's digital radio stations that use the Radio Mastery format.

The word Primary is important.

It does not mean that these will be the only RM stations that ever exist.

It means that this is the primary RRN dial.

As RRN grows, additional RM stations can eventually be organized into separate regions or station groups.

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TFP - Talk Format Primary

255.0-534.9

TFP is the primary RRN Talk Format dial.

This provides a large dedicated area for talk shows, podcasts, interviews, discussions, commentary, and other spoken-word programming.

Again, the Primary designation identifies this as the primary RRN Talk Format dial.

It does not prevent additional regional or secondary TF structures from being created later.

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PFH - Playlist Only Format High

1706.0-1999.9

PFH is the second portion of the Playlist Only Format.

Rather than putting every PF station into one continuous section, RRN is intentionally splitting the format into two areas:

PFL - Playlist Only Format Low

and

PFH - Playlist Only Format High

This gives PF a large amount of room while keeping it separated from the primary RM and TF areas.

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ASHP - Audio Sight Home Primary

ASH is receiving a different structure entirely.

Rather than using decimal frequencies like the other RRN digital formats, ASH will use whole-number channels.

The planned primary ASH system will contain approximately 1,000 channels:

ASH 1 through ASH 1,000.

This is intentional.

ASH is more closely related to a television channel structure than a traditional radio frequency structure.

The channel identifies the service.

The schedule identifies the programming.

The programming creates the experience.

That is why ASH will be represented as ASHP - Audio Sight Home Primary.

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What Does "Primary" Mean?

For RRN, Primary means that a designation belongs to the primary RRN dial.

It does not mean that it is permanently limited to one geographic area, nor does it mean that additional stations cannot exist outside of it.

As RRN grows, additional station structures may eventually be created based on:

• An RRN-created Radio Region
• A geographic region
• A city
• A state or territory
• A country
• Another RRN-defined market or service area

The exact system will depend on how large the network becomes.

For now, the Primary designations give RRN a central structure that everything else can eventually build around.

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Terrestrial Stations on RRN

One of the long-term goals of this system is to make room for real terrestrial radio stations that also operate online.

A terrestrial station may have an actual FM or AM broadcast frequency while also providing an online MP3 stream.

RRN is designed so that those stations can eventually be represented on the network without treating their terrestrial frequency as if it were an RRN-owned digital frequency.

Their RRN station slot can be assigned based on the region in which the station belongs, while the station's online stream can be made available wherever its licensing and distribution rights permit.

This means the same RRN infrastructure can eventually support both:

RRN-native digital stations

and

terrestrial stations with online streams.

The station's actual broadcast license remains what determines where its terrestrial signal may legally operate.

RRN simply provides another way for that station to be presented and distributed online.

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Building for the Future

The biggest reason for this redesign is simple:

RRN needs room to grow.

The original system was created when RRN was much smaller.

That system worked for what existed at the time, but RRN is no longer being designed around only a handful of stations.

The new structure gives each major format its own identity while leaving room for terrestrial radio, regional expansion, additional station groups, and completely new concepts in the future.

FM can remain FM.

AM can remain AM.

RM can be RRN's digital radio experience.

TF can provide dedicated talk and spoken-word programming.

PF can provide continuous music.

ASH can bring television-style storytelling to audio.

And terrestrial stations with appropriate online streaming and licensing can eventually become part of the RRN ecosystem without having to give up their own identity.

This is not simply a change to the numbers on the dial.

It is the foundation for how the RRN network is going to grow.

The frequency tells you where you are.

The format tells you what kind of station you're listening to.

And the programming is what makes that station worth listening to.

With that, we must leave you hanging with the information that we are working diligently to continue growing and expanding the network.

-Reality Radio Network

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