Astra Digital Radio
Encyclopedia
Astra Digital Radio is a system used by SES Astra
for digital radio
transmissions on their Astra 1 satellites, using the audio subcarrier frequencies of analogue television channels. It was introduced in 1995. As of February 2008, there are still 51 stations transmitting in this format.
Special receivers are required to listen to ADR stations, although some combined analogue/digital satellite boxes as well as later normal analogue boxes are equipped to decode it.
ADR is incompatible with DVB-S
, although DVB-S digital radio stations are also transmitted using MP2 and generally at the same bitrates. As a result, when the final analogue switch-off on the Astra 1 satellites occurs, ADR will become obsolete. However, SES Astra state that 12.2 million homes, almost entirely in Germany, still use their analogue services and does not expect an analogue switchoff to happen until 2010.
The majority of channels to have ever broadcast on ADR, and all remaining ones, are German
or in the German language
. In some ways, the system is seen to have replaced the Digitales Satellitenradio system, dating from the 1980s, which used an entire satellite transponder to carry 16 PCM encoded radio stations, and which closed in 1999.
SES Astra
Astra is the name for the geostationary communication satellites, both individually and as a group, which are owned and operated by SES S.A., a global satellite operator based in Betzdorf, in eastern Luxembourg. The name is sometimes also used to describe the channels broadcasting from these...
for digital radio
Digital radio
Digital radio has several meanings:1. Today the most common meaning is digital radio broadcasting technologies, such as the digital audio broadcasting system, also known as Eureka 147. In these systems, the analog audio signal is digitized into zeros and ones, compressed using formats such as...
transmissions on their Astra 1 satellites, using the audio subcarrier frequencies of analogue television channels. It was introduced in 1995. As of February 2008, there are still 51 stations transmitting in this format.
Details
The format uses one mono audio subcarrier, which would normally be allocated to an additional sound track or radio station, or half of a stereo sound track/station. The carrier is digitally modulated, and carries a 192 kbit/s, 48 kHz sampled MPEG-1 Layer II (MP2) encoded signal. 9.6 kbit/s is available for data.Special receivers are required to listen to ADR stations, although some combined analogue/digital satellite boxes as well as later normal analogue boxes are equipped to decode it.
ADR is incompatible with DVB-S
DVB-S
DVB-S is an abbreviation for Digital Video Broadcasting — Satellite; it is the original Digital Video Broadcasting forward error coding and demodulation standard for satellite television and dates from 1994, in its first release, while development lasted from 1993 to 1997...
, although DVB-S digital radio stations are also transmitted using MP2 and generally at the same bitrates. As a result, when the final analogue switch-off on the Astra 1 satellites occurs, ADR will become obsolete. However, SES Astra state that 12.2 million homes, almost entirely in Germany, still use their analogue services and does not expect an analogue switchoff to happen until 2010.
The majority of channels to have ever broadcast on ADR, and all remaining ones, are German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
or in the German language
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
. In some ways, the system is seen to have replaced the Digitales Satellitenradio system, dating from the 1980s, which used an entire satellite transponder to carry 16 PCM encoded radio stations, and which closed in 1999.
Channel Listing
- DLFDeutschlandfunkDeutschlandfunk is a German public broadcasting radio station, broadcasting national news and current affairs.-History:Broadcasting in the Federal Republic of Germany is reserved under the Basic Law to the states. This means that all public broadcasting is regionalised...
- DKulturDeutschlandradio KulturDeutschlandradio Kultur is the culture-oriented radio station of the German national Deutschlandradio service...
- Bayerischer RundfunkBayerischer RundfunkBayerischer Rundfunk [Bavarian Broadcasting] is the public broadcasting authority for the German Freistaat of Bavaria, with its main offices located in Munich. BR is a member of ARD.- Legal foundation :...
- Bayern 1
- Bayern 2
- Bayern 3
- BR Klassik
- B5 plus
- Hessischer RundfunkHessischer RundfunkHessischer Rundfunk is the public broadcaster for the German state of Hesse. The main offices of HR are in Frankfurt am Main. HR is a member of the ARD.- Studios :...
- YOU FMYOU FMYou FM is one of the radio networks owned and operated by Hessischer Rundfunk, the public broadcaster for the German state of Hesse. Originally operating under the name hr XXL, the network featured the popular show XXL Clubnights which highlighted the night club scene in Hesse...
- hr1Hr1hr1 is the first radio station of the Hessischer Rundfunk.-History:hr1 is the successor of Radio Frankfurt, a radio program run by the American occupation government after World War II. After a formal law was issued, the radio station was transferred to the civil government in 28 January,...
- hr2
- hr3
- hr4
- hr-info
- YOU FM
- Mitteldeutscher RundfunkMitteldeutscher RundfunkMitteldeutscher Rundfunk is the public broadcaster for the federal states of Thuringia, Saxony and Saxony-Anhalt...
- MDR Figaro
- MDR Info
- MDR Jump
- MDR Sputnik
- Norddeutscher RundfunkNorddeutscher RundfunkNorddeutscher Rundfunk is a public radio and television broadcaster, based in Hamburg. In addition to the city-state of Hamburg, NDR transmits for the German states of Lower Saxony, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and Schleswig-Holstein...
- N-Joy
- NDR 2
- NDR Info
- NDR Info Spezial
- NDR Kultur
- SüdwestrundfunkSüdwestrundfunkThe Südwestrundfunk is a public broadcasting company for the southwest of Germany, specifically the states of Baden-Württemberg and Rhineland-Palatinate. The company has main offices in three cities: Stuttgart, Baden-Baden and Mainz, with the director's office being in Stuttgart. It is an...
- DASDING
- SWR1 BW
- SWR1 RP
- SWR2 BW
- SWR2 RP
- SWR3
- SWR Cont.Ra
- SWR4 BW
- SWR4 RP
- Westdeutscher RundfunkWestdeutscher RundfunkWestdeutscher Rundfunk is a German public-broadcasting institution based in the Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia with its main office in Cologne. WDR is a constituent member of the consortium of German public-broadcasting institutions, ARD...
- FH Europa (WDR and Radio BremenRadio BremenRadio Bremen , Germany's smallest public radio and television broadcaster, is the legally mandated broadcaster for the city-state of Bremen...
) - WDR 2WDR 2WDR 2 is a radio channel produced by the Westdeutscher Rundfunk public broadcasting organization in Germany. It focuses on contemporary pop music for an adult audience.-FM:*Aachen / Euregio 100.8 MHz*Eifel 101.0 MHz*Monschau 94.2 MHz*Kölner Bucht 100.4 MHz...
- WDR 3
- WDR 4
- WDR 5
- 1LIVE1LIVE1LIVE is a radio network by the Westdeutscher Rundfunk public broadcasting corporation in Germany. It specialises in popular music aimed at the 14-39 age bracket. The average age of listeners is 34.- History :...
- KIRAKA
- VeRa
- FH Europa (WDR and Radio Bremen
- Bremen 4
- Radio BOB
- Rundfunk Berlin-BrandenburgRundfunk Berlin-BrandenburgRundfunk Berlin-Brandenburg is an institution under public law for the states of Berlin and Brandenburg, situated in Berlin and Potsdam...
- Antenne Brandenburg
- radioBERLIN 88,8
- Inforadio
- Kulturradio
- Fritz
- radioeins