Home » Audio » Radio » AM, FM, or SW (Which one do you usually listen to?)
AM, FM, or SW [message #89169] Mon, 12 November 2018 09:15 Go to next message
Jazzy is currently offline  Jazzy
Messages: 78
Registered: June 2018
Viscount
I like listening to FM radio because the stations there commonly play music instead of news commentary. I included the shortwave because I remembered my father listening to a religious station on the SW radio.
Re: AM, FM, or SW [message #89174 is a reply to message #89169] Mon, 12 November 2018 16:17 Go to previous messageGo to next message
gofar99 is currently offline  gofar99
Messages: 1895
Registered: May 2010
Location: Southern Arizona
Illuminati (5th Degree)
For background...as it is not my main source of music (vinyl is) I use XM/SIRIUS. It works anywhere and particularly in the car you can go from coast to coast and not have to change stations. Once in a while you will get under a cover or inside a parking garage and lose it though. They have a new plan that only runs $10 a month and IMO it is a good buy. All the over the air stations here are pretty poor. I have two Marantz receivers, a Sony FM/HD tuner and a Pioneer tuner and none have been hooked up for over two years. Sad, FM used to be my go to for sound.

Good Listening
Bruce
Re: AM, FM, or SW [message #89177 is a reply to message #89174] Mon, 12 November 2018 17:13 Go to previous messageGo to next message
Wayne Parham is currently offline  Wayne Parham
Messages: 18670
Registered: January 2001
Illuminati (33rd Degree)

Those three radio bands offer three totally different genres:

FM is mostly music, with a little bit of talk radio.
AM is mostly talk radio, with a little bit of music.
SW is mostly talk radio, international news, fringe politics, religion and amateur broadcasts.

I kinda like each of them at different times. When I run the roads in my car, I often listen to FM radio. Sometimes I listen to AM radio, depending on my mood. And occasionally, late night, I like to dial-through the shortwave band to find what I can come across. It's kind of like sitting around the camp-fire listening to someone tell ghost stories.

Re: AM, FM, or SW [message #89189 is a reply to message #89169] Tue, 13 November 2018 08:09 Go to previous messageGo to next message
Junior is currently offline  Junior
Messages: 69
Registered: July 2018
Viscount
SW can be amusing to listen to. There are a few stations there where the speaker will talk about government conspiracies or supernatural happenings. We listen to FM when we travel, and we sing along during the trip.
Re: AM, FM, or SW [message #89224 is a reply to message #89177] Thu, 15 November 2018 08:36 Go to previous messageGo to next message
Jazzy is currently offline  Jazzy
Messages: 78
Registered: June 2018
Viscount
Wayne Parham wrote on Mon, 12 November 2018 17:13

FM is mostly music, with a little bit of talk radio.
AM is mostly talk radio, with a little bit of music.
SW is mostly talk radio, international news, fringe politics, religion and amateur broadcasts.
Why are radio stations divided this way? Is it because of the licensing fees that each radio wave costs? The SW radio stations that I heard before had a little advertisement or none at all.
Re: AM, FM, or SW [message #89236 is a reply to message #89224] Fri, 16 November 2018 07:10 Go to previous messageGo to next message
Lost the Remote is currently offline  Lost the Remote
Messages: 145
Registered: June 2017
Master
I listen to AM radio for the local news and for traffic warnings. I listen to FM radio for music and NPR. I listen to SIRIUS when I'm in the mood for specific music genres.
Re: AM, FM, or SW [message #89277 is a reply to message #89169] Tue, 20 November 2018 21:06 Go to previous messageGo to next message
Reggie is currently offline  Reggie
Messages: 47
Registered: November 2018
Baron
I'm like the most of you here. I tune in to different radio stations or band waves depending on the time of the day and my mood. I mostly listen to FM stations for the music and news.
Re: AM, FM, or SW [message #89462 is a reply to message #89169] Mon, 31 December 2018 13:26 Go to previous messageGo to next message
TheWanderer is currently offline  TheWanderer
Messages: 58
Registered: December 2018
Baron
I have not delved into SW radio before, but it sounds like I should. Laughing
I mainly listen to satellite radio. There are fewer commercials than FM or AM. When I switch over to FM or AM sometimes to see what I'm missing, it feels like I'm listening to one long advertisement. Boring!
Re: AM, FM, or SW [message #89660 is a reply to message #89169] Thu, 31 January 2019 10:41 Go to previous messageGo to next message
Jazzy is currently offline  Jazzy
Messages: 78
Registered: June 2018
Viscount
The advertisements are indeed a big let down from FM or AM radio stations. We have to endure it though, because that is how these stations get their income. New radio stations usually don't have advertisements yet so I try searching for them if there is one where I currently am.
Re: AM, FM, or SW [message #93355 is a reply to message #89169] Mon, 22 March 2021 22:07 Go to previous messageGo to previous message
Azuri is currently offline  Azuri
Messages: 315
Registered: November 2012
Grand Master
Fairly soon now, I plan on putting a shortwave in the garage. I think it would make great background noise when I'm working on my car.

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