Online AM Guide

So, you need help and everything is confusing? This guide aims to make your life as an AM trainee a little less stressful by documenting the following: what you need to do as an AM DJ, how to work the board, the general layout of the station, how to structure your show, skills to make you sound professional, and rules of the station/FCC.

PS: EXPLORE! EXPLORE! EXPLORE! I cannot say enough how wonderful WUVT is for finding new music and playing random music. I've found many artists through the station that I wouldn't have otherwise, and I was able to discover so much because I picked random CDs off the shelf that looked interesting. This is part of the reason why the AM studio doesn't have an AUX cord. Use your time as a trainee to explore the library! You will be thankful for it if you do.

AM Program Overview

Before we get into how to work the equipment, there's a number of things that are part of the AM program that you should be aware of, and these are listed below.

AM Shows

This might be obvious, but your first priority is the show you run in the AM studio. These are 1.5 hours long, once a week, and you'll follow this format. You'll need to make up any shows you miss because it's important to get as much time in the AM studio as possible. If you know you're going to have to miss a show, let me know as soon as possible. To see when your shows are this semester, follow this link.

Staff Participation

Aside from your shows, AM DJs are required to participate in an active staff at WUVT. Below is a list of staffs that accept AM applicants. Contact info for the staffheads that run these staffs can be found at our contact page. Feel free to join more than one staff!

News - Participate in WUVT's 5:00 news break and read news, weather, and sports announcements!

Traffic - Make playlists for automation!

PR/Outreach - Help WUVT reach out to other orgs on campus and contribute to Green Eggs & Jam!

Promotions - Help promote WUVT events by hanging posters, making videos, and managing social media accounts!

Special Events - Book bands for WUVT and help set up for shows!

Art - Design posters, t-shirts, and all Radiothon premiums!

Woove - Create content for WUVT's literary magazine. Poetry, reivews, and general musics are encouraged!

Engineering - Keep WUVT's hardware functioning and run sound for live events!

IT - Learn about WUVT's computing environment and contribute to cool open source projects!

I'll check in with the staffheads at the end of the semester to see who's been active, so put yourself out there! Make some friends! Building connections with other people at the station is one of the core goals of AM training.

FM Shadowing

At some point in the semester, you'll need to shadow one of our FM DJs for an hour as they do their show. A list of DJs who are willing to have AM shawdows come in can be found here. Just shoot them an email letting them know when you'd like to come in beforehand. If you have a friend that's currently an FM DJ, you can totally do your shadowing with them, you aren't limited to this list.

I recommend you do your shadowing early in the semester, especially if you're still a little unsure about what you need to do during your shows. When you get your shadowing done, send me an email letting me know you completed it.

Mission Control

During our fundraising week for the station, Radiothon, AMs serve as Mission Control staff. All this means is that you'll sit in the FM studio with an FM DJ as they do their show and answer the phones when people call in to make donations. More information about this will be available when Radiothon gets closer, but if you want to get ahead of the game, check out this mission control script.

Midway Checks and Final Checks

Twice during the training program, I will gauge your FM preparedness one-on-one, once partway through the program and once at the very end of the semester. In the past, this just means we sit down for 10 minutes or so in the AM studio and you'll demonstrate the basics of how to run a show (how to use the mics, how to use the CD players, how to use the turntables, how to cue tracks, what to say, etc.) This is super low stress, and if you've been working through the AM shows with your co-host and asking good questions, you'll be fine.

Format

The format of your show is a simple thing. At the top of the hour you say the legal ID: "You are listening to WUVT FM Blacksburg" or some variation as long as it includes the bold words, with "90.7" optionally inserted after "FM". Spell it out: "W-U-V-T FM". After 15 minutes, you read a [PSA][] or play a prerecorded one. After 15 more minutes you say the weather. In AM training this can really be anything, as long as it includes the weather. 15 minutes later you say a different PSA, and finally 15 minutes after that you say another legal ID. This is the basic format you need to adhere to while broadcasting your show. You are free to play music in between of course and talk at other times besides those stated.

Here's a summary:

:00 - Station ID
:15 - PSA
:30 - Weather
:45 - PSA

We do allow some breathing room when it comes to this format. You may say the PSAs/ID/Weather within six minutes on either side of the specified time. This means I could say a PSA that is supposed to be read 15 minutes into the hour at :09 if I choose to. Whenever you do read the Station ID or a PSA or the weather, make sure to write down when you did it in the logs.

If your show runs over midnight, you should read off the "Statement of Ownership" (SOO), which is this, at midnight:

W-U-V-T F-M is licensed to the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University and is operated by the Educational Media Company at Virginia Tech. We operate on Ninety-point-seven Megahertz (90.7 MHz) with an effective radiated power of six-point-five (6.5) kilowatts from a transmitter located on top of Price Mountain. Our studios are located in the Squires Student Center, suite 350. W-U-V-T also operates microwave aural S-T-L station W-L-J-4-5-6. Questions and comments about the operation of the station should be directed to our business office at 231-9880 or by email at wuvtamfm@vt.edu.

The Board

The board is the central piece of equipment that you'll use to run your shows.

Faders and Buttons

To broadcast music from any source, you need to turn on the fader for that source and pot up it up. This is simple as hitting the red button at the bottom of the board and pushing the fader up to about the dot on the scale. (for CD3 it will be much lower, around 15) For more information about how loud your music should be, see levels. On CD3, our engineering staff has been able to hook up an auto play to the board. This means if you turn on the fader the corresponding CD player will begin to play the selected track. To turn off a source, hit the yellow button below the red on button.

This can be confusing and maybe intimidating at first; but with some experimenting you should be able to figure it out in no time. If you want to learn more about how to use the faders check this out: fading.

Level Needles

The levels of the music you're playing is indicated by the needles at the top of the board. Hopefully this is obvious to you all, but these needles should not go into the red zone. They should max out a little before then, at "0". It is your job as DJs to ensure that they never go into the red zone. Why does this matter? First off, if you keep all of your tracks peaking at 0 on the gauge, then all your music will be at the same level to our listeners. Secondly, having music in the red zone for too long will make the music "clip" when it goes through the audio processing equipment and it will sound distorted when it gets broadcast.

Control Knobs

The control knobs adjust the volumes of different output devices. These are to the far right of the board. The large silver knob labeled CR controls the volume in the studio (CR = control room). Hdpn controls the headphones volume. Studio does nothing. Lastly, cue controls the cue volume.

more info?

CD Players

There are two different models in the AM studio currently, but they both operate in mostly the same way.

Dual CD Player

new-cd-player This device functions as "CD 1" and "CD 2" on the board. The left player is CD1 and the right player is CD2.

Load a CD: insert a CD into one of the two slots.
Cue a track: using the top skip buttons, select the track number that you want to play. Hit the play/pause button to cue the track. (0:00 should flash on the screen)
Play the track: Press play on the CD player and press the corresponding red CD button on the board under the slider. Pot up the slider until the music is playing at the right level.
Show the remaining time on the track: Using the remote, press the "Media 1/2" button on the bottom right to select one of the CD players. (There is a light on the face each CD player that indicates which is selected.) Then, press the "Remain" button next to the "Media 1/2" button to show the remaining time on the track. Now, the display will count down instead of up and you can see how much time you have left before you need to play a new track.

Single CD Player

old-cd-player This player is listed as "CD 3" on the board.

Load a CD: insert a CD into the slot.
Cue a track: using the number keys, type in the track number that you want to play. Hit the pause button to cue the track. (the duration of the song should be displayed on the screen)
Play the track: Press the red button on the board for the CD3 slider. Pot up the slider until the music is playing at the right level.

CDs

As a general rule you should always bookmark where you took out a CD (usually with another CD), this is great for organization purposes and getting people to like you. If you want to see how the stacks are organized check out: Stacks.

Turntables

Turntables can be much more intimidating to people new to them (it was for me). Don't worry, they are similar to CD players. Here are a few buttons, some of which are self-explanatory:

On/Off - This is simply a knob that will turn the turntable on and off, a red light will indicate it being on. (please be sure to turn off the turntable after your show)
Start/Stop - This is a button you need to press (like the play button on CD players) to start your selected track.
33 and 45 - These two buttons are used to chose the rpm the turntable will spin at. These are crucial and you should always be paying attention to what rpm your vinyl should be played at is. Else it will sound weird (which can be cool).
Pitch - This setting (on the right of the turntable) is very cool if you want to mess around with how your vinyl sounds. I'd suggest messing around with it.

BE VERY CAREFUL WITH THE TURNTABLES! They are very expensive, and would be difficult to replace if damaged. Don't set anything on top of the clear turntable covers except a few records, and definitely don't set anything on the turntables themselves.

Turntable Fader

The turntable fader works in the exact same way as the CD fader with the exceptions: none of the turntables have the auto-play feature and you should pot up higher then CD3, at about the level of CD1 and CD2 (this is never very consistent so you should play around with it). If you want more info on fader check this out: fading.

Vinyl

Vinyl can be tricky to understand; especially now when much of our music is digital. The basic thing you need to understand when it comes to vinyl:

DO NOT DROP THEM - These things are fragile and expensive. If you do break it, let a staff head (like me) know.
DO NOT PUT YOUR HANDS ON THE FRONT OR BACK OF THEM - Make sure to always pick up vinyl records by the edges, just like you would with a CD.
Pay attention to RPM - This is crucial if you want to play the song/album/vinyl the way it was "meant" to be played. This can usually be found on the vinyl itself or on it's cover. If you cannot find it you will need to cue it up and listen to what it sounds like.
"Gaps" - These indicate where a song ends and the next song begins. In the picture above there are seven tracks on that one side. (usually in the center of the vinyl the names of the tracks will be listed, check the cover otherwise)

Microphones

Microphones may be the simplest thing to use on the board. You simply need to pot them up and then speak into them. Easy. However; there are a few things to be mindful of:

Fading - It is in good taste to: turn on the mic, then fade up slowly, then begin to speak when you reach the optimal volume for your voice (these vary by person, I speak quietly so I may pot up a tad more then you).
Speakers - "CRAP! My music just turned off". Nah, it didn't. The music in studio is turned off so the listeners don't hear the music "echo" or hear feedback, you are still broadcasting.
Headphones - This is a personal choice, but I and many other DJs find find it helpful/natural to have your headphones on while speaking on the mic. I can see two good reasons for this: 1) you can hear how loud you are relative to the bed music 2) You can transition through songs and speak at the same time (if you do this I suggest quietly pressing on the board as the listeners can hear everything [even the board clicks] in the studio).
UMMM.... AHH... Yeah. - Avoid these bland and boring words! You know how terrible they sound in a presentation, but with no graphics and only audio they sound a 100 times worse. Get out of this habit (if you are in it). Most of the time it is better to let [bedmusic][] play than to use filler words.

Misc Skills

There are a few things you need to keep in mind while using the board that have yet to be mentioned.

Cuing

This is, most likely, the number one thing you need to learn how to do well. Especially if you use vinyl often, which I advise you do. But, to begin: what is cuing? Cuing is a function of the board that allows you to play music in studio without broadcasting it. This is a useful for listening to new music and finding a song you enjoy, then playing it. Or listening for an FCC within a song. Or lining up a song that will flow well after the current song you are playing. Or... The list can go on and on.

How do I cue? This is simple, you go to the song you want to hear (whether it be on a CD or vinyl). You hit the cue button (it lights up yellow) above the fader that corresponds to the CD tray or turntable you are using. Then, you hit play on the CD tray or turntable. You can adjust the volume of the song from the board or through the headphones using the cue knob on the right.

One thing to keep in mind while using cue: make sure the fader is OFF or potted down. If it is not off or potted down it will still be broadcasted even if cue is on.

Fading

This is another key component you need to learn in order to be a good DJ. There are a countless number of ways you can fade music in and out. Here is how I do it:

Smooth Fade - At the end of one song you slowly pot down the fader you are currently playing. At the same time, turn on the next song you wish to play and slowly pot that up.
Harsh Fade - Pot up the next song you want to play (without turning it on). Right when the current song ends quickly turn off the current song and turn on the next song, the next song should start loud. Hence the "harsh".
Vinyl Fades - There are multiple ways to fade vinyl, and everyone will tell you their way is the best. My method is simple, put the needle a little before the beginning of the track you wish to play. At the end of the current song; start the turntable and slowly pot the current song down, while slowly potting the turntable up.

Bed Music

Bedmusic, oh lovely, lovely bedmusic. This guy is your friend, whenever you mess up on air or cannot think of something to say he has your back and is covering for you. Here are a few ways I tend to use bedmusic:

Independent Bedmusic - By this I mean one CD (tends to be electronic or instrumental for me) used for an entire show for the sole purpose of bedmusic.
Transitional Bedmusic - By this I mean using the end and beginning of songs (where the vocals have died down)

Okay... But, what is bedmusic? ~~Bedmusic is something you go to sleep to.~~ Bedmusic is, usually, instrumental music you play while you talk (PSA, Legal ID, Weather, other). This is great to have so you don't have dead air if you are thinking of something to say, or if you mess something up or forget where you put the PSA ring you can fall back on that while you find it.

Something to keep in mind: you do NOT need to log the bedmusic tracks you play. Bedmusic tends to be only a few minute and you are talking over it, so we don't count this as music you need to log.

PSAs

PSAs can be broken into two categories: physical and digital. The physical kind (in AM) are old FM PSA that are no longer being aired. We have you read these to help you understand how we structure our PSAs, and to have you grow as a DJ. You can learn how to use bedmusic efficiently for instance. The second way to broadcast a PSA is using the dig fader and the minidisk.

Using the minidisk is as easy as using a CD Player: all you need to do is select the PSA you wish to play by rotating the knob then hit play and pot up the "dig" fader. It takes some getting used to, so I suggest experimenting, and train it a bit (duh AM training).

Logs

Logs are simple and can be broken down into two main components. First, what I am calling the binder logs. These are the physical logs on the desk in AM. All you need to do as an AM host is write down your (and your co-host's) name for your time slot, then mark off when you read off a PSA or the Legal ID or the weather. That simple. There is only one thing to keep in mind that is not super clear. That is to write the PSA number down as well. This is to prevent everyone clustering around a single PSA and increase the chances of variation.

The second is online-logs or "trackman". Trackman is also a pretty simple. All you need to worry about is adding your songs, preferably at the same time the go on air. This feature is mainly so I can see how your music taste advances. But, in FM it is for the general public, so when they hear a song they like it is online for them to view. It is also important to log tracks for legal compliance purposes. To learn more about how to operate trackman, see this presentation. If trackman is down or broken for whatever reason, there should be extra paper in the back of the binder logs. Fill out what tracks you played and when and stick it in my mailbox.

Rules

The rules may be the simplest thing to learn at the station, the hard part is following them. We have the basic FCC "bad words" which you can find here. As well as anything that is obscene, to avoid misinterpretations I am just linking you to the site. Keep in mind the fine for breaking these rules can be upwards of 250K (that's more then all five years of tuition for me). So, be mindful of the rules and avoid, at all cost, broadcasting anything that breaks them. You can't play anything obscene outside of safe harbor hours (10PM to 5AM), and when you do, you need to advise that "Music you hear may contain strong or suggestive language"

At WUVT in addition to the seven words listed above we do NOT tolerate degrading any people/persons. With this in mind try to be polite to your listeners and play rad music.

NO drinking alcohol or coming in to a show intoxicated.
NO smoking (of any kind) in the station or coming into a show high.
NO drugs or taking drugs in the station (unless medicated): don't come in high.
NO sex in the station.
NO food or drinks past the lounge area in the station.
An FM DJ must be present for you to do a show
NO Calls to action

Stacks

blueprint Here is a graphic of WUVT's floor plans; it is labeled to show the current locations of our music. * indicates the section is vinyl.

R = Rock
H = Hip-Hop
M = Metal
E = Electronic
B = Blues
S = Soul
C=Classical
Re = Reggae
J = Jazz
BG = Blue-Grass
A = Americana
Comp = Compilation
Ro = Rotation

I have left some stacks out (mainly due to size constraints), but those stacks are labeled physically.