Cisco Systems DRX-701ES manual Guide to digital radio, Useful addresses, DAB Signal Multiplex

Guide to digital radio

This section provides a brief guide to digital radio (DAB), explains how the features of your DRX-701ES provide access to it, and provides some useful addresses for finding out more.

Your DRX-701ES enables you to receive and listen to DAB radio programmes. Digital Audio Broadcast (DAB) uses digital signals rather than traditional analogue signals enabling near CD-quality audio with virtually interference-free reception. DAB also enables broadcasters to transmit additional data along with the audio including other audio channels, text and in the future, perhaps computer data and images.

Digital radio is broadcast as groups of data called ensembles or multiplexes. Each multiplex can contain a number of stations (services) and each station contains a primary service and can contain secondary services as illustrated in the following diagram.

Each multiplex is transmitted in a set frequency range and received by your DRX-701ES for decoding. Your DRX-701ES enables you to receive multiplexes broadcast in frequency band III (174-240 MHz) and store the services in each multiplex for you to access. The number of multiplexes you receive will vary depending on your location. Band III is divided into 41 channels identified as 5A to 13F. Each channel can contain one multiplex. Channels allocated to the UK are in the range 11B to 12D.

Multiplexes and stations have labels (names) which are used to identify them. Instead of needing to know a particular frequency to listen to your favourite broadcast you can simply select the station name. Secondary services and additional data such as text containing programme or multiplex information are also easily accessed using your DRX-701ES.

DAB Signal

Multiplex

National DAB

e.g. BBC National DAB

Primary DAB Services

Main higher bandwidth services such as music or speech e.g. BBC Radio 4

Secondary DAB Services

Lower bandwidth services such as news, text information or speech

e.g. Parliament

Useful addresses

The following addresses provide additional useful information about digital radio including coverage, available stations and usage tips:

BBC Digital Radio	tel:	08700 100 123
Room 5661	e-mail:	digitalradio@bbc.co.uk
Broadcasting House	web:	www.bbc.co.uk/digitalradio
Portland Place
London, W1A 1AA
Digital Radio Development Bureau	tel:	020 7306 2630
The Radio centre	e-mail:	info@drdb.org
77 Shaftesbury Avenue	web:	www.drdb.org
LONDON, W1D 5DU
Digital One	tel:	020 7288 4600
20 Southampton Street	e-mail:	info@digitalone.co.uk
LONDON, WC2E 7QH	web:	www.ukdigitalradio.com

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