It was announced recently that České Radiokomunikace (CRA) in the Czech Republic has obtained a license from the Czech telecoms regulator (ČTÚ) to conduct a DRM test on 954 kHz in the city of České Budějovice in the south of the country.
The transmitter will have a power of just over 3kW which means it may be heard across Europe at night. The 954 kHz is one of the medium wave frequencies where the (AM) programs ČRo Dvojka and ČRo Plus were broadcast until the end of 2021.
CRA wants to use the test, among other things, to determine the scope and energy efficiency of broadcasting in the DRM standard. Both the 16 QAM and 64 QAM, the two common modulation schemes in DRM, will be tested. The operator will use an existing Transradio medium wave transmitter into which they will integrate a digital modulator.
The DRM system has long been touted as the digital replacement for AM on the Medium Wave and Short Wave bands. In 2003 and 2006, the Czech public broadcaster ČRo conducted a series of DRM tests on medium and short wave so these new tests should be seen in that light.
DRM has gained a foothold in countries like India but the take up has been slow elsewhere in the world.
