UNIVERSITY OF ILORIN

FACULTY OF EDUCATION

DEPARTMENT - EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY

NAME - AYOTUNDE OMOTAYO

MATRIC N0 - 21/25PC190

LEVEL - 200

COURSE TITLE - CINEMATOGRAPHY

( EDUCATIONAL VIDEO & TELEVISION
PRODUCTION )

COURSE CODE - EDT 222

LECTURER IN CHARGE - MR E.S IBIRONKE

ASSIGNMENT - OBSERVATION OF RADIO

PRODUCTION AT THE UNILORIN RADIO
STATION (89.3 FM)

GUIDED BY - ENGINEER JEREMIAH

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REPORT ON THE
OBSERVATION
OF RADIO
PRODUCTION AT
THE UNILORIN
RADIO STATION
(89.3FM)

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 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I would like to express my special thanks of

gratitude to the people at the “UNILORIN RADIO
STATION” for accommodating and giving me the
privilege to learn more than enough.

To the engineer in charge, Engineer Jeremiah,

I say a big thank you for your support and
guidance.

I also want to thank my lecturer, Mr E.S

Ibironke, for the guidance and encouragement for
this assignment and also for teaching me in the
course.

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 TABLE OF CONTENTS

RADIO PRODUCTION

Live Studio .......................................... 1

Production Room................................. 2

Transmitter Room.............................. 3

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 THE RADIO STATION

A radio station is an installation consisting of

one or more transmitters or receivers, etc, used for
radio communications.

Radio broadcasting is the broadcasting of

audio (sound), sometimes with related metadata, by
radio waves to radio receivers belonging to a public
audience.

There are 2 types of radio broadcast, which are

(i) AM (ii) FM

AM - AM (Amplitude Modulation) was the earliest

form of radio broadcasting. This specific type of
broadcasting got its name for how it emits radio
waves by manipulating the amplitude of the signal
in conjunction with the amplitude of the signal that
is being transmitted. What is known as “medium
wave band” is what is used world wide to deliver
AM broadcasting across the globe.

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FM - FM (Frequency Modulation) was invented in
the 1930s as a way to counter the interference
issues with AM radio. FM radio stations happens
on VHF (Very High Frequency) waves and are
much more common thanks to better sound fidelity,
which allowed stereo broadcasting to thrive on this
type of broadcasting network.

The radio station/studio is divided into 3 parts

listed below;

(a) Live Studio (b) Production/Master Control

Room (c) Transmitter Room

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 THE LIVE STUDIO

A radio station’s live studio is a place to live

broadcast or record audio professionally. Often, it’s
a soundproofed room which gets rid of unwanted
noises that would often get mixed into the
broadcast.

Equipment you can find in the UNILORIN

radio station’s live studio includes, microphones,
mic arm/stand, console (also known as audio bus
or mixer), desktop computer, amplifier, studio
monitors (speakers), headphones etc.

1. Microphone - A microphone is a device that

translates sound vibrations in the air into
electronic signals and scribes them to a recording
medium or over a loudspeaker. Microphones
enable many types of audio recording devices for
purposes including communications of many
kinds, as well as music vocals, speech and sound
recording.

There are mainly two types of microphones which

are; (i) Condenser Microphones (ii) Dynamic
Microphones

(i) Condenser Microphones - they are used in the

studio where their superior frequency and their

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transient response, as well as their lower self noise,
and are great for capturing clean, high fidelity
recordings that are true to the sound source. a
condenser microphone is used to capture more
delicate sounds and higher frequencies (studio
vocals for example).

A condenser
microphone

(ii) Dynamic Microphones - is a passive mic that

utilizes a conductive coil attached to its diaphragm
and a permanent magnetic field to produce its mic
signal. A dynamic microphone is better for
capturing loud, strong sounds (drums or loud
vocals), particularly in a live setting.

A
Dynamic
Microphone.

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In the case of the UNILORIN radio station, they
use the condenser microphones in both the live
studio and the production studio.

2. Mic Arm/Stand - A microphone stand is a free-

standing mount for a microphone. It allows the
microphone to be positioned in the studio, on stage
or on location without requiring a person to hold it.
At the UNILORIN 89.3fm, they make use of
microphone arms attached to the desk with some
clamps.

picture of a mic arm

A mic stand

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3. Console (Audio Bus/Mixer) - A mixing console
or mixing desk is an electronic device for mixing
audio signals, used in sound recording and
reproduction and sound reinforcement systems.
Inputs to the console include microphones, signals
from electric or electronic instruments, or recorded
sounds, while the output of the console is
connected to the studio monitors (speakers). Mixers
may control analog or digital signals.

The console has knobs and fader that makes it

operate.
Each channel on your mixer has a column of knobs
that control the treble, mid, and bass levels for your
channel. The treble knob controls the high
frequencies, the bass knob adjusts the lowest
frequencies, and the mid knob changes everything
in between, and also each channel on a mixer has a
volume control (fader) that allows adjustment of
the level of that channel. These are usually sliders
near the front of the mixing board, although some
smaller mixers use rotary controls to save space.

We have mainly 2 types of mixing consoles

(i) Digital Mixing Console (ii) Analog Mixing
console

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Digital Mixing Console - a digital mixing console
(DMC) is a type of mixing console used to
combine, route, and change the dynamics,
equalization and other properties of multiple audio
input signals, using digital signal processing rather
than analog circuitry.
A professional digital mixing console is a dedicated
desk or control surface produced exclusively for
the task and is typically more robust in terms of
user control, processing power and quality of audio
effects. However, a computer can also perform the
same function since it can mimic its interface, input
and output.

At the UNILORIN FM’s live studio, they

make use of the Digital mixing console.

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Analog Mixing Console - this type of mixer uses
analog sound transmission instead of digital sound
transmission. There are a few benefits to using an
analog mixer instead of a digital one. Analog
mixers are much easier to operate because they
have only one function per control.

They use the Analog Mixing Console in the

production room at the UNILORIN FM.

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4. Desktop Computer - This computer system
makes it possible to play background music and
commercials. The software is called Automation
Software or “Play-out”, and it is designed to
continually play music in the background. The
UNILORIN FM makes use of “Zara Radio”
which is also a radio automation software.
The heart of these programs is the Playlist which is
a list with all the audio files that need to be
played.

5. Amplifier - An amplifier is an electronic device

that increases the voltage, current, or power of a
signal. Amplifiers are used in wireless
communications and broadcasting, and in audio
equipment of all kinds. They can be categorized as
either weak-signal amplifiers or power amplifiers.

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6. Studio Monitors (Speakers) - Studio monitors
are loudspeakers in speaker enclosures specifically
designed for professional audio production
applications, such as recording studios, film
making, television studios, radio studios and
project or home studios, where accurate audio
reproduction is crucial.
They are of two types, we have passive
monitors and active monitors.

Passive Monitors - A passive speaker is a speaker

without a built-in amplifier. In order to work, they
need to be connected to an amplifier. They are
powered by the amplifier and therefore don't need
to be plugged in. In order to use passive speakers,
you need to connect your audio devices to the
amplifier.
Active Monitors - An active speaker is a speaker
with a built-in amplifier. They are often referred to
as powered speakers because they need to be
plugged into a socket or battery. They don't need
any additional components to produce audio, and
you can plug your audio devices into them directly.

Studio Monitors

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7. Headphones - Wearing headphones while
speaking allows you to hear yourself the way your
audience will. This will allow for better
management of the speaker's tone and use of
language. This can improve the sound quality of
your content as you can adjust yourself in real-
time.

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 THE PRODUCTION ROOM

The production room at the UNILORIN radio

station is divided into 2 parts.
(i) The Vocal Booth (ii) The Master Control Room

The Vocal Booth - this is where voice(s) are being

recorded into the MCR. You can also play drum
instruments, and some other musical instrument in
the vocal booth.
Equipment you can find here include; microphone,
microphone stand, script stand and headphones.

The Master Control Room (MCR) - this is the

technical hub of the radio station where sound
engineers and operators ensures that the quality of
an on-air product is top notch.
Equipment you can find in the UNILORIN MCR
are the same with the ones in the live studio, but
the functions of the desktop computer in the MCR
is quite different from the one in the live studio.
We have the console (they make use of the analog
mixing console in the MCR), studio monitor, mp3
player, SD recorder, cassette player, etc.

In the MCR, they make use of a digital audio

workstation (DAW) which is being used to
captured the vocals coming in from the vocal
booth.

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There are different types DAW you can use, but in
the UNILORIN radio station’s MCR, they make
use of the “Adobe Audition 1.5”.
In the Adobe Audition, we have 3 main platforms
on the “view” interface that we can work with;
We have the (i) Edit View (ii) The Multitrack
View (iii) CD project view (which is not really
needed).

Edit View - you can record, edit, cut or paste

vocals.

picture of the Adobe Audition edit view

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Multitrack View - you can mix together multiple
audio tracks to create one single track.

picture of the multitrack view.

Some other tools you can work with in the Adobe

Audition are the “Transport Controls”.

(i) Stop (ii) Play (iii) Pause (iv) Move Play-head to

previous (v) Rewind (vi) Fast Forward (vii) Move
Play-head to next (viii) Record (ix) Loop Playback

picture of the transport controls in the respectful order listed above.

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Zoom Controls
We have the -
(i) zoom in, zoom out horizontally.
(ii) zoom in, zoom out vertically.
(iii) zoom out full (all axes).
(iv) zoom selected track.
(v) zoom to selection.
(vi) zoom to time.

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 THE TRANSMITTER ROOM

This is where the transmitter used in the radio

station is located.
The transmitter is an electronic device used in
the radio station to produce radio waves in order to
transmit or send data with the aid of an antenna.
The transmitter is able to generate a radio
frequency alternating current that is then applied to
the antenna through RF cable, which, in turn,
radiates this as radio waves.
The transmitter uses an FM compressor. An
FM transmitter compressor is a device used in
radio broadcasting to control the dynamic range of
audio signals before they are transmitted over the
airwaves. It is designed to reduce the difference
between the loudest and softest parts of the audio
signal, resulting in a more consistent and balanced
sound. This compression process helps to ensure
that the audio signal remains within the limited
bandwidth of the FM radio frequency, preventing
distortion and maximizing the overall sound quality
for listeners.

The transmitter also uses a power pack.

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Picture of the UNILORIN FM transmitter.

Picture of the compressor.

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Picture of the power-pack that powers the transmitter.

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 CONCLUSION

As stated in my report, I believe that each and

every point and equipment stated, makes up the
whole radio station and makes radio production
what it is. Through my research as well as
experience, I discovered that the NBC (National
Broadcasting Commission) regulates the doings of
each and every radio station in Nigeria.
They are the ones in charge of assignation of
frequencies, and also what to be aired and what to
not be aired. If a radio station airs what it is not
permitted to air, it might lead to a sanction or
probably a ban.

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