2026-01-26 – Weekly Radio News : Shaping a 28-minute sketch pilot

Last week, our community engaged in diverse discussions, highlighting both technical challenges and creative endeavors in radio. Topics ranged from the intricacies of AoIP and loudness training to the artistic process of shaping a sketch pilot. Members also shared practical advice on dealing with audio issues like low-level hums and maintaining sound quality. The forum buzzed with shared experiences and solutions, making it a vibrant exchange of ideas.


This Week’s Hot Topics

Clear call-ins from community events
A lively discussion on how to manage call-ins during community events efficiently, ensuring clarity and engagement.
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Looking for advanced AoIP and loudness training
Members are on the hunt for resources to improve their skills in AoIP and loudness, crucial for high-quality broadcast audio.
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Shaping a 28-minute sketch pilot
Creative minds discuss the challenges and strategies involved in crafting a compelling short-form radio sketch.
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Recommendations for pre-event comms training
Looking for effective pre-event communication training? This thread is full of suggestions and personal experiences.
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Whooshes that survive the Optimod
Explore techniques to ensure your sound effects maintain their impact after processing.
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Chasing a low-level hum after summer humidity
A technical troubleshooting session on identifying and eliminating persistent hums in audio equipment.
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Portable recorder for neighborhood stories
Advice on selecting a reliable portable recorder for capturing immersive local narratives.
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Reliable call-in screening on a budget
Budget-friendly tips for implementing an effective call-in screening process.
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How do you tag old radio recordings
A practical look at organizing and tagging archival audio to preserve history.
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Keeping car door slams heavy, not muddy
Techniques for capturing impactful car door slams without audio degradation.
Read more here


Looking forward to seeing what this week brings in discussions. Keep sharing your experiences and insights. Until next time!

I grab 10 seconds of room tone before every take; if a stubborn 60 Hz ridge shows up in the spectrogram, a small inline isolation transformer on the suspected line usually beats carving a notch… For a 28-minute sketch, lock an integrated target early (I use -23 LUFS) so scene swaps don’t nibble your headroom. As I’m fond of saying, ‘An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure’.

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For a 28‑minute sketch pilot, I drop markers every 90 seconds and keep 0.5–1s stings pre-rendered — like lane markers on a track — so pacing snaps and the clock stays honest: “if it doesn’t make the clock, it doesn’t make air.” If music feels too slick, I’ll borrow @franklinb90’s idea and loop a 2–3s room‑tone bed under the cut to hide the seam.

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I set up a gentle VO sidechain on beds and SFX — about 2–3 dB with a 250 ms attack and about 600 ms release — so jokes land cleanly, like giving the punchline its own spotlight. Building on @nick_rivers21’s pacing note, I’ll shorten the release or bypass it on rapid banter to avoid pump; do you ride it live or print the ducking?

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