Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-01-23

What difference does it make whether
your music comes to you from miles
or from 5000 miles?
The craze for distance" in radio
reception is phenomenon which one
may confidently expect to disappear
from the minds and hearts of Americans
with the passing years.
Radio is new yet.
The fans" do not know exactly what
they want, or why they want it. and
these charges may be made with
peculiar confidence in relation to the
thousands of new music lovers made by
radio.
It is undoubtedly true that the essen
tial mystery and wonder of radio broad
casting. solidly built on the foundation
OF wireless, has caused literally thou
sands and hundreds of thousands of
persons to love music who five years ago
had little idea that they had any sense
of music in their souls.
It is equally true, perhaps, that every
one who listens to radio broadcasts is
by no means music lover In other
words, to turn on the receiving set and
to permit it to roar away full blast for
an entire evening does not, in itself.
prove to the world that the owner
really loves music.
Maybe he just likes noise!
X x X
The result of these confusing trends,
these essential conflicts, is that dis
lance reception, as the process of receiv-
ing broadcasts originating at a distance
through the originating station direct
Is called, has come to usurp a major
place in the art and science of radio,
No sooner does a purchaser of a new
set get the instrument in the house
than he begins to turn the dial hope
fully for out-of-town stations. He
takes local for granted and proceeds
at once to the investigation of the So
called realms of the ether.
No one can blame him for doing it..
Distance" has been the great hue and
cry of the sport since the palmy days
OF the crystal sets and the 3-tube
"bloopers." There have been more
plain lies told about distance reception
in radio than ''whoppers" by fishermen.
Even the ardent golfer has nothing on
the average radio "fan" when it comes
to tall tales. To listen to such radio
nut" is to have no other idea than that
all he has to do is touch his one dial
and the stations come rolling in from
near and far, on any and all nights,
irrespective of weather conditions, dis
lance or any other matter whatsoever.
What does he care If experts have
testified before the Federal Radio Com
mission that the effective radius" of
even the largest and highest powered
stations Is so miles?
He bought the set, therefore 1t Is sup
to him" to give his friends wonderful
accounts of its distance getting ability,
not so much to uphold the reputation
Of the set as to sustain the impression
that whatever he, wonderful man. pur-
chaSes, must be at the peak of its re-
Spective class.
X X X X
This obseSSion with distance" has
led too many radio enthusiasts to for
get that a modern radio set is, after
ALL musical instrument. Before all it
is musical instrument.
It's distance-getting abilities help
make 1t the wonder it is, but they are
not essential to its complete enjoyment
as musical instrument
The basis of popular radio Is and
must continue to be music. There is
no escaping it. AS wonderful as the
broadcasts of great events. sports, con-
ventions, ETC., are and will continue to