 | |  |  | | | | How do I listen to BBC 7 on my computer?Why can't I hear the BBC 7 stream from my PC at work?Why does the stream sometimes stop or stutter?Why isn't BBC 7 transmitted in stereo on DAB? | | | | | How do I listen to BBC 7 on my computer? | | | | BBC 7 streams the majority of its live content in Real Player format and Windows Media format, and you will need specific software in order to access all our audio content. Both sets of software are available for free, for more information on how to access all of the BBC's content via the iPlayer, check out the BBC iPlayer Help
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| | Why can't I hear the BBC 7 stream from my PC at work? | | | | Your company may have a firewall to protect its internal data. Sometimes your company's 'proxy' settings may be set in such a way that they prevent external streaming sources from occurring. If this is the case, please contact the IT department of your company. | | |
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| | Why does the stream sometimes stop or stutter? | | | | Audio technology on the Internet is still relatively new. The amount of information that can travel along the average telephone line is limited. This can cause a queue in the audio signal. Current streaming technology makes best efforts not to lose this information and holds or buffers it until the line is clear to receive further information. This is why there is sometimes a stuttering or delaying effect when receiving a stream. | | |
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| | Why is BBC 7 transmitted in mono on DAB? | | | | Whilst BBC 7 is transmitted in stereo on digital TV and the internet, BBC 7 has to share the DAB multiplex with all the other national BBC radio stations. Whilst we may think that our station deserves preferential treatment, our bosses try to be fair to all the stations in their allocation of space on that multiplex.
The space we have allows us to broadcast in mono or stereo at 80 kbps (kilobits per second). However to broadcast in stereo would mean having to split the 80 kbps between the left and right channels. At that bit rate the quality of the transmission would be less than optimal.
In addition many of our programmes were made in mono.
In an ideal world every station would broadcast with at least 192 kbps in stereo, but to do that the BBC couldn't provide the wide range of stations and programming that it should. That would mean no BBC 7.
Given this situation, we took the view that we would broadcast in reasonable quality mono. | | |
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