steeviebops
Member
- Joined
- Nov 19, 2019
- Messages
- 105
- Reaction score
- 74
- Points
- 28
- My Satellite Setup
- A basic 28.2 Freesat config, but have had a long history of satellite TV dating back to the analogue 19.2 days. Using a HP ZBook 15 G5 laptop (Core i7-8850H, 32GB RAM, Quadro video card)
- My Location
- Drogheda, Ireland
The DAB service in the Republic of Ireland was switched off at 11am this morning. I was listening right until the end from Clermont Carn. As I write this the carrier is still active but all channels are silent and showing the text "This service is closed."
DAB never really took off here, it was only ever installed on five transmitters in the east and south (Three Rock, Kippure, Clermont Carn, Woodcock Hill and Spur Hill). Since RTE are broke it was an easy cost-saving to make. Some test transmissions were made from commercial operators but it's suspected that the regulator here is being protective of the existing FM stations and has not issued any permanent licences. A very well-done pirate ensemble called FreeDAB was installed in several towns and cities around the country but the Dublin site was raided and shut down about 18 months ago and the pandemic brought the others down.
For me it's a shame, I used to use it regularly on my commute to work. Streaming gets awkward between towns so I might have to find something to listen to on FM (if I can) or go back to the personal music collection.
DAB never really took off here, it was only ever installed on five transmitters in the east and south (Three Rock, Kippure, Clermont Carn, Woodcock Hill and Spur Hill). Since RTE are broke it was an easy cost-saving to make. Some test transmissions were made from commercial operators but it's suspected that the regulator here is being protective of the existing FM stations and has not issued any permanent licences. A very well-done pirate ensemble called FreeDAB was installed in several towns and cities around the country but the Dublin site was raided and shut down about 18 months ago and the pandemic brought the others down.
For me it's a shame, I used to use it regularly on my commute to work. Streaming gets awkward between towns so I might have to find something to listen to on FM (if I can) or go back to the personal music collection.
