Jam 1575

Jam 1575 is Hull University Union's radio station broadcasting all year round. It broadcasts on 1575mw and is looking to broadcast on the internet. It is a subcommittee of Hull University Union's Media and Marketing Committee. All presenters, DJs and executive committee are students. Jam 1575 is a member of the Student_Radio_Association.

The station was set up in 1983 broadcasting on an induction loop system around halls of residence and through speakers situated within Hull University Union. In 1997, it became the first student radio station in the UK to broadcast on AM using a newly formulated Low Powered AM license. Three other stations were awarded LPAMs by the Radio Authority (now Ofcom) at the same time - two hospital radio stations and one other student station - though Jam was the first. Bruce Davidson was the very first station manager. The station is licensed to broadcast to the campus. The transmitter runs at a 1 Watt and is situated on the roof of the students' union building.

The station has broadcast events around the university such as Student Question Time, a student version of the BBC series, as well as club nights from the union. The station's programming consists of mainstream music by day, tailored to the students listening in the union building, and specialist programming by night. Presenters and DJs often host nights in the students' union's John McCarthy Bar

Until 1997, Jam was known as "URH" which stood for "University Radio Hull".

Previous members of Jam who have moved on to work in the media industry include Liam Burke (P Squared), Peter Jarrett (P Squared), Bruce Davidson (Technical Director, Chrysalis), Clare Frisby (BBC Leeds), Mike Morris (BBC Radio Humberside), Harriet Scott (Heart 106), Pam Bailey (Galaxy), Matt Oakes (Rock FM), Orna Merchant (Signal 2), Lydia Barnes (Radio Aire), Ian Hennam (Chief Engineer, Century), Dave Walters (Chief Engineer, LBC) and Dave McMullen (DNN).

Jam was the very first station in the world to use the Myriad playout software. Liam Burke and Peter Jarret now head the company P Squared, but both began writing Myriad whilst at Jam because Hull University Union would not provide funding for a playout system. The very first version of Myriad was in fact called "URH". Peter, Liam and Dave Walters were sat around a bottle of tequila late one night when the idea was floated, and Peter began coding it there and then. Jam also makes use of P Squared's Powerlog system to log all broadcast material for a period of at least 42 days in accordance with Ofcom guidelines. Myriad is now widely used across the globe by many commercial and independant radio stations.

Over a period of 3 days beginning 20th January 2005, Liam Burke, Peter Jarrett, David Boulton and Dave Walters refitted Jam's two studios, installing a £2000 Soundcraft broadcasting desk and a £150 Behringer production desk. Jam had previously been unable to broadcast since October 4th 2004 due to severe technical difficulties. The station resumed broadcast on 2nd February 2005.

The current executive committee consist of: Station Manager - Gareth Morris, Programme Controller - Phil McCann, Chief Engineer - Mat Steeples, Head of Music - Indi Sanghera, Head of Promotions - Dan Shaw, Head of Advertising - Jay Man, Secretary/Treasurer - Tim Griffiths, Head of Production - Jon Gibbins / Martin O'Connor and News Editor - Kim Griffiths.

Originally, a loop induction system was installed in the Lawns (a hall of residence at Hull University) as part of a third year project by a number of engineering students. By 1983 the loop induction system was operational. To cut costs, the students cut corners. To insulate the wire, instead of paying for expensive insulation they used Coca Cola bottles. As a result of this, by 1993 the loop induction system had all but rotted away. The studios that Jam now uses were originally a printing press, which is why such a large ventilation system was installed. Jam currently has two studios, separated by an office. When Jam was founded (as URH) there was just the one room. The room had not been split into separate studios at this point. That didn't happen until 1997 when the wall for studio 1 was erected. Ian Hennam signed his name in the window and dated it. At the same time, he constructed two sets of wooden shelves and installed them at the back of studio 1. Those shelves were removed in February 2005, having fallen into disrepair. In 1998, a noticeboard was installed along the main corridor for the executives to post information and contact details. This was installed by Pam Bailey and remains.

External links

• Information on the radio station can be found at http://www.Jam1575.com