The lobby entrance to WLDB studios on the eleventh floor of the
Atlantic City Senator Hotel is inviting and comfortably appointed.

Atlantic City, New Jersey has a new radio voice - WLDB - owned and operated by Leroy and Dorothy Bremmer. The station is a fine example of progressive management and planning, combining the best in technical equipment with efficient, close-knit teamwork.

Efficiency of operation is the keynote at WLDB. The studios, located on the eleventh floor of the Senator Hotel, one of the area's largest and best known hotels, overlook the city and the world-famed beach area. From the windows, a million dollar panorama of the "World's Playground" meets the eye. The transmitting facilities are located on the edge of the city, in a less-congested area, and are operated entirely by remote control by means of the RCA BTR-5A Remote Control Equipment. This equipment, installed on the RCA BTA-250M transmitter, permits studio personnel to supervise the transmitter operation continuously as well as providing the necessary control facilities.

THE STUDIOS

The WLDB studios are designed for "finger-tip" efficiency.  Excellent planning has provided a control and studio layout which lends itself to simple, straightforward operation with a minimum of complication. Three turntables are used, two RCA BQ-2A three-speed 16-inch turntables and, as an auxiliary unit, and RCA BQ-1A two-speed turntable. The smaller BQ-1A turntable is in regular use for recorded jingles, spots and themes.

The use of the full-size RCA BC-2B Consolette permits maximum flexibility of operation, in that a full range of facilities is available to the operator. The ease of operation inherent in the design of the BC-2B is important, says Mr. Bremmer, since the announcer operates the control board during most of the operating day. The RCA RT-11B professional tape recorder is located directly to the rear of the control position, which permits immediate access by the announcer or engineer, who may change tapes without leaving the control board.  The station makes considerable use of tape recording, and also has available a (Magnecord) PT6-JAH portable recorder which is used for field interviews, re-broadcasts and the like.

PROGRAMMING PHILOSOPHY

Although Atlantic City is thought of primarily as a resort city, WLDB is not programmed as a "resort-town" station.  Instead, Mr. and Mrs. Bremmer have planned a type of program schedule which appeals to visitors and permanent residents alike. Instead of featuring "pop" tunes, or classical selections, or any other single type program, a well-balanced selection of musical fare, augmented by a judicious choice of local and national news, sports, and public interest features presents WLDB's listeners with year-'round entertainment. The program policy is intended to build a loyal audience which will continue to listen with interest throughout the day and evening, rather than tune from station to station in search of variety. "Block Programming" techniques are used, supplemented by a selection of programs from the Mutual Network.

THE TRANSMITTER AND ANTENNA SYSTEM

The transmitter is housed in a small, simple cinder block structure some thirty feet from the base of the 150-foot guyed, insulated tower. The tower base rests upon a 65-foot wooden piling sunk into the sand. This is, according to the Bremmers, the only guyed-type broadcast tower in Atlantic City, and represents a considerable engineering advance over previous techniques. It had been considered to be essential that self-supporting towers be used in Atlantic City due to the soft, sandy foundation soil typical of Absecon Island, upon which Atlantic City is located. The tower, which was designed and erected by Stainless, Inc. of North Wales, Pennsylvania, is so constructed that an additional 100-foot section may be added at a future date, which would provide a 250-foot radiating structure.  An excellent ground-radial system of all-new No. 10 copper wire in conjunction with the radiating structure provides more-than-adequate signal strength -- reaching distant communities.

A DEPENDABLE REMOTE-CONTROL SYSTEM

The BTR-5A Remote Control Equipment in use at WLDB permits the entire transmitter installation to be supervised and operated from the studio site, with only occasional visits to the transmitter building for routine maintenance. At the transmitter site the control portion of the BTR-5A installation is located in a cabinet rack which stands next to the BTA-250M transmitter, while the various actuators, meter shunts, relays and so forth are mounted on the transmitter itself. For ease of operation and maintenance the frequency and modulation monitors were permitted to remain at the transmitter site, thereby making them readily available to the Chief Engineer when he visits the transmitter for routine maintenance. The meter readings of the monitors are transferred to the studio through two of the BTR-5A circuits. The BTR-5A permits the operator to read the transmitter plate voltage, plate current, antenna current and filament voltage, in addition to the previously-mentioned monitor readings. In addition, one circuit is available to indicate the current in the tower lighting circuit. The operator can control the tower lights, transmitter a-c power, filament voltage, and plate voltage, and can also reset the circuit breakers in the transmitter. The d-c control and metering circuits require only two low-cost control lines to the transmitter site, and the installation is impervious to sudden surges of voltage in the lines caused by lightning or static discharges. The WLDB tower has been struck by lightning several times without any loss of air time, and without affecting the remote control installation in any way. On one occasion, WLDB was the only station in Atlantic City to remain on the air during a severe storm. According to the Bremmers the BTR-5A installation, in conjunction with the equipment it controls, has proven itself completely and they rely on it to the full extent. WLDB has set an interesting style with its efficient remote-control Radio Broadcast facilities.