// MODULE 6 OF 8 · SBE CPT PREP v1.0
The transmitter is a URL now.
How a stream works
TRANSPORTEncoder pushes audio to a mount point on an Icecast/Shoutcast server; listeners pull from that mount over HTTP. Bitrate × listeners = bandwidth. Latency comes from encode + buffer; radio streams run seconds behind live — that's normal.
Relays
DISTRIBUTIONA relay ingests one stream and re-serves it — one source, many outlets, bandwidth pushed to the edge. U-Rock's national architecture is exactly this: WURN is the national feed and carrier stations run passthrough relays; a network take repoints carriers' input URL to the live affiliate and restores after. Same CPT concept, production scale.
Codecs & failure modes
RELIABILITYMP3 = compatibility king; AAC = better quality per bit; Opus = the modern one. Dead air causes: encoder disconnect, mount auth failure, AutoDJ stopped, or a source that seized the mount. First diagnostic: is the MOUNT up, and WHO is feeding it — check the nowplaying API before touching anything.
On the U-Rock rails
NETWORK TIE-INEvery station exposes broadcast.urock.network/api/nowplaying/<shortcode> — no login needed. That is your stream health check, your metadata check, and your who-is-live check in one call.
Do this now
HANDS ON- Open the nowplaying API for two stations and read: streamer connected? song? listeners?
- Explain the difference between a station being OFFLINE and a station playing the wrong SOURCE.