jfn music-the listening room

8/19/2025

I Ditched Spotify and Apple Music on CarPlay for These Free Apps (from howtogeek.com)

Spotify and Apple Music are great music apps that support CarPlay, but they cost money (excluding Spotify's mediocre free tier). For some, it’s worth paying that price, but that money can add up. Plus, you might not be using most of the features that you’re paying for.

If you're using Spotify or Apple Music for podcasts, audiobooks, or discovering new music, know that there are plenty of free alternatives that still work with CarPlay, so you can continue jamming without draining your wallet.

iHeart Radio

Sometimes, I want to listen to the classic radio so I don't have to think about what to play. In these cases, I go with iHeart Radio. While most cars still have FM radio, iHeart works with cellular data, so you can listen without the static noise. And like FM radio, iHeart is free.

You can also listen to any radio station in any city without having to be there. That way, I can keep up with my favorite station in my hometown while living 800 miles away. It's also great if you're listening to a station with commercials, as you can switch to one actively playing music. With CarPlay, iHeart Radio allows you to save your favorite stations so you can quickly navigate between them.

Aside from the traditional radio stations, iHeart also has curated playlists similar to those on Spotify. You can listen to newly released songs, a specific genre, or music from any decade with ease. I find the playlists more diverse and exciting than Spotify, making it a great alternative.

Pandora

Pandora is a name that brings nostalgia to many, as it was once the most popular music streaming app. In fact, many are surprised to learn that Pandora still exists and is refreshingly simple.

As the years went by, Spotify and Apple Music took over, while Pandora remained largely unchanged. When Spotify got rid of its radio feature, I re-downloaded Pandora to see if it was as good as I remembered. Thankfully, it was even better. As I continued to use Pandora, I found that many of the stations are, again, better than Spotify.

While Spotify does have artist radio, Pandora Radio does a better job of surfacing new music. For example, Pandora will learn your music taste based off your skips and likes and also give you stations based on decades, sub-genres, and moods. Pandora also hides songs you don't like, so they don't come up again.

Comparatively, Spotify's radio plays songs by the artist you select and closely related artists. There will be a lot of overlap, and likes and skips also do not help tailor the radio to suit you. If you want a sub-genre station or a station based on moods, you have to listen to a user-made playlist, which can be hit or miss.

Pandora is also still free, with limited skips—but I’ve found that I rarely need to skip, as the stations are good, rarely have repeat songs, and even include lesser-known artists. Pandora is also better than Apple Music and Spotify at listening to stand-up comedy, if that’s your thing.

For me, the best feature of Pandora is that you can change the stations with your voice. This makes it a great driving companion. After all, Spotify and Apple Music don’t support that unless you use Siri (or Spotify's AI DJ), and it isn't as well integrated as Pandora's voice control.

TuneIn

Typically, sports fans don’t use Spotify or Apple Music, as there isn’t much for them. However, if you’re ditching one of those apps anyway and want to have something they don’t offer, you should consider https://tunein.com/.

TuneIn is essentially a live sports radio app. It might be the only reliable one that you don't have to pay for. Whether you love the MLB or the NFL, you can listen to sports anytime, anywhere. If you have a favorite team, you can also listen to their live games, as well as pregame and postgame commentary.

TuneIn also features music and podcasts. Although it doesn't have as extensive a library as other apps, you can still enjoy music while listening to sports, and it has a better radio feature than Spotify. TuneIn also features news radio, political commentary, and investigative journalism, which replaces the need for most traditional news podcasts found on Spotify and Apple.

Overcast

Many people use Spotify for listening to podcasts, as it has every major show and even provides video for some. While Spotify allows free users to listen to podcasts, it tacks on extra ads on top of the traditional podcast ads. This is why many podcast fans are switching to Overcast. Overcast launched over a decade ago, and it continues to be user-friendly and free. Many users love how, over the years, the app has just improved without taking away features or making you listen to more advertisements.

When I re-downloaded Overcast, I was surprised at how similar and nostalgic it felt. When you download an app like Overcast, you start to see how apps like Apple Music and Spotify add a lot of unnecessary features. Personally, while driving, I prefer to keep my phone screen clutter-free and easily access podcasts when I'm safely stopped.

If you find yourself not able to ditch Spotify out of fear of missing your favorite podcast episode, consider downloading Overcast. After all, if you're paying for Spotify just for podcasts, you are overpaying. And if you're listening to podcasts for free on Spotify, you're getting unnecessary ads.

Libby

If you like audiobooks, you probably know about Libby. In fact, Libby is a great app to help you read more. It continues to add new titles and improve its interface, and the developers even resolved the app's former CarPlay issues, making it the best free audiobook app.

For those who don’t know, Libby is essentially a free public library app where you can borrow audiobooks. This was a turnoff for some, as Spotify and Audible let you listen to audiobooks without a time limit. They also typically had more titles and no limits on how long you could access the audiobooks. However, the process is more streamlined on Libby than it used to be, making it easier than ever to listen to a free audiobook. With Libby adding more titles and improving its interface, it's worth considering.

Although I have limited time to listen to audiobooks before they need to be returned, I find myself enjoying this feature. Primarily, it helps me finish an audiobook without putting it off. I don't listen to audiobooks often, but when I do, I prefer not to pay $10 for a book. Instead, Libby offers every book I’ve wanted to listen to for free.

For CarPlay users, Spotify and Apple Music are the typical choices, but they don't have everything. Both Apple Music and Spotify are missing essential features, and they are subscription-based. This might be worth it to some, but I think you should give these free apps a try—you'll likely be pleasantly surprised.

Source: https://www.howtogeek.com/best-free-spotify-apple-music-carplay-alternatives

8/12/2025

Best Internet Radio Stations of 2025 [Listen for Free]

Whether it’s music, talk, news, podcast, sports radio or just some tunes to set the mood, the best internet radio stations are just a click or download away.

With so many platforms providing free access to internet radio stations around the world, your head might spin faster than the records.

Let’s dive right in and explore the endless ocean of internet radio! After digging through the web and trying many Internet radio websites, I can say these these are the best online radio platforms.

Go ahead and try everything and let us which is your favourite and which one do you think is the top internet radio station.

Topics Covered - Index [Show]

#1. TuneIn

TuneIn is the swiss army knife for all your listening needs. If it’s local radio stations you’re after, they’re available from their website or app no matter where you are. The service is easy to navigate whether you’re looking for sports, news, music, or podcasts.

TuneIn is built into a handful of devices and can be accessed on over 200 of them including Smart Tv’s, gaming consoles, tablets, streaming devices like Roku and Firestick, and more.

TuneIn has:

120,000 Live radio stations
400m monthly hours clocked
75M Listeners
197 countries tuning in
Free mobile app
Ad-free for a 9.99 one time fee

TuneIn also has an upgraded premium monthly subscription that grants access to live NHL games, and more than 600 extra commercial-free music stations for 9.99/month. TuneIN website is probably the top internet radio station out there.

#2. Pandora

Pandora is one of the most used free online radio station according to the Similarweb traffic data. Pandora.com allows you to curate your own experience by selecting your favorite music and offering suggestions based on your preferences all for free, all you have to do is sign up.

If you’re the kind of person who wants their music to keep on coming non-stop this is a great service to do so.

What sets Pandora apart from competitors is they use a music genome constructed by 30 music theory specialists that groups music together based on 400 Different attributes, including rhythm, harmony, composition and lyrics. Their genome learns your tastes and does a great job of recommending new content to you.

While mostly geared towards music, you can also find podcasts in over 20 categories.

Pandora has:

40M Songs
250 Station Limit
60M Listeners
Free mobile app (40 hour monthly limit)
Premium services starting at 4.99/month

Even though Pandora internet radio offers a free radio, that comes with commercials. They offer a basic ad-free service for 4.99/month or an unlimited premium service that allows unlimited offline listening and the creation and sharing of playlists for 12.99/month.

#3. iHeartRadio

iHeartRadio is similar to Pandora, but offers sports, news, music, talk radio, and podcasts as well on their free app. It’s almost like Pandora and TuneIn had a baby. You can still curate your experience by selecting your favorite artists and genres and the service will continuously play songs that match your taste.

iHeart has a larger music library than Pandora and is preferred by many for it’s easy accessibility, so if you want to jump right in and listen to some of your favorites without jumping through any hoops, iHeartRadio is for you.

iHeart Radio has:

Estimated 275M Monthly listeners
15M Songs
850 Stations
Premium subscriptions starting at 4.99/month

The Plus version allows you to play any song, unlimited skips, creation of playlists for 4.99/month and the All Access version provides unlimited playlists, songs, and offline listening for 9.99/month. iOS users will have to pay an extra service fee but can be bypassed by signing up for web billing through this link.

#4. vTuner – Best Commercial Free Internet Radio Station

vTuner online platform offers access to radio stations around the globe. Its simplistic browsing feature allows you to select music, sports, talk, news, and podcasts by location, genre, or language. The services’ functionality is built into hundreds of home audio devices to offer a hands-free experience.

vTuner is the best commercial-free internet radio station. No premium services, no ads–just simple listening! If you only want to listen everything for free then vTuner is For you
SavenetRadio.Org

vTuner Commercial Free Online Radio Features:

Tens of Thousands of stations
Millions of songs
Hundreds of thousands of shows
Ad-free stations

If commercial radio isn’t your thing and discovering awesome new music is, check out these unique internet radio stations. Although they may not tip the scales on the monthly listener count, you’re sure to find awesome music you’ve never heard before.

#5. Spotify

Spotify offers an extensive collection of playlists, artist stations, and podcasts. It pairs well with Google home devices offering a hands-free experience. Simply pick an artist and it’ll play songs based on your preferences.

The premium version allows you to play albums from top to bottom as well select specific songs. You can create and share your own playlists and allows you to see what your friends are listening to with its Facebook integration.

Spotify has:

320M active listeners
144M premium subscribers
60M tracks
1.9M Podcast Titles
Premium service for 9.99/month

Spotify also offers sweet discounts for students, families, and a duo package for you and a friend to get your own accounts and split the cost of 12.99/month. As a bonus Hulu is included with your premium subscription.

#6. Soma Fm

Soma Fm has been broadcasting since 2000 and has to be one of the coolest internet radio stations out there. Who doesn’t love a commercial free experience that’s supported by the users and listeners.

If you’re looking for alternative, electronic, or chill vibe tunes you’ve never heard before Soma Fm is the station for you. Don’t be shy to donate while immersed in the uninterrupted underground jams.

Soma Internet Radio Features:

Completely free listening
Displays artist played in the last two weeks
Lets you save tracks to a playlist
Ad-free

#7. LiveXLive

LiveXlive formerly known as Slacker Radio has an awesome user interface that lets you navigate it’s over 1100 curated stations. If you are as heartbroken as I am about missing festival season last year they have playlists featuring artists from Bonnaroo, Coachella, Lollapalooza and more to help fill the void.

If you happened to be so lucky to attend some of the drive-in live music events that popped up at the end of summer, then fear not, they have virtual tickets available for these shows as well as a few upcoming virtual shows on their lineup.

LiveXLive Internet Radio Pros:

Live show streaming
Premium Subscription starting at 3.99/month

#8. Worldwide Fm

Worldwide.fm features a culturally diverse lineup that broadcasts in London, Berlin, New York, Tokyo, Istanbul, and Melbourne to name a few. Their passion for inclusivity provides a unique listening experience for the vast subcultures that exist within music.

The service is completely free, but you can support them by subscribing to their premium service for only 2.99/month and all the proceeds go back into the platform.

Worldwide.FM Online FM Features:

Original Content
Global Artists
Award Winning Station
Chat feature to connect with Dj’s

#9. KEXP

KEXP is a Seattle based radio station that showcases rising talent in the alternative/indie scene. They are a non-profit organization that is fueled by donations, volunteers, and government funding.

Their expert DJs spin eclectic mixes that offer a professionally curated experience and all you have to do is visit their site or download the app and hit play. If you’re a live music fan or if you’re looking for emerging artists, KEXP Sessions has you covered.

KEXP has:

200,000 Weekly listeners
45 Professional DJs

The Best Internet Radio Stations

Now that we’ve covered a wide array of the best internet radio stations both big and small, global and local, it’s time to find the one that works best for you. Let’s recap with a quick rundown of all the stations we’ve covered to help you on your internet radio journey:

TuneIn – Biggest and broadest selection of all your radio needs.
Pandora – Professionally curated music using an expertly designed algorithm.
iHeartRadio – Simplistic portal to the music and stations you love.
Spotify – Just ask Google to play your favorite songs, albums, and podcasts.
vTuner – Music, sports, talk, news, and podcasts from all around the world.
Soma Fm – Listener-supported ad-free alternative/ electronic powerhouse.
LiveXLive – Live music lovers rejoice!
Worldwide Fm – Cultural blend of global musical standouts.
KEXP – Where emerging artists ascend to stardom, catch them here first.

Citations

7/26/2025

Streaming Radio Station Locator

Lately I have been rediscovering local FM radio stations for news and music. FM, AM, SW, and Ham radio broadcasting stations have been moving to online Internet streaming for years. But the selection of FM radio is sometimes hard to find in your area. For those unable to locate a local AM/FM station to stream, the Radio Locator search tool link (below) is available to locate stations that broadcast on the Internet.

There are even more Internet radio only stations around the world. Many people today also stream Internet and FM radio from their cell phones in their cars from iHeart radio (128 kbs), Pandora music radio (64 kbs), Amazon Music (320 kbs), and SiriusXM satellite radio (256 kbs) formats. Enjoy.

https://radio-locator.com/

This is how I used to listen to FM radio. Old memories from the past.

7/24/2025

What will happen to AM and FM broadcasts in the future? It's a tech question that needs to be answered.

AM radio has been around since the beginning of broadcasting. FM was invented in the 1930s and surpassed AM as the band of choice in the 1980s. Both bands have had an excellent run. But how much longer will we be using them?

I am NOT talking about the death of terrestrial radio. It will survive just fine. But the distribution channels will change.

Here in North America, we have AM, FM, satellite radio, streaming, and HD-Radio. Let’s go through them.

AM faces the biggest challenge, not only because of its inferior audio quality but because signals cannot penetrate the electromagnetic fields generated by electric vehicles. If you can’t be heard in the car, you’re dead. A new survey says that 73% of people listen to radio in the car. Some AM stations are moving to FM, but government regulations and dearth of open spots on the dial are big roadblocks.

FM continues to do well despite pressure from other audio options like smartphones and streaming. Its biggest disadvantage is that it’s not interactive, something that younger generations demand.

Satellite radio serves a listening niche, although there’s just one provider in North America. While it offers a huge variety of programming, it’s not free. That’s a big barrier to a lot of people.

Online audio streaming of radio continues to grow. That same survey says that 70% of Americans stream AM/FM radio and audio content weekly.

HD Radio (the brand name of In-Band On-Channel or iBOC) is based on tech developed in the 1990s. It has never taken off in a big way even though many, many markets have stations that broadcast in HD Radio. And if your car is less than seven years old, chances are it can receive HD Radio broadcasts, although most infotainment systems don’t make it easy.

Nothing stands still, how will radio be distributed in the future?

Things are evolving in other parts of the world. Norway, Switzerland, and a few other countries are in the process of shutting down the legacy bands (i.e. AM and FM) in favour of digital radio (DAB). That’s never going to happen here.

We in North America had a chance to get on board with DAB more than 20 years ago, but the US kiboshed the whole thing for a couple of reasons. First, the broadcast frequencies required by DAB were apparently too close to those used by the US military. Second, the US is just too big and no one wanted to spend the necessary money to build transmitters and repeaters. HD Radio was seen as a compromise, but no one seems to care.

And third, Canada actually adopted DAB more than two decades ago but ran into technical issues. At the time, though, VHF frequencies were being used for over-the-air analogue TV (not a problem anymore). The other issue was that because DAB used microwave frequencies around 1200 MHz, lots and lots of transmitters would be required to have extensive and smooth signals. Like the US, we’re just too big (although Australia and Russia seem to be interested in solving this problem.)

Okay, so where do we go from here? There are big predictions about the connectivity possible with 5G and 6G networks. That, however, requires a LOT of technical infrastructure upgrades. It’ll also take a long time for the majority of the population to transition from whatever type of network they’re using now. This will also require changes to infotainment systems in cars, something that won’t happen quickly.

Broadcasters will have to figure out how to adapt, too, but are very, very wary of moving too quickly in this direction. We in radio remember the early 2000s when we went all-in with online offerings. But by the time we were able to roll out the new platforms, the tech had moved on and we were stuck with an outdated and buggy online presence. Radio now tends to use off-the-shelf products (e.g. building websites on WordPress platforms instead of creating something from scratch). At this point, there are no off-the-shelf solutions for 5G and 6G connectivity.

We will move on eventually. But what will happen to that spectrum now occupied by AM and FM? Will they be repurposed? Unknown.

Old-school VHF radios once used by taxis and other fleet vehicles have pretty much disappeared in favour of apps on a smartphone. Is that the direction of AM and FM? Possibly. Will these frequencies eventually empty out? Could they be used for low-power very specialized micro-broadcasting? Maybe.

To be clear, “radio” is not going away. It will be with us forever. It just needs to be redefined away from sounds that come out of box that you tune to a specific frequency. “Radio” will become something that can be enjoyed digitally both in real time and on-demand. How we receive those broadcasts is still very much TBA.

To get a little more into the weeds, go here.

Source: https://www.ajournalofmusicalthings.com/what-will-happen-to-am-and-fm-broadcasts-in-the-future-its-a-tech-question-that-needs-to-be-answered/

Below are some vintage high quality FM tuners that are sought after by audiophiles:

The Kenwood KT-815 Tuner- below

Inside the Kenwood KT-815 Tuner - below

7/22/2025

The 13 Best Internet Radio Stations of 2024

With the multitude of online radio stations that are available, picking your favorite should be easy. Below is my hand-picked list of the absolute best online radio stations for a variety of genres.

I reviewed dozens of these types of websites to uncover the best choices in a variety of categories, so you'll find country music, instrumental music, a station perfect for party music, and several others.

Each of these picks has music selected by one or more DJs, much like a traditional radio station. In fact, some are just online streams of the same radio program played over the air in that station's local area.

These websites are true radio programs, not on-demand music streaming services. While a streaming music service gives you the freedom to play specific tracks and eliminates commercials, you have to manually pick and choose which songs to stream. An internet radio station plays DJ-chosen music as part of a category or genre, like rock, indie, jazz, Christian, etc., making music discovery fun and easy.