By now – especially if you’ve been reading this column – you’ve probably heard of HD Radio, the broadcasting system authorized by the FCC where digital broadcasts are sent along with regular analog signals, giving supposed better sound quality on FM extra channels. These channels are available only if you have an HD Radio tuner.

But what are those extra channels, and is it worth upgrading to an HD Radio at home or in your car? Those are the big questions, and I’m going to try to answer them. First, the extra channels you can hear broadcast along with your favorite FM station; the following is a list of the available extra HD stations in Los Angeles, and the format they run.

The list below shows the extra stations a particular outlet provides but omits the first channels, which are duplicates of the regular analog stations. So the list below will begin with -2 for the second station and so on.

88.1-2: Jazz vocals

88.1-3: Cal State Long Beach student-run station; various programs from oldies to hip-hop; the home of Mornings on the Beach, an award-winning morning program covering various lifestyle issues

88.5-2: Contemporary Jazz, local news, and entertainment from Saddleback College

88.5-3: The Latin Alternative: Alternative music, electronic dance music, indie pop, Sal Soul and classic rock en Español

89.3-2: The Current: Contemporary alternative music from Minnesota Public Radio

89.9-2: Eclectic 24: a continuous stream of eclectic music curated by KCRW’s Chris Douridas

92.3-2: News and information from the Black Information Network

93.1-2: Simulcast of K-Frog’s (KFRG/Riverside) country music programming

93.1-3: The Bet: Sports gambling information and CBS Sportsradio programming

93.9-2: Spanish adult contemporary music

94.7-2: Rhythmic contemporary music

94.7-3: Radio Hamrah: News, information and talk programming for the global Persian community

95.1-2: Owner Audacy lists KFRG-HD2 as Next Country playing the next country hits before they are hits, but when I tuned in, the station was playing Spanish-language light rock.

95.5-2: Southern California’s FM Talk Station… 24/7 repeats of the KLOS (95.5 FM) morning show, Heidi and Frank. Other shows are promised, but for now, that’s it.

95.5-3: Armenian language news, information and talk from SoCalArmenian.com

97.1-2: Channel Q: Electronic Dance Music and other programming designed for LA’s LGBTQ audience

97.1-3: Firelane: non-stop dance music

98.7-2: Simulcast of KLAC ’s (570 AM) sports programming

100.3-2: Air 1 Radio: contemporary Christian religious/worship music (essentially a simulcast of KYLA/Fountain Valley 92.7 FM and a handful of other stations in areas surrounding Los Angeles)

100.3-3: Radio Nueva Vida: Christian music and talk in Spanish

101.1-2: Simulcast of KNX (1070 AM) news radio

101.9-2: Simulcast of KTNQ (1020 AM) Spanish-language news/talk

101.9-3: Armenian Music Radio

103.5-2: Simulcast of KFI (640 AM) talk radio

103.5-3: The Breeze: Soft Rock similar to what KOST (103.5 FM) itself used to play

103.9-2: El Sembrador: Spanish-language Catholic radio programming from El Sembrador Ministries’ ESNE Radio network.

103.9-3: Another simulcast of KTNQ

104.3-2: Pride Radio: “The Pulse of LGBTQ+ America” – iHeart offers electronic music and top-40.

105.1-2: LA Oldies, as formerly heard on the old KSUR (now KMZT, 1260 AM). Oldies from the 1950s through the early 1980s with an emphasis on the late ‘60s and ’70

105.1-3: Unforgettable FM: all Frank Sinatra, all the time

105.1-4: Simulcast of K-Mozart (KMZT): classical music with a few related specialty programs

105.9-2: Simulcast of KDAY (93.5 FM) old school hip-hop

106.3-2: AAX Radio: Vietnamese programming (though when I tuned in I heard an English-language discussion about weddings and masks)

106.3-3: Simulcast of KYPA’s (1230 AM) Korean-language programming of music (including English-language oldies) and information

106.7-2: Roq of the ‘80s: The music that made KROQ (106.7 FM) famous; pop and alternative music from the 1980s

107.5-2: Radio Jan: Launched first in Armenia in 2012 and in Los Angeles in 2017, the station plays Armenian popular music

107.5-3: Radio ITN: 24-hour news and entertainment serving the Persian-speaking community.

Currently, only FM stations can broadcast the extra channels, though the HD system would allow AM stations to do so if they went all-digital. There is not enough space in the AM band to allow extra channels using the current system; unfortunately going all-digital means a station would lose traditional radio listeners. A few stations nationwide have done so, but none locally.

So you can see that there are many “secret” stations that can be heard using an HD Radio tuner. Should you go out and buy one? Chances are, you may already have one in your car if you own one bought in the last ten years … many models offer a stepped-up audio option. And ten years ago, I would have said yes to buying one.

But there is a problem with the extra channels on FM: Unlike the main station, there is no buffering. This means if you don’t have a clean signal, the extra station just drops out. This is not a problem at home, but while driving the signal can pop in and out constantly. Very annoying.

Combine this with the improvement in internet accessibility, apps you can use via modern stereos and your smartphone, along with smart speakers and Bluetooth connections at home, and I’d say pass. This doesn’t mean avoid the stations listed above, just listen through your phone app and your smart speakers.

My recommendation: Skip the HD, and use an app. Of course, if you do already own HD Radios, by all means use them. I have four. But the apps now in use are actually better, and they also stream AM stations, most of which no longer broadcast in HD anyway.