West Marin’s homegrown radio station KWMR is solving a problem long before an issue even arises. Beginning in February, the station will beam its programs through a brand-new broadcast console. It’s a proactive move, since the current 16-year-old console continues to function, but executive director and station manager Amanda Eichstaedt wasn’t prepared to gamble with fate. “We’ve known for a while that we should be thinking about a replacement for our current unit,” she said. “It’s so old and the only place you can find replacement parts is on eBay because it’s a British unit. Our worst fear would be to lose a module or two, which could cripple our creative programmers or impair our ability to inform the community.” Broadcast consoles are used to mix and transmit multiple channels, such as when DJs fade out a song and their voice comes in, or when a song is stopped for a programmer to announce an emergency road closure. The console unites four microphones, three compact disc players, two phone lines and multiple voices to be controlled. “A radio station is really hard on equipment because it’s in use seven days a week, 24 hours a day,” Bill Ruck, a veteran of San Francisco radio who’s been helping KWMR for years, said. “You can keep old stuff running but, on the other hand, if you have to depend on it, it’s not really a smart thing to do.” Ms. Eichstaedt began researching manufacturers across the county in search of the ideal console and found it in the Audio Arts R55e-12 analog console from the company Wheatstone. Although it came with a price tag of about $6,000, Mr. Ruck had a contact in San Diego who could sell them one for a steal if they jumped on the deal. Altogether, the replacement project will run about $13,000, with two-thirds of that labor costs. They’ve been able to secure grants from the county’s disaster preparedness fund and the West Marin Fund, but Ms. Eichstaedt said they’re in “full fundraising mode” to secure the last $6,000. The keyboard-sized console currently sits in a box in Ms. Eichstaedt’s office, waiting to be slid onto the desk in Studio A. (It even features the same color scheme, “which is comforting when you have to train 95 volunteer programmers how to use it,” she said.) During its installation, the station will have automated programing for a few days, from Monday, Jan. 29 through Wednesday, Jan. 31, to allow enough time to rewire the complete system—using 1,500-feet of wire—and replace the vinyl carpeting in the studio booth. Emergency announcements will be broadcasted if needed.