FCC TV Channel Repack and the Radio Impact

[tylerSC]

The FCC has reassigned TV channels nationwide to make room for more cell phone signals. As a result, new TV transmitting antennas will be placed on the towers, and some radio stations sharing towers may have to move their antennas to make room.

It is yet unclear if any Charlotte radio signals may have to move or adjust their antennas, but most tower sharing concerns seem to be regarding the TV towers in Gaston County near Dallas. Since WBTV is the only Charlotte TV station not changing channels, then perhaps radio stations 107.9-WLNK and 105.3-WOSF which share the same tower will not need to make adjustments. However, WJZY FOX-46 will be moving from 47 to 25, and will replace their current Andrew antenna with an ERI transmitting antenna. It is unclear if WNKS-95.1 or Channel 96.1 radio antennas sharing the tower will have to move to make way for the new WJZY antenna, or to satisfy height and weight requirements.

I am not aware of any radio stations sharing the WSOC-TV Channel 9 or WCCB-Channel 18 towers in Mecklenburg County. Apparently WSOC-FM 103.7 no longer shares the WSOC-TV tower, as they are no longer co-owned. And the other Gaston County TV tower for WCNC does not share with any radio stations.

The WJZY 2000ft. tower will likely face the most changes, whatever they turn out to be. The current permits indicate WJZY will remain a side mounted antenna, just moving to 25. Sister station WMYT-55 will go off the air, and I would guess their channel 39 side antenna will be removed. This may make room for one of the radio antennas to move, or add separate HD Radio antennas. Pure speculation at this point. And will the old Channel 46 analog antenna on top of the tower finally be removed? And will this possibly make way for a top mounted stick antenna for one of the radio stations? Remains to be seen.

 

[tylerSC]

Also I am not sure why WJZY and WCNC never top mounted their transmiting antennas on the towers, and apparently according to the FCC permits they will remain side mounted with their new antennas. WBTV and WSOC-TV have top mounted their antennas, and they will remain, although WSOC-TV will move from 34 to 19.

But the new WCNC and WJZY antennas apparently will now have an elliptical pattern, which means both horizontal and circular polarization. Hopefully this will help with reception coverage in the fringes. I am currently 75 miles from their transmit towers in Greenville County, SC and I receive reliable reception from both channels. However, the side mount null to the west provides a weaker signal at my location than WBTV, which is top mounted and omnidirectional. I receive a consistent 10 bars from WBTV, which will remain on 23. But WCNC is 6 to 8 bars depending upon conditions, and WJZY is 8 to 10 bars. Hopefully this will remain the same or even improve with their new antennas and elliptical pattern.

 

[test123]

According to this PDF http://www.radioworld.com/portals/0/Weller-Appendix I-762017.pdf WFAE and WRFX will have to move due to WTVI and WHQC, WPEG and WNKS will have to move due to WJZY.

t123

 

[test123]

WSOC-FM and WKQC are on the old WCNC-TV tower on Hood Rd.

I understand that Beasley made an upgrade to the backup system they have for their stations at the WFNZ site. I am guessing WNKS and WPEG will have to work from there while the work is being done at WJZY.

IHeart has a back up site for their stations on the tower on Stuart Andrew where the WSOC-FM studios were located. I guess WRFX could work from there. Not sure about WFAE.

t123

 

[vchimpanzee]

Where did all this information come from about channels moving?

Now that Mark Washburn has "retired", I guess we can't count on the Observer for all the details of such changes.

And why would WMYT need to go off the air? Subchannels are possible with co-owned stations and they could share a tower. As long as WMYT continued to be carried on cable. I watch a lot of movies there and don't want to give those up.

 

[tylerSC]

According to this PDF http://www.radioworld.com/portals/0/Weller-Appendix I-762017.pdf WFAE and WRFX will have to move due to WTVI and WHQC, WPEG and WNKS will have to move due to WJZY.

t123

This is what I am concerned about. I get strong clear reception from 95.1 and 96.1 in Greenville, SC and I don't want to lose coverage. But I wonder if 95.1 and 96.1 could just relocate on the same tower? Supposedly this has to do with weight and space concerns, although with WJZY reportedly staying in the same spot and height, and WMYT coming down, it looks like there would still be room for the radio stations. Or perhaps one of the radio stations could top mount on the tower where the old analog 46 antenna is still located. Or perhaps some of these radio stations could move to the WCNC or WBTV towers, or Crowders Mountain. They have good tall antennas and reception from Gaston County and I hope they can maintain their current coverage from there, despite possibly having to move.

 

[tylerSC]

Where did all this information come from about channels moving?

Now that Mark Washburn has "retired", I guess we can't count on the Observer for all the details of such changes.

And why would WMYT need to go off the air? Subchannels are possible with co-owned stations and they could share a tower. As long as WMYT continued to be carried on cable. I watch a lot of movies there and don't want to give those up.

I miss Mark Washburn's informative columns in the Charlotte Observer. He kept you well informed of local radio and TV news. But regretabley McClatchy has "retired" many of their veteran reporters at the Observer and other publications, and reduced content to only 2 sections a day except Sundays. As for WMYT-55, FOX chose to sell this station, as well as WDCA-20 in Washington, DC for the revenue. Both stations will likely remain as a subchannel of their main stations, FOX-46 and FOX-5. Some of the other subchannels may be dropped to make room, but there is still concern of maintaining good video quality with 2 HD streams on the same signal, and another possible subchannel. WSOC-TV has done a very good job with 2 HD channels on 34, with the main Channel 9 ABC stream, and the Telemundo channel. But they have no other subchannels. Hopefully FOX will not try to crowd too many channels on one signal, or the video quality may suffer.

 

[tylerSC]

Regarding the TV channels changing, most antenna viewers will simply be told to rescan their TVs. Hopefully there will be no loss of coverage in most major areas. WJZY will still be FOX-46, and WSOC-TV will still be Channel 9, despite moving to 25 and 19. But they will still keep their old analog branding in most cases. This has all been authorized by the FCC to make room for more cell phone signals, and is occurring nationwide. Charlotte stations will change over by September of 2019, but the concern remains what will happen with some of the radio antennas on the same towers. Hopefully those in the know can keep us updated, and 95.1 and 96.1 can somehow keep their strong signals from a similar location.

 

[Kent]

This is what I am concerned about. I get strong clear reception from 95.1 and 96.1 in Greenville, SC and I don't want to lose coverage. But I wonder if 95.1 and 96.1 could just relocate on the same tower?

If the TV moves require anybody to scale the tower, 95.1 and 96.1 having an auxiliary on the same tower wouldn't help you. Stations have to reduce power when people are on the tower.

Your best bet may be to rely on your smartphone during the moves. If you don't have a car with an auxiliary connection, you can buy a Bluetooth to FM adapter for around $30. I found one on sale for $20 a few months ago at Target and prefer it to plugging my phone cord into the car. You probably already do the bulk of your other listening online. Only issue is if your work prohibits streaming. I work at a university. We have an open internet policy and almost unlimited bandwidth. A lot of other people aren't that lucky.

 

[vchimpanzee]

Regarding the TV channels changing, most antenna viewers will simply be told to rescan their TVs. Hopefully there will be no loss of coverage in most major areas. WJZY will still be FOX-46, and WSOC-TV will still be Channel 9, despite moving to 25 and 19. But they will still keep their old analog branding in most cases. This has all been authorized by the FCC to make room for more cell phone signals, and is occurring nationwide. Charlotte stations will change over by September of 2019, but the concern remains what will happen with some of the radio antennas on the same towers. Hopefully those in the know can keep us updated, and 95.1 and 96.1 can somehow keep their strong signals from a similar location.

I live too far away from most of the Charlotte stations for this to work. If I was willing to get someone to install an outdoor antenna, and the trees didn't cause me a problem, and wind and lightning didn't cause me problems, I might try it. WMYT, we were warned, didn't have a good signal where I live. I got no such warnings about any other Charlotte stations.

If I didn't have this site, I wouldn't know any of this was going on because it hasn't even been in Mark Washburn's columns.

For now I'm hoping Spectrum keeps letting me see WMYT even if it is a subchannel. That's one of the rules for repacking, right?

 

[tylerSC]

I live too far away from most of the Charlotte stations for this to work. If I was willing to get someone to install an outdoor antenna, and the trees didn't cause me a problem, and wind and lightning didn't cause me problems, I might try it. WMYT, we were warned, didn't have a good signal where I live. I got no such warnings about any other Charlotte stations.

If I didn't have this site, I wouldn't know any of this was going on because it hasn't even been in Mark Washburn's columns.

For now I'm hoping Spectrum keeps letting me see WMYT even if it is a subchannel. That's one of the rules for repacking, right?

What county are you located in? You may be able to receive Charlotte stations or other adjacent market signals with a good UHF antenna and preamp. Add a VHF antenna if there are any stations near you such as WSPA-7 or 13-WLOS, and for FM radio. As for WMYT-55, it will most likely still be continued to be carried on cable, and probably will still be branded as MyTV-12. The over the air signal will likely become a subchannel of WJZY, FOX-46. Some of their other subchannels may be dropped. But none of this has been officially announced yet, except for the TV channel changes announced by the FCC.

As for the radio stations, hopefully 95.1 and 96.1 will remain on the WJZY tower with their current strong signal. It just may require some movement on the tower to accomodate the new WJZY antenna. This is what I hope. But nothing has been officially announced for the radio stations, but most of these changes should occur around September of 2019.

 

[Mike Sheridan]

I live in East Charlotte the signal from WMYT has never been that good here, even with my outdoor stacked batwing Channel Master antenna. I haven't seen much on MyTV-12 worth watching anyway.

 

[vchimpanzee]

I live in East Charlotte the signal from WMYT has never been that good here, even with my outdoor stacked batwing Channel Master antenna. I haven't seen much on MyTV-12 worth watching anyway.

I know the rest of the world gets its movies from video rental places and online. My Internet is fast enough now for the second one. However, those movies are uncensored. That's one reason, aside from the cost.

 

[tylerSC]

I live in East Charlotte the signal from WMYT has never been that good here, even with my outdoor stacked batwing Channel Master antenna. I haven't seen much on MyTV-12 worth watching anyway.

You mean you don't watch Jimmy Swaggart on 55.3? Actually, religious issues aside, his gospel music is very good, and he is still singing, preaching, and playing that piano. And over 80 years old and still going strong.

But, after MyTV12 becomes a WJZY subchannel, it is likely some of those other subchannels may be dropped to make room. But it is unclear which. I like the Heroes and Icons on 46.3, but not necessarily the game show reruns on 55.2.

 

[vchimpanzee]

I watched a movie on WMYT which apparently had numerous uses of the F-word. It is not necessary for us to be subjected to that to enjoy a movie, or at least to tolerate it as I did. So I really hope the station stays on cable and continues airing these movies.

 

[vchimpanzee]

As for the radio stations, hopefully 95.1 and 96.1 will remain on the WJZY tower with their current strong signal. It just may require some movement on the tower to accomodate the new WJZY antenna. This is what I hope. But nothing has been officially announced for the radio stations, but most of these changes should occur around September of 2019.

No sense in taking the tower down. Why not leave them there?

 

[test123]

No sense in taking the tower down. Why not leave them there?

They more than likely will stay there. Because WJZY will need a new antenna they will have to have a tower crew on the tower working around the radio stations antennas. That is against the rules. The radio stations will need to power way down or move to a backup site while the workers are on the tower.

t123

 

[tylerSC]

They more than likely will stay there. Because WJZY will need a new antenna they will have to have a tower crew on the tower working around the radio stations antennas. That is against the rules. The radio stations will need to power way down or move to a backup site while the workers are on the tower.

t123

That is what I am hoping they will remain on the same tower. And perhaps there may be opportunity for some of the radio stations to upgrade their antennas or add a separate HD antenna. Because there will be more room after the WMYT antenna is removed, and perhaps at long last the analog 46 antenna will be removed from the top of the tower. Not quite sure why WJZY doesn't top mount their new TV antenna like WBTV, but according to the FCC permit they will remain side mounted. Same as WCNC. Just seems like some radio or TV station should be top mounted to maximize coverage from the tower, but I don't necessarily understand these things.

 

[tylerSC]

That is what I am hoping they will remain on the same tower. And perhaps there may be opportunity for some of the radio stations to upgrade their antennas or add a separate HD antenna. Because there will be more room after the WMYT antenna is removed, and perhaps at long last the analog 46 antenna will be removed from the top of the tower. Not quite sure why WJZY doesn't top mount their new TV antenna like WBTV, but according to the FCC permit they will remain side mounted. Same as WCNC. Just seems like some radio or TV station should be top mounted to maximize coverage from the tower, but I don't necessarily understand these things.

Updating here, as of this June, the WMYT transmitting antenna for Channel 55 has now been shut down, and all TV channels have been combined with the WJZY-FOX46 signal on RF47. Some of the picture quality has now suffered with so many channels combined, but that is another topic.

As for the radio impact, it seems WNKS-95.1 has improved their signal, and the HD Radio signal is now stronger. Don't know if this is related to any changes on the WJZY tower since WMYT shut down. But definitely stronger HD signal for Kiss 95.1 in the fringes here near Greenville, SC.

And according to the FCC file, WJZY indeed has plans to top mount their transmitting antenna for the FCC repack when they move from RF47 to RF25. They will remain full power 1000kw and now the antenna will be placed on top of the tower. Signal should be stronger and more similar to WBTV which is currently the strongest. These changes should occur in September of 2019. Any further radio impact remains to be seen.

 

[tylerSC]

They more than likely will stay there. Because WJZY will need a new antenna they will have to have a tower crew on the tower working around the radio stations antennas. That is against the rules. The radio stations will need to power way down or move to a backup site while the workers are on the tower.

t123

A few months to go, and changes will begin on the WJZY-FOX46 TV tower, which may impact some of the shared radio stations. WJZY will move from RF47 to RF25, and move their new TV transmission antenna to the top of the tower. Preliminary wiring and other technical aspects could already be underway. Radio stations Kiss 95.1, Hits 96.1, and Power 98 also transmit from antennas on the same tower, and they may perhaps have to temporarily power down while construction is underway. And since the side mounted TV antennas for 47 and 39 are being removed, it may be possible for some of the radio stations to move higher on the tower. But this has yet to be determined, if any of these radio stations will move or upgrade as a result of the TV changes to WJZY. The construction phase is officially scheduled for August, and the new TV transmissions should begin in September. Soon we may see if any changes occur regarding the radio signals.