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AM Frequency of the Week: 1570:

cyberdad

cyberdad

40-ish miles northwest of downtown Chicago....

Days: Sometimes a whiff of what's left of WFRL from Freeport, IL 5kw from about 65 miles west of me. Pattern is mostly north-south, but one small lobe in my direction. I also sometimes hear the 1570 from Chicago's south suburbs (ex-WBEE). 1100 watts also not exactly favorable in my direction.

Nights: Usually a jumble of weak signals.

Retro: Of course this was home to border blaster XERF and the Wolfman. The signal here was okay, but much better at my college location in Iowa. Most common pest was CFOR from Orillia, Ontario and/or the 1570 from St. Thomas, ON (call letters escape me). Both of these were about 90 miles from Toronto, north and west, respectively. I haven't heard the current version of XERF here,but I know others have.
 
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cyberdad said:
40-ish miles northwest of downtown Chicago....

Days: Sometimes a whiff of what's left of WFRL from Freeport, IL 5kw from about 65 miles west of me. Pattern is mostly north-south, but one small lobe in my direction. I also sometimes hear the 1570 from Chicago's south suburbs (ex-WBEE). 1100 watts also not exactly favorable in my direction.

Nights: Usually a jumble of weak signals.

Retro: Of course this was home to border blaster XERF and the Wolfman. The signal here was okay, but much better at my college location in Iowa. Most common pest was CFOR from Orillia, Ontario and/or the 1570 from St. Thomas, ON (call letters escape me). Both of these were about 90 miles from Toronto, north and west, respectively. I haven't heard the current version of XERF here,but I know others have.
Click to expand...
It is too bad I missed out on the Wolfman Jack era, and XERF. Luckily, watching "American Graffiti" gives me that fix.

From Cheyenne Wyoming:
Days: A very weak KXJJ Fort Collins, CO, carrying the spanish format that was formerly in Cheyenne.
Nights: A mumbo-jumbo of signals, but I think KBCV Branson/Hollister is the most likely visitor.
 
In the near north Chicago suburbs during the day I get a very weak WBGX previously WBEE. At night nothing specific.

Retro: Used to be CFOR or XERF and the Wolfman.
 
Nothing here in central Ohio day or night. Definitely nothing daytime with local WVKO next door on 1580, and I don't remember hearing much at night either.
It's been many years since I lived in Houston, but I swear I remember getting XERF with a good skywave signal at night. Pretty sure it was still running high power in those days, the late 2000s.
 
East Tennessee: Daytime-nothing.
Night--a jumble of signals. Might as well be
Retro/other: I worked at 2 1570s, WILO in Frankfort IN and WPTW in Piqua, Ohio. Both 250 watt former daytimers. When I started at WILO, we had just gotten post-sunset authorization until 6pm. I don't remember hearing of long-distance reception of either. Once WILO got nighttime authorization, it could make it 45 miles pretty clearly. WPTW couldn't make it to South Dayton (both 250 watts fulltime). I seem to remember a southern Gospel station in Kentucky that would come in at home just around sunrise. That may be for the DX mysteries thread.

Otherwise, before 1570 became the equivelant of 1230, XERF, which I only remember from 250,000 watts of fire and brimstone preaching. No Wolfman or Paul Kallinger. I don't remember hearing CFOR, but it's possible.
 
Pretty tame here in the day. Semi-local WPGM Danville is the regular. I think they had signed on with religion somewhere during the Song of Solomon. (Well, they HAVE been observing strict sundown for a long time).
In a null of WPGM, downstate WISP is faint but steady. They're from Doylestown, in Bucks County, and as such had been full-service 'WBUX' for decades. Back in Queens they were quite the SSS regular, too, despite sending their signal southeast.

Out here in NE PA, SSS has brought in Radio OZ from Towson, just North of Baltimore and WYTI from Virginia ; them I have 'taped'.

Nighttimes USED to offer a somewhat clear but deep-fading CKLM out of Montreal.

More work is definitely needed here on 1570, most likely the best at sunset. But as Gr8 Oldies says, 1570 at night is the new 1230.
Back in Queens there were 15 stations logged on 1570. Nothing to write home about (or to any of the stations).
 
Here in Wood Dale, IL in the near NW suburb of Chicago:

Daytime: WBGX Harvey, IL with fair signal from their 4 tower array visible driving on I-294 near 157th Street.
Nightime: mix of stations, but nobody dominating the frequency

DX/RETRO: one of my most productive frequencies DX wise with almost 30 stations heard. Gone are the days when XERF was blasting in with Wolfman Jack, but heard frequently on the Arctic SDR. Gone are also for good the Canadians CKLM and CHLO that used to be frequent visitors. Some of the DX highlights include KUXL (Golden Valley, MN), WCLE (Cleveland, TN), WVVW (St. Mary's, WV - DX test), WQTW (Latrobe, PA), WGSR (Fernandina Beach, FL - DX Test). Most recent new log on 1570 is WTRB (Ripley, TN) which was heard in 2021. Finally, gone is also the Atlantic Beacon from Turks & Caicos, which was heard in the Chicago area back 1987.
 
DFW, Texas

Daytime: Weak KPYK Terrell, TX running 270 watts at 53 miles SE.
Sunset: Have heard KTUZ in Spanish from Catoosa, OK.
Nighttime: All XERF with KLLA Leesville, LA occasionally heard in the null.
 
Chicago by the Lakeshore:

Daytime: WBGX in the southern Chicago suburbs.

Critical Hours/Nighttime: It's a jumble of weak signals. I've identified some of them: WSCO in Appleton, WI, WBGZ (not to be confused with WBGX) in Alton IL, WFUR in Grand Rapids, and WGLL in Auburn, IL.
 
From the southwest suburbs of Chicago, now, day and night, it's the four-tower pride of Harvey, Ill., 1.1 kW WBGX, which started as three-tower all-jazz 1 kW daytimer WBEE and briefly was WMNN during a flirtation with business news.

When WBEE was daytime-only, evening catches were interesting: CHLO St. Thomas, Ont., a night test of WSSA Morrow, Ga., CKLM Montreal, XERF Ciudad Acuna, Mex., when it was still running 250 kW, CFOR Orilla, Ont., and in more recent times, WFUR Grand Rapids, Mich., and WILO Frankfort, Ind.

Much has changed. CHLO, CKLM and CFOR are gone, XERF is 100 kW and Mexico public radio, and WSSA is WIGO. And WBGX is always there from my neck of the woods.
 
KTGE Slinas, CA and i think thats it. No, i have not heard XERF up here
 
WWCK 1570 ground wave during the Daytime throughout Southeast Michigan. When they signed off, used to be CHLO or CFOR before they moved to FM. Near Pellston, during Daytime Skywave, and Critical Hours, WWCK and WFUR. I have heard WBGX during CH before Sunset, as it beams the equivalent of about 4 kW toward Pellston with the Day Pattern and Power. It's like an old Class IV frequency at Night now.
 
From NW San Antonio:

Day: A weak XERF at 147 miles W/SW. The signal is intelligible on my more sensitive radios.

Sunset: XERF is stronger but subject to cancellation and deep fades. KLLA comes up and sometimes has a good signal during those fades. Also, KTUZ (before signing off) and KPYK are often heard underneath or mixing with XERF. Occasionally, a weak KVLG in La Grange, TX (classic country) will pop up briefly.

Night: Similar to sunset but with KPYK and (especially) KVLG more rare.

DX/Retro: One-time loggings include KTAT in Frederick, OK, and WTWB in Auburndale, FL. Also, I've heard Radio VEA in Guatemala City twice.
 
I;ve been hanging out on 1570 a couple of mornings this week to see if I coud snag XERF. Definitely sounds like a GY channel at my location.. One where nothing makes it to the top for more than a couple of seconds. Except Monday morning (3/7) A little after 5am CDT I was hearing music in Spanish. I'm guessing it was not XERF, because I heard a Spanish language ad/promo fr i-heart.

Another mystery?
 
From west Houston, days is slop from local 1560 KGOW. At sunset, XERF comes up strongly with KPYK and KLLA sometimes underneath. Nights, XERF with occasional KLLA. Sunrise, the same as sunset, with XERF quite strong.

Retro from Tulsa, XERF was a powerhouse. This was the Paul Kellanger days, post-Wolfman. I have a vague recollection of hearing a Canadian when XERF was off, but can't remember the station. Maybe CHLO as mentioned above?
 
cyberdad said:
I;ve been hanging out on 1570 a couple of mornings this week to see if I coud snag XERF. Definitely sounds like a GY channel at my location.. One where nothing makes it to the top for more than a couple of seconds. Except Monday morning (3/7) A little after 5am CDT I was hearing music in Spanish. I'm guessing it was not XERF, because I heard a Spanish language ad/promo fr i-heart.

Another mystery?
Click to expand...
Cyberdad, I believe that is daytimer KTUZ “La Zeta” in Catoosa, OK. Its stream is on the iHeart app.
 
jim-satx said:
Cyberdad, I believe that is daytimer KTUZ “La Zeta” in Catoosa, OK. Its stream is on the iHeart app.
Click to expand...
Thanks. That seems to fit They're supposed to be a daytimer, and the fact that I haven't heard them before or since tells me that they apparently "forgot" to turn off their AM transmitter.
 
Nothing in the day (but have heard KCVR Lodi CA in dead of winter)

Nights - mostly XERF Ciudad Acuna, KCVR Lodi makes it here and there, and KTGE Salinas CA is rarer. When eastern cx are great, KBCV Hollister MO makes it with their Bott Radio Network programming. KXJJ Loveland CO has been heard under their old KVAM and KPIO calls at sunset. WFRL Freeport IL is a one-time catch from 2019! Heard a tentative WSCO Appleton WI a few years ago running the defunct NBC Sports network. No ID, no log.

KPRO Riverside and CKMW Morden MB (both RIP) are also in the logs. CKMW was a regular when they were still on AM, often mixed with XERF.

1570 can be very fun when XERF is down in the noise, the eastern cx are red hot, and I get a jumble that sounds like a distant graveyard rumble. I know everything except KBCV is low to flea power.

Patrick Martin on the Oregon coast has done way better than me. He's logged many low-power stations on 1570 - WTRB TN and WNCA NC (the latter just last November) highlights. But he's got way better equipment than I do.
 
South Mississippi:

Day - nothing
Critical hours - WABL Amite, LA (classic hits) and WIZK Bay Springs, MS (country)
Night - XERF Ciudad Acuna
 
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