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Loud Media aquires WGAP/WKVL
- Thread starter Ktownradioman
- Start date
I was at WGAP/WKVL as GM when the translators were obtained. No option for Sharps Ridge on either frequency, and not even a good option to put it up on Foothills Parkway. We were even limited as to where in Maryville they could go - nothing left on the FM dial within 20 miles of Knoxville. Completely hemmed in.
My power is out in Maryville. As soon as it comes on, I will confirm.
Just went out to the car. Still a very weak signal. Definitely hasn't moved yet. Wonder if something is going on with the La Follette signal, because even it is weaker than usual for me.
Neither 104.9 or 100.9 have a decent signal for me (the LaFollette is still better) 3 miles southeast of downtown). I'm not sure if Greenback will be any better
I agree. The only part that makes sense is running a different format on each, which could potentially be in the works. Not sure what the final plans are for 105.9 either.
I was driving this morning (west side of Knoxville) and thought I’d check WPLA’s signal, when I discovered that it was completely off the air. This is the second time that I’ve caught them completely off. I could get a faint signal of W285FD Franklin, NC, which is the 104.9 translator for WFSC. That’s an impressive distance for a 113 watt translator on the other side of a mountain range.
I wonder how much of that distance is going to be cut down when WPLA moves to their new location?
Not bad at all. I sometimes will get WKOS, Kingsport, TN mixing with WPLA.
I always thought Loud should’ve tried to buy 105.3 from Horne. 104.9 from Lafollette & 105.3 from Loudon would make a good pairing to cover both sides of the market. Plus, they could use one of the AMs to feed it to the 105.1 translator downtown. Whole thing would be 3 adjacent frequencies too, so easy to brand.
I do think the move to Greenback on the 104.9 signal is a smart one though. It should give them a signal comparable to 99.1 (licensed to Friendsville. If I’m going to own a rimshot, I’d much rather cover west Knoxville than North Knoxville for advertising money. Also coming from that location should give them good coverage in Maryville, Oak Ridge, Tellico Village, & Lenoir City too. And let’s face it, west Knox, Blount, Oak Ridge, & the retirement villages in Loudon Co are much more appealing for ad dollars than North Knox & the rural areas twrds KY.
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From the “be careful what you wish for” file, what you’re suggesting would reduce our FM music choices by two, if you’re thinking that all three frequencies should be Lake FM. And speaking only from a personal point of view, I really hope not. I still miss the old WTNQ Good Time 104.9. They had a unique oldies mix that I really liked. As a replacement, 105.3 WFIV was close and helped fill the void. Their switch to West 105 isn’t great, but it’s still a lot more interesting than Lake FM, which just doesn’t cut it for me.
The Greenback signal wouldn’t cover West Knoxville according to the FCCdata coverage map of the CP. It would die out at I-40. It still makes no sense to me, especially since they have WKVL and its 100.9 translator to cover the same area.
Looking at the new coverage map on the Greenback cp, it looks like they’re doing a similar thing as with WVLZ, giving up power for increased height. I actually think that’s a good move as it usually allows stations to exceed their coverage projections (at least in car radio listening). The trade off is less building penetration for office/home listening, but honestly today most of that would be done via web stream anyway. I think higher antenna height for more distance in automotive reception is more valuable. And it looks like the first/city grade contour reaches deep west Knox (Chota/Concord area). So I would assume it would be decently listenable in cars on beyond that point. West Knox/Farragut should at least be better than the current Lafollette tower location. Also, looking at WVLZ’s coverage as a comparison, with the greater height, they are certainly listenable well beyond their projected map (unless u can’t stand any amount of fade or static at all). But I do think it’ll give them better coverage in west Knox & the outlying areas like Blount/Loudon which is a more lucrative market than the north side & Campbell Co. As far as the Maryville translators. If I were Loud, I’d flip 105.9 (and the corresponding AM) to a simulcast of WVLZ. It’s an adjacent signal, & would fill in their weak side of the market in Blount Co.
I also noticed Loud’s stations are listed for the first time in this last Nielsen trend. WVLZ is actually pulling a 1.9 share 12+, which i was kinda surprised at. I would’ve guessed 1 or lower. That’s way better than 106.1 ever pulled before they owned them, so there is an audience for the active rock format. I imagine 18-34 #s are even better. I’d capitalize on that by expanding their coverage w/ 105.9 in Maryville/Alcoa.
As far as my other comment about a proposed 104.9/105.3/105.1 simulcast. I was simply speaking from their perspective as an owner capitalizing on their product, not from a listener or fan perspective about having a greater # of different format choices.
On a side note, I imagine that once WPLA is moved to the Greenback tower, it will force a couple of translator signals to have to change (I would think 104.9 in Athens & 104.7 in Loudon would be forced to move as 104.9 should take precedence as a full power station).
Actually, looking online, both of those already have CP’s filed for moves to new frequencies. (93.9 for Loudon & 105.5 for Athens).
Actually, looking online, both of those already have CP’s filed for moves to new frequencies. (93.9 for Loudon & 105.5 for Athens).
I took notice that today 104.9 The Mountain in Athens officially moved to 105.5. I also noticed 105.1 WKCE is off air (Still running on 1180). Not sure if that has to do with yesterday's storms that rolled thru, or they are in the process of getting it moved to 93.7. The pieces are finally coming together.
Correction to what I posted earlier. 105.1 is usually so strong that I pick it up on every radio in my house. I got in my car to head to the store. It was on, but had an extremely weak signal like the already low power has been reduced even more.
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