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AM Frequency of the Week: 1540

M

MarioMania

Carmichael, CA

Daytime: Splatter from KFBK Sacramento
Nighttime: Nothing

Vallejo, CA

Daytime: Nothing
Nighttime: KMPC Los Angeles Weak Signal
 
Tyler, TX:

Under normal circumstances, this would be Regional Mexican "La Ranchera 106.7 FM y 1540 AM" University Park (DFW), with a good signal into Tyler. Once Univision sold the license, after first selling the land from which KZMP operated, it's now nowhere to be found. A big gaping whole of nothingness during the daylight hours in East Texas.

At night, I hear the signal from N/T KXEL in Iowa, and can also hear the Jalapeño from San Antonio (KEDA) battling for supremacy. Neither are exceptional. For that matter, neither are ever very listenable. Without KZMP pumping out the sounds of those accordions, 1540 has become pretty much desolate here.
 
♫ Fifteen - forty ♫ back in the previous retro Queens days before here meant a weak ''WRCP' from Philly in the day; a bunch of SSS'ers from the Atlantic coast, and the often-blaring/next-second-gone WPTR with their curious nighttime signal protecting ZNS and KXEL. Both those two, naturally, gleefully would take turns elbowing WPTR with regularity. ZNS was often steady water-path but faint, either like the phenomenon of sound processing hadn't reached the Bahamas yet or they didn't wanna spring for any. They covered their turf well enough. In the late 1990's at my Folks' house in The Villages Florida ZNS came in with the same low, discreet, polite audio. One old coverage map I saw had ZNS as 10,000 watts omni at night, but others say they were a different power plus directional.

It's pretty much the same 'basic' log primers here in NE PA. The Philly daytime one is now an entry as WNWR (word is that they were doing some xmtr and CP stuff, and experimenting with things like night-vision goggles to field-check their 7 watts).
WPTR and KXEL do/did the same dance steps here as ever, only KXEL was clearer here.
WPTR's stature has carried on in the same nebulous way as their nighttime signal to the south was. No idea if they're on the air, or off, or sometimes neither.
One logged oddity here was another reference point for what I've illogically suspected is some sort of mischievous upper-frequency pipeline between here and the region that's also brought in 1460 Brockton MA and 1530 down that same road in Middleborough, Two Aprils ago I was awakened from an afternoon nap by WADK Newport RI, off a wee, cheesy clock radio. Pop music ..... marine weather ..... about a dozen ads for seafood restaurants : the usual social reflections mandated by the demo in the coverage area. They QSL'ed me by telephone message after I'd called. In a small-world way (or maybe a small-state way) it turns out that a fellow I listen to off the digital Top Shelf Oldies (Clarke Davis) knows the guy from HIS Rhode Island radio days.
 
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Denver, CO -
Daytime - Not a thing. More on next week's episode of FOTW.

Nighttime - Lately it's been KGBC Galveston, TX, coming in and out. The audio is recognizable: it seems like the audio suddenly cuts out on peaks. Given that it's licensed for 185 watts at night, one has to wonder if certain tasks have been "forgotten". Or maybe I'm just in the right place at the right time. Who knows? There's also some other station in the regional Mexican genre that's in there on the channel but I haven't been able to identify it.

Retro -
My notes indicate that I received WPTR Albany, NY October 19, 1980 "in Spanish" in central Missouri. That station later became WDCD, which turned in its license in 2018 after first seeking an STA for reduced power and being denied since that reduction in power would have been voluntary. KXEL Waterloo, IA had also been received from time to time at my location in 1980 but it was not a regular.

During the few unhappy months that I spent in Beacon, NY in 1984, I found that KXEL was a regular nighttime catch. NRC directional pattern logbooks indicate that the WPTR pattern was aimed NE of Albany and thus away from Beacon, making KXEL reception possible.

Of course, as an early-stage teenager in southern Iowa, I was always able to pick up KXEL during the daytime. I remember that it carried newscasts from both the ABC Information and ABC Entertainment networks every hour.
 
Clifton, New Jersey

Days: Some of my radios get second harmonics from 770 WABC New York, NY since the transmitter is only 4 miles away from me. Near sunset, I have received CHIN Toronto, ON, WXEX (now WPKC) Exeter, NH, WNWR Philadelphia, PA and WADK Newport, RI in the past.

Nights: I usually receive KXEL "News/Talk 1540 KXEL" Waterloo, IA. Sometimes, I get CHIN "CHIN Radio" Toronto, ON. I have also received WKVQ Eatonton, GA and WULT Sandston, VA, most likely at their daytime power, in the past.

Retro: Years ago, I used to receive WPGR Philadelphia, PA during the day and WPTR Albany, NY at night. WPGR changed call letters to WNWR in 1995. WPTR was last known as WDCD until it surrendered its license in 2018.
 
East Tennessee-Days. A possible whiff of WJJT, Jelico TN. WKVQ, Eatonton GA was getting very well-known for being off-frequency, and the het could be heard here near sunset, and beyond. They seemed to stay on after sunset often, with a very loose Gospel format. Last few times I've checked via the Athens GA SDR, including today, it has been silent.

Night: CHIN, Toronto can make it in around sunset. Otherwise it's KXEL.
During the 2017 eclipse, KXEL was the first station I identified.
Retro/other: In Ohio, some winter days, KXEL could hang in all days.
 
West side of Houston TX

Daytime, semi-local KGBC Galveston with a good signal. They've been various formats over the years, currently Radio Ranchera. I checked just now (Sunday PM) and they're playing oldies in Spanish. They're having audio problems with the signal cutting in and out.
Sunset, when/if KGBC drops power I can usually get KXEL with a fair signal. I've also heard KEDA Radio Jalapeno from San Antonio.
Night, KGBC is still there and usually KXEL too. KEDA has a null in my direction, so not often audible.
Sunrise, KGBC takes over when they go to day power. I've heard XESTN Monterrey in the past but not recently. I never ID'd KAMM from Dallas and I see they're now inactive.
 
Central Kentucky:

Days: Nothing. Years ago there was WGRK Greensburg with a weak day signal. It had the WAKY call letters until they were moved to Radcliff in 2007. It went dark a few years ago.

Nights: KXEL usually
 
Wilmington Delaware

Days - Fair signal from WNWR Philadelphia currently with Christian programming. It's transmitter is NW of Philly and sends a highly directional signal SE away from me. It has made numerous format changes over the years and even went dark for awhile. It carried programming from China Radio International for a period, had ethnic programming, and numerous music formats.

Nights - Fair to good signal from KXEL Waterloo Iowa. I'm always amazed how well this station comes in on such a high frequency.
It comes in better than WSCR on 670 from Chicago maybe because its' signal is directional toward me.
 
Here in Wood Dale, IL in the near NW suburb of Chicago:

Daytime: usually nothing, but KXEL and WLOI heard in the past
Nighttime: KXEL with solid signal, but CHIN occasionally makes to the top easily identified by the ethnic programming.

DX/RETRO: ZNS1 Bahamas heard couple of times but it's not an easy catch. Used to be reported a lot more back in the 70's and 80's in the Midwest. Others heard on this frequency are KHND (Harvey, ND), KGBC (Galveston, TX), KNNT (Kennett, MO), KEDA (San Antonio, TX), WZAL (Mc Donough, GA on DX Test in 1982), , WPTR (Albany, NY), WMBC (Martinsville, IN), WSMI (Litchfield, IL), WABQ (Cleveland, OH), WBRY (Woodbury, TN). Latest new log on this frequency is WBNL (Boonville, IN) in 2022.
 
CADXER said:
DX/RETRO: ZNS1 Bahamas heard couple of times but it's not an easy catch. Used to be reported a lot more back in the 70's and 80's in the Midwest.
Click to expand...
I heard ZNS1 fairly frequently from Tulsa Oklahoma in the early 70's. IIRC it was on Monday (?) mornings when KXEL was off and ZNS1 was signing on.
 
From NW San Antonio:

Day: It's local KEDA, a Tejano station with the same ownership as 1700 KKLF in the DFW area.

Sunset: Aiming NW/SE I can hear KGBC "La Ranchera" in Galveston. Later, XESTN in Monterrey starts mixing in.

Night: After XESTN and KGBC drop to night power, I occasionally hear the former and rarely hear the latter weakly in KEDA's NE/SW partial null.

Sunrise: Similar to sunset with KGBC stronger in the null and XESTN sometimes underneath or mixing in.

DX/Retro: When KEDA has been off air, I've heard KAMM in University Park, TX (back when it was KZMP), and KXEL in Waterloo, IA, a few times at sunrise and sunset. Also, I heard KMPC "Radio Korea" in Los Angeles once about four years ago when KEDA was off at night.
 
DFW, Texas

Daytime: Nothing since local KZMP has been silent.
Nights: KEDA San Antonio dominates with Tejano programming. KXEL Iowa can be heard at sunset and sometimes sneaks in under KEDA nights. Heard KDYN Ozark, AR with county on a few nights, probably on day power. XESTN Monterrey, NL is also occasionally heard at night under KEDA.
Sunrise: Heard KGBC Galveston, TX going to day power with English language ID. I heard KMPC Los Angeles with Korean language programming once at 6:00am local time when KEDA happened to be running an open carrier.
 
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