Carmichael, CA
Daytime: Nothing
Nighttime: KZDG San Francisco
Vallejo, CA
Day & Night KZDG San Francisco
Daytime: Nothing
Nighttime: KZDG San Francisco
Vallejo, CA
Day & Night KZDG San Francisco
-
Get involved.
We want your input!
Apply for Membership and join the conversations about everything related to broadcasting.
After we receive your registration, a moderator will review it. After your registration is approved, you will be permitted to post.
If you use a disposable or false email address, your registration will be rejected.
After your membership is approved, please take a minute to tell us a little bit about yourself.
https://www.radiodiscussions.com/forums/introduce-yourself.1088/
Thanks in advance and have fun!
RadioDiscussions Administrators
AM Frequency of the Week: 1550
- Thread starter MarioMania
- Start date
Melbourne FL
1550 - WRHC - Coral Gables - Cadena Azul - Spanish
1550 - WRHC - Coral Gables - Cadena Azul - Spanish
Here in Kansas - daytime KESJ from St. Joseph, MO but at night it becomes directional and lowers power so I can't get it.
Denver, CO - Well, there's a story here and I probably don't know the half of it. What should be on the channel is KKCL, Golden, on the west side of the Denver metro. But it's currently running on a longwire antenna under an STA for 200 watts daytime and less than 9 watts at night. The station lost its transmitter site in 2019. The station found a new site, according to FCC filings, but the most recent filing stated that the "Licensee has been unable to complete its move to a new tower location due to health issues of the operator and owner." The station will be licensed for 1 kw daytime and 210 w nights at the new site, and will be nondirectional. (The previous site was DA-N.) KKCL also has an FM translator at 96.9, from which I can determine that the station's programming and advertising market is targeted toward Jefferson County, the suburban county just to the west of Denver.
I haven't been to Golden since I moved to Denver last year, so I don't know how the KKCL signal performs in Golden proper. But I have been in Jefferson County - specifically, Lakewood - and I pick up no trace of KKCL there. I would think that, even with 200 watts on a longwire, I should have gotten a trace of something on 1550 at that location. At home in east Denver, there's nothing as well, day or night.
Hmmm.
Retro - in mid-Missouri during the day, I could get a faint KKJO (as it then was) from St. Joseph. Later it was KSFT, and receivable, with some noise, in Kansas City. It effectively was the Kansas City-area affiliate for St. Louis Cardinal baseball. Now it's KESJ and some sports thing. At night in mid-Missouri, it wasn't the most active frequency but a couple of wintertime catches were WYNX Smyrna, GA and WOKJ Jackson, MS, both during critical hours just before Missouri local sunset.
I haven't been to Golden since I moved to Denver last year, so I don't know how the KKCL signal performs in Golden proper. But I have been in Jefferson County - specifically, Lakewood - and I pick up no trace of KKCL there. I would think that, even with 200 watts on a longwire, I should have gotten a trace of something on 1550 at that location. At home in east Denver, there's nothing as well, day or night.
Hmmm.
Retro - in mid-Missouri during the day, I could get a faint KKJO (as it then was) from St. Joseph. Later it was KSFT, and receivable, with some noise, in Kansas City. It effectively was the Kansas City-area affiliate for St. Louis Cardinal baseball. Now it's KESJ and some sports thing. At night in mid-Missouri, it wasn't the most active frequency but a couple of wintertime catches were WYNX Smyrna, GA and WOKJ Jackson, MS, both during critical hours just before Missouri local sunset.
D
Deleted member 108832
Guest
Tyler, TX:
Daytime, with a lot of maneuvering, I can pick up a faint signal from Classic Country "Willy 98.7" Navasota (just outside of College Station). With another less challenging maneuver, I can pick up sports programming from KYAL Sapulpa, OK (Tulsa).
At night, it's a total mess, but the most obvious signal to pop up from the noise floor is Regional Mexican XENU Nuevo Laredo, TA and it varies on how strong it gets. Usually not very.
Daytime, with a lot of maneuvering, I can pick up a faint signal from Classic Country "Willy 98.7" Navasota (just outside of College Station). With another less challenging maneuver, I can pick up sports programming from KYAL Sapulpa, OK (Tulsa).
At night, it's a total mess, but the most obvious signal to pop up from the noise floor is Regional Mexican XENU Nuevo Laredo, TA and it varies on how strong it gets. Usually not very.
Interesting frequency
East Tennessee: Days-nothing unless WIGN, Bristol TN sneaks in
Winter daytime skip can bring in WAZX, Smyrna, GA.
Night: I used to get what was WDLR, Delaware, Ohio on day power at night frequently (someone tried to argue that it was the 29 night watts that were being consistently heard every night hundreds of miles away but I'm going with no).
I picked up the New Castle, IN station (last WLTI, historically WCTW) once. WIGN in Bristol is frequently on day power at night and widely heard. This is now silent as DWLTI. Otherwise Spanish, presumably WRHC and/or Cuba.
Retro/other: WAZX (or predecessor) Smyrna GA was there with a Spanish format every sunrise and sunset in Ohio and Indiana. I also frequently heard now-deleted WBSC, Bennettsville SC, which from what i can find was 10000-w day and 5000 watts night, I'm sure directional.
Fun fact: There are or were several 1550s in Indiana. 2 of note were WCVL in Crawfordsville and WCTW, New Castle. Both had 250 watts, with night patterns that had narrow lobes east and west, almost nothing north and south. Both were widely reported by DXers. WCVL scrapped its night pattern, WLTI is deleted.
Salute to my local vacation station when we went to Fremont, Michigan in the 60s...long gone WSHN.
East Tennessee: Days-nothing unless WIGN, Bristol TN sneaks in
Winter daytime skip can bring in WAZX, Smyrna, GA.
Night: I used to get what was WDLR, Delaware, Ohio on day power at night frequently (someone tried to argue that it was the 29 night watts that were being consistently heard every night hundreds of miles away but I'm going with no).
I picked up the New Castle, IN station (last WLTI, historically WCTW) once. WIGN in Bristol is frequently on day power at night and widely heard. This is now silent as DWLTI. Otherwise Spanish, presumably WRHC and/or Cuba.
Retro/other: WAZX (or predecessor) Smyrna GA was there with a Spanish format every sunrise and sunset in Ohio and Indiana. I also frequently heard now-deleted WBSC, Bennettsville SC, which from what i can find was 10000-w day and 5000 watts night, I'm sure directional.
Fun fact: There are or were several 1550s in Indiana. 2 of note were WCVL in Crawfordsville and WCTW, New Castle. Both had 250 watts, with night patterns that had narrow lobes east and west, almost nothing north and south. Both were widely reported by DXers. WCVL scrapped its night pattern, WLTI is deleted.
Salute to my local vacation station when we went to Fremont, Michigan in the 60s...long gone WSHN.
1550 daytimes here are usually filled with what's been logged as WITK from Pittston PA. That COL is right between Scranton and Wilkes-Barre. 10000 wats directional with a nice lobe this way; 500 watts at night, different pattern.
Sunset times have yielded WUTQ Utica NY, WKVA from Virginia, and the quaint WSRY from Elkton MD, in that state's very Northeast corner. The log here, from the 1990's, was as their original WSER. I consider them 'curious' because they are one (1) watt at night -- and DIRECTIONAL!
Loggings during star-gazing hours are CBE Windsor ON, and from one night real long ago, was a booming WRBN from outside Hartford CT. I was fuzzy at the time, thinking that they were a daytimer. Sure sounded daytime power to me, anyway.
* * * * *
Odd that, back in the Queens DX days there piled up 24 stations in the 1550 log despite me living about ten neighbourhoods away from 50000 watt 'WQXR' NYC's sticks. And back then, 1550 was a frequency by far filled with daytime-only station licenses. I even logged 1554 from Nice in France, and 1555 from the Caymans.
* * * * *
A radio sub-list I gave up compiling long ago was the tally of radio stations for which I'd worked in my 'career' and which went dark. I was getting writer's cramp. WBAZ Kingston NY was the 1550 one. 500-watt omni Top 40 daytimer. Anyone here old enough to remember hearing them? Their going dark was probably around the time that the Pittston PA station moved from 1540 to 1550.
Sunset times have yielded WUTQ Utica NY, WKVA from Virginia, and the quaint WSRY from Elkton MD, in that state's very Northeast corner. The log here, from the 1990's, was as their original WSER. I consider them 'curious' because they are one (1) watt at night -- and DIRECTIONAL!
* * * * *
Odd that, back in the Queens DX days there piled up 24 stations in the 1550 log despite me living about ten neighbourhoods away from 50000 watt 'WQXR' NYC's sticks. And back then, 1550 was a frequency by far filled with daytime-only station licenses. I even logged 1554 from Nice in France, and 1555 from the Caymans.
* * * * *
A radio sub-list I gave up compiling long ago was the tally of radio stations for which I'd worked in my 'career' and which went dark. I was getting writer's cramp. WBAZ Kingston NY was the 1550 one. 500-watt omni Top 40 daytimer. Anyone here old enough to remember hearing them? Their going dark was probably around the time that the Pittston PA station moved from 1540 to 1550.
From west Houston TX
Daytime, local KGOW 1560 slop. Sometimes I can pull out KWBC from nearby Navasota with classic country.
Sunset, WPFC Baton Rouge LA comes in strongly w/gospel. I've also heard KESJ St Joseph MO and KWBC. Later, around Tucson sunset I often catch KUAZ Tucson with NPR before they sign off for the night.
Nights, WPFC is often quite strong, surprising if they're running their 42 watt night power. KESJ is sometimes there, and I occasionally hear Radio Rebelde. I used to hear XENU Nuevo Laredo, but I believe they've gone silent.
Daytime, local KGOW 1560 slop. Sometimes I can pull out KWBC from nearby Navasota with classic country.
Sunset, WPFC Baton Rouge LA comes in strongly w/gospel. I've also heard KESJ St Joseph MO and KWBC. Later, around Tucson sunset I often catch KUAZ Tucson with NPR before they sign off for the night.
Nights, WPFC is often quite strong, surprising if they're running their 42 watt night power. KESJ is sometimes there, and I occasionally hear Radio Rebelde. I used to hear XENU Nuevo Laredo, but I believe they've gone silent.
D
Deleted member 108832
Guest
How long has it been silent, @wildthangjim? I didn't even realize it was missing, as I don't sit on 1550 much. I'll have to give it a try tonight to see if I hear anything of note. As I mentioned earlier, it's not been one of the more enjoyable places to sit idle on the dial up here.
It's gone from mwlist. The latest IRCA Mexican Log says it's been silent since July 2023.
I was in Laredo in October 2023 and the entire Mexican side of the AM dial was gone. Everyone has completed their moves to FM.
Wilmington Delaware
Days - Weak signal from WSRY in Elkton MD with Black Gospel programming 'Reach FM'. Their transmitter is just 1 mile from the DE border but its' directional signal goes NW away from me. But no worries because I can hear them on Class A 89.1 from Christiana DE and LPFM 107.3 in Wilmington just 4 miles to my N.
Nights - A few weak signals probably WSDK in Bloomfield CT and CBEF in Windsor ON. I heard a Christian preacher and French language programming mixing together but did not get an ID on either.
Days - Weak signal from WSRY in Elkton MD with Black Gospel programming 'Reach FM'. Their transmitter is just 1 mile from the DE border but its' directional signal goes NW away from me. But no worries because I can hear them on Class A 89.1 from Christiana DE and LPFM 107.3 in Wilmington just 4 miles to my N.
Nights - A few weak signals probably WSDK in Bloomfield CT and CBEF in Windsor ON. I heard a Christian preacher and French language programming mixing together but did not get an ID on either.
Here in Wood Dale, IL in the near NW suburb of Chicago:
Daytime: WAUR Somonauk, IL with 380 Watts. Weak signal at my location. They now have a CP to increase power to 5 kW from the same site. This one used to be WCSJ (Morris, IL) before moving to Somonauk.
Nighttime: usually a mix of stations with CBEF fading in once in a while, but in no way is it as common as CBE used to.
DX/RETRO: this frequency is one of the most productive one for me DX wise. Well over 25 different stations heard, including KQFN (West Fargo, ND), KOKA (Shreveport, LA), KYAL (Sapulpa, OK), KRPI (Ferndale, WA), WLOR (Huntsville, AL), WSAO (Senatobia, MS), WYOU (Tampa, FL). Most recent logs include WIGN (Bristol, TN), WQCD (Delaware, OH), and WCVL (Crawfordsville, IN)
One foreign stations logged on 15050 is HJCB Barranquilla, Colombia. Of note is also the split frequency of 1555 kHz, which provided a fairly easy catch of Radio Cayman, Cayman Islands in the Chicago area, but of course that one is no longer on the air.
Interesting fact about this frequency in Chicago area is the operation of several billboard stations with advertisements back in the 1998 - 2002 span. You were able to listen to advertisement messages from Old Navy Billboard while driving on I94 near North Avenue. That one eventually switched to Radio Cadillac. There was another Radio Cadillac billboard at I90 and Elmhurst Rd.
Daytime: WAUR Somonauk, IL with 380 Watts. Weak signal at my location. They now have a CP to increase power to 5 kW from the same site. This one used to be WCSJ (Morris, IL) before moving to Somonauk.
Nighttime: usually a mix of stations with CBEF fading in once in a while, but in no way is it as common as CBE used to.
DX/RETRO: this frequency is one of the most productive one for me DX wise. Well over 25 different stations heard, including KQFN (West Fargo, ND), KOKA (Shreveport, LA), KYAL (Sapulpa, OK), KRPI (Ferndale, WA), WLOR (Huntsville, AL), WSAO (Senatobia, MS), WYOU (Tampa, FL). Most recent logs include WIGN (Bristol, TN), WQCD (Delaware, OH), and WCVL (Crawfordsville, IN)
One foreign stations logged on 15050 is HJCB Barranquilla, Colombia. Of note is also the split frequency of 1555 kHz, which provided a fairly easy catch of Radio Cayman, Cayman Islands in the Chicago area, but of course that one is no longer on the air.
Interesting fact about this frequency in Chicago area is the operation of several billboard stations with advertisements back in the 1998 - 2002 span. You were able to listen to advertisement messages from Old Navy Billboard while driving on I94 near North Avenue. That one eventually switched to Radio Cadillac. There was another Radio Cadillac billboard at I90 and Elmhurst Rd.
Near north Chicago suburbs, days WAUR weak, nights CBEF most likely to appear.
DFW, Texas
Daytime: On the car radio, a faint whiff of KMAD Madill, OK with brokered religious programming, otherwise nothing.
Sunset: KWBC "Willie 1550 and 98.7" from College Station, TX. Later, KUAZ Tucson, AZ sometimes pops up with NPR programming.
Nights: WPFC Baton Rouge, LA is dominant with Urban Gospel. As others have noted, they are likely on day power. Other nighttime stations that have been heard include, KYAL Sapulpa, OK with ESPN sports, KESJ St. Joseph, MO with classic hits, and KDCC Dodge City, KS heard with local ads.
Sunrise: KAPE Cape Girardeau, MO with local news, KQNM Albuquerque, NM with Relevant Radio, and WRHC Coral Gables, FL with Spanish language news.
Daytime: On the car radio, a faint whiff of KMAD Madill, OK with brokered religious programming, otherwise nothing.
Sunset: KWBC "Willie 1550 and 98.7" from College Station, TX. Later, KUAZ Tucson, AZ sometimes pops up with NPR programming.
Nights: WPFC Baton Rouge, LA is dominant with Urban Gospel. As others have noted, they are likely on day power. Other nighttime stations that have been heard include, KYAL Sapulpa, OK with ESPN sports, KESJ St. Joseph, MO with classic hits, and KDCC Dodge City, KS heard with local ads.
Sunrise: KAPE Cape Girardeau, MO with local news, KQNM Albuquerque, NM with Relevant Radio, and WRHC Coral Gables, FL with Spanish language news.
WSRY has been running greatly reduced power (~50 watts daytime) into a single tower for some time because of copper vandals. There's a 2023 application to run single tower licensed at some point, 250 watts/4 watts nights.
Clifton, New Jersey
Days: Nothing throughout most of the day. Near sunset, I have received WITK Pittston, PA, WSDK Bloomfield, CT and WNTN Cambridge, MA depending on propagation.
Nights: I usually receive either WSDK Bloomfield, CT or CBEF Windsor, ON. Sometimes, I get WITK Pittston, PA. I have also received WIGN Bristol, TN and WQCD Delaware, OH, most likely at their daytime power, in the past.
Days: Nothing throughout most of the day. Near sunset, I have received WITK Pittston, PA, WSDK Bloomfield, CT and WNTN Cambridge, MA depending on propagation.
Nights: I usually receive either WSDK Bloomfield, CT or CBEF Windsor, ON. Sometimes, I get WITK Pittston, PA. I have also received WIGN Bristol, TN and WQCD Delaware, OH, most likely at their daytime power, in the past.
From NW San Antonio:
Day: Normally just 1540 KEDA slop. On a few occasions during daytime skywave, I've heard "Comanche Country" KCOM in Comanche, TX.
Sunset: WPFC in Baton Rouge emerges with KCOM sometimes mixing in. Catholic station KQNM in Albuquerque and KUAZ in Tucson used to come up weakly when I'd aim NW, but I haven't heard them lately.
Night: In recent times it's been nothing but WPFC. I agree that they've been running day power (except for last night, when they were apparently off the air). In years past when WPFC was actually on night power, I would sometimes hear KCOM, KWBC in Navasota, TX, and KYAL in Sapulpa, OK, mixing in. Also, I would still hear KUAZ before its signoff and sometimes Radio Rebelde when aiming NW/SE.
Lately at night/sunset there has been a constant low-pitched het coming from the NE/SW direction. I used to think that WPFC was involved, but it was still there last night when WPFC was off.
Sunrise: WPFC is still dominant, but KCOM pops in and out when it goes to day power/pattern. To the NW, KQNM is heard amidst the returning KEDA splatter when it goes to day power, and KUAZ is back for a bit when it signs on.
DX/Retro: My one-time loggings on 1550 include KESJ in St. Joseph, MO, KRZD in Springfield, MO (back when it was KLFJ, a Branson tourist station), and KAPE in Cape Girardeau, MO. I've heard Christian talk/music station KMAD in Madill, OK, twice, the most recent time being last night/this morning when WPFC was missing.
XENU in Nuevo Laredo was a fairly regular sunrise/sunset visitor before it was retired. Also, I occasionally heard sports station KDCC in Dodge City, KS, at night before its retirement.
Day: Normally just 1540 KEDA slop. On a few occasions during daytime skywave, I've heard "Comanche Country" KCOM in Comanche, TX.
Sunset: WPFC in Baton Rouge emerges with KCOM sometimes mixing in. Catholic station KQNM in Albuquerque and KUAZ in Tucson used to come up weakly when I'd aim NW, but I haven't heard them lately.
Night: In recent times it's been nothing but WPFC. I agree that they've been running day power (except for last night, when they were apparently off the air). In years past when WPFC was actually on night power, I would sometimes hear KCOM, KWBC in Navasota, TX, and KYAL in Sapulpa, OK, mixing in. Also, I would still hear KUAZ before its signoff and sometimes Radio Rebelde when aiming NW/SE.
Lately at night/sunset there has been a constant low-pitched het coming from the NE/SW direction. I used to think that WPFC was involved, but it was still there last night when WPFC was off.
Sunrise: WPFC is still dominant, but KCOM pops in and out when it goes to day power/pattern. To the NW, KQNM is heard amidst the returning KEDA splatter when it goes to day power, and KUAZ is back for a bit when it signs on.
DX/Retro: My one-time loggings on 1550 include KESJ in St. Joseph, MO, KRZD in Springfield, MO (back when it was KLFJ, a Branson tourist station), and KAPE in Cape Girardeau, MO. I've heard Christian talk/music station KMAD in Madill, OK, twice, the most recent time being last night/this morning when WPFC was missing.
XENU in Nuevo Laredo was a fairly regular sunrise/sunset visitor before it was retired. Also, I occasionally heard sports station KDCC in Dodge City, KS, at night before its retirement.
Last edited:
- Status