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1010 The Beast: One Year No Numbers
- Thread starter smedge2006
- Start date
1010 should promote the station in Lakeland/Winter Haven where they have a good signal.
The 1010 signal can't be heard north or south of their Seffner transmitter site.
They throw a great signal east and west.
The 1010 signal can't be heard north or south of their Seffner transmitter site.
They throw a great signal east and west.
L
larnov
Guest
They come in great during the daytime on the east coast. So does 620.
Lakeland/Winter Haven is a highly fragmented market with very little AM listening. WLKF has to fight over a tiny share in talk radio with the two WFLA's, WDBO and 104.1. Sports listeners in Lakeland and Polk County have 620 plus 740 and 1080 in some areas. I don't think there would be much interest among listeners and advertisers, certainly not enough to justify orienting a Tampa station towards Lakeland.
1010 did get "some" numbers with Howard Stern and the "1010 Talks" format with Imus back in the 90's. Its insistence on sticking with a sports format in an already-saturated market seems like some kind of goofy indulgence, as if the 50 kW transmitter was someone's toy at the Koger Center.
There has been some confusing information posted here in the past about the reason why 1010 can't send more signal north. Actually north is not the issue -- due north of Seffner is Zephyrhills and swampland. Northwest is where the people are (New Tampa, Lutz, Northdale, Trinity, East Lake, etc.). A previous post said that 1010 can't send any more signal in that direction because of "some station in Louisiana." The only 1010 in Louisiana listed on the FCC database is a 1-kilowatter in De Ridder, due north of Lake Charles and 60 miles or so from the Gulf -- 120 miles from water on the azimuth from Tampa. I know those signals carry across the Gulf, but it's a little hard to believe that 1010 can throw enough to interfere with this station's primary contour. For comparison, there is a 1250 in Port Arthur, Texas, right on the Gulf -- but that doesn't stop WHNZ's signal along that azimuth from reaching Dunedin.
When 1010 was licensed, it was protecting a station in Crestview that has long since gone silent. There is also a 1010 in Jacksonville but it has a highly restricted signal and its protected coverage contour ends at Lake City and doesn't go much farther south. Jacksonville and Tampa are also separated by lots of low-conductivity soil. What really stops 1010 from putting up another tower and pulling some of that juice out of Melbourne to throw a minor lobe on the azimuth of say, Tallahassee? The answer, I'm sure, is $$$$.
There are numerous stations that 1010 must protect. Do you think for a moment that WQYK didn't try for the best pattern that they could get?
When I built the new transmitter plant in 1987-88, I actually needed to augment the pattern to get the signal as good as it is.
There is little that can be done to improve the coverage.
When I built the new transmitter plant in 1987-88, I actually needed to augment the pattern to get the signal as good as it is.
There is little that can be done to improve the coverage.
Even if the signal was better, the programming remains lame. People are not clamoring for them to get the signal improved so they listen to the great programming they are missing. It's not like they are getting any traction against WDAE or even WHBO in the zip codes where the signal is good.
Hi, I realize 1010's signal doesn't reach some of the new population centers. That said, it's much better now than in the old days, when it was a "ramshackled" WCBF. In fact, when WCBF was sold, 1010 went dark for awhile (presumably because the xmtr site was in as bad of shape as the studios) before being resurrected as WQYK-AM.
David, you are correct.
I put WCBF off the air on November 23, 1987. The station was a technical disaster.
We replaced the towers, transmission line, phasing equipment and antenna tuning units.
During the off-air time, we gutted the building, moved and rebuilt both transmitters, installed a 50kw dummy load and added equipment racks to the transmitter room.
We also installed C-QUAM stereo exciters, one for the 50kw transmitter and one for the 5kw transmitter.
The station returned to the air on April 1, 1988.
I put WCBF off the air on November 23, 1987. The station was a technical disaster.
We replaced the towers, transmission line, phasing equipment and antenna tuning units.
During the off-air time, we gutted the building, moved and rebuilt both transmitters, installed a 50kw dummy load and added equipment racks to the transmitter room.
We also installed C-QUAM stereo exciters, one for the 50kw transmitter and one for the 5kw transmitter.
The station returned to the air on April 1, 1988.
Hi Frank. I think terms like "ramshackled" and "technical disaster" UNDERSTATE 1010's situation as WCBF. Actually, I'm surprised the studio and xmtr sites didn't fall down. It was one of the most neglected stations I had ever seen. A bit off topic for this thread, but the old 820, when it was WRFA, was also a complete wreck. Carpeting in the studio had holes which revealed the concrete floor underneath...though...the studio DID have CD players (this was in the early days of CDs)...although the PD at the time told me, "They're not hooked up to anything, they're just for show." Eventually, the entire site was refurbished, prior to the studios moving from Largo to St. Pete.
why can't they - 1010 the beast - pump up their signal? i live in manatee county and i can't get this station. I would listen to tony bruno over ron/ian any day. I also like mike and the mad dog- christopher russo. Russo started his sports talk career in orlando - WKIS - back in the 80s. I used to listen to him all the time. Best interview i ever heard - russo interviewing gordon solie. Having grown up on Championship Wrestling from Florida, i found out a lot of cool stuff when he had solie on......
WDAE is ripe for the taking, if CBS would invest a little, they could do some damage in my opinion. i could do without the sports chicks however.
WDAE is ripe for the taking, if CBS would invest a little, they could do some damage in my opinion. i could do without the sports chicks however.
To avoid another go-round over the signal, let me point out that 1010 has drawn some numbers -- not much, but numbers at least -- with its current signal in the past. It was more or less even with WDAE until the switch to 620 in 2000. I think their numerous format changes and repositionings (the Team, the Asylum, the Beast), not to mention the Howard Stern and classic country formats, have pretty much doomed sports on that frequency as a ratings-getter. Perhaps they can sell it without ratings. Maybe it's just a toy to keep morale up in the building. But if they want to do something that draws an audience, sports should not be the format right now.
Let's try .... Tax Rightoff.
WQYK did pull some numbers when they were "Real Country." They also pulled some numbers when they were "1010 Talks."
Imus, G. Gordon Liddy, Don & Mike, etc.
They also assisted the WQYK-FM numbers when they simulcasted.
Sports is not the answer.
WQYK did pull some numbers when they were "Real Country." They also pulled some numbers when they were "1010 Talks."
Imus, G. Gordon Liddy, Don & Mike, etc.
They also assisted the WQYK-FM numbers when they simulcasted.
Sports is not the answer.
Sorry, I meant Tax Writeoff. Spelling checker doesn't always work.
Signal is not the issue. Lame brain programming is. They had a one share with classic country. They should just go back to that. No overhead, lots of business from the up sell of the FM. Who wants to hear NY sports talk in Tampa? Apparently, not many.
radiodaze2000 said:
You're 95 percent right. The signal ain't perfect, but few AM signals are. As it is, it covers a hell of a lot of humans. And Classic Country--or Country Oldies (no need to crack out the Kitty Wells & Hank Locklin 45's)--complements the FM. "Real Country" may be cheap, but as a mix of new & old it's not targeted strongly enough. A locally programmed & produced Country Oldies format of 70's-80's hits would add some 45-54 numbers to the AM-FM combo.
Either that or Beautiful Music. Good for a huge 12+ share... all 65+ and strictly direct retail selling. You may laugh, but it would sure beat the hell out of the zero ratings and negative cashflow The Beast is generating now. Old people still know how to find 1010 on an AM dial...
One can see why they chose to run sports on 1010. It's cheap to run. Just slap on the bird and watch'er go. Now revenue, that is what dictates format, not ratings.
I actually agree with the possibility of an oldies, gold, or "music of your life" format on 1010. Yeah, the signal sucks around parts of the metro... but where the signal does come in it comes in well. With the overall tempo increases on The Dove and the demise of the old WGUL 860, that audience without XM or Sirius has got to go somewhere. Even if you stick a "good time oldies" format on 1010 you could sell it as a combo with Q-105 (Q could drop 60's entirely). And one more thing... re-image it with one of the old Tampa Bay radio AM call signs or names used around these parts in the 60's. THAT would go a long way with the locals in the demo that actually grew up around here. Too bad Cox has those damn WSUN call letters locked up on 97.1.
Dr. Frank... If I'm not mistaken... didn't you once tell me that old WCBF transmitter (which was water cooled) had sanitary napkins wrapped around the leaky water pipes ??
I can see the engineer walking into the Dollar Store in Seffner and asking for the 50 KW Kotex Super Maxi Pads !!!
uggghhhh !!! What a mess !!!!
---
During my 16 years at QYK, a LOT of it was spent working with AM 1010.
After all that construction, that signal was like a laser beam shooting east and west. Late one night for testing purposes, the 50kw xmtr was turned on and sure enough.. a call came from New Mexico from a family member of the engineering staff who could hear it!
We were simulcasting the FM When we began broadcasting in AM Stereo... THAT was an amazing sound. I'd leave the FM on the studio monitors, but I'd send the AM to my headphones. (Dwight Yoakam - Guitars & Cadillacs in AM Stereo !!!)
---
1010 Talks. Plans had been underway for the better part of six months to launch 1010 Talks... we were mainly waiting for Westwood One to get the deals done with the hosts. In the meantime across town, on April 1, 1993, Q105 became Q105 Country. Obviously, the AM station in the production closet was put on the back burner and all the promotional and marketing resources went to battling it out with WRBQ. G. Gordon Liddy was already in syndication when WWO finally rolled out Imus and the Don & Mike show and later, Tom Leykis June 21, 1993. We were the FIRST station to carry the I-Man. A station in Buffalo added Don and Mike first... we were second.
We used the DOS based Format Sentry automation software running on a Tandy TRS 1000... controlling two IGM Instacart 48's. Most of you young'uns have never worked with anything like that. Traffic would send me the paper log, then I'd go thru and manually input in all the spots. The traffic and automation systems did not talk to each other.
The old Quantum console. There was a design flaw, and the motherboard was never firmly mounted to the framework of the console. Over time, gravity would slowly pull the motherboard down and away from the pots that were firmly screwed to the on top deck. Yep. Imus would be smacking someone around and all the sudden the motherboard would drop and we'd go silent. Pounding on the counter top would jiggle it enough to get it back into place... and it would also bring in the QYK-FM jock wondering what the heck all the noise was about. Eventually, we kept a wad of paper towels handy and shoved them under the motherboard to keep it from dropping.
oh man the stories ...
- Don and Mike were making f@rting noises one afternoon, when I foolishly opened the mic and said "this is why you guys have a point five share in Tampa!" I knew I was toast the moment I said it. Don wanted my head, but QYK's mgmt kept it from happening.
- Working with Daniel Ruth... and trying to hold everything together that horrible afternoon when all hell broke loose at Columbine High School.
- May 1999. Clear Channel dumped its stations and kept the really good Jacor cluster... that was it for 1010 Talks. 820 the Team was espanol, and a few days later, Scot Brantly and Tom Korun were jammed into a tiny closet we called a talk booth and I was producing a sports talk show.
- Launching 1010 the Buzz. What a blast.
When WCVU in Crestview went dark, I suggested that an engineering report be conducted to see if the pattern could be loosened up a bit toward the northwest. It never happened, and today, you can hear 1010 in Palm Bay on the east coast, but not very well in Palm Harbor. Maybe one day...
I can see the engineer walking into the Dollar Store in Seffner and asking for the 50 KW Kotex Super Maxi Pads !!!
uggghhhh !!! What a mess !!!!
---
During my 16 years at QYK, a LOT of it was spent working with AM 1010.
After all that construction, that signal was like a laser beam shooting east and west. Late one night for testing purposes, the 50kw xmtr was turned on and sure enough.. a call came from New Mexico from a family member of the engineering staff who could hear it!
We were simulcasting the FM When we began broadcasting in AM Stereo... THAT was an amazing sound. I'd leave the FM on the studio monitors, but I'd send the AM to my headphones. (Dwight Yoakam - Guitars & Cadillacs in AM Stereo !!!)
---
1010 Talks. Plans had been underway for the better part of six months to launch 1010 Talks... we were mainly waiting for Westwood One to get the deals done with the hosts. In the meantime across town, on April 1, 1993, Q105 became Q105 Country. Obviously, the AM station in the production closet was put on the back burner and all the promotional and marketing resources went to battling it out with WRBQ. G. Gordon Liddy was already in syndication when WWO finally rolled out Imus and the Don & Mike show and later, Tom Leykis June 21, 1993. We were the FIRST station to carry the I-Man. A station in Buffalo added Don and Mike first... we were second.
We used the DOS based Format Sentry automation software running on a Tandy TRS 1000... controlling two IGM Instacart 48's. Most of you young'uns have never worked with anything like that. Traffic would send me the paper log, then I'd go thru and manually input in all the spots. The traffic and automation systems did not talk to each other.
The old Quantum console. There was a design flaw, and the motherboard was never firmly mounted to the framework of the console. Over time, gravity would slowly pull the motherboard down and away from the pots that were firmly screwed to the on top deck. Yep. Imus would be smacking someone around and all the sudden the motherboard would drop and we'd go silent. Pounding on the counter top would jiggle it enough to get it back into place... and it would also bring in the QYK-FM jock wondering what the heck all the noise was about. Eventually, we kept a wad of paper towels handy and shoved them under the motherboard to keep it from dropping.
oh man the stories ...
- Don and Mike were making f@rting noises one afternoon, when I foolishly opened the mic and said "this is why you guys have a point five share in Tampa!" I knew I was toast the moment I said it. Don wanted my head, but QYK's mgmt kept it from happening.
- Working with Daniel Ruth... and trying to hold everything together that horrible afternoon when all hell broke loose at Columbine High School.
- May 1999. Clear Channel dumped its stations and kept the really good Jacor cluster... that was it for 1010 Talks. 820 the Team was espanol, and a few days later, Scot Brantly and Tom Korun were jammed into a tiny closet we called a talk booth and I was producing a sports talk show.
- Launching 1010 the Buzz. What a blast.
When WCVU in Crestview went dark, I suggested that an engineering report be conducted to see if the pattern could be loosened up a bit toward the northwest. It never happened, and today, you can hear 1010 in Palm Bay on the east coast, but not very well in Palm Harbor. Maybe one day...
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