106.3 FM & 1230 AM

[BarryATL]

So, I was driving up Peachtree Industrial and see a billboard that says "We Are Right!". It is for Dickey's new right wing station. I thought it odd because the translator is not supposed to have much of a signal over there. I tuned in and it was a very clear, strong signal. According to Radio-Locator's map (for what it is worth) the signal should be crap in that area.

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[jabba17]

Maybe they are trying to get Top End/ITP commuters and people using the app.

 

[BarryATL]

Maybe they are trying to get Top End/ITP commuters and people using the app.

I was in the northeast between the purple and blue sections. There should not be much of a listenable signal. If 1230 AM is the originating station, this would be well out of their coverage area. When I listened to the signal I thought it smelled of a translator "over performing" which is polite for operating beyond the license.

 

[ZantennaG1]

Radiolocator.com has been known to underestimate the reach of FM stations, since terrain is not accounted for. Your average 250 watt translator (like 106.3) should make it about 35 miles on "flat" land, this number varying based on whether you are on a hill or not in Duluth. (It looks that way on a topographical map of Atlanta)

 

[davideduardo]

Radiolocator.com has been known to underestimate the reach of FM stations, since terrain is not accounted for. Your average 250 watt translator (like 106.3) should make it about 35 miles on "flat" land...

More has to do with the antenna height, as translators have no height limitation except for cochannel and adjacent channel protections. Look at the top of the mountain translators in Albuquerque that have a uniformly weak signal that goes for 25 to 20 miles or more in cars, but can't be heard in practically any home or office.

 

[jabba17]

More has to do with the antenna height, as translators have no height limitation except for cochannel and adjacent channel protections. Look at the top of the mountain translators in Albuquerque that have a uniformly weak signal that goes for 25 to 20 miles or more in cars, but can't be heard in practically any home or office.

This is why so many translators are on the Briarcliff TV candelabras. No height limitation (versus a class Cx) as long as they don't interfere.

HAAT gives you coverage; watts gives you building penetration. At a max of 250W translator building penetration is usually very poor (which hurts home and LWYW listening, but not car).

 

[ZantennaG1]

More has to do with the antenna height, as translators have no height limitation except for cochannel and adjacent channel protections. Look at the top of the mountain translators in Albuquerque that have a uniformly weak signal that goes for 25 to 20 miles or more in cars, but can't be heard in practically any home or office.

This is why so many translators are on the Briarcliff TV candelabras. No height limitation (versus a class Cx) as long as they don't interfere.

HAAT gives you coverage; watts gives you building penetration. At a max of 250W translator building penetration is usually very poor (which hurts home and LWYW listening, but not car).

I can attest to what you both said. A handful of my town's translators are up on a mountain about 34 miles away (mainly 91.3 K217EN 13 watts, 96.7 K244FN 250w and 103.5 K278CM 250w come to mind) with a couple on a hill 12 miles away (89.1 K206EO 92 watts and 94.7 K234AH 250w), and they cover a better distance, it seems, than the downtowners (i.e. K246CI)! They just don't get the penetration like jabba17 said.

It was quite the shock, by the way, when a radio inside a car dealership close to downtown struggled with 60% of Cheyenne's sations, including mostly translators.

 

[CompleteGame]

Also the 'blocking material' on the antenna - for lack of precise term - that creates nulls effectively redirects even more energy in the direction you want it. My Winder translator won't go three good miles to the SW (Buford) but will go 30-40 good miles to the NE (Athens) partly, I'm told, because of a bounce back effect.

 

[jabba17]

Also the 'blocking material' on the antenna - for lack of precise term - that creates nulls effectively redirects even more energy in the direction you want it. My Winder translator won't go three good miles to the SW (Buford) but will go 30-40 good miles to the NE (Athens) partly, I'm told, because of a bounce back effect.

Yeah, I've noticed that with W296CX 107.1...I guess you're trying to protect cochannel WTSH out of Rome.

 

[CompleteGame]

I think its little brother -- the Hispanic-formatted 107.1 translator CP on Stone Mountain is the bigger obstacle.

 

[RoddyFreeman]

I have no meter readings to prove this, but based on my perception, 97.9 has an unusually good signal for a translator. On paper, 93.7 should have as good a signal: same tower, same wattage, same height. Maybe 97.9 doesn't have as many signals around it, but to me it seems to have as good a signal as a class A.

 

[CompleteGame]

That's the other thing. The first adjacencies make a big impact. It's nice on one hand to be in the middle of 2 100kw signals - you'll never be displaced. But they do interfere.

 

[secondchoice]

Also the 'blocking material' on the antenna - for lack of precise term - that creates nulls effectively redirects even more energy in the direction you want it. My Winder translator won't go three good miles to the SW (Buford) but will go 30-40 good miles to the NE (Athens) partly, I'm told, because of a bounce back effect.

I guess my high school physics teacher was correct. Energy can’t be destroyed under normal circumstances.