BLUEBERRY BROADCASTING, LLC has requested a Silent STA for WFAU/GARDNER, ME due to needed repairs to its antenna switching system that will commence on JULY 1st.
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1280 WFAU down for Repairs
- Thread starter Andy Taylor
- Start date
I've noticed lots of dead air/down town with all 4 of the Fox Sports Maine stations Blueberry has. WIGY 97.5 Madison is either off the air or carrying dead air half the time, WAEI/WABI 910 Bangor is mostly dead air and I can't quite figure out what WVOM/WRKD Rockland is carrying, Fox or a WVOM simulcast? Last I knew, the legal ID for Fox Sports still included Rockland.
But then again you have 3 AMs and a Class A north of the core of the market carrying a sports format that has lost it's one local show (Rich Kimball) and it's only sports game programming (University of Maine). They carry Fox Sports talk 18 hours a day, Imus for 3 and Rome for 3. At what point does Blueberry put the for sale sign up for all 4 stations?
But then again you have 3 AMs and a Class A north of the core of the market carrying a sports format that has lost it's one local show (Rich Kimball) and it's only sports game programming (University of Maine). They carry Fox Sports talk 18 hours a day, Imus for 3 and Rome for 3. At what point does Blueberry put the for sale sign up for all 4 stations?
Regarding WFAU, I live almost close enough to their three towers for the station to light up my toaster in the morning.
But given the awful programming and embarrassing audio on that station, it's almost a blessing that they're now off the air and I have to go into the kitchen and push the toaster lever down myself in order to have breakfast.
(hahaha)
Don't get me going on THAT station....
But given the awful programming and embarrassing audio on that station, it's almost a blessing that they're now off the air and I have to go into the kitchen and push the toaster lever down myself in order to have breakfast.
(hahaha)
Don't get me going on THAT station....
Back around 1970....Living in the Fitchburg, Ma area....I used to sometimes null local 1280-WEIM...and hear some station calling itself WABK....But...I could never lock it in long enough to get a legal ID....It wasn't until 10 years later....when I was working in Portland radio....that I figured out that I had actually been DXing WABK-AM (WFAU) in central Ma....
Sold to Bob Bittner; $16,200.
M
MickeyD
Guest
rjoc said:
Wonder if he will reduce the power at night so that he can drop the night time directional thing?
Going 250w at night is not likely at all. The pattern is VERY tight. If you look on the FCC site, you can see the pattern which sends nothing to the southwest and northwest. It's one of those stations where you can see tower lights at night from the southwest or northwest and not be able to hear the station. The radio-locator night map (which is not visible now) shows the pattern significantly more loose. But the FCC pattern diagram is more accurate. It's as though WFAU is sending just a few watts in those mentioned directions. Therefore night serivce with just one tower is quite unlikely. Stations being protected: WEIM/WPKZ 1280 Fitchburg (southwest), WADO-1280 NYC (7000+ watts at night) (southwest); the Montreal station on 1280 (5000+ watts at night)(west-northwest); WROC/WHTK-1280 Rochester NY (west). Keep in mind that all of those stations were there, on the air BEFORE WFAU was. That current set-up for WFAU (then WABK) began in 1968.
Any hope of a daytime STA until repair(s)?
Technically, they couldn't get an STA to use their non-DA at night, because of the protection requirements, but they could obtain an STA to operate with the DA during the day as well as at night, pending repairs. Or, they could have someone manually throw all of the antenna switching contactors locally at the appropriate times each day, and operate normally. Silent is cheapest, though, which unfortunately is the prevailing reality.
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