• 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

550, W-whatchamacalit

N

N1WVQ

Why did Salem buy 550? They're not doing anything with it & the station isn't showing up in the ratings, so what was the point? To have a 2nd business talk station in the most-unfriendly-to-business state in the Union? At least WPRV has a .3 & 27,100 cume in the overalls but NADA for 550!

They should just sell it.
 
I'm just as puzzled as you are by the situation. It's very unlike Salem to own only one property in a given market.

Perhaps Salem is playing the "long game"...waiting for another property to become available.

Thinking logically...It would have to be one of the AM's belonging to one of the two big clusters in town. Any other AM's are already spoken for either because of the niche market they serve, (1110, 1220, 1290, 1450, 1590) or the irrational stubborness of one Peter Arpin to finally cash-out (1320, 990).
 
That leaves 630, 790 & 920. Most likely would be 790.

I can see them wanting 1590 but is Blount willing to sell? 1590 has the preaching/teaching more or less locked up. As for 1220, I know Salem has their Fish format but I don't know of it on any A.M.s.

It seems for Salem, 550, 790 & 990 would be what they'd like to own. I just forget what their pattern is. Business could be consolidated on 790 while preaching/teaching could be on 550. 990 could then be their outlet for their secular talk network. Again, I forget their pattern but that seems to be it. Maybe 790 & 990 would be inverted.

As for 1110, 1320 & 1450, I'd like to see those as hometown stations. But that's another thread!
 
N1WVQ said:
Why did Salem buy 550? They're not doing anything with it & the station isn't showing up in the ratings, so what was the point? To have a 2nd business talk station in the most-unfriendly-to-business state in the Union? At least WPRV has a .3 & 27,100 cume in the overalls but NADA for 550!

They should just sell it.
Click to expand...


Let's see... 550 is one of the top AM signals in RI, with good reception day and night over much of the state's population. 550 is well protected and has no real co or adjacent interference problems in it's coverage area. Salem paid $550,000 for the station and has impressive business radio expertise. A number of Salem stations specialize in finance/business and are bringing in the bucks. The model of business radio is very esoteric and hard to integrate with "standard" broadcasting business practices.

There is plenty of room in the Providence market for both 790 AND 550 to feature business and financial programming. There is every reason to believe that both stations will continue to be viable in their current formats.


-
 
If you look at Salem's station portfolio they have some great frequencies. In fact Christian radio as a format is now occupying some great heritage dial positions. Not just AM, but FM too.
 
Salem would be the ideal choice for 990. They have the knowledge and expertise to properly relocate the station and still maintain high power levels. Now, If someone would take 990 in Rochester dark, 990 Providence would virtually be a clear channel around here. 990 Rochester is 2,500 watts night into a six tower array that beams about 20,000 watts directly at Providence, ruining any real chance of night service here. Look it up in AM Query.

-
 
iyiyi said:
Now, If someone would take 990 in Rochester dark, 990 Providence would virtually be a clear channel around here. 990 Rochester is 2,500 watts night into a six tower array that beams about 20,000 watts directly at Providence, ruining any real chance of night service here. Look it up in AM Query.
Click to expand...

Not so fast...

What about the 990 still going strong in Montreal?
 
990 Montreal will become the home of a format for the French-speaking LGBT community. CKGM will be going to the former CINF facilities on 690. I wouldn't doubt Salem's looking for another AM in Providence for either talk or preaching/teaching. Here in the Philly area, they own WFIL 560 and WNTP 990(originally WIBG)which I'd listen to when the then WLKW would go off the air at sunset. Were they able to pry 990 out of Arpin's hands, they'd get it straightened out, back to 50 kW daytime, and would probably be able to change the night pattern for more than 5 kW at night. One can dream...
 
DG02816 said:
990 Montreal will become the home of a format for the French-speaking LGBT community. CKGM will be going to the former CINF facilities on 690. I wouldn't doubt Salem's looking for another AM in Providence for either talk or preaching/teaching. Here in the Philly area, they own WFIL 560 and WNTP 990(originally WIBG)which I'd listen to when the then WLKW would go off the air at sunset. Were they able to pry 990 out of Arpin's hands, they'd get it straightened out, back to 50 kW daytime, and would probably be able to change the night pattern for more than 5 kW at night. One can dream...
Click to expand...

Not a dream but just the logical realization of 990's last chance. Couple of caveats to success of 990 are: WDCX in Rochester AND 990's towers MUST be moved.

Look at the night polar plot of WDCX's 2.5kw into six towers and see the 15-20kw beamed directly at Providence. It would be virtually impossible for WDCX to modify their pattern for WALE and still cover their COL. Unless WDCX goes dark.

990 has been trying to serve a COL 15 miles to the S.E. of their transmitter. With 1/4 wave radiators. With tower site elevation several hundred feet higher than the COL. With ground conductivity lucky to be 2 milli mhos/meter. If the tower/COL elevations could be reversed things would be both copacetic, and yet absolutely impossible to accomplish. Therefore, Murphy has decreed that any viable journey for 990 will have realistic tower site procurement as it's first step. Salem has the capability to make 990 the best AM signal in the entire RI/Bristol County, MA region.

Don't worry! Mr. Blount is not selling 1590 to Salem. As long as he lives he is totally committed to delivering the Word!

-
 
I pretty much have to agree with iyiyi. 990 Rochester does indeed have its night pattern sending signal due east toward Providence. When I was doing overnights there in the WEAN incarnation, Rochester would sometimes mix at night with WEAN's then-500 watts PSSA, and it would be a jumble. I, too, think Log Road has served its purpose, and a new site found.
I remember Grady Moates' saying the station could do as well or better with a TX site in N.Providence, running 10 kW into a 4-tower array. Even if they had to keep the present 50 kW daytime 6 tower setup, any move would be better.
 
DG02816 said:
I, too, think Log Road has served its purpose, and a new site found.
I remember Grady Moates' saying the station could do as well or better with a TX site in N.Providence, running 10 kW into a 4-tower array. Even if they had to keep the present 50 kW daytime 6 tower setup, any move would be better.
Click to expand...

Dave:

A few years ago, before Alex Langer's CP for 1140 in Greenville expired....didn't his people have a transmitter site already picked out in the town of Greenville....somewhere just west of US Route 44? I'm hard pressed to remember the exact coordinates, but I seem to remember the proposed site was somewhat to the South-West of the Log Road site.

If you can, please try to refresh my aging memory. ;)

I'm no Psychic....I don't even play one on the radio....but.as things stand now....as long as Arpin maintains his death grip on 990....the only change I see coming is a change in calls....to DWALE.....D.....as in DELETED!
 
Dighton,

From what I remember, the location you describe is correct. 990 would probably have to deepen the SW null a bit to protect Philly.I'd bet the soil conductivity at this site would be better than on Log Road.
 
Moving the TX site would be an incredibly expensive, time-consuming task. Building no less than four towers on a piece of land big enough in a state as densely populated as RI with property values as high as RI will not be easy. NIMBY would almost definitely come into play. You have to wonder if the costs of relocating the transmitter site could ever be recouped.
 
^That^, and also there's very little chance that WDCX in Rochester could be shut down economically; it runs as a profit generator for Crawford Broadcasting, relaying the dollar-a-holler preachers from WDCX-FM in Buffalo at almost no expense.

If it were my money on the line, I'd look at acquiring 790 from Cumulus and upgrading it (there's a nice path to a really good upgrade for 790, much better than could ever be practically achieved on 990) long before I'd sink any cash into the money pit that is WALE.
 
DG02816 said:
So there could be an upgrade for 790? Do tell....
Click to expand...

Gotta protect some confidences here...but let's just say that if you look at where 790 is now, and what it does (and doesn't) have to protect, it's not hard to see that it's not really in the best location for maximum coverage of the market - and that there are some potential diplex sites that could be much better, with much less headache than doing a total rebuild of 990.
 
iyiyi said:
N1WVQ said:
Why did Salem buy 550? They're not doing anything with it & the station isn't showing up in the ratings, so what was the point? To have a 2nd business talk station in the most-unfriendly-to-business state in the Union? At least WPRV has a .3 & 27,100 cume in the overalls but NADA for 550!

They should just sell it.
Click to expand...


Let's see... 550 is one of the top AM signals in RI, with good reception day and night over much of the state's population. 550 is well protected and has no real co or adjacent interference problems in it's coverage area. Salem paid $550,000 for the station and has impressive business radio expertise. A number of Salem stations specialize in finance/business and are bringing in the bucks. The model of business radio is very esoteric and hard to integrate with "standard" broadcasting business practices.

There is plenty of room in the Providence market for both 790 AND 550 to feature business and financial programming. There is every reason to believe that both stations will continue to be viable in their current formats.


-
Click to expand...
If the newest post is correct, we know Salem didn't have the stomach for being here after all....
 
N1WVQ said:
iyiyi said:
N1WVQ said:
Why did Salem buy 550? They're not doing anything with it & the station isn't showing up in the ratings, so what was the point? To have a 2nd business talk station in the most-unfriendly-to-business state in the Union? At least WPRV has a .3 & 27,100 cume in the overalls but NADA for 550!

They should just sell it.
Click to expand...


Let's see... 550 is one of the top AM signals in RI, with good reception day and night over much of the state's population. 550 is well protected and has no real co or adjacent interference problems in it's coverage area. Salem paid $550,000 for the station and has impressive business radio expertise. A number of Salem stations specialize in finance/business and are bringing in the bucks. The model of business radio is very esoteric and hard to integrate with "standard" broadcasting business practices.

There is plenty of room in the Providence market for both 790 AND 550 to feature business and financial programming. There is every reason to believe that both stations will continue to be viable in their current formats.


-
Click to expand...
If the newest post is correct, we know Salem didn't have the stomach for being here after all....
Click to expand...


We shall see what Salem's ROI on it's one year $550,000 investment turns out to be.


-
 
We shall see what Salem's ROI on it's one year $550,000 investment turns out to be.


$200k profit. For a crappy AM station in a small market, not a bad investment.
 
Status
This thread has been closed due to inactivity. You can create a new thread to discuss this topic.


Back
Top Bottom