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AM Frequency of the Week: 1510

Far NW suburban Chicago area.....

Days: 1510 is basically empty. Occasionally I can get a whiff of WGKB from Waukesha. WI. Now a 250-watt daytimer from a suburb west of Milwaukee. Or a whiff of WWHN from Joliet, IL. A 1kw daytimer from southwest of Chicago.

Nights: All WLAC. Usually with a good signal.

Rnever heard etro: The Waukesha 1510 was Originally 10kw directional with a deep null in my direction, so I almost never heard it. It had the WAUK call letters and was eventually sold to Good Karma who moved the call letters to their co-owned station on 540 and cut the power to 250 watts ND. Today as WGKB, the Waukesha 1510 seems to exist basically to drive a translator. Also 250 watts, but from an 855 foot stick a few miles north of downtown Milwaukee.

Fun fact: I interviewed at WAUK in the mid 70s. I was impressed by the 10kw, but not by the other facilities, nor the management. management. So I declined their subsequent offer.

Other fun fact: Longtime WLS deejay and PD Clark Weber was a WAUK alum.
 
Growing up in western WA, it was Class A 50/50 KGA Spokane all night long. And often well into the day, much to the chagrin of local daytimer KKNW/KURB, allocated to suburban Mountlake Terrace WA, just a bit north of Seattle. Not sure why they even bothered with that station- unless you were pretty close to the tower, you were going to hear KGA in the background a good deal of the time, and towards sunrise and sunset it was pretty awful. In the winter sunset comes pretty early too that far north!

Now of course that frequency is relatively unbothered by KGA over here. Downgraded first to help a sister station in CA have more juice, then downgraded again to diplex on one tower, KGA is but a shell of what once was. The former Interstate 90 trucker station now exists exclusively to feed an FM translator. I now hear nothing day or night on this frequency, other than a little splash from 1520 KKXA Everett WA, and occasionally a faint KGA.
 
Denver, CO:
Local 1510 KPLS "K-Plus", day and night, featuring easy-listening style Christian music, inspirational messages, and information about health and nutrition. This combination reflects the Seventh-Day Adventist origins of the station's owner, Radio 74 Internationale. It's also simulcast on 97.7 KPLS-FM, Strasburg, CO, on the eastern plains of Colorado. There's also an FM translator in Boulder. KPLS is also unusual in having much higher nighttime power (25 kW) than daytime power (10 kW). The daytime and nighttime patterns are both figure-8's oriented NNE-SSW.

KPLS was originally KDKO, a soul-music station for many years.
 
1510 is a goofy frequency here, inasmuch as it's like a comb with missing teeth plus some replacement teeth soldered to it. That's vis a vis the old Queens NYC days, back when countless hours of sleep were embezzled from school.
The midday semi-local here used to be a downstate daytimer WWSM (Lebanon) PA. They've left the air. Great traditional C&W music. For Pete's sake -- I thought I heard a few songs by The Fathers of the Pioneers. Yeah, at times some of their old-line Appalachian Christmas music would make you want to pop a handful of Prozac. But they were a terrific American Gothic Coal Country listen. Close-by local WMBT 1530 used to splash onto them, but then WMBT left the air!
Despite 12 *dots* on heards logged in Queens -- including AZ and WA -- WWSM was not among them -- even when they were WAHT.
Well, nowadays, it's WRNJ Hackettstown NJ in the day.
Sunset catch here, WJIC Salem NJ, nice tape of it, is another missing tooth on the Queens comb. They were one of two NJ unheards back there. I'm thinking our pal Anwar might not need a radio to hear them, however.
Post SSS here, WMEX came in once. Dunno if they're still on the air (either here,
in Queens, or in Boston)
And, since everyone else has heard them, WLAC Nashville should be an easy one once I spin loop again.
 
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Boise Idaho
Day nothing
Evenings/mornings KGA Spokane (@ 45 or 50 kw), some KSFN Piedmont CA, KFNN Mesa, KSPA Ontario CA..
Nights a weak mix of KGA, KSFN, KSPA (not supposed to) , and when auroras are happening KFNN's mighty 100 watts!
 
Here in Wood Dale, IL in the near NW suburb of Chicago:

Daytime: WWHN out of Joliet, IL with fair signal. WGBK (WAUK, WRRD) used to be possible, but not since lowering to 250 Watts
Nighttime: WLAC with solid signal

Retro/DX: despite WLAC and their great signal at night some DX was heard over the years such as KCCV (independence, MO), KIFG (Iowa Falls, IA), KCKK (Littleton, CO), WWZN (Boston, MA), WJCO (Jackson, MI), WCAZ (Macomb, IL), WWSM (Anville-Cleona, PA)XEQI (Monterrey, Mexico), and my two most recent logs on this frequency: WCAZ (Macomb, IL) and WWSM (Anville-Cleona, PA). Also two Canadians that are no longer on the air: CKOT (Tillsonburg, ON), CJRS (Sherbrook, PQ). Most recent new logs on this frequency are KMSD(Milbank, SD) in 2023 and WLGN (Logan, OH) earlier this year.
 
Seattle area:

Nights it's usually KGA, Spokane, at varying strengths. Usually readable with Ben Maller (Fox Sports radio) overnights. For a while they had their hip hop & sports programming. That didn't last too long. Often I hear a very weak KSFN, Piedmont, Calif, with regional Mexican. Never hear anything else except for the aforementioned (in the DX catches thread) WLAC, which I heard with clear IDs a couple times during the late evening / early a.m. a few nights back, and the night after I heard talk in English that probably was them as well. That was a surprise.
 
East Tennessee: Daytime, nothing, though WLAC showing can be an indicator of winter daytime skip. Night is all WLAC....I have heard WWHN
Retro/other: Being at the the top end of the dial, I've heard WLAC skipping in during the daytime in Ohio and Indiana at times
 
Wilmington Delaware

Days - WOCQ Salem NJ with a fair signal. It is SE of me sending a signal S to protect WCHE in West Chester PA on 1520 so it doesn't come in that well despite it being only 20 miles away. It currently has Hispanic programming but has changed formats and call letters frequently. I remember Contemporary Christian, Country, Urban Contemporary, Country again and now Hispanic.

Nights - WLAC Nashville with a fair/good signal. Not as good as WSM.
 
Tyler, TX:

Daytime is a weak classic hits KWJB from Canton, "95-1 The Bee" from around 35 miles west of here. Nights are all WLAC, overtaking KWJB before the sun even sets. I have caught Aggieland's Gospel station a few times early in the evening, but it's an uphill climb for KAGC to cover up Nashville. Nothing from Beaumont here.
 
West side of Houston, TX:

Daytime: Slop from local 1520, with KBED sometimes audible. KAGC is closer but never heard here during the day
Sunset: WLAC starts coming in before sunset. KBED and XEQI are there as well, KAGC occasionally
Nights: WLAC dominates with XEQI and sometimes KPLS Littleton, CO usually underneath. I've also ID'd XEPBGR Guadalajara
Sunrise: WLAC, then KBED and KAGC overtake them.
 
From NW San Antonio:

Day: Nothing

Sunset: To the NW/SE, KMND "Fox Sports" in Midland, TX, comes up with a good signal until it signs off. KROB in Robstown, TX, is usually heard underneath with regional Mexican music. To the NE/SW, it's WLAC in Memphis, and KSTV in Stephenville, TX, often mixes in briefly before signoff. XEPBGR "Radio Miled" in Guadalajara eventually comes up.

Night: It's XEPBGR and WLAC mixing with each other. If I aim NW, I can hear KPLS in Littleton, CO, in and out with Christian talk/music.

Sunrise: To the NE/SW, XEPBGR is still fairly strong. KAGC in College Station, TX, appears and eventually dominates at signon. KSTV mixes in weakly when it signs on. I've heard KBED in Nederland, TX, a few times at its signon. To the NW/SE, KPLS hangs in there until KMND returns to the air and dominates. KROB usually can be heard under it at signon. When 1520 KOKC goes to day power, its slop intrudes a bit. KMND is last to fade.

DX/Retro: I've logged KMND once and XEQI in Monterrey a few times during winter daytime skywave. XEQI used to be most dominant here at night and sunrise, but I'm not hearing it all lately; the Spanish-language stations I'm hearing don't match XEQI's stream, and mwlist.org lists it as inactive.
 
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Clifton, New Jersey

Days: I get a faint signal of WRNJ Hackettstown, NJ, but only on my most sensitive radios. WRNJ airs an Adult Contemporary format.

Nights: I usually get WLAC "Talkradio 98.3 and 1510" Nashville, TN, which airs News/Talk programming. Sometimes, I can receive WMEX "1510 WMEX" Quincy, MA, which airs an Oldies format.

DX/Retro: On 04/07/2022, I received WXCY Salem, NJ, which used to air a Country music format. It is now known as WOCQ, which airs a Spanish-language CHR format. On 12/06/2022, I received WLKR Norwalk, OH, which airs a Classic Hits format. Both were received shortly before sunset.
 
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