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AM Frequency of the Week: 590

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cyberdad

cyberdad

A day earlier than usual this week. Thank/blame previous arrangements made with the Easter Bunny for keeping me "hoppin'" all weekend long.....

Far northwest Chicago metro....

DAYS: A very weak WKZO from Kalamazoo, Michigan. The signal seems to have degraded in recent years, but is still reliable. Distance is 142 miles, with the poor ground conductivity of southwest Michigan taking a big bite out of the 5kw non-directional day pattern.

NIGHTS: KXSP (ex WOW), Omaha, is usually top dog. Sometimes, WKZO sneaks in. I've also heard WVLK a couple of times. Then a few years ago WJMS from Ironwood Michigan's Upper Peninsula was in for a week or two. Presumably on 5kw ND Day power. I haven't heard a peep out of them since.

OTHER LOCATION: As I alluded to in another thread earlier this week, 590 can be interesting on a road trip east. WKZO, CJCL,WMBS, WROW, and WEZE handing off the channel to one another. You can set a preset, pretty much leave it where it is, and have something to listen to. At least during daytime....and no, I've never actually. done that myself.

WANTED: CFAR Flin Flon, MB. Might be doable on 10kw day power (at night). Tough duty at 1kw night (both day/nigh are non-directional). Flin Flon is in the north woods, a couple hundred miles north-northwest of Winnipeg.

Happy Easter/Passover everyone!
 
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From Cheyenne Wyoming, I wish you all a Happy Easter! @cyberdad the Easter Bunny has kept you busy alright!

Daytime: A weak 590 KCSJ Pueblo (195 miles) can be heard and even readable in the truck radio or on the R-108 if I null out KCOL good enough.

At nights it is a toss up between KCSJ and KXSP Omaha (about 450 miles away)

Travel: In Rapid City, a very fringe signal could be made out. I suspect it's either KGLE Glendive or KXSP Omaha.

Bucket list: I hope I can catch 590 KID Idaho Falls when I travel this summer, or even better, that it comes here.
 
Here in Wood Dale, IL in the near NW suburb of Chicago:

Daytime: WKZO Kalamazoo, MI
Nightime: usually KXSP (ex-WOW). Radio Musical Nacional from Cuba also frequent visitor

DX/RETRO: some of the DX catches include KBHS (Hot Springs, AR), KLBJ (Austin, TX), WRTH (now KFNS) (Wood River, IL), WJMS (Ironwood, MI), WEEI (Boston, MA), CKEY (Toronto, ON), CKRS (Junguiere (PQ). On the foreign front there used to be a high powered Radio Rebelde outlet on 590, but these days the Cuban that makes frequent appearance is CMBF Radio Musical Nacional using 25 kW from La Julia site. If you hear classical music on the frequency than it's most likely Cuba. For a long time I had two Mexicans logged on 590 (XEFD, XEXA). However in 2021 a third one made an appearance, XEPH with Sabrosita slogans. Additional foreign log is Radio Nacional, San Jose, Costa Rica. Finally, Dominica used to be received on the split frequency of 595 kHz back in 1980's. It used to be received quite well in the Chicago area.
 
590, much like 580, is unfortunately a pretty dead frequency here in central Ohio. I don't remember hearing much day or night.
On the opposite end of the spectrum, in my old haunts of Houston 590 made for some interesting listening thanks to the co-channel battle and, let's be honest, ridiculously short spacing between Austin's KLBJ and Reynosa, Mexico's XEFD. Two 5,000-watters omnidirectional about 300 or so miles apart in areas with some excellent conductivity. It depends on where one is in the Houston area as to which station is more listenable.
 
From west Houston, during the day KLBJ is strong and on top, with XEFD often mixing in and good in KLBJ's null. At sunset and nighttime, it's still those two, with KXSP and Radio Musical Nacional sometimes heard. As schmave says, the situation with KLBJ and XEFD is a bit ridiculous. It will be interesting to see how KLBJ's reported reduction to 380w at night changes things.
 
At my office in west Houston, around Gessner and Westheimer, KLBJ usually was on top and pretty listenable. By the time I got home to League City, I want to say it was much more even between the two, but that's been several years ago. I do remember DXing from down at the Gulf one day in the spring of 2009 and it was all XEFD.
 
Chicago by the lakeshore:

Daytime: WKZO in Kalamazoo. Doesn't come in that great but it's usually there.

Critical Hours: More WKZO usually. One time I snagged CJCL in Toronto near sunset.

Nighttime: Again, most commonly WKZO, despite its unfavorable pattern. Another example of such a signal propagating well across the lake. Sometimes you also hear KXSP in Omaha.
 
schmave said:
At my office in west Houston, around Gessner and Westheimer, KLBJ usually was on top and pretty listenable. By the time I got home to League City, I want to say it was much more even between the two, but that's been several years ago. I do remember DXing from down at the Gulf one day in the spring of 2009 and it was all XEFD.
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My house is about 2 miles northwest of your old office (quite a commute from League City!). KLBJ is always on top during the day, but XEFD is audible underneath. IIRC, down in Galveston it's the opposite.
 
In the near north Chicago suburbs daytime is WKZO with a decent signal, but not as good as it used to be. At night KXSP is most often heard. Really liked it when it was WOW and played pop music in the 70s. WKZO sneaks in too. Have also heard WVLK and KFNS.
When traveling in the Northeast have heard WEZE/WEEI.
 
I should have mentioned R. Nacional in my OP. I've heard it several times at my home location. But it's far from a regular for me. At our beach location near Pensacola, it's in 24/7. Weak by day. Stronger by night.

There used to be a 590 in Panama City, FL. 100 miles to my east via saltwater path. For many years that signal was top 40 WDLP. 1kw, which produced a pretty decent day signal at our location. You could null it, and hear Cuba underneath. By night, Cuba took over and completely blew out WDLP. My guess was that WDLP was protecting KLBJ and/or XEFD.
 
Day or night, I can hear KXSP Omaha IF I am able to null my powerhouse local, WMT, on 600. Somewhat easier to do at night, but regardless, KXSP is just there, it's not really listenable.
 
East Tennessee: Days, WVLK. Lexington KY.
Night: In checking tonight, I caught a mix of WDWD, Atlanta Radio Musical Nacional, Cuba, and a station carrying CBS News. (Spelling error corrected by moderator)

Retro/other: Western Ohio brought some locall/regional stations , namely WKZO until just north of Dayton, when WVLK may take over.

I remember during one of my family's Michigan vacations, seeing a billboard that said "for the next 300 miles, 59 WKZO.
 
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Central Washington

KQNT Spokane is the dominant on 590, nothing else except the occasional KID Idaho Falls.
 
Orange County, TX-Days Spanish language, faint but listenable, presuming it's XEFD. Nights KLBJ with fading and KFNS would come through. Anybody in Austin area know if KLBJ has completed their downgrade? Haven't heard them in a while. As of this writing it's Spanish language dominating again with music. I may be XEFD.
 
Kenosha, WI Days- WKZO Kalamazoo, MI. Pretty decent signal from across the Big Lake. Nights- KXSP Omaha, NE is usually dominant,, sometimes WKZO still blows in under it. Also KFNS Wood River, IL (St Louis) and WJMS Ironwood, MI.
 
The Old Logge Inn registree book here in the new NE PA den is pretty vacant. After shovelling off the dust from it, I only found these loggings::
a) WARM Scranton
2) 'tentative WLQE? The Lake ?'
And it IS a pretty old log book, too. Work needs to be done here, I see.

At lower power now, both day and night, WARM's coverage map on Radio Locator still looks to be the same as when they were a full 5000 24/7, as I remember them.

* * * * * * *

Retro 60's days back in Queens NYC : the spin of a loop antenna on a good radio (Stromberg-Carlson, Atwater Kent) used to bring in WROW Albany in one direction, WEEI Boston on another bearing, and WARM on a thrd turn. And this was in the DAY.
A lot of those nights ('when all ther girls were on their stoops, yeah' ) WARM was often quite receivable for long spurts on those tiny blue transistor radios.

WARM, a wonderful Top 40 station, actually had a jingle that went 'There'll be a change in the weather ... from WARM, The Mighty 5-90!' And then they'd give some updated forecast.

Maybe I'll bring up another 590 memory later, if anyone gives a flying one, hi. It's from way back when I did news on Long Islamd ........

Wonerful Holiday Weekend, all ! Happy Easter Egg salads, and in the words of Archie Bunker, speaking to a rabbi, 'And as youse folks would say, sh-boom'.
 
DFW, Texas

Daytime: A listenable KLBJ from Austin, TX.
Nighttime: KLBJ is very much weaker and sometimes absent altogether. 590 at night is a mix of KLBJ, KXSP Omaha, KCJS Pueblo, R. Musical National from Cuba, and XEFD Reynosa. Anyone of these can rise to the top, depending on atmospheric conditions that night, or which way I point the radio.
 
From the southwest suburbs of Chicago:

WKZO Kalamazoo is the daytime regular. Not sure if it's weaker since I listen to it so infrequently.

Nights, I've gotten WOW / KXSP Omaha, what way back was listed as CMW St. Angeles de Las Vegas, Cuba (a whopping 150 kW), and WRTH Wood River, Ill., 1 kW nights. I have not heard it as KFNS.
 
schmave said:
590, much like 580, is unfortunately a pretty dead frequency here in central Ohio. I don't remember hearing much day or night.
On the opposite end of the spectrum, in my old haunts of Houston 590 made for some interesting listening thanks to the co-channel battle and, let's be honest, ridiculously short spacing between Austin's KLBJ and Reynosa, Mexico's XEFD. Two 5,000-watters omnidirectional about 300 or so miles apart in areas with some excellent conductivity. It depends on where one is in the Houston area as to which station is more listenable.
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A few years ago, XEFD was off the air for a couple of days. While KLBJ was not a local strength signal, it was very listenable throughout the Valley.

If you drive 37 to Corpus or take 281 South from Three Rivers, it’s an interesting battle between KLBJ and XEFD.

In Canyon Lake, KLBJ is solid by day and above the mush at night: some fading takes place, but probably the third best area AM signal after WOAl and KTSA.
 
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