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AM Frequency of the Week: 790

cyberdad

cyberdad

Our journey through what used to be called "regional" AM channels continues this week with a jump up to 790.

Far northwest Chicago suburbs.....

Days: All splatter from local WBBM (780). On the very rare occasions where WBBM has been off during the daytime, a weak WSGW from Saginaw, MI is what usuaally comes through on a good radio,

Night: WBBM splatter remains an issue, and their iboc noisemaker doesn't help matters.

Retro: Before the days of iboc, I could null WBBM and usually hear CKSO from Sudbury, ON. Country music with a fair-good signal. They're now long-gone from the AM band. There's a CKSO now operating in Sudbury on FM as a low-power station, but I'm npt sure if there's any connection with the original.

I've also heard WMC (Memphis) and KFGO (Fargo), a couple of times.
 
In the near north Chicago suburbs it’s all WBBM splatter during the day. When I’ve driven on Lake Shore Drive in Chicago
when WBBM is not using IBOC, I can hear WSGW during the day as the high rises act as a shield to WBBM and WSGW can be heard.

Retro: Before WBBM’s IBOC I heard WNIS Norfolk, Va at night. (When I first heard them they were WTAR). Also, have heard WMC and KFGO a few times.
 
Here in Laramie, WY in the SE corner of the state

Right before sunset: KXXX Colby, KS
After dark: KFPT Clovis, CA
 
Here in Wood Dale, IL (near NW suburb of Chicago):

Daytime: just WBBM iboc noise
Nightime: same as daytime

DX/Retro: in the old days when the WBBM splsh could be nulled KFGO (Fargo, ND), WMC (Memphis, TN), WTAR (Norfolk, VA), WAAY (Eau Claire, WI), CIGM (Sudbury, ON) could be heard. With iboc noisemaker on 790 is useless at my location. When they turned it off recently I managed to log a new station on 790 WKRD (Louisville, KY). Other DX includes WETB (Johnston, City, TN) during a DX test and couple Cuban outlets.
 
After my original post, I did a little research on the Sudbury, Ontario 790.

First of all, the CKSO calls are no longer in use on FM. The low-power FM that had them went dark more than a decade ago. The call letters CKSO and CIGM were both used on 790, and each incarnation is now operating as a full power FM (with different calls).

At one point, the Sudbury 790 had authorization for 50kw. I'm not sure if that was ever built, but if it was, that would have been a very big signal for a very small city.
 
East Tennessee: Days: WETB, Johnson City, TN.
Night: A little bit of WKRD, with some WQXI.

Retro/other: At this very moment, hearing WVWZ, Ashland City, TN on the Central Indiana receiver, apparently on day power.

From Dayton, Ohio. Days-the last breath of WHTH, Heath, Ohio or more likely, WKRD.

West Central Ohio: In. both stations' top 40 days, WAKY would come in strong and occasionally splatter CKLW around sunset. I also got WTAR pretty frequently, enough to note the had a Saturday night oldies show, which I finally got to hear "like a local" on a visit to the VA Beach area. I caught WNWS, Miami on an auroral night from there once or twice in the 80s.
 
Days and nights its WQXI. WQXI used to be a top 40 rock and roller but is now Korean format. The Korean owner used to buy time on a 1040 daytimer but when Entercom decided to sell WQXI he bought it for $800K.
WQXI has a decent nightime signal.
 
In Houston, it's local KBME "Sportstalk 790" 24/7, transmitting from 12 miles away and virtually un-nullable.

In Tulsa in the early 70's, the same station, then KULF was the most common reception at night. I also remember hearing KXXX (or whatever they were then) in Colby KS during wintertime days, from over 300 miles away.
 
In Reynoldsburg, Ohio, daytime it's WHTH from Newark/Heath and nothing at night. They go from 1,000 watts daytime to a directional 26 watts aiming southeast at night from three towers just off Ohio 16 on the west side of Newark. The 26 watts surprised me because when I lived in Thornville, Ohio, maybe 12 miles south of the towers, WHTH was quite listenable at night.
They tuck in big-time to the northeast and southwest at night, and it's noticeable a short distance from the towers. I've heard Radio Reloj ticks within four miles of their array at night, granted behind the pattern.
 
From NW San Antonio:

Day: KBME in Houston with a moderate signal. Also, on all of my radios there's a weak image of nearby local 930 KLUP mixing in.

Sunset: Things get interesting. KOSY in Texarkana, AR, bubbles up underneath KBME with urban gospel music. Also, KURM in Rogers, AR, sometimes makes a brief appearance. To the NW, KFYO in Lubbock can be heard, and a little later, KNST sometimes mixes in.

Night: KBME is dominant to the NE and KFYO is dominant to the NW. A very weak KOSY is occasionally heard under KBME, and I often hear Radio Reloj's time beeps under KFYO.

Sunrise: Similar to sunset with KNST a little stronger and no KURM.

DX/Retro: During the day I used to hear a weak XEFE in Nuevo Laredo before it went off air. Same for XERC in Mexico City at night. Also, at night I've heard KGHL in Billings, MT, once and KXXX in Colby, KS, twice.
 
kf4rca said:
Days and nights its WQXI. WQXI used to be a top 40 rock and roller but is now Korean format. The Korean owner used to buy time on a 1040 daytimer but when Entercom decided to sell WQXI he bought it for $800K.
WQXI has a decent nightime signal.
Click to expand...
Not where I am, about a half hour north of Atlanta. Before they went Korean, they were "790 the Zone" sports talk. Controversy set in (the Steve Gleason "interview" schtick) and everyone got fired. For a time they simulcast FM sister station WSTR.
 
The third-loudest AM station here in the day is WAEB 790 Allentown.
The louder two are WPPA 1360 Pottsville and then WEEU 830 Reading.

https://radio-locator.com/cgi-bin/pat?call=WAEB&service=AM&h=D
The 'e' in Pottsville, dead West, is even in WAEB's main daytime contour, hi.

At night, WAEB pulls it in so severely from the West that their signal is inedible (as a matter of fact, those other two loud locals aren't there at night, either).
On 790 I've logged CIOF from Ontario at night, and a goodie around sunset, in WLKW Providence. Some here will remember that they had been 'WEAN' for quite the while.

Ooops! I almost forgot a nighttime catch that is so popular on car-radio buttons.
Radio Reloj.
 
West Central Georgia:

Days: WQXI Atlanta GA 28000/1000 Korean fair signal

Nights: WMC Memphis TN 5000 Sports most common
Also hear WKRD Louisville KY 5000/1000 Sports and WNIS Norfolk VA 5000 News/Talk
Also hear African American music station on this frequency but can't identify (790am/92.5fm identification)
 
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