AM night signal patterns

[schmave]

The biggest problem area I personally heard with 790 was in Sugar Land, where it could be tough as nails to pick up until you got east of that nasty null.

Came across a 790 billboard tonight outside Wharton... day or night, does KBME ever put enough signal into that area to warrant a billboard?

Wow, that's pretty far out for a Houston radio station to be advertising. Hearing the 790 night signal I used to hear in Fort Bend County, I can't imagine it'd be heard in Wharton. Daytime, no idea. Never have been that far out on 59.

 

[davideduardo]

I don't understand why 'protection' is afforded distant stations such that these stations can't be heard in their own city of license. No wonder AM is dying.

Many stations that were licensed in the 30's and 40's were built before urban sprawl. The markets have simply grown bigger than the signal. And that, as you say, is one of the reason's AM is fading out.

Stations, and I am generalizing, built from the 50's on, tended to have been wedged in, protecting existing assignments while accepting less than perfect coverage of the home market. As markets grew, the signal became even more inadequate.

Keep in mind that, at night, it's not that a station is protecting another station in either one's home market... they are protecting the fringe coverage areas of other stations.

The way it stands now, in the top 100 markets (about 70% of US population) there are only around AM 150 stations that cover at least 80% of the market day and night with a usable signal (generally 5 mV/m or higher in today's high noise urban environments). That means most markets have between 1 and 2 viable signals, and some have none.

 

[93-3TheSurge]

You can pick up KBME in Wharton during the day.

At night? It doesn't make it to Sugar Land.