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AM Radio Signals - fading in and out

M

millennium

Guest
As I was driving to Connecticut last night in a cool Cobalt from Enterprise,
I scanned the dial - AM 1430 fades out in the early stretches of the Mass Pike. So I went to AM 1200 which came in clear around Exit 12 and was out by Exit 11. It is really impossible to get Jones Radio/Air America mix from
Clear Channel on these tiny stations.

WEEI is very weak as one heads towards Worcester. Try listening to The Boston Red Sox as you head West and then South. Scanning the dial I found little pockets of stations with the broadcast but it was no better than WEEI.

In Connecticut to pick up the rescued kitties (We just adopted two cats from Georgia; the troops going to Iraq and Afghanistan have been leaving their pets behind. It is a big dilemma, and these are more invisible victims of this
war that should never have happened), I got to hear AM radio - not at its finest.

STATEMENT:
Ted Sarandis take note: we don't yap SUPPORT OUR TROOPS on the radio and think that we've made a difference. Go buy a magnetic bow tie. Some people ARE supporting our troops by adopting their pets. So many beautiful cats and dogs are headed to the gas chamber in Georgia because of this war.


The two cats that have joined our household are stunningly beautiful and friendly. The thought that they were in line to be killed has me working on an article and mobilizing animal lovers to do our part to truly support our troops.

In doing this I got to hear how bad AM radio comes in on the Mass Pike.

WBZ is the only signal that sticks. You play Roulette with the dial driving on that road.

What happened to the days when Campbell Sports Network would give you the listings of the stations carrying the Red Sox?

Should've went online to find this first:
RED SOX ON THE RADIO
http://www.woolner.com/redsox/radio.htm
 
How about WAVZ or WLIB going into Ct?....i can hold WAVZ just over the border on the 95 from RI but WLIB is shaky almost to White Plains.....was your experience similar.......770 was clear and 880 was clear out of NYC...



> As I was driving to Connecticut last night in a cool Cobalt
> from Enterprise,
> I scanned the dial - AM 1430 fades out in the early
> stretches of the Mass Pike. So I went to AM 1200 which came
> in clear around Exit 12 and was out by Exit 11. It is
> really impossible to get Jones Radio/Air America mix from
> Clear Channel on these tiny stations.
>
> WEEI is very weak as one heads towards Worcester. Try
> listening to The Boston Red Sox as you head West and then
> South. Scanning the dial I found little pockets of stations
> with the broadcast but it was no better than WEEI.
>
> In Connecticut to pick up the rescued kitties (We just
> adopted two cats from Georgia; the troops going to Iraq and
> Afghanistan have been leaving their pets behind. It is a
> big dilemma, and these are more invisible victims of this
> war that should never have happened), I got to hear AM radio
> - not at its finest.
>
> STATEMENT:
> Ted Sarandis take note: we don't yap SUPPORT OUR TROOPS on
> the radio and think that we've made a difference. Go buy a
> magnetic bow tie. Some people ARE supporting our troops by
> adopting their pets. So many beautiful cats and dogs are
> headed to the gas chamber in Georgia because of this war.
>
>
> The two cats that have joined our household are stunningly
> beautiful and friendly. The thought that they were in line
> to be killed has me working on an article and mobilizing
> animal lovers to do our part to truly support our troops.
>
> In doing this I got to hear how bad AM radio comes in on the
> Mass Pike.
>
> WBZ is the only signal that sticks. You play Roulette with
> the dial driving on that road.
>
> What happened to the days when Campbell Sports Network would
> give you the listings of the stations carrying the Red Sox?
>
> Should've went online to find this first:
> RED SOX ON THE RADIO
> http://www.woolner.com/redsox/radio.htm
>
 
Re:didn't know the station names

Hi Doc,

Didn't know which stations were which. The wonderful woman who brought the cats to me suggested an FM Sports talk station 103.7 or something - I did listen to that for awhile.

As stated - I should've went here:

Should've went online to find this first:
RED SOX ON THE RADIO
http://www.woolner.com/redsox/radio.htm

before the journey.


> How about WAVZ or WLIB going into Ct?....i can hold WAVZ
> just over the border on the 95 from RI but WLIB is shaky
> almost to White Plains.....was your experience
> similar.......770 was clear and 880 was clear out of NYC...
>
>
>
> > As I was driving to Connecticut last night in a cool
> Cobalt
> > from Enterprise,
> > I scanned the dial - AM 1430 fades out in the early
> > stretches of the Mass Pike. So I went to AM 1200 which
> came
> > in clear around Exit 12 and was out by Exit 11. It is
> > really impossible to get Jones Radio/Air America mix from
>
> > Clear Channel on these tiny stations.
> >
> > WEEI is very weak as one heads towards Worcester. Try
> > listening to The Boston Red Sox as you head West and then
> > South. Scanning the dial I found little pockets of
> stations
> > with the broadcast but it was no better than WEEI.
> >
> >
> > Should've went online to find this first:
> > RED SOX ON THE RADIO
> > http://www.woolner.com/redsox/radio.htm
> >
>
 
> As I was driving to Connecticut last night in a cool Cobalt
> from Enterprise,
> I scanned the dial - AM 1430 fades out in the early
> stretches of the Mass Pike. So I went to AM 1200 which came
> in clear around Exit 12 and was out by Exit 11. It is
> really impossible to get Jones Radio/Air America mix from
> Clear Channel on these tiny stations.

You didn't say whether you were driving by day or by night. The only logical assumption is that you were driving at night. When WKOX runs its 10-kW nondirectional daytime signal, which emanates from a tower that is top-loaded to 214 degrees and therefore produces a signal equivalent to more than 20 kW from a tower of more typical height, you can pick up the station about 40 miles from Framingham on any decent, properly functioning AM car radio. That would put you well past Worcester, in an area where I believe the exit numbers are below 10.

The 1-kW directional night signal, which also comes from 214-degree towers, should be listenable at least to Route 495, but would be better if you were a few miles north of the Pike--say in Marlborough.
 
Re:didn't know the station names

> Hi Doc,
>
> Didn't know which stations were which. The wonderful woman
> who brought the cats to me suggested an FM Sports talk
> station 103.7 or something - I did listen to that for
> awhile.

That's WEEI-FM Westerly (Providence), RI

> As stated - I should've went here:
>
> Should've went online to find this first:
> RED SOX ON THE RADIO
> http://www.woolner.com/redsox/radio.htm
> before the journey.

That list is very out of date. Many stations on it no longer air the Sox, and others that currently air them aren't listed.

Heading for Connecticut at night you may have been able to hear AAR/Jones "progressive talk" programming from WLIB 1190 New York, once you passed just a few miles past the adjacent WKOX signal in Framingham. WLIB skips up to Boston (weakly) most nights.
 
> WEEI is very weak as one heads towards Worcester. Try
> listening to The Boston Red Sox as you head West and then
> South. Scanning the dial I found little pockets of stations
> with the broadcast but it was no better than WEEI.

I live in Marlborough, and I have that same problem at night with the Red Sox games. I end up flipping back and forth from 580 WTAG/Worcester or 630 WPRO/Providence to listen to the games.

Jacko<P ID="signature">______________
I live for my dream,
And a pocket full of gold.
</P>
 
Re: Red Sox radio network

Thanks Dan,

yes it was night. 10A goes to Worcester, Exit 10 has the Norwich Ct. exit.

A rainy night heading South of Worcester.

The car radio was fantastic - a nice new Cobalt car - as my car's going in the shop next week I did the practical thing and rented - smart move -

Here is a new list of 68 Red Sox stations I found:

http://www.redsoxconnection.com/audio.html

Red Sox Radio Network Affiliates
Red Sox Shop
Our unique Red Sox merchandise
Red Sox Nation Wristband
Boston Poker Cards
The Boston Red Sox radio network is comprised of 68 stations (53 AM, 15 FM) in the 6 New England states. For the 11th year, the flagship station is Boston's WEEI 850 AM. The announcers are play-by-play man Joe Castiglione, in his 23rd year with the Red Sox, and color commentator Jerry Trupiano, his 13th year on the job.
If you live outside of the network coverage area, you can listen to all games over the Internet after paying a $14.95 subscription fee. Even with a dial up 56K connection, the audio feed is usually crisp and static-free. To sign up visit mlb.com.



Massachusetts
Boston WEEI 850 AM
Fall River WSAR 1480 AM
Fitchburg WEIM 1280 AM
Gardner WGAW 1430 AM
Greenfield WHMQ 1240 AM
Milford WMRC 1490 AM
New Bedford WBSM 1420 AM
North Adams WNAW 1230 AM
North Hampton WHMP 1400 AM
Pittsfield WBEC 1420 AM
Springfield WHYN 560 AM
Taunton WPEP 1570 AM
West Yarmouth WXTK 95.1 FM
Worcester WTAG 580 AM
Rhode Island
Providence WPRO 630 AM


> > As I was driving to Connecticut last night in a cool
> Cobalt
> > from Enterprise,
> > I scanned the dial - AM 1430 fades out in the early
> > stretches of the Mass Pike. So I went to AM 1200 which
> came
> > in clear around Exit 12 and was out by Exit 11. It is
> > really impossible to get Jones Radio/Air America mix from
>
> > Clear Channel on these tiny stations.
>
> You didn't say whether you were driving by day or by night.
> The only logical assumption is that you were driving at
> night. When WKOX runs its 10-kW nondirectional daytime
> signal, which emanates from a tower that is top-loaded to
> 214 degrees and therefore produces a signal equivalent to
> more than 20 kW from a tower of more typical height, you can
> pick up the station about 40 miles from Framingham on any
> decent, properly functioning AM car radio. That would put
> you well past Worcester, in an area where I believe the exit
> numbers are below 10.
>
> The 1-kW directional night signal, which also comes from
> 214-degree towers, should be listenable at least to Route
> 495, but would be better if you were a few miles north of
> the Pike--say in Marlborough.
>
 
Re:didn't know the station names

> > Hi Doc,
> >
> > Didn't know which stations were which. The wonderful
> woman
> > who brought the cats to me suggested an FM Sports talk
> > station 103.7 or something - I did listen to that for
> > awhile.
>
> That's WEEI-FM Westerly (Providence), RI

But WEEI-FM doesn't carry the Sox, as they're locked in with 630 WPRO for this year. I believe next year they are headed to 103.7.

So if they were on, the only FM station with the Sox is 102.3 WXLM, out in Connecticut, but I believe that the tower is in Westerly, RI. Not sure how their signal is, but with 102.1 Springfield, 102.5 Boston, and 102.7 Narragansett Pier (sp?), it can't be too good.
 
I've picked up WKOX in southern NH, Connecticut, and Rhode Island fairly well,
at least on major highways (even up on I-89 in central NH).
Even north of Boston (all DAYtime), though WXKS comes in better. Nighttime and
twilight a different story for WKOX, and I do remember last winter that a sports station from Ontario was mixing with WKOX around 5 pm on Rt 128 (Lynnfield)

> You didn't say whether you were driving by day or by night.
> The only logical assumption is that you were driving at
> night.

If the implication millenium made is that the lousy ratings Air America is getting is due to poor signals, consider that when I was in Memphis last week, Entercom's WWTQ (680--
yes, a lower dial position) with AAR came in quite well in the metro area and pushed well
to the east as I drove I-40 to Nashville ** (again, daytime). Despite this good
signal, their ratings (12 +) are poor. Yes, it's given that the 680 dial position helps them, though, with regards to the signal. One wonders if WRKO were to go Air America would their ratings be better or worse. Is it the signal, or the programming? There are some cities where AAR does well; Boston, Providence, and Memphis are not among them.

*--rented Toyota Corolla from Budget, pretty good radio in it
 
Re:didn't know the station names

but I believe that the tower
> is in Westerly, RI.

WEEI-FM's signal is quite good--was picking them up in Canton well a few weeks back...considering that Westerly is in the southwest corner of RI (admittedly a small state though)
 
Re: Red Sox radio network

I just emailed the webmaster of that site and told them of WBOQ picking up Sox games as of 7/14.

"Red Sox Baseball!!!The game's on North Shore 104.9 FM
Catch Red Sox baseball beginning immediately after the 2005 all-star break
on July 14th!" (from wboq.com)

> Here is a new list of 68 Red Sox stations I found:
>
> http://www.redsoxconnection.com/audio.html
 
Re:didn't know the station names

> but I believe that the tower
> > is in Westerly, RI.
>
> WEEI-FM's signal is quite good--was picking them up in
> Canton well a few weeks back...considering that Westerly is
> in the southwest corner of RI (admittedly a small state
> though)
>

I was actually referring to 102.3 WXLM, whose tower is in Westerly.

But yeah, the WEEI-FM signal is really good, considering their location. You can pick them up in a car here in Framingham pretty much any time, though it doesn't scan in all of the time.
 
speaking of weei's night signal

Fybush is reporting WBOQ 104.9 is going to be a Red Sox affiliate after the all star break to suppliment the Sox radio network since EEI's night signal is a bit deficient in some areas.
 
It's interesting what lousy ratings Jay Severin got for quite awhile, Greater Media stuck with him and he caught on. Not to Stern levels, of course, but he did catch on somewhat. And there are no talents around these days that are the stature of a Jerry Williams in his prime or Gene Burns or David Brudnoy to give Severin or Carr a run for their overpaid money as it is.

You put Air America on WRKO consistently - not just the bits and pieces RKO throws out - bread crumbs - and you'll get an intelligent audience.

RKO broadcasts to the trailer parks. Not a bad thing, but not as upscale as your typical WCRB or WBUR listener. Howie's got his niche market of nitwits while Severin plays to a crowd who have to be constantly reminded they are his
"best and brightest." That line alone enough to make one switch the station, vomit, or both. How insulting.

Great talent is hiding in the woodwork - won't put up with inept program directors who get in line and do what they are told by people who ruined this industry.

Some truly great talents are sick of this pathetic circus, and refuse to surface until things change.

Radio will make a comeback - but not if "Conservative" judges take hold of the Supreme Court and refuse to allow independent thought in this country. This independence day we should be very very frightened. Those who have taken control are hell bent on stripping away our rights to Free Speech,
and radio is one of the first arenas they are wrapping their tentacles around.


> I've picked up WKOX in southern NH, Connecticut, and Rhode
> Island fairly well,
> at least on major highways (even up on I-89 in central NH).
> Even north of Boston (all DAYtime), though WXKS comes in
> better. Nighttime and
> twilight a different story for WKOX, and I do remember last
> winter that a sports station from Ontario was mixing with
> WKOX around 5 pm on Rt 128 (Lynnfield)
>
> > You didn't say whether you were driving by day or by
> night.
> > The only logical assumption is that you were driving at
> > night.
>
> If the implication millenium made is that the lousy ratings
> Air America is getting is due to poor signals, consider that
> when I was in Memphis last week, Entercom's WWTQ (680--
> yes, a lower dial position) with AAR came in quite well in
> the metro area and pushed well
> to the east as I drove I-40 to Nashville ** (again,
> daytime). Despite this good
> signal, their ratings (12 +) are poor. Yes, it's given that
> the 680 dial position helps them, though, with regards to
> the signal. One wonders if WRKO were to go Air America would
> their ratings be better or worse. Is it the signal, or the
> programming? There are some cities where AAR does well;
> Boston, Providence, and Memphis are not among them.
>
> *--rented Toyota Corolla from Budget, pretty good radio in
> it
>
 
> If the implication millenium made is that the lousy ratings
> Air America is getting is due to poor signals, consider that
> when I was in Memphis last week, Entercom's WWTQ (680--
> yes, a lower dial position) with AAR came in quite well in
> the metro area and pushed well
> to the east as I drove I-40 to Nashville ** (again,
> daytime). Despite this good
> signal, their ratings (12 +) are poor. Yes, it's given that
> the 680 dial position helps them, though, with regards to
> the signal.

That's because Memphis is in the conservative 'bible belt'. Aside from that, demographics have a lot to do with why WWTQ & AAR gets poor ratings. The vast majority of liberalism in this city comes from the African American community. They have a couple of heritage stations which do some talk that blow away anything AAR tries to do... Furthermore the 'white' community is very conservative and *not* listening, so it's difficult for WWTQ to make much of a dent.

But, this isn't the Memphis board so we'll leave that discussion alone aside from that comment.

> One wonders if WRKO were to go Air America would
> their ratings be better or worse. Is it the signal, or the
> programming? There are some cities where AAR does well;
> Boston, Providence, and Memphis are not among them.

Wishful thinking, my friend. If WRKO went AAR, it would completely tank. Listeners would have to go to WTAG for Rush, etc. Plus, then what would become of 1200 & 1430? Back to Standards or leased ethnic? I think not. From a business standpoint WRKO has to continue with Conservative talk, even if it does irk some on this board that Rush, Hannity, etc. are given a voice in Boston at all.

To answer the signal question, take the example of WLOK here in Memphis... tiny signal on an old graveyard frequency, and with an FM gospel station here... still kicks serious a** in the ratings. That's heritage for you.

Signal only matters in outlying areas. In the COL, where it counts, programming is what makes or breaks a station. Build it, and they will come.<P ID="signature">______________
</P>
 
> You put Air America on WRKO consistently - not just the bits
> and pieces RKO throws out - bread crumbs - and you'll get an
> intelligent audience.

I disagree, but not for the reasons you might think. AAR is not the answer. The answer is doing what WBZ does with local talkers but during the day. True, Howie Carr probably ain't what they need afternoons, but if RKO were to find another Gene Burns/Gerry Williams combination for Midday/Afternoon Drive, you'd see WRKO have a substantial rise.


> Great talent is hiding in the woodwork - won't put up with
> inept program directors who get in line and do what they are
> told by people who ruined this industry.

I wouldn't say inept Program Directors. What you don't realize is a PD today ain't what a PD 20 years ago was. Today's PD gets his marching orders from the GM, who gets his from Corporate. It's the PD's job to implement what he's told from higher up. You should read a column from Gerry Cagle I read recently about just this very issue. And if you take issue with a PD 'getting in line and doing what they are told', then you probably haven't been in the workforce very long - disobey and you find yourself in the unemployment line.

> Some truly great talents are sick of this pathetic circus,
> and refuse to surface until things change.

Refuse to surface, eh? How about not given a chance because station management everywhere has been playing it safe for years, and new talent is an unstable element that they just can't afford. Stations now have to answer to Wall Street investors who demand instant and constant profits.
>
> Radio will make a comeback - but not if "Conservative"
> judges take hold of the Supreme Court and refuse to allow
> independent thought in this country. This independence day
> we should be very very frightened. Those who have taken
> control are hell bent on stripping away our rights to Free
> Speech,
> and radio is one of the first arenas they are wrapping their
> tentacles around.

How about keeping the political rants off the board. We all know what's happening in the political world and trust me, politics has NOTHING to do with radio formats or talk show hosts. Quit making me remind you that this is about radio, not your forum to vent about your hatred of conservatism. It's getting old.<P ID="signature">______________
</P>
 
Yes--I also went to Nashville, which some call "the buckle of the Bible
Belt"...many churches, etc. (Yet Nashville might have their share of liberals
because it's the state capitol and government folks tend to be liberal.
I know I saw a few anti-Bush bumper stickers there.)

I saw a WorldNetDaily article about Gore losing his home state in 2000 and it
mentioned that the state's population was growing more conservative
("The usual press analysis is that Tennessee's demographics have changed, sending the once-Democratic stronghold tipping to the Republican Party")
The once "solid South" for the Democrats has been solid for the GOP the past
few presidential elections (as Zell Miller pointed out in one of his books).
Might be surprising that AAR is in TN, though what you say about the black
population in Memphis makes sense.

> That's because Memphis is in the conservative 'bible belt'.
> Aside from that, demographics have a lot to do with why WWTQ
> & AAR gets poor ratings. The vast majority of liberalism in
> this city comes from the African American community.

Furthermore the
> 'white' community is very conservative and *not* listening,
> so it's difficult for WWTQ to make much of a dent.



> Wishful thinking, my friend. If WRKO went AAR, it would
> completely tank.

Well, that's not wishful thinking--it's just me pointing out that
a station like 'RKO _wouldn't_ change. Wishful thinking for liberals,
maybe, and it DID happen in Prov--WHJJ--and they wound up tanking. Strange
isn't it that a mostly-liberal city like Boston can't support progressive
talk. Are they all listening to WBUR instead?

From a
> business standpoint WRKO has to continue with Conservative
> talk, even if it does irk some on this board that Rush,
> Hannity, etc. are given a voice in Boston at all.

Which is why I'm pointing it out--all the people who praise ProgTalk/
Air America point out "oh, it's just because WKOX and WXKS have poor
signals, so that's why it's tanking!" No, during the day both stations
aren't bad. They're no WBZ or WRKO, but still not bad. And yes, if
WRKO decided to do a WHJJ their ratings would plummet.

> To answer the signal question, take the example of WLOK here
> in Memphis... tiny signal on an old graveyard frequency, and
> with an FM gospel station here... still kicks serious a** in
> the ratings. That's heritage for you.

Is that the one with a stick near McLemore Ave.? I went to the Stax
Museum and then headed east on McLemore and saw a radio tower...and
get the feeling it was WLOK.


So getting back to WWTQ, when I said that they were getting lousy ratings despite being on a good signal, you're right--in this case it's more
the demographics than the quality of AAR programming.
 
> Well, that's not wishful thinking--it's just me pointing out that
> a station like 'RKO _wouldn't_ change. Wishful thinking for liberals,
> maybe, and it DID happen in Prov--WHJJ--and they wound up tanking. Strange
> isn't it that a mostly-liberal city like Boston can't support progressive
> talk. Are they all listening to WBUR instead?

WBUR does get excellent ratings, so that's a possibility.

Non-comm ratings aren't published, but if it was ranked along with the commercial stations, WBUR would always show within the top ten in the market, and often within the top five (especially among the 25-54 age group).

Perhaps many so-called "progressive" or "liberal" listeners simply don't like commercial talk radio style formatting and presentation, regardless of whether or not they may agree with the viewpoints expressed. Also, I think some of that audience considers the AM band something to turn to just for traffic reports and sports games.
 
> Signal only matters in outlying areas. In the COL, where it
> counts, programming is what makes or breaks a station.
> Build it, and they will come.

But signal does matter if you can't be heard. If AAR was, hypothetically, on WRKO, nobody in MetroWest could hear it at night. Most of the MetroWest suburbs are very liberal. Many of the MetroWest suburbs are wealthy. Advertisers like wealthy audiences. If Wellesley, Wayland, and Weston, all home to many wealthy liberals, cannot hear AAR on 680, what's going to keep them on AAR rather than listening to NPR on 90.9, which is clear as a bell.

Boston is a pretty small city for both land size and population. The land that makes up Denver International Airport is equivalent to that of the entire city of Boston. So, in Boston in particular, coverage in the suburbs is more important than it would be in many other metropolises.

According to Radio-Locator, only four Boston signals are audible in the daytime in Framingham. Right now, on a standard stereo-system, 1030 is the only one that can still be heard. 680 is nothing but fuzz. 850 isn't great, but is certainly audible. 1510 is inaudible, though one channel over, WTOP is coming in quite well.

Now, I'm not using a GE Superradio, and most car radios will let you hear something, but how can one expect a high-rating format, whether it's conservative talk or AAR, to score significant ratings with a signal that misses such a vital part of the Boston region.
 
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