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Another Macon radio station applies to change signal

R

Rick Rose 2.0

Guest
Fort Valley licensed 106.3 WQBZ has just applied to move its transmitter south to the WIBB tower which might help 106.1 WNGC move towards Atlanta. I know WQBZ is owned by Clear Channel and WNGC by Cox but why would CC move WQBZ south.
 
Any changes in height or power? I ask only because the move is not going to amount much to the signal "IF" the height and power remains the same. Q106 is a long running classic rock stations in Macon and their ratings are pretty decent.
 
Per the app on fcc.gov, power stays the same at 50kW while HAAT goes down slightly from 150 meters to 139 meters. They also go directional with a slight null from 180 to 230 degrees (due south to southwest).

Not sure how this helps WNGC. I suppose WNGC could try to move to the WSBB/WSRV Chateau Elan tower and pick up much more of the metro area but that would be a tight squeeze.
 
I don't know where the transmitters for these stations are located, and I know almost nothing about radio transmission patterns, but Fort Valley is located Southwest of Macon. So if they are moving the transmitter to WIBB's location, which I presume is closer to Macon, wouldn't that mean they are moving it closer to Atlanta?!

I don't see how that would help a station move into Atlanta, unless by moving the transmitter North they are then going to direct the signal strength away from Atlanta, but that doesn't sound like the case.

The only other way I could see it helping is if they are moving it closer to the center of Macon/Warner Robins and planning to downgrade the signal at some point.
 
This move might also be intended to increase penetration and reception in Houston County (Perry/Warner Robins), just south of Bibb County (Macon), while still covering Bibb County. Houston County is in a growth mode and is attracting folks wanting to move out of Bibb.
 
One other thing I see. If WNGC were to move to Chateau Elan, they would probably still be far enough out to not overlap with WALR--the thing that's holding up WSBB's move intown (which would overlap with WALR), due to Cox's ownership of the AJC--if they also downgraded.

Of course, if Cox gets their cross-ownership waiver re-upped then that is moot, and WSBB will be headed intown and who knows what Cox will do with WNGC and the empty space on the Chateau Elan tower.

Also, IIRC the city of license of WNGC changed from Toccoa to Arcade a few years back, without a facility change. A move to Chateau Elan would still easily city-grade Arcade, even with a downgrade, but no longer Toccoa.

Is this something that Cox has been planning for a while?
 
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