Drivability of stations

[ThePowerCow]

Headed south, it was good all the way to Greenville, Alabama (~120 miles) thanks to favorable terrain, along I-65. The west and north were the less impressive directions; I never remember hearing it much past the AL/TN line on I-65 or west of Tupelo (95 miles) in Mississippi. It was practically a local in Meridian, though. This would have been ~1994 or thereabouts.

Not too long afterwards Clear Channel flipped the station to a country music format, then moved it into Birmingham-proper, with much lower power and HAAT. The era of it being a big signal was over. An honorable mention big FM signal would go to WZZK in Birmingham. It seemed to be the best-performing FM signal actually in the market, with a lot of resistance to multipath that plagues some of the other signals.


About that area south of Greenville on I-65. You start to lose the Montgomery stations, then the big Birmingham stations (by then about 150 miles north) start booming in loud and clear.

 

[Ai4i]

Hard as I tried, I could not receive any American FM signals on the hills out side of Mo-bay on Jamaica's North coast with my SupeRadio. I received a bunch along Cuba's North coast and they sounded local in my eigth floor hotel room. Lots of US FM stations were listenable in Bimini and Freeport and some might still be. In the 1960's, many private homes in suburban Nassau sported deep fringe TV antennæ on tall masts aimed at Miami and the Palm Beaches, but Nassau is now flooded with stations, many co-channel to or first adjacent channel to the South Florida stations.

 

[gar hi]

I forgot to mention KFI.

Back in the summer of 1977 when my brother took me to visit southern California, the deserts and LA, I was surprised to find they had a listenable signal on interstate 5 in the central valley starting around where it meets 152 which is about as far north as Santa Cruz over on the coast.

It was a not long after 12 noon and I was surprised because I could never hear it in the daytime in Fairfield where I was staying at the time.

 

[charlestondxman]

Hard as I tried, I could not receive any American FM signals on the hills out side of Mo-bay on Jamaica's North coast with my SupeRadio. I received a bunch along Cuba's North coast and they sounded local in my eigth floor hotel room. Lots of US FM stations were listenable in Bimini and Freeport and some might still be. In the 1960's, many private homes in suburban Nassau sported deep fringe TV antennæ on tall masts aimed at Miami and the Palm Beaches, but Nassau is now flooded with stations, many co-channel to or first adjacent channel to the South Florida stations.

When I went to Nassau in 2011, you could still get Miami AM radio all over the place. I also remember walking around Freeport and the West End and getting most of the South Florida FMs. On AM in Freeport, you can get WOKV there with a decent signal daytime, along with Savannah on 630 and 1290, and Charleston on 730 and 1250, at least, along with most of the S. Fla AMs.

 

[Ai4i]

The new R-L maps tell us that over salt water, power is much more important than AM dial position.
In fact, a 1KW. Station on 1600 does about as well as a 500 watt station on 540.
So, a fifty kilowatter anywhere on the dial will do very well.
Case in point, WQAM at night is similar to WMBM, but WINZ in the day wipes the others out.

 

[davideduardo]

The new R-L maps tell us that over salt water, power is much more important than AM dial position.
In fact, a 1KW. Station on 1600 does about as well as a 500 watt station on 540.

But only on the part of the path that is over salt water. The minute the signal hits land, it is attenuated in strict relationship to the frequency.

I once owned a station that had its transmitter in a salt marsh right off the ocean. There were many other local stations in the same marshlands, ranging from my 10 kw on 660 down to a 1 kw on 1300. About 100 miles north on the shore, they were all listenable at the beach. By the time you got a few hundred meters inland on the sandy land, you could tell who had higher power ... the higher end of the dial stations were totally gone.

So, a fifty kilowatter anywhere on the dial will do very well.

But once it hits land, the difference is noticeable even half a kilometer inland.

 

[Ai4i]

I wonder what happens to WOKV as one drives inland from the Charleston beach.

 

[davideduardo]

I wonder what happens to WOKV as one drives inland from the Charleston beach.

It was WAPE when I last listened in SC, and it pretty much was gone 10 miles or so inland going towards Columbia.

 

[Ai4i]

The minute the signal hits land, it is attenuated in strict relationship to the frequency.
But once it hits land, the difference is noticeable even half a kilometer inland.

Yes, look at how the Hawaiian stations go very far but as soon as they hit a rock in any direction, it is like a lead shield.
Also, the stations in the apple going towards Long Island vs the direction towards Bermuda.
On the other hand, the fresh water of Lake Michigan does nothing to enhance the Chi-town stations.
I have trouble hearing Nassau's fifty kilowatt ZNS-1 from Miami Beach.
I know not from where they transmit, but I suspect it is beyond a lot of dry real estate.

 

[rbrucecarter5]

What station are you referring to on 96.9? That's not a Mobile allocation.

I forgot about WWL. I think if you stick to the coast it's a pretty big signal from at least Lake Charles to Panama City.

WWL is my test station for radios in Houston. If a radio can get it in the daytime, it is a good radio. If it doesn't get WWL, then I don't buy it.

 

[charlestondxman]

It was WAPE when I last listened in SC, and it pretty much was gone 10 miles or so inland going towards Columbia.

Yep. WOKV goes to maybe Summerville (25 miles out from the beach) on a average radio, then it fades. A good radio can get it to I-95. Drive 17 though and it stays in all the way through.

 

[cyberdad]

But only on the part of the path that is over salt water. The minute the signal hits land, it is attenuated in strict relationship to the frequency.

I learned this back in the '70s when we first began vacationing on the beaches in the Pensacola area. Ground conductivity there is about as bad as you'll find anywhere. At that time, my "go to" for music was New Orleans' 690, WTIX (10kw). It had a good signal on Pensacola Beach. You could go east 50 miles along the beach all the way to Destin and there'd be little noticeable difference in the WTIX signal. But you could drive north to the north side of the city....maybe about 5-6 miles....and there 'TIX would be pretty much unlistenable.

 

[tomservo]

I wonder if 690 ever showed up in the ratings in any of the coastal cities? I could swear that WWL used to occasionally show up in the Mobile ratings. I don't think it was ever more than a 1 share, but it was there.

As far as I know, the most distant salt water signal to guy the beach in Pensacola or Gulf Shores is WINK 1200. Or whatever it is now.

 

[austingrace]

Hey guys. Some more questions have come to mind. BTW this is still very FL bassed so here we go and bare with me. LOL So this first one is Orlando bassed. I have noticed that 92.7 WRXW- LP is OK in Altamonte but gone by Sanford.... I heard them say something about Winter Springs but did not think that channel would make it up over there. Second on the WFLF topic that station is still very drivable even in Tampa. A lot more than what people think. This is from personal experience. Third this is for the St Augustine direction. How are signals like 101.9 and 105.9 from Orlando up there? also how drivable is 93.3, 101.5 and 100.7 from jax? I used to go to the Florida school for the deaf and blind so I know the St aug and Jax radio somewhat..... Forth question. Would WDBO 580 be easier to catch in the Tampa area or the St aug direction?

 

[schmave]

I learned this back in the '70s when we first began vacationing on the beaches in the Pensacola area. Ground conductivity there is about as bad as you'll find anywhere. At that time, my "go to" for music was New Orleans' 690, WTIX (10kw). It had a good signal on Pensacola Beach. You could go east 50 miles along the beach all the way to Destin and there'd be little noticeable difference in the WTIX signal. But you could drive north to the north side of the city....maybe about 5-6 miles....and there 'TIX would be pretty much unlistenable.

I first learned abut the conductivity of salt water down that way, in 2000 when I was vacationing at Panama City Beach. WWL was (and, I'm sure, is) a monster signal along the Gulf down there. Had no idea why it was coming in so well from 200-plus miles away until I learned what ground conductivity did to AM signals. I do remember being able to hear it inland, but a few miles from the beach it sounded how you'd expect a 50K signal from 200-plus miles away to sound.
One time when I DXd on the beach at Galveston, KVNS (1700) from Brownsville sounded like a local. Maybe five miles inland, it was gone. Skywave came booming back at night however.

 

[austingrace]

Hello everyone. I forgot about this topic. I never did figure out the questions from my last post. i'll add a few more. I have always wondered how well the signal of WOKV AM carries to an area like further south on the east coast of FL like cocoa beach and places like that. WFLF's signal is quite drivable over there. I really wished I had my own car at times. I wonder how the signals of 93.3 WJBT and WSOL 101.5 carry in St Augustine? 101.5 always seemed a bit hard to hear very clear. If I understand this correctly 101.5 transmits in Georgia? Same with WMUV 100.7? Also how far towards the Tampa direction has someone been able to carry WYGM 740 AM and 580 WDBO AM?