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FM Frequency of the Week - 88.7 MHz

What do you all get on 88.7 FM?

Here in Vermilion, OH it is usually CIMX/Windsor, ON '89X' with a rock alternative format. Occasionally WJCU/University Heights, OH can be heard fighting with 89X but 89X is usually the dominant signal. During unusual tropo openings to the south, I've heard WUFM/Columbus, OH
 
Nowadays, IBOC from WRUR-FM 88.5, 4300 feet away.

A few years ago, before WRUR had IBOC and back when it was using a different transmitter site in downtown Rochester, a few miles more distant, I could usually hear WBFO from Buffalo on 88.7. (And since WBFO has upgraded its own signal with a taller tower, I can get it even better now on the rare occasions when we take WRUR down for maintenance.)
 
From Coldwater, MI-

One of my best non-commercial frequencies.

In the car, I can get...
CIMX- Windsor, ON- Alternative- 89X
WSIS- Riverside, MI- Cont. Christian- Smile FM

On the home set-up, I can get CIMX and WSIS as well as.. (in order of most common to least)
WIAA- Interlochen, MI- Public Radio
WICR- Indianapolis, IN- Public Radio
WPCD- Champaign, IL- College (Parkland College)
WUFM- Columbus, OH- Christian CHR- Radio U
WHJM- Anna, OH- Religious/Catholic
 
KLVP, a K-Love translator. At the flat in Cascade Park, I'm still close enough to Sandy for this little translator to completely overpower everything else that might be trying to ping me on 88.7. Not sure of the site's specs, but they probably have some altitude to make up for the power, considering how close Sandy is to Mt. Hood.

But them, I'm just guessing about that.
 
Another blast back to yesteryear - great 88.7 catches from the past.

In the late 1980's, I lived in Jackson, Michigan. There was a Canadian station in Windsor on 88.7, I think it was the FM counterpart to CKLW. They played classic rock, and Canadian FM is equalized differently. For some reason, they sounded much better than American stations. They played classic rock, and at over 80 miles away, they were a bit of a DX challenge because I think they were on a low tower.

I moved to Florida, living in Daytona Beach. The big DX targets from Daytona Beach (at least for Christian music fans) were WCIE 91.1 in Lakeland and WAYF 88.7 from Ft. Meyers - the latter being a much bigger challenge. WAYF had the better format by far, but their tower had been damaged in hurrincane Andrew and never rebuilt to its former height. They attempted to help DX'ers in central Florida (primarily Tampa Bay) with a satellite station on 89.1 about 40 miles further north, but what really helped West coast listeners was when they put a powerful 88.1 in West Palm Beach, especially when I moved 80 miles South. It was almost receivable in a car at that point, but I had to move away before they went on a taller tower and more power. Sadly - the original WAY-FM on 88.7 is being sold. 88.7 is now being used in Orlando by WPOZ FM, so the days of central Florida WAY-FM DX are over. But WPOZ is doing a marvelous job of filling the gap WCIE and WAY-FM originally filled. They are currently top of the Orlando ratings. But Florida Christian radio owes a debt to the legacy of WAY-FM 88.7 and WCIE 91.1.
 
Good old CJOM. Would occasionally blast in from Windsor to West Central Ohio. The current incarnation(CIMX) occasionally makes it to the north suburbs of Dayton. Most often it's WUFM (which feeds a translator in Springfield), and WHJM, Anna. BTW, CJOM was not the sister of CKLW at the time; 93.9 was...most of the time as CKLW-FM in various incarnations. Present day CIDR and CIMX, as well as CKWW AM are now co-owned, however.

I've heard WAY-FM's from Florida but couldn't say now which ones.
 
borderblaster said:
Good old CJOM. Would occasionally blast in from Windsor to West Central Ohio. The current incarnation(CIMX) occasionally makes it to the north suburbs of Dayton. Most often it's WUFM (which feeds a translator in Springfield), and WHJM, Anna. BTW, CJOM was not the sister of CKLW at the time; 93.9 was...most of the time as CKLW-FM in various incarnations. Present day CIDR and CIMX, as well as CKWW AM are now co-owned, however.

I've heard WAY-FM's from Florida but couldn't say now which ones.

That's right - duh - I knew that. It was over 20 years ago, though. And 93.9 was jammed by a local 94.1 in Jackson. I didn't know the narrow ceramic filter trick. At home I could overcome the interference and get 93.9, but I couldn't in the car. The one time 94.1 was off the air, 93.9 was not as good around Jackson as I had hoped, but came in with only occasional dropouts.
 
88.7 CIMX (formerly CJOM) had lower wattage on a shorter tower back in the day. I don't remember when the current 100kw went into effect however.

CJOM was a pop/rock-ish station in the 80's and featured an Alternative music program on weekends. The program was so successful that it became the full-time format.
 
If CIMX is alternative and CIDR is alternative, what's the difference? (To show you how outdated radio-locator.com is for Canadian listings, CIDR is still listed as CKLW).
 
The call letters for foreign stations in the FCC database are not updated unless there is a conflict resulting in commission confusion, and calling them or emailing will not usually result in updates. R-L uses this database also.

CIMX began as CKWW-FM in 1968. It was 84 kW from 284 feet in my recollection. It broadcast from one of the CKWW 580 AM towers.

CKWW-FM and CJOM used to be regularly heard far and wide-hundreds of miles-before the noncommercial band became crowded. It would fade in and fade out quite regularly in Northwest Michigan before WIAA moved from 88.3 to 88.7.
 
SW Ohio

88.7 is listener supported WOBO, located in Batavia, an eastern suburb of Cincinnati.

Their signal is very weak on my (west) side of town. For those who don't know, Cincinnati is built on 7 hills, so fringe FM reception can be a hit and miss thing.
 
Icangelp said:
For those who don't know, Cincinnati is built on 7 hills

Like Rome? ???

Pittsburgh is built on more hills than I can count, and they are steeper than Cincy.
This also plays havoc with FM reception (though on a good day as I am topping out
on a hill, I can sometimes get CIMX out of Windsor. Pretty impressive!)
 
Here in Gaffney SC, on 88.7 I get WNCW out of Asheville, NC ok...
but sometimes I get interference with adjacent 88.9 WNSC in Rock Hill SC,
I'm about half way between those 2 stations.
 
In Durham, North Carolina, we actually have an 88.7, Duke University's student station WXDU, but its signal is somewhat disappointing in its own city of license (It's 2,100 watts and directional due to first-adjacent 88.9 in Raleigh, WSHA at Shaw University) with Pink Hill, NC's WAGO frequently interfering.
 
It depends on where I'm at as to what I get on 88.7. In northern Lake County Indiana, I get WGVE Gary, licensed to the Gary School Corporation, & has their studios & transmitter at the Gary Area Career Center. If I'm in Chicago, I get WXAV if I'm on the south side (if I don't get interference from WGVE), or WLUW if I'm on the far north side.
 
WREM Canton NY (NCPR's Public Radio Remix format) now occupies that frequency, though sometimes CKYM Napanee ON (myFM), still squeezes in. Before the frequency filled up, I used to catch Windsor's CIMX (89X) on a fairly regular basis...from over 700km away, outside of Brockville ON, when it was known as CJOM Om FM.

~BG
 
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