Howard Stern For Free in Atlanta... kind of

[RTibbs]

This morning while sitting in traffic and completely bored with my radio alternatives, I decided to seek out NPR or some other sort of non-commercial radio fare. I started with Album 88 then worked my way up the dial. At 89.1 I ran across the Howard Stern show. It swapped back and forth with a local FM. I couldn't catch the call letters but it seemed to be east Atlanta oriented. Gwinnett and Conyers mentions.

I assume what I was picking up on Howard was from the Sirius repeaters? This happened while driving down 575. IT was at it strongest at the 75 merge.

 

[CT Yankee]

This morning while sitting in traffic and completely bored with my radio alternatives, I decided to seek out NPR or some other sort of non-commercial radio fare. I started with Album 88 then worked my way up the dial. At 89.1 I ran across the Howard Stern show. It swapped back and forth with a local FM. I couldn't catch the call letters but it seemed to be east Atlanta oriented. Gwinnett and Conyers mentions.

I assume what I was picking up on Howard was from the Sirius repeaters? This happened while driving down 575. IT was at it strongest at the 75 merge.

You were almost certainly travelling near a car with Sirius transmitting from satellite to car radio on 89.1 under Part 15 standards. When the car got close enough, it captured your receiver. When it got too far away, the local station came in.

The local 89.1 signal you were hearing was likely WBCX at Gainesville's Brenau University.

 

[RTibbs]

Hes that must be it because from what I could hear it did sound like it was a university. I was wondering if I was picking it up off of another car.

 

[livingfruitvirus]

Yeah you were hearing an FM modulator from another car. When you said you were sitting in traffic that was a dead giveaway.

Here's a fun game to try sometime. If you're ever bored in heavy traffic, tune your radio to a vacant frequency like 88.3 or 88.7 and listen to other peoples' satellite radios and iPod FM modulators as they fight for the frequency.

 

[ercjncpr]

Unfortunately, this won't work with the latest models. The FCC came down hard last year on FM modulators and forced a recall and re manufacture of Sirius and XM radios with FM modulator capability.

 

[RTibbs]

Listening to Stern on and off for 10 - 15 minutes almost had me hooked on signing up. but I will wait until they settle their merger so I can get the best of both worlds.

 

[SalesWeasel]

Listening to Stern on and off for 10 - 15 minutes almost had me hooked on signing up. but I will wait until they settle their merger so I can get the best of both worlds.

Sure. You're just waiting for the new Project 96.1 morning show, the "18 Month Men."

 

[ajhenderson]

Listening to Stern on and off for 10 - 15 minutes almost had me hooked on signing up. but I will wait until they settle their merger so I can get the best of both worlds.

Well, you might as well sign up now, because for all channels, you'll pay the same, give a take a buck or two, for XMSirius and you would for XM and Sirius individually.

http://www.mediaweek.com/mw/news/tvstations/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003555839

 

[atlantainrearviewmirror]

morning radio in atlanta just pure in simple stinks real bad. one day soon people will have choices and satellite radio will rule - - a day late and a dollar short for regular radio and folks like clear channel in atlanta that think what they are doing today is compelling entertainment. listeners will get even for all this rotten programming and radio as we know it today will be much different and many of the leaders (GMs, GSMs and PDs today) will be on the outside looking in.

 

[rodneyho]

Thanks to the FCC, the updated FM modulators are now useless. I paid extra to have my Sirius connected directly into the AUX port of my car stereo.

 

[CT Yankee]

Listening to Stern on and off for 10 - 15 minutes almost had me hooked on signing up. but I will wait until they settle their merger so I can get the best of both worlds.

You might consider pulling the trigger now. All kinds of antitrust and regulatory issues with this deal, so much so that it's going to make AT&T/BellSouth look like a quickly executed walk in the park.

 

[RTibbs]

Problem is they both have elements I want from the sports programing to the personality programming. That's my big issue.

 

[livingfruitvirus]

Thanks to the FCC, the updated FM modulators are now useless. I paid extra to have my Sirius connected directly into the AUX port of my car stereo.

Even when the FM modulators were good, I still had it AUX adapted in because I was always getting interference from one thing or another. At least with the direct line-in, there's no interference from other FM signals.

 

[4dude]

You could always open your unit and beef the wattage back up ;D