KFI's NEUTERED STICK

[sdwulfdawg]

Is there any movement on KFI's application to get itself unneutered? There seemed to be a flurry of news a couple of months ago and now everyting has gone quite again.

 

[calguy]

Is there any movement on KFI's application to get itself unneutered? There seemed to be a flurry of news a couple of months ago and now everyting has gone quite again.

Haven't heard a word. Said it before, they should've started re-building as soon as the NTSB wrapped up the on-site investigation, like within a week. By the time they were done, it would've been a mute point for anyone trying to stop them...

 

[davideduardo]

Is there any movement on KFI's application to get itself unneutered? There seemed to be a flurry of news a couple of months ago and now everyting has gone quite again.

Haven't heard a word. Said it before, they should've started re-building as soon as the NTSB wrapped up the on-site investigation, like within a week. By the time they were done, it would've been a mute point for anyone trying to stop them...

Moving shortly to Montecito on one of the old KRKD towers while new tower is erected at old site.

 

[chuckydoll]

KFI's temporary tower

Montecito is next to Santa Barbara, so KFI-640 would transmit from Montecito Heights.

As to why the big KFI tower has yet to rebuilt? Whoever owns the tower has to go before the Buena Park zoning board.

 

[davideduardo]

Re: KFI's temporary tower

Montecito is next to Santa Barbara, so KFI-640 would transmit from Montecito Heights.

The hilltop is commonly referred to as montecito, meaning "little mountain." Montecito Hts. is the community aaround it.

As to why the big KFI tower has yet to rebuilt? Whoever owns the tower has to go before the Buena Park zoning board.

AMs almost always own thier own towers. The issue has been aviation, permits and local zoning. They now have permits, and are temporarily going to be at the Montecito site while the new and shorter tower is being built.

 

[sdwulfdawg]

AMs almost always own thier own towers. The issue has been aviation, permits and local zoning. They now have permits, and are temporarily going to be at the Montecito site while the new and shorter tower is being built.

I guess it is not going to help their San Diego reception at all. Shame.

 

[davideduardo]

AMs almost always own thier own towers. The issue has been aviation, permits and local zoning. They now have permits, and are temporarily going to be at the Montecito site while the new and shorter tower is being built.

I guess it is not going to help their San Diego reception at all. Shame.

=Once the tower is rebuilt, the signal will be back to normal pre-airplane incident.

 

[cyberdad]

Perhaps they're moving their stick to Dermott, Arkansas....where Radio Locator shows a "KRKD", which is silent.
This would really play hell with their signal in San diego.   It would probably play hell with WGST, WCRV, and a few others as well!    ;D

 

[davideduardo]

Perhaps they're moving their stick to Dermott, Arkansas....where Radio Locator shows a "KRKD", which is silent.
This would really play hell with their signal in San diego. It would probably play hell with WGST, WCRV, and a few others as well! ;D

;D

That montecito site is rather famous, as it was the long-time site of KRKD and KFSG, the station of Amy Semple McPherson, the famous evangelist, operated in Los Angeles. She was granted that licence in the early 20's and is supposedly the first female licencee of a station in the US. Originally, the station was in Echo Park, at the church, but later moved with a single tower to Montecito which I believe it shared with KRKD... going to a 3 tower directional when 5 kw night power was granted.

 

[david]

Re: KFI's temporary tower

Montecito is next to Santa Barbara, so KFI-640 would transmit from Montecito Heights.

Actually, the Montecito in question here is Montecito Heights [ZIP code 90031], who's boundaries are roughly the Pasadena Freeway (CA-110) or the Arroyo Seco on the northwest, Pasadena Avenue on the west, Avenue 39 to the south, Huntington Drive to the southeast, and Monterey Road to the east. Neighboring districts include Monterey Hills on the northeast, El Sereno on the southeast, Lincoln Heights on the southwest, Mount Washington on the northwest, and Highland Park on the north.

So this will put a very good city grade signal into metro LA during the construction period in Buena Park.

 

[davideduardo]

Re: KFI's temporary tower

Actually, the Montecito in question here is Montecito Heights

Actually, we are referring to a landmark, the hill called Montecito, not the township around it. The old KIIS AM and KRKD site is on tip of the hill.

The site has mediocre ground ocnductivity, and the tower they will use is less than quarter wave so the signal will be less than what they are getting in Buena Park at reduced power, but it will cover most of the LA metro adequately for the short time it is to be used.

 

[Lopaka]

KOL in Seattle was licensed for a while to transmit from a ship, KFI might have considered that, or a move to Santa Catalina Island.

 

[sdwulfdawg]

AMs almost always own thier own towers. The issue has been aviation, permits and local zoning. They now have permits, and are temporarily going to be at the Montecito site while the new and shorter tower is being built.

I guess it is not going to help their San Diego reception at all. Shame.

=Once the tower is rebuilt, the signal will be back to normal pre-airplane incident.

Actually I was referring to a San Diego signal when they are on Montecito.

 

[davideduardo]

Actually I was referring to a San Diego signal when they are on Montecito.

SD should probably get far less signal from the Montecito site; the ground conductivity is much lower than Buena Park, the distance is greater and the thing is going to be on a hill... which, excpt for being on a mountain, is the worst place for an AM station.

 

[cyberdad]

All kidding, silliness, and technicalities aside, kudos to David for the info on KFSG....A now nearly-forgotten, but significant, (and legendary) chapter in the history of American broadcasting.

 

[Greg Strickland]

When I worked at SBS we called it Montecito Heights. I think KFI will do fine from that site temporarily. Really nice to see this historic site used for KFI.

The proposed replacement KFI tower is slightly shorter, but significantly top loaded. It is predicted to match the performance of the original tower. It may even be better, although this would be a very subtle thing in the area of ground wave and skywave cancellation, which is about 150 miles out at night. Note that distance is an approximation, I could calculate it precisely, but it's bedtime.

Any apparent delay in processing the KFI application should not be taken as a bad sign. FCC staff will do their own analysis of the data in the application.

This will likely require FCC engineers to go beyond the procedures used for routine applications, and the FCC OET may be asked to review the calculations. They also will determine if any precedents may be set by approving the application, and what may result from that.

No big problem, but the FCC will do their job and look at it carefully.

I would expect Clear Channel to push hard for their right to duplicate the licensed KFI signal with a slightly different tower configuration, and I support them 100 percent.

Clear Channel woud not have chosen to replace the tower with this configuration and destruction of the tower was an accident beyond Clear Channel's control. They are simply trying to duplicate the presently licensed signal of KFI.

 

[davideduardo]

The proposed replacement KFI tower is slightly shorter, but significantly top loaded. It is predicted to match the performance of the original tower. It may even be better, although this would be a very subtle thing in the area of ground wave and skywave cancellation, which is about 150 miles out at night. Note that distance is an approximation, I could calculate it precisely, but it's bedtime.

Right now, I get cancellation going East at about 75 miles from Buena Park, with the 1/8 wave temporary tower. On some nights, it is apparent around the 10 and the 215, and others not before Yucaipa or Calimesa. Its sad to hear a 1A clear decimated by a 5 kw station from southern Chihuahua state much of the time in that area.

This will likely require FCC engineers to go beyond the procedures used for routine applications, and the FCC OET may be asked to review the calculations. They also will determine if any precedents may be set by approving the application, and what may result from that.

Would not this be a precedent for the former 1-A stations insofar as antenna minimums is concerned? But they have allowed slight directionalizing of WLW and WBZ, so there is precedent in allowing slight modifications of 1A stations.

Clear Channel would not have chosen to replace the tower with this configuration and destruction of the tower was an accident beyond Clear Channel's control. They are simply trying to duplicate the presently licensed signal of KFI.

But we live in a litigious era, and every entity that has to approve wants its weight felt. They will probably have to build a park or a firehouse for Buena Park, too.

 

[Greg Strickland]

David,

My thoughts about a precedent may be incorrect. So I'll back away from that.

To clarify my previous post, I want to emphasize efficiency of the new antenna is predicted to be identical to the licensed antenna. Groundwave contours and skywave contours would be the same.

I think the new antenna will slightly reduce fading in the cancellation zone compared to the licensed antenna.

Greg

 

[DoctorWu]

If the "old KROQ-AM" xmtr site is the one I'm thinking of, wasn't it the one in the bunker at the end of the fire road back in the Verdugos? One of KROQ's biggest problems was that it could never realize decent city coverage from there. As KBLA, it nulled it its own parking lot

 

[in3media_be1]

Some of the posts from this thread have been moved to TAKE IT OUTSIDE


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