KOY - The New Coyote

[landtuna]

The only AM radio I still have is in the car so just for fun I tuned into 1230 tonight to see what KYOT's "replacement" sounds like. Unfortunately, I had parked right in front of a small strip mall where there is plenty of neon interference. In between the hash the music sounded pretty good but nothing like 95.5. AM might be able to do Smooth Jazz respectable without all the noise but there's no way to tell.

What did surprise me was KOY's bumper using the term "Coyote".

I guess K-O-Y-ote could work. Yeah!

 

[DrAkbar]

I guess K-O-Y-ote could work. Yeah!

you bet, if you follow CC's new math: 50~Five Phoenix + 95~Five = 12~Thirty Kay Oh Why

 

[justthenumbers]

Kind of ironic...the Coyote replaced KOY-FM almost two decades ago, and now it's (partially) replaced the programming on KOY-AM.

 

[justthenumbers]

Although of course, the original Coyote was nothing like the Smooth Jazz version.

 

[landtuna]

Forgot to mention.....everyone in the studio must have gone home when the music changed from Oldies to SJ (about 6:10 PM give or take). No announcement, nothing. Oldies ended and Dave Koz music magically appeared. Seems like it should have been more professional.

 

[DrAkbar]

Although of course, the original Coyote was nothing like the Smooth Jazz version.

True...the music the first Coyote played had more in common with the bumps you hear at sporting events than sleepy smooooooth jazz. It was neat for about the first hour, or second day...whichever came first.

 

[johndavis]

Although of course, the original Coyote was nothing like the Smooth Jazz version.

True...the music the first Coyote played had more in common with the bumps you hear at sporting events than sleepy smooooooth jazz. It was neat for about the first hour, or second day...whichever came first.

We signed on with the song scheduled to play at midnight the next day instead of the song scheduled to play first. That station was doomed from the beginning!

 

[Nick Gerard]

From the "you've GOT to be kidding department...."

....as a former part-time host on DG's Adult Standards (then Westwood One) and a former part-time host on a reasonably prominent smooth jazz station (KTWV), I can tell you that these 2 genres have NOTHING in common.  The programming giant who came up with this cocktail hasn't a clue.

It's an echo of 60's block programming...when some lumbering Ancient Modulation station (tip o' the fez to Akbar) would have country in the morning, MOR all day, and rock n roll evenings....with Arthur Godfrey Time tossed in there somewhere.

It's as whacked-out a formatting combo as KAZG running AZ Gold together with that Bollywood radio.

Smooth jazz cracklin' through at night on an AM graveyarder?  If Dave Koz or Marc Antoine get wind of this they'll be waking up in a cold sweat.

Instead of smooth jazz at night, I suggest KOY follow the lead of the venerable Lumberyard 1440 and shut 'er down at sunset.  At least Phoenix area DX'ers will have a shot at hearing what some out-of-market programming giant will have cooked up for his 1230 flamethrower.

Nick Summers

 

[XMportable]

Smooth Jazz must be heard on the FM dial. It's a crappy format to have on AM, because it is mostly instrumental. It is painful to listen at 1230 AM; tried and couldn't do it.

 

[DrAkbar]

Re: From the "you've GOT to be kidding department...."

Instead of smooth jazz at night, I suggest KOY follow the lead of the venerable Lumberyard 1440 and shut 'er down at sunset. At least Phoenix area DX'ers will have a shot at hearing what some out-of-market programming giant will have cooked up for his 1230 flamethrower.

The Nurse and I thought KayOhWhy was an out-of-market giant we picked up on the nighttime skywave! That would explain all the background noise and interference heard on 12~Thirty...but wait, that could also include such Arizona flame throwers as KAAA in Kingman, KATO in Safford and KINO in Winslow. Plus an additional 159 stations on the same frequency in Los Estados Unidos. YIKES!

We agree, Smooth Jazz is not meant for Ancient Modulation. But Clear Channel needs the dough, so they'll daypart the station to sell inventory. Who knows...if KNIX is blown up, we may be listening to country musicwith "Ranch Hand" Danny Davis in the morning and Smooth Jazz at night.

 

[johndavis]

Re: From the "you've GOT to be kidding department...."

Instead of smooth jazz at night, I suggest KOY follow the lead of the venerable Lumberyard 1440 and shut 'er down at sunset. At least Phoenix area DX'ers will have a shot at hearing what some out-of-market programming giant will have cooked up for his 1230 flamethrower.

Having killed the carrier once or twice on that 1230 transmitter myself, I can say with certainty that the only thing you'd hear on 1230 if it were to go off at dusk is the unintelligible sounds of at least 2 or 3 stations stepping on each other.

It's any wonder that you can get KOY after dark at all amid all of that mess, although having a 5/8th wave tower probably is a big help.

At one point in the 90's, Jorgy studied selling off the Buckeye property and diplexing 1230 off the 550 stick, but moving to 48th & Southern would have made the night signal so bad that it wouldn't cover enough of Phoenix to keep the city of license. It would have covered enough of Tempe to qualify changing the COL to that city, but ultimately it was decided it wasn't worth the effort. Ultimately, we gave the Phoenix Police keys to the building so beat cops could use the bathroom and write reports in the old KRIZ office.

 

[asugeorge1]

Having killed the carrier once or twice on that 1230 transmitter myself, I can say with certainty that the only thing you'd hear on 1230 if it were to go off at dusk is the unintelligible sounds of at least 2 or 3 stations stepping on each other.

One of those stations being KXO out of El Centro, CA. KXO is a nice little station with an oldies format focused on the 60's. What I like the most about KXO, it has local programming with live DJ's spinning those golden oldies all day long. Wish we had something like that around here. If you ever drive between Phoenix and San Diego and are a fan of our beloved Lumberyard, give KXO a listen to. It's a pretty good station!

I'm actually surprised KXO didn't get more frequency protection on the 1230 frequency back in the day. The station's been around since 1927, but there are so many stations now operating in the region on 1230 AM that they all interfere with each other at night making each individual station extremely difficult to listen to within their respective listening area. The FCC must have had plans to garner the 1230 frequency a total graveyard because AM 1230 KPHO signed on way back when in 1941. So i guess this 1230 graveyard problem isn't anything new!

 

[DrAkbar]

Re: From the "you've GOT to be kidding department...."

At one point in the 90's, Jorgy studied selling off the Buckeye property and diplexing 1230 off the 550 stick

The cost to move it probably would have been in excess of fair market value for that crack-hole on Buckeye (not to be confused with the crackpots' Media Hut in Buckeye)! And to think at one time KRIZ was Numero Uno in Phoenix with not 1kw at night, but 250 watts! If CC didn't need the dough, the best thing to do is donate the 12~Thirty frequency to some non-profit and be done with it.

 

[KeithE4]

The FCC must have had plans to garner the 1230 frequency a total graveyard because AM 1230 KPHO signed on way back when in 1941. So i guess this 1230 graveyard problem isn't anything new!

Actually, KPHO signed on in 1940 on 1200, before the NARBA shifts.

 

[landtuna]

Re: From the "you've GOT to be kidding department...."

And to think at one time KRIZ was Numero Uno in Phoenix with not 1kw at night, but 250 watts!

But....but.....but.....Phoenix was a LOT smaller then. And listeners were in their cars cruising Central and not hovering over their static-producing computers.

 

[KeithE4]

Re: From the "you've GOT to be kidding department...."

And to think at one time KRIZ was Numero Uno in Phoenix with not 1kw at night, but 250 watts!

But....but.....but.....Phoenix was a LOT smaller then. And listeners were in their cars cruising Central and not hovering over their static-producing computers.

You could listen on the iHeartRadio app while cruising Central on the Light Rail and hovering over your iPad. ;D

 

[DrAkbar]

Re: From the "you've GOT to be kidding department...."

You could listen on the iHeartRadio app while cruising Central on the Light Rail and hovering over your iPad. ;D

True...plus with IHeartRadio you can listen to 128 Clear Channel oldies station that all sound the same! Wonder if the CC suits will strike a deal with Gumpdusky so we can hear Lumberyard 14~Forty world-wide?

 

[DJ_Perry]

Re: From the "you've GOT to be kidding department...."

F iHeartRadio. All the good stations are on TuneIn

 

[Judy G.]

TuneIn beats iHeart. Much more variety.

BTW, SJ does work on AM. We have it over in Reno on 1400. Depends on how much interference there is.

 

[Bill Drake]

What was the advantage when all the graveyard (old class IV) stations got to "pump up" the nighttime power to 1KW? It would seem the resulting increased interference would garner them a net gain of 0 in added coverage.

That being said, 1230 has one of the best coverage areas of any station in its class. I can hear it all the way to Anthem at night which isn't too shabby for 1kw.....

Back East, (Syracuse and Buffalo) I recall Class IVs making a whopping 7-8 miles at night. My "Mr. Microphone"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CYEXBTlWf_4

can beat that.