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KUHA: Still in limbo

If so, I'll rush out and pick up a Powerball ticket the same day, lol.

I don't foresee a K*BJ call associated with 91-7, because that signal will have never been associated with the primary format. Lake Jackson and Bay City's signals were originally a part of the main CCM format and never changed when both moved to N-GEN. KWUP remains on 92-5 in Navasota to this day, and the only reason 96-9 was changed to KSBJ was because of the similar sound of the call to the original, seeing as how the ministry originally dropped the frequency mention after the El Campo signal was purchased. That's crept back in over the last year or better, so you hear "89-3 KSBJ" on both signals now, even though the billboards out west indicate the imaging of "96-9 KSBJ" for the former KNTE, nee KIOX-FM.

I would imagine University of Houston has it stipulated in the contract that 91-7 must forego the KUHA call, otherwise, the call might have simply stayed in place, as is. No one except us pays attention to them these days, anyway. Look at just how many are still left on some stations from old formats long deceased. KTJM, KJOJ-FM, KTHT, KFNC, KAMA-FM, KOVE-FM, KHPT, and KHJK, just to name a few. Oh yeah, and the granddaddy of 'em all, KEYH, who's "key" has been lost since 1979!
 
Appears that KUHA is now running prerecorded hours of Classical 24, instead of the live satellite feed. I had noticed that the programming was frequently "off the clock' by 15 to 30 seconds, which wouldn't be the case if it was being run live. Also the music played is completely different than what is being run on the direct Classical 24 livestream (www.yourclassical.org.) Also this past week Performance Today has been getting a second two hour run at 10pm.

HPM may have already taken down or is repurposing the satellite receiver used for Classical 24 and is using downloaded versions of the programming, perhaps files meant for emergency backup.

Virtually every local announcement on KUHA is plugging the "switch to an all-digital format" in June, so the Classical programming will be around at least for another ten days.

As mentioned a while back, I'm curious to see what KSBJ does with the 89.3 HD-2 once NGEN launches on 91.7.
 
Unless 91-7 is fitted with HD, and that's certainly possible of course, I would expect KSBJ-HD2 to remain N-GEN, Frog. Why would the ministry drop the digital platform for N-GEN and go analog only? Why spend the extra money fitting 91-7 with HD, when KSBJ HD2 works pretty well in and of itself. Given, 89-3 HD2 is not capable of covering the entire market with a digital signal, but neither would 91-7. I wouldn't even look for the 99-5 translator to suddenly be attached to 91-7, either. Doesn't make much sense to go through the expense of shuffling all these facilities and translators around. 99-5 and KYBJ's combo fill in KUHA's shortcomings to the south quite nicely. About the only change that's for certain is the addition of KNGN-FM* to the N-GEN hourly ID.

You know what still stinks about this? KROY, combined with KUHA, would have been a truly spectacular duo for the N-GEN ministry. Too bad that fell apart. Heck, maybe Ben Amato will make a play for it since the KSBJ deal is now off the table and he's in the process of moving KVST farther north to Huntsville. He already has a CP in place for a new 99-7 up near Crockett, so why not go all in and form a 99-7 trio of K-Stars?

Yeah...a pipe dream, I know.
 
Purple, you are probably right about the 89.3 HD-2 staying the same in order to provide a digital signal for NGEN. I doubt they will add HD to 91.7.

Also in the mix is K217GB, the 91.3 translator in the Medical Center. Very definitely NOT running at the authorized 99 watts, as evidenced by its very poor signal, even close to the transmitter. Will be interesting to see what KSBJ does with it. Properly engineered (and moved to a different location) it could do much better.
 
You are sure right. I always forget that K217GB is down there and a part of this acquisition. I have no doubts the KSBJ engineering team will have it pumping out its authorized 99 watts in short time, once they are legally able to get their hands on it.

Question: is K217GB going to be required to move again, with the change in license holder? With so little being paid attention to the poor little translator, I don't think it's even been discussed. Could it even BE moved again, without encroachment of another facility on the co-channel?
 
purpledevil said:
Unless 91-7 is fitted with HD, and that's certainly possible of course, I would expect KSBJ-HD2 to remain N-GEN, Frog. Why would the ministry drop the digital platform for N-GEN and go analog only? Why spend the extra money fitting 91-7 with HD, when KSBJ HD2 works pretty well in and of itself. Given, 89-3 HD2 is not capable of covering the entire market with a digital signal, but neither would 91-7. I wouldn't even look for the 99-5 translator to suddenly be attached to 91-7, either.
Click to expand...

I would think the HD-2 is a perfect way to feed KUHA. I wonder how KSBJ will do the call letters - keep the BJ suffix, or try to work in the NGEN somehow?
 
Very odd discovery regarding KUHA this evening.

I had mentioned in an earlier post that KUHA appeared to be running prerecorded hours of Classical 24, as the programming was running "off the clock." While in Midtown early this evening I was checking K217GB (the 91.3 translator) and discovered it was running completely different Classical music than 91.7, although still from Classical 24. Later in the evening I was able to check KUHF 88.7 HD-2 (the KUHA simulcast) and also discovered that it, too, was running different music than 91.7. During the 10pm hour 88.7 HD-2 was running the live Classical 24 feed, while 91.7 was airing Performance Today.

So it seems that 91.3 is rebroadcasting the 88.7 HD-2, as it has probably done for several years.

But why would 91.7 now be different with the varied schedule and all the prerecorded Classical 24 material instead of a simulcast with 88.7 HD-2 and 91.3?

I have a suspicion that the 91.7 feed is already coming from the KSBJ studios, and they have been given a batch of Classical audio files to run until the sale actually closes, and the switch to NGEN can quickly happen. From a legal standpoint I guess it would be considered outsourcing of program origination, which would be legal as long as HPM still actually controls the transmitter and license.

Or the 91.7 programmiing is now coming from a computer at the transmitter site while the STL is reconfigured.

Still, very odd.
 
Mediafrog+ said:
Very odd discovery regarding KUHA this evening.

Or the 91.7 programmiing is now coming from a computer at the transmitter site while the STL is reconfigured.
Click to expand...

Or they could still be originating from the Melcher Center with a different feed going to 91.7. When I set up the audio router there a few years back I purposefully created a crosspoint where 91.7 could break away from 88.7 HD2 if the programming ever needed to split. All they have to do is make a mouse click to send something different to 91.7 without interrupting the other services.

Perhaps their plan is to increase the frequency of "switch now" announcements on 91.7 without bothering those who have already made the switch to HD, streaming, or the TV subchannel. Which would be smart.
 
johndavis said:
Or they could still be originating from the Melcher Center with a different feed going to 91.7. When I set up the audio router there a few years back I purposefully created a crosspoint where 91.7 could break away from 88.7 HD2 if the programming ever needed to split. All they have to do is make a mouse click to send something different to 91.7 without interrupting the other services.

Perhaps their plan is to increase the frequency of "switch now" announcements on 91.7 without bothering those who have already made the switch to HD, streaming, or the TV subchannel. Which would be smart.
Click to expand...

This would be my assumption as well. I have not heard the announcements as frequently on KUHF-HD2 as they are on KUHA, however, Frog stated that the Med Center translator's programming seems to be corresponding with the HD2 feed. Why would that remain, given that the translator is part of the sale to KSBJ? Seems that U of H would have it rebroadcasting the KUHA feed since it, too, will flip to N-GEN once the sale is completed. I have no way of checking the translator personally, as KPVU covers it up here on the Northside.
 
purpledevil said:
Frog stated that the Med Center translator's programming seems to be corresponding with the HD2 feed. Why would that remain, given that the translator is part of the sale to KSBJ?
Click to expand...

Because of one of two things:

1. It's being fed off air from 88.7 HD-2 because that's easier to catch reliably.
2. If it's getting an alternate feed, it's wired into one of the outputs that feed HD2 and TV8.

Would you put a lot of effort into changing the feed to a translator that they never have acknowledged as a way to listen to HPM Classical in its final days? Especially considering it's a translator that looks better on paper than it sounds on air because of all the multipath from the adjacent hospitals?

In the meantime, the sale hasn't closed and it remains under HPM's control. So it keeps on keeping on.
 
johndavis said:
Perhaps their plan is to increase the frequency of "switch now" announcements on 91.7 without bothering those who have already made the switch to HD, streaming, or the TV subchannel. Which would be smart.
Click to expand...

Good point. I guess their current automation/playout system does not allow for "dual streaming" different local announcements to separate destinations while keeping the basic programming identical.
 
Mediafrog+ said:
Good point. I guess their current automation/playout system does not allow for "dual streaming" different local announcements to separate destinations while keeping the basic programming identical.
Click to expand...

As with any automation system, what you hear all depends upon what playlist you load. :)

I think what's confusing too is there's a fair amount of delay from when audio enters into the chain and comes out the radio on HD2. It can be close to a minute, whereas the delay going out to 91.7 is under a second. The delay going to the translator is about 30 seconds based on what I heard this morning. Put all of that together, and you could put the same audio in and it would sound like 3 different stations once you started punching around in the car.
 
It's now June 1 and still nothing on either the KSBJ or NGEN websites about the impending launch on 91.7. The NGEN site still has the same announcement that was made in February.

Got a chuckle out of KUHA's prerecorded Classical 24 hours on Memorial Day. The program host was welcoming listeners to the Through The Night program. However, it was during the noon hour. 91.7 is still separate programming from 88.7 HD-2 and the 91.3 translator.
 
We're now at June 11 and still nothing about a launch date for NGEN 91.7 on either the KSBJ or NGEN websites. KSBJ has its "Share-A-Thon" coming up later in the month, so may the flip will happen during that. KUHA continues to run saturation announcements about "moving to an all digital format this month."

Has the transfer of the station hit some sort of roadblock? It's not as if NGEN is having to launch a new format or studio facility from scratch.
 
JoeFM said:
Just got an email from the FCC. They are not going to approve the transfer until I file a sworn statement saying I received no money or other benefit for dismissing my opposition....
Click to expand...

Would non-enforcement of a pirate radio station fall within the definition of "other benefit?"
 
At a 7pm check Sunday evening, KUHA is off the air. I assume there is a power outage at the transmitter site due to the storms earlier today. Nothing on the KSBJ or NGEN websites about an impending launch.
 
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