Next move for W292DV, 106.3 Translator

[ansky212]

according to Radio Locator the transmiter is broadcasting on 106.3 from Manhattan at 99 watts at 889 ft.

That sounds like the translator that was forced to shut down last year. I thought LIC was the new location. Maybe they are broadcasting from the old Manhattan location but at much less power?

 

[reelyreal]

according to Radio Locator the transmiter is broadcasting on 106.3 from Manhattan at 99 watts at 889 ft.

That sounds like the translator that was forced to shut down last year. I thought LIC was the new location. Maybe they are broadcasting from the old Manhattan location but at much less power?

You're correct, that's the old site. The new site, the only site they can operate from according to their CP (and license application) is from the building on 40th and Skillman in Long Island City, Queens. They're allowed 25 watts at about 130 feet above ground level.

 

[Jeffrey]

according to Radio Locator the transmiter is broadcasting on 106.3 from Manhattan at 99 watts at 889 ft.

That sounds like the translator that was forced to shut down last year. I thought LIC was the new location. Maybe they are broadcasting from the old Manhattan location but at much less power?

You're correct, that's the old site. The new site, the only site they can operate from according to their CP (and license application) is from the building on 40th and Skillman in Long Island City, Queens. They're allowed 25 watts at about 130 feet above ground level.

it's odd there was no signal in LIC today and yet it could be heard in midtown. I'd also understood that that the translator from Manhattan was shut down last year and no longer allowed but it's showing again on Radio-Locator...or perhaps it's just showing that it was moved...
Not sure I'm reading it correctly.
http://radio-locator.com/cgi-bin/pat?call=W292DV&service=FX&status=C&hours=U

 

[ebownedcc]

That is odd...I wonder if it will be on today

Who ever is in listening range keep us posted

 

[nd2023]

106.3 last year lasted maybe a week or two before being forced off the air. I remember it had a new format every day.

The 104.7 in Detroit was shut down because of only 13 complaints of interference. The owners of the translator tried to appease the complainants by offering them free smartphones so that they could listen to WIOT. The FCC didn't like that solution because the web stream wasn't guaranteed to reproduce the over the air signal 100%, in particular the EAS broadcasts, and also who would be responsible for paying for the data plans.

 

[badjef]

according to Radio Locator the transmiter is broadcasting on 106.3 from Manhattan at 99 watts at 889 ft.

That sounds like the translator that was forced to shut down last year. I thought LIC was the new location. Maybe they are broadcasting from the old Manhattan location but at much less power?

You're correct, that's the old site. The new site, the only site they can operate from according to their CP (and license application) is from the building on 40th and Skillman in Long Island City, Queens. They're allowed 25 watts at about 130 feet above ground level.

it's odd there was no signal in LIC today and yet it could be heard in midtown. I'd also understood that that the translator from Manhattan was shut down last year and no longer allowed but it's showing again on Radio-Locator...or perhaps it's just showing that it was moved...
Not sure I'm reading it correctly.
http://radio-locator.com/cgi-bin/pat?call=W292DV&service=FX&status=C&hours=U

Radio-Locator, while a cool site with a lot of colors and pictures, is a private site, and NOT an official FCC site. If there is a difference in the R-L site, it is the site problem, if there is a difference with the FCC site, it is the station's problem.

Jeff in Sa-ra-so-ta!

 

[Barry]

If the W292DV translator has been making broadcasts from its original site in Midtown Manhattan, they may be to protect its license.
Last May 2011, the owners had filed with F.C.C. for permission to keep it silent pending resolution of the interference complaints. They received the permit, and then one extension. That extension stipulates the translator must be broadcasting again by this May (or the license could be lost). As they do not have a License to Cover yet for the new site in Long Island City, apparently the condition can only be met by (at least occasionally) making broadcasts from the Manhattan location. They may be using very low power to avoid interference hassles, and yet meet the obligation to have it on the air.

Filing From Owners of W292DV to FCC stating it has resumed broadcasting (note it says city of license New York, not Long Island City): https://licensing.fcc.gov/cgi-bin/w...t=25&appn=101495274&formid=910&fac_num=155888

 

[BruceS8852]

I live in Queens near the Whitestone Bridge. Last night I was able to pick up WDVY from Mt. Kisco very weakly on 106.3 FM. This morning I couldn't pick up anything.

Bruce

 

[disney fanatic]

When I was visiting my sister's house this past Saturday, I checked 106.3 that there is a pirate station on there which clashes WKMK's "Thunder Country", it plays just reggae and Caribbean music, and it sounds horrible. There is also another one at 107.9 in Brooklyn where they played Caribbean music on another pirate station. I guess this needs to stop. Brooklyn has dozens of pirate stations in the area.

 

[ansky212]

Brooklyn has dozens of pirate stations in the area.

The same can be said for the Newark area. There is a pirate on almost every open frequency. Some of them, like the one on 103.9, get out very far. I've heard the 103.9 pirate as far as 8 miles west of Newark which is even on the other side of the mountain.

 

[Barry]

The home page of the Thunder Country website has a new notice, which reads in part: "With your tremendous support and willingness to get involved, we were successful last night with the FCC in having the offending NYC radio station [W292DV] reduce its’ power...we suspect these kinds of issues may arise from time to time as the fight for radio spectrum space continues..."
As the translator was only supposed to be running 25 watts, I wonder what power level its operators agreed to. A post from Thunder on Facebook seems to hint they believed the translator was running above its legal power limit. But this apparently indicates the translator will at least be allowed to remain on the air. I believe this is the first one within New York City.
During my several recent trips to the Bronx, I found it interfered there with WDVY, Kicks Country in points south of the Cross Bronx Expressway. WDVY has also had more background noise even in southern Westchester County since the translator went on the air this month. But unlike Thunder, the station did not mention the translator on its website or on the air. Perhaps Cumulus left it to Thunder's owners Press Communications to deal with the interference on 106.3.

Thunder Rolls: http://thunder106.com/thunder-106-interference

 

[WNTIRadio]

I wish they would spend as much time on pirate stations as they do legally licensed translators in an area (Astoria) where nobody is listening to them. The pirates are doing way more damage than a translator at 25 watts at 150 feet.

 

[ebownedcc]

Yeah. It seems they complained about Hip hop type music which is not on the translator...I think they are getting inference from pirates

 

[ansky212]

As much as people say Thunder is not a NYC station, I just heard an advertisement for a car dealership on Staten Island. So they are likely getting a lot of listeners in that area.

 

[badjef]

As much as people say Thunder is not a NYC station, I just heard an advertisement for a car dealership on Staten Island. So they are likely getting a lot of listeners in that area.

They always had a lot of potential and active listeners on Staten Island. I think it was about one third of the DJ's at WHTG lived on Staten Island.

I used to consider the FM just as much a New Yorker as a result of the signal in Richmond County.

And that was before they moved the antenna.

Jeff in Sa-ra-so-ta!

 

[Jeffrey]

the translator is still broadcasting on 106.3 but has a very weak unlistenable signal as of Thurs. in northern Brooklyn and midtown Manhattan. No signal at all however west of 6th Avenue. Would seem like they are broadcasting at only 25w and from LIC although the signal is spotty at best. Not sure what the point of them being on the air is since the pirates sporically block out the signal at 106.3 and at 25w you can barely hear them with any clarity even in LIC itself. You can buy transmitters online that are stronger than that!

 

[Barry]

It does appear that not much can be accomplished with such a weak signal.
But perhaps the owners of the translator intend to try to use the current setup as a stepping stone to apply for another location/frequency which would permit a stronger output.
Some may recall that one of the predecessors of this translator operated by the same owner was one in Jersey City that put out one watt. Compared to that, being permitted to operate within the city with 25 watts is progress. But it does seem really tough to find a frequency or location in this area that a translator could operate on with a decent signal, and not cause signifcant interference with another station.
I wonder how other major markets such as Chicago and Atlanta are able to have translators with respectable signals.

 

[KyleSmith1988]

The market I'm in (Greenville SC) recently added a 250 watt translator atop a mountain on 97.7 (W249CB),
and it's signal is just as strong and has a very similar coverage area as the nearby Class-A 96.7 (WROO).

Compare the 96.7 WROO & 97.7 W249CB maps from this area:
http://radio-locator.com/cgi-bin/pat?call=WROO&service=FM&status=L&hours=U - Shine 96.7
http://radio-locator.com/cgi-bin/pat?call=W249CB&service=FX&status=L&hours=U - 97.7 Chuck FM

The 97.7 translator here can go nearly 30 miles static free, amazing...Wish they can figure something like this for NYC.
250 watts atop one of the tallest buildings in Manhattan can rival a signal like 105.9 WQXR, if it wasn't for all the pirates.

Two factors help low power signals better than just about anything else, low or no interference cochannel and first adjacent, and tower and or ground level height. I have seen and heard newer engineers tell people that if you don't want the tower height then just up the power to the same erp. This might look good on paper but in the real world nothing and I mean nothing beats height. Granted it helps to have penetration power for trees and buildings but if it is at the sake of less tower height and you are not a 50k or 100k station then you are wasting your signal.

 

[nd2023]

It's not that there isn't a physical place for a 250 watt translator, the dial is so crowded that there will be interference no matter where you put it.

 

[Barry]

Has anyone been able to pull in a decent signal from the translator?