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Oldies 1033 WODS to the PRU

N

necrat123

Guest
Oldies 103, WODS filed an application to relocate it's transmitter from the old channel 5 tower (known unofficially as "FM128") to the PRU upper master antenna. The application was filed middle of last week. WODS plans to run at 21.5kW same as WZLX, and WMJX.
 
Necrat said:
Oldies 103, WODS filed an application to relocate it's transmitter from the old channel 5 tower (known unofficially as "FM128") to the PRU upper master antenna. The application was filed middle of last week. WODS plans to run at 21.5kW same as WZLX, and WMJX.
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They may lose some outlying suburban and New England coverage, but that will put them on a par in the city with their main competitors WMJX and WROR, where intermodulation from those (and other) stations currently on the Pru has been wreaking havoc with their signal from 128 for decades.
 
Interesting. This might well open up a class A FM channel in the Greenfield area. That would be the first new non Cape and Islands FM channel in Massachusetts since I dropped 98.9 into Adams almost ten years ago
 
Uncle Kaimbridge said:
Could 98.5 be next? ;)
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Aren't there technical reasons why neither 98.5 or 102.5 can locate closer to Boston than they already are? I'm quite sure about 102.5 but I don't remember the station or stations involved (probably IF interference with WUMB). I'm less sure about 98.5. Doesn't seem like it could be IF because 98.5 +10.7 is above 108 and 98.5 - 10.7 is below 88.
 
DanStrassberg said:
Uncle Kaimbridge said:
Could 98.5 be next? ;)
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Aren't there technical reasons why neither 98.5 or 102.5 can locate closer to Boston than they already are? I'm quite sure about 102.5 but I don't remember the station or stations involved (probably IF interference with WUMB). I'm less sure about 98.5. Doesn't seem like it could be IF because 98.5 +10.7 is above 108 and 98.5 - 10.7 is below 88.
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Given that their Newton xmtr is only about 12.5 km south and the NY stations (class A's) are west, the only plausible kink is Waterville (a C1)——as the NH and VT stations (all class D's) are well over 150 km——and they seem far enough out:

Call Service City ST ERP HAAT Distance Azimuth
==== ======= ========== == ========= ======= ==================== =======
WBZ-FM B FM BOSTON MA 9.0 kW 349. m 12.48 km 7.76 mi 249.28°
(APP: 6.0 kW 199. m 12.48 km 7.76 mi 249.28°)

WEBB C1 FM WATERVILLE ME 61.0 kW 93. m 273.62 km 170.02 mi 25.22°

WBON A FM WESTHAMPTON NY 0.95 kW 160. m 217.38 km 135.07 mi 220.78°
WCTW A FM CATSKILL NY 4.7 kW 114. m 227.72 km 141.50 mi 266.82°
WCKM-FM A FM LAKE GEORGE NY 0.37 kW 393. m 249.12 km 154.80 mi 299.57°
W253AF D FX BENNINGTON VT 0.042 kW -216. m 181.69 km 112.90 mi 289.75°
W253AY D FX LITTLETON NH 0.25 kW 0. m 225.38 km 140.05 mi 345.98°
NEW D FX MONTPELIER VT 0.25 kW 0. m 243.86 km 151.53 mi 330.97°

http://www.fcc.gov/fcc-bin/fmq?stat...t2=0&NS=N&dlon2=71&mlon2=0&slon2=&EW=W&size=9

Now, the theory when they switched to sports was that the south and west sides were more valuable coverage areas than downtown, but if they are moving 103.3 to the Pru, that would leave 98.5 as the lone (CBS) dog still out in Newton.
Even considering the slight s/w coverage loss, wouldn't the savings from eliminating the extra xmtr site and costs negate the difference?
 
Even considering the slight s/w coverage loss, wouldn't the savings from eliminating the extra xmtr site and costs negate the difference?
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I've never seen the actual figures, but I've been told by people who see the bills that the Pru is far and away the most expensive tower site in New England, and charges rates on par with much bigger markets (i.e. $100k per year). Similarly, I've heard of facilities in Newton/Needham paying about a third of that.

This is all second-hand info, though. And old...last time I looked into any of this it was 2003 or so.
 
Uncle Kaimbridge said:
Even considering the slight s/w coverage loss, wouldn't the savings from eliminating the extra xmtr site and costs negate the difference?
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Consider though that WODS is going head-to-head with WROR, and now both will have the same transmitter site. With the transmitter in Needham, 98.5 is a perfect signal out to Worcester and beyond - where as 850 is terrible at night west of Weston. It might be worth it to keep the station at FM-128... and plus, wouldn't they want to have one FM somewhere else in case something happened at the Pru?
 
This is good for people who live in Boston Urban Neighborhoods, because they are almost simular to WILD.
WODS plays a lot of Motown, and now 70s Disco music. They play a good amount of both


My idea is 93.7 should locate their tower at the Pru and compete with both Magic and Mix, but focus more on Urban AC as I stated in a different recent post


Anyways, good looking out @WODS
 
I really don't see the point in this. WODS will be giving up suburban coverage where much of their demo is located. With WODS' format, city penetration should not be their main focus and why it is now simply baffles me.
 
LAUROJRM said:
My idea is 93.7 should locate their tower at the Pru and compete with both Magic and Mix, but focus more on Urban AC as I stated in a different recent post
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A) 93.7 can't move to the Pru.

B) You're like a broken record machine ;)
 
Have you forgotten 93.7 is licensed to Lawrence? No way in hell could you move to the Pru and city-grade Lawrence, not to mention the short-spacing problem with such a move.
And, can the "Urban AC" thing, huh? You and Rapking have beaten that horse to death long ago.

LAUROJRM said:
My idea is 93.7 should locate their tower at the Pru and compete with both Magic and Mix, but focus more on Urban AC as I stated in a different recent post
Click to expand...
 
beantownradio25 said:
I really don't see the point in this. WODS will be giving up suburban coverage where much of their demo is located. With WODS' format, city penetration should not be their main focus and why it is now simply baffles me.
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The Class B's from the Pru come in very well in all greater Boston suburbs. The only coverage they may be "giving up" will be very far to the west and south of Route 495 - not where the advertisers for a Boston station are located.

Also, WODS competes directly with both WMJX and WROR. Those stations can be heard in Boston office buildings - and in many areas of immediate metro Boston, including parts of Cambridge, Somerville, Brookline, etc... - where WODS from FM-128 can't (or not well). Any coverage loss will be so far away from greater Boston that it will be worth the sacrifice to be on equal footing with their competitors in the city.

WODS is also changing their demo to compete with WMJX and WROR. Having dropped the "Oldies" moniker and all music prior to 1964 (and much from the rest of the '60s), focusing heavily on the '70s and recently adding a lot of '80s music, WODS is no longer going for only upper middle-aged suburbanites. They will still serve them, but like their competition, they also must compete for the downtown work force made up of people who grew up listening to pop music in the '70s and '80s.
 
YOU ALL WILL LOVE THIS ONE :(

Yesterday (Wednesday) March 17, 2010. I was leaving Ashmont area in Dorchester, I was listenning to
WODS 103.3, it came in ok. I was listenning by walkman. When we entered the tunnel, I can still hear 103.3, when we were arriving into Shamont Train Station, I started losing WODS due to a (Pirate) station playing Carribean and Hip Hop music on 103.7. When we got outside the tunnel coming into Fields Corner station, I can still hear 103.7. I started losing 103.7 when we were leaving Fields Corner
I put it back on 103.3, I lost that as well (got three stations together at once with static). I could not pick that up, same as well as near JFK area of Dorchester, could not get 103.3.



My previous idea was only a thought, nothing to harm anyone. Ok, if they can not move their tower, change their station or change their playlist, focus more on NEW AC, NEW Urban AC.
 
It probably wouldn't be as necessary now, and it would make sense to leave it on the FM 128 tower, because WXKS is on the Pru, and it now competes directly with WODS.
 
It would make MORE sense to have 103.3 on the Pru now that there is a direct competitor already there. The blanketing from the Pru can wipe out 103.3 in a good chunk of Back Bay. There's also the multipath problem from FM128.
 
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