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Pirates or not? I need some verification...

DJKraze

DJKraze

I was traveling up the Berlin Turnpike heading for Hartford when past the Wethersfield line I got a station I picked up before, but forgot about, at 107.5 playing what seemed to be 70's music with no announcements. It seems more like an iPod since there are never any adds, PSA's or segues of any kind, but if so, it's a bit strong as it goes for at least a half mile and it seems strongest in front on Stop & Shop.

The second, and newest one I got at 102.5 between the fork for New Britain ave in Hartford and just beyond the rail bridge at New Park ave. going over NB ave again. This station had something that sounds like a kids instructional audio tape with some kind of teacher playing sounds of creatures and having the listener guess what they are. (this was between 10 & 11am today). Could this have been the elementary school? if so, it's fairly clear more than 1/2 mile from Shield Street plaza (which is where I was for some Asian food).
 
It is very possible the 107.5 you were hearing was WFNK out of Lewiston, ME. It has a blow torch signal and I have picked it up while driving in the Hartford area in the past. Usually 107.5 is a mess between Cape Cod, Lewiston and New York City.

As for the 102.5 , that is anyone's guess.
 
I was in Newington today (southbound on the turnpike and went to Sam's and Stew's) and around 7:55 I was tuning around and found 102.5 again, but this time no kid's farm sounds programming, instead Gospel (BTW: I forgot to mention previously, the station is in MONO). at about 7:58 they did some announcements including asking for potential advertisers to call them at a 413 area code number or contact them at a website which was ?????1025.com (didn't get it all due to wavering static and a legit LI station fading in over it at times) I also posted about this on the Mass board as maybe someone up there might know of it. I just have to wonder what kind of power they are running to get it all the way down to central CT.

In other pirate news, 92.9 was also heard this evening just a few minutes before I checked the one just mentioned and they are again stereo spanish with the same announcer as 90.9 FM. Other stations picked up on the Pike: 90.9, 97.1 (honestly was hoping for WQHT NYC, bad freq choice if you ask me) and 103.3
 
More details! I was back in Newington today (and apparently I can get a bit of the signal all the way down here in Middletown as well) and I was able to get them much more clearly, the name the dj gives sounds like judo or juda but both don't come up when used as urls, also they were airing the Donnie McClurkin show with national ad spots included and when those ran out they again solicited for advertisers and gave the phone number, which is a Springfield number according to reverse lookups at 413-209-5370. No call sign was given at any time including top of the hour.

Also got something else on 103.5, no, it wasn't WKTU, it was a very weak stereo signal, again playing Spanish programming, WKTU would fade in over it on occasion. If legal radio isn't too exciting lately, the pirates are sure making band scanning interesting again.
 
A number of years ago I started hearing several unusual signals in the vicinity of New Park and New Britain Avenues in West Hartford and the instructional programming reported recently on 102.5 may be one of them. I've heard similar programming, along with old time radio shows from the 30s and 40s, on 105.3 in that area as well. One of the channels identified itself as "Companion Radio". I finally traced them to the Avery Heights Nursing Home located on a hill further east on New Britain Ave near the Htfd line. Apparently these are audio channels targeted to the elderly residents of the nursing home and I assume that they might be leaking out of the facilities cable system. There is similar programming on 105.3 in the vicinity of the nursing home near the Jewish Community Center on Bloomfield Ave. in West Hartford.
 
So it's possible the instructional thing I heard last Monday and the Gospel programming I've heard since are different stations? Hmm, I'm going to be back in the New Park/NB ave area tomorrow, I'll see if I can get more out of it. In the meantime, is anyone getting the gospel programming on 102.5? I'm pulling in this signal all the way from the turnpike right back here to Middletown but not without 102.5 in Long Island taking it out at times. I can't find any info other than reverse lookup showing the phone number as a landline in Springfield, if that's even where the station is located.
 
I had to go to NB this morning, so as Promised, I took the long way home, first going up Willard ave. in Newington and as soon as I got to New Britain ave, the instructional station was there, I'm certain they are not the gospel pirate as I got that one in my driveway yesterday and not at all today, in fact, the Long Island station was nearly perfect reception until I got to NB Ave. I turned right and kept going as my route was to take me past the Wethersfield Stop & Shop to see if 107.5 was there, meanwhile 102.5 from NB ave/New Park was there as I switched to White st, turned right onto Maple ave, only heard mixed signal between WFNK and WBLS, the strong signal I normally heard traveling south towards the turnpike was not there and only once I got into Newington did I lose 102.5 from NB ave, and start pulling in Long Island, at this point I started hearing a little classical from WFCC mixing itno the noise between WFNK & WBLS (normally what I get anywhere in central CT). Other notes, it looks like there's a big new antenna on the building housing 90.9 and there's still the other two (one on the corner of willow & north st, and now two on the building on the triple corner lot of willow, north & stanley), however only 90.9 was on, 92.9 was nowhere to be heard (weekends only?), also the spanish station on 103.5 was absent as well.
 
DJKraze said:
Also got something else on 103.5, no, it wasn't WKTU, it was a very weak stereo signal, again playing Spanish programming, WKTU would fade in over it on occasion. If legal radio isn't too exciting lately, the pirates are sure making band scanning interesting again.
Click to expand...

Could that have been WCCH Holyoke, MA @ 103.5? Theoretically, a weak signal from them might well make it that far south on a good day. As for their programming, it's all over the map. Perhaps someone who lives in the Springfield area can confirm whether WCCH is currently programming Spanish language content.
 
>>"Companion Radio

Yes I ran into them in Beverly MA. They push for a few blocks, legally, on 98.9. Supposedly up to 4
diff. services may be offered, etc. and obviously it's really intended for the people at the facility,
in this case Blueberry Hill nursing and rehab ctr (Reminiscence, Potpourri, Imagination, Serenity)

http://www.companionradio.com/
 
Do you guys fool around with the radio this much while you're driving? Remind me to keep away from New Britain if that's the case :)
 
kms575 said:
Do you guys fool around with the radio this much while you're driving? Remind me to keep away from New Britain if that's the case :)
Click to expand...

I have no problem driving with one hand and reaching over to push one of my preset buttons if something I'm not interested in comes on the radio, however when it comes to tuning a station not on my presets I find that difficult to do while driving. Not sure why. That's why I have WCBS 880 as a preset. Friday Nights I go up to Illusions Dance Club in Wolcott with a friend. I can not get WPOP 1410 to listen to my Yankees. Before I gave WCBS a preset I used to push button 6 - MEGA 910 and tune down to 880, but it's too hard to do while driving even tho it's just 3 clicks down. (The other reason I gave WCBS 880 a preset is because I needed something to replace WNYH 740 after they flipped from Oldies to Korean back in October).
 
Many vehicles come with controls for volume and tuning in the steering wheel these days, mine doesn't but that doesn't mean my freakishly long arms can't reach the tuning control while driving, in fact, I don't even have to look at the radio. Also, I tend to do band scans from a fixed position, I found that companion radio at 102.3 while sitting outside A Dong Asian Supermarket in Shield Street plaza West Hartford.
 
99.5 in Bristol is active again, I heard them tonight very clear & strong from downtown NB, just before 10:30 they were playing Macarena and then Mambo #5 started, and stopped, a long gap of silence and then started, and stopped again, and this kept going on for at least 20 minutes until the song finally finished followed by a spoof of the song by someone imitating Bill Clinton, by this point I arrived home and shut off the car.

102.5 was strong as well, I was in the area of the rest home companion radio signal earlier today and it covered over it. I'm really doubting these guys are in Springfield.

92.9 is on again but with a loud medium pitched tone blending in with the music, they are giving out a website address for the station but I'm not understanding the whole thing (I don't know spanish).
 
DJKraze said:
99.5 in Bristol is active again, I heard them tonight very clear & strong from downtown NB, just before 10:30 they were playing Macarena and then Mambo #5 started, and stopped, a long gap of silence and then started, and stopped again, and this kept going on for at least 20 minutes until the song finally finished followed by a spoof of the song by someone imitating Bill Clinton, by this point I arrived home and shut off the car.
Click to expand...

My best friend went home at 8 last night and then I went down to Stop & Shop on Pine Street in Bristol, but didn't do a band scan. I wonder if I would've caught them around 9PM when I was leaving the store. I got home around 9:15.
 
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