Dx-ing was fun back in the 70’s. The variety would surprise you at every turn. I don’t know why this all went away. Perhaps am formats just became too regulated and stale or they changed their signals to perform more locally. But signals I could dx back in that decade don’t seem to be available today. Good example is KGO San Francisco which came in as a local back in the day and now almost impossible to hear in eastern Washington.
-
Get involved.
We want your input!
Apply for Membership and join the conversations about everything related to broadcasting.
After we receive your registration, a moderator will review it. After your registration is approved, you will be permitted to post.
If you use a disposable or false email address, your registration will be rejected.
After your membership is approved, please take a minute to tell us a little bit about yourself.
https://www.radiodiscussions.com/forums/introduce-yourself.1088/
Thanks in advance and have fun!
RadioDiscussions Administrators
Pondering The UnKNWN....
- Thread starter Bongwater
- Start date
Several things happened.
First, the FCC started breaking down the 1-A clear channels, so the big guns could not cover the whole country. Second, nations like Cuba and Mexico added many stations that ate into the coverage of US stations. Third, more and more stations began broadcasting 24/7, blocking channels after 11 PM or Midnight that used to be more open. And, fourth, depending on the year, there were variations in the sunspot cycle and propagation.
In the early 60's, it was hard to hear more than 10 Hawaiian stations. Today, it is nearly impossible to hear even one of them. All the above factors explain why.
(Oh, and serious DXers were upset when Hawaiian stations did not sign off, preventing hearing New Zealand and Australia!
KIRO does a better job of covering the market than 1000kHz. What really matters.
I'm a little surprised KVI continues as is - they're paying 2 local talents, Hoffman & Carlson, plus I'm assuming producers for each one. Is it worth the cost, considering Lotus doesn't generally even do this format?
Yeah, they just waste their signal over the Metro Survey Area instead of covering Arizona and Alaska.
And, of course, 710 and the lower dial positions tend to have less "short wave like" skywave and the higher frequencies do. On the other hand, the lower frequencies, watt for watt, cover much more.
When I DXed from Ohio in the 60's, high on the dial KRKO was the easiest WA station to hear. But it does not cover the metro!
Lotus does formats that it can make money on. If KVI can be profitable, they will continue to do what they are doing.
Of course, Lotus does not "do" Farsi, either. But they have had a successful and profitable station in LA for decades... in Farsi.
Exactly. Covering Russia, Scandinavia, Africa, or anywhere outside the metro is a waste of energy. Fun for DX'er's, but they don't pay the power bill.
Am curious how HD2+ assignments work as far as FCC is concerned. Does a format have to go through a license review of any kind? If you're assigned an FM frequency, does the HD1-3 go along for the ride, or do you have to license those allocations in addition to the primary?
Any licensee of an FM broadcast station may elect to operate with HD, including HD subchannels. They just need to file a form with the FCC declaring their intention.
No extra licenses are necessary for HD subchannels.
A licensed station (i.e. KPLZ 101.5) declares their intention to the FCC via Digital Notification. From there, they're free to put whatever on HD2, HD3 and/or HD4 subchannels without needing authorisation from the FCC. So in a sense, if a licensed station upgrades to HD, the HD2-4 subchannels go along for the ride, with the exception of a royalty fee that goes to Xperi for each HD2-HD4 subchannel (not 100% sure how much); though FCC doesn't require a report or anything.
Now when did I ever say KNWN or KRKO's signals didn't cover their metros? Did I ever say or suggest they weren't important? I did not. I only illustrated the bonus nighttime AM coverage. For whatever it's worth. That was all.
Are you relatively new here? I'm totally blind, so the coverage maps on that site are useless to me, at least for the moment. I know they've got embossers now that can do tactile graphics, but I'm not sure if that technology has come to braille displays yet. If it has, those units are prohibitively expensive for most.
Per coverage map, KNWN 1000 is non-directional during the day, north/south directional at night; although the local contour is extended north both day and night because of Puget Sound.
From my experiences on the east side of the Cascades, KNWN is weak during the day, and varies between weak and crystal clear at night. It depends on atmospheric conditions.
I'm surprised that this hasn't been covered. The FCC is legally prevented from interfering with a stations format. It's a free speech issue.
- Status