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ratings

sacredcod said:
My car does not have HD radio and it is a 2019. However I am sure I am in the minority.

I will say I do not hear WBZ advertise their HD2 station at all. Do they do this because they know people prefer other methods of listening? They lean heavy on the iheart app and on smart speaker.
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Exactly! The only mention of “WXKS-FM HD2” is in the TOH station ID. In addition, they seem to be suppressing references to “WBZ Newsradio 1030”, and instead are constantly plugging the iHeart app.

In the most unfortunate scenario wherein 1030 AM is rendered inoperative for any extended period, I wonder just how their audience numbers would hold up with just the HD2 stream or even the iHeart app.
 
nowradioguy said:
Exactly! The only mention of “WXKS-FM HD2” is in the TOH station ID. In addition, they seem to be suppressing references to “WBZ Newsradio 1030”, and instead are constantly plugging the iHeart app.

In the most unfortunate scenario wherein 1030 AM is rendered inoperative for any extended period, I wonder just how their audience numbers would hold up with just the HD2 stream or even the iHeart app.
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That's unlikely, as I believe 1030 has at least one backup transmitter, and I'm sure power supplies. Probably also backup STL's.
 
Eli Polonsky said:
That's unlikely, as I believe 1030 has at least one backup transmitter, and I'm sure power supplies. Probably also backup STL's.
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Eli,

IIRC, WBZ got a FEMA grant to build a hardened site at their Hull transmitter. But how to backup their two antenna masts? The backup site at 1170 Soldiers Field Road is no more.
 
nowradioguy said:
Eli,

IIRC, WBZ got a FEMA grant to build a hardened site at their Hull transmitter. But how to backup their two antenna masts? The backup site at 1170 Soldiers Field Road is no more.
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Yes, I didn’t think they still had use of 1170 SFR. But, what are they currently using as a temporary lower-power backup if/when they have to do maintenance or repairs on the Hull towers?

As the 1170 SFR backup was, I believe, 10kW ND, it threw an adequate temporary backup signal around the metro Boston area when needed. Maybe iHeart could set up a similar ND backup at one of the towers of one of the other greater Boston area AM stations they own, WRKO (Burlington) or WXKS (Oak Hill, Newton)?
Or, maybe strike a deal for a backup on one of the many other local AM sites they don’t own?
 
Eli Polonsky said:
Yes, I didn’t think they still had use of 1170 SFR. But, what are they currently using as a temporary lower-power backup if/when they have to do maintenance or repairs on the Hull towers?

As the 1170 SFR backup was, I believe, 10kW ND, it threw an adequate temporary backup signal around the metro Boston area when needed. Maybe iHeart could set up a similar ND backup at one of the towers of one of the other greater Boston area AM stations they own, WRKO (Burlington) or WXKS (Oak Hill, Newton)?
Or, maybe strike a deal for a backup on one of the many other local AM sites they don’t own?
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Eli,

Being the cynic that I am, the blame for dismantling the 1170 SFR backup could be shared by both CBS and iHeart. CBS probably (and understandably) wanted rent money from iHeart, and the latter was either unwilling or felt it unnecessary, given that the iHeart continues to emphasize its streaming version of WBZ.

I agree - 1170 SFR backup provided an adequate, though somewhat noisy, signal to the Merrimack Valley when the Hull towers were painted about a decade or so ago. Too bad it wasn’t allowed to remain in place.
 
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