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Savannah: HUGE problems on 95.5 & 102.1

U

upstate29651

Both stations have been cutting in & out for the past several days now. Last Tuesday (I believe), both stations were off the air (in the daytime), presumably to fix this issue. It's not fixed.

It hurt 95.5 today big time as they attempted to air the UGA-USC game. With all the cut outs, it made listening impossible. However, dinky little 103.1 (which airs USC games) was perfectly listenable. It got me thinking... 103.1 would make a decent all sports station (in mono, of course).

This issue, of course, had no impact on 102.1, since no one is listening to that station.....

G
 
upstate29651 said:
Both stations have been cutting in & out for the past several days now. Last Tuesday (I believe), both stations were off the air (in the daytime), presumably to fix this issue. It's not fixed.

It hurt 95.5 today big time as they attempted to air the UGA-USC game. With all the cut outs, it made listening impossible. However, dinky little 103.1 (which airs USC games) was perfectly listenable. It got me thinking... 103.1 would make a decent all sports station (in mono, of course).

This issue, of course, had no impact on 102.1, since no one is listening to that station.....

G
Click to expand...

Yeah, noticed that myself. That would seem to be the best time to NOT have that happen. As a SC fan, I quickly tuned to 103.1

Radio-X
 
I happened to be home this weekend and heard the audio skipping. I seem to recall those frequencies as having had similar technical problems in the past.
 
Are the antennae on the same tower or located in close proximity to one another by any chance? That is, could there be some common factor which might help explain the problem?
 
Witchlover said:
Are the antennae on the same tower or located in close proximity to one another by any chance? That is, could there be some common factor which might help explain the problem?
Click to expand...

Cumulus has 3 stations on the tower @ 38 03 29 N and 81 20 19 W. These are: WIXV 94.1@991 ft., WJCJ 96.5@ 1168 ft., and WZAT 102.1@ 1325 ft. They are not using the same antenna. These stations could (and most likely are) sharing the same STL (Studio Transmitter Link usually Microwave or T1) which could explain why two or more of the stations could have issues at the same time. Many things can go wrong with a STL. Some operations have a “backup” that should work when there is a problem. Was there a human being around that could have switch or fix the STL?
 
WIXV is at 95.5, to correct your typo - but this helps me to understand the problem. Solving for one, solves for all, then. Could be that a part in need of replacement is on backorder, which puts those pesky humans right in the middle of things.
 
I do not work for Storm Cloud (Cumulus) but on paper this looks similar to most radio clusters where a couple of smaller operators were put together and moved together. Usually the first step is to expand an existing studio to house all of the cluster’s stations. This usually allows for most of the redundant support personnel (engineers, production, news, secretarial and sometime sales) to be canned. Then usually all of the FM’s will be moved to the cheapest or best tower. This is expensive but usually will save lots in tower rent in the long run and usually involves accountants and engineering studies. Occasionally because of City of License and interference issues some of the stations may stay at the same tower. When a cluster’s stations are moved to the same tower the Studio to Transmitter link is upgraded or replaced to handle all of the audio from all of the stations. If you are a “primary” or “originating” EAS station usually the FCC or Homeland Security will encourage a lot of redundancy. By combining 3 class C FMs on one tower, in a rated market, most operators would have a fully redundant STL just for events like this. Storm Cloud should have “standardized” most of their operations so lack of parts should not be an issue. Or they might have just patched together equipment from existing stations they bought which could make parts an issue. With as many stations they have, Cumulus should have some extra equipment somewhere to fix this problem.

I do not think the “pesky humans” are in Savannah. But then ask any Cumulus employee about the CEO’s Bonus and you will get the picture.
 
I have never worked for Cumulus, so I am neither for 'em nor agin'em: only curious. Generally speaking, what is the reliability of an STL, assuming it is installed and operated properly? How likely are they to fail, and what component is most likely to fail when they do go down? When parts are needed, are they pulled from inventory or must they made to order? I know from past employment that spares are kept on hand according to both the importance to the operation and the likelihood that they will actually be needed. Could be that the part which never breaks, has.
 
Witchlover said:
I have never worked for Cumulus, so I am neither for 'em nor agin'em: only curious. Generally speaking, what is the reliability of an STL, assuming it is installed and operated properly? How likely are they to fail, and what component is most likely to fail when they do go down? When parts are needed, are they pulled from inventory or must they made to order? I know from past employment that spares are kept on hand according to both the importance to the operation and the likelihood that they will actually be needed. Could be that the part which never breaks, has.
Click to expand...

A microwave STL a receiver or transmitter will work for years no problem except lighting. If your installation has lighting issues then you almost have to have two of everything. If you are using a landline STL the phone company should give you 99.9999% unless some one hit a pole or digs up a cable. IF you are one of the largest radio companies (in terms of number of stations) you should some where have just about any part on a shelf somewhere. Even the ones that never break.
 
Of the three, I listen to 96.5 most often, and have not really noticed the problem. This is why I am so intrigued by this particular thread. I do not listen to the other two often enough to know if they are experiencing this problem. I will listen to both in the next few days and hear what is happening when I do. This is the land of the three-o'clock thunderstorm, so lightning issues are not uncommon. In fact, lightning took out my satellite receiver and a televison set just two weeks ago, so I sympathize with Cumulus if they do have lightning issues. Still, for those who listen to and depend on those stations, the cause matters not a whit: They simply want the problem solved. As do the management and staff, I am sure. Here's hoping for a quick resolution to this problem, whatver its cause.
 
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