• 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

Synchronous AM repeaters

J

jd

Besides the classic two city operation of WLLH 1400 in Lawrence and Lowell, Massachusetts, I know of only two others in the continental U.S. KM2XVL in Huntsville TX rebroadcasts KMVL 1220 from nearby Madisonville, with 170 watts day and 10 watts nighttime. Then there's the one on 770 in Santa Fe that rebroadcasts KKOB Albuquerque with 230 watts. Interestingly, like the ones in Massachusetts, it has the same call letters instead of the "2X" combination.

There is a listing for a 700 watt repeater in Virginia, WR2XJR 670 Portsmouth, but I gather that it was a licensed test transmitter for WRJR 1010 and results of the tests were used in conjunction with a nighttime application for WPMH 670 in Claremont. Apparently, following the tests an amended application for WPMH was granted, reducing their nighttime power from seven to three watts. But the record for WR2XJR is still there.

Besides the ones in Massachusetts and Texas I could find only three others that appear to be on the air, all in Puerto Rico; WA2XPA Arecibo (relaying WAPA 680 San Juan), WI2XAC Ponce (relaying WIAC 740 San Juan) and WI2XSO Mayaguez (relaying WISO 1260 San Juan). A number of years back there were two such stations authorized in the Dallas/Fort Worth area, KK2XDA in Forest Hill (a suburb of Fort Worth), repeating KKDA 730 Grand Prairie-Dallas and KR2XVA in Fort Worth, a repeater for KRVA 1600 Cockrell Hill-Dallas.

Does anyone know of any others that were, or still are on the air?
 

WBZ / WBZA 1030 Boston / Springfield 1030 AM

WBT Charlotte and its repeater in Shelby on 1110

WISO is in Ponce, not San Juan... and there are several synchs for it and several for co-owned WAPA which is in San Juan, covering pretty much all the market.

WFTL in Ft. Liquordale had a synch at Pompano in the early 90s'. It made for a horrible drive on I 95.
 
There is another synchronous booster system, but it has been broken for a long time, and has a curious story. It is KHNU in Hilo, with a booster at South Point (Na`alehu) and another on the Kailua-Kona side (Kalaoa). I can hear the 10KW Kona booster here on Kaua`i in the day time (300 miles), but when I am in Hilo, there is nary a whisper of 620 khz receivable to any radio I try. Hilo has been off the air since 2004, and Na`alehu since about 2005.
An interesting quirk in the FCC 12 month "drop dead/forfeit your license due to silence" rule involves AM booster stations. The FCC allows the main station to be off for technical reasons, and allows operating a synchronous AM booster in lieu of the main transmitter, thereby keeping the primary license valid. I did not know this was possible, but KHNU is living proof, and it has been doing this for over 5 years now.
 
DavidEduardo said:
WFTL in Ft. Liquordale had a synch at Pompano in the early 90s'. It made for a horrible drive on I 95.
Click to expand...

Thanks, David, for the info and the correction. ("Liquordale," eh...haven't heard that one in a while!)

Adding one more to the list, I forgot to mention that the old KNUZ 1230 in Houston had a 410-watt booster in operation in the late 80's on the northwest side (W. Little York near 290). Between there and the downtown site reception was probably similar to the WFTL situation. Mercifully, they finally shut it down.

Don Mussell said:
I did not know this was possible, but KHNU is living proof, and it has been doing this for over 5 years now.
Click to expand...

I had no idea that loophole existed, either, Don. I see that they just recently got another extension of their STA and unless I missed something, it's not authority to remain silent; it's for operating at lower power with temporary facilities. I'm guessing that diplexing wouldn't be possible, but it's hard to believe that KHNU hasn't found a way to string a long-wire or get a temporary tower put up somewhere around Hilo.
 
I had no idea that loophole existed, either, Don. I see that they just recently got another extension of their STA and unless I missed something, it's not authority to remain silent; it's for operating at lower power with temporary facilities. I'm guessing that diplexing wouldn't be possible, but it's hard to believe that KHNU hasn't found a way to string a long-wire or get a temporary tower put up somewhere around Hilo.
Click to expand...

As they like to say around here "This ain't the mainland". Building anything is a real pain, takes forever, and local building codes are only a small part of the problem. Changes in latitude, changes in attitude is not just a clever line from a Jimmy Buffet song... The previous and current owners are not locals, and are finding out how hard it really is.
 
Yup. A quick sale to the locals would probably get the needed upgrade very quickly. I'm pretty sure the native Hawiians have to be some of the most raciest people on the face of the earth. They work overtime to prevent anyone that's a "mainlander" from having any success on THEIR island.
 
Status
This thread has been closed due to inactivity. You can create a new thread to discuss this topic.


Back
Top Bottom