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wbz boston: how well is the reception west of the mississippi

B

blamethemayo

im just curious as to how often folks west of the mississippi can tune in wbz.

i know they count a few states west of the mighty mississip...as the '38 states' they are heard in..
 
I'm not quite "west of the Mississippi", but farther west than a lot of locations that ARE west of the Mississippi (I'm about 100 mi east of it, not far from the source). WBZ is fairly weak here, and currently trashed by somebody's IBOC too.
 
Last time I was in Iowa (around the turn of the century) WBZ was a regular catch with a moderate signal. I don't think it's that way anymore with WHO's Iboc.
 
mimo said:
Last time I was in Iowa (around the turn of the century) WBZ was a regular catch with a moderate signal. I don't think it's that way anymore with WHO's Iboc.
Click to expand...

No, I was around Cedar Rapids and Dubuque last year and WBZ carried a decent nighttime signal into those areas. I think that WHO causes more trouble once you get into central Iowa.

The "38 states" thing is an old radio cliche that probably was true for some east coast stations back in the pre-TV days. WTIC had a nighttime host back in the 1980s who loved to use that line. And, it was never true for them thanks to the existence of KRLD. It would seem that very few stations could actually boast of actually having a listenable signal in 38 states. The ones that come to mind would be WLW, WGN, WWL, KMOX, WBBM, WJR, and WHAS.

Many others (WSCR, WLS) get disqualified thanks to Cuban/Mexican interference in the south. A Cuban blots out 670 in PA more than half of the time; I'm sure it's decimated by the time you get to SC or FL.

WBZ? It's pretty tough for any east coast station to pull that off these days. They'd have to get some signal into each of the plains states (including Texas) and all of the south (inc'l Florida and LA) which is pretty unlikely thanks to IBlOCk, Cuba and Mexico.
 
I used to have pretty good luck with them in West Texas - but a 1030 signed on in Wyoming and that had to be nulled. Then a lot of Spanish stuff that refuses to shut down at night from over the border - WHO's IBOC finishes it off. I can't even hear it in Dallas.
 
I have ID'ed WBZ near Des Moines, IA before (Indianola, IA about 15 miles south to be exact) when nulling WHO so they do make it at least that far. Here in Vermilion, OH, my Pioneer HD car radio with actually lock onto their HD signal at night for at least 10 seconds at a time, from over 600 miles away!
 
rbrucecarter5 said:
I used to have pretty good luck with them in West Texas - but a 1030 signed on in Wyoming and that had to be nulled. Then a lot of Spanish stuff that refuses to shut down at night from over the border - WHO's IBOC finishes it off. I can't even hear it in Dallas.
Click to expand...

Several of the stations on 1030 in Mexico are licensed and notified to the US as fulltime, with talk XEQR in Mexico City running high power at night; that's the station that has historically been heard on 1030 when WBZ is off or where conditions don't favor the Northeast. And XEQR is totally legal under the existing treaties.
 
I've heard them as far west as Flagstaff, AZ. Good signal there, but that was in the 1960s, and probably also a fluke.

They were, however, absolutely reliable on a nightly basis during my college years in Eastern Iowa. They're still common there. I also had no problem with them last month in both Omaha and Kansas City (the latter was under a low-powered local).
 
WBZ is still a fairly regular catch in eastern Iowa, but maybe not as regular as 20 years ago. WHO isn't much of a factor (interfering with 1030). Of course, eastern Iowa isn't very far west of the Mississippi.
 
I picked up WBZ in Seattle in 1963 before the Casper, Wy station was born. These days WBZ still puts in a very good signal into the Chicago
area, but not the great signal it used to have years ago.
 
In Houston, we receive KCTA Corpus Christi on 1030, which is a 50KW daytimer non-D. At night, its a jumble of signals. It's a very decent signal.
 
Like others I got a good WBZ a few years ago near Iowa City (very listenable). I stayed 4 nights in SE IA (Donnellson) and the signal was noticeably weaker and listening would have been a chore.
Tried for WBZ in KS and NE this summer but no go,
 
Gar....

It's sort of the opposite where we usually stay near Pensacola at the Florida-Alabama border. A weak KCTA with even weaker Spanish underneath. Perhaps its your local that I've been hearing...a thought which had never occurred to me before. IIRC, there's a Spanish 1030 in Georgia, so I thought I might have been hearing that.

And actually, it looks like I may be able to check out the DX scene in your area for myself next month. Some friends who are in Pasadena (FL) have pretty much talked us into coming down for the second half of January, so we're looking at getting a condo for a couple of weeks on Treasure Island. Looking forward to it. (Any suggestions?)
 
For daytime AM DXing, the best place is Honeymoon Island in Dunedin because the place is isolated and out on the water.

Last time I was there a couple years ago, it cost $4 to get on the island but it's worth it.

I've noticed a difference between the daytime reception there compared to other places like Clearwater Beach.

As for the Spanish station on 1030, I'm thinking it may be the one from Oveido, Florida.

On Honeymoon Island, you should be able to hear KTRH in the daytime behind WYGM if you have a good receiver.

And when you're in the area, you have to take a ride across the Sunshine Skyway Bridge. It's quite an imperessive drive.
 
Thanks, Gar....

I guess maybe the Spanish on 1030 under KCTA on the gulf at Perdido Key/Orange Beach is still a mystery. I don't think the Orlando station could make both the land/water hop and get to Pensacola...but who knows. WFLF is the only daytime Orlando area signal I've ever heard there....although I've tried repeatedly for WDBO.

Thanks for the tip on Honeymoon Island. I should have time to check it out....since I know Mrs. Cyberdad will be doing "girls stuff" on some days with our friends during the stay. I'll have the DX-440 with me on the trip, along with the SRF-37 walkman, and maybe also the Eaton E-10.

As for the Skyway, I've done that drive a few times....including just after it opened when I was a kid, and most recently just this past February. Agree that it's a very impressive experience!
 
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