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We know where in New Jersey 99.5, 100.3 and 101.1 interfere between NYC and Philly.. How about the 107.5's? WBLS and WBYN?
- Thread starter Xale57
- Start date
As long as not in either Metro Survey Area, it is rather irrelevant.
What’s interesting about that is North Brunswick and Bordentown are approximately 37 miles apart. Now if you’re cutting across the state via 195 heading toward the shore, there isn’t a huge population along that route thru the pines save for Great Adventure traffic and perhaps Lakewood until you get to the shore points. That said, there are tens of thousands of potential listeners between those two towns via Route 130 and the NJ turnpike over those 37 miles. That to me seems like an immense waste of an otherwise perfectly good frequency and potential ad revenue. Obviously back when 101.1 NYC and 101.1 Philly agreed to the short space between those two signals the population wasn’t what it is now but I’ve always found it strange that the FCC approved it and I’m even more surprised that one of them hasn’t switched to a different frequency by now. Perhaps the radio landscape is too full for such a switch.
I was in Trenton near the Airport a few weeks ago.
I could sit facing NYC and pickup WHTZ, Turn around and get WRNB. Both were able to lock onto HD as well. Turn side ways and neither were audible.
Same with WBEB and WCBS, but HD was hit or miss and digital would override the others analog sometimes.
I could sit facing NYC and pickup WHTZ, Turn around and get WRNB. Both were able to lock onto HD as well. Turn side ways and neither were audible.
Same with WBEB and WCBS, but HD was hit or miss and digital would override the others analog sometimes.
>>>I’ve always found it strange that the FCC approved it and I’m even more surprised that one of them hasn’t switched to a different frequency by now. Perhaps the radio landscape is too full for such a switch.<<<
When the current FM band was created, CBS already had an FM station in New York. According to Wikipedia, in 1947 it became WCBS-FM at 101.1.
The Philadelphia station at 101.1 didn't come on the air until 1963. Wikipedia doesn't say why CBS didn't object to a new 101.1 only 90 miles away. But the two stations have co-existed since then. Both stations at various times have been #1 in their markets. So I guess not having a reliable signal between North Brunswick and Bordentown has not given either station a significant disadvantage.
The battle between the 100.3 stations is even newer. WVNJ-FM Newark (today WHTZ) signed on in 1961. There had been a WMGM-FM on 100.3 from 1948 to 1955, sister station to 1050 WMGM. But management saw little chance for WMGM-FM to be profitable and turned in the license.
Over the years, there had been a few stations on 100.3 in the Philadelphia area (including a KYW-FM briefly). But today's WRNB began in 1982 as Soft AC WKSZ (Kiss). So again, how did WVNJ-FM's owners allow a station to go on the air on its frequency 90 miles away?
By the 1950s, I'm sure the FCC knew how FM station signals travel and how much separation co-channel stations need. But the commission allowed other notable short-spaced FM stations to co-exist. How about 105.7? It's WQXA in York PA and it's also WJZ-FM in Baltimore. Those two cities are only 47 miles apart!
When the current FM band was created, CBS already had an FM station in New York. According to Wikipedia, in 1947 it became WCBS-FM at 101.1.
The Philadelphia station at 101.1 didn't come on the air until 1963. Wikipedia doesn't say why CBS didn't object to a new 101.1 only 90 miles away. But the two stations have co-existed since then. Both stations at various times have been #1 in their markets. So I guess not having a reliable signal between North Brunswick and Bordentown has not given either station a significant disadvantage.
The battle between the 100.3 stations is even newer. WVNJ-FM Newark (today WHTZ) signed on in 1961. There had been a WMGM-FM on 100.3 from 1948 to 1955, sister station to 1050 WMGM. But management saw little chance for WMGM-FM to be profitable and turned in the license.
Over the years, there had been a few stations on 100.3 in the Philadelphia area (including a KYW-FM briefly). But today's WRNB began in 1982 as Soft AC WKSZ (Kiss). So again, how did WVNJ-FM's owners allow a station to go on the air on its frequency 90 miles away?
By the 1950s, I'm sure the FCC knew how FM station signals travel and how much separation co-channel stations need. But the commission allowed other notable short-spaced FM stations to co-exist. How about 105.7? It's WQXA in York PA and it's also WJZ-FM in Baltimore. Those two cities are only 47 miles apart!
Same deal with WWWT (WTOP silmulcast station, Manassas, VA) and WGBG (Classic Rocker, Fruitland, MD) on 107.7... Outside of the primary it's pretty much a gamble as to which one you'll pick up versus the other if you can even handle the co-channel interference outside of the primary contours.
(Board hiccup, let's try this again...)
When did WVNJ's owners start shopping 100.3 around for a sale? When did Malrite agree to buy 100.3 to launch Z-100? When did Z-100 launch? Answer: 1982-83. It's likely they all had higher-priority things on their mind and weren't paying close attention to allocation requests and licensing applications from the market 90 miles away. They all had their own business before the Commission, and Malrite also had to assemble the financing to acquire WVNJ-FM, get their programming ideas in place, hire the right people, etc.
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No space to move with current allocations.
You also have Rocky 98.5 and 98.5 KRZ short spaced. 106.7 in Harrisburg and Lite FM too are short spaced.
Then there are the heavily directional 105.7s in York, PA and Baltimore, MD.
In the Midwest, Detroit and Cleveland share 93.1, 95.5, and 99.5. Back in the 1990s, a 106.9 was shoehorned into Milwaukee despite there being a Class B on 106.9 just across Lake Michigan in Muskegon, MI. A few years later, 105.3 was also shoehorned into Milwaukee, which forced the then-Class C1 on 105.3 across Lake Michigan to downgrade to C2 (it later moved closer to Grand Rapids as a Class B).
In the South, there are 100kW 104.7's in Columbia, SC and Charlotte, NC.
In the Midwest, Detroit and Cleveland share 93.1, 95.5, and 99.5. Back in the 1990s, a 106.9 was shoehorned into Milwaukee despite there being a Class B on 106.9 just across Lake Michigan in Muskegon, MI. A few years later, 105.3 was also shoehorned into Milwaukee, which forced the then-Class C1 on 105.3 across Lake Michigan to downgrade to C2 (it later moved closer to Grand Rapids as a Class B).
In the South, there are 100kW 104.7's in Columbia, SC and Charlotte, NC.
Grandfathered allocations set by the FCC.
I remember years ago, probably in the 1980s, there was some kind of deal worked out between WXTU 92.5 and WOBM-FM 92.7 so that WXTU could move their transmitter to the Philly antenna farm. I'm guessing some $$ exchanged hands, but WOBM accepted interference to make it happen.
If you look at their signal, it's ever so slightly pulled back from Philly.
If you look at their signal, it's ever so slightly pulled back from Philly.
If they worked a deal with with Cumulus / WLEV,
I wonder if WBEB could just flip to 100.9 or WRNB to 100.5 (directional N/NE) but I guess its grandfathered in for a long time and those extra few miles of coverage aren't as important as those within 30 miles of the station...
Many years ago the allocation did shift 97.5 to Philly so maybe something similar or not too expensive is possible.
On that note, 94.5 and 97.5 would be better off trading broadcasting locations (again) to free up interference with WJLK & WXBK and 97.3 WENJ would get their interference reduced. Trading space with 99.5 in Wilmington might also help.
Not easy when the dial is this crowded but some ideas might help to some capacity...lol
I wonder if WBEB could just flip to 100.9 or WRNB to 100.5 (directional N/NE) but I guess its grandfathered in for a long time and those extra few miles of coverage aren't as important as those within 30 miles of the station...
Many years ago the allocation did shift 97.5 to Philly so maybe something similar or not too expensive is possible.
On that note, 94.5 and 97.5 would be better off trading broadcasting locations (again) to free up interference with WJLK & WXBK and 97.3 WENJ would get their interference reduced. Trading space with 99.5 in Wilmington might also help.
Not easy when the dial is this crowded but some ideas might help to some capacity...lol
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Even though I like the idea of cleaning up the dial do to major spacing issues, People are not really listening to radio over the air anymore and are streaming it or other services now. Even I only have a portable HD radio that I mainly use out of town and Only stream in the house so the advantages of adjusting these signals are not worth the money to big radio owners who are in major debt.
Yes, there is a definite decrease in the amount of over-the-air listening, but it still is the way about 85% of people over age 18 listen... at least part of the time.
We are still seeing stations going for relatively high prices... $8 million for a rimshot FM in Houston, for example. Or $60 million for a batch of mostly mediocre AMs which Televisa just sold to a new group.
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