AM Frequency of the Week - 690 kHz

What do you all get on 690 AM?

Here in Vermilion, OH it is WNZK/Dearborn, MI with a weak to moderate signal during the day. At night this station switches to 680 and I get the TSN station from Montreal, CKGM (sports) but the signal gets hammered by WLW's I-BLOCK. Before the I-BLOCK I could get CKGM clearly at night.

Far northwest suburbs of Chicago....

WSCR iboc splatter day and night.

Before WSCR turned on the noisemaker, daytime was (and presumably still is) pretty much blank. Night used to produce a fair-good signal on CBF. and with a little persistence, you could coax a faint WTIX when CBF was off. KGGF used to be a semi-regular around sunset, and the Birmingham 690 would also turn up before signoff/power down from time to time.

There's nothing audible during the day, but that's an interesting frequency here too (eastern Iowa) at night. Along with CKGM Montreal, which appears most frequently, I have also heard KTSM El Paso, KGGF Coffeyville, KS, and WQNO New Orleans. May have also heard the Birmingham 690 -- can't recall if I've heard it here or elsewhere. I've never heard CBU Vancouver or XEWW Tijuana, but wonder if that would ever be possible.

cyberdad said:

Far northwest suburbs of Chicago....

WSCR iboc splatter day and night.

Before WSCR turned on the noisemaker, daytime was (and presumably still is) pretty much blank. Night used to produce a fair-good signal on CBF. and with a little persistence, you could coax a faint WTIX when CBF was off. KGGF used to be a semi-regular around sunset, and the Birmingham 690 would also turn up before signoff/power down from time to time.

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From about 40 miles east of Cyberdad my observations are the same except I don't remember hearing KGGF here.

All CKGM all the time. It's a local.

With apologies for the veer.... did you get CKGM at night in Ottawa when it was on 990?

I remember it as having a reasonably good daytime signal but disappearing at night. Unfortunately, I didn't get to do much nighttime DXing during the years I was going to Ottawa every 3-4 months. I usually stayed downtown, where not many signals could penetrate the hotels. Or, if I stayed out in Kenata (ten miles or so west), noise was usually the problem.

I do remember that as CBF, the signal from Montreal on 690 was a monster day and night on a car radio.

From Tampa -

Daytime - Used to be a barely audible WOKV Jacksonville between the splatter of the local 680 WGES but with all the extra electronic interference now, I can't get it anymore.

Around sunset - WOKV with a fair signal until they switch power and become directional at which time they completely vanish.

Nighttime - WQNO New Orleans along with a Spanish speaking station which is Cuba?

cyberdad said:

With apologies for the veer.... did you get CKGM at night in Ottawa when it was on 990?

I remember it as having a reasonably good daytime signal but disappearing at night. Unfortunately, I didn't get to do much nighttime DXing during the years I was going to Ottawa every 3-4 months. I usually stayed downtown, where not many signals could penetrate the hotels. Or, if I stayed out in Kenata (ten miles or so west), noise was usually the problem.

I do remember that as CBF, the signal from Montreal on 690 was a monster day and night on a car radio.

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In the final few years, CKGM 990 was a regular at night. Not as great as day reception, but decent and mostly reliable.

690 days is a very weak mix of CBU Vancouver, BC and KRCO Prineville, OR.
Nights it's CBU, XEWW Tijuana and CBKF-1 from SK (French).

-crainbebo

gar fla said:

From Tampa -

Daytime - Used to be a barely audible WOKV Jacksonville between the splatter of the local 680 WGES but with all the extra electronic interference now, I can't get it anymore.

Around sunset - WOKV with a fair signal until they switch power and become directional at which time they completely vanish.

Nighttime - WQNO New Orleans along with a Spanish speaking station which is Cuba?

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When I was at Treasure Island these past two Januarys, I was able to null WGES and hear a weak WOKV. The Spanish you're hearing under WQNO at night is indeed Cuba. R. Progreso IIRC. I hear it regularly under WQNO days in Pensacola. I didn't hear Cuba under daytime WOKV at Treasure Island, however. Probably because I was also nulling Cuba when I nulled WGES.

Springfield, IL:

Day: KSTL St. Louis--decent signal

Night: slop

When 700 WLW has its IBOC on, nothing lives on adjacent frequencies.

I didn't note, but I assume these receptions were all IBOC off.

690 WZAP BRISTOL TN - Winter sunrise during my morning commute.
690 WELD FISHER WV - Sunrise during my morning commute.
690 WIST NEW ORLEANS LA - Now WQNO - Night - In checking the FCC records, I noticed WQNO has an application for 9.1 KW days & .106 KW nights, both non directional.
690 KGGF COFFEYVILLE KS - Night & just before Cincinnati sunrise.
690 WJOX BIRMINGHAM AL - Sunrise & sunset.

690 here is a strong WOKV every day. Very consistent. Sometimes during sunrise-sunset Birmingham comes in. At night it is a wide mix of stations.

In the Trenton NJ area, fringey reception of daytimer WPHE Phoenixville PA with Spanish-language religion. CKGM at night, if anything.

deepstblu said:

In the Trenton NJ area, fringey reception of daytimer WPHE Phoenixville PA with Spanish-language religion. CKGM at night, if anything.

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Warminster PA(Philly 'burbs):

Daytime: WPHE(local Spanish)
Night: mostly CBF from Montreal(French station)

Only when WLW IBOQ is turned off.

Days
Nothing

Sunrise/Sunset
WZAP BRISTOL TN
WELD FISHER WV

Night
WIST NEW ORLEANS LA
KGGF COFFEYVILLE KS

From West Michigan, the usual suspects plus a few low power surprises. Sorted closest to most distant:

WVCY Oshkosh, WI, daytime
WNZK Dearborn Heights, MI, late mornings
KFXN Minneapolis, MN, when they run day rig at night
WELD Fisher, WV
WZAP Bristol, VA
WPHE Phoenixville, PA
CKGM Montreal
KGGF Coffeyville, KS, a regular in the morning
WJOX Birmingham, AL
WQNO New Orleans, LA
KWRP Pueblo, CO @ 1,002 miles, 250w/24w logged 3x during sunrise skip Nov.-Oct 2012!
CBKF-1 Gravelbourg, SK @ 1,065 miles
KRGS Rifle, CO @ 1,145 miles, 2.2kw/16w during sunrise skip, also Nov. 2012 - what a month!
KTSM El Paso, TX. @ 1,344 miles, was very common at night a few years ago, not so much now.
XERG Monterrey, NVL @ 1,448 miles
XEMA Fresnillo, ZAC @ 1,680 miles
XEN México D.F @ 1,808 miles, often heard around sunrise with a big signal.

W. Washington

Days, just CBU / KIRO splash.
Nights, CBU, XEWW, sometimes KRCO Prineville, sometimes CBKF-2 from Saskatchewan. And KIRO splash.

Back when XETRA-690 was an all-sports station, I could listen to it on my car radio from Los Angeles all the way out to Quartzite, Arizona during the day. This was years ago.