What had been long expected in the Flower City finally came to pass earlier today.
WXXI Rochester Launches 105.9 WXXI-FM - RadioInsight
WXXI Rochester Launches 105.9 WXXI-FM - RadioInsight
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WXXI expands its footprint in Rochester
- Thread starter ckg279
- Start date
Well, 105.9 is only 3,000 watts on a 180 foot tower. (There is a construction permit to go 3,700 watts on a 427 foot tower. But who knows when or if it will be built.)
The current FM signal is somewhat limited. So there may be some folks in the more distant suburbs of Rochester that can get the AM better than the FM.
And maybe the 107.5 translator could be used for another non-commercial format such as AAA? Or it may be sold off.
Interesting that the 91.5 Classical station had its call sign changed to WXXO. It had been WXXI-FM since signing on the air in 1974. But those call letters are now on 105.9.
The current FM signal is somewhat limited. So there may be some folks in the more distant suburbs of Rochester that can get the AM better than the FM.
And maybe the 107.5 translator could be used for another non-commercial format such as AAA? Or it may be sold off.
Interesting that the 91.5 Classical station had its call sign changed to WXXO. It had been WXXI-FM since signing on the air in 1974. But those call letters are now on 105.9.
For example, the better FM signal and the AM could simulcast, and an HD channel on the Class A FM could originate for the translator, where they could do classical and/or jazz. While that is just one alternative, it's intended to show that they could do many things to expand their service to the market.
Other public stations have put classical on the weaker signal. Two examples would be WQXR and WCRB. However the hue & cry from the classical fans would be tremendous. But typically the news format out-raises the classical format. More to come, obviously.
Thats an assumption that could be answered by reading the current STA filing for permission to be silent:
"WXXI is currently working to return WJZR to air well before the one-year statutory deadline
(i.e., July 12, 2023) at the modified facilities specified in LMS File No. 0000203663."
LMS File No. 0000203663 is the CP
The answer you're looking for is "May 2023." It's on the air as of yesterday, and the license to cover should be filed any minute now.
The current AM signal is even more limited when it's in night mode. There are people even in close-in suburbs who can't get it during drive time in the winter.
As for the new FM, I've only had a day to test it so far, but it's covering all of Monroe County in HD as well as the adjacent parts of Livingston, Ontario and Wayne. This is a relatively compact market. You might note that the #1 station in the ratings here is a 3 kW equivalent class A, albeit one with an excellent transmitter site right in the center of town and a format that's aimed at the core of the market.
Or not.
105.9 became WXXI-FM because it's simulcasting the news format, branded as "WXXI News," from WXXI 1370.
91.5 still brands as "WXXI Classical" except at legal ID time.
If there's indeed more to come with respect to those two signals,. It will be news to me.
91.5-WXXO has an amazing signal. In the Saratoga Springs area when local 91.5-WRPI is off the air...WXXO is clearly audible on a decent radio...even a Walkman...Also...The WXXO call letters were in use here back in the'90s on a former Oldies station...
On the other hand, if a public radio station has been broadcasting classical music only part-time and is then able to program it full-time, albeit on a weaker signal than the original station, this could actually be welcome news.
This has happened in Kansas City and in Columbia, Mo. - and Iowa Public Radio program services (except for KSUI) have the stronger station with news (and AAA in the evenings) with classical being on weaker, rimshot signals (or at least rimshots to Des Moines).
For WXXI, the news service was already available full-time on AM. So the FM addition is just an extension of what the AM was already doing. In such an instance, a swap of FM signals would just add unnecessary complication.
The BTPM radio stations do much the same thing; WBFO NPR and WNED Classical(not necessarily on-air, but definitely in terms of their logo, etc.).