Does anyone have an opinion on which market has the overall furthest reaching FMs? I'm thinking somewhere with a lot of Class C's and flat topography. Off hand, Houston, Tampa, Orlando and New Orleans come to mind. Orlando and Tampa have some lower powered stations, but still have plenty of 100 kw stations on tall towers. Thanks
-
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
Market with the strongest FM signals overall
- Thread starter CentralFL
- Start date
Albuquerque... tall mountain to the east of the metro area, and mostly open area in the market itself and to the west. The real issue is that, outside the city area, there is sparse population. Same goes for other markets like Las Vegas and Phoenix that have a tall mountain location overlooking the market.
For huge coverage, look at some of the FMs in the Dakotas, Iowa, Nebraska and Kansas that are on towers of a co-owned or formerly co-owned TV station, often nearly 2000 feet high. While most Florida and Gulf Coast stations avoid towers over 1000 feet due to vulnerability, those plains state towers are magnificent for coverage.
Also look as some of the station on the Senior Road tower in Houston or the antenna farm in Dallas.
(Senior Road is the site of the terrible failure during construction seen at
That is terrible footage of those men falling.
Thanks for the market info. Hadn't thought of the Gulf coast having shorter towers. Orlando's biggies are nothing to sneeze at - about 1,600 HAAT, but 4,000 in Albuquerque - that is amazingly high up. Dallas is pretty flat and Towers 2,000 up would make a large signal in a large market. I would imagine that in Phoenix and Las Vegas, those same mountain ranges giving the height would limit coverage in certain directions.
Thanks for the market info. Hadn't thought of the Gulf coast having shorter towers. Orlando's biggies are nothing to sneeze at - about 1,600 HAAT, but 4,000 in Albuquerque - that is amazingly high up. Dallas is pretty flat and Towers 2,000 up would make a large signal in a large market. I would imagine that in Phoenix and Las Vegas, those same mountain ranges giving the height would limit coverage in certain directions.
I remember the few times staying in Kissimmee, I could catch stations from Tampa on a hotel radio. On a car, Ocala and Tampa signals came in well.
Granted, this was a few decades ago before Florida went mad with translators.
Rabbit hole for anyone that cares. Albuquerque has Rio Rancho to the NorthWest which was sold in the 50's and 60's as investment to people across the nation and world. The Metro area would be huge if it actually grew as sold. New Mexico had very lax land laws allowing land to be sold as long as you had a "graded" street out front.
Leaving huge scars in the dessert of unpaved empty streets. El Paso has Horizon City that is similar.
Regarding Albuquerque - there is Santa Fe to the northeast but, for radio, that's really a separate market. When I've been there, I've noticed that some of the Albuquerque FM stations can have rather spotty coverage in some locations: even though Sandia Crest is adjacent to the northeastern tip of Albuquerque. While those stations are all class C's, none of them have superpower coverage.
Not all Albuquerque stations are on the Crest, of course, particularly drop-ins from later years. What I found notable there in the early 1980s was the way the FM dial filled up from 88.3 to 100.3 - and then nothing until KFMG (now KBQI) at 107.9.
Coverage of Houston stations, already no slouch due to the Senior Road installation, was often enhanced by tropospheric ducting, frequent along the Gulf Coast.
Not all Albuquerque stations are on the Crest, of course, particularly drop-ins from later years. What I found notable there in the early 1980s was the way the FM dial filled up from 88.3 to 100.3 - and then nothing until KFMG (now KBQI) at 107.9.
Coverage of Houston stations, already no slouch due to the Senior Road installation, was often enhanced by tropospheric ducting, frequent along the Gulf Coast.
Cedar Hill does have some monster signals, but it's hard to beat the sheer mileage that Liberman's tower in Era gives KNOR and KBOC. At only 43kW, traveling from Ada, Oklahoma clear down to Waxahachie, Texas, you can carry 93.7 the entire way. KBOC is even better, regularly overtaking the closer co-channel KYYK, here in Tyler. Building penetration leaves much to desire, in many areas, but certainly not bad for a couple of rimshot signals, one of which has half the power of the big ones coming from Cedar Hill.
TX and FL definitely have an advantage over other states, especially with so many large markets close to each other.
Once you get into the Carolinas there is more space between the markets. Charleston has 9 100kw equivalent stations but there are 43 FM signals in the market including translators.
The powerful FMs from Charleston (95.1, 96.9, 101.7, 102.5) can compete with any market anywhere, especially the first 3. You can get a good signal 80-90 miles out for all of them.
Once you get into the Carolinas there is more space between the markets. Charleston has 9 100kw equivalent stations but there are 43 FM signals in the market including translators.
The powerful FMs from Charleston (95.1, 96.9, 101.7, 102.5) can compete with any market anywhere, especially the first 3. You can get a good signal 80-90 miles out for all of them.
The major issue with Cedar Hill is that the "Metroplex" is growing mostly to the 180° arc north of the DFW airport, and Cedar Hill is on the deeper southern side of the market, away from the growth.
While OTA signal coverage will be far less important in the future, this is still even a short-term problem for the Cedar Hill stations that don't program mostly to the central core of the market.
Not really an entire market but one signal in Santa Barbara has a monster of coverage, although it has been a little hampered in more recent years by other full signals and low powers/translators around Southern California. At one time KRUZ/103.3 could be heard as far north as Monterey County, all the way down to the beaches of Baja, roughly 400 miles north to south, from a transmitter of 100,000 watts at 2,969 feet.
I was picking up some of them in NC. In fact, I think I was hearing WXLY at 102.5 east of Hickory before WMYI came on the air in the mid 1980s. The station called its format "classic hits" and I remember The Big Bopper's "Chantilly Lace".
I don't recall getting a good signal from Ecstasy (96.9) in the car in Myrtle Beach but there was a cable channel that displayed announcements that had it. To my knowledge Myrtle Beach didn't have beautiful music at that time.
correction: 105,000 watts
Interesting to note that much of DFW‘s urban sprawl is now closer to the market’s northern rimshot sticks than to Cedar Hill.
Opposite situation in Houston where the biggest growth is on the opposite side of the market from the rimshot sticks, but solidly covered by the Missouri City signals.
Let's also look at the stations in Colorado. While FM stations in Denver, Colorado Springs and Pueblo have their towers on nearby peaks with reasonable "Height Above Average Terrain," the average terrain in Colorado is often more than a mile above sea level. (Denver is known as "The Mile High City.")
Take Audacy's classic rock KQMT 99.5 Denver for example. 74,000 watts at 1,183 feet HAAT. But how high is that above sea level? 7,480 feet!
Travel down to Colorado Springs. Cumulus' AC station 92.9 KKPK is 60,000 watts at 2,198 feet HAAT. But height above sea level? 9,587 feet. Try climbing that!
iHeart's Top 40 station in Pueblo, 98.9 KKMG is 57,000 watts at 2,280 feet HAAT. Above sea level? 9,665 feet.
It's not uncommon to hear these stations 150 miles or more from their towers.
Take Audacy's classic rock KQMT 99.5 Denver for example. 74,000 watts at 1,183 feet HAAT. But how high is that above sea level? 7,480 feet!
Travel down to Colorado Springs. Cumulus' AC station 92.9 KKPK is 60,000 watts at 2,198 feet HAAT. But height above sea level? 9,587 feet. Try climbing that!
iHeart's Top 40 station in Pueblo, 98.9 KKMG is 57,000 watts at 2,280 feet HAAT. Above sea level? 9,665 feet.
It's not uncommon to hear these stations 150 miles or more from their towers.
WMIT 106.9, licensed to Black Mountain, NC, has its tower on a peak near Mount Mitchell. That's where the call letters come from. It has to be over 6700 feet. With a 36,000-watt signal it sounds like a local station in Concord, about 6000 feet lower, over 100 miles away. They bought a translator in Rock Hill south of Charlotte but considering Rock Hill has a station at 107.1, they might need it.
Don't know how far east it might reach if not for WMGU in the Fayetteville market. I've picked up both at home but usually WMIT has the better signal.
The format is mostly Contemporary Christian with some preaching. Billy Graham's people own it.
Don't know how far east it might reach if not for WMGU in the Fayetteville market. I've picked up both at home but usually WMIT has the better signal.
The format is mostly Contemporary Christian with some preaching. Billy Graham's people own it.
Not sure who would have the most total, but the station that covers the most land area is WHOM 94.9 in Mt. Washington, NH. KBIG 104.3 in Los Angeles covers more total area, but about half of its coverage is water.
These days, I'm hard-pressed to think of any market's FM stations that regularly and reliably go more than about 80 miles from the transmitter. It might be worse than that now with all of the translators. As David mentions, stations on Albuquerque's Sandia Crest put out quite a signal to the west. They don't, however, go very far east for obvious reasons. On a good car radio or home stereo, the Class C and C1 FM's in Austin and San Antonio could be heard in the other market, but only one or two would be audible on a Walkman or clock radio. Not sure if that's still the case with all the translators, though. KSMG 105.3 used to be the San Antonio station that put the best signal into Austin, and it has a translator on top of it now. What's now KBPA and KROX-FM put the best signals into San Antonio, but both have moved closer into Austin today. Plus, the 103.7 translator in San Antonio caused KBPA/KEYI problems almost as far back as 30 years ago. The DFW stations on Cedar Hill would make it to about Waco in the car. Not sure if that's quite 100 miles, but it's close.