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Wdcd 1540
- Thread starter PHIL Z
- Start date
WOW!!!! Wasn't too many moons ago that WPTR (!!) was blasting Top 40 to the entire Northeast....along with WKBW, WPOP, WDRC, WRKO, WINS, WABC, WOWO, CKLW......and many other regional outlets.....
Sad to say....but the days of "real" AM radio have gone the way of the dodo bird......!!
Sad to say....but the days of "real" AM radio have gone the way of the dodo bird......!!
CTListener
Walk of Fame Participant
40 years or so for most of these. Sorry, that's many, many moons ago.
Kemosabe
Star Participant
WOW!!!! Wasn't too many moons ago that WPTR (!!) was blasting Top 40 to the entire Northeast....along with WKBW, WPOP, WDRC, WRKO, WINS, WABC, WOWO, CKLW......and many other regional outlets.....
Sad to say....but the days of "real" AM radio have gone the way of the dodo bird......!!
The WPTR calls had a four-year reprise on 1540 with the "Legends" format in 2000. I recall the large call letters that proudly adorned one of the three towers.
W. Arnold Holmes
New Participating Member
Sell the blasted station to none other than Townsquare! Shoot, owning one Christian talk station (besides WDCD-FM 96.7) is enough anyway! Let Townsquare turn it into WTMM-AM 1540 The Team! 1540 AM is much stronger-signaled (50,000 watts, or at least it used to be) than that overrated FM 104.5! Move Urban from 99.1 FM to 104.5 FM with new call letters -- WYPS (as in "We're Your Power Station") -- and a new name -- "P-104.5 FM -- Hip-Hop & R&B Power"! As for 99.1, make it Gospel, if need be!
50 kw at 1540 covers less than 1 kw at 550.
The 104.5 60 dbu covers significantly more people than the 10 mV/m of the AM. And it is FM. An AM in the market accounts for only about 5% of the under-55 audience
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Even with 50KW WPTR's coverage was not very good. On top of being at the top end of the dial and the coverage problems that presents, the ground conductivity in that area also stinks, which is why they had to up their power to 50KW from 10KW back in the forties when they first went on. They couldn't place the required signal strength over Albany with 10KW. The only thing that saved them over the years was the peanut shaped pattern that pushed the signal towards Albany and Schenectady. What killed them was the lack of signal to the south and west. To the south, once you got past Selkirk the signal was very weak, and pretty much gone by the time you hit Ravena and Coxsackie. Same towards Altamont and Delanson.
When I was doing engineering there in the late 70s, I remember being able to sit on a hill in Guilderland, clearly see the towers in front of me, and hearing KXEL way over top of WPTR. Great signal at night, though, over most of New England and the Maritime Provinces of Canada. I got regular reception reports from all over those areas.
I would think, however, that there must be some format that could turn a profit on 1540. I agree with the comments that Crawford should sell it and let someone come in who might have the wherewithal and deep pockets to make a go of it until it could begin making money.
When I was doing engineering there in the late 70s, I remember being able to sit on a hill in Guilderland, clearly see the towers in front of me, and hearing KXEL way over top of WPTR. Great signal at night, though, over most of New England and the Maritime Provinces of Canada. I got regular reception reports from all over those areas.
I would think, however, that there must be some format that could turn a profit on 1540. I agree with the comments that Crawford should sell it and let someone come in who might have the wherewithal and deep pockets to make a go of it until it could begin making money.
CTListener
Walk of Fame Participant
I remember listening to WPTR as a teen in suburban Boston. It came in OK at night -- not as well as WKBW at 1520, but well above the noise level and KXEL even during fades.
danikayser84
Leading Participant
Now why would Townsquare buy 1540? They're probably not interested in any AMs in the Albany area (or in general) I think it'd be more likely to go to another religious broadcaster, ethnic broadcaster or noncommercial than someone like Townsquare
Although speaking of AMs/translators, wouldn't it make more sense to put Fox Sports 980 on 99.9 instead of iHeart's syndicated country format?
I think it'd be more likely to go to another religious broadcaster, ethnic broadcaster or noncommercial than someone like TownsquareAlthough speaking of AMs/translators, wouldn't it make more sense to put Fox Sports 980 on 99.9 instead of iHeart's syndicated country format?
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