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Zombie Radio

T

The New Chico

Leading Participant
Spent a little time this week in NW WA state, and ran across the "triplecast" of KWLE 1340 Anacortes, KRPA 1110 Oak Harbor and associated FM translator near Bellingham. What an odd mess.

1) Format is downbeat folk/ acoustic singer-songwriter stuff exclusively. REALLY downbeat, as in just this side of suicide.
2) Modulation of the two AMs I would guess at 30 to 40%. Processing? Absent.
3) The FM xlator I would also estimate at about 40% modulation. It's in stereo, but only broadcasting the right channel. Or a mono signal into the right channel only.
4) No ads of course, also no liners or positioners of any kind. Just a random PSA at the bottom of the hour and the legal ID at the top. In each stop set there is also an automated time and temperature announce.

My question? Why bother? I remember something about the ownership being essentially Canadian folks who wanted to border blast back up to Surrey with a Punjabi language format, and that the Oak Harbor station had been approved for a power bump to get some sort of signal up to coastal Vancouver...but that all went down several years ago and since...nothing. SOMEBODY continues to spend a little money here. SOMEBODY chose to invest some dough to get the FM engineering done and that station up and running.

What would you guess is the end game here?
 
Since the owners can't make money on it as a Vancouver rimshot, my guess is they've added the translator(s) to make the stations more marketable to sell...especially the Bellingham translator. May not be worth metro Vancouver AM money, but at least the Bellingham FM will make the total package worth a bit more than trying to sell 2 AMs. Certainly the engineering fees, filing fees, and a few thousand bucks of basic FM broadcast gear is money well spent. The potential increase in sale price certainly means it pays for itself several times over.

Wouldn't be surprised if they're already listed with a broker somewhere or will be shortly.

Speaking of the Bellingham translator, I have no idea where it's broadcasting from unless they very recently constructed an 85' tower around that area. The supposed location for the translator puts it in an empty field with no towers or tall buildings nearby
 
The New Chico said:
Spent a little time this week in NW WA state, and ran across the "triplecast" of KWLE 1340 Anacortes, KRPA 1110 Oak Harbor and associated FM translator near Bellingham. What an odd mess.

1) Format is downbeat folk/ acoustic singer-songwriter stuff exclusively. REALLY downbeat, as in just this side of suicide.
2) Modulation of the two AMs I would guess at 30 to 40%. Processing? Absent.
3) The FM xlator I would also estimate at about 40% modulation. It's in stereo, but only broadcasting the right channel. Or a mono signal into the right channel only.
4) No ads of course, also no liners or positioners of any kind. Just a random PSA at the bottom of the hour and the legal ID at the top. In each stop set there is also an automated time and temperature announce.

My question? Why bother? I remember something about the ownership being essentially Canadian folks who wanted to border blast back up to Surrey with a Punjabi language format, and that the Oak Harbor station had been approved for a power bump to get some sort of signal up to coastal Vancouver...but that all went down several years ago and since...nothing. SOMEBODY continues to spend a little money here. SOMEBODY chose to invest some dough to get the FM engineering done and that station up and running.

What would you guess is the end game here?
Click to expand...

I imagine the unfamiliar strange music might be Creative Commons type-stuff (the kind on Jamendo, Free Music Archive, etc.) It tends to lean in that direction.

Seeing as there is no advertising (the only restriction on Creative Commons music is commercial usage), that saves on the ASCAP/BMI PRO bills. Granted, it doesn't get you many listeners. But it cuts everything down to essentially the transmitter power bills and misc. whatever.

KRPA is controlled by a lamp timer. No sign on/sign off announcements. They have their own FM translator on 99.5. It too is right channel

As for a reason to keep going this way. I see none whatsoever when this board is just absolutely crawling with Smooth Jazz PDs all over the place.
 
Bongwater said:
As for a reason to keep going this way. I see none whatsoever when this board is just absolutely crawling with Smooth Jazz PDs all over the place.
Click to expand...

Absolutely. And being a Bellinghamster (is that what y’all call yourselves?), I expect you at the forefront of online petition drives to bring Smooth Jazz into Whatcom County.

With enough effort, we ALL can bring another unusually formatted low powered station in a place that now has one of the most congested FM bands in the country...and make Western Washington the center of the Smooth Jazz renaissance.

Plus, being ironically out of place in today’s world should make it a hit with the hipsters in these parts. Screw a station van, the future Smooth Jazz 101.9 will have a fixed-gear bicycle as it’s promotional vehicle and be broadcasting “from the Pabst Blue Ribbon studios” during its TOH ID.
 
seattlesarchiebunker said:
Absolutely. And being a Bellinghamster (is that what y’all call yourselves?), I expect you at the forefront of online petition drives to bring Smooth Jazz into Whatcom County.

With enough effort, we ALL can bring another unusually formatted low powered station in a place that now has one of the most congested FM bands in the country...and make Western Washington the center of the Smooth Jazz renaissance.

Plus, being ironically out of place in today’s world should make it a hit with the hipsters in these parts. Screw a station van, the future Smooth Jazz 101.9 will have a fixed-gear bicycle as it’s promotional vehicle and be broadcasting “from the Pabst Blue Ribbon studios” during its TOH ID.
Click to expand...

Yes, we are often called "Bellinghamsters". No. I will not be doing any petitions. And for "we ALL" to "make Western Washington the center of the Smooth Jazz renaissance", they'll probably want a few bucks first. Upfront.

Don't look at me like that. Daddy's all tapped out. Go mow a lawn.
 
Folk-singer songwriter? I don't know what they're thinking, I'm guessing it's just to keep the transmitter running until the power company shuts it off. I don't think they even have a website anymore, either. It'd be better to turn in the license. 1110 and 1340 won't cover all of southwest B.C. even if they go to Hindi/Punjabi/whatever. They already have 1550 and 1600, strong signals at that. The days of KLKI and KWDB are long gone. I remember KLKI's old standards format when I was little. Weak in south Snohomish County, but usable the further north you went. KWDB was a pipsqueak signal when they were full-service/talk/whatever.
 
crainbebo said:
Folk-singer songwriter? I don't know what they're thinking, I'm guessing it's just to keep the transmitter running until the power company shuts it off. I don't think they even have a website anymore, either. It'd be better to turn in the license. 1110 and 1340 won't cover all of southwest B.C. even if they go to Hindi/Punjabi/whatever. They already have 1550 and 1600, strong signals at that. The days of KLKI and KWDB are long gone. I remember KLKI's old standards format when I was little. Weak in south Snohomish County, but usable the further north you went. KWDB was a pipsqueak signal when they were full-service/talk/whatever.
Click to expand...

I remember 1340 when it was KAGT and 1110 when it was KISD. KAGT became KLKI in 1984. KISD signed on in '84 as well with a Hot AC format, changing to standards as KJTT (K-Jet) in 1987. By the mid '90s, the wheels on KJTT came off and segues from Judas Priest to "Alvin's Harmonica" The Chipmunks were not uncommon. The transmitter was an issue (the audio was telephone quality) and the Navy base didn't like the towers. The station went off the air for nearly a year as they regrouped as KWDB.

KLKI was an MOR (Middle of The Road) format (like KAGT was.) It changed to conservative talk in the '90s, then to standards in 2001.
 
From what I understand KRPA 1110 was originally intended to target the Duncan-Lake Cowichan area (with its large Punjabi population) and Victoria to a lesser degree. 50,000 watt CKWX 1130 pretty much destroys KRPA's 500 watt signal in the Vancouver area.
 
Dan Sys said:
From what I understand KRPA 1110 was originally intended to target the Duncan-Lake Cowichan area (with its large Punjabi population) and Victoria to a lesser degree. 50,000 watt CKWX 1130 pretty much destroys KRPA's 500 watt signal in the Vancouver area.
Click to expand...

That'd be a hell of a feat of engineering. Even with 9,000 watts.
 
KRPA...targeting Duncan? Yeah, sure, Juice FM comes in quite well on Whidbey but a 500w pipsqueak on 1110 khz, even with the Sound conductivity, probably doesn't work.
 
To the contrary. KRPA 1110 puts out a local-like signal all over Southern Vancouver Island. At least it did a couple of years ago during my last visit over there.
 
Happy to report that the 99.5 translator in Oak Harbor is now transmitting on BOTH channels. Still in mono I think. Plus the added bonus of being horribly overdriven somewhere in the audio chain!

But, progress!:cool:
 
KWLE used to have a stream as well, that's how I first heard them. I remember even back in 2012 the mix was quite odd. I've never gotten 1340 over the air, but have received 1110. Last time that happened though, I think they were as close to an AC as they've ever been.
 
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