Denver Has Two Classic Rock Stations - Is There A Difference?

99.5 KQMT is owned by Cumulus, 103.5 KRFX is owned by iHeart. Both have great signals, both are professionally programmed. It's rare for two Classic Rock stations to co-exist in one market. There used to be two Classic Rock stations in LA and in Detroit, but not now.

Currently KQMT is #1 in Denver, KRFX is tied for #9. But often the ratings are much closer. So is there much of a difference?

Gregg. said:

99.5 KQMT is owned by Cumulus, 103.5 KRFX is owned by iHeart. Both have great signals, both are professionally programmed. It's rare for two Classic Rock stations to co-exist in one market. There used to be two Classic Rock stations in LA and in Detroit, but not now.

Currently KQMT is #1 in Denver, KRFX is tied for #9. But often the ratings are much closer. So is there much of a difference?

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99.5 is owned by Entercom.

I would say that 99.5 has more mellow rock in general, and 103.5 is harder rock in general, but there's overlap too.

I usually land on 99.5 for longer with my taste.

I should also say Chicago had two Classic Rock stations till recently when The Loop was sold to K-Love. WLUP was harder edged, while The Drive WDRV was a bit more pop-leaning.

So out of four large markets that had Classic Rock competitions, only Denver remains.

What about Kool 105 in Denver that’s really the main classic hits station for the market I think.

Yeah, but KOOL 105 leans more to the pop side.

Agree with an above post that The Fox is harder classic rock while The Mountain is classic rock with a slight classic hits/classic AAA lean.

Overall, rock does better in Denver than most markets. KTCL and KBCO are among the most successful alternative and AAA stations you will find. KBPI doesn't have as great ratings, but there are a long standing mainstream/active rock station.

As for classic hits, The Rock, 1510 AM / 93.7, trumps 105.1 by a mile. Also TRI 102.5 is very good from the northern part of the state, which unbelievably, I can pick up in the Springs with noise. I dislike KOOL, because they tend to play many songs at a higher pitch, which I detest. Also the repetition factor is high.

Other honorable mentions are 810AM and 1430AM, but both have morphed into a standards / soft oldies format of late.

DavidEduardo said:

Until Nielsen quit listing The Rock and other low unsubscribed performers, it was about a 0.4 share station. KXKL is around a 5 share station, and generally in the top 5 in 25-54.

Obviously, what most folks like is not what you like.

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Actually, I do like most music, including many songs heard on KXKL. I prefer 1510's (and their "small market" approach to programming, which is the preferred method for people who enjoy music) over the ones I dislike more.

Funny, it's the lower performers that suit my needs the most. Thankfully, they exist and far outnumber the large metro stations that stick to a specific demographic target. The only thing I dislike from those small stations are audio quality issues, but I suppose that goes with the territory.

I would assume that the other stations I listed above also fall into that bracket of "low performers" 1430, 810, 1510 and even 890 (all Beatles). But the music is priceless!