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WCCR'S signal and a request

J

johnbasalla

I called WCCR AM1260 today to request that they begin airing the weekly 1/2 hour show, "Christopher Closeup". They do interviews about Religious and non-Religious items. Recently, they had a program about a lady musician who was spared the gas chamber in Nazi occupied and German territory during World War II due to her proficiency on performing music. The lady I talked to said the station would look into this request.

We also got to talking about their signal, which I told her was kind-of ok in Southwestern Cuyahoga County during the day, but begins to fall apart due to other station interference even before sundown, when they have to power down to 5,000 watts. We talked about the challenges of AM radio broadcasting. WCCR has 5 towers. They are happy to report that they have a new transmitter. Their signal problems come, primarily, from below ground issues with some towers. When asked about when repairs would be complete, I found out that cost was a factor, and since we're coming up to the winter season, it may not be a good time to work on this. Therefore, sometime in 2024 is being looked at for the completion of this project. Donations from listeners will be needed. A long time ago, I donated a little and told them, in a letter, to use the donation, solely, for the fixing of the transmitter and signal strength.
 
This past Sunday before 6 PM while driving home, I tuned into WCCR just to monitor their reception. It's pretty much the same as I remembered when I used to listen during the Radio Disney era. And yes, even being on the east side of their transmitter, I do remember reception being wiped out in the evening by another station before they dropped down to 5 kW, but that was mostly because I was located just outside of the local coverage contour.

I just tuned in now, and I can't even make out a word with all the heavy floor noise and interference that's being received.
 
skiwest said:
Wow, that's a goofy pattern. Although pretty good for boaters on the lake at night.
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Well, not only do they have to protect other stations on 1260 kHz, but also on 1250 kHz and 1270 kHz as well. Fortunately for them, it's the same pattern for both day and night, where other AM's have to drastically alter their pattern at night, which may mean beaming in a completely different direction.
 
johnbasalla said:
I called WCCR AM1260 today to request that they begin airing the weekly 1/2 hour show, "Christopher Closeup". They do interviews about Religious and non-Religious items. Recently, they had a program about a lady musician who was spared the gas chamber in Nazi occupied and German territory during World War II due to her proficiency on performing music. The lady I talked to said the station would look into this request.

We also got to talking about their signal, which I told her was kind-of ok in Southwestern Cuyahoga County during the day, but begins to fall apart due to other station interference even before sundown, when they have to power down to 5,000 watts. We talked about the challenges of AM radio broadcasting. WCCR has 5 towers. They are happy to report that they have a new transmitter. Their signal problems come, primarily, from below ground issues with some towers. When asked about when repairs would be complete, I found out that cost was a factor, and since we're coming up to the winter season, it may not be a good time to work on this. Therefore, sometime in 2024 is being looked at for the completion of this project. Donations from listeners will be needed. A long time ago, I donated a little and told them, in a letter, to use the donation, solely, for the fixing of the transmitter and signal strength.
Click to expand...
Has WCCR/1260 ever looked into getting an FM translator for better reception?
 
tblanks said:
Has WCCR/1260 ever looked into getting an FM translator for better reception?
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Probably no more available frequencies left for them to broadcast on, at least with a decent coverage area. Another reason could be the lack of funding to buy or put one on the air. Streaming is most likely how they are reaching listeners, and I bet that a few listeners would be affected if they became exclusive to streaming and apps.
 
Voicetrack of Reason said:
1260 had separate day and night sites. The current site is the former night site.
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The current transmitter site was built in Brecksville in the early 80's, which moved the nighttime broadcast from the original Seven Hills site off of Rockside Road. In the early 90's, the owners at that time moved the daytime pattern to the nighttime site as well, and increased the daytime broadcast from 5 kW to 10 kW. Afterwards, the Seven Hills site was abandoned and the towers were removed. That land was recently turned into a park with walking trails.
 
skiwest said:
Wow, that's a goofy pattern. Although pretty good for boaters on the lake at night.
Click to expand...
Patterns are not, usually, "goofy". Every null has a reason and those reasons are usually to protect other stations on the same channel or adjacent ones.

Only in a few cases are patterns intended to improve market coverage. Examples are WWL and WBZ, which send less power over the ocean to serve land areas better. But in most cases, stations send signal away from other stations that have prior or established "rights" on their channel.
 
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