The audio equivalent of coal
Tweeted this morning by Phil Bacharach:
Dear Santa, thanks for bringing back 105.3 The Spy. Not 2 be an ingrate, but can you improve its reception in OKC? That would be perfect
The elves at the FCC will shoot down that idea in a hurry, and the reason is something called Minimum Distance Spacing, which is intended to keep stations from interfering with one another. To meet full spacing requirements, this station at 105.3 must be at least 31 km away from stations at 104.9 (KKWD Bethany) and 105.7 (KROU Spencer), and at least 72 km away from stations at 105.1 (KBLP Lindsay) and 105.5 (KWCO Chickasha). A cursory check of the map reveals that this is not happening. There is a provision for squeezing in a little closer, but it requires contour protection on all sides: the new guy must reduce tower height and/or power output from the maximum permitted for that class of station to protect existing stations. (All these stations are class A: only KKWD operates at a full 6,000 watts.)
A similar situation prevails with Jack FM at 97.3. And the deal that allowed the Sports Animal (WWLS) to move from 97.9 to 98.1 was somewhat complicated: it required the moving of a Stillwater station (KVRO) from 98.1 to 101.1, and a substantial reduction in power at the KATT (100.5) to reduce interference to the new Stillwater signal. The FCC has overseen swaps much more complex than this, though.
Bottom line: The Spy is what it is, and assuming, as we should, that Ferris isn’t rolling in dough, it’s not going anywhere.
Scooby214 »
28 November 2009 · 7:57 am
Thanks for sharing the links in regard to minimum spacing. I knew about the minimum spacing requirements, but I didn’t know the actual distances required for spacing.
Since the signal won’t improve, it will be critically important to play the music that will bring that niche audience in. Thankfully, internet streaming means that perhaps they will be able to snag a few listeners even at OU.
While The Spy will never reach Norman with a listenable signal, I have found that it is listenable on a decent car radio throughout most of the metro. I was east of Choctaw on Thursday, and found the station to come in fairly clearly, and that was while driving through the hilly, tree lined section of Choctaw Road between I-40 and Reno. My reception near Crossroads Mall was also reasonable. Unfortunately, reception near my house, on the strip of NW 23rd Street between Portland and Rockwell, becomes extremely spotty. It seems as though 104.9 overloads the Ford car radio, as I can sometimes pick up 104.9 in the interference. Careful radio placement at home makes The Spy listenable.
CGHill »
28 November 2009 · 9:17 am
I think proximity to other towers is the problem; the worst reception area I’ve found so far is near the antenna farm east of the Broadway Extension.
The KKWD tower, if I remember correctly, is near 27th and MacArthur, which would explain problems along that stretch of 23rd.
Scooby214 »
28 November 2009 · 10:56 am
You are right. KKWD’s tower is at NW 29th and MacArthur, next to the water tower. The old studio building is still there, with a metal storage container in front. I’m sure you are right about the proximity to towers, as a similar thing happens with 99.7 when you drive the tower farm, or even near the huge Clear Channel tower near Memorial Road.
CGHill »
1 December 2009 · 10:32 pm
Anyway, the story is starting to shake out. If the Wikifolk are to be believed, the deal between Last Bastion and Ferris calls for LB to retain actual ownership of the facility, and for Ferris to undertake to program it for them. (This is similar to the Bob FM deal with Champlin/Chisholm Trail, where Citadel has the local-marketing agreement.) Almost certainly Ferris will cost less than syndicated ESPN Deportes; the station is running mostly jockless, though Ferris is doing afternoon drive himself.
Despite the mono broadcasting, all the streams I’ve tried have been in decent stereo. I would love to see the Spy on the list of tunable stations in iTunes, but for now, I have the stream pasted into iTunes as a playlist, so at least I don’t have to remember the URL.