RE: Something else on 1670AM in Newton

["Aaron [Bishop] Read" <aread@speakeasy.net>]

At 12:31 AM 7/2/2002, elipolo@earthlink.net wrote:
>I believe that what you were hearing most likely actually * was * Allston-
>Brighton Free Radio. I don't want to be any kind of a whistle blower, but
>I think that perhaps they've recently "tweaked" things a bit.

Nope - I know it's not ABfree for two reasons.  First, I can get it (just 
barely) at my apartment, which is just east of Boston College.   I was 
listening that morning and this morning and heard the music I expected to 
hear.   Then ABfree fades out as I pass BC, and then getting towards Newton 
Centre, the moviefone fades in (it was there this morning and yesterday 
afternoon, too).

Second, I'm the guy who programs all the automation on ABfree, so I know 
EXACTLY what I should be hearing at given times during the day.  I have 
remote-control software links to the computers in the studios so I can 
check what's been played and it sure as heck wasn't moviefone listings.

There have been a lot of expanded band pirates in Newton and 
Watertown...but they're mostly Haitian.  We did have to deal with one a 
year or so ago when they went on 1670 AM with 30 watts from Watertown and 
blasted out our signal.   But this moviefone thing is nowhere near that 
strong...it can't be more than Part 15 levels.

As for the tweaking, I've been involved with that transmitter for a long 
time now, we haven't made any changes as of late but I have noticed that it 
changes itself depending on the weather (cheap PoS transmitter) and also 
the frequency drifts a lot more than I'd like.  Not enough to be really 
hideous, but it's floating on what would be the legal limit if we were Part 
73 as opposed to Part 15.   Ehhh...you can see why this CARP B.S. has 
ABfree scared - we really depend on that webcast to survive, but the AM 
side gets some listeners too.


>I've been hearing them quite listenably lately in and beyond Boston College
>and Chestnut Hill, and then into Newton Centre square, fading out shortly
>thereafter as you start heading down Centre St. toward Needham, as you said.
>
>Into the north side of Newton, they're listenable in Newton Corner and don't
>fade until west of Newtonville.
>
>They're covering most of the east side of Watertown, and heading north into
>Cambridge they're listenable in and beyond Harvard and Central Squares, and
>faintly audible enough to discern program content in my driveway on Summer 
>St.
>in Somerville.

The way the transmitter is positioned on top of the big building on 
Braintree St in Allston, it does go north and northwest a lot better than 
other directions.  I've listened in Central Sq (barely) and around Harvard 
Sq.  When it rains I can get it almost to Porter Sq.   But I've NEVER been 
able to receive it west of Newton Corner/Sheraton - you must have one hell 
of a radio to get it that far west.

I've been trying for years to get BU to allow us to put a transmitter on 
top of the old abandoned WBUR tower on the roof of the COM building...a 
ground like that with that height (it's a hair taller than Warren Towers, 
the dorm next door) would get Part 15 power out 3 or 4 miles I'd bet :-)

>P.S., is this Needham St. studio actually on the air with some flea power? 
>How
>could they be first adjacent to WRCA and WKOX?

Maybe it is WRCA and WKOX....do they do stocks and business news?

____________________________________________
Aaron "Bishop" Read     aread@speakeasy.net
FriedBagels.com Technical Consulting
www.friedbagels.com   AOL-IM: ReadAaron
"I'm weird, but around here it's barely noticeable."