AM Radios

[Sandy G]

Yeah, I have adblockers, but for whatever reason, it DIDN'T get them. And I still despise Chortle-They run their ads on TV EVERY time the shows break for ads-And its always either that smarmy metrosexual, or the gal in that dopey blue dress-PLUS the annoying "Too School for Cool "electronic" piano background music.. At least it ain't a gotdam ukulele, some idiot whistling, or that smarmy "Synth-Clapping" crapola the Mad Men currently think denotes "homey, cheery" to the Great Unwashed masses they're trying to shill to..

[Jeffhs]

AM DXing is almost pointless, except for the thrill of hearing stations hundreds of miles away from one's home. Who wants to hear the same syndicated talk shows they can get on a local station from a station 500+ miles distant? That's what AM radio has become--the same old talk programs on almost every station on the dial. There are some very rare exceptions, such as low-power oldies music stations in small towns and religious broadcasters, to say nothing of the big all-news stations in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles and Pittsburgh. For the most part, IMHO, the AM broadcast band isn't worth listening to anymore. Most music stations are now on FM.

I see a day coming in the not-too-distant future when the AM broadcast band will be reassigned to other services, not unlike the reassignment of analog TV channels. The programs now on AM stations will likely move to FM or to the Internet, if they haven't done so already. I understand there are many places in Canada where there are no more AM stations; most AM programming has been moved to FM, although there are still a few AM talk stations, such as CKLW in Windsor. But even that one may eventually abandon its 800 kHz AM dial position and move to FM as well. Sounds like something that should have been done in the U. S. a long time ago.

[ChrisW6ATV]

Originally Posted by Jeffhs

AM DXing is almost pointless, except for the thrill of hearing stations hundreds of miles away from one's home.

I thought "the thrill of hearing stations hundreds of miles away from one's home" WAS what AM DXing is. Is it supposed to possibly be something else?

[Jeffhs]

Originally Posted by ChrisW6ATV

I thought "the thrill of hearing stations hundreds of miles away from one's home" WAS what AM DXing is. Is it supposed to possibly be something else?

In answer to your question, no. AM DXing only means one thing, and you said it. I don't know what I was thinking when I said what I said in my post. I was going to delete that particular statement and reword it, but by the time I realized my mistake it was too late--I had already posted the reply.

BTW: I guess that will (should, anyway) teach me to read my posts carefully before clicking the "submit reply" button, for once a post is submitted it can't be retracted, edited or deleted by the original author of that post.

[jr_tech]

Originally Posted by Jeffhs

BTW: I guess that will (should, anyway) teach me to read my posts carefully before clicking the "submit reply" button, for once a post is submitted it can't be retracted, edited or deleted by the original author of that post.

That is not the case...there is an "edit" button at the bottom of the post that can be used. The post can't be deleted, but the content may be replaced. I normally replace with "deleted" or "oops! double post" or something like that.

jr

[ChrisW6ATV]

My worst AM DXing event: Listening for almost an hour in Chicago to a weak station that was coming in and out, after hearing unfamiliar call letters (not listed in the Communications World guide for that frequency at the time), then figuring out eventually that they announced the sister FM call sign for KOIA in Iowa, only one state away.

My best AM DXing event: After moving to the San Francisco, California area in 1984, using my new Sony multi-band radio and hearing WLS from Chicago on 890, almost 2000 miles away.

[Jeffhs]

Originally Posted by ChrisW6ATV

My best AM DXing event: After moving to the San Francisco, California area in 1984, using my new Sony multi-band radio and hearing WLS from Chicago on 890, almost 2000 miles away.

That was, if I remember right, the year before the FCC did away with AM clear channels, where there were only one or, at most, two stations on the frequency after dark. Any daytime stations on the clear channels were required to sign off at sundown. That was almost certainly why you heard WLS in San Francisco; the frequency must have been absolutely clear. This would be all but impossible today, since daytime-only stations on formerly clear channels are now allowed to operate full-time, with lower power and directional signal patterns after dark.

In Canada, the rules must be slightly different. Station CKLW in Windsor, Ontario has been the only full-time station on 800 kHz as long as I can remember, although there were a number of daytimers on the frequency which had to leave the air at sunset due to the Canadian station's seniority. I don't know how long CKLW has been on the air, but my best guess is at least 60-70 years. I live within one mile of the south shore of Lake Erie and can hear CKLW just fine, any hour of the day or night. When I was growing up in suburban Cleveland, the station also boomed in as well as any local station; CKLW was a music station at that time (late '60s-'70s). They did away with the music format some years ago, replacing it with talk, including at least one American talk host--I don't recall which one.

[jr_tech]

Originally Posted by ChrisW6ATV

My best AM DXing event: After moving to the San Francisco, California area in 1984, using my new Sony multi-band radio and hearing WLS from Chicago on 890, almost 2000 miles away.

From the west coast, in the middle of winter, early in the morning sometimes JOUB 774 kHz (500 kW) from Akita Japan can be heard, or at least detected using "CW" mode on a communications receiver. I have heard program audio on occasion with nothing more than an Eton E-5, using its built-in antenna. Give it a try next winter.

jr