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Author Topic: What's in there with 1100 WTAM in the evenings?  (Read 2001 times)

Offline ThaDood

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What's in there with 1100 WTAM in the evenings?
« on: June 28, 2020, 0440 UTC »
For better than two weeks now, I've noticed something about +/-10Hz off FREQ battling it out with Cleveland's 1100 WTAM on a job site to site drive at 10:06PM EST, (When I want to catch the opening of Ground Zero Radio with Clyde Lewis.), and also still there on the drive home, like after 2AM, when I want to see what's on C2C AM. So, what is that? You'd think that 1100kHz would have Clear Channel to WV, but I'm now nightly hearing something in there with it. That being only a few Hertz off is like a motor boating sound. Any ideas???
I was asked, yet another weird question, of how I would like to be buried, when I finally bite the big one. The answer was actually pretty easy. Face-down, like a certain historical figure in the late 1980's, (I will not mention who, but some of you will get it, and that's enough.) Why??? It would be a burial that will satisfy everyone: (1) My enemies will say that it will show me where to go. (2) On the same point, I can have my enemies kiss my butt. (3) It will temporarily give someone a place to park a bicycle. See??? A WIN / WIN for everyone.

Offline pinto vortando

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Re: What's in there with 1100 WTAM in the evenings?
« Reply #1 on: June 29, 2020, 1103 UTC »
Listened last night 2200-2230 EDT.  A number of sudden brief sharp fades but no interference heard.  Usually a solid signal in here across the Lake at night.
Will continue monitoring. 
Das Radiobunker somewhere in Michigan

Offline jta

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Re: What's in there with 1100 WTAM in the evenings?
« Reply #2 on: June 29, 2020, 1309 UTC »
Had a het against WTAM prior to 9:00 p.m. EDT and it didn't go away after dark. Also had a snippet of a Simon & Garfunkel song at 8:50 but, of course, it disappeared before TOH IDs; most likely WHLI.

Isn't there a Euro channel on 1098? Is there a flamethrower station there?

Offline ThaDood

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Re: What's in there with 1100 WTAM in the evenings?
« Reply #3 on: June 29, 2020, 1739 UTC »
I duh-know about Europe, but Mexico could indeed be a good possibility from where I am. Most of the 1100kHz stations that I've done a 1,500mi search on Radio Locator are either Daytime Only, or very Directional. The ones from Mexico do not appear to be. https://radio-locator.com/cgi-bin/locate?select=city&city=25159&state=WV&band=AM&is_lic=Y&is_cp=Y&is_unl=Y&format=&dx=3&radius=1500&freq=1100&sort=freq   Another reason to disregard European stations id that I don't hear a 2kHz HET, but that rumble of just a few Hertz off. Hmmmmmmmmmmmmm, the mystery thickens. And, why just within the last 3 weeks? Ehhhh???
I was asked, yet another weird question, of how I would like to be buried, when I finally bite the big one. The answer was actually pretty easy. Face-down, like a certain historical figure in the late 1980's, (I will not mention who, but some of you will get it, and that's enough.) Why??? It would be a burial that will satisfy everyone: (1) My enemies will say that it will show me where to go. (2) On the same point, I can have my enemies kiss my butt. (3) It will temporarily give someone a place to park a bicycle. See??? A WIN / WIN for everyone.

Offline pinto vortando

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Re: What's in there with 1100 WTAM in the evenings?
« Reply #4 on: June 30, 2020, 0253 UTC »
WTAM loud and clear in here tonight.  It really has no competition at night in the eastern part of the country.
Out west at night the CO station reduces power and sends its signal north-south  and the CA station heats up the Pacific.
Das Radiobunker somewhere in Michigan

Offline Treehouse SWL

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Re: What's in there with 1100 WTAM in the evenings?
« Reply #5 on: June 30, 2020, 0325 UTC »
Yeah, out west here, KFAX out of San Francisco dominates 1100 kHz, with KNZZ out of Grand Junction, Colorado, sometimes popping up. Never heard anything else on that frequency.
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Offline ThaDood

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Re: What's in there with 1100 WTAM in the evenings?
« Reply #6 on: June 30, 2020, 1727 UTC »
Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmm, I must be in the 'Sweet Spot' where I can just hear this. I've always heard massive phasing and fading from 1100 WTAM, since I'm only just under 300 miles from them and I suspect a high angle off bounce to get to me. (Which makes me wish that car stereos had Sync AM in them. How come no one thought of that?) Well, during those fades is when I hear the few Hertz HET from whatever else that is on 1100kHz. I've ordered an RTL-SDR package, and this might be a neat thing to look at with it.
I was asked, yet another weird question, of how I would like to be buried, when I finally bite the big one. The answer was actually pretty easy. Face-down, like a certain historical figure in the late 1980's, (I will not mention who, but some of you will get it, and that's enough.) Why??? It would be a burial that will satisfy everyone: (1) My enemies will say that it will show me where to go. (2) On the same point, I can have my enemies kiss my butt. (3) It will temporarily give someone a place to park a bicycle. See??? A WIN / WIN for everyone.

Offline pinto vortando

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Re: What's in there with 1100 WTAM in the evenings?
« Reply #7 on: July 01, 2020, 0130 UTC »
Do you notice this on other stations as they fade ?  Have you tried listening on another receiver at the same time to see if the same thing happens in the other receiver ?
Car radios nowadays skimp on noise suppression.  Perhaps the bypass capacitor (hopefully there is one) has failed. 
Das Radiobunker somewhere in Michigan

Offline ThaDood

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Re: What's in there with 1100 WTAM in the evenings?
« Reply #8 on: July 01, 2020, 0649 UTC »
Actually, yes. I hear this on the C-Crane Plus at home, albeit not as pronounced. As far as this motor boating HET on other stations? No, not observed. One problem with a car stereo VERT antenna is that it is Omnidirectional.
I was asked, yet another weird question, of how I would like to be buried, when I finally bite the big one. The answer was actually pretty easy. Face-down, like a certain historical figure in the late 1980's, (I will not mention who, but some of you will get it, and that's enough.) Why??? It would be a burial that will satisfy everyone: (1) My enemies will say that it will show me where to go. (2) On the same point, I can have my enemies kiss my butt. (3) It will temporarily give someone a place to park a bicycle. See??? A WIN / WIN for everyone.

Offline redhat

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Re: What's in there with 1100 WTAM in the evenings?
« Reply #9 on: July 08, 2020, 1834 UTC »
We are in storm season.  Its possible someone took a hit to their array and something got goosed by that electrician in the sky.  I had a Gates 5 take a lightning hit which damaged the tank resonator, and consequently ran like that for a number of years before I found it and fixed it.  Meanwhile the meter readings were always off, and the PA's would blow about once a year.

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Offline ThaDood

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Re: What's in there with 1100 WTAM in the evenings?
« Reply #10 on: July 09, 2020, 1804 UTC »
Hmmmmmm, maybe an interesting, but good, speculation there. Someone may not even know of a pattern change, unless a FS measurement is taken, or the FCC contacts the station to say, "We've noticed that you are out of compliance from a couple of monitoring stations." I don't remember what AM station it was, but in the 80's a station was contacted by the FCC for being noticed a few Hertz off FREQ measured at night. It's been a month that I've noticed that slightly off-FREQ station on WTAM's 1100kHz now. We'll see just how long that's in there. They are my fall-back for C2C AM on my drive home, when the local 1240kHz station, (Yeah... A Graveyard FREQ.), goes off-air, or just dead-air. That happens a lot, and their newer FM translator doesn't help when there's no audio to that either.
I was asked, yet another weird question, of how I would like to be buried, when I finally bite the big one. The answer was actually pretty easy. Face-down, like a certain historical figure in the late 1980's, (I will not mention who, but some of you will get it, and that's enough.) Why??? It would be a burial that will satisfy everyone: (1) My enemies will say that it will show me where to go. (2) On the same point, I can have my enemies kiss my butt. (3) It will temporarily give someone a place to park a bicycle. See??? A WIN / WIN for everyone.