Getting local AM station engineering aware of harmonic problems
 

I have a local MW station (630 WMAL) that is radiating harmonics (1260,
1.890, etc.) on up the spectrum.

The harmonics are strong enough that 1260 AM (also a local station) is
unlistenable for about a mile surrounding WMAL's towers. It's also an
irritation throughout the SW bands.

I am rather certain that the harmonics are coming out of the
transmitter and not the result of local rectification (near or in the
receiver) because building a trap for 630kHz has no effect on the
harmonic and the harmonic is present over a very wide area.

My first attempts (calling the station, writing a letter) have been met
with no acknowledgment that there is a problem (it is not even obvious
that anyone understands that there MIGHT be a technical issue to pass
on to engineering.)

Any advice?

Tim.

Getting local AM station engineering aware of harmonic problems
 

Getting local AM station engineering aware of harmonic problems
 

On 11 Jul 2006 05:47:12 -0700, wrote:

I have a local MW station (630 WMAL) that is radiating harmonics (1260,
1.890, etc.) on up the spectrum.

The harmonics are strong enough that 1260 AM (also a local station) is
unlistenable for about a mile surrounding WMAL's towers. It's also an
irritation throughout the SW bands.

I am rather certain that the harmonics are coming out of the
transmitter and not the result of local rectification (near or in the
receiver) because building a trap for 630kHz has no effect on the
harmonic and the harmonic is present over a very wide area.

My first attempts (calling the station, writing a letter) have been met
with no acknowledgment that there is a problem (it is not even obvious
that anyone understands that there MIGHT be a technical issue to pass
on to engineering.)

Any advice?

Tim.

That company's in the process of being sold, isn't it? Citadel might
be more cooperative than Disney.

Getting local AM station engineering aware of harmonic problems
 

If station is being sold then maybe potential new owner would like to
hear that signal is AFU. Perhaps you contact them and they will have
present owner fix before papers signed.

If that doesn't work then here's what I would do. Get yourself some
spraypaint, gasoline and an old mattress. Spraypaint a small blurb
about a dirty signal on the side of the radio station. If is located
in an urban area this is even better. Throw the mattress down and soak
with gasoline and light her up. Call up a few local TV station and
tell em the studio is on fire. They will send a crew over and film the
mattress and the blurb you wrote on the side of the building and a good
chance it will be fixed right away.

73
NEO




David wrote:
On 11 Jul 2006 05:47:12 -0700, wrote:

I have a local MW station (630 WMAL) that is radiating harmonics (1260,
1.890, etc.) on up the spectrum.

The harmonics are strong enough that 1260 AM (also a local station) is
unlistenable for about a mile surrounding WMAL's towers. It's also an
irritation throughout the SW bands.

I am rather certain that the harmonics are coming out of the
transmitter and not the result of local rectification (near or in the
receiver) because building a trap for 630kHz has no effect on the
harmonic and the harmonic is present over a very wide area.

My first attempts (calling the station, writing a letter) have been met
with no acknowledgment that there is a problem (it is not even obvious
that anyone understands that there MIGHT be a technical issue to pass
on to engineering.)

Any advice?

Tim.

That company's in the process of being sold, isn't it? Citadel might
be more cooperative than Disney.

Getting local AM station engineering aware of harmonic problems
 

I concentrate on finding out who the chief engineer is and contacting him.

Find other stations the company owns, and look for the chief engineer of
any of those, and contact them asking who the CE is of your station.

Sooner or later you can find out a name, and it's possible the CE is
in fact interested.

There's an enormous chain of management that does not care, however, so
usually you can't get anywhere through obvious channels.

Getting the FCC interested is very hard.

WRFD 880 in Columbus OH has been radiating on WJR 760 Detroit MI for years
and I haven't gotten anywhere yet, so it doesn't always work. WRFD is
authorized by God so they don't care. (2*820-880=760 ; 820 is another
local station, an odd fact that would interest a genuine engineer.)

--
Ron Hardin


On the internet, nobody knows you're a jerk.

Getting local AM station engineering aware of harmonic problems
 

"N9NEO" wrote in message
oups.com...
If station is being sold then maybe potential new owner would like to
hear that signal is AFU. Perhaps you contact them and they will have
present owner fix before papers signed.

Having a harmonic within a mile of a transmitter is not particularly
unusual. And a mixing product is common where several transmitters are
located within a few miles.

Getting local AM station engineering aware of harmonic problems
 

to hey stupid
 

Slow Code wrote:aka hey stpuid
wrote in
oups.com:

I have a local MW station (630 WMAL) that is radiating harmonics (1260,

Tim.



Yes. Sell your house and move closer to the 1260 station.
\
nice advice Mr Stupid

Happy to help.

SC

Getting local AM station engineering aware of harmonic problems
 

Slow Code wrote:
wrote in
oups.com:

I have a local MW station (630 WMAL) that is radiating harmonics (1260,
1.890, etc.) on up the spectrum.

The harmonics are strong enough that 1260 AM (also a local station) is
unlistenable for about a mile surrounding WMAL's towers. It's also an
irritation throughout the SW bands.

I am rather certain that the harmonics are coming out of the
transmitter and not the result of local rectification (near or in the
receiver) because building a trap for 630kHz has no effect on the
harmonic and the harmonic is present over a very wide area.

My first attempts (calling the station, writing a letter) have been met
with no acknowledgment that there is a problem (it is not even obvious
that anyone understands that there MIGHT be a technical issue to pass
on to engineering.)

Any advice?

Tim.



Yes. Sell your house and move closer to the 1260 station.

While I'm about a mile from WMAL's towers, I believe that I'm within
about 5 miles of WWRC 1260's towers, and they both are listed by the
FCC as running 5kW. So at least it wouldn't be a very far move :-).

WWRC's signal is pretty damn lousy for a 5kW transmitter just a couple
of miles away. I mean, it doesn't help that WMAL's harmonic is stamping
all over it in my neighborhood, but even when I get away from my
neighborhood reception is pretty bad even within a 10 mile radius.

Tim.

Getting local AM station engineering aware of harmonic problems
 

On 12 Jul 2006 05:01:36 -0700, wrote:


Slow Code wrote:
wrote in
oups.com:

I have a local MW station (630 WMAL) that is radiating harmonics (1260,
1.890, etc.) on up the spectrum.

The harmonics are strong enough that 1260 AM (also a local station) is
unlistenable for about a mile surrounding WMAL's towers. It's also an
irritation throughout the SW bands.

I am rather certain that the harmonics are coming out of the
transmitter and not the result of local rectification (near or in the
receiver) because building a trap for 630kHz has no effect on the
harmonic and the harmonic is present over a very wide area.

My first attempts (calling the station, writing a letter) have been met
with no acknowledgment that there is a problem (it is not even obvious
that anyone understands that there MIGHT be a technical issue to pass
on to engineering.)

Any advice?

Tim.



Yes. Sell your house and move closer to the 1260 station.

While I'm about a mile from WMAL's towers, I believe that I'm within
about 5 miles of WWRC 1260's towers, and they both are listed by the
FCC as running 5kW. So at least it wouldn't be a very far move :-).

WWRC's signal is pretty damn lousy for a 5kW transmitter just a couple
of miles away. I mean, it doesn't help that WMAL's harmonic is stamping
all over it in my neighborhood, but even when I get away from my
neighborhood reception is pretty bad even within a 10 mile radius.

Tim.

You may be in a near-field null.