[IRCA] MW DX from Enid OK, March 31-April 20, 2012

[Glenn Hauser <wghauser@xxxxxxxxx>]

All times and dates strictly UT. MW log editors are welcome to excerpt items, reformat and change to favorite timezone if necessary. Rx: mostly DX-398 with internal antenna only; some caradio as specified; above 2 MHz on FRG-7 with 110-foot east-west longwire.
 
These logs are excerpts from my daily all-band reports, mainly SWBC, also VHF/UHF, sometimes, utility, ham, which may be found in several archives without much delay, such as
http://www.hard-core-dx.com/index.php?topic=Hauser

And compiled weekly along with extensive news from many other individuals and publications in DX LISTENING DIGEST: http://www.worldofradio.com/dxldmid.html

** MEXICO. 670, April 4 at 1201, mañanitas, birthday greetings to listeners, R. Ranchito ID, 7:01 TC, jingle, full ID as mil watts from Torreón, Coahuila, i.e. XETOR; IRCA Mexican Log and WRTH show 5000/250 watts, but Cantú has 1000/250. Hard to believe they would assert less power than reality (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** MEXICO. 750, March 31 at 1215 UT, steady música romántica from WSW/ENE, alone on frequency and no signal from KMMJ Nebraska even when nulled. 1217 ID as ``Stereo Vida, sólo para ella``, and the next song also sung by a YL --- so maybe the format is really only for lesbians? Fading by 1221. Cantú shows the only Stereo Vida on 750 is: 
750 XECSI Stereo Vida + FM 89.5 Culiacán, Sin. 5,000 250
WRTH and IRCA agree, except with day power of 1,000 W (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** MEXICO. 880, April 4 at 1210, several local news items about Gómez Palacio, such as closing public telephones. G.P. is the Durango city adjacent to Torreón, Coahuila, really the same metro area, so this has to be, per Cantú:
880 XETC Kiuu + FM 91.1 Torreón, Coah. 10,000 1,000
Kiuu? What a strange name; derivation??
While IRCA has it as XETC, slogan: 880 AM, 10,000/100, 24 hours
and WRTH has XETC, 880 AM/Estéreo Mayran, 10000/1000 (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** MEXICO. 970, April 4 at 1213 UT, choral NA is playing at odd time, as I try to minimize splatter from local KGWA 960. 1214 a quick sign-on I could not copy, right into music, 1219 segué balada/romántica. IRCA shows schedule times for each station, but nothing starting at 1215 or any other quarter-hour. Maybe the morning person was late (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST) 

** MEXICO. 1060, XEEP`s SW outlet XEPPM on 6185 has been missing lately after 0600 UT; it used to run all-night when there was less interference. Now via Julian Santiago, the new schedule on SW is 14-05 UT, with SW-only programming 14-22, and duplicating 1060 at 22-05. However, what signal we can get on 6185 now in the evening is very undermodulated. This led us to check 1060, April 20:

1060 is a rare almost-clear channel in Mexico, only one other station listed by IRCA, XETF, 1 kW in Veracruz, R. Formula, ex-1250, but is XEEP really 100 kW at night? IRCA Log, Cantú and WRTH all show it reduced to 20 kW. We can still hear it sometimes, but with plenty of QRM: April 20 at 0608 had some Spanish, and at 0615 S Asian music, likely XEEP in its eclectic format; mixed with a Brother Scare psychophant from WLNO New Orleans, more or less nullable. 

Furthermore, only IRCA has that Veracruz station on 1060. WRTH and Cantú still show it on 1250. But Cantú strangely crosses the border to add this one instead:
``1060 KXPL Radio NET 1060 Cd. Juárez, Chih. (El Paso, TX) 10,000 D``
It`s the only El Paso station he includes, tho I have not searched the entire list for any other trans-border outlets.

BTW, when I went to their website, this popped up:

``Aviso importante

En términos de lo dispuesto por el artículo 41 de la Constitución Política de los Estados Unidos Mexicanos, durante el tiempo que comprendan las campañas electorales y hasta la conclusión de la jornada comicial, debe suspenderse la difusión en los medios de comunicación social de toda propaganda gubernamental. Por ello, del 30 de marzo al 1 de julio de 2012, inclusive, se suspenderá el acceso a las secciones de este portal de Internet que contienen difusión de programas, acciones, obras o logros de gobierno.``

Saying all government advertising and links on the website to anything about government activities has been suspended during the election campaign, 30 March to 1 July, in accordance with Art. 41 of the constitution. Does this mean all stations have also suspended all government PSAs, which are normally required and ubiquitous, including those lauding the Presidencia in particular? (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** MEXICO. 1190, April 6 at 1209 UT, ``La Norteña 11-90``, so likely a Mexican, as in US terms the slogan would be ``La Sureña`` [hi], bolstered by the Mexican government PSAs which followed. IRCA Mexican Log 2011 shows the one with this name is XEPZ, R. Norteña, Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua, 1000/100 watts and it was well before sunrise, but what do you bet they were on day power? (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** OKLAHOMA. 930, April 5 at 1252 UT, WKY Oklahoma City, ``La Indomable`` is just barely modulated in music; 1256 talk approaches normal level, but is quite distorted, rather like in a permanent selective-fade. Very unusual for this one to display any such technical problems (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** U S A. It`s a new month so I am exploring what the Navajo stations are doing, after having been on nondirexional day patterns an hour too early in March. KTNN was caught powering up one day at 1235 UT.

660, KTNN`s official sunrise in April is 1245 UT, but nothing heard from it April 4 before or after this hour, just K-SKY Dallas with Bill Bennett`s `Morning in America` gushing over guest wacko Ann Coulter. Or should I say wacka? No. Still nothing from AZ after 1300, nor from KHAC 880 across the line in NM. Yet, 770 KKOB Albuquerque had popped right onto day pattern at its proper new time, 1230, and remained audible past 1300 with ABC news.

KTNN`s direxional pattern plot at
http://transition.fcc.gov/ftp/Bureaus/MB/Databases/AM_DA_patterns/86014-2089.pdf
shows the cardioid nulling New York retains an itty bitty lobe eastward at approximately 87 degrees.

880, KHAC Tse Bonito NM, had also been heard eastward well before sunrise in March, but April 4 nothing before or after 1300, in KRVN null. (Back at 1233, KLRG AM & FM, Arkansas with local promos amid Imus, including nickname for local host being ``The Arizona Kid``. That could be confusing). Still no KHAC by 1300 which should legally be on day pattern after 1245 UT. Same situation as late as 1315 when I quit, 770 KKOB still audible, no Navajos on 660 or 880, just KSKY on 660 and KRVN on 880. Today`s local sunrise was 1213 UT, currently moving 10 minutes earlier each week (Glenn Hauser, Enid OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** U S A. 870, April 20 at 0619 UT, WWL with Dave Ramsey has competition from another station playing C&W and making a fast SAH with WWL nulled, maybe 20 Hz. 0622, ID sounded like WHCD 102.5, then quoted Ephesians. No such call on 102.5. Closest call match on 870 in NRC AM Log is WTCG, 5 kW daytimer in Mount Holly NC, religious format.

However, it must be WPWT, 870 Colonial Heights TN, which has been widely reported cheating on the IRCA list: April 19: ``9:15 pm EDT, daytimer on with trad country and IDs for 870 and 100.7, mixing with WWL and Cuban ticker. Playlist is on http://topgunradio.com 10,000 watts non-directional (Steve Francis, Alcoa, Tennessee)``

``WPWT and WHGG [1090] are diplexed on the same tower in Gray, TN. They have always had problems with the diplexing system because of the
closeness of the frequencies, and the shortness of the tower. Not
only is the tower very short for both frequencies, it also uses -
get this - a three element ham radio HF beam (looks like a Cushcraft) as a top hat. 

Both stations are using Harris DX10 transmitters with Kahn Power Side.  At least they were a few of years ago when I was working at Bristol Broadcasting (WXBQ/WEAZ/WTZR/WFHG(AM-FM). A close friend of mine was doing some contract work for WPWT/WHGG at the time and had some real horror stories of their site. 73, (Rene' Tetro, WFIL-WNTP, Philadelphia)``

So maybe the ID I heard was for their other station WHGG, and/or one of the FMs in the cluster (Glenn Hauser, Enid OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** U S A. 1070, April 4 at 1220 UT, ``Wichita`s Big Talker, KQAM 1480 also being heard on 1070 this morning``, right-wing discussion of bringing back earmarx; 1228 anti-Obama remarx from same guys heard on 1480. 1240 UT check, oldie music had resumed, which is supposed to be the only format now of 1070 KLIO. 

On caradio, when trying to hear the same syndicated True Oldies format from 99.7 KZNG ``Mustang``-OKC, the frequency Hiram Champlin hijacked from Alva-Enid, it is usually disrupted by QRM from the new Wichita-market station that OK move  possiblized on 99.7, and ironically I have to switch to 1070 to hear the song more clearly and lower-fi. So why this talk intrusion temporarily on 1070? Hope it does not mean TO is on the way out (Glenn Hauser, Enid OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

UNIDENTIFIED. 650, April 12 at 2050 UT on caradio, rather quiet conditions and IBOC off from WWLS 640, audiblized a SAH and mix of talk and music here long before sunset: the closest two, possible at the edge of their groundwave reaches, some 500 miles away, are KGAB near Cheyenne WY (8500 watts, which I have heard before in the daytime), and KIKK near Houston TX (but it`s only 250 watts). Wonder if there is a closer stray mixing product or inband TIS in the mix? (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

UNIDENTIFIED. 910, April 20 at 0617, and still at 0626 UT, open carrier looping east/west. Most likely 1 kW KVIS Miamuh OK, giving us an unintended respite from 24/7 gospel-huxterage. I remember when this was a genuine full-service local station KGLC (Glenn Hauser, Enid OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

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