New construction permit issued for translator in Valley Head

A rare brand new CP has been issued for a translator in Valley Head, Alabama, near Mentone.  The station, W230BV, will broadcast with 55 watts from a site on the valley floor on 93.9 MHz.  The parent station will be Moody Bible Network's WMBV in Chattanooga.

Links to WABB's final hours audio, the start of WABD

Here are the final hours of WABB, as recorded from Foley, off air.  Each file is about 109 MB and runs one hour in length.  There is some noise in parts due to reception issues.  Right-click and Save As… to download.

6:30 to 7:30 pm

7:30 to 8:30

8:30 to 9:30

9:30 to 10:30

10:30 to 11:30

11:30 to 12:23

The fine folks over at MonsterFM recorded the final hours off the station's web stream:

6 to 9 pm (4 hours 19 minutes, 237 MB)

9 to midnight (2 hours 51 minutes, 156 MB)



WABD stunted for 30 minutes prior to midnight with a bell tolling.  Available is a condensed version of the audio leading up to the flip, and a few breaks between songs right after midnight, including the new legal ID.  There's also a condensed check of all the drops between songs, but as it was running jockless the content is sparse.  Included in that file is a gaffe where they mention Q-100 in Atlanta instead of WABD.  Each of these files is just over 3 minutes and around 4 MB each.

Focus on Mobile: WABB leaves, WABD enters, and W262BL surprises

It's 1 March 2012, and WABB is no more.  The station hosted a 12 hour loop of clips from the station's history, going all the way back to the late 50s and WABB-AM 1480.  The last 5.5 hours, including the flip to K-Love, are available here.  At midnight, K-Love faded in, right in the middle of a song.  Their first legal ID came shortly after, mention the new calls, WLVM, and also the legal ID for WKPF Navarre, which implies they're being simulcasted off one another.  The actual ID reads "WLVM Mobile-Pascagoula, WKPF Navarre-Pensacola".

I contacted EMF yesterday and they said they had no immediate plans for WKPF and that it and WLVM will simulcast K-Love for the time being.

As one CHR leaves Mobile, another makes a stumbling entrance: former WYOK "Jack FM" dropped the variety hits format half an hour before midnight for a tolling bell.  At midnight their new CHR format debuted with LMFAO's "Party Rock Anthem".  The imaging is done by the same person who appears to have done the failed i100 imaging, as well as work on the current Journey 100 format of WJLQ.  The music was heavy on currents and repetitive, but it's overnight and work will be done yet to improve the delivery.  The station's calls are now WABD, an obvious nod to WABB and/or Bernie Dittman; the station logo is a carbon copy of WABB's logo.  One major flub that got through was a promo for a Christ Daughtry concert that mentioned "Q100" — Cumulus' Atlanta CHR station.  One technical note: WABD has a pending application to slightly lower antenna height, and re-license to Saraland from Atmore.

Finally, lost amongst all the farewells and goodbyes for WABB is word that Red Mountain Broadcasting has bought a tiny little translator in Gulf Shores — W262BL.  The license is for all of one watt from downtown Gulf Shores.  An application is pending to move to what appears to be the WKRG-TV tower in Spanish Fort, with a height of 1414 feet and a full 250 watts.  That will cover some serious territory, for a translator.  The parent station is listed, for now, as WHIL-HD2.  There is no HD broadcast on WHIL.

Red Mountain Broadcasting is the name on several central Alabama translators, some of which relay HD-2 channels from various Clear Channel properties in Birmingham.  Could WNTM-FM be waiting in the wings?

W262BL Gulf Shores transferred to Red Mountain Broadcasting

We don't usually chronicle the license transfers of stations but this one is worth noting.  W262BL is a 1-watt translator licensed to Gulf Shores in Baldwin County.  It has never been on the air as far as anyone is aware, but has remained active in the database all these years.  It has just been transferred to Red Mountain Broadcasting, which operates translators in and around Birmingham that relay Clear Channel formats.

Does this mean WNTM is headed to FM via 100.3?  We shall see.  A translator can only be moved as far as its 60 dBu signal reaches (or thereabouts) so they will have to file for a massive power increase before they can contemplate moving anything, and even then there are no guarantees because the FCC has put the kybosh on moving translators more than one or two "hops".

WNTM has recently been rebroadcast on WRKH-HD2, which would allow the station to be heard via translator throughout much of southern Alabama and Florida, but The Rocket's HD signal has been off air for the last few weeks.

Whatever the plans for this tiny translator, it will merit watching as the Mobile area has not embraced translators like Birmingham, Montgomery and Huntsville have.

Mobile's WABB-FM sold to EMF, will flip to religious programming March 1st

In a shocking development in Mobile broadcasting news, Dittman family owned WABB has been sold to Educational Media Foundation, a non-profit religious broadcaster.  They will take over programming of the station on 1 March 2012.  The station has posted a press release on their website and broken the news to their Facebook fans, who are unsurprisingly upset.  Discussion is ongoing on multiple forums including Radio-Talk and Radio-Info.  See also this Examiner article on the station.

Bernie Dittman acquired WABB-AM from the Mobile Press-Register in 1959 and took the little station to top 40 and ratings domination in the Mobile market. In 1984 WABB-FM abandoned its AOR format for CHR and the transition from AM to FM started for listeners.  The FM eventually became the legendary hit music powerhouse we know today.  Bernie Dittman was the driving force behind WABB's musical success, but after his passing in 2006 the remaining family members lost their passion for the day to day operations of the organization.  When the station flips to religious programming, it will mark the end of over 25 years of pop music on WABB and over 50 years of Dittman ownership.  

EMF operates two Christian religious music formats, the contemporary K-Love and modern/youth oriented Air1.  Although K-Love is on the air out of Navarre, it is expected that it will migrate to or simulcast on WABB.  Air1 is not currently heard in any of the coastal markets covered by ABMP.

Speculation abounds as to "what happens next" for the competition, which at this point is only Clear Channel's Hit Music Now at 107.3.  Is a swap with The Rocket in the cards?  Will Cumulus try one more time to get a toe-hold in the world of CHR?  One thing's for certain, this shake-up has just begun to be felt across the Mobile and Pensacola markets.

WDXX Selma receives construction permit, slight height increase

Longtime country station "Dixie 100" WDXX in Selma has received a construction permit to move to a new tower site.  The new facility, which will still be at 50 kW, will be on a 492 foot tall tower off River Road southeast of Selma, on the Selma Hunting Club grounds.

Thanks to the higher antenna height, the station will improve coverage into western Montgomery, Maplesville, Uniontown and Camden.

WKLF off air due to tornado damage

WKLF, whose license was deleted by the FCC years ago but remained on the air anyway, has been taken off air by tornado damage to their towers in Clanton.  The tornado, which hit Maplesville and Clanton in Chilton County, did significant damage to area but luckily no injuries or deaths have been reported so far by local media.

A picture of the felled WKLF tower can be seen in this Birmingham News photo on al.com.  Another photo of the studio (with completely intact signage) is available through the National Weather Service.  The FM translator they acquired, W238BS, remains on the air, broadcasting from a location on Lay Dam Road in Chilton County via Marti (wireless remote) relay.

Update (01-26-2012) It's being reported on Radio-Info that WKLF is back on air with a temporary longwire antenna.  The studio received little or no damage, but the AM tower folded in half.  It also held the relay to the FM translator and a TV antenna used to pick up EAS broadcasts.