WAQY

Last updated
WAQY
WAQY logo.png
Broadcast area Springfield, Massachusetts
Frequency 102.1 MHz (HD Radio)
BrandingRock 102
Programming
Format Classic rock
Subchannels HD2: WLZX-FM simulcast (Active rock)
Affiliations New England Patriots Radio Network
Ownership
Owner
  • Saga Communications
  • (Saga Communications of New England, LLC)
WHAI, WHMP, WIZZ, WLZX, WLZX-FM, WPVQ-FM, WRSI
History
First air date
December 17, 1966(56 years ago) (1966-12-17) as WCRX
Former call signs
WCRX (1966–1972)
WAQY (1972–1991)
WAQY-FM (1991–1999) [1]
Call sign meaning
"Wacky Radio" (former branding)
Technical information [2]
Licensing authority
 FCC
Facility ID 58551
Class B
ERP 17,000 watts
HAAT 238 meters (781 ft)
Transmitter coordinates
 42°04′59″N72°42′14″W / 42.083°N 72.704°W / 42.083; -72.704
Links
Public license information
Webcast Listen Live
Website rock102.com

WAQY (102.1 FM) is a radio station in Springfield, Massachusetts, broadcasting a classic rock format. Since the late 1980s, the station has been known as "Rock 102".

Contents

History

102.1 FM in Springfield signed on December 17, 1966, [3] as WCRX. The call letters stood for "Charles River Broadcasting extension," the station being a sister and extension of 102.5 FM WCRB-FM in Boston, Massachusetts. Both the Springfield and Boston stations programmed a classical music radio format overseen by Charles River Broadcasting owner Theodore Jones.

In the mid-1970s, owners Don Wilks and Mike Schwartz decided to put the first automated rock and roll station on the air. Their program direction, Jim Boldebook, was given the task of programming a Shafer automation system. WAQY broadcast top 40 music with song titles every third song and no on-the-air DJ. DJs went live starting in 1976.

In August 1981, WAQY switched to a rock music format known as AOR. Now known simply by the station’s call letters, WAQY played a mix of new rock music from the 1980s mixed with older rock artists of the '60s (The Beatles, Jimi Hendrix etc.) and 1970s (Black Sabbath, Led Zeppelin, etc.) Artists played included then current and popular Arena rock favorites Blue Öyster Cult, Journey, Foreigner and Fleetwood Mac as well as singer and songwriter artists from Tom Petty to Billy Joel. Hard rock and heavy metal acts like AC/DC, Van Halen and Rush were also core artists. In the mid-1980s, WAQY adopted its current moniker "Rock 102" playing up to five current rock songs an hour. By 1992, WAQY stopped playing current music and completed its evolution from an AOR to a classic rock format.

The station serves as the Pioneer Valley's affiliate for the New England Patriots radio network.

Technical

WAQY transmits 17,000 watts from the top of Provin Mountain in Feeding Hills on the WWLP tower. [4] WAQY transmits using a 4-bay Continental (ERI) center-fed antenna and a Nautel NV20 HD [5] transmitter. WAQY's signal covers all of the Springfield, Massachusetts, market, and can be heard as far south as Long Island, New York. WAQY is running a high-level IBOC (HD Digital signal) at -14db versus the normal -20db. [6] WAQY simulcasts sister station WLZX-FM on its HD2 subchannel.

Related Research Articles

WNEW-FM is a hot adult contemporary formatted radio station, licensed to New York, New York and owned by Audacy, Inc. The station's studios are located at the Audacy facility in the Hudson Square neighborhood of Manhattan. Its transmitter is located at the Empire State Building.

WDHT is an urban-leaning rhythmic contemporary radio station in Urbana, Ohio serving the Dayton/Springfield area that broadcasts on the 102.9 frequency. WDHT is currently owned by Alpha Media, which also owns WING, WROU-FM, WCLI-FM and WGTZ. Its transmitter site on Miller Road in Springfield is shared with that of WULM as this was previously the transmitting site of the former WBLY/WAZU. WUFM based in Columbus also operates a Springfield translator from the same tower site. Its studios are in Kettering, Ohio.

Album-oriented rock is an FM radio format created in the United States in the late 1960s that focuses on the full repertoire of rock albums and is currently associated with classic rock.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">KJEB</span> Classic hits radio station in Seattle

KJEB is a commercial radio station in Seattle, Washington. It broadcasts a classic hits radio format and is owned by iHeartMedia, Inc. The radio studios and offices are in Seattle's Belltown neighborhood northwest of downtown.

KRTH is a commercial radio station that is licensed to Los Angeles, California, United States and serves the Greater Los Angeles area. The station is owned by Audacy, Inc. and broadcasts a classic hits format. KRTH's studios are located on Wilshire Boulevard in the Miracle Mile district of Los Angeles. The station's signal covers an extremely large area of Southern California due in part to its antenna location on Mt. Wilson. It can be heard as far south as San Diego, as far east as Moreno Valley, as far west as Santa Barbara, and as far north as Barstow. KRTH is the flagship station for the nationally syndicated program Rewind with Gary Bryan.

WCSX is a commercial radio station licensed to Birmingham, Michigan, and serving Metro Detroit. It broadcasts a classic rock radio format and is owned by the Beasley Broadcast Group. The studios and transmitter are on Radio Plaza in Ferndale. Despite its call sign, WCSX is not affiliated with the CSX Corporation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">KOSF</span> Radio station in San Francisco

KOSF is a commercial radio station licensed to San Francisco, California. It airs a classic hits format and is owned by iHeartMedia, Inc. The studios are on Townsend Street in San Francisco's SoMa district. In middays, it carries the syndicated Martha Quinn Show from co-owned Premiere Networks.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">KDKB</span> Radio station in Mesa, Arizona, United States

KDKB is a commercial FM radio station broadcasting to the Phoenix metropolitan area with its city of license in Mesa, Arizona. It is owned by Hubbard Broadcasting, Inc. with the license held by Phoenix FCC License Sub, LLC. It airs an Alternative Rock radio format. Its studios are located in Phoenix, while its transmitter is in South Mountain Park.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WWBB</span> Radio station in Providence, Rhode Island

WWBB is a radio station in Providence, Rhode Island, United States. The station plays classic hits from the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s. WWBB's offices and studios are located on Oxford Street in Providence, on the 3rd and 4th floors of the Roland Building near Interstate 95. WWBB's transmitting antenna is located on the roof of One Financial Plaza, also in Providence. WWBB transmits a directional signal to reduce interference to Boston-based sister station 101.7 WBWL. The station is owned by iHeartMedia, Inc.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">KCKC</span> Adult contemporary radio station in Kansas City

KCKC is an adult contemporary radio station based in Kansas City, Missouri that operates with an ERP of 100 kW. The station is licensed to and operated by Steel City Media. The station's studios are located at Westport Center in Midtown Kansas City, and its transmitter is located in Independence, Missouri.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">KYRV</span> Radio station in Roseville, California

KYRV is a commercial radio station that is licensed to Roseville, California and broadcasts to the Sacramento metropolitan area. The station is owned by iHeartMedia and airs a classic rock radio format. The KYRV studios are located in North Sacramento near Arden Fair Mall, and its transmitter is in Granite Bay.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WHYN (AM)</span> Radio station in Springfield, Massachusetts

WHYN is a commercial AM news/talk radio station licensed to Springfield, Massachusetts. It serves the Pioneer Valley area of Western Massachusetts and is owned by iHeartMedia. Studios and offices are on Main Street in Springfield. The transmitter is on County Road in Southampton. WHYN operates at 5,000 watts by day, using a directional antenna, but must reduce power to 1,000 watts at night to avoid interfering with other stations on 560 kHz.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">KEZK-FM</span> Adult contemporary radio station in St. Louis

KEZK-FM is a commercial radio station licensed to St. Louis, Missouri. It broadcasts an adult contemporary radio format and is owned by Audacy, Inc. From mid-November through the Christmas holiday, KEZK switches to an all-Christmas music format. The studios and offices are on Olive Street in Downtown St. Louis.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WHCN</span> Radio station in Hartford, Connecticut

WHCN is a commercial radio station licensed to Hartford, Connecticut. It broadcasts a classic hits radio format and is owned by iHeartMedia, Inc. It is called "The River 105.9," a reference to the Connecticut River. The studios and offices are located on Columbus Boulevard in Hartford.

WDKL is a contemporary Christian formatted radio station licensed to Mount Clemens, Michigan, and serving the Detroit metropolitan area. The station is owned by Educational Media Foundation. The station broadcasts with 50,000 watts of power from an antenna located Northeast of the intersection of Gratiot Avenue and Fourteen Mile Road in Clinton Charter Township, Macomb County, Michigan, and directs its signal mainly toward the north and east to avoid interfering with WWWW-FM in Ann Arbor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WHYN-FM</span> Radio station in Springfield, Massachusetts

WHYN-FM is a commercial radio station licensed to Springfield, and serving the Pioneer Valley of Western Massachusetts. It airs a hot adult contemporary format and is owned by iHeartMedia, Inc. It carries several nationally syndicated shows from co-owned Premiere Networks, including On with Mario Lopez weekday evenings and American Top 40 with Ryan Seacrest on Sundays. The studios and offices are in downtown Springfield's "Marketplace" along with sister stations 560 WHYN, and 100.9 WRNX.

WEGR is a hot adult contemporary FM radio station in Memphis, Tennessee. It is owned by iHeartMedia, Inc. and serves the Memphis metropolitan area, including sections of Tennessee, Arkansas, Missouri and Mississippi. WEGR broadcasts at 102.7 MHz and on the air it calls itself 102.7 Kiss FM. The station's studios are located in Southeast Memphis, and the transmitter site is in Bartlett, Tennessee. WEGR broadcasts at 100,000 watts.

KFNC is a commercial radio station licensed to Mont Belvieu, Texas. KFNC is paired with a translator, K223CW, licensed to Houston. The facilities serve the Greater Houston and Golden Triangle areas of southeast Texas. The station is owned by David Gow, through licensee Gow Media, LLC, with studios and offices in Uptown Houston one block from The Galleria. KFNC is a network affiliate of ESPN Radio, carried late nights and weekends. Local sports shows are heard weekdays from 7 a.m. to midnight and on weekend mornings.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WPTQ</span> Radio station in Glasgow, Kentucky

WPTQ is a radio station licensed to Glasgow, Kentucky, United States, and serving the Bowling Green, Kentucky radio market area. The station is a classic rock-formatted radio station owned by Newberry Broadcasting, Inc. Its radio signal is transmitted from a tower located along Kentucky Route 1297 in rural western Barren County near Railton, with studios located on Campbell Lane in Bowling Green.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WBZA</span> Radio station in Rochester, New York

WBZA is a commercial FM radio station in Rochester, New York. It airs an adult hits format and is owned by Audacy, Inc., based at the High Falls Studios, on Commercial Street and State Street in downtown Rochester.

References

  1. ↑ Callsign history of WAQY; retrieved July 20, 2019
  2. ↑ "Facility Technical Data for WAQY". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission.
  3. ↑ Broadcasting & Cable Yearbook 2010 (PDF). 2010. p. D-276. Retrieved December 1, 2021.
  4. ↑ "FCCInfo Results".
  5. ↑ "Application Search Details".
  6. ↑ "Application View ... Redirecting".
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.