1 of 1- turkeytop
- Member
Offline 
FM DX
I live in London, ON and I also post on a Michigan radio board
Today, some people from the Detroit area were reporting reception of FM from London. I checked it out to see if this propagation was bidirectional and I could catch some signals from Detroit.
Turns out this wast just an east to west phenomenon. I wasn't getting anything from Detroit but I was getting signals from Toronto. CJRT 91.1 was pounding in like a local. The first time I have ever heard it here. CBC Music 94.1 was coming in just as well as our local CBC
I heard a few others but wasn't able to get an ID
After all is said and done, more is usually said than done.
- RadioActive
- Moderator
Offline
Re: FM DX
If this should happen again and you have some time to kill, you can always give Radio Locator.com a try. The site allows you to search for a station in North America in any number of ways - including call letters, location or frequency. So if you heard something at say, 96.7 FM, but couldn't quite get the I.D., you could plug in the info, check out which one is the most likely from the list that comes up, go to that station's site and try "Listen Live" if they're so equipped. (Most are these days.)
If they're playing what you just heard, chances are very good it's them.
Radiolocator.com advanced search
- turkeytop
- Member
Offline
Re: FM DX
I use radio locator all the time. But I didn't realize they also report Canadian stations. Thanks
After all is said and done, more is usually said than done.
- •
Thread Starter- RadioActive
- Moderator
Offline
Re: FM DX
turkeytop wrote:
I use radio locator all the time. But I didn't realize they also report Canadian stations. Thanks
Yes, there's a search by province, which can be very handy. Although where you are, you're just as likely to get some U.S. skip, with Erie, Detroit and even Cleveland all within possible earshot on a good day.
Radiolocator search by province
- turkeytop
- Member
Offline
Re: FM DX
I use radio locator all the time. But I didn't realize they also report Canadian stations. Thanks
Yes, there's a search by province, which can be very handy. Although where you are, you're just as likely to get some U.S. skip, with Erie, Detroit and even Cleveland all within possible earshot on a good day.
Radiolocator search by province
Yes, they're all fairly common here. Reception from Toronto is almost never.
After all is said and done, more is usually said than done.
- •
Thread Starter- paterson1
- Member
Offline
Re: FM DX
Also when you look up Canadian stations on the locator map, they just show the map and the coverage, local distant, fringe etc but no cities, borders or any perspective as to the geography. Sort of confusing when you get outside of any major cities. Still interesting, but I sometimes wonder about a few of the AM stations local coverage doesn't seem to always jive with what they are showing on the map. 
- RadioActive
- Moderator
Offline
Re: FM DX
Yes, they're all fairly common here. Reception from Toronto is almost never.
It's the ones you rarely expect that are the best catches!
I think I've written about this before, but way back in the 70s (when the Toronto FM dial wasn't crammed and the CN Tower wasn't blowing everything else away) there was one day when I came home from school, turned on the radio and sat there for the next three hours stunned. EVERYTHING was coming in the day, stuff fading in and out almost as fast as it could be logged.
And I'm talking about really amazing stuff - FM stations from Florida, Alabama, Kentucky - it was astounding. I remember my late father walking by as an I.D. for WABB-FM Mobile blared out. He was not a DXer and he couldn't believe it.
Meanwhile, the usual suspects on analog VHF (channels 2,3 & 4) were all going crazy, too, and I wasn't sure what to try first. (The rotor on the outside antenna sure came in handy that afternoon!) That same day was the one I saw Florida, Texas and even Denver on my parents' TV set and managed to confirm them all.
What an afternoon that was! Never had one like it since and given how things have changed, I don't expect to ever see another one. But I'll never forget that day.
- Saul
- Member
Offline
Re: FM DX
It looks like good tropo forecast for tonight but I'm too tired and have three very busy days ahead, so don't see going mobile. My hunch is ON Dxers might do well to the south and southeast towards daybreak.
I'm happy to sit this one out - I'm DX-saturated from an absolutely awesome FM E-skip season. I'm still reviewing unattended audio clips recorded in July. And just yesterday IDed a second FM station from Colombia, 90.5 from Monteria, at 2487 miles from my DX site in the Kawarthas. It's a personal distance record for me. (Also heard 90.1 Barranquilla COL, and 90.9 in Dominican Republic, all on July 13). Have never had either the Caribbean or South America in the 45 years I've been FM DXing.
- RadioActive
- Moderator
Offline
Re: FM DX
What kind of a set-up do you have, if you don't mind me asking? I suspect that kind of reception requires a lot more than a simple extendable antenna off a radio! Pretty amazing.
The farthest I've ever gotten was one or two of the Mexico AM border blasters many years ago - that and KFI in L.A. back before the GNR640 days. Oh, and KCBS San Fran in the era when CBC signed off 740 for the night. Not to mention the mega-powered PJB on 800 from the Netherlands-Antilles, but that was a common catch.
- turkeytop
- Member
Offline
Re: FM DX
My best verified FMs are from Miami FL and Lubbock TX. My best verified AMs are KFI and KSL.
After all is said and done, more is usually said than done.
- •
Thread Starter- markow202
- Member
Offline
Re: FM DX
Didn’t try FM tonight but one of the rooms at the cottage tonight has a Terk HDTV-A indoor antenna sitting on a side chair. Noticed the TV locals not coming in.
Did a scan and it showed 22 channels. Farthest being Raleigh NC, Buffalo and Toronto.
Cottage is in Honey Harbour Georgian Bay.
Last edited by markow202 (September 19, 2021 11:38 pm)
- Fitz
- Member
Offline
Re: FM DX
My best DX'ing was almost exactly a year go when I received stations from Windsor, Michigan, Ohio, West Virginia, Maryland, Tennessee and more. I posted a few samples on the board last year and here is one of them again that includes the Tennessee station WTFM 98.5:
DX Sept 16, 2020
Cool Airchecks and More: