680/The Fan adds simulcast on FM dial at 93.7
680/The Fan yesterday at noon began a simulcast of the sports talk station on an FM translator at 93.7.
“We wanted to add the FM option to help deliver 680’s content to people who only want to listen to the FM band,” said David Dickey, who runs the Fan.
The station has not made an official announcement because it’s still tweaking the processing and ensuring it works well. “It will take a few days,” he said.
The 93.7 signal does not cover the entire metro area but is certainly an improvement at night, when the AM signal has to power down significantly. This will help the Atlanta Thrashers, who usually play games at night and are aired on 680. The Braves will now be heard on 93.7, 680 and Rock 100.5. This also helps the morning show the Rude Awakening in the early part of the show when it’s still dark outside, especially in the winter.
The Federal Communications Commission in 2009 began allowing radio stations to simulcast on open FM signals. These “translators,” as they are called, are not allowed to create new content per se. The 99X at 97.9, for instance, originates from the HD-2 channel on 99.7
Dickey said the signal will be comparable to that of 97.9. You can view a coverage map of 97.9 here.
Cumulus Broadcasting, which operates Q100, 99X and Rock 100.5, purchased the 93.7 translator in July for $400,000, according to an AllAccess story. Since then, Dickey Broadcasting, which owns 680/The Fan, purchased the signal from Cumulus. The two companies are independent, but both have some of the same management.
AM750 and now 95.5FM News/Talk WSB added an FM simulcast in August to give listeners who prefer FM an option. Ratings have improved since the move.
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By Rodney Ho, rho@ajc.com, AJCRadioTV blog
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143 comments Add your comment
Get Real
November 30th, 2010
11:45 pm
@Radio Maverick-who in the heck has an HD receiver! WSB just kicked 95.5 the Beat off the air and the ratings went through the roof with a simulcast.
790 problems:
Pollack works about as much as a bum, he is always at ESPN. Bad decision to have the Host of a show HOSTING other shows throughout the week.
Bad decision to let Chuck and Chernoff go
Bad decision to let the Hawks go to your competitor
Bad decision not to get the Braves
Bad decision to let Mike Bell be stale. Mike Bell is still ripping off South Side Steve with the “yeah c’mon” stuff and acting like women love him.
Who in the heck is Hanz?
Bad decision to let the Stews run off all of your white listeners. The Stews are unbelievably bad. Now that Mike conVick is out of jail, their hero is back and I’m sure the phone lines are full. Meanwhile the Falcons are the best team and they hate Matt Ryan.
Steak should just go back to Boston. You either should have hired a good pr firm or should have immersed yourself into the city instead of acting like some socialite.
680 is not as loud (Steak) low-brow(Mike Bell) or ghetto(the Stews) as 790 which is why the masses have flocked to their station. Now in FM more will go.
Puck Like A Porn Star
December 1st, 2010
12:30 am
FINALLY!!!
THRASHERS ON THE FM DIAL!!!
OTP
December 1st, 2010
2:54 am
It must really suck to be the guys at 790 to know that when they kick off Mayhem in the AM that 90% of the people in the Atlanta market can’t receive their radio signal. After the sun comes up, Nick and Chris are pretty dang funny..Shapiro, not so much.
I hope Nick and Chris get a gig over at 680 when 790 crashes.
jv
December 1st, 2010
6:41 am
Only listen to 680, wish they would get rid of Cowherd though, I only listen to local, never syndicated. Glad they got the FM
Sports radio here is terrible
December 1st, 2010
6:42 am
The sports stations here are crap. And who hired Leo Mazzone to be on a sports show? I don’t care about their opinions about politics, their misogynist views about women, etc. that they talk about so that’s why I stopped listening. They’re morons. The sad part about it is that 790 is even worse.
Jeff
December 1st, 2010
6:44 am
It needs to be 790 the ZONE, the best sports talk with the worst signal.
Real Talk
December 1st, 2010
7:31 am
If the Stews are so un-listenable, why are they the longest running sports talk show in Atlanta (9yrs) and still going strong. Big up’s Stews!!! Let your haters continue be your motivators.
Hey "Get Real"
December 1st, 2010
7:33 am
Get a Life dude. Its just sports radio! Did 790 fire you or something? Name calling is not necessary. “JACKASS”
WTF? If you don't like it, Don't listen!
December 1st, 2010
7:41 am
Both stations have great shows and personalities. “TO EACH HIS OWN” I listen to both stations.
Love listening to Steak, Rude, Chuck & Chern, Mike Bell and the Stews. Good job 680 getting an FM signal.
dave
December 1st, 2010
7:50 am
Lincoln Financial Media is going to clean house in 2011. They bought the sports station in Miami (790 the ticket ESPN) a few years ago and let most of the talent go. The Steward brothers are the only ones who will stay because of their nation show and the relationship with sporting news radio. The station go to more national broadcasting, Steve Czaben will be on in the mornings. They will bring in new talent from outside the area.
Buckeye
December 1st, 2010
8:10 am
Two words……” Afternoon Advice”
ADAMB
December 1st, 2010
8:44 am
When are they going to do something about ESPN 1230???? the local guys are too biased…
Andy in Blairsville
December 1st, 2010
8:52 am
Outstanding!
Out Dog
December 1st, 2010
9:41 am
shapiro, saltzman and the stews—I gave up on that noise years ago.
Jerome
December 1st, 2010
9:48 am
If the Stews are bad radio then they would not be on ESPN’s First Take or be Nationally sindicated…Ya’ll just hating on the brothas….Chuck and Chunkoff suck.
poor signal strength
December 1st, 2010
9:57 am
Meanwhile, 790 can only be heard inside the perimeter between the hours of 8 and 4:30.
When I’m closer to the city, I generally prefer 790 (other than the lunch hour). But their signal strength is a joke.
Ted Striker
December 1st, 2010
9:57 am
Woot! Awesome.
carlton
December 1st, 2010
9:59 am
talk about your ad hominem attacks. Mass Dawg is plenty angry at Steaky.
3 guys who should get canned
December 1st, 2010
10:01 am
680 is ok but Perry, Leo, and Buck have to be the 3 biggest idiots on radio. Their analysis sucks. They make their shows very difficult to listen to.
Pepe
December 1st, 2010
10:04 am
Thank you 680…you just made my day!
Did you know ...
December 1st, 2010
10:12 am
All of these guys got their start at 790 The Zone
Buck Belue
Jon Kincaid
Jamie Dukes
Matt Chernoff
Chuck Oliver
Hometeam Brandon Leak
Dennis Scott
… love ‘em or hate ‘em, not sure why they let all of these personalities walk away to their competitor.
Did you know ...
December 1st, 2010
10:14 am
Oh yeah, add Leo Mazzone to the list … he used to have a coaches show on 790 when he was with the Braves.
GSU Eagle 91
December 1st, 2010
10:14 am
I prefer 680 The Fan over 790 every time….While P Laurentino does irritate me at times in the AM with his smug persona, I find Steak Shapiro even worse….Way too much advertising, and harping about last night’s meal and “Kanish”…Who cares…
Buck and Kincaid are great in the afternoons, and I like Chuck and Chernoff’s college FB insight…
Maybe 680 can hire Chris D away from 790 so he can talk about sports instead of the rambling insanity of Shapiro and Cellini…
KevinM
December 1st, 2010
10:18 am
Both shows have lots of room for improvement….
Kang and Matt – bearable
Steak/Dimino/Cellini – small doses
The Stews – they talk the most NBA out there…wish there was more
Bell/Arch/Pollack – could be good if I could hear them in Duluth
Buck/Kincaid – probably where I spend my most time and these guys are stealing money repeating interviews and comments in a 4 hour window…their preparation seems limited at best.
Would like to hear 680 talk basketball more if someone would show interest……
wtf?
December 1st, 2010
10:25 am
That Chris DoMino guy at 790 looks like a pe*is with ears. Really, the next time he’s on TV have a look, it’s an amazing resemblance, I’ve never seen anything like it. And if you run into him at a bar, it gets worse. Saw him at Red Door one time, stuck out like a sore thumb, old creepy, pe*is with ears trying to grub on 20 somethings.
Here’s my impression of him speaking: So Chris, is the sky blue? Well the IDEA (his favorite word, makes him sound smart) of what you precieve to be the sky, you would have to be considered, to a man, a color that you can tell me is the thought process of what’s above our head, and the idea that you’re telling me what color it is, is absurd.
Correct answer: the sky is blue. Put a sock in it you blow hard pe*is with ears. And his goatee/mouth kinda looks like my bung hole too.
Brian
December 1st, 2010
11:03 am
Other than the Barhnart / Durham show from 10-12, 790 has gotten very stale and their northeast flavor
has gotten old. I can’t understand why, after 10 years they haven’t expanded thier signal, horrible business move. Doesn’t matter to me, other than that one show, I listen to 680.
Reality
December 1st, 2010
11:26 am
I love how the Stewpid fans always try to defend them by saying they are on ESPN’s first take and syndicated so they must be really good! News flash, but there are a ton of talentless idiots that are show cased on ESPN around the clock. The list is too long to go through, but the truly talented personalities at ESPN are dwarfed by the leagues of moronic hacks on ESPN such as the Stews. Secondly, they are syndicated by Sporting News radio, which is a complete third rate operation. Of the sports talk syndicators, they are by far the weakest and getting left in the dust by both ESPN and Fox Sports radio in terms of resources (i.e. funding), stations, and reach. Lastly, someone falsely said they were the longest running show in town. They simply are not. That would be Buck and Kincaid, which is also a terrible show in its own right. Never the less, they do have that distinction.
Atlanta radio listener
December 1st, 2010
11:32 am
I love 680 the Fan! For one, they don’t have black people! While I can’t see the color of their skin, my internal race detector tells me that the Stews are African-American. As a result, I hate them and think their radio show stinks.
Did I mention I’m an anti-semite? That’s why I hate 790 even more. Jewish people are bad… that’s what the guy at my last Klan meeting said. Don’t listen to 790. Listen to a station that’s as pure white as winter’s snow: 680 the Kl… I mean… Fan.
JimD
December 1st, 2010
11:43 am
Angry and crazy much wtf? Just how many pe*is’ have you seen to make such an emphatic statement? Stranger than that is the fact that you have seen your own bung hole. Sounds like more than a few times. Stranger even that THAT is that you spend even a minute to write what you wrote.
Having a problem with a guy on the radio to that post is a huge leap. Hope you’re not a parent. Wouldn’t imagine there aren’t even more reasons to be worried about your stability.
Lastly, I’ve met almost all of these guys over the years. The friendliest to me, my wife and kids was not “that DoMino guy” but the guy on the radio Chris Dimino.
Wish everyone had to use their real names here. Would be interested to see how many racists and nut jobs would risk losing their jobs and any standing in their community if names were attached
wtf?
December 1st, 2010
12:04 pm
JimD, I thought you liked real names, I never heard of anyone named JimD? Or is this the guy who got run out of Athens years ago and had to hide behind a lineman to hide from the press? (which I saw in person)
BTW, I have seen a pe*is and my own bung hole, hasn’t everyone at some point?
My point was, he looks like a jerk, sounds like a jerk, and talks like a jerk.
Just listen, and count how many times he says the phrase ‘the idea that…..’ I find it annoying. He also rarely actually asks a question whne interviewing, he just sates his opinion, then pauses briefly to let the othet guy speak. Bush-league and not entertaining to listen to .
The Kang
December 1st, 2010
12:57 pm
@Real Talk, just a heads up, Buck and Kincade are the longest running sports talk show in the history of Atlanta, not the stews, B&K just celebrated 10 years.
Emmm
Andre
December 1st, 2010
3:25 pm
wtf? I love that sound logic you’re using.
You sound like a douche. Therefore, you must be a douche?
Buck Belue sounds like an old Southern lesbian. Therefore, she must be an old, Southern lesbian.
John Kincade looks like a douche, talks like a douche, and sounds like a douche. Therefore, he must be a douche too.
By the way, how long has it been since Chuck Oliver stopped beating the women he’s with?
Christopher Rude
December 1st, 2010
4:42 pm
Hey, I just wanted to thank everybody for taking the time to write! Merry Christmas, Happy Chanukah!
Dan
December 1st, 2010
7:24 pm
An example of who 790 The Zone is a joke regardless of whether it get a FM signal
NFL Blitz segment runs after 7 a.m. with NFL Films music running in the background – so of course Steak turns the segment into what did you watch on TV and (with the NFL music still going) goes off for several minutes talking about Real Housewives of Atlanta
I know most of that show is trash but even when you think they might talk sports during a regularly scheduled football segment Shapiro works his magic – if Steak no longer is an owner why is he still on the air?
Mike Bell
December 2nd, 2010
1:15 pm
I can not get enough of Mike Bell…I laugh hysterically through all of his comedic stylings.
Frank The Tank
December 2nd, 2010
3:10 pm
You know, this might actually be really good for everyone because it will FINALLY force 790 to go to FM. If they don’t compete then they’re done.
It would also allow us OTP folks to hear some of 790’s programming better. Bell/Pollack are usually pretty darn good when I can hear them, the morning show has some really strong aspects and even their new guys, the Young Guns, are actually pretty darn good.
The only problem is that all three of those shows spend most of their broadcast hours with a worthless signal. The game changes now that 790 is going to be FORCED to compete. You just have to wonder how many big name guys (a.k.a. big money) will survive the transition.
Matt
December 2nd, 2010
5:22 pm
@SportsFan:
First, the Stews talk the NBA way too damn much for this market. Second, I don’t like the brother (literally) who always has this racial chip on his shoulder. He’s a bitch and his act gets tiring. I’m not talking about the brother (literally) than went to Tech. Of course there are issues that have race elements, it just seems that the Stew’s show looks for it in areas where it simply does not exist.
Real Talk
December 2nd, 2010
5:45 pm
@Matt:
How could you have to much NBA talk when you’re in a NBA market? Also, give me an example of what makes them (TheTwoLiveStews)racist?
Brett Shepherd
December 3rd, 2010
11:52 am
ohh good, now i can email rude with more great takes from ‘THE BRETT SHEPHERD EXPERIENCE” and more listeners can hear them…GREAT MOVE 680…
Danny Del
December 3rd, 2010
12:37 pm
790=Urban Station and 680=Everyone else that doesn’t want to list to 2 Live Race Merchants and arrogant know it alls. Thanks for stepping up your A++ game. 790….tick tick tick times running out. Should have cared more about Atlanta and less about that dump of a town, also know as Saint Louis. 790 is company and signal poor.
Real Talk
December 3rd, 2010
2:41 pm
@Danny Del
Like Matt I ask the same question of you. Please tell me how they’re racist? I’m a 47 yr old WHITE man and I see two black men who have changed the way so called sports talk radio operates. I hear more racist comments from Kincade than you could shake a stick. Like music genres, maybe you can have sports talk genres, and if that’s the case I’ll take the diversity all day. If they’re that bad and you can’t take it, how do you know what they’re talking about? They make the tuning dial for a reason, use if you don’t like what you hear.
K-man
December 4th, 2010
2:42 pm
Great win for 680! By far the best sports talk station in atlanta
Kenyun
December 4th, 2010
4:08 pm
So again I say this just because you can hear 680 really why you want to listen to them.
Rude, Leo and Perry is a joke. Not sure how this is not worse than Steak, Nick and Chris.
Mayhem can at least talk about sports and make sense (minus Steak).
I like Chuck and Matt but they can go over the top…
The Stews have their core audience and they play to them well. (isn’t that was all stations do???)
Bell/Archer would be a great show 7 days a week. I can actually see this happening soon.
Buck and Kincade not really sure why they are still on the air (although cigar friday was a good segment LOL)