WBMI 1055 Back on the Air

[ChrisWL1980]

I actually LIKED the ABC/SMN "Best Hits/Best Variety" format Y102 used in the '90s. I went to Aquinas College in GR from 1998-2002 and listened from my dorm room on my Drake SW8 (IIRC it was the spring of 2000 or so that Y102 ditched the satellite and went fully live/local). 107.7 WHSB in Alpena used Best Hits/Best Variety as well nights and weekends (they switched to Jones' Adult Hit Radio in early '99, which I didn't like quite as much - WBMI also used that format when they were Hot AC and going by about 12 different names, including Channel 105-5, Kool Mix 105.5, etc.). The Saturday night '80s show with Booray(sp?) was a fun listen.

[BayCityJohn2337]

WBMI has now changed to smile FM and the new license has been granted per the FCC

[BayCityJohn2337]

Smile FM is now Broadcasting on WBMI 105.5 FM Today in West Branch.

[Realist]

Heard it yesterday when driving through WB.

Way too many God Squad stations. There’s another local one down the dial at 93.9FM

[Ben Zonia]

It's an odd paradigm that many of the Docket 80-90 drop ins and Class As are only able to survive as noncommercial entities. WAVC 93.9 is a Class C2 made possible by Docket 80-90 and Docket 84-231 and subsequent changes. The odd thing is that many important distance separation requirements actually increased on second and third adjacent channels. As mentioned elsewhere in another thread, A to B and B to B separations on second and third adjacents used to be just 40 miles (39.5 miles with rounding). 6 kW rules also increased cochannel and first adjacent spacings for Class As, leaving many Class As as nonupgradable 3 kW Class As. One more thing that also pushed Class A allotments further into the middle of nowhere. Some said it was because of a rural broadcast initiative, but it really is a way of keeping new stations out of populated areas. Rural stations could have been fit in like they have done in rural areas of Canada, with lower power and directional stations with contour overlap and interference received possibilities. That would also allow competing stations in populated areas.

[ChrisWL1980]

Heard it yesterday when driving through WB.

Way too many God Squad stations. There’s another local one down the dial at 93.9FM

West Branch also has an LPFM at 107.3, and there's also 90.9 in Rose City.
EVERY licensed signal in Ogemaw County now belongs to the Jesus freaks.

[matt1]

Back around 1981 & 1982 & 1983, I had to wait until WBMI signed off at 12:00 midnight because I could NOT get 105 FM WWCK in Flint ("Flint's Best") when it was a hard rock station back then!!! I missed the first 30 minutes of the late Bob Coburn's "Rockline" (with rock singers or groups) every Monday nights BUT I did heard of the last hour of the show till 1:00 AM!!

[ChrisWL1980]

There's not exactly a lot of commercial ad dollars to be had in that area. The limited ad dollars that do exist are scooped up by WUPS, WGDN and perhaps WKJC.

There are only about 21,000 year round residents who reside in Ogemaw County.

WBMI likely didn't stand a chance continuing operations as a commercial (for profit) FM.

I understand that, but I'd almost rather they'd have gone off the air and turned the license back in than switch to a network with no local content that can be heard on at least two other signals in the area. The region did not need another station playing the Christian versions of Maroon 5 songs that constitute modern CCM.

[Ben Zonia]

There's not exactly a lot of commercial ad dollars to be had in that area. The limited ad dollars that do exist are scooped up by WUPS, WGDN and perhaps WKJC.

There are only about 21,000 year round residents who reside in Ogemaw County.

WBMI likely didn't stand a chance continuing operations as a commercial (for profit) FM.

I understand that, but I'd almost rather they'd have gone off the air and turned the license back in than switch to a network with no local content that can be heard on at least two other signals in the area. The region did not need another station playing the Christian versions of Maroon 5 songs that constitute modern CCM.

If they turned the license in, it would be years before the frequency was auctioned and the station returned to the air.

[Colonel Flagg]

Back around 1981 & 1982 & 1983, I had to wait until WBMI signed off at 12:00 midnight because I could NOT get 105 FM WWCK in Flint ("Flint's Best") when it was a hard rock station back then!!! I missed the first 30 minutes of the late Bob Coburn's "Rockline" (with rock singers or groups) every Monday nights BUT I did heard of the last hour of the show till 1:00 AM!!

During that timeframe is when WBMI probably sounded best, as Stereo Rock I-105. I believe they used the reel to reel package from TM, branded as Stereo Rock, as did WIOG for a time. However, given a choice, like you, I probably would've preferred hearing WWCK.

The Gladwin FM was originally a rock station as well, as WGMM. Many laughed when Mike Ryan moved up there to build an FM and "play Heavy Metal to the forest" but he tried it anyway.

[Ben Zonia]

WWCK-FM 105.5 comes in a lot around West Branch, when WBMI is off the air. Before WBMI originally signed on, circa 1980, even when WWCK-FM was just 3000 watts, it came in much of the time in that part of Michigan. The better your radio and antenna, the better and more often it came in. It also came in in areas near Waterford and Bloomfield Hills, and marginally around all the Northern tier suburbs of Detroit, with just 3000 watts, before WQQO came on the air with 6000 watts equivalent, and all the translators and Canadian stations signed on. When WWCK-FM went to 25000 watts DA, it was still just 3000 watts to the Southeast, and the real pattern even less, like the WFBE and WLAV-FM are even less than the FCC design parameters. The only DA worth anything among the Cumulus stations is for WWWW-FM.

[matt1]

WGMM (103.1 FM) in Gladwin back then was in MONO than STEREO back in early 1983 till around 1987!! (Mid-Michigan's True Rock!)

[Colonel Flagg]

There's not exactly a lot of commercial ad dollars to be had in that area. The limited ad dollars that do exist are scooped up by WUPS, WGDN and perhaps WKJC.

There are only about 21,000 year round residents who reside in Ogemaw County.

WBMI likely didn't stand a chance continuing operations as a commercial (for profit) FM.

With your dire observations, which make perfect sense, why should we believe that "listener supported radio" will do any better? You're still in a poor community, with a small population. But hey, West Branch is "up north" so if the donations don't start rollin' in, Smilin' Ed can always hold a pancake supper, or Friday fish fry. Cheaper if you're seated before 4:30. The old folks in bibbed overalls will show up in droves. Works every time, as long as you're north of U.S.10.