Local or Regional Stations Picked Up Outside their Licensed Area

I can pick up Classic Hits from Galway up as far as Knock on the Sligo road and then it disappears.

marno21

zorro2566 wrote: »

I can pick up Classic Hits from Galway up as far as Knock on the Sligo road and then it disappears.

The Maghera stations (including 104.6) do fare well until the drop in height at Knock Airport. Going down the hill towards Charlestown blocks the signal then after that. It does reappear closer to Sligo but not as strong.

Antenna

rabbidpeach wrote: »

Classic Hits can be found almost all the way down the M7 and parts of north Kerry too

Co. Clare is included in their franchise area, which of course is just across the Shannon Estuary from north Kerry, so the 104.6 will be bound to be heard there

rabbidpeach wrote: »

I also picked up Galway Bay FM on the N69 not too long ago. I can't recall where exactly, but before Foynes.

It became possible to hear Galway Bay FM in much of Co. Limerick again after East Limerick Community Radio (ELCR) went off / lost their licence (their main frequency also being 96.8). Before that the Limerick college station Wired FM was on 96.8 for a long time (nowadays all the nines, 99.9).

https://www.limerickleader.ie/news/home/325221/east-limerick-community-radios-contractterminated-by-broadcasting-authority.html

Infoanon wrote: »

Spain - there is a site overlooking Barcelona that in certain weather conditions blasts into the south East - used to play havoc with RTE TV reception

That was Maghera for the mid-west of the country. RTE 1 used to be on Band I from there which put a usable signal into areas with difficult terrain (before relays) but on the other hand Band 1 was prone to this Sporadic-E, interference mainly from Spain but other countries too. Phased out in the 1990s with RTE 1 joining RTE2 on Band III from there

Antenna

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/102881148#Comment_102881148

97.5 used, several years ago be listenable on a car radio in Kilkenny city (45km away north-ish) , but at some point the coverage of it northwards-eastwards was reduced a lot and nowadays, parked in the same area of Kilkenny city it is too weak to listen to

notice the directional setup which wouldn't have been the case then:

https://www.google.com/maps/@52.2594552,-7.1519781,3a,15y,317.59h,103.98t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sJibUzvWoC7llCXuTYaeV0w!2e0!7i16384!8i8192

lertsnim

I pick up Cork stations with varying success in Dungarvan. Red FM on 105.7 would be the strongest. Classic Hits on 97.4 or 94.8. Both fade out easily depending on where I am listening from. 96 FM on 96.4, C103 on 103.3 are very hit and miss.

If I go a few miles west past the Gaelteacht I can easily pick up all the Cork stations clearly with full RDS.

South East Radio on 95.6 from Wexford and KCLR on 96.0 from Kilkenny are both hit and miss.

Years ago Radio Kerry was receivable on 97.0 FM

Being at sea level and surrounded by hills doesn't help.

TheBMG

Don’t know if they’ve moved site or changed their TX system but KCLR on 96.9 can come into me (in Churchtown, Dublin 14) which surprises me because I’m presuming it has to battle it’s way up through the Wicklow mountains. It also gets hammered by 2FMs monster signal on 97.0 from Clermont Carn.

Not a local station but ..

Lyric FMs relatively low powered signal on 98.1 from Dungarvan can also be heard in some unusual spots and I’ve often heard it giving a bruising to Dublins 98FM around the midlands and up toward Cavan.

Back in the day, a few rural/local independents were lobbying the government to "do something" about FM104 & 98fm overspiling onto their turf

marno21

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120123924#Comment_120123924

Lyric FM in Dungarvan was originally on 102.2 to prevent interference to 98FM. It moved to 98.1 in 2003 when Beat 102 103 launched.

96.9 isn’t the most surprising, it’s from Rossmore which is also the TX for KFM on 97.3. But at the same time you’d imagine it should be rather directional away from Dublin

BBC Radio 1-4,Downtown Radio and Q Radio 101.2,all from NI, clear on FM in Collooney Co. Sligo for years!

TheBMG

Q Radio on 101.1 audible around some parts of South Dublin too

marno21

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120128479#Comment_120128479

That's from Kilkeel. In the good old days of over the air reception (or in Google Street View possibly) you'd see rakes of vertically polarised aerials pointing up the coast at Kilkeel. Despite being only 500W on UHF the clear sea path was a gift in places like Killiney for reception of the 4 NI channels.

its_steve116

I've gotten Near FM (NE Dublin) as far south as Bray.

TheBMG

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120147969#Comment_120147969

Would’ve thought Killiney/Dalkey Hill would block it down South but obviously not!

TAFKAlawhec

If you go "off the beaten track" so to speak in some elevated places, you can often pick up some "local" stations well outside its intended service area especially at the powers a lot of Irish stations are given, as long as co-channel or adjacent channel (usually 0.1 MHz away) interference doesn't pose problems. In different parts of Tyrone over the years I've picked up...

* FM 104 (until iRadio NW launched), Nova 100 & Spin 1038 from Dublin (104.4, 100;3 & 103.8 respectively)

* Midlands 103 on 103.5

* Tipp FM on 103.9

* LMFM on 95.8 (sandwiched between BBC Radio 4 on 95.6 & 96.0 from Brougher Mtn & Divis, though in the west of the county this frequency is now used for Finn Valley Radio)

* Mid West on 96.1 (where BBC Radio 4 from Divis on 96.0 can be nulled out or shielded from)

* Galway Bay FM on 96.8 (fighting out between Q Radio Belfast on 96.7 & iRadio NW on 96.9)

* C103 on 103.7

Back in the late 90's & early 2000's Shannonside's 104.1 transmitter used to get in as far as Cookstown but at some point in the mid-00's they changed their aerial configuration and could no longer be heard here.

Also, despite it supposedly being low-powered whilst not being too far away, Spirit Radio's 87.7 TX for Letterkenny gets out a surprising distance, causing issues with receiving RTÉ Radio 1 on 87.8 in a few spots (though 87.8 is usually not the strongest Radio 1 signal in these areas).

Antenna

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120124083#Comment_120124083

Do you have a link to this???

As past Dail/Seanad debates would be archived online

Would be interested to read what exactly was said and by who.

radiotrickster

I've gotten KFM in Dublin, not far out from the city centre.