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KSDS Boosts Power
Gary Stigall, CSTE Travelling in a car on I-5 along Mission Bay recently became a little more pleasurable if you're a fan of traditional jazz. On March 11, KSDS, 88.3 MHz, began transmitting at 3,000 watts ERP vertically polarized. Now you'll find far fewer dropouts in mobile reception along the major area freeways surrounding their Linda Vista transmission site. KSDS, a service of City College, has been conducting tests to determine if their increase in power would harm non-cable reception of XETV channel six from Tijuana. The two sides negotiated interference tests after the FCC ordered them to come up with a plan they could both live with. While the rules don't address non-commercial operation in the field of a foreign broadcaster, the FCC chose to recognize the signal as if it were domestic. (See the August 1998 story.) Larry Quick, Chief Engineer for KSDS, has been pleased that they've had a noticeable increase in their signal and that they have "actually less interference than before," due presumably to the vertical polarization. However, he's NOT pleased with reception by those with conventional horizontal yagis. Ironically, the most loyal KSDS listeners often went to the trouble of mounting FM yagis in order to receive the previously weak signal. TV's have improved adjacent-channel performance and cable penetration have increased--both helpful trends. However, viewers on area mesas prefer rabbit ears for receiving channel six if they can get away with it, and their not-quite-horizontal physical construction has led to a reported four complaints. Larry says he has been able to work with the manufacturers of those viewers' TVs to increase FM band rejection. KSDS has enlisted Analysis Research Corp. for a random calling survey within the predicted zone of interference. The sampling is over 400, spread over "a couple dozen zip codes." Currently, they are broadcasting from a Shively 4-bay vertically polarized FM antenna atop a 200-foot mast on the campus of Mesa College. Larry says they plan to proceed with a construction permit for a 22 kW elliptical pattern transmission. XETV hasn't commented on the power increase. Bay City Television, operators of XETV, has enlisted the services of Bob Gonsett to study interference. Detailed FCC rules dealing with non-commercial FM band and channel six co-existence are at section 73.525. |
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