WYSI 1480 and WYNZ 1520 Ypsilanti

[Deleted User 16173]

This goes back to 1963 two stations were in competition for Top 40 in Ypsilanti, WYSI 1480 and WYNZ 1520. The battle lasted for about 3 years until 1966. Two great names in radio both of which worked at WYNZ 1520 in the 60’s John Huzar also known as Jim Harper and Jim Kerr. Of course Jim Harper spent most of radio career at WNIC here in Detroit and Jim Kerr at WPLJ in New York City for over 23 years. These two great radio personalities along with two small great AM stations from Ypsilanti are part of how good AM radio was back in the day. Also, what is more interesting is that in 1968 another station assigned to 1520 in Toledo known as WTTO started broadcasting which also had a Top 40 format. How did the FCC allow two AM stations so close together geographically on the same frequency is strange. I’ve heard that the Toledo station had two antenna arrays one in Ohio and one in Michigan. Those were interesting days of AM Radio.

[Ben Zonia]

Tom Skaff of Skaff's Carpet was our Electronics teacher for part of a year in HS. He wanted to do something other than the family business, so he majored in Electronics. He was a friend or worked for Harold Munn, and told us stories Munn told him about WYSI, WYNZ, and WJBK. They were apparently behaving badly with him with the construction and the directional antenna, delaying construction of WYSI 1480. So he turned around and built his own station, WYNZ 1520, just 400 feet away, creating a huqe intermodulation situation. He got WYNZ on first, and WYSI had to correct the problems.

Later Engineer Don McComb was a DJ at one of the Ypsilanti stations. There's a chart I saw online with his name listed. Tom Skaff also worked briefly at WGMZ when Don McComb was there as Chief Engineer. Skaff ended up working for the family business, but is now a missionary I believe.

[Ben Zonia]

Here's a link.

http://carcitycountry.com/2012/wysi-wsd ... -part-one/

[Deleted User 16173]

Here's a link.

http://carcitycountry.com/2012/wysi-wsd ... -part-one/

Thanks, very interesting information. You come across some really great finds.

[CD 94.7]

1520am WPAY in Rossford/Perrysburg Ohio is still going, it's owned by Relevant radio now. Then you have another 1520am not too far away in Bryan Ohio, which is WQCT. WPAY(then WTTO,WTUU WGOR, WVOI) indeed had one set in Temperance MI on Jackman Road near the Michigan tavern, which was a bar. There is a subdivision where the station used to be now. I did not know there was a 1520am in Yipsi.

[Ben Zonia]

At one time, you could opt to receive interference. The WTTO pattern was very directional, and the conductivity might have been low between the two. Sometimes, if applications were contemporaneous, they let them work it out to have interference. The 1330s in Campbell and Willoughby, Ohio were negotiated like that.

Anyway, what was WYNZ 1520 eventually became WDEO 990, and allowed WTTO...WPAY to operate with a single array South of Toledo. 990 opened up near the Canadian border due to changes in the agreement with Canada. They no longer had to protect the Canadian border in areas far away from Winnipeg and Corner Brook.

[fairbankshockeypuck]

WMLM 1520 is alive and well in Alma/St Louis Michigan...Very directional north....FM translator at 105.9...classic country
Funny I cant touch either 20 miles east...1520 barely on truck radio and ironically there is a 105.9 in Midland that booms in from 15 miles to the north

[billmich88888]

WMLM 1520 is alive and well in Alma/St Louis Michigan...Very directional north....FM translator at 105.9...classic country
Funny I cant touch either 20 miles east...1520 barely on truck radio and ironically there is a 105.9 in Midland that booms in from 15 miles to the north

people don't realize that ~10-15 miles is all these station's are going to sell to advertisers anyways.

[fairbankshockeypuck]

Midland 105.9FM/Alma 105.9 FM....the two cities are 30 miles apart....Saginaw AND Mt Pleasnt 92.3...45 miles a apart
add weird weather and atmospheric conditions anything can happen with reception....
99.3 Brigdeport(South ofSaginaw)...19 miles from me...it was wiped out by WATZ-Alpena 99.3 over 150 miles away from me....today