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WAEB-FM
Radio station in Allentown, Pennsylvania From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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WAEB-FM (104.1 MHz, "B104") is a commercial radio station licensed to Allentown, Pennsylvania, and serving the Lehigh Valley. The station airs a contemporary hit radio format and is owned by iHeartMedia, Inc. The studios and offices are on Alta Drive in Whitehall.
WAEB-FM has an effective radiated power (ERP) of 50,000 watts, the maximum for most Pennsylvania stations. The transmitter is on Tower Road in Walnutport, about 20 miles (32 km) northwest of Allentown.[2] WAEB-FM broadcasts using HD Radio technology. Its HD3 subchannel, "Latina FM," plays Spanish CHR and feeds FM translators in Allentown, Reading and Hazleton.[3]
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History
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Early years
WAEB-FM signed on the air on June 30, 1961.[4] It debuted as the sister station of WAEB 790 AM, simulcasting its Top 40 format in its first few years. In the late 1960s, WAEB-FM separated its programming from WAEB and aired an automated beautiful music format, playing quarter-hour sweeps of soft instrumental music. It went through several more formats before eventually becoming a country music station in 1970 with the call sign WXKW.
In April 1985, it returned to the WAEB-FM call letters and switched to a soft adult contemporary format, initially playing a few middle of the road (MOR) artists as well as some new songs. The station was known as "Light 104 WAEB-FM", and it was a "niche" format meant to compete with 100.7 WFMZ (which was easy listening at the time) and 96.1 WLEV (which was an automated/live assist hot adult contemporary).
By the early part of 1986, WAEB FM had evolved to more of a mainstream AC format, but by the late part of 1986, the station was phasing out the "Light" name. It became "104 WAEB-FM" with the music mix changing to a dayparted AC/CHR mix without the hype, more adult by day, more youthful at night.
Laser 104.1
January 26, 1987 was the day when "the records went away." WAEB-FM switched to a CHR-Top 40 format, becoming "The world's first ever laser hit-music radio station, The New Laser 104.1 WAEB-FM". This marked when WAEB-FM began playing 90% percent of its music from compact discs or CDs. (A small number of vinyl records, which didn't have CD versions, were still heard.) During the station's "Laser Days", beginning in 1987, local amusement park Dorney Park & Wildwater Kingdom renamed the "Colossus" steel roller coaster as "The Laser" until it was moved in 2008. Legendary voice artist Mitch Craig was the imaging voice of WAEB-FM in its "Laser" years.
In 1991, the station gradually replaced the "Laser 104.1" branding by simply calling the station "104.1 WAEB-FM". In September of that year, competing Top 40 outlet WHXT ("Hot 99.9") in Easton switched to oldies music and became WODE-FM, rebranding as "Oldies 99.9". That left WAEB-FM as the market's only Top 40 station.
The station began calling itself "The New B104 FM" in 1992. Brian James became the imaging voice. By late 1992, WAEB-FM started to play down the fact that the station was "new" and began positioning itself as playing "10 songs in a row". It used the slogan "Everything You Need to Know" with its emphasis on local news in mornings and afternoons, as well as traffic reports every 10 minutes during drive time. Ken Matthews hosted the morning show and Chuck McGee did the afternoons. Rich Davis (later at KDWB Minneapolis) joined in 1992 and did overnights before eventually moving to evenings using the name "Joe Friday".
Going softer
By Spring 1996, B104 began moving softer. Most of the flame-throwing jingles from the 1980s were dropped and Sean Caldwell became the new imaging voice. The Retro 80's Buffet began each weekday at noon, hosted originally by Jennifer Knight (later on WAYV in Atlantic City). In late 1996, B-104 began carrying the syndicated Open House Party with John Garabedian on Saturday nights after it was dropped by WAVT-FM (T-102) in Pottsville. By 1997, B104 began playing softer songs during the day, hoping to pick up listeners who were looking for a new station after adult contemporary 96.1 WLEV switched to country music in July 1997. In late 1998, B104 began using a new jingle package and streaming on the web.
In the 1990s, B104 served as Allentown's de facto adult contemporary station as it eliminated rap and hard rock during the day. B104 aired special edits of songs such as Green Day's Holiday, Beyonce's Crazy In Love, extracting the raps or spoken parts from the songs. Through the 2000s, B104 had "whatever weekends", moving the station closer to adult hits and away from playing the week's top hits frequently.
In 2000, WAEB-FM and WAEB became part of AMFM Broadcasting.[5] AMFM was a forerunner to Clear Channel Communications which became iHeartMedia in 2014.
Return to Mainstream Top 40
In 2006, B104 was re-imaged again. It dropped Sean Caldwell as the imaging voice along with the "10 in a row" slogan. Morning host Ken Matthews exited. Long-time night DJ Mike Kelly was moved to mornings, as WAEB-FM began to resemble other CHR-Top 40 stations owned by Clear Channel. Today, B104 is a Mainstream CHR that no longer dayparts its music. B104 relies on syndicated shows from co-owned Premiere Networks and voicetracked DJs from other iHeart stations most of the day. It continues to have a live and local wake-up show, "Becca and Mike in The Morning".
B104 featured the "Firecracker 500" every 4th of July weekend through 2003 with the #1 song usually being the biggest hit on the station in the last year. On October 20, 2012, B104 dropped Open House Party on Saturday nights, replacing it with Saturday Night Online with Romeo (now Most Requested Live with Romeo). In middays on weekdays, it carries On Air with Ryan Seacrest and Tino Cochino Radio is heard on weekday evenings. American Top 40 with Ryan Seacrest airs on Sundays.
Through the 2000s, B104 is usually at or near at the top of the Nielsen ratings in the Allentown radio market.
Short-spaced signal
WAEB-FM is short-spaced to WNNK-FM Wink 104 in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, owned by Cumulus Media. Both stations operate on the same 104.1 MHz channel even though the distance between the stations' transmitters is only 76 miles (122 km).[6]
The minimum distance between two Class B stations operating on the same channel according to current Federal Communications Commission (FCC) rules should be 150 miles (240 km).[7] Both stations are grandfathered because they went on the air before the FCC rules were established.
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HD subchannels and translators
WAEB-FM broadcasts using HD Radio technology. It offers two subchannels for listeners with HD receivers. WAEB-FM-HD2 has had several different formats over the years, originally airing new Top 40 releases. Then it played alternative rock, followed by a simulcast of talk radio 790 WAEB, and later country music.
WAEB-FM-HD3, "Latina FM," plays Spanish CHR and feeds FM translators in Allentown, Reading and Hazleton.
W221CU 106.5 in Allentown and W296CL 107.5 in Reading has been airing a Spanish CHR format since May 2017.[8]
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External links
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