WXRV

WXRV/WXRG/WLKC/WFNX
City WXRV: Andover, Massachusetts
WXRG: Concord, New Hampshire
WLKC: Campton, New Hampshire
WFNX: Athol, Massachusetts
Broadcast area WXRV: Merrimack Valley, Greater Boston
WXRG: Concord, New Hampshire
WLKC: Lakes Region
WFNX: North County, Pioneer Valley
Branding 92.5 The River
Slogan Independent Radio
Frequency WXRV: 92.5 MHz
WXRG: 102.3 MHz
WLKC: 105.7 MHz
WFNX: 99.9 MHz
Translator(s) W243DC: 96.5 MHz Needham, Massachusetts
Repeater(s) WFNX, WXRG/WLKC
First air date WXRV: June 1959[1]
WXRG: March 7, 1972 (as WKXL-FM)
WLKC: May 1996[2]
WFNX: December 4, 1989 (as WCAT-FM)[3]
Format Adult album alternative
ERP WXRV: 25,000 watts
WXRG: 3,000 watts
WLKC: 4,100 watts
WFNX: 1,850 watts
W243DC: 10 watts
HAAT WXRV: 217 meters (712 ft)
WXRG: 87 meters (285 ft)
WLKC: 119 meters (390 ft)
WFNX: 124 meters (407 ft)
W243DC: 159.5 meters (523 ft)
Class WXRV: B
WXRG: A
WLKC: A
WFNX: A
Facility ID WXRV: 49385
WXRG: 8683
WLKC: 72211
WFNX: 51124
Transmitter coordinates WXRV: 42°46′23.00″N 71°6′11.00″W / 42.7730556°N 71.1030556°W / 42.7730556; -71.1030556 (WXRV)
WXRG: 43°13′0.0″N 71°34′34.0″W / 43.216667°N 71.576111°W / 43.216667; -71.576111 (WXRG)
WLKC: 43°45′45.00″N 71°39′0.00″W / 43.7625000°N 71.6500000°W / 43.7625000; -71.6500000 (WLKC)
WFNX: 42°35′39.00″N 72°12′2.00″W / 42.5941667°N 72.2005556°W / 42.5941667; -72.2005556 (WFNX)
W243DC:42°18′10.70″N 71°13′4.90″W / 42.3029722°N 71.2180278°W / 42.3029722; -71.2180278 (W243DC)
Callsign meaning WXRV: W X RiVer
WLKC: calls transferred from a sister station formerly known as "The Lake"
WXRG: calls grandfathered from former "Hawk" branding, HK representing the word, "Hawk".
Former callsigns WXRV:
WHAV-FM (1959–1983)
WLYT (1983–1995)
WXRG: WKXL-FM (March 7, 1972–January 3, 2000)
WOTX-FM (January 3, 2000–February 7, 2005)
WLKC:
WVFM (1996–2005)
WUSX (2005)
WFNX (FM): WCAT-FM (1989–2002)
WAHL (2002–2003)
WNYN-FM (2003–2008)
WXRG (2008–2013)
Owner Northeast Broadcasting
((WXRV: Beanpot License Corp.)
(WXRG: Devon Broadcasting Company, Inc.)
(WLKC: Devon Broadcasting Company, Inc.)
(WFNX: County Broadcasting Company, LLC))
Sister stations WFNX, WXRG/WLKC
Webcast Listen Live
Listen Live (MP3)
Website www.theriverboston.com

WXRV (The River 92.5 FM) is an adult album alternative radio station based in Andover, Massachusetts, with a signal covering most of northeast Massachusetts and southern New Hampshire, and audible as far away as Plymouth, Massachusetts. Originating in 1947 as WHAV, an AM station in Haverhill, an FM station was founded in 1948, but went dark in the early 1950s. The FM station was restored on its current frequency in 1959; it became soft rock-formatted WLYT (Lite 92.5) in 1983, and gained its current identity as WXRV on August, 1, 1995, presumably taking the River moniker from the nearby Merrimack River (though with its wider reach, it uses Boston's Charles River for publicity purposes), but some say that the "river" moniker is for its diverse format of music that winds back and forth flowing like a river.[4] Despite the station's transmitter location, WXRV attempts to primarily serve the Greater Boston area; its signal also reaches into the nearby Manchester and Portsmouth markets. To overcome signal issues near Boston, the station applied for four on-channel booster stations in the Boston and metro-west areas in August 2015. The studios are still located in Haverhill, in the original WHAV art deco building. The current station inherited a facility on the top floor of its studio now called the River Music Hall, which was designed for broadcasting live performances in the pre-rock era, and is used today to broadcast live performances and to record performances for later broadcast.

Former logo

The station's slogan is "Independent Radio", proclaiming its status as being a single station separate from the large mass-media conglomerates such as Clear Channel Communications and CBS Radio with freedom from the idea of corporate playlists and national content. This enables WXRV to play a very wide variety of music, ranging from blues and folk to contemporary alternative and classic rock, as well as songs from numerous local musicians and lesser-known musical acts.

In 2007, their studio location began using photo-voltaic solar power for a portion of the station's power consumption, making it one of the few such solar-powered radio stations in the world at the time.

Starting in 2001 the River began its Riverfest Festival each summer. It is held in Newburyport, Massachusetts and has had performers such as Matt Nathanson, Eric Hutchinson, Fastball and the Sam Roberts Band appear.

WLKC ("105.7 The River")

WLKC (105.7 FM), licensed to Campton, New Hampshire has simulcast WXRV since 1999. For a brief time during 2012–13, the station was programmed separately (though retaining the "River" branding and AAA format), before returning to the WXRV simulcast. In 2014, Northeast Broadcasting acquired a second New Hampshire station, WWHK (102.3 FM) in Concord; that station began broadcasting WXRV programming on May 2, 2014, though WWHK broadcasts separate news, weather, and advertising.[5][6] Later that month, WXRV added a translator in Needham, Massachusetts, W243DC (96.5 FM). On March 28, 2016, WWHK changed their call letters to WXRG.

Other simulcasts

From April 2008 until May 2014, WXRV simulcast in the northwest part of Central Massachusetts on WFNX (99.9 FM), licensed to Athol, Massachusetts, which itself was rebroadcast on daytime station WWBZ (700 AM, now WFAT) in Orange and Athol starting in late 2011. The WFNX call letters were previously used by an alternative rock station in Boston owned by the Boston Phoenix, first on 101.7 FM (now WBWL) and later as an Internet radio station; Northeast Broadcasting acquired the call letters in April 2013 after that station shut down along with the Phoenix.[7] Before then, the station had been known as WXRG, while WWBZ was known as WTUB until April 2014. WFNX and WWBZ dropped the WXRV simulcast in May 2014 and began stunting with a wide range of music while preparing to launch new formats for the stations on June 9, with listeners being asked to vote on which of the songs being played should be included in the new formats.[8][9] In May 2016, following a lack of success at attracting advertisers, WFNX (FM) announced that it would end its variety hits format (and WFAT announced that it would end its Oldies format) after May 29, both stations returning to simulcasting WXRV, citing a lack of advertiser support; in its announcement, WFNX (FM) and WFAT both said they needed ten businesses to advertise on the stations on an annual basis to cover their operations costs.[10] Following the announcement, the websites for WFNX (FM) and WFAT were both shut down; however, as of June 1st, the WFAT is still broadcasting its Oldies format, and the website and webcast had been restored.

For several months after Northeast Broadcasting acquired WKBR (1250 AM) in Manchester, New Hampshire in 1997, that station offered a temporary simulcast of WXRV.[11] The station is now separately-owned WGAM.

References

  1. "The Merrimack Valley Radio Dial: WXRV(FM)". The Archives @ BostonRadio.org. Retrieved December 28, 2011.
  2. Fybush, Scott (May 21, 1996). "New England RadioWatch". Retrieved December 28, 2011.
  3. Broadcasting & Cable Yearbook 1999 (PDF). 1999. p. D-207. Retrieved December 28, 2011.
  4. http://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-RandR/1990s/1995/RR-1995-08-04.pdf
  5. WWHK Concord Begins WXRV Simulcast
  6. Doyle, Megan (May 1, 2014). "92.5 the River begins simulcast on Concord station". Concord Monitor. Retrieved May 2, 2014.
  7. "WFNX Lives On ... Sorta". All Access. April 10, 2013. Retrieved May 15, 2013.
  8. Venta, Lance (May 29, 2014). "Northeast To Launch New Central Massachusetts Formats". RadioInsight. Retrieved May 29, 2014.
  9. http://www.vote999.com Take Control of Your Radio
  10. Venta, Lance (May 3, 2016). "Two Central Massachusetts Stations To End Programming". RadioInsight. Retrieved May 21, 2016.
  11. Fybush, Scott (August 7, 1997). "A Change of Sale". North East RadioWatch. Retrieved May 29, 2014.
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