KFBK RPU frequencies and Metro Networks RPU
Scanman6 said:
KFBK is getting its traffic reports from CHP on 450.225. When traffic reports are given to the media. they traditionally use the media comm freqs. 450.000 - 450.999
and 455.000 - 455.999. I've been catching reports in the AM before 0930 hours. CHP has been doing this for at least a couple of weeks now. CHP Air 21 reported all last week. Generally KFBK records the transmittion for later broadcast in their soundhour. You'll hear chatter between CHP Air and KFBK Base on this freq that does not go out over KFBK. Not as cool as Commander Bill was, but still neat to listen to. Combine these reports with
www.Sigalert.com information and you get a pretty good picture of local traffic conditions
450.225 is one of several RPU (Remote Pickup Unit) frequencies licensed to KFBK. Back in the days of Commander Bill and Joe Miano, Bill used 450.225 and Joe used 455.900. These were one-way from out in the field or in the sky to the studio.
When Bill and Joe were in the air, I had no problem receiving them in Marysville on a hand-held Radio Shack Pro 51 using either a rubber duck or a Horizontally polarized VHF-FM-UHF television antenna pointed south.
Studio to airplane or news cars and engineering traffic (sometimes called 'dispatch') was on another frequency, which I could never seem to find, even when I was in Sacramento.
Current FCC database shows:
450.225 is covered by call sign WHE 795 for a base unit that's at one of the towers south of Hwy. 50 on the steep hill you go up between Folsom and El Dorado Hills. It also covers 19 mobile units. Base and mobiles use 15K0F3E emission.
455.900 uses 50K0F3E emission and call sign KA88963 for mobile units.
That was paired with 450.900 under call sign KB 96924 for mobile units, also with 50K0F3E emission.
Co-owned KGBY is also licensed to use 450.900 under call sign KPK 422
KFBK also has licenses for a frequency pair under KEH 389: 450.800/455.800, with 15K0F3E emission at the Ethan Way studio and 19 mobile units.
KLP 415 for 161.700 and 161.760 at the Pleasant Grove transmitter site, and KLP 416 for mobile units on the same frequencies.
KPE 800 covers a transmitter on 161.700 at 3700 Branch Center Rd. out in the Rancho Cordova area.
KPE 866 covers a transmitter on 161.700 at the Ethan Way studio.
KPE 870 covers a transmitter on 161.700 at 3284 Ramos Circle in Sacto. All these high-band VHF's use 30K0F3E emission
KPE 890 covers a transmitter using 50K0F3E emission on 450.800 at 606 Delano St., Rio Linda, which sounds like the KGBY, 92.5 FM transmitter site.
KPK 423 covers transmitters on 455.0375 using 25K0F3E emission at 2800 Meadoview Rd. in southern Sacramento.
KPL 774 covers a base on 170.150 at the Ethan Way studio and five mobile units using 12K5F3E emission. This sounds like the dispatch frequency.
KQQ 308 covers a transmitter on 161.700 using 20K0F3E emission at 1231 I St. in downtown Sacramento.
There are two audio STL's associated with KFBK. One is Call sign WLI 688 at the studio using 500KF9W emission on 946.000 with the antenna aimed at 349.0 degrees. The other is WGI 267 on 951.000 at 606 Delano in Elverta (Rio Linda) aimed at 357.0 degrees.
Without using a map and the azimuth to check, I'd guess the studio tx is aimed at the Elverta tower, and the Elverta tower relays the signal to the AM transmitter site in Pleasant Grove.
Metro Networks maintains two frequencies in Sacramento covered by call sign KPL 358: 450.525 and 455.525 for base and mobile units. The base unit shows an address of 1600 Sacramento Inn Way, Suite 209, Sacramento.
That's a few blocks east of Metro's current office on Arden Way across from Arden Fair.
