Lovely Cape Cod gets a new radio station, WBUH(FM).
WBUR(FM) has fired up its new signal in Cape Cod, Mass.
The new, full Class B FM “WBUH” transmitting on 89.1 MHz and licensed to Brewster, Mass., has begun broadcasting. WBUH provides a signal across nearly all of Cape Cod, complementing WBUR’s existing 3 kW 92.7 MHz signal on Martha’s Vineyard. WBUR’s primary 50 kW signal on 90.9 MHz transmits across the Boston metro.
WBUR General Manager Charlie Kravetz said the nonprofit had wanted such a signal for a decade when the organization identified an opportunity for a new public radio frequency on Cape Cod in 2004. At the time, the FCC had a freeze in place for new noncommercial station applications. The agency opened a window in 2007.
That’s when WBUR applied. It came in second behind Home Improvement Ministries, which obtained a CP in 2011. But by fall 2013, HIM had not built a station and its three-year CP was due to expire. WBUR offered to cover the “minimal expenses” HIM had incurred, according to WBUR, and the fellow nonprofit accepted.
With the construction permit now in hand, WBUR applied for the license, began building the station with a new transmitter and secured a rental tower for the signal in Eastham, Mass. The FCC officially granted WBUR the license to operate 89.1 WBUH, Brewster, in March.
The major components of the Cape Cod station are: GatesAir FAX10 transmitter, Shively Labs model 6600 horizontal-only polarization antenna, Burk ARC Plus remote control and Orban Optimod-FM 5500 audio processor. An APT/WorldCast codec is being used for the IP audio STL.
