Radio History

2 ads for 7HT Hobart

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The studio for Easy Listening 97 /2MW must have been located in Tweed Heads back then,does anyone know?This building looks abandoned these days,I’ve driven past it a lot as it’s not too far from my parents place

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There was also the short-lived Magic 11 - 2UW. Early stations that just used call letters - Double G may have been the first; also DB Music. 4BK also went by BK Music for a while.

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Still in Tweed Heads South but seeing as breakfast is the only show done out of Radio 97, you could be forgiven for thinking the building looks abandoned, lol.

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I think that’s why the I thought that building was abandoned years ago as I wasn’t sure there were any local programming from there these days ,that they are only a relay station of 2SM ,The Super Radio Network

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Does anyone have a copy of the 3FOXFM logo?

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Fox FM used to occasionally say their full call sign on air (three eff oh ex) way back in the early 80s.

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See the ad that @rhettrospective provided above:

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I used to think 2DAY did (or should) do that too, but I don’t think they ever actually did “Two Dee Aye Why FM”

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Thanks! And where did the name “Fox” come from?

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According to Wayne Mac’s “Dont touch that dial”:

The first Sales Manager, Mark Newstead recalls: ‘The call sign was created after an intensive two day workshop, devoted exclusively to the name’s creation. Over 100 names were considered. A short list of 20 names was reduced to three. FOX emerged as the universal favourite, though NEW - named after me - and TOP FM were, from memory, in the short list’

First song: Breezin (George Benson)
First announcer: John Amies (‘Ladies and Gentlemen, the FOX is at large’)
First slogan: Catch the Fox

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(sorry #myfriends, I posted here because it’s “history” rather than new development).

The advertisement for the “newest” radio network in Vietnam - XoneFM, broadcasting on the VOV3 frequency network for 10 hours/day when it was just launched in September 2006. The advert was shown on VTV3, and a comment said that the launch ceremony was even broadcasted live on
 VTV1 (this surprised me a lot, because VTV1 at that time was so bland since it was only about information and public affairs, so having live launch of XoneFM on that channel seems a very odd choice).

As I mentioned many times, Xone FM is Vietnam’s first (and only, to date) CHR radio networks, and, especially in its early years, was owned by Australian interests (*), and its content was consulted by an Australian man called Roberta Graham. It wasn’t just being a Top 40 radio network, but also a network that reflected the broader youth culture at that time by the installation of different segments and blocks (as opposed to whatever “Top 40” is now, continuous music with very few presenters’ intervention). This was reflected in the scheduling of the network at that time, with separate blocks for Asian Top 40, Vietnamese Top 10 (later 20, as VN10/20), the International Top 10 (Hot10, later HitXone), the weekend Top 40, My Playlist (later My Show, where listeners have chance of building own “playlists” and phone-in with the presenters), Xone Life (the magazine about youth life), Request Xone (requesting music by mail), DJ Xone (electronic music), and, well, Nite Xone (a, well, letter reading and music similar to classic hits/gold-leaning AC stations by playing 1980s to 2000s music). There are also daily comedy and/or quiz segment often aired during the block’s break (one of the distinction of the network is that the breakbumper would always be any sound effects, followed by “Xone FM” whisper). Entertainment news segments are aired on top of the hour.

Being part of my childhood, it began to saw decline after the network was kicked out of VOV3 (**) from early 2018. As a result, it permanently lost coverage in non-major cities when it had to switch to 87.7 FM (a new frequency of VOH) and Hanoi’s 96FM. Listenership of the network declined rapidly after the change (because of the public’s perception, especially after the growth of the internet, is that they often know the frequency rather than the networks’ actual name, and minor stations like 89fm (the new home of Xone FM) is unknown by many, and behested by low transmitter power) resulted in the gradual slimming of staff, and the slimming became accelerated following the sell of the network to Zing MP3, who reduced the team to only three presenters, and a very weak rating (during 2014, sources said that it had nine million listeners and a workforce of 100; Kantar also showed that Xone was the most-listened to radio network in Vietnam during its heyday), specialist and varied content on Xone and live programming were drasticly cut back, and the network moved toward a typical CHR radio network in the Western world by emphasizing chart music and less talk (plus voicetracking as opposed to live). After many cuts with Xone that caused the network to sound like an Internet station than a broadcast station, Xone officially left the FM band when 2023 stroke, and nearly a month later, its own website was shut.

(*) One of the man was called Alex McKinnon, who had travelled to Vietnam for long time to explore opportunities in the media following the country’s “opening up”. He became the CEO of SĂłng XuĂąn (the parent company of Xone) in March 2014, but sadly passed away in October. One of the famous presenters of the Vietnamese media industry, NguyĂȘn Khang, started his career as the breakfast host of Xone FM when the Australian bosses wanted a breakfast host (it should be note that, when Xone FM was just launched, it only carry automated music, and it would not until soon after the launch, that, gradually, hosted segments/blocks would be added).

(**) VOV3 would replace Xone FM by a watered-down copycat of it by The One Radio, in which some of Xone’s presenters would move over to (notable examples include NguyĂȘn Khang and Miko). The service only aired for eight hours a day and was discontinued in June 2023. Since then, VOV has regained 24-hour control of VOV3.

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Hi all,

Does anyone know the history behind the 2XL FM translators in the Snowy Mountains?

I believe that they may have been some of the first FM translators for an AM station in the country.

Thanks!

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According to the information I have, the 2XL FM translators came on-air in May 1988.

As for the first FM translators for an AM station in the country, that honour goes to 4MK with its Airlie Beach translator in 1985, followed by 7QT (now 7XS) for its Rosebery translator in July 1986, and 2ST for its Ulladulla translator in January 1988, in which it was originally broadcast on 106.1 before moving to 106.7, probably due to co-channel interference from 2ABCFM Newcastle during the warmer months.

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@TV-Expert does it again! Thanks for the info, in particular re Ulladulla on 106.1. As they say in the classics, you learn something new every day.

This mistake wasn’t immediately corrected however. Living Sound FM (now Pulse 94.1) tested on 106.1 at some point after that. I have an aircheck to prove it. I’m not sure of the transmitter location used for the test but most likely Saddleback Mountain, which they use today. This of course is even closer to Newcastle.

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Apparently 2UUU Nowra tested on 106.1 too, to no avail. It’s a popular frequency!

My "dream’ station would be a Mix106.1 with lots of unflogged classics! :grin:

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You can watch their struggle to get radio into Rosebury
 they all seemed a bit angry!

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94.1 was within the WIN4 ‘embargo zone’ but 104.5 could have been used, so this was a puzzling decision.

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What a great find! Thank you. Really interesting. I’d have thought the ABC would have had transmissions into Rosebury as well long before 7QT

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In Mornington Peninsula, just to the southeast of Melbourne, 3RPP started out on 94.3 MHz, despite that being within the channel 4 frequency range and ABC having a station in Gippsland on Channel 4.

They eventually moved to 98.7, and I was told that this was because EON-FM was moving to 105.1 and so they wanted to avoid radios tuned to 94.3 interfering with radios tuned to 105.1 (FM radios would generate a signal 10.7 MHz higher than the station they’re tuned to as part of the tuning process).

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