WRVE
Encyclopedia
WRVE is a Hot Adult Contemporary radio station licensed to Schenectady, New York
and serving the Capital District
and Upper Hudson Valley of New York. It broadcasts at 99.5 FM at 14.5 kilowatts ERP
from a transmitter in Guilderland, New York
. The station is owned by Clear Channel Communications
and is one of seven radio stations currently owned by the company in the Albany market.
Though billed (and reported by Arbitron and Mediabase) as a hot AC station, the station tends towards both classic hits
and adult contemporary by playing hits from about 1970 to the present, somewhat of a rarity for stations under the format. Its main competitors include WYJB
(B95.5) and WQAR
(Star 101.3, a rimshot in the Saratoga/Glens Falls area).
with similarly pioneering sisters WGY and WRGB
. WRVE traces its history to W2XDA Schenectady and W2XOY New Scotland, two experimental frequency modulation transmitters on 48.5 MHz which signed on in 1939. The two were merged into one station, with the W2XOY calls, on November 20, 1940 with the station taking the WGFM calls later in the decade and moving to 99.5 MHz when the FM band was relocated.
On June 1, 1961 at 12:01 AM (EDT), WGFM became the first FM station in the United States to broadcast in stereo
. During this time the station began to break away from simulcasting WGY and migrated to a classical format which evolved into easy listening. As FM developed, the 99.5 frequency played host to formats ranging from TM's automated "Stereo Rock" starting in 1973, as "Rock 99", and later on as Adult Contemporary,
in 1981, as "99 The Light".
In 1983, the station flipped to Top 40 as "99 GFM" and spent much of the 80s in hot pursuit of WFLY. By 1985, "99-GFM" was the dominant Top 40 station in the Albany market, but its success began to erode over the next couple of years. It was during this time General Electric sold WGFM and WGY and the stations went through several owners over the next decade. By 1988, flagging ratings led the station to reimage and, in turn, drop the longtime WGFM calls for what the station had promoted itself as early on: WGY-FM. After almost two years as a younger-leaning Top 40 as Electric 99, WGY-FM flipped to Oldies, in October, 1990 at a time when two other stations in the market had the format. WGY-FM and WGFM launched many careers.
In late 1993, Dame Media purchased WGY and WGY-FM. When Dame took control in March 1994, they immediately changed 99.5's format from Oldies to the current "River" format and the call letters were changed to the current WRVE. At the outset, the station branded as "Rock without the hard edge" and sounded more akin to an Adult Album Alternative
station though it mainstreamed over time (even more so after Clear Channel
purchased Dame in 1998).
digital radio
alongside the rest of Clear Channel's Albany stations. On August 17, 2006, WRVE began airing an HD2 channel with an Adult Album Alternative similar to, but more varied than, the original "River" format. This HD2 channel was later replaced with a jazz
channel which was formerly located on WTRY-FM
.
Schenectady, New York
Schenectady is a city in Schenectady County, New York, United States, of which it is the county seat. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 66,135...
and serving the Capital District
Capital District
New York's Capital District, also known as the Capital Region, is a region in upstate New York that generally refers to the four counties surrounding Albany, the capital of the state: Albany County, Schenectady County, Rensselaer County, and Saratoga County...
and Upper Hudson Valley of New York. It broadcasts at 99.5 FM at 14.5 kilowatts ERP
Effective radiated power
In radio telecommunications, effective radiated power or equivalent radiated power is a standardized theoretical measurement of radio frequency energy using the SI unit watts, and is determined by subtracting system losses and adding system gains...
from a transmitter in Guilderland, New York
Guilderland, New York
Guilderland is a town in Albany County, New York, United States. In the 2010 census, the town had a population of 35,303. The town is named for the Gelderland province in the Netherlands....
. The station is owned by Clear Channel Communications
Clear Channel Communications
Clear Channel Communications, Inc. is an American media conglomerate company headquartered in San Antonio, Texas. It was founded in 1972 by Lowry Mays and Red McCombs, and was taken private by Bain Capital LLC and Thomas H. Lee Partners LP in a leveraged buyout in 2008...
and is one of seven radio stations currently owned by the company in the Albany market.
Though billed (and reported by Arbitron and Mediabase) as a hot AC station, the station tends towards both classic hits
Classic hits
Classic hits is a radio format which generally includes rock and pop music from 1964 to 1989. The term is sometimes erroneously used as a synonym for the adult hits format, but is more accurately characterized as a contemporary style of the oldies format...
and adult contemporary by playing hits from about 1970 to the present, somewhat of a rarity for stations under the format. Its main competitors include WYJB
WYJB
WYJB is an adult contemporary formatted radio station licensed to Albany, New York and serving New York's Capital District as well as the surrounding areas, including the Adirondacks...
(B95.5) and WQAR
WQAR
WQAR is an adult contemporary radio station licensed to Stillwater, New York and serving Saratoga County, New York and vicinity. The station is the flagship station of the Anastos Media Group and broadcasts at 6 kilowatts ERP from a tower in Stillwater...
(Star 101.3, a rimshot in the Saratoga/Glens Falls area).
History
Though the history of the station as WRVE and "The River" dates back only to March 1994, the station has a wildly successful past, a byproduct of the station being owned by General ElectricGeneral Electric
General Electric Company , or GE, is an American multinational conglomerate corporation incorporated in Schenectady, New York and headquartered in Fairfield, Connecticut, United States...
with similarly pioneering sisters WGY and WRGB
WRGB
WRGB, channel 6, is a television station located in Schenectady, New York, USA. WRGB is owned by Freedom Communications, and is the CBS affiliate for the Albany-Schenectady-Troy television market...
. WRVE traces its history to W2XDA Schenectady and W2XOY New Scotland, two experimental frequency modulation transmitters on 48.5 MHz which signed on in 1939. The two were merged into one station, with the W2XOY calls, on November 20, 1940 with the station taking the WGFM calls later in the decade and moving to 99.5 MHz when the FM band was relocated.
On June 1, 1961 at 12:01 AM (EDT), WGFM became the first FM station in the United States to broadcast in stereo
Stereophonic sound
The term Stereophonic, commonly called stereo, sound refers to any method of sound reproduction in which an attempt is made to create an illusion of directionality and audible perspective...
. During this time the station began to break away from simulcasting WGY and migrated to a classical format which evolved into easy listening. As FM developed, the 99.5 frequency played host to formats ranging from TM's automated "Stereo Rock" starting in 1973, as "Rock 99", and later on as Adult Contemporary,
in 1981, as "99 The Light".
In 1983, the station flipped to Top 40 as "99 GFM" and spent much of the 80s in hot pursuit of WFLY. By 1985, "99-GFM" was the dominant Top 40 station in the Albany market, but its success began to erode over the next couple of years. It was during this time General Electric sold WGFM and WGY and the stations went through several owners over the next decade. By 1988, flagging ratings led the station to reimage and, in turn, drop the longtime WGFM calls for what the station had promoted itself as early on: WGY-FM. After almost two years as a younger-leaning Top 40 as Electric 99, WGY-FM flipped to Oldies, in October, 1990 at a time when two other stations in the market had the format. WGY-FM and WGFM launched many careers.
In late 1993, Dame Media purchased WGY and WGY-FM. When Dame took control in March 1994, they immediately changed 99.5's format from Oldies to the current "River" format and the call letters were changed to the current WRVE. At the outset, the station branded as "Rock without the hard edge" and sounded more akin to an Adult Album Alternative
Adult album alternative
Adult album alternative is a radio format. A spinoff from the album-oriented rock format, its roots trace to the 1960s and 1970s from the earlier freeform and progressive formats....
station though it mainstreamed over time (even more so after Clear Channel
Clear Channel Communications
Clear Channel Communications, Inc. is an American media conglomerate company headquartered in San Antonio, Texas. It was founded in 1972 by Lowry Mays and Red McCombs, and was taken private by Bain Capital LLC and Thomas H. Lee Partners LP in a leveraged buyout in 2008...
purchased Dame in 1998).
HD Radio operations
In 2005, WRVE added to IBOCIn-band on-channel
In-band on-channel is a hybrid method of transmitting digital radio and analog radio broadcast signals simultaneously on the same frequency....
digital radio
Digital radio
Digital radio has several meanings:1. Today the most common meaning is digital radio broadcasting technologies, such as the digital audio broadcasting system, also known as Eureka 147. In these systems, the analog audio signal is digitized into zeros and ones, compressed using formats such as...
alongside the rest of Clear Channel's Albany stations. On August 17, 2006, WRVE began airing an HD2 channel with an Adult Album Alternative similar to, but more varied than, the original "River" format. This HD2 channel was later replaced with a jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
channel which was formerly located on WTRY-FM
WTRY-FM
WTRY-FM, or 98.3 WTRY, is an oldies station licensed to Rotterdam, New York and serving New York's Capital District and Mohawk Valley. The station is owned by Clear Channel Communications, and broadcasts at 6 kilowatts ERP from a tower in between Altamont and Duanesburg, New York off U.S...
.