WIRE-CA
Encyclopedia
WIRE-CD is a low-power digital
television station in metro Atlanta
. Broadcasting
on TV channel 40 (626-632 MHz, 627.31 MHz carrier
), its analog broadcast range reached into the inner suburbs. Previously MTV2
, programming since digital conversion now consists entirely of infomercial
s. As WIRE-LP (before the upgrade
to class A
), like most over-the-air MTV2 network affiliate
s, it was an affiliate of The Box until that network's acquisition by Viacom in 2001. Owned by Viacom, MTV2 is one of the few cable networks that can be seen over the air.
It was originally assigned W13CQ on channel 13 in May 1992, but its construction permit
expired in December 1993 without being built. It came back again as W40BI on channel 40, assigned in August 1995. It went on the air the following year in May as WIRE-LP, and became WIRE-CA in September 2001.
Its original location (33°50′48"N 84°22′16"W) was atop the octagonal Tower Place in Buckhead
, immediately north of the intersection
of major arterial road
s Piedmont Road (Georgia 237) and Peachtree Road
(Georgia 141), and just west of Lenox Square
across the Georgia 400 expressway
. It was at an effective radiated power
of 14.1 kW video (1.41 kW audio) with a positive frequency offset
, at 136 metres (446 ft) above ground level
or 438 metres (1,437 ft) AMSL. While HAAT was not listed, average terrain for the region is about 300 metres (984.3 ft).
It later moved south-southeast to the WUPA TV 43 (69.1) tower south of Inman Park
, and increased power
to 150 kW. The antenna
still had a null
to the west-southwest, however it was otherwise omnidirectional
and covered most of the core metro area
. Several other stations are also on this tower.
The station had applied for a digital companion on channel 29, however WANN-CA 32 was granted the construction permit
for that channel. In March 2009, WIRE's owners filed an informal objection
against WANN's request for special temporary authority
, stating it had until the following month to file a petition to deny. The objection was dropped when the two stations began to work together, and late in the month WANN filed an application to modify its permit from atop the Bank of America Plaza
in downtown Atlanta
(where it shares an antenna
with WANN analog, and co-owned WTBS-LP 26 and its permit for WTBS-LD 30) to the east tower at the "Richland" site near North Druid Hills. This is the same tower and channel (29) as WIRE's digital application (made December 2008), but at higher power (15 kW versus 10 kW) and much higher height (by 92m). It is possible for the two stations to share the digital station but remap to separate virtual channel
s, but it was unknown what their plans were.
In late summer 2009, the station was granted a construction permit
to flash-cut
to digital TV on its current channel and at its current location and height. The same TV antenna is used, but its maximum output direction is rotated from 80° to 340° true north
, putting its null toward the south-southeast. This "notch" pulls its service contour
in that direction back to Stockbridge
instead of McDonough
, however+ even with just 3 kW (equivalent to 15 kW analog, by FCC standards for ATSC
) it was predicted to reach much further in all directions than its most recent (since mid-2007) 55 kW analog, though ATSC predictions are almost always more than actual reception. Once it received a license to cover
in early November 2009, its broadcast callsign became WIRE-CD.
, just after going on-air, all four digital subchannel
s carry different infomercials. This may be as "filler
" during program test authority
, as a placeholder
for eventual TV networks, permanently as brokered programming
, or a combination of the three. PSIP labels channels 40.1 to 40.4 as WIRE-D1, WIRE-D2, WIRE-D3, and WIRE-D4.
In late January 2010, it applied to increase power to 15 kW at the same location and height.
On June 11, 2011, WIRE-CD launched Three Angels Broadcasting Network on subchannel 40.4.
DTV
DTV may refer to:* Deutscher Taschenbuch Verlag, a German publishing house* Direct-to-video , a method of film release which skips the theatre screening process and makes the movie readily available for home viewing* Digital television...
television station in metro Atlanta
Metro Atlanta
The Atlanta metropolitan area or metro Atlanta, officially designated by the US Census Bureau as the Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Marietta Metropolitan Statistical Area, is the most populous metro area in the U.S. state of Georgia and the ninth-largest metropolitan statistical area in the United States...
. Broadcasting
Broadcasting
Broadcasting is the distribution of audio and video content to a dispersed audience via any audio visual medium. Receiving parties may include the general public or a relatively large subset of thereof...
on TV channel 40 (626-632 MHz, 627.31 MHz carrier
Carrier wave
In telecommunications, a carrier wave or carrier is a waveform that is modulated with an input signal for the purpose of conveying information. This carrier wave is usually a much higher frequency than the input signal...
), its analog broadcast range reached into the inner suburbs. Previously MTV2
MTV2
MTV2 is a cable network that is widely available in the United States on digital cable and satellite television, and is progressively being added to analogue cable lineups across the nation...
, programming since digital conversion now consists entirely of infomercial
Infomercial
Infomercials are direct response television commercials which generally include a phone number or website. There are long-form infomercials, which are typically between 15 and 30 minutes in length, and short-form infomercials, which are typically 30 seconds to 120 seconds in length. Infomercials...
s. As WIRE-LP (before the upgrade
Upgrade
The term upgrade refers to the replacement of a product with a newer version of the same product. It is most often used in computing and consumer electronics, generally meaning a replacement of hardware, software or firmware with a newer or better version, in order to bring the system up to date...
to class A
Class A television service
The class A television service is a system for regulating some low-power television stations in the United States. Class A stations are denoted by the broadcast callsign suffix "-CA" or "-CD" , although very many analog -CA stations have a digital companion channel that was assigned the -LD...
), like most over-the-air MTV2 network affiliate
Network affiliate
In the broadcasting industry , a network affiliate is a local broadcaster which carries some or all of the television program or radio program line-up of a television or radio network, but is owned by a company other than the owner of the network...
s, it was an affiliate of The Box until that network's acquisition by Viacom in 2001. Owned by Viacom, MTV2 is one of the few cable networks that can be seen over the air.
It was originally assigned W13CQ on channel 13 in May 1992, but its construction permit
Construction permit
A construction permit or building permit is a permit required in most jurisdictions for new construction, or adding on to pre-existing structures, and in some cases for major renovations. Generally, the new construction must be inspected during construction and after completion to ensure compliance...
expired in December 1993 without being built. It came back again as W40BI on channel 40, assigned in August 1995. It went on the air the following year in May as WIRE-LP, and became WIRE-CA in September 2001.
Its original location (33°50′48"N 84°22′16"W) was atop the octagonal Tower Place in Buckhead
Buckhead (Atlanta)
Buckhead is the uptown district of Atlanta, Georgia, United States, comprising approximately the northern one-fifth of the city. Buckhead is a major commercial and financial center of the Southeast, and it is the third-largest business district in Atlanta, behind Downtown and Midtown...
, immediately north of the intersection
Intersection (road)
An intersection is a road junction where two or more roads either meet or cross at grade . An intersection may be 3-way - a T junction or fork, 4-way - a crossroads, or 5-way or more...
of major arterial road
Arterial road
An arterial road, or arterial thoroughfare, is a high-capacity urban road. The primary function of an arterial road is to deliver traffic from collector roads to freeways, and between urban centres at the highest level of service possible. As such, many arteries are limited-access roads, or feature...
s Piedmont Road (Georgia 237) and Peachtree Road
Peachtree Street
Peachtree Street is the main street of Atlanta. The city grew up around the street, and many of its historical and municipal buildings are or were located along it...
(Georgia 141), and just west of Lenox Square
Lenox Square
Lenox Square is an upscale enclosed super regional shopping mall located in the Buckhead District of Atlanta, Georgia. Lenox Square comprises more than of retail space, with 250 stores on four levels, including a large food court. The mall is home to three anchor stores: Macy's, Bloomingdale's,...
across the Georgia 400 expressway
Controlled-access highway
A controlled-access highway is a highway designed exclusively for high-speed vehicular traffic, with all traffic flow and ingress/egress regulated...
. It was at an effective radiated power
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...
of 14.1 kW video (1.41 kW audio) with a positive frequency offset
Frequency offset
In radio engineering, a frequency offset is an intentional slight shift of broadcasted radio frequency , to reduce interference with other transmitters.- Interference :...
, at 136 metres (446 ft) above ground level
Above ground level
In aviation and atmospheric sciences, an altitude is said to be above ground level when it is measured with respect to the underlying ground surface. This is as opposed to above mean sea level , or in broadcast engineering, height above average terrain...
or 438 metres (1,437 ft) AMSL. While HAAT was not listed, average terrain for the region is about 300 metres (984.3 ft).
It later moved south-southeast to the WUPA TV 43 (69.1) tower south of Inman Park
Inman Park
Inman Park was planned in the late 1880s by Joel Hurt, a civil engineer and real-estate developer who intended to create a rural oasis connected to the city by the first of Atlanta's electric streetcar lines. The East Atlanta Land Company acquired and developed more than 130 acres east of the city...
, and increased power
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...
to 150 kW. The antenna
Antenna (radio)
An antenna is an electrical device which converts electric currents into radio waves, and vice versa. It is usually used with a radio transmitter or radio receiver...
still had a null
Null (radio)
In radio electronics, a null is an area or vector in an antenna's radiation pattern where the signal cancels out almost entirely.This can be an advantage, as nulls in the horizontal plane can be used to protect other transmitters from interference. If not carefully planned however, nulls can...
to the west-southwest, however it was otherwise omnidirectional
Omnidirectional antenna
In radio communication, an omnidirectional antenna is an antenna which radiates radio wave power uniformly in all directions in one plane, with the radiated power decreasing with elevation angle above or below the plane, dropping to zero on the antenna's axis. This radiation pattern is often...
and covered most of the core metro area
Metro Area
Metro Area is a Brooklyn-based dance music production team composed of Morgan Geist and Darshan Jesrani.- History :Geist grew up in Wayne, New Jersey, while Jesrani is from upstate New York...
. Several other stations are also on this tower.
The station had applied for a digital companion on channel 29, however WANN-CA 32 was granted the construction permit
Construction permit
A construction permit or building permit is a permit required in most jurisdictions for new construction, or adding on to pre-existing structures, and in some cases for major renovations. Generally, the new construction must be inspected during construction and after completion to ensure compliance...
for that channel. In March 2009, WIRE's owners filed an informal objection
Objection
Objection may refer to:* Objection , a motion during a trial to disallow a witness's testimony or other evidence* Objection , used in informal logic and argument mapping** Inference objection, a special case of the above...
against WANN's request for special temporary authority
Special temporary authority
In U.S. broadcast law, a special temporary authorization or special temporary authority is a type of broadcast license which temporarily allows a broadcast station to operate outside of its normal technical or legal parameters...
, stating it had until the following month to file a petition to deny. The objection was dropped when the two stations began to work together, and late in the month WANN filed an application to modify its permit from atop the Bank of America Plaza
Bank of America Plaza (Atlanta)
Bank of America Plaza is a skyscraper located in the SoNo district of Atlanta, Georgia. At the tower is the 53rd-tallest building in the world. When it first opened, it was the 9th tallest building in the world, and 6th tallest building in the United States...
in downtown Atlanta
Downtown Atlanta
Downtown Atlanta is the first and largest of the three financial districts in the city of Atlanta. Downtown Atlanta is the location of many corporate or regional headquarters, city, county, state and federal government facilities, sporting facilities, and is the central tourist attraction of the city...
(where it shares an antenna
Diplexer
A diplexer is a passive device that implements frequency domain multiplexing. Two ports are multiplexed onto a third port . The signals on ports L and H occupy disjoint frequency bands...
with WANN analog, and co-owned WTBS-LP 26 and its permit for WTBS-LD 30) to the east tower at the "Richland" site near North Druid Hills. This is the same tower and channel (29) as WIRE's digital application (made December 2008), but at higher power (15 kW versus 10 kW) and much higher height (by 92m). It is possible for the two stations to share the digital station but remap to separate virtual channel
Virtual channel
In telecommunications, a logical channel number , also known as virtual channel, is a channel designation which differs from that of the actual radio channel on which the signal travels....
s, but it was unknown what their plans were.
In late summer 2009, the station was granted a construction permit
Construction permit
A construction permit or building permit is a permit required in most jurisdictions for new construction, or adding on to pre-existing structures, and in some cases for major renovations. Generally, the new construction must be inspected during construction and after completion to ensure compliance...
to flash-cut
Flash-cut
A flash-cut, also called flash-cutover, is an immediate change in a complex system, with no phase-in period.Some telephone area codes were split immediately, rather than being phased in with a permissive dialing period. An example is telephone area code 213, which was split into 213 and 714 all at...
to digital TV on its current channel and at its current location and height. The same TV antenna is used, but its maximum output direction is rotated from 80° to 340° true north
True north
True north is the direction along the earth's surface towards the geographic North Pole.True geodetic north usually differs from magnetic north , and from grid north...
, putting its null toward the south-southeast. This "notch" pulls its service contour
Service contour
In US broadcasting, service contour refers to the area in which the Federal Communications Commission predicts and allows coverage....
in that direction back to Stockbridge
Stockbridge, Georgia
Stockbridge is a city in Henry County, Georgia, United States with a population of 25,636 as of the 2010 census. It is the hometown of the multi-platinum selling alternative rock/post-grunge band Collective Soul and home to one of the youngest starting pitchers ever to play for the Atlanta Braves,...
instead of McDonough
McDonough, Georgia
McDonough is a city in Henry County, Georgia, United States. The population was 22084 at the 2010 census. Inclusion of the unincorporated neighborhoods surrounding McDonough, which are not part of a town/city, raises the population to approximately 30,000 from an estimate in 2008. The city is the...
, however+ even with just 3 kW (equivalent to 15 kW analog, by FCC standards for ATSC
ATSC
ATSC standards are a set of standards developed by the Advanced Television Systems Committee for digital television transmission over terrestrial, cable, and satellite networks....
) it was predicted to reach much further in all directions than its most recent (since mid-2007) 55 kW analog, though ATSC predictions are almost always more than actual reception. Once it received a license to cover
Broadcast license
A broadcast license or broadcast license is a specific type of spectrum license that grants the licensee the privilege to use a portion of the radio frequency spectrum in a given geographical area for broadcasting purposes. The licenses are generally straddled with additional restrictions that...
in early November 2009, its broadcast callsign became WIRE-CD.
, just after going on-air, all four digital subchannel
Digital subchannel
In broadcasting, digital subchannels are a means to transmit more than one independent program at the same time from the same digital radio or digital television station on the same radio frequency channel. This is done by using data compression techniques to reduce the size of each individual...
s carry different infomercials. This may be as "filler
Filler
In general, a filler is something that is used to fill gaps. Specialized meanings of the word "filler" include:* Filler , dietary fiber and other ingredients added to pet foods to provide bulk...
" during program test authority
Program test authority
In broadcasting, program test authority is an authorization to conduct on-air testing of broadcast station facilities authorized to be built under a construction permit...
, as a placeholder
Placeholder
Placeholder may refer to:In language:* Placeholder name, words that can refer to objects or people, whose names are unknown or irrelevant* Filler text, shares some characteristics of a real written text, but is random or otherwise generated...
for eventual TV networks, permanently as brokered programming
Brokered programming
Brokered programming is a form of broadcast content in which the show's producer pays a radio or television station for air time, rather than exchanging programming for pay or the opportunity to play spot commercials...
, or a combination of the three. PSIP labels channels 40.1 to 40.4 as WIRE-D1, WIRE-D2, WIRE-D3, and WIRE-D4.
In late January 2010, it applied to increase power to 15 kW at the same location and height.
On June 11, 2011, WIRE-CD launched Three Angels Broadcasting Network on subchannel 40.4.