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| CFLY, CKLC, and CFRC |
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By Ben MacMurchy, March 2006 |
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In June 2005, after more than fifty years of broadcasting from the same location, CKLC (1380) and sister CFLY-FM (98.3) vacated the three upper floors of the V&G Trust Building at 99 Brock Street in downtown Kingston, and moved into new facilities at 993 Princess Street, near the Kingston Centre shopping plaza. I toured the facilities with program director Dan Mellon earlier this month.
The picture above shows FM control... this is the home of AC "FLY FM" (CFLY-FM 98.3). A lot of new equipment was installed, including Ward-Beck R2K "cool grey" consoles (the first I've seen installed), Neumann BCM405 mics, and Telos 2X12 phone systems. Scott Studios SS32 drives both FLY and CKLC. |
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AM control. Outside of the morning show, CKLC's nostalgia/standards format is mostly automated, but news staff are almost always in the room, as CKLC airs regular newscasts throughout the day. |
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CHUM Kingston's main production room, and "Dr. Nick", producer Nick Lalonde. |
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Prod 2. There is a very large "103.7 BOB FM" logo on the wall outside this studio, but BOB (CJPT-FM 103.7 Brockville) actually bradcasts from studios in Brockville. If needed, this room can go on the air via ISDN, but most of the time, this studio is used for voice tracking and other production.
The studios at Corus Radio haven't changed all that much since my first visit in 2004... just some blue paint in the on-air rooms, updated automation systems, and producer Guy Brooks now faces one computer screen instead of three. I did take some pictures, but I won't post them here. Down Bagot Street we go to the Queen's campus, and a visit with one of Canada's oldest radio stations. |
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CFRC began its life in the early 1920's as "9BT" on a number of different frequencies, until settling on 1490 kHz in 1941, as per NARBA. The first facilities were at Fleming Hall, but the basement of Carruthers Hall has been CFRC's home since 1960, and plans are currently in the works to move CFRC out of Carruthers Hall and into the AMS digs elsewhere on campus. FM transmission began experimentally in the forties, but in the early 1950's, CFRC-FM started regular broadcasting at 91.9 MHz. When CFRC(AM) shut down in 1990, FM changed to its current configuration at 101.9 MHz, increased its power, and relocated to a cell phone tower northeast of the city, at Kingston Mills. The 91.9 frequency was later reactivated as CKVI-FM, broadcasting from Kingston Collegiate.
When you come through CFRC's main door, the on-air studio will be to your left, and directly opposite the studio door is this display of old CFRC broadcast equipment. Some of it includes modulation monitors, a cart machine, test equipment, and even a very old console on top, not visible in this photo. Some more old gear is in storage, but that room is locked, and the engineer wasn't around. |
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CFRC's on-air studio. "Democracy Now" was playing off the Mac, but a live show had been on the air just minutes earlier. Gear in here includes an Arrakis 12000-series board, an EV RE-27 mic, Denon CD players, and the standard Technics turntables. There is a talk booth on the other side of the glass. |
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A very small portion of CFRC's massive music library. |
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CFRC's production room. Another Mac, plus two consoles: an Audioarts R-60, with a Behringer beside it. The soundproofing in this room is different (and possibly very old), but it makes the room sound good. |
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A close-up on the equipment racks in the prod room. CFRC's programming is sent to the Kingston Mills tower via ISDN lines, but I couldn't determine if the purple Musicam box was online, or if it was the Adtran/Comrex combo just below the CD players.
Big thanks to Dan Mellon at CHUM, Derrick Scott at Corus, and the crew at CFRC!
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