WJDI (1620 AM) was a

pirate radio station Pirate radio or a pirate radio station is a radio station that broadcasts without a valid license. In some cases, radio stations are considered legal where the signal is transmitted, but illegal where the signals are received—especially ...

run by Dave Schneider. It was located in Cottekill, New York during its three iterations. It was one of the pioneering and most successful pirate stations, known as "The Pirate King". Despite being a pirate radio, the station was a member of the

National Radio Club ThNational Radio Club (NRC)is a non-profit hobbyist organization focused on the pursuit of DXing on the AM broadcast band. This group was founded in 1933 as a result of merging several regional radio clubs. The NRC produces a magazine, "DX News," ...

. This made a lasting impression on so many DXers across the world.

History

WJDI began its broadcast on January 1, 1970, on 1580 kHz. Run by Dave Schneider, it used Meissner Signal Shifter as its transmitter. The Meissner Signal Shifter used plug-in grid coils wound for amateur radio frequencies. Later on, the station began using Collins 30K transmitter rated for about 300 watts. Since the transmitter only covered 3.5 mHz and higher, it a new set of plug-in coils with the aid of Schneider's Millen grid dip meter. In 1976, WJDI received a warning from the

Federal Communications Commission The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that regulates communications by radio, television, wire, satellite, and cable across the United States. The FCC maintains jurisdicti ...

(FCC) for running a pirate station. In 1977, when Schneider moved to Arizona to work for

Motorola Motorola, Inc. () was an American multinational telecommunications company based in Schaumburg, Illinois, United States. After having lost $4.3 billion from 2007 to 2009, the company split into two independent public companies, Motorol ...

Research on the ''

Voyager II ''Voyager 2'' is a space probe launched by NASA on August 20, 1977, to study the outer planets and interstellar space beyond the Sun's heliosphere. As a part of the Voyager program, it was launched 16 days before its twin, ''Voyager 1'', on ...

'' project, WJDI ceased its operations. In fall 1989, Schneider relaunched WJDI on 1620 kHz. This time, it used a home-made transmitter, which had an output power of 1,000 to 1,250 watts, and the final tube was a 4CX15000J and the modulators were 3000A7s driven with a FET modulation driver. A year later, its power increased to 2,500 watts. WJDI aired an

Adult Top 40 The Adult Pop Airplay (formerly known as Adult Pop Songs and Adult Top 40) chart is published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine and ranks "the most popular adult top 40 as based on radio airplay detections measured by Nielsen Broadcast Data Systems ...

format with clever parody commercials, such as the famous dioxin “No Roach!” ad. In January 1991, WJDI was raided once again by the FCC, and was fined. As a result, WJDI went off the air for the next few years. Schneider built a home-made 15 kW transmitter from scratch for 6 months. It was equipped with a Harris RF-1310 exciter, Harris RF-590 receiver, 4-1000a tube and 810s modulators. It turned out to be an actual AM broadcast band transmitter (not a 160-meter amateur rig). Its antenna had a horizontal 5-wire cage design, had the required 400 amp electrical service, and its design was directional with nulls produced in certain directions. Reception reports came in from all over the country and beyond. Only two official broadcasts were made: December 25 and 31, 1996. From that point, WJDI was never heard on air again.

References

External links

WJDI 1620 Audio ArchiveNorth American Pirate Radio Hall Of Fame
JDI Pirate radio stations in the United States Defunct radio stations in the United States Radio stations established in 1970 Radio stations disestablished in 1976 Radio stations established in 1989 Radio stations disestablished in 1991 Radio stations established in 1996 Radio stations disestablished in 1996 JDI {{NewYork-radio-station-stub