Sweatin' like a whore in church... Hotter than Hades here in Chicago. What a unique explore; fun to watch. Reminded me of WKRP in Cincinnati, if you ever watched that show.
RnK All Day i know exactly where you are!! its kinda not abandoned its still owned by the sister station. their using it as a transmission repeater station. to bounce the signal further out. so dont get caught there!!
I worked in that building back in the 90s when it was a living, breathing radio operation. It is sad to see it this way. I can't believe they left all that gear behind. Those Pacific Recorders consoles were top of the line in their day. The studios have since moved to another building in Providence, so the stations still exist. The building in this video was demolished last year. There was a lot of Providence radio history in that building. Those tape cartridges are not "8-tracks", by the way, they are tape "carts" (2-track) which usually contained music or commercials. They are endless-loop and re-cue to the beginning after playing.
Do you know what happened to that Studer half track machine? I’m literally going to lose it if they tossed it. Been looking for one for years. I’m going to be honest, this place is close to me and if it was still up. I’d be extremely tempted to uhhh rescue it so to speak lol
That station first came on the air in 1922...they appear to still be licensed..Check 920 KHZ on your AM radio and see...they may have moved the station....all the boards that you saw were all part of the station...there is a main board and the rest are production and newsroom,etc. You found a real jewel there, my friend. Some of that equipment hasn't been in use for decades..I am a broadcaster and i find this MOST fascinating...thanx, man!!
Wish you could buy the servicable equipment and give us some real radio. Where would I be without satellite radio? It isn't much better but at least I have a little more choice.
920 WHJJ and 94 WHJY are still on the air. They moved to a new site in providence that can be seen from I-95. This site still transmits 94 WHJY while 920 WHJJ moved there transmitter to east providence. Rob, i wish i knew you were up here, this is my neck of the woods.
I spent 40 years in radio. Those are Pacific Recorders boards, and damn good ones. Well worth pulling out and restoring. The "8 Tracks" are tape cartridges. They're used for commercials, jingles, sometimes music. They've been used in radio since the early 60's, long before the 8 track era. The 2 track recorders are valuable too. They look like 80's vintage Studers. The Tascams would be worth restoring as well. Somebody REALLY needs to grab that 4 track machine. That was used for production of commercials, promos etc. It's a crime what consolidation has done to local radio. What a shame.
I worked on those boards in college in 00’ robust and easy to fix. Great year of my life as an engineer assistant. The worst I had to fix was a 100 cd changer. Place had 4 of them stacked up. Thanks for this glimpse into my past.
you probably should not have stepped into the music storage considering the disks and vinyls were all on the floor who knows how much if any of that was still playable before you stepped on them.
True - but often that media form from a radio station isn't allowed to be distributed for private use per license agreement and would either have to be destroyed or sent back when the radio station was done with it.... however I'm sure a lot gets out in the public anyways.
I was working in radio when all that equipment was new. Seeing it now , was hellish the stuff of nightmares. It symbolizes the Fall of the entire Industry.
That's my town! I was in that building a few times 30 years ago when it was nice. Game Show Producer and Talk show host Merv Griffin used to own that station back in the 80's. The stations still exist, but now they have new owners and are located In a larger building in the city of Providence which overlooks the freeway. Very cool video!
What a waste, Crown D 75 power amps, JBL 4311 studio monitors , Studer reel to reel decks. A lot of the audio chain equipment has been removed but I heart left a lot of money there. No wonder they are in financial trouble now.
I think I-Heart (formerly Cheep Channel)'s business model is creating losses to write off at the end of the fiscal year. Didn't know that the throw away society could be so expense!
because that junk is junk, it's all outdated to use in a new location and not worth them hauling to scrap. That's why they left it. What gets me though is the tower is still there. That is worth more than anything else in that building.
"Even if it's busted it's worth serious cash to restorers who will flip it online and get four digits for it." Yeah right in your dreams, People who collect commercial audio gear like that and think they can flip it are in that 1% niche group of big dreamers and bigger failures.. Look at RadioTVPhononut or Shangoo66, they have PILES of "Restored" vintage TV sets, radios and audio gear and NO ONE is buying it.. That shit is worth the electronic scrap, nothing more. People that want that shit are junk collectors, the ONLY reason I would consider salvaging any of that shit is for board level parts or the scrap value. I used to have your mindset about vintage computers and game consoles, I had so many old IBM PC XT's, PC jr's, Display Writers, Commodores, Atari's, NES systems, etc. that all worked fine and I though I could sell off.. The truth of the matter was no one was going to pay anything for any of it, not even other collectors. So all that junk has been sent off to be shredded and recycled a few years ago. I would rather get the scrap value out of it than to "Donate" it to a collector with a basement museum who will never use it.
Actually no there is not much difference. The factor that make anything valuable is the usability of the item not the age. There is NO DEMAND for old outdated junk and no collector is going to pay anything close to what you think something is worth..
This is the building that housed 94 HJY, 920 WHJJ, and 93.3 WSNE. Stations moved out in late 2001 to a building with all new equipment. Sadly, the equipment left behind could've been sold. Lots of great bands, musicians, comedians, actors, politicians and legendary on-air talent all were in that building at one point. Having worked there this video brought back some great memories and some sadness to see it in it's current state.
I just don't understand how equipment like that can be left behind and forgotten about. I mean, the value of those items adds up to tens of thousands, maybe even more. How can these things be left behind?
Thousands upon thousands of dollars of equipment (that is still relevant and not completely outdated) left behind. I wouldn't say no if the building was offered for sale for anywhere under 500K
CoinHuntingDrew Can you say SALT WATER DAMAGED from hurricane(s)?? even the Technics RS 1500's would have been grabbed as they are capable of THE BEST in 15ips repro, not to mention the Studer A807....
I worked at 3 different radio stations, WNNO, WRJC, and WDDC in WI. Seeing this brought back great memories. Makes me want to get back in radio again, only problem is from what I know it is mostly computer these days. When I worked in radio, we used CD players, and some turntables. Computers were used, but mostly for production. Thank you for the cool video!
All those Tascam reel to reel machines are a hot item these days for vintage sound equipment collectors their hot like old vinyl records... Cool explore RNK
uhh, no -- those Tascam decks are not worth a small fortune. Probably worth about $100... maybe $200 if they are still working. However, the Studer machine that he walked right past and never even mentioned is worth about $4,000 even if it's broken (which it most likely is).
Same here dude. Seeing this gear, knowing full well it could be fixed up and put back into service is saddening. Watching this makes me want to buy the building and the gear inside it, and turn it into a recording studio. Wouldn’t that be nice?
Great find!! You really took me back in time, I used to do a weekend spot on CKLG FM in Vancouver back in the late 60s, and this place still had some equipment from that era. Its too bad idiots felt the need to tear it up, but that was a pretty tight station in its day. By the way, “Love Story” was a movie sound track from 1970 that was very popular. Nice job clambering through the rubble to give us a view of everything you could. Classy work as usual, thanks for what you do. 🖤🇨🇦
thunderbird66613 it was the place to actually hear good music, not just the top 20 over and over. Not sure if it still exists or what its like now if it does, since I’m in Ontario now since 1979. I still have a Zippo lighter with the station call sign engraved on it lol. 🖤🇨🇦
Those reel to reel recorders have very huge value, we speak of numbers with 4 zeros at least, even in not working condition. I wonder why that equipment is laying there. Studer, Revox, Tascam, Tecnics!!!! Are you kidding me???? This is insane!
Here in the UK, some local BBC stations are still using mixing desks of that vintage! The ones i used to work on were called the “Mark III” and were installed in the early 80’s. The cart players were made by Sonifex here but were a variation on the old 8 track design.
The Broadcast carts came first. 4-track (Lear Jet) and 8-track variants followed them. The Fidelipak cartridges were also used for background music in stores and restaurants, on a 31 minute cartridge.
We spoke to the person responsible for transferring the station to its new location and decommissioning of this one and I'm pretty sure if it was arranged you could have what you want from there as they are the key holder......its going to be demolished shortly.
Indeed! Any contact info?? Would love to pay respects to the old gal before the complete rip out. Maybe a memento like a cartridge or two that I could say this was from back in my hey day of radio.
Man, they could raise some money selling some of that stuff before demo. Anyone have any idea why they didn't already remove the equipment? Like, were they "storing" stuff in the old site?
I grew up in RI - listened to WHJY 94.1 - i think this studio was shifted to a new building as part of an acquisition -- and has since fallen into disrepair. The transmitters are now at the base of the towers.
WHJJ Radio is a AM Talk radio station focusing on Traffic and weather reports that still exist in Providence RI. (If I'm not mistaken) They have since moved to another location but that building served as their main headquarters as far back as the 1980's. Before that they were WJAR from 1922 until 1980. Then it changed its call sign to WHJJ...it's crazy to think how long that place had been in use before finally being abandoned for a new facility. What a walk through history... I really love it. Great find. Just imagine how many people occupied that space working there and others that came as guests on their radio shows. What's even more amazing is that as long as those radio towers are up and there's electricity to that place you will always be able to broadcast from there. Awesome.
I work in broadcast. Those mixers/consoles are still in use nationwide today, even though they're 30ish years old. WHJJ is owned by iHeart now. That's a LOT of expensive equipment in it's day. The studer reel to reels still fetch a pretty penny in that condition today. Lots of old timers have tape they want to listen to again, and pay lots of money for those stupid things. All the carts are professional grade "8-tracks" but they're only a few minutes long each, long enough to hold weather, songs, intros, etc.
As much money as that equipment may be worth it is not worth moving. Because by the time you spend money on the labor to do that you might as well have installed new equipment.
bert smith I have worked in broadcast for 20 years. Old people want old things. The site operator has offered for anyone in the area to come take their garbage for them.
Looks like there might have been some copper stripper guys nosing about (lots of pulled wires), but seemed totally clueless about the value of some of that other stuff. Given that they were breaking in there and taking stuff anyways, some of those CDs or equipment would have been nice to grab. Even in their not-so-great condition, it'd probably sell for quite a bit. Also imagine somebody sneaking in, getting enough working, and doing some pirate radio at 2AM. That'd be a trip!
That's the radio station that sponsored the concert at the Station Nightclub where a lot of people died tragically in a fire! What an insane find with so much equipment left behind
That was awesome RnK, those old analogue mixing boards are so cool! I found a former radio station a few months back but could not find a way inside although it looked pretty well cleared out through the windows. Still had all the towers and old school stuff outside. Thanks for another unique explore!
Please be careful. You should avoid being near any active transmitter or antenna system. Your body is accepting harmful radiation. You have an RF Exposure time limit before it greatly impacts your physical health with long-term consequences. Depending on the tower height and wattage. The radiation is extremely dangerous and you won't see it or feel it until its to late.
I guess you would feel it if you touched an antenna that was transmitting, I guess a HF burn would not go down too well. AS well as the HIgh Voltage on the final output stages of the transmitter as well.
Says the person with the username DigitalAddiction that is typing out the message on the computer, and who also probably lives near power lines, and maybe even nuclear power plants...you need to get your own house in order before you condemn others, you hypocrite!
My high school had an off site production studio and radio station. In the 90s you could take broadcasting as a 1 year voc course and I did. Learned how to use all this analog equipment, recognize everything in that place, including the two track commercial/promotional tapes. Also got to DJ a morning rock show with a buddy for about 6 months. It was only AM with a low power transmitter, but the show got enough listeners that it was continued after I graduated.
Before 1981, WHJY was known as 94 JOY, a beautiful music and easy listening station before the format change to album rock, believe it or not. I remember my mom listening to it when I was a kid, until it just went off the air and came back on as something she was not interested in listening to. She switched to WLKW and WMYS after that and my dad and her also listened to WHIM, HJY's sister station broadcasting on 1110 AM as a country and western station. I spent my growing up years listening to HJY, WRX and WPRO (as well as WSNE sometimes), and I think I still have a 94HJY sweatshirt somewhere. I remember going to their birthday part concert night with friends when they had bands at Lupo's, The Met Cafe and the Strand, I think it was their 15 birthday bash. As someone who misses the old radio stations, and a collector of tape recorders, its painful to see all those Studers, Tascams, Technics and mixing boards go to waste. Thanks for the video!!!
Pirate radios is off of Cape Cod about 45 minutes east of where that was in east Providence I used to hang out there as a kid when it was a functional station before Satellite feeds destroyed the profession
As a fan of both Big O and Dukes and The Mike OMeara Show, they are podcasters who started out decades ago as small time radio djs. Hearing them talk about stories of old stations, watching this is the video to go with the audio from their stories. Awesome stuff you guys, as always. Stay safe.
Those were Carts. They look like 8 track tapes, but a bit different. You would typically put commercials on them and cue them up in a machine. Been in Broadcasting over Twenty years. Great video!
The difference is that 8-track tapes have a built in pinch roller, but Broadcast Carts use the pinch roller on a a flip up mechanism that only engages when you want it to play. Then it runs until it detects the 'stop' cue tone so it is cued up and ready to play the next time it's needed. Some carts have extra tones, for automation systems. I am a retired Radio & TV Broadcast Engineer.
Those reel to reels are worth quite a bit and are still in demand by recording studios those stand up units are like $3to $5k I good working condition and the rack mounts about half that plus I seen quite a few other very nice expensive pieces of equipment it's crazy it's rotting away cause there are alot of people that would love to have that gear deff a very cool find
Thanks for the memories. I spent many days in the 90's working on air in the upstairs control room at WSNE. All stations just moved to another building and are still on the air with new digital boards and music and commercials on hard drive. The reel to reels were used to edit phone calls or record commercials. The DAT players generally for interviews and news. The equipment is dated but I still can't believe that nobody grabbed it. Obviously iHeart didn't want any of it.
When I worked there in the mid 80's the transmitters were in the room he showed "High Voltage" near the back of the building. The WHJJ, WHJY and WBRU transmitters were there. Now they are in a separate building at the base of the tower that is still there.
Awesome video. I'm guessing this place was closed in 2006 when ClearChannel fired Arlene Violet and made a bunch of other cutbacks. I want the equipment!
DJ's such as Carolyn Fox and Rudy Cheeks. Geoff Charles. Michael "Doctor Metal" Gonsalves, Mike hosted The Metal Zone from midnight to 5am played a lot of kick ass metal in the very same building... Mike passed away in the Station Fire.. may he rest in peace!
This is strange for me since I actually worked with WSNE in the 90s. And WHJY has been a killer rock station for years. Haven't been in that building in decades.
Now what is really interesting is that this place was shut down in the 2000s being that the computers are old. Where all new stations run fully digital setups.
I work at a radio station and can't figure out why someone hasn't sold off the boards and reel to reels and what not. There are some really nice, but older, processing equipment that people REALLY want!!
Started in 1992 as an intern on a morning show, doing on air stunts out and about. Went to what used to be AIC (American Institute of Commerce) which eventually became Kaplan University. The Radio Broadcasting course was finished before that. Worked part-time at 4 radio stations in the Quad Cities of Iowa and Illinois and got out of radio when my first child was born in 1996. Radio changed a lot at that time. Got bad. Decided to see if I could get back in in 2008 and was hired part-time again. Stayed that way for 7.5 years when I finally got my full-time gig where I am now.
If you want to make a good living and have a family, you're better off doing something else. lol Radio isn't like it used to be. Luckily, I have a "sugar-mama" who is an OB nurse. lol
Radio stations used to have engineering staffs - a chief engineer and several staff engineers - to install and maintain the facilities. Consider that today, many large group owners might own eight stations in a market and have one engineer to maintain all of them (and be responsible for everything: studios, transmitters, buildings, plumbing, air conditioning, lawn mowing...). It's not surprising that they just don't have the manpower to decommission the old gear they left behind. It's cheaper to just tear the building down with everything inside than it would be to hire engineers to meticulously unwire and remove the gear and recondition it. Most stations just don't want to be in the used equipment business.
A very interesting video. As a long time enthusiast of classic audio equipment and music, it really breaks my heart to see all that lovely gear and 8 track stuff just lying and rotting away. All your videos are highly interesting but this one captured me a lot more. Cheers for the upload.
The "8 tracks" are called carts. they had a hole in the bottom where a wheel would pop up from the cart machine and contact the tape inside the cart and play the commercial or music that was recorded on it. They could be erased with a bulk eraser and reused for another commercial etc.
They would also reload the housing with new tape from a bulk hub when it broke, or was badly worn. Some stations had the reloading machine, while others traded in bad carts for rebuilt ones. There were several OEMs for new carts.
I graduated with a broadcasting degree. AA Degree in broadcasting. I worked at couple of radio stations. Those are carts not 8 tracks. They contain commercials.and a jingle package if the radio station had one. but they used it also for news like soundbites,
Hey Gary Russen! Fellow AAS Broadcasting Degree here too! 🙂 I would feel right at home with all of that analog equipment around! I worked at two AM stations in the 90's too for 9 years. Might get my own station(s) started, but sadly it would most likely be over the internet.
Just start an account and you get 15 minutes for free, or pay about 5.00 a month and get the air talent plan giving you a live broadcast for 45 minutes, and or spend 20.00 dollars a month and broadcast for three hours. Just look at plans and pricing it will show you the prices for the plan you want. Your shows are heard on any social site you want, and even here on You tube. Just watch what you play because they will get you on copy write
Unbelievable! Technics RS-1700's, Tascams, Studers, piles of cart machines and cd decks, JBL studio monitors, radio station promotional copies of stuff...I was about to pass out watching this!! That was the coolest explore ever, really dug it! There is a f*****g fortune in high end audio equipment in there, not to mention the cool stuff that must be on the reels and carts! Oh, they're carts not 8 tracks, kind of similar though. Good lord, I'd go nuts in there...thanx for the tour!
Another sweet explore! Enjoy RnK a lot...thank you. I am no electrician but understand buildings. The power is the emergency lighting that has battery back up built in. Not sure how long the battery will last and differs depending on the light type. Some places you have explored may have an alternate power or battery backups, I.E. hospitals, radio stations...Large buildings require a certain amount of power to maintain fire alarms and water flow monitors. Keep creating!
Lets put it this way if I knew that stuff was still there Ide hire a moving company and completely empty the place there is a fortune there and analog is every bit as good if not better than digital and so much more reliable and easier to use .I used to work with CFQR-Fm the second fully automated radio station in Canada and my only regret is when it moved I never considered buying their 6 AG -350 10 inch real to real stereo tape machines with 1/4 stainless face plates.Even saw a tech drop one down 2 flights of stairs plugged it in and it played perfectly didnt even have to adjust the heads lol
atyourserviceable those were built to work for a long time. Now manufacturers know the prominence of Moore’s Law so new tech is produced with the idea of being replaced
better than digital simply isnt true. It was maybe in the early days in the 90s. But today its a myth that spreads like old chewing gum and isnt true at all.
I really enjoyed your walk through on this. I am amazed that so much equipment was left behind. Those mixing consoles alone cost several thousands of dollars when they were new. Great job!
Dude I would be all over those reel to reels. I still use them in my studio. It looks like they just walked away I could fill my van with rack and rack gear. That is so amazing.
Great explore. I see you've been to East Providence. I've been in that building, about 30 years ago. This was the offices and broadcast studios for WHJJ AM and WHJY FM. WHJY is the rock station and is still on the air, I'm pretty sure WHJJ is still on the air also, but I don't often listen to talk radio. They moved about 10 years ago, maybe a little longer. WHJY was a pretty badass station back in those days, now their personalities are rather meh and they play the same Pink Floyd, Let Zeppelin, AC-DC songs every single day. I'm a bit surprised they just left the old building and its contents like that. What else did you visit when you were in town? Did you know that the Industrial Trust Tower (aka Superman Building), the tallest building in Rhode Island, is abandoned? Well, technically unoccupied since 2014.
Thanks for sharing this. This is a very graphic video to me... All those equipements left like that. All those Pacific boards, those Revox, Tascams, Studecs. We can feel some nice energy remaining in those studios, it might have been a nice place to work. That’s literally my dream for years that I have just seen in a kind of ‘Horror Video’ but still, a good video.
Those "8-Tracks" are most likely "carts" which are used in the broadcast industry, they are similar to the 8-track, but different. Radio stations usually used them for recording jingles and commercials, but would also even sometimes play music off of them.
This was really cool! I used to be a DJ in the early '80's before there was such a thing as a CD and much of the equipment was familiar. I had two large racks of reel-to-reel decks behind me as the station had been automated at one time. They came in handy when nature called! I recorded many commercials on "carts" as we called them. It was sure fun when more than one commercial was on one and it overran the cue tone and started playing the next one - NOT! I was the first midnight DJ the station had. It was absolutely the most fun job I ever had, and I've missed it ever since I left. The main board for the FM side was awesome! I saw a comment below the building is going to be demolished soon. I hope all of that equipment is taken out before that happens. There is a market for it and would hate to see it disappear forever. Thanks for sharing it! Seeing it sure took me back to some great times.
Hey Robb First the Hibachi Restaurant now this Radio Station with power, and they had state of the art equipment for that time period. Your locations never cease amaze me. Great Job Sweetheart! As for my weekend, just kicking it back with some out door🥩🌭🍔🍗 BB-Q & some chilled cocktails 🍸. LOVE YA ♥️☮️🙏🏼👍👍📞 STAY SAFE-HI KRISTY 🌺
Wow!!! Seeing all that equipment brought back memories of my time in radio in the early 80's . The "cart" machines to play the promos as well as some music. The song rotation logs I had to keep. Old turntables you'd have to stick a screw drive in the fuse holder to make work. LOL It was good times. I can' believe all that gear was left. The Studers. Those boards can still be found in use. Heavy duty stuff. I'd love that Tascam unit. Anyway, cool video, thanks for sharing this.
I know exactly where you were because I only live 20 minutes over the state line in Massacuhusetts :) I wish I had known you were doing an explore up here, I would have loved to meet you guys! I love your channel, keep up the great work!
I shed a tear when I saw all that vintage Tascam hardware going to waste. Its unlikely that the sound boards are any good, but it would be fun to test them out.
Great explore! I can't believe that equipment was left behind, there are collectors that would love it. I was a DJ, not in a radio station, but in a club, but this brought me back. Ha, ha, I didn't have to watch for the phone you did it in the beginning. LOL
I'm blown away... So much music and so much equipment in great condition. I can't believe nobody came by and just hauled all of it away. Very cool that you got to see it all mostly in tact!
Wow, I just looked up one of my favorite stations of my 20's (before moving out of the area) WCCC 106.9 out of Hartford, CT. It was an awesome rock station, and one of the first stations to air Howard Stern, now it's been sold to KLove playing contemporary Christian music.
Those “8 tracks“ are called “carts“ they were used in cart decks, usually stacked one on top of the other. They would have anything from full songs on them to commercial spots, sound effects and radio station jingles. They were mainly used in the late 60s, 70’s and 80’s and part of the 1990s until everything went to CD format. Then came digital and everything is now run off of a computer. Dang I wouldn’t mind having that Electrovoice mic holder, mixing board and just a portion of those records. Wow! I can’t believe they left everything like they did. There’s a lot of value in that room even in the way it is.
All of the essential equipment are still intact, if you want you can start your own pirate radio station easily, and best of all it would probably not be "pirate" as that station would probably still be licensed to operate on that frequency, it only appears that for whatever reason the owner(s) abandoned it, perhaps they died or something and there were no next of kin? Anyways, the title of your video said "STILL TRANSMITTING", I was expecting you to show how the transmitter was still on and still transmitting a signal on that FM frequency since the building still had power. IF there IS a transmitter still transmitting, your work is half way done, all what you would have to do is turn on and test the boards, media players, get some microphones (since I didn't saw any on the video), make sure they are hooked up properly to the mixer and then from the mixer to the transmitter. Insert a CD and check if you can listen to it on a hand held radio tuned to that FM frequency, if so then you are done - happy "pirating" at least on a frequency the "building" could still be licensed to so the FCC wont come after you. You can start your own radio station business, make money selling commercial spots and air time (eg. those "paid programmings"). . . . /yeah end of wishful thinking - I guess... But would be cool if someone could pull if off. And for the record, by you saying "still transmitting" I actually was thinking more of that WHJJ is still transmitting, but not on that building anymore, elsewhere and under a different frequency. But nevertheless, it would still have been cool if you had stumbled across a still powered and fully ON working transmitter on that building (even though the FCC would PROBABLY had shut it down long time ago if that was the case).
Ahhh so glad I found you channel and especially this video of HJY. If I'm not mistaken before they were 'the home of rock and roll' they were "Joy Radio" light rock music. Thats why you see all the different music. My old neighbor was even a DJ there. Super nice, mellow guy.
That was a cool place. I bet it was buzzing back in the day, would of been cool to have seen it then, but now just quiet and left alone. Very cool explore and you got some great shots.
The crime is that Clear Channel / Curtis media just walked away and left all that equipment to ruin. Most of it likely had some decent life left in it and could have been used by others. . .What a waste. No doubt just 10 days later, the place has likely been cleaned out. . .
You're in my home state! This used to be WHJY/WHJJ until they moved in the mid 90's. I've always wanted to know what it looked like inside there! Thanks for sharing!
RNK I really enjoy every video you post. Great editing, audio, and superb camera work. What concerns me is this. That property is owned by iheartmedia ( Clear Channel Communications) Hopefully someone in the engineering department or station management at 75 Oxford Street Providence RI 02905. Sees your video and secures that building. Those 2 towers are for active radio stations in the area. That building was vacated in 2002. At one point that tiny street was the home for several radio stations with various formats.
You honestly need to start collecting up all the equipment and selling. There is hella expensive stuff for collectors. You can easy make a few thousand dollars or much more! Oh I wish I was you right there.
The reel to reel decks were used often for playing overnight pre-recorded shifts because they could play for hours without running out of tape. They were also the machines used for editing. Before digital editing you used a razor blade, and cut the tape, then taped it back together to cut out a mistake or edit down a long interview. Just FYI.
Hope you guys are enjoying your weekend, let us know what youre up to in the comments 🌞🕶✌
RnK All Day Have a nice weekend!
Stayin in the air conditioning cuz Wisconsin over 90 degress outside today .
Glad to see your video !
Sweatin' like a whore in church... Hotter than Hades here in Chicago. What a unique explore; fun to watch. Reminded me of WKRP in Cincinnati, if you ever watched that show.
RnK All Day i know exactly where you are!! its kinda not abandoned its still owned by the sister station. their using it as a transmission repeater station.
to bounce the signal further out. so dont get caught there!!
Swimming at the beach all weekend
I worked in that building back in the 90s when it was a living, breathing radio operation. It is sad to see it this way. I can't believe they left all that gear behind. Those Pacific Recorders consoles were top of the line in their day. The studios have since moved to another building in Providence, so the stations still exist. The building in this video was demolished last year. There was a lot of Providence radio history in that building. Those tape cartridges are not "8-tracks", by the way, they are tape "carts" (2-track) which usually contained music or commercials. They are endless-loop and re-cue to the beginning after playing.
Did they tear it down with all that stuff inside?
Do you know what happened to that Studer half track machine? I’m literally going to lose it if they tossed it. Been looking for one for years. I’m going to be honest, this place is close to me and if it was still up. I’d be extremely tempted to uhhh rescue it so to speak lol
That station first came on the air in 1922...they appear to still be licensed..Check 920 KHZ on your AM radio and see...they may have moved the station....all the boards that you saw were all part of the station...there is a main board and the rest are production and newsroom,etc. You found a real jewel there, my friend. Some of that equipment hasn't been in use for decades..I am a broadcaster and i find this MOST fascinating...thanx, man!!
1922 is a typo
I'm with you,great stuff
it may not be..its a REALLY old East coast license
Wish you could buy the servicable equipment and give us some real radio. Where would I be without satellite radio? It isn't much better but at least I have a little more choice.
920 WHJJ and 94 WHJY are still on the air. They moved to a new site in providence that can be seen from I-95. This site still transmits 94 WHJY while 920 WHJJ moved there transmitter to east providence.
Rob, i wish i knew you were up here, this is my neck of the woods.
I spent 40 years in radio. Those are Pacific Recorders boards, and damn good ones. Well worth pulling out and restoring.
The "8 Tracks" are tape cartridges. They're used for commercials, jingles, sometimes music. They've been used in radio since the early 60's, long before the 8 track era.
The 2 track recorders are valuable too. They look like 80's vintage Studers. The Tascams would be worth restoring as well. Somebody REALLY needs to grab that 4 track machine. That was used for production of commercials, promos etc.
It's a crime what consolidation has done to local radio. What a shame.
Patrick.... Are you Dr. Johnny Fever? Lol.
I worked on those boards in college in 00’ robust and easy to fix. Great year of my life as an engineer assistant. The worst I had to fix was a 100 cd changer. Place had 4 of them stacked up. Thanks for this glimpse into my past.
Patrick Bergin I'm wondering why they left this good stuff there. Unbelievable
I totally agree.. I felt sad to see all that jewelery abandoned in such way... I wish I could get and restore a one of those board
Carts. I miss using those. Thirty year radio vet and I have gone from records and carts to one computer that does it all. Easier yes. But sad.
you probably should not have stepped into the music storage considering the disks and vinyls were all on the floor who knows how much if any of that was still playable before you stepped on them.
True - but often that media form from a radio station isn't allowed to be distributed for private use per license agreement and would either have to be destroyed or sent back when the radio station was done with it.... however I'm sure a lot gets out in the public anyways.
Calm your tits bud
not vinyls JUST VINYL
I was working in radio when all that equipment was new. Seeing it now , was hellish the stuff of nightmares. It symbolizes the Fall of the entire Industry.
Would you please elaborate on this? Are you saying the equipment caused the industry to fail?
@@revokdaryl1 No, the equipment is not useless, unused and abandoned, which shows what considerations radios have today
That's my town! I was in that building a few times 30 years ago when it was nice. Game Show Producer and Talk show host Merv Griffin used to own that station back in the 80's. The stations still exist, but now they have new owners and are located In a larger building in the city of Providence which overlooks the freeway. Very cool video!
JZCRAZY Former WHJY jock Lou Brutus used to refer to HJY as "The Griffin Group Grotto". I haven't thought of that in ages!
What city and state is this in?
Providence, Rhode Island
Nice to meet you, gamby16a
What's not so cool is leaving all that equipment behind... are they nuts!
What a waste, Crown D 75 power amps, JBL 4311 studio monitors , Studer reel to reel decks. A lot of the audio chain equipment has been removed but I heart left a lot of money there. No wonder they are in financial trouble now.
I think I-Heart (formerly Cheep Channel)'s business model is creating losses to write off at the end of the fiscal year. Didn't know that the throw away society could be so expense!
because that junk is junk, it's all outdated to use in a new location and not worth them hauling to scrap. That's why they left it.
What gets me though is the tower is still there. That is worth more than anything else in that building.
TC Fenstermaker If it’s that valuable then go and save it...
"Even if it's busted it's worth serious cash to restorers who will flip it online and get four digits for it."
Yeah right in your dreams, People who collect commercial audio gear like that and think they can flip it are in that 1% niche group of big dreamers and bigger failures.. Look at RadioTVPhononut or Shangoo66, they have PILES of "Restored" vintage TV sets, radios and audio gear and NO ONE is buying it.. That shit is worth the electronic scrap, nothing more. People that want that shit are junk collectors, the ONLY reason I would consider salvaging any of that shit is for board level parts or the scrap value.
I used to have your mindset about vintage computers and game consoles, I had so many old IBM PC XT's, PC jr's, Display Writers, Commodores, Atari's, NES systems, etc. that all worked fine and I though I could sell off..
The truth of the matter was no one was going to pay anything for any of it, not even other collectors. So all that junk has been sent off to be shredded and recycled a few years ago. I would rather get the scrap value out of it than to "Donate" it to a collector with a basement museum who will never use it.
Actually no there is not much difference. The factor that make anything valuable is the usability of the item not the age. There is NO DEMAND for old outdated junk and no collector is going to pay anything close to what you think something is worth..
This is the building that housed 94 HJY, 920 WHJJ, and 93.3 WSNE. Stations moved out in late 2001 to a building with all new equipment. Sadly, the equipment left behind could've been sold. Lots of great bands, musicians, comedians, actors, politicians and legendary on-air talent all were in that building at one point. Having worked there this video brought back some great memories and some sadness to see it in it's current state.
You used to work there? Please tell us more! :D
What would you like to know?
I just don't understand how equipment like that can be left behind and forgotten about. I mean, the value of those items adds up to tens of thousands, maybe even more. How can these things be left behind?
Wow, John Laurenti! Hi ... you don't know me but I remember listening to you spin when I ws a kid. Had to say, wow, hi, just because.
Thousands upon thousands of dollars of equipment (that is still relevant and not completely outdated) left behind. I wouldn't say no if the building was offered for sale for anywhere under 500K
CoinHuntingDrew Can you say SALT WATER DAMAGED from hurricane(s)?? even the Technics RS 1500's would have been grabbed as they are capable of THE BEST in 15ips repro, not to mention the Studer A807....
I worked at 3 different radio stations, WNNO, WRJC, and WDDC in WI. Seeing this brought back great memories. Makes me want to get back in radio again, only problem is from what I know it is mostly computer these days. When I worked in radio, we used CD players, and some turntables. Computers were used, but mostly for production. Thank you for the cool video!
All those Tascam reel to reel machines are a hot item these days for vintage sound equipment collectors their hot like old vinyl records... Cool explore RNK
*they're
Thank God the spelling and Grammar police showed up...
No doubt, they have already left the building.
Worth a small fortune those big Tascam decks.
uhh, no -- those Tascam decks are not worth a small fortune. Probably worth about $100... maybe $200 if they are still working. However, the Studer machine that he walked right past and never even mentioned is worth about $4,000 even if it's broken (which it most likely is).
I have a music studio. This is hard to watch.
How
Same here dude. Seeing this gear, knowing full well it could be fixed up and put back into service is saddening. Watching this makes me want to buy the building and the gear inside it, and turn it into a recording studio. Wouldn’t that be nice?
Those 8 tracks you point out are "carts". They were used for Commericals, jingles, Music etc. They were used before digital and CD's came into play.
Great find!! You really took me back in time, I used to do a weekend spot on CKLG FM in Vancouver back in the late 60s, and this place still had some equipment from that era. Its too bad idiots felt the need to tear it up, but that was a pretty tight station in its day. By the way, “Love Story” was a movie sound track from 1970 that was very popular. Nice job clambering through the rubble to give us a view of everything you could. Classy work as usual, thanks for what you do. 🖤🇨🇦
I never new this station even existed in the late 60's in Van!!!
thunderbird66613 it was the place to actually hear good music, not just the top 20 over and over. Not sure if it still exists or what its like now if it does, since I’m in Ontario now since 1979. I still have a Zippo lighter with the station call sign engraved on it lol. 🖤🇨🇦
Those reel to reel recorders have very huge value, we speak of numbers with 4 zeros at least, even in not working condition. I wonder why that equipment is laying there. Studer, Revox, Tascam, Tecnics!!!! Are you kidding me???? This is insane!
Yep. Total waste expensive analog tape equipment that is still desired by many people today. Analog sound is BETTER than digital in many ways.
watershed44 I know right and also analog sound is better than digital
Here in the UK, some local BBC stations are still using mixing desks of that vintage! The ones i used to work on were called the “Mark III” and were installed in the early 80’s. The cart players were made by Sonifex here but were a variation on the old 8 track design.
The Broadcast carts came first. 4-track (Lear Jet) and 8-track variants followed them. The Fidelipak cartridges were also used for background music in stores and restaurants, on a 31 minute cartridge.
We spoke to the person responsible for transferring the station to its new location and decommissioning of this one and I'm pretty sure if it was arranged you could have what you want from there as they are the key holder......its going to be demolished shortly.
ANY CONTACT INFO???
Indeed! Any contact info?? Would love to pay respects to the old gal before the complete rip out. Maybe a memento like a cartridge or two that I could say this was from back in my hey day of radio.
It is probably all gone now after this video was uploaded
well fuck me... i would have totally done that… but i don't live in the US of A. .....
Man, they could raise some money selling some of that stuff before demo. Anyone have any idea why they didn't already remove the equipment? Like, were they "storing" stuff in the old site?
I grew up in RI - listened to WHJY 94.1 - i think this studio was shifted to a new building as part of an acquisition -- and has since fallen into disrepair. The transmitters are now at the base of the towers.
yeah they are still around 75 oxford street providence ri new address
Transmitters are where the real money is at....haha. Bring a flatbed and a forklift for the 🏆
WHJJ Radio is a AM Talk radio station focusing on Traffic and weather reports that still exist in Providence RI. (If I'm not mistaken) They have since moved to another location but that building served as their main headquarters as far back as the 1980's. Before that they were WJAR from 1922 until 1980. Then it changed its call sign to WHJJ...it's crazy to think how long that place had been in use before finally being abandoned for a new facility. What a walk through history... I really love it. Great find. Just imagine how many people occupied that space working there and others that came as guests on their radio shows. What's even more amazing is that as long as those radio towers are up and there's electricity to that place you will always be able to broadcast from there. Awesome.
Would have been cool to see the transmitters
I work in broadcast. Those mixers/consoles are still in use nationwide today, even though they're 30ish years old. WHJJ is owned by iHeart now. That's a LOT of expensive equipment in it's day. The studer reel to reels still fetch a pretty penny in that condition today. Lots of old timers have tape they want to listen to again, and pay lots of money for those stupid things. All the carts are professional grade "8-tracks" but they're only a few minutes long each, long enough to hold weather, songs, intros, etc.
Those Studers are not “ stupid things” at all in working condition they sound great
As much money as that equipment may be worth it is not worth moving. Because by the time you spend money on the labor to do that you might as well have installed new equipment.
Paul Frederick I guess it’s in the eye of the beholder
More like in the eye of the stockholder.
bert smith I have worked in broadcast for 20 years. Old people want old things. The site operator has offered for anyone in the area to come take their garbage for them.
Looks like there might have been some copper stripper guys nosing about (lots of pulled wires), but seemed totally clueless about the value of some of that other stuff. Given that they were breaking in there and taking stuff anyways, some of those CDs or equipment would have been nice to grab. Even in their not-so-great condition, it'd probably sell for quite a bit.
Also imagine somebody sneaking in, getting enough working, and doing some pirate radio at 2AM. That'd be a trip!
that was a DOPE explore!! I kept hearing FM by Steely Dan in my head and visions of WKRP in Cincinnati and Johnny Fever....LOL
The 'equipment' in the WKRP studio was all mockups, other than the turntables
.
What's weird to me is I grew up listening to HJY so the broadcast was coming out of that very room way back when. Sad really.
The mayor however could not explain his nudity....
That's the radio station that sponsored the concert at the Station Nightclub where a lot of people died tragically in a fire! What an insane find with so much equipment left behind
Whoa
Yea, thats a crazy fact to stumble on.
That was awesome RnK, those old analogue mixing boards are so cool! I found a former radio station a few months back but could not find a way inside although it looked pretty well cleared out through the windows. Still had all the towers and old school stuff outside. Thanks for another unique explore!
Please be careful. You should avoid being near any active transmitter or antenna system. Your body is accepting harmful radiation. You have an RF Exposure time limit before it greatly impacts your physical health with long-term consequences. Depending on the tower height and wattage. The radiation is extremely dangerous and you won't see it or feel it until its to late.
I guess you would feel it if you touched an antenna that was transmitting, I guess a HF burn would not go down too well. AS well as the HIgh Voltage on the final output stages of the transmitter as well.
Says the person with the username DigitalAddiction that is typing out the message on the computer, and who also probably lives near power lines, and maybe even nuclear power plants...you need to get your own house in order before you condemn others, you hypocrite!
DigitalAddiction I thought terrestrial radio was the non-ionizing kind. As long as it isn't, there really shouldn't be a problem right?
My high school had an off site production studio and radio station. In the 90s you could take broadcasting as a 1 year voc course and I did. Learned how to use all this analog equipment, recognize everything in that place, including the two track commercial/promotional tapes. Also got to DJ a morning rock show with a buddy for about 6 months. It was only AM with a low power transmitter, but the show got enough listeners that it was continued after I graduated.
Welcome to Rhode Island! Love the Cianci sticker. RIP Buddy. Best Mayor ever!
Before 1981, WHJY was known as 94 JOY, a beautiful music and easy listening station before the format change to album rock, believe it or not. I remember my mom listening to it when I was a kid, until it just went off the air and came back on as something she was not interested in listening to. She switched to WLKW and WMYS after that and my dad and her also listened to WHIM, HJY's sister station broadcasting on 1110 AM as a country and western station. I spent my growing up years listening to HJY, WRX and WPRO (as well as WSNE sometimes), and I think I still have a 94HJY sweatshirt somewhere. I remember going to their birthday part concert night with friends when they had bands at Lupo's, The Met Cafe and the Strand, I think it was their 15 birthday bash. As someone who misses the old radio stations, and a collector of tape recorders, its painful to see all those Studers, Tascams, Technics and mixing boards go to waste. Thanks for the video!!!
At 4:50, I'm crying.... I can't believe that stuff is sitting there! I WANT IT ALL!!!
We all did.
That place looks like my bedroom in the 90's!
pirate radio !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Pirate radios is off of Cape Cod about 45 minutes east of where that was in east Providence I used to hang out there as a kid when it was a functional station before Satellite feeds destroyed the profession
I HAVE THE LAST DAY THE SOUND 100.3 WAS ON THE AIR IN LOS ANGELOS ON THUMB DRIVE.
Pirate Radio???????????
As a fan of both Big O and Dukes and The Mike OMeara Show, they are podcasters who started out decades ago as small time radio djs. Hearing them talk about stories of old stations, watching this is the video to go with the audio from their stories. Awesome stuff you guys, as always. Stay safe.
Those were Carts. They look like 8 track tapes, but a bit different. You would typically put commercials on them and cue them up in a machine. Been in Broadcasting over Twenty years. Great video!
The difference is that 8-track tapes have a built in pinch roller, but Broadcast Carts use the pinch roller on a a flip up mechanism that only engages when you want it to play. Then it runs until it detects the 'stop' cue tone so it is cued up and ready to play the next time it's needed. Some carts have extra tones, for automation systems. I am a retired Radio & TV Broadcast Engineer.
I've worked in radio since 1990 and this is a great explore! Fascinating!
This still looks better than my bedroom studio
Nice... Awesome place You found! Regards from Poland!
Those reel to reels are worth quite a bit and are still in demand by recording studios those stand up units are like $3to $5k I good working condition and the rack mounts about half that plus I seen quite a few other very nice expensive pieces of equipment it's crazy it's rotting away cause there are alot of people that would love to have that gear deff a very cool find
Thanks for the memories. I spent many days in the 90's working on air in the upstairs control room at WSNE. All stations just moved to another building and are still on the air with new digital boards and music and commercials on hard drive. The reel to reels were used to edit phone calls or record commercials. The DAT players generally for interviews and news. The equipment is dated but I still can't believe that nobody grabbed it. Obviously iHeart didn't want any of it.
Still transmitting? I haven't seen that part in your video. Can you tell me where that was ?
He must be kidding, there is no transmittion at all.
Nope the station is still on the air in the Rhode island area and online on iheartradio WSNE and WHJY
probably broadcasting in the same name on that same frequency but from a different location
ExperiencedGhost the stations moved to a different location. WHJY is still alive and kicking. This place he's at, is in Providence, RI
When I worked there in the mid 80's the transmitters were in the room he showed "High Voltage" near the back of the building. The WHJJ, WHJY and WBRU transmitters were there. Now they are in a separate building at the base of the tower that is still there.
Piles of expensive equipment left behind.....wonder why. Great vid as usual. Thanks for sharing. Staying by the pool to beat the heat!! Stay cool.
Awesome video. I'm guessing this place was closed in 2006 when ClearChannel fired Arlene Violet and made a bunch of other cutbacks. I want the equipment!
DJ's such as Carolyn Fox and Rudy Cheeks. Geoff Charles. Michael "Doctor Metal" Gonsalves, Mike hosted The Metal Zone from midnight to 5am played a lot of kick ass metal in the very same building... Mike passed away in the Station Fire.. may he rest in peace!
Wow! 94.1 hjy, my favorite station from home. I'm from Massachusetts, right over the line from where you guys were. Home sweet home.
Hearing the crunching when he walked over all those discs and records honestly made me gain some emotions I did not know I could feel.
Man, all that cool vintage gear just going to waste. Some of those reel to reel decks are a collector's dream.
Maxxarcade seeing you resort some of that gear would be incredible
Jacob Kelly I think you mean restore can’t tell
This is the coolest thing i’ve seen all week. thanks for the upload!
This is strange for me since I actually worked with WSNE in the 90s. And WHJY has been a killer rock station for years. Haven't been in that building in decades.
10:18 that studer reel to reel... oh boy, what a treasure left behind... incredible...!!
JBL 4412's studio monitors and Studer & Tascam "Open Reel Tape" machines and lots of other Professional equipment (VERY COOL)
Now what is really interesting is that this place was shut down in the 2000s being that the computers are old. Where all new stations run fully digital setups.
I work at a radio station and can't figure out why someone hasn't sold off the boards and reel to reels and what not. There are some really nice, but older, processing equipment that people REALLY want!!
Shawn Schroeder How did you get into radio if you don't mind my asking?
Started in 1992 as an intern on a morning show, doing on air stunts out and about. Went to what used to be AIC (American Institute of Commerce) which eventually became Kaplan University. The Radio Broadcasting course was finished before that. Worked part-time at 4 radio stations in the Quad Cities of Iowa and Illinois and got out of radio when my first child was born in 1996. Radio changed a lot at that time. Got bad. Decided to see if I could get back in in 2008 and was hired part-time again. Stayed that way for 7.5 years when I finally got my full-time gig where I am now.
Shawn Schroeder Wow I always wanted to go into radio but never knew how I'm 26 now I guess it's too late to even try lol
If you want to make a good living and have a family, you're better off doing something else. lol Radio isn't like it used to be. Luckily, I have a "sugar-mama" who is an OB nurse. lol
Radio stations used to have engineering staffs - a chief engineer and several staff engineers - to install and maintain the facilities. Consider that today, many large group owners might own eight stations in a market and have one engineer to maintain all of them (and be responsible for everything: studios, transmitters, buildings, plumbing, air conditioning, lawn mowing...). It's not surprising that they just don't have the manpower to decommission the old gear they left behind. It's cheaper to just tear the building down with everything inside than it would be to hire engineers to meticulously unwire and remove the gear and recondition it. Most stations just don't want to be in the used equipment business.
A very interesting video. As a long time enthusiast of classic audio equipment and music, it really breaks my heart to see all that lovely gear and 8 track stuff just lying and rotting away. All your videos are highly interesting but this one captured me a lot more. Cheers for the upload.
The "8 tracks" are called carts. they had a hole in the bottom where a wheel would pop up from the cart machine and contact the tape inside the cart and play the commercial or music that was recorded on it. They could be erased with a bulk eraser and reused for another commercial etc.
They would also reload the housing with new tape from a bulk hub when it broke, or was badly worn. Some stations had the reloading machine, while others traded in bad carts for rebuilt ones. There were several OEMs for new carts.
Carts labeled with band names were probably celeb station ID spots. Would definitely be cool to salvage them.
As promised on instagram I’m watching! Awesome videos guys! Love your channel
Very cool! I've never been in an abandoned radio station.
Me too!
Great job man! You find some great places to film.
I graduated with a broadcasting degree. AA Degree in broadcasting. I worked at couple of radio stations. Those are carts not 8 tracks. They contain commercials.and a jingle package if the radio station had one. but they used it also for news like soundbites,
Hey Gary Russen! Fellow AAS Broadcasting Degree here too! 🙂 I would feel right at home with all of that analog equipment around! I worked at two AM stations in the 90's too for 9 years. Might get my own station(s) started, but sadly it would most likely be over the internet.
Just start an account and you get 15 minutes for free, or pay about 5.00 a month and get the air talent plan giving you a live broadcast for 45 minutes, and or spend 20.00 dollars a month and broadcast for three hours. Just look at plans and pricing it will show you the prices for the plan you want. Your shows are heard on any social site you want, and even here on You tube. Just watch what you play because they will get you on copy write
Love to have that old equipment myself especially the reel to reels and the cart decks I would still use them.
I have created my own automation system
Unbelievable! Technics RS-1700's, Tascams, Studers, piles of cart machines and cd decks, JBL studio monitors, radio station promotional copies of stuff...I was about to pass out watching this!! That was the coolest explore ever, really dug it! There is a f*****g fortune in high end audio equipment in there, not to mention the cool stuff that must be on the reels and carts! Oh, they're carts not 8 tracks, kind of similar though. Good lord, I'd go nuts in there...thanx for the tour!
Totally Cool 😎 Video! Impressive Radio Station 📻📡🎶 Have a Great Sunday 🙋🏻♀️✌🏼
Another sweet explore! Enjoy RnK a lot...thank you. I am no electrician but understand buildings. The power is the emergency lighting that has battery back up built in. Not sure how long the battery will last and differs depending on the light type. Some places you have explored may have an alternate power or battery backups, I.E. hospitals, radio stations...Large buildings require a certain amount of power to maintain fire alarms and water flow monitors. Keep creating!
You're the only abandoned place person that has professional cinematography skills. Centered, steady shots ... steady. Well done bro.
the proper people where also doing this
Atrocious lighting
Another awesome vid from RnK! bKeep them coming!
Lets put it this way if I knew that stuff was still there Ide hire a moving company and completely empty the place there is a fortune there and analog is every bit as good if not better than digital and so much more reliable and easier to use .I used to work with CFQR-Fm the second fully automated radio station in Canada and my only regret is when it moved I never considered buying their 6 AG -350 10 inch real to real stereo tape machines with 1/4 stainless face plates.Even saw a tech drop one down 2 flights of stairs plugged it in and it played perfectly didnt even have to adjust the heads lol
atyourserviceable those were built to work for a long time. Now manufacturers know the prominence of Moore’s Law so new tech is produced with the idea of being replaced
better than digital simply isnt true. It was maybe in the early days in the 90s. But today its a myth that spreads like old chewing gum and isnt true at all.
I really enjoyed your walk through on this. I am amazed that so much equipment was left behind. Those mixing consoles alone cost several thousands of dollars when they were new. Great job!
Damn, y'all got them 🔥 places.
Dude I would be all over those reel to reels. I still use them in my studio. It looks like they just walked away I could fill my van with rack and rack gear. That is so amazing.
Great explore. I see you've been to East Providence. I've been in that building, about 30 years ago. This was the offices and broadcast studios for WHJJ AM and WHJY FM. WHJY is the rock station and is still on the air, I'm pretty sure WHJJ is still on the air also, but I don't often listen to talk radio. They moved about 10 years ago, maybe a little longer. WHJY was a pretty badass station back in those days, now their personalities are rather meh and they play the same Pink Floyd, Let Zeppelin, AC-DC songs every single day. I'm a bit surprised they just left the old building and its contents like that. What else did you visit when you were in town? Did you know that the Industrial Trust Tower (aka Superman Building), the tallest building in Rhode Island, is abandoned? Well, technically unoccupied since 2014.
Thanks for sharing this. This is a very graphic video to me... All those equipements left like that. All those Pacific boards, those Revox, Tascams, Studecs. We can feel some nice energy remaining in those studios, it might have been a nice place to work. That’s literally my dream for years that I have just seen in a kind of ‘Horror Video’ but still, a good video.
................WOW!...those studer tape machines cost a fortune nowadays.
Those "8-Tracks" are most likely "carts" which are used in the broadcast industry, they are similar to the 8-track, but different. Radio stations usually used them for recording jingles and commercials, but would also even sometimes play music off of them.
All State Of The Art for 1985! Pacific Recorders consoles, Otari MTR series tape machines...None of it is needed anymore.
This was really cool! I used to be a DJ in the early '80's before there was such a thing as a CD and much of the equipment was familiar. I had two large racks of reel-to-reel decks behind me as the station had been automated at one time. They came in handy when nature called! I recorded many commercials on "carts" as we called them. It was sure fun when more than one commercial was on one and it overran the cue tone and started playing the next one - NOT!
I was the first midnight DJ the station had. It was absolutely the most fun job I ever had, and I've missed it ever since I left. The main board for the FM side was awesome! I saw a comment below the building is going to be demolished soon. I hope all of that equipment is taken out before that happens. There is a market for it and would hate to see it disappear forever. Thanks for sharing it! Seeing it sure took me back to some great times.
Hey Robb First the Hibachi Restaurant now this Radio Station with power, and they had state of the art equipment for that time period. Your locations never cease amaze me. Great Job Sweetheart! As for my weekend, just kicking it back with some out door🥩🌭🍔🍗 BB-Q & some chilled cocktails 🍸. LOVE YA ♥️☮️🙏🏼👍👍📞 STAY SAFE-HI KRISTY 🌺
Wow!!! Seeing all that equipment brought back memories of my time in radio in the early 80's . The "cart" machines to play the promos as well as some music. The song rotation logs I had to keep. Old turntables you'd have to stick a screw drive in the fuse holder to make work. LOL It was good times. I can' believe all that gear was left. The Studers. Those boards can still be found in use. Heavy duty stuff. I'd love that Tascam unit. Anyway, cool video, thanks for sharing this.
I know exactly where you were because I only live 20 minutes over the state line in Massacuhusetts :) I wish I had known you were doing an explore up here, I would have loved to meet you guys! I love your channel, keep up the great work!
By the way, you were in the transmitting tower, WHJJ headquarters are now located in the capital city Providence, RI, not far from your explore.
Grew up in ri. Where's the old HJY station? I can't seem to remember.
Those reel to reel machines need to be saved! They are getting incredibly rare. That Tascam reel to reel machined looked almost brand new!
I shed a tear when I saw all that vintage Tascam hardware going to waste. Its unlikely that the sound boards are any good, but it would be fun to test them out.
Great explore! I can't believe that equipment was left behind, there are collectors that would love it. I was a DJ, not in a radio station, but in a club, but this brought me back. Ha, ha, I didn't have to watch for the phone you did it in the beginning. LOL
Never seen a Abandoned Radio Station before either cool video though RnK !
👊🏻
I'm blown away... So much music and so much equipment in great condition. I can't believe nobody came by and just hauled all of it away. Very cool that you got to see it all mostly in tact!
Can I get a request? Watcha want from the Beastie Boys..
SCPC Ghost always!
rbf1967 they are Jewish boys from Brooklyn wigger lover.
SCPC Ghost WHJJ.. MUSIC AALLLL DAY
Wow, I just looked up one of my favorite stations of my 20's (before moving out of the area) WCCC 106.9 out of Hartford, CT. It was an awesome rock station, and one of the first stations to air Howard Stern, now it's been sold to KLove playing contemporary Christian music.
That just breaks my heart. I am a guitar player in a well known band.
I am a cashier in a well known Walmart.
I am a masturbator in a well known girl’s locker room.
Loaded4506 A bleeding wanker. Everyone needs a hobby mate.
I am a guitar player in a well known basement
THRASH METAL & FUN RIFFS You will never have what I got mate, I will never want what you have. Cheers
Those “8 tracks“ are called “carts“ they were used in cart decks, usually stacked one on top of the other. They would have anything from full songs on them to commercial spots, sound effects and radio station jingles. They were mainly used in the late 60s, 70’s and 80’s and part of the 1990s until everything went to CD format. Then came digital and everything is now run off of a computer.
Dang I wouldn’t mind having that Electrovoice mic holder, mixing board and just a portion of those records. Wow! I can’t believe they left everything like they did. There’s a lot of value in that room even in the way it is.
All of the essential equipment are still intact, if you want you can start your own pirate radio station easily, and best of all it would probably not be "pirate" as that station would probably still be licensed to operate on that frequency, it only appears that for whatever reason the owner(s) abandoned it, perhaps they died or something and there were no next of kin? Anyways, the title of your video said "STILL TRANSMITTING", I was expecting you to show how the transmitter was still on and still transmitting a signal on that FM frequency since the building still had power. IF there IS a transmitter still transmitting, your work is half way done, all what you would have to do is turn on and test the boards, media players, get some microphones (since I didn't saw any on the video), make sure they are hooked up properly to the mixer and then from the mixer to the transmitter. Insert a CD and check if you can listen to it on a hand held radio tuned to that FM frequency, if so then you are done - happy "pirating" at least on a frequency the "building" could still be licensed to so the FCC wont come after you. You can start your own radio station business, make money selling commercial spots and air time (eg. those "paid programmings").
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/yeah end of wishful thinking - I guess... But would be cool if someone could pull if off. And for the record, by you saying "still transmitting" I actually was thinking more of that WHJJ is still transmitting, but not on that building anymore, elsewhere and under a different frequency. But nevertheless, it would still have been cool if you had stumbled across a still powered and fully ON working transmitter on that building (even though the FCC would PROBABLY had shut it down long time ago if that was the case).
Ahhh so glad I found you channel and especially this video of HJY. If I'm not mistaken before they were 'the home of rock and roll' they were "Joy Radio" light rock music. Thats why you see all the different music. My old neighbor was even a DJ there. Super nice, mellow guy.
Everybody enjoyed working at those places until clear channel destroyed the airwaves....
I’ve been there, this place is awesome! Great video as always :)
Great Video, hard to believe they left all that stuff behind to just ROT! I wonder who the Jerk was who broke all the windows?
Probably a disgruntled DJ who got fired for bringing a cup of coffee into the studio.
That was a cool place. I bet it was buzzing back in the day, would of been cool to have seen it then, but now just quiet and left alone. Very cool explore and you got some great shots.
really cool explore tho i got to be honest , after that camera was off i think i would have grabbed some of those reel to reels as well as some cd's
I have 2 passion: urbex and my original job in radio. I just in love for that spot and this vidéo !!!!!!!!!! Gréât work! Grettings from paris, france!
The crime is that Clear Channel / Curtis media just walked away and left all that equipment to ruin. Most of it likely had some decent life left in it and could have been used by others. . .What a waste. No doubt just 10 days later, the place has likely been cleaned out. . .
They left it to ruin because they don't want to sell it cheap for *you* (or someone else) to become a new competitor.
@@DigitalIslandboy True but somebody could get it even cheaper by just stealing it because they've just left it.
Awesome and unique explore. Really enjoyed the video. Thanks for sharing!
I did a little research and it looks like they are still transmitting from those towers but the studios are in another part of town, 75 Oxford St.
Another city. This is East Providence (not the east side of Providence), and the new building is in Providence. Two totally different cities.
You're in my home state! This used to be WHJY/WHJJ until they moved in the mid 90's. I've always wanted to know what it looked like inside there! Thanks for sharing!
Don't step on the records!
RNK I really enjoy every video you post. Great editing, audio, and superb camera work. What concerns me is this. That property is owned by iheartmedia ( Clear Channel Communications) Hopefully someone in the engineering department or station management at 75 Oxford Street Providence RI 02905. Sees your video and secures that building. Those 2 towers are for active radio stations in the area. That building was vacated in 2002. At one point that tiny street was the home for several radio stations with various formats.
You honestly need to start collecting up all the equipment and selling.
There is hella expensive stuff for collectors.
You can easy make a few thousand dollars or much more! Oh I wish I was you right there.
The reel to reel decks were used often for playing overnight pre-recorded shifts because they could play for hours without running out of tape. They were also the machines used for editing. Before digital editing you used a razor blade, and cut the tape, then taped it back together to cut out a mistake or edit down a long interview. Just FYI.