Broadcast area Phoenix, Arizona ERP 100,000 watts Class C Frequency 102.5 MHz Format Country music Area Phoenix | First air date December 25, 1961 HAAT 494 meters Facility ID 7698 City of license Phoenix Owner iHeartMedia Inc Branding 102.5 KNIX | |
Slogan New Country and The Valley's All-Time Favorites | ||
KNIX-FM is a country music radio station in Phoenix, Arizona. Its studios are located in Phoenix near Sky Harbor Airport and its transmitter is in South Mountain Park. The station's frequency is 102.5 MHz
Contents
History
The station originally signed on the air on December 25, 1961 as a beautiful music station. In 1968, singer Buck Owens bought the station and its AM sister in separate transactions. The AM station was country music KTUF and the FM station changed to progressive rock in August 1968. In early March 1969, KNIX-FM switched to the country format and the two stations began simulcast operations. Station bumper-stickers proclaimed "K-TUF/KNIX, We Stamped Out 3-Letter Radio". In 1998 Clear Channel acquired the FM from Owens and continues as a country station.
KNIX-FM led not only the Phoenix radio market, but was considered one of the premier country radio stations in the United States. Under the leadership of General Manager Michael Owens and Programming/Operations Manager Larry Daniels, KNIX-FM was consistently number one in the Phoenix market. In addition, the station won many prestigious awards including honors from the Country Music Association, The Academy of Country Music, Billboard Magazine, and the Marconi Award for excellence in broadcasting.
HD Radio
KNIX-FM's HD Radio signal is multiplexed. The main signal is a simulcast of KNIX's country programming. On April 25, 2006, Clear Channel announced that KNIX's HD2 subchannel would carry a format focusing on music from new and up-and-coming Country artists. The second channel has now switched to carrying KFYI AM 550, a valley AM news/talk radio station. The third channel carries Clear Channel's Total Traffic Network (TTN). A data only service broadcasting real-time traffic streaming to GPS devices with HD Radio receivers, providing accident, traffic flow, and road construction information. Devices capable of receiving traffic data are available from manufactures such as Garmin or Cydle.