Branding SuperChannel WACX-TV | ||
Slogan In God We Trust
For a Better Life Channels Digital: 40 (UHF)
Virtual: 55 (UHF) Subchannels 55.1 Christian Independent
55.2 God TV
55.3 WACX encores
55.4 SonLife Translators WWRP-LP 9 Tallahassee
W40CQ-D Alachua/Gainesville Owner Associated Christian Television System, Inc.
(Bowers family) | ||
WACX is a Christian television station serving Orlando, Florida, licensed to nearby Leesburg with studios in Altamonte Springs. It is locally owned by the Bowers family and their company, Associated Christian Television System. It broadcasts on UHF channel 40, virtual channel 55. The station's schedule consists primarily of locally produced religious programming. Currently, WACX is operating as an independent station.
Contents
WACX is technically a commercial station, even though it, as with most religious stations, is viewer supported.
The station's owner, Associated Christian Television System, is not the same entity as either American Christian Television Services, owners of WTLW in Lima, Ohio, or the defunct television network the American Christian Television System.
History
WACX first signed on the air on March 6, 1982 as WIYE, operating on analog channel 55 and owned by Claud and Freeda Bowers. However, it has roots in a local Christian cable station begun by the Bowers and several other Lake County residents in 1977.
Channel 55's signal originally didn't make it too far out of Lake County. However, the station had grown enough that by 1987 it was able to move to a new transmitter capable of 5 million watts of power, boosting its coverage area to the entire Central Florida area. It became WACX in 1988, and began branding itself as "SuperChannel 55" because at the time it was the only station airing at the maximum power allowed for a UHF station.
From the 1990s through September 2006, WACX was affiliated with TBN, regularly airing broadcast segments from the network; this affiliation ceased after TBN acquired its own station in the market. Since then, the station has regularly featured program segments from The Inspiration Network (INSP) and periodically from God TV.
Digital channels
The station's digital channel is multiplexed:
Analog-to-digital conversion
WACX shut down its analog signal, over UHF channel 55, in March 2006. The station's digital signal continued to broadcasts on its pre-transition UHF channel 40. Through the use of PSIP, digital television receivers display the station's virtual channel as its former UHF analog channel 55, which was among the high band UHF channels (52-69) that were removed from broadcasting use as a result of the transition.
Relays
WACX operates two low-power translators and satellites that rebroadcast its programming:
In addition, WACX's programming is streamed on its website.
Previously, WACX operated an additional translator, WLWA-LP channel 14 in Lakeland (part of the Tampa Bay market), but that station signed off on June 15, 2006 after losing its transmitter site; its license was revoked by the Federal Communications Commission on April 24, 2009. Additionally, W40CQ-D replaced analog translator W69AY.
At one point, WACX controlled the SuperChannel TBN channel on the Sky Angel religious satellite service, but this was replaced with the national TBN service in 2006.
In August 2011, it was announced that Restoration Place, Inc. will be acquiring WACX-LP Tallahassee, in which the station will become WWRP-LP.
The station previously operated a translator in Madison, W03AO channel 3. This translator has since closed down and is no longer listed in the FCC database.