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Newburyport and the North Shore present a great challenge to the average radio listener... and even the experienced hobbyist. In one of the most densely populated regions of the country, radio has grown unchecked for many years, now home to dozens of small pirate stations, two of which have become major commercial operations, a disastrous mess of IBOC interference, and interference from sources completely unknown. Reception in this area is extremely varied. Signals may be solid one day yet totally non-existent the next in absence of any enhancement or tropospheric propagation. Because of its location along the ocean, coastal tropo - downcoast especially - can drastically change the band as Cape Cod and Providence area stations take over in local quality with mere enhancement conditions. While this allows many stations to overcome IBOC, it can also enhance some weaker Boston IBOC that otherwise would not be an issue, thus causing additional interference. Depending on the frequency, depending even on the day, IBOC may interfere merely on first adjacents yet has been noted on second adjacents and even on frequencies in which the source cannot be determined. Towns a few miles to the north, including Seabrook and Hampton Beach, give much-needed relief to IBOC interference from the south on most days. A total of 33 of 101 usable frequencies (33%) were affected by IBOC on a daily basis at this location with an additional 10% experiencing occasional interference. This bandscan site is 34 miles north-northeast of Boston, 32 miles east-southeast of Manchester, New Hampshire; 63 miles north-northwest of Provincetown on the tip of Cape Cod, and 68 miles south-southwest of Portland, Maine. In short, if radio is your thing, avoid this area at all costs.
