What's the difference between FM104 & Spin1038 ?

Main difference now is that they are owned by different companies

Spin1038 always sounds slick and you can tell they update their music playlist regularly. The presenters are all decent too.

Fm104 sounds messy. I wouldn’t rate any presenter there . I would have listened to Graham and Nathan almost every day on Spin1038 but they don’t sound the same on Fm104. It might be the different producer but they’re not as funny and I’m sure they’re redoing things they did at Spin1038 so it’s just deja vu. And you hear the same songs from five, six, seven years ago all the time. They play some new songs too but it still doesn’t sound as slick as Spin .

I can’t say I particularly like any of the weekday presenters for Fm104. Any time I listen, it’s talk about nothing.

Yesterday Graham and Nathan were speaking about being in a new studio and I don’t think it was interesting for anyone but themselves. That to me can sum up the whole station.

Afaik stations aren't allowed to have more than 10 minutes of advertising per hour. Fm104 has 3 breaks, spin has 2. I'm less likely to tune away from spin.

I'm with radiotrickster on this. Spin sounds much better. Fm104 fell apart after dave kelly was pushed out.

The descriptions of radio formats can be a bit dated these days but …

Spin is CHR.

FM104 is HOT A/C

two different formats.

This.

A lot of people have an image of young people streaming all and anything from their smartphone or ipads, chasing stations from the four corners of the globe or foreign John Peel types. In the main they still listen to the same two stations and ten artist, the main difference been the device they now use to access the radio.

Fm104 would play the same amount of ads except they spread it over 3 breaks, all with promos too. Imo that disrupts the music flow more than spins way of doing things.

You're going by reach there. On share which is how long a person listens for fm104 are being creamed by spin 30.9% to fm104's 13.5% in 15-24s and 25.2% to fm104's 15.3% in the key 15-34 target age group. Whatever way you spin it fm104 has gone to pot.

Fm104's target audience is 15-34s

Maybe in the days of dave kelly at the helm, I don't think they know what they're targeting these days from listening to it imo

In fairness, the decline started a while before Dave Kelly left. There has been a big change of the senior team over the past 2 years; Dave Kelly (PD), Margaret Nelson (CEO/Director), Mark Noble (Assistant PD and music director). It’s also worth noting that they also had similar roles with Q102, who also had a big decline at the same time as FM104. Might be a connection as to why the changes happened.

Both have made gains over the last two JNLRs.

You're right the decline started long before dave kelly left most likely from 2017 when there was a shift in programming decisions

https://www.adworld.ie/2017/08/04/margaret-nelson-scott-williams-move-new-roles-within-wireless-group/

The music content is about 75-80% the same. It really is mostly style and format.

FM104 has always played new and slightly older music.

I was listening to Spin today and they went to ads at 4.53pm, then news and cash machine promo. Back to the music at 5.05pm (was nearly 5.06). I can’t see this format working long term.

I have compared many hours. They often play the same song at the same time. It’s essentially the same music with some variation between them.

I’m not looking to defend one station over another, that’s down to personal preference and taste in music.

I know I keep saying it but the long ad breaks and gap between music played on Spin is longer than any other music station. I just don’t think this model is a sustainable business model for advertisers (having an ad crammed into a 6 minute break can’t be effective) and listeners. Only time will tell.

Spin has run 2 ad breaks an hour since its launch in 2002. Time has already proved its a success for them.

It is correct. The format may have been different but the fact is they have always run breaks in this way.

You say in your earlier post you think fm104 should consider moving to do the same. What point are you trying to make because you're contradicting yourself now.

Fm104 have the same amount of ad minutes as spin but spread over 3 breaks, if fm104 were to copy spin and move from 3 breaks to 2 they would also have long ad breaks which you say in your opinion will not work out well for spin but then suggest fm104 do the same thing. You're making very little sense.

Stations dont play ads for the sake of it, they play them because they're sold.

Ha, I don't think I'm the one who's confused here. 🤪

You asked who would want a six minute break in their programming but have you heard the Ray Foley show? I’ve often heard him play out two sets of ads less than ten minutes apart and he seems to be doing okay.

if Spin were to have three ad breaks per hour, they would have to lose their 10 Spin hits in a row format unless they only did 2-3 songs between the second and third ads and then it would feel like they were playing ads much more often as they’re stopping the music regularly for shorter breaks instead of less for longer. The change you’re talking about wouldn’t work for them.