[4] After receiving the permit in 1976, the station began transmitting on 89.1 FM for the 1977–78 school year, with a transmitter on Nequette Hill near the St. John's campus.
In the summer of 1984, KSJU relocated from 89.1 to 96.5 MHz, a move forced by the recent opening of applications for the 88.9 frequency, which became KNSR.
The frequency change cost $7,000; simultaneously, the station was displaced from its auditorium studios by renovations, settling in Mary Hall.
Though the university said it would look into the process of obtaining a new radio station license, this never occurred, with St. John's deciding to let the license lapse; instead, in an arrangement intended to be temporary, KSJU was placed as a cable FM channel on the local cable system, beginning December 1, 1988.
[9] The arrangement, however, carried a major drawback: the station was no longer listenable at St. Benedict and remained so for years,[10] even though CSB students paid activity fees that supported its operations.