It doesn’t matter that propagation is rather poor this morning: I have a Sony ICF-SW100, a good cup of coffee, a beautiful sunrise and Radio Australia is loud and clear on 9,580 kHz.
All is well.
The SWLing Post
Shortwave listening and everything radio including reviews, broadcasting, ham radio, field operation, DXing, maker kits, travel, emergency gear, events, and more
These are the kinds of posts why I used to love this blog.
I think Emily Taylor got the message of this post. It’s about when – for a change – the things that make life good pile up for a moment, or even a few days, when time, temperature, set and setting are right. When you bring your favorite thing to your favorite place and have a minute to assess how lucky you are. A moment that reminds you of similar moments in the past, when life was still good and you enjoyed SWLing so much that you never forget it. Bliss, triggered or accompanied by a radio. I think we all have moments and memories like this and I think they are a big part of what’s tying us to this hobby. As long we are able to perceive at least a glimpse of that bliss, we are lucky people.
We are lucky, indeed. Thanks for that.
-Thomas
That’s very well put, 13dka. Perfect sentiment, and I completely agree,
Dave
AA7EE
Oh so beautiful. I used to do this all the time in the late afternoons and evenings in Seal Beach, CA. Would take the Grundig G8 T2 with me in my bag after school sit in the pier high above the water and pull in some amazing signals all over the world. Used to listen to BBC world service and Radio Taiwan and all the other australian and asian stations. Lots of good stuff. Still have the nice romantic visions in my head of all those memories. This is why I love shortwaves.
What wonderful memories!
There is another Dan on this blog. I will identify as Dan H forthwith.
I’ve been listening to Radio Australia on 9580, it seems, since I was a kid in the 1970s. Always a great signal here in Virginia even on my Grundig S450DLX with a whip, although I would probably prefer something harder hitting than the overnight talk or country music shows. Yesterday (Thursday, 12 Nov), however, it was strangely absent on the 31 meter band in my location…
Roy – it was absent here too, in the SF Bay Area. I don’t like these poor conditions! It’s coming through OK this morning, though still not it’s usual powerhouse self.
R. Australia on Sunday morning, 1500 UTC 11-15-2015 at Davis, CA (10 miles west of Sacramento): strong on 9580, good on 12085. RZNI strong on 9700. Also BBC relay out of Thailand on 7465.
Whoops. I meant RNZI, not RZNI.
With good band conditions I have been doing pretty well with New Zealand 15720 kHz and Radio Australia 17840 kHz a couple of hours either side of midnight UTC. Last summer I could tune in either during the early afternoon my time and listen to them continuously until past midnight as they changed frequencies. Now it is winter, though. When conditions are good I can still hear RZNI at 0900 UTC on 9700 or 9765 kHz.
Whoops. I meant RNZI, not RZNI.
You have a way of expressing your ideas so well, in so few words, Thomas!
Radio Australia (albeit ABC relays) and Radio New Zealand Intl. are my two remaining footholds in the shortwave broadcast bands. Here in the Pacific NW most shortwave signals are weak and additionally have to fight their way through the din of RFI from modern electronics around us. These two stations from Down Under, however, have what it takes to punch through the noise. If they go silent it will be a sad day indeed.
What keeps me going in this age of fewer & noisier stations are 1) Wellbrook loop antennas (marvelous!), 2) regular DXpeditions through the year, 3) chasing foreign medium wave stations–the fun of the DX hunt is very much like it was on the tropical bands, and 4) SDR receivers like Perseus and Elad, offering features and performance we could only dream of during radio’s golden years.
I enjoy listening to these two stations as well. Both seem to remain committed to providing SW coverage to the islands of the Pacific region. Radio New Zealand is especially strong in this respect with local island news coverage. I listen to some of their program in various pidgin dialects. Geographic isolation and a tough economy have slowed the growth of more mainstream means of mass communication like satellite and internet for this region. We get these signals on the west coast as a bonus. It’s the leftovers after Radio New Zealand and Radio Australia have covered the Pacific Islands.
Despite much less than optimal band conditions BBC was sending a 7445 kHz flamethrower into Northern California from Ascension Island again last night. This English language transmission is apparently targeted to South Africa and is one hour only: 0500-0600 UTC. I’ve been listening to this one on most evenings for the last three weeks on the Sangean ATS-909X with 106′ random wire. They may have occasional technical issues during this one-hour transmission. I have seen the carrier drop for under a minute or so followed by a return of carrier, tuning and resumption of program several times.
I get it on northwest arizona off my ham radio and 10m 1/4 wave antenna. Good stuff. Where is the transmitter located? I was shocked cuz I never heard bbc on shortwavs in ages.
The Atlantic Relay Station for BBC. The transmitter is on Ascension Island, more than 7,000 miles from my location. Good DX by any definition.
It was coming in gangbusters this evening, 11-28-2015. I suspect tomorrow night will be good, as well. Ascension Island is in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean between Brazil and Zaire.
Tune in a minute or two early to hear the Bow Bells!
Yeah got it strong a lot too.
hey austraila is coming in good here in southwest missouri this morning too.only im usin my new tecsun pl 880. begining to get used to it
That’s what I call fun!!!
best Regards,
Moshe.
8:45am here on the west coast, and Radio Australia still coming in on the Sproutie MK II. Occasionally when we have those days that it barely comes in, I know it’s really time to worry about propagation!
It looks like you’re having a great time Thomas. Enjoy!
Dave
AA7EE
RE: Ebay bidding:
True. The bidding process on Ebay is a joke in so far as most of the desirable stuff is bought up last minute by those who have extensive ebay businesses and tons of resources to pour in to get what they want.. Then the item appears a few days later $3-5 hundred dollars more than the original seller wanted(ended up being paid). There’s nothing at all casual about it and I have given up even trying. Much more satisfying at Hamfests and local craigslistings.
I use Ebay primarily to window shop.
Yeah ebay is a joke and paypal sucks even worse. They need to get a real credit card system.
Dear Tom,
I have a Kaito KA1121. It was bought in 2010 and it was working excellent for the past 4 years. Now the radio side is not working and the MP3 works well. what could be the cause and how to go about? Any possibility of ribbon damage as was in Sony sw100?
I didn’t open it and what could have been the possibility be conveyed as I am from India.
Also have a Sony SW100, though the hinge on the battery holder has bust so the penlights keep getting ejected. Guess it will be impossible to fix. Been looking on E-bay to replace a broken ICF2010. But some of the prices being asked (600 dollars or more) are a bit outrageous.
Keep well everybody…..
Jonathan: sometimes parts radios do come up on eBay. It’s true, though, that they often climb to outrageous prices via bidding. I followed one recently that stayed at $20 until the last day to bid when it rose to over $100. If you find a parts unit and had problems making the repair yourself, there’s a good chance my buddy Vlado could do it.
Enjoy your day!