Monthly Archives: October 2016

From The Isle of Music Preview Oct 31/Nov 1

promoftiomnov12016
JoJazz is the most important competition for young Jazz musicians in Cuba. This week and next, we will dedicate our entire program to it.
Our November 1 (October 31 in the Americas on WBCQ) program offers music from past JoJazz winners and an interview with the competition’s founder, Alexis Vázquez.
Two options for listening on shortwave:
WBCQ, 7490 KHz, Tuesdays 0000-0100 UTC
(8pm-9pm EDT Mondays in the Americas)
Channel 292, 6070 KHz, Tuesdays 1900-2000 UTC
(2000-2100 CET) (NOTE TIME CHANGE)
See our Facebook Page  for more information.

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DRMNA: Interview with Mike of PantronX, maker of the Titus II

titus 2 big

Those of you following the upcoming Titus II receiver will enjoy reading this interview with Mike of Pantronix. Here’s a short excerpt taken from DRMNA.info:

[DRMNA] Can you tell us a little about the process taken to develop the new receiver?

[Mike] We became aware of the need for a digital capable receiver by a visit from TWR representatives about three years ago. Having designed RF products and receivers in the past, it intrigued me that there were no low cost method to receive DRM. This began research into the problem. Initially we envisioned and designed what we call an ATU (Antenna Tuner Unit) that plugged into a ‘standard’ Android tablet. Unfortunately as time and testing proved, ready made tablets had varying problems from vendor to vendor, model to model. The decision was made about a year ago that we had to do our own Android ‘tablet’ and integrate the ATU into it. Hence the Titus II was developed.[…]

Click here to read the full interview on DRMNA.info.

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Radio Eritrea and Radio Ethiopia jamming intrudes on amateur frequencies

eritrea-ethiopia

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Vlado (N3CZ), for sharing the following story from the South African Radio League newsletter:

Broadcasters, jammers wreak havoc on amateur radio frequencies

The ARRL reports the battle in the amateur radio 7 MHz band continues between Radio Eritrea and Radio Ethiopia, which is said to be jamming the Eritrean broadcaster with broadband white noise

The problem for radio amateurs is that the battle is taking place in the 40 meter phone band 7,145 and 7,175 MHz with the jamming signal reported by the IARU Region 1 Monitoring System (IARUMS) to be 20 kHz wide on each channel.

The on-air conflict has been going on for years; Ethiopia constructed new transmitting sites in 2008 and is said to use two or three of them for jamming purposes. The interfering signals can be heard in North America after dark.

According to IARUMS Region 1 Coordinator Wolf Hadel, DK2OM, Radio Eritrea is airing separate programs on each frequency. He said in the IARUMS September newsletter that telecommunications regulators in Germany, Austria and Switzerland have been informed, so they could file official complaints.

Read the full ARRL story at
http://www.arrl.org/news/broadcasters-jammers-wreak-havoc-on-amateur-radio-frequencies

IARU Region 1 Monitoring System latest news
http://www.iarums-r1.org/iarums/latest.pdf

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Dave’s review of the MFJ-1026/1025 and regulated AC adapter recommendations

mfj-1026

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Dave Zantow (N9EWO), who shares the following reply to TomL’s post More Anti-Noise Ideas:

My VERY NOISY Sony CRT TV has gone to the great electronics recycling bin in the sky thank goodness. But I still have a MFJ-1026 here and need to use it when the neighborhood gets noisy. Intermittent power line noise is the main issue these days for me.

[Note that] my Monitoring Times review from April 2007 on the MFJ-1026 (and 1025 model without the preamp, but is best to have it) is still available here :

http://www.monitoringtimes.com/mtrevu0407.pdf

(is also linked on my web page, with many other of our other favorite ones : http://webpages.charter.net/n9ewo2/links.html )

jameco-ac-adapterI still power it with a analog REGULATED Jameco 170245 12 volt (1 amp) ac adapter.

Last batch I purchased a few years ago were still 100% clean and analog regulation. As I have covered in the past, SOME of Jameco excellent REGULATED AC adapters have gone to using switching regulator devices inside (and these no longer clean for any radio use).

Click here to view the170245 12 volt AC adapter on Jameco.

DX Engineering is about to come out with a improved version of the premium priced NCC-1, called the NCC-2. Mid late November Delivery ?? Never had our hands on one the pricey NCC-1 critters as the MFJ gets the job done for us (let alone affording it).

https://www.dxengineering.com/parts/dxe-ncc-1

https://www.dxengineering.com/parts/dxe-ncc-2

You make an excellent point: it’s important to power your noise-canceling device with a quality, clean, regulated AC adapter.

Thank you for sharing the links to your review and the AC adapter recommendations, Dave!

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Shortwave Radio Recordings: Voice of Korea

north_korean_propagandaMany thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Paul Walker, who shares the following:

This is the English service broadcast for The Voice Of Korea to “Latin America” from Kujang, North Korea. Recorded 0430-0530UTC October 17, 2016 using a Tecsun PL-880, Wellbrook ALA1530LNP, EmTech ZM2 antenna tuner and DXEngineering HF Preamp.

Listening location is Galena, Alaska. A village of 500 people in the rural central interior, 300 miles east of Nome and 300 miles west of Fairbanks.

I would give this a SINPO Rating of 66666!

Check out this image taken of the front of the Tecsun PL-880 while listening to this broadcast, showing just how strong the signal is.

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I was a bit surprised, never seen something this high before, especially on shortwave!

Click here to view on YouTube.

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SWLing Post: Exploring a new email delivery system

swlingpost-sceencapture

For the past six years or so, we’ve used Google Feedburner as an email distribution system on the SWLing Post. Feedburner is a bare-bones RSS-based system, but it’s worked quite well–allowing readers to sign up for individual Post emails or daily digests.  It’s also free for both readers and for me.

However, in the past two months, I’ve received numerous comments from readers and contributors describing very flaky and unreliable behavior from Feedburner.

Truth is, even when I signed up to use Feedburner, Google had all but abandoned the project support-wise. Many bloggers feel that Google could simply pull the plug on Feedburner with little notice, so I’ve been looking into other options.

When I update SWLing Post functionality, I also upgrade functionality.

Over the past few months, I’ve been looking into alternate email distribution systems.  Almost all of these are paid systems, and I’m only considering those that are reliable and have been in business for a long time. These systems typically charge based on the number of emails delivered per month and the total number of subscribers.

In the next couple of weeks, I hope to start trial subscriptions to these services and see which one I like best. I’m especially interested in a system that has better formatting than Feedburner (which, essentially, has no formatting–!).  🙂 Once I commit to a system, I’ll import all of the current subscribers into the system and you’ll have an option to adopt it as your new platform. I’ll also post a new sign-up sheet.

Please be patient as I go through this process–my schedule is jam-packed at the moment, so I’ll be exploring all of this in my spare time.

If you have any email delivery systems recommendations, please feel free to comment or contact me directly!  Thank you!

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Guest Post: More Anti-Noise Ideas

In a previous guest post, SWLing Post contributor TomL, shared his “Evolving, Morphing, SW Listening Station” where he detailed the many ways he’s trying to fight heavy radio interference at his listening post. The following post is TomL’s update:


More Anti-Noise Ideas

(Continuing the hunt for better reception in a foul RFI environment)

by TomL

toml-radios

I have made the following changes:

  • Created a prototype mini-loop based on a crossed-parallel idea from VE1ZAC (Jeff).
  • Added a balun from LNR Precision (Parfitt’s EF-SWL) in an experimental configuration.
  • Added to the balun, an outdoor amplifier – Wellbrook ALA-100M.
  • Added a noise canceling unit (MFJ-1026).
  • Added 2 preselectors, an old Grove TUN-3 connected to the main loop feed and an MFJ-1046 connected to the ground connection of the balun. Both feeds go into the MFJ-1026.
  • Added BHI Compact In-Line DSP filter and two switch boxes to cut it in/out as needed.
  • Added a medium wave noise canceling unit that I have not figured out how to use yet. (Quantum Phaser). The MFJ unit does not work on medium wave without modification.
  • Purchased from eBay a used Grundig Satellit 800, a somewhat more robust fixed-station receiver to replace my aging Sony ICF-2010.
  • Other non-related (not shown): Whistler digital scanner + UHF over-the-air TV + FM broadcasts + an AM/FM HD digital radio + high pass filters from MiniCircuits.com – (audio from all these sources is passed to an existing high fidelity stereo power amp and NHT Super One speakers on the computer desk for near-field monitoring). Associated antennas are also hidden on the outside deck (shhhhh!).
  • Large charge card balance!!

So, here are some pics for the crossed-parallel loop. VE1ZAC web site has all the references if you want to explore further or google him. Mine is purely a prototype and not finished. And should eventually be placed on a rotor (but how to keep my Nazi-like condo association from finding out?!?!?!?).

loops

It is three 14 inch quilters hoops from Joann Stores plus some 1-inch copper strips cut from a small 2 meter roll of thin copper from eBay. Then, it is wired in parallel with silver-plated aviation wire on each side with a feed in the middle. Not an optimal placement of the feed, (should go straight down along the pipe). Will fix things up whenever I get some more time.

loops-closeup

loops-closeup2
Seems to be an efficient way to prototype small loops. It is now mounted on a short ¾” inside diameter PVC pipe into a cheap plastic sand-filled deck-umbrella stand. Loops are light and somewhat flimsy, so I mounted the three loops on a plastic triangle ruler and dowel sticks glued to the sides for some extra strength. Good enough for now.

The EF-SWL balun is also in an experimental configuration. Since I read somewhere that loop antennas have a very low impedance at the feed point (like, 10 ohms or lower), I thought I might try a balun that is meant to lower the impedance and mount it backwards. I don’t have a picture of it but the SO-239 output is facing the loop and the screw terminals are facing the direction of the radio. My feeble brain thinks since it is a passive device of coils on ferrite, it should work bidirectionally for receive only applications like this. It seems to work but I have the excuse that I really don’t know what I am doing! 🙂

bhi

BHI unit in action.

The BHI DSP filter is useful in some circumstances but I find it fatiguing to listen to. The audio from the Sattelit 800 is so nice, I mostly like it without the DSP. The DSP narrows the bandwidth significantly, somewhere around 4 kHz or less from my hearing. I like that the Grundig has two tone controls. And it also has a stable SSB and on very strong signals with clear audio, I like to listen with SSB lower or upper sideband. But the DSP is useful at times for hash-like noisy signals; it is not quite as good on buzzing noise and I wish the Satellit 800 had a noise blanker, but that would have been a more costly purchase, like a Drake R8A.

So, in a nutshell, I have a discovery about noise here: it is all around me and ubiquitous, like the air I breathe!

I find it hard to null and also worry about peaking a station signal at the same time. However, I do have a lower noise floor with the experimental loop sitting outdoors, especially on medium wave (the Wellbrook amp + loop works great on the lower frequencies – am able to get eight different medium wave stations carrying Major League Baseball games at night – it would be nine to get WFAN for the New York Mets but the local Chicago Cubs station covers the adjacent frequency with horrible digital hash! ***Bleeping*** digital junk!).

Also, the signal level is noticeably lower using the loop. Then, add in the effect of the MFJ Noise Canceling unit, the usable signal gets even weaker.

The bottom line is, I can now finally enjoy listening to many SW broadcasts, BUT only the strongest signals. Anything else is still hopelessly lost in the noise. So, gains are limited.

On the other hand, and something else I learned by doing is that, any 1 or 2 dB signal/noise ratio improvement will help with the final audio output in the end product. Using low-noise amps, loops, noise canceler, preselectors, grounded connections, ground isolators at the input of every receiver, high quality stereo amplifier and speakers, tone controls, SSB vs. AM Sync, weird antenna configurations, etc, etc. It all helps in the end to some degree.

Tinkering is an art that involves a lot of thinking/doing iterations! And high quality parts must be used all along the chain or it could degrade the signal.

Below are some audio samples, not very well recorded, but can give some idea of the incremental improvement with each enhancement (turn up the volume). NOTE: other people may get better or worse results depending upon individual situations, type of antennas used, etc, etc.

Recording 1: R. Marti. First 10 seconds an indoor antenna with no noise reduction, second 10 seconds the outdoor loop without the MFJ-1026, the third 10 seconds with the MFJ-1026, then switched off and on to hear the difference.

Recording 2: R. Marti. MFJ -1026 is ON. Last 15 seconds is SSB, very thin sounding. Really only good for strongest signals. I liked the AM Sync better (Satellit 800 is really a Drake SW8 in disguise with a quality AM Sync). But, SSB can sound excellent with very clear voices with a steady and strong signal (The Satellit 800 does NOT have IF-shift or a BFO to fine tune an SSB reception, so the station must be exactly transmitting on the kHz mark, which most are nowadays).

Recording 3: R. Marti. MFJ-1026 is ON. Last 20 seconds you hear me switch in the two audio switches and the BHI DSP is on its lowest setting. Narrower and clearer with some reduction of background noise. I find I only like going up to about 4 on the DSP dial, after that the audio fidelity starts getting more choppy with digital artifacts that sound like dripping water. I tend to like higher fidelity. One nice thing about the BHI DSP is a faux-stereo that helps a little with voice intelligibility by helping the brain naturally filter the noise. Faux-stereo is ON even when the noise reduction circuit is manually turned off (power must be on and bandwidth still sounds narrowed).

Recording 4: R. Nacional Brazilia. First without MFJ-1026, then ON, then OFF, then ON, then with the BHI kicked for the last 20 seconds.

Recording 5: Greece. Switching the MFJ-1026 on and off every 5 seconds. In this particular case, the signal was weak and fading a lot. The MFJ OFF was also weaker than with it turned ON. That is interesting behavior, usually it is opposite. It pays to play with the settings a little. At other times, and less frequently, the MFJ unit turned OFF sometimes sounds better than with it ON and tuned for less noise. Go figure!

After all the tweaking is done, and I cannot get any more performance out of this, I will probably have to move to a nice, quiet neighborhood and setup a nice antenna farm!!

In the meantime, I do enjoy listening to the stronger stations from North America, Cuba, Brazil, Europe, and Australia with less noise than before.

73’s

TomL from NOIZEY Illinoiz


Once again, Tom, thanks for sharing your RFI elimination journey!

I love how you take on this noisy problem by experimenting and seeing it more as a challenge than an obstacle to enjoying your hobby.  Great job! 

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