Monthly Archives: November 2016

BBC World Service to launch 11 new language services

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(Image source: BBC)

(Source: BBC News)

The BBC World Service will launch 11 new language services as part of its biggest expansion “since the 1940s”, the corporation has announced.

bbc-newlanguageservices

The expansion is a result of the funding boost announced by the UK government last year.

The new languages will be Afaan Oromo, Amharic, Gujarati, Igbo, Korean, Marathi, Pidgin, Punjabi, Telugu, Tigrinya, and Yoruba.

The first new services are expected to launch in 2017.

[…]The plans include the expansion of digital services to offer more mobile and video content and a greater social media presence.

On Wednesday the BBC launches a full digital service in Thai, following the success of a Facebook-only “pop-up” service launched in 2014.

Other expansion plans include:

  • extended news bulletins in Russian, with regionalised versions for surrounding countries
  • enhanced television services across Africa, including more then 30 new TV programmes for partner broadcasters across sub-Saharan Africa
  • new regional programming from BBC Arabic
  • short-wave and medium-wave radio programmes aimed at audiences in the Korean peninsula, plus online and social media content
  • investment in World Service English, with new programmes, more original journalism, and a broader agenda

The new language services mean the BBC World Service will be available in 40 languages, including English.

Lord Hall has set a target for the BBC to reach 500 million people worldwide by its centenary in 2022.

Click here to read the full article…

In addition, Mike Terry, posted a link to this Leading Article  from The Times which focuses on the BBC expansion. This content is behind a paywall (though you can register to read two free items per week) but here is an excerpt from the conclusion that I found particularly interesting:

“The radio may seem an irrelevance in the age of the internet but it is the most intimate of the so-called mainstream media and as such poses a challenge to authoritarian rule. Radios are cheap, ubiquitous and can whisper truths under the bedcovers. There is nothing that dictators hate more than direct access to the ears of their subjects.”

Indeed.

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Which is the best? Sony ICF-2001D/2010 or ICF-SW77? Part two

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sony-test

Hi there, after the first set of recordings were analysed, the score was 4-3 to the ICF-2001D, demonstrating how similar these two great receivers are in overall performance. There were a copule of notable differences however. The synchronous detection circuit on the ICF-2001D allows the user to effectively tune through a signal in 01. kHz steps, whilst the receiver automatically locks onto either the upper or lower sideband, depending on the frequency offset. The ICF-SW77 synchronous detection system differs in that the user must tune the signal and select the sideband. The results of this test confirmed that whilst the ICF-2001D almost always retained SYNC lock, the ICF-SW77 was very prone to losing lock, which of course affected the audio quality in many cases. The other issue was with the ICF-SW77 in that the narrow audio bandwidth filter often seemed to deliver ‘muddy’ audio. Whilst this feature proved to be excellent in terms of mitigating adjacent channel QRM, it also reduced signal clarity/ audio discernibility a little too much in my opinion. However, overall, sensitivity and selectivity was very similar between both radios – in fact, one recording had to be judged a draw (Radio Bandeirantes, Sao Paolo on 9645.4 kHz) – I simply couldn’t split them. Part two of the reception testing follows, using signals from Canda, DR Congo, Brazil, Cuba and Peru.

I hope you enjoy the recordings – text links and embedded videos follow below:

 

 

 

 

 

 

Clint Gouveia is the author of this post and a regular contributor to the SWLing Post. Clint actively publishes videos of his shortwave radio excursions on his YouTube channel: Oxford Shortwave Log. Clint is based in Oxfordshire, England.

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What radio would you grab in a fire?

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Scott-Marine-SLR-M

Lately, fires have been on my mind. No doubt, this is because there are so many wildfires in the greater southern Appalachian region right now, which is in the midst of a record drought. Brush fires start up almost daily, and no rain is in sight.  In the mountains, the air is hazy with smoke, and it’s become a struggle for fire departments to contain these blazes, even with help from outside the region.

Living, as we do, in a forest, we’ve always had to think through contingency plans if a forest fire should threaten our home:  with only a two hour (or so) warning, what items would we grab and load into our truck?

Of course, we’d likely focus on those things that are irreplaceable and thus essentially invaluable: our few family heirlooms, boxes of photos, documents––you know, stuff you can’t buy.

But what about radios?  I hope I’ll never be forced to choose the one thing I should save from my shack, because there are several to which I’m rather sentimentally attached…There’s my Zenith Transoceanic, for example–the first proper shortwave radio I ever owned. There are also a number of vintage radios as well as some SDRs which have become my staple receivers.

Scott-Marine-SLR-M-Dial

In the end, though, there’s no question which radio I’d grab. It would have to be my Scott Marine Radio Model SLR-M, affectionately nicknamed “Scottie.”. True, she’s not even close to portable at a solid 90 pounds, but I’d strap her to the roof of my vehicle, if I had to.

Why?  Well, it’s the most pristine vintage radio I own, and I use it daily. If it’s not tuned to Radio Australia in the morning, it’s tuned to my AMT3000 AM transmitter on 1570 kHz drawing in any of a number of stations I relay from my WiFi radio.

Scott-Marine-Radio-SLR-M

Scottie simply isn’t replaceable. Even though my Elecraft KX3 probably costs more in terms of monetary value, I could eventually scrape together the money to buy another KX3. But I couldn’t buy Scottie again. Not this one.

So, there you go: after we’ve saved those things important to our family, I’d grab a 1945 receiver and haul it to safety.

Post readers: Now I’m curious–if your home was threatened by fire or other disaster, what radio would you save? Please comment!

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Which is the best? Sony ICF-2001D/2010 or ICF-SW77? The halfway score

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Hi there, here is a summary of the first half of tests comparing the Sony ICF-2001D against it’s replacement the ICF-SW77. Both receivers are widely acknowledged as being amongst the best shortwave portables ever made, but how close are they in performance? Is there a clear winner after the first 8 reception tests? I hope you enjoy the summary video. Links to the first half of reception tests follow again, below, whilst the second half will follow in a separate post. Thanks and good DX to all.

 

Clint Gouveia is the author of this post and a regular contributor to the SWLing Post. Clint actively publishes videos of his shortwave radio excursions on his YouTube channel: Oxford Shortwave Log. Clint is based in Oxfordshire, England.

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Radio World explores the PantronX Titus II

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titus 2 big

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Tom Ally, for sharing the following article by James Careless in Radio World:

Well, if you are the engineering firm PantronX, you have the Titus II software-defined radio. And when you plan to sell this ultimate receiver for less than $100 each, you hope you have a consumer sensation for the worldwide broadcast market.

Unveiled by the Panama-based company at an international broadcasting meeting in Miami in August, the Titus II SDR is not yet shipping. But it is described as capable of receiving and playing analog and digital radio transmission formats including AM, FM, shortwave, HD Radio, DAB+ and Digital Radio Mondiale. The company is considering adding a DRM+ decoder.

The initial market is among worldwide broadcasters, particularly those serving countries where listeners may lack internet; a secondary market is individual listeners, hobbyists and others. PantronX will not supply all decoders for all formats but add them preloaded as needed.

Read the full article at Radio World…

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Advocacy group calls for reopening of Eye Radio

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SX-99-Dial-Nar

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Dan Robinson, who shares the following item from the Sudan Tribute:

November 12, 2016 (JUBA)- The African Centre for Transitional Justice (ACTJ) has called on South Sudanese authorities to reconsider their decision to reopen the unilaterally closed independent radio station, asserting it is a clear violation of press freedom.

“This is a blatant press freedom violation. We call on authorities in South Sudan to reopen the radio station. In this particular context South Sudan needs free and fair media able to play a positive role in the country’s reconstruction and reconciliation”, the group says in a statement.

The statement condemned what it described as “disruptive and inexplicable act”, saying it is nothing short of an attempt to suppress media freedom in the region and demand that Eye Radio be allowed to resume broadcasting immediately.

Continue reading…

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Spectres of Shortwave sound track broadcast via WRMI

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RCI-SpectresOfShortwave

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Richard Langley, who writes:

Have you heard? Amanda Dawn Christie’s “Spectres of Shortwave” sound track will be broadcast over WRMI this Sunday evening from 23:00 UTC to 01:00 UTC on 7570 kHz.

The broadcast will coincide with the screening of the film at the Festival International du Cinéma Francophone en Acadie in Moncton, New Brunswick, being shown at the same time:
www.ficfa.com/film?id=5353&varLangue=LS

Thank you, Richard! I will certainly tune in and record this for Amanda.

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