Monthly Archives: March 2017

Daytime DX: Gary compares Terk Advantage with homebrew FSL Loop

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Gary DeBock, who shares the following:

Daytime DX Shootout– a new-design 4.7 inch FSL antenna ($62 construction cost) goes up against the Terk Advantage AM commercial loop ($58 on eBay) in the daytime DX reception of 650-CISL (10 kW at 160 miles, in Vancouver, B.C.).

The first 20 seconds are on the Terk Advantage, and the final 24 seconds are on the new 4.7 inch FSL (using 27 of the commonly available 62mm Russian surplus ferrite bars).

Signal strength is roughly equal, but the FSL’s lower noise advantage gives it the edge.

Click here to download MP3.

Thank you for sharing this comparison, Gary. You’re right: the FSL provides lower noise and a more stable signal to boot. Still, I’m impressed the Terk was able to compete! In terms of commercially-produced loops, the Terk Advantage is certainly a good one.

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Grace Digital Mondo+ Kickstarter

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Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Tom Ally, who writes:

I remember that article you wrote about Wi-fi radios and just saw this Kickstarter on Facebook that may interest you:

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1209003580/mondo

[T]hey are saying it is supposed to ship out sometime next month. [S]ome of the things it has –over the old Mondo–is Bluetooth 4.1 and Chromecast built in.

Thank you, Tom! Here’s the product description from Kickstarter:

The home audio market is evolving, and Grace Digital is leading the way. We combined the latest Wi-Fi audio streaming technologies from Google, added Bluetooth audio streaming, and over 30,000 AM/FM/HD radio stations from around the corner to across the globe. The Grace Mondo+ can even be controlled by the Google Assistant on devices like Google Home, the front panel controls, free smartphone apps, or the included remote control. We wrapped the technology in a beautifully crafted cabinet, and drive the audio with custom made speaker drivers and high performance class D digital amplification, ensuring the best possible listening experience in a perfectly compact design. We hope you love the Mondo+ as much as we do!

This is an “all or nothing” campaign, meaning it’ll have to be fully funded for the production run to become reality.

As a Kickstarter supporter, the pricing is in line with the Grace Digital Mondo (we reviewed last year).

I am still quite happy with my Como Audio Solo, so will not plan to back the Mondo+ at this time. If I was interested, I would splurge for the $174 Early Bird package which includes a Lithium Ion battery pack. Shipping could be as early as April 2017.

Check out full details and a video on Kickstarter.

Thanks, Tom, for the tip! I would certainly welcome a review of the Mondo+ from any Kickstarter backers!

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Could NHK Japan purchase Santa Maria di Galeria site?

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(Source: CatholicCulture.org via London Shortwave)

As Vatican Radio ends short-wave broadcasts, others expand

As Vatican Radio closes an era by ending its short-wave transmissions, other broadcasters are stepping up their involvement in the short-wave field, notes Sandro Magister of L’Espresso.

Msgr. Dario Vigano, the prefect of the Vatican’s new Secretariat for Communications, has cut off short-wave broadcasts—long the heart of the Vatican Radio operation—in a move to cut costs and move toward emphasis on communicating through the internet. But Magister observes that short-wave transmissions retain their “unique ability to arrive as a free and true voice even in the most geographically and politically inhospitable places of the world.”

The Italian Vatican-watcher reports that other broadcasters are expanding their short-wave offerings. BBC has invested £85 million (almost $105 million) in a drive to expand its short-wave capacity. And Japan’s NHK network has inquired about purchasing the broadcasting station at Santa Maria di Galeria, just outside Rome, that Vatican Radio will no longer use.

Read this article at CatholicCulture.org.

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RNZI becomes the voice of the Pacific

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(Source: Asia Radio Today via Mark Little)

As Radio Australia cuts shortwave services, RNZI becomes the voice of the Pacific

Radio New Zealand International (RNZI) continues to serve people across the Pacific region, delivering essential day to day news and information and providing a vital lifeline in times of natural disaster, as Radio Australia closes its international shortwave transmission service to Papua New Guinea and the Pacific.

Emphasising the importance of RNZI’s 25-year relationship with New Zealand’s Pacific neighbours, RNZ CEO, Paul Thompson said: “Remote parts of Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands and Vanuatu who may be feeling the loss of the ABC can rest assured RNZI will continue to provide independent, timely and accurate news, information and weather warnings as well as entertainment to its Pacific listeners.”

Australian Broadcasting Corporation’s decision to switch off its shortwave services as a money saving measure has already drawn criticism and protests from a number of groups in Australia.

Read more at: http://www.asiaradiotoday.com/news/radio-australia-cuts-shortwave-services-rnzi-becomes-voice-pacific © Radioinfo.com.au

In truth, RNZI has always done a fabulous job of covering the Pacific islands with news and information. I’m happy to hear they plan to stick around.

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BBC cuts broadcasts from Thailand transmission station

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(Source: Malay Mail Online via R. Lewis )

BANGKOK, March 8 — The BBC World Service has stopped broadcasting from one of its major global transmission stations situated in Thailand, AFP has learned, after talks broke down with a junta riled by its uncensored coverage.

Sources with knowledge of the negotiations said the BBC’s Thai-language output impeded discussions about renewing the 20-year lease on the complex, the network’s main shortwave broadcast station for Asia.

The centre’s large red and white transmission towers in Nakhon Sawan 240km north of Bangkok beamed local language news into tightly-controlled countries such as China and North Korea, and into places where many still rely on radio like Pakistan and Afghanistan.

– See more at: http://www.themalaymailonline.com/world/article/bbcs-thai-transmission-towers-fall-silent-as-junta-talks-falter#sthash.NsUkQnEQ.dpuf

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How to voice support for the restoration of ABC Shortwave

Many thanks to a number of SWLing Post contributors who’ve shared a post from Change.org outlining how to voice support for the restoration of ABC’s shortwave service.

No doubt, emails and letters from those living in Australia will have the most impact.

Click here to read the details on Change.org. Committee Secretariat contact information can be found below.

(Source: Australian Government)

The Bill would require the ABC to restore its shortwave transmission services, following the announcement by the ABC in December 2016 that it would end its shortwave transmission service in the Northern Territory and to international audiences from 31 January 2017.

Australian Broadcasting Corporation Amendment (Restoring Shortwave Radio) Bill 2017

On 16 February 2017, the Senate referred the Australian Broadcasting Corporation Amendment (Restoring Shortwave Radio) Bill 2017 to the Senate Environment and Communications Legislation Committee for inquiry and report by 10 May 2017.

The bill seeks to restore shortwave transmission services to the Northern Territory and international audiences.

Committee Secretariat contact:

Committee Secretary

Senate Standing Committees on Environment and Communications
PO Box 6100
Parliament House
Canberra ACT 2600

Phone: +61 2 6277 3526
Fax: +61 2 6277 5818
[email protected]