Yearly Archives: 2017

Receive SSTV images from the ISS today

This image from the ISS was received by Kim Elliott at about 0130 UTC on July 20, 145.8 MHz FM.

The International Space Station is transmitting SSTV pictures to radio amateurs around the world on 145.800 MHz FM

The Slow Scan Television image transmissions are expected to continue until 1800 GMT Sunday, July 23 and can be received on simple equipment such as a handheld radio or scanner with an outside antenna.

Some of the pictures already received can be seen at
http://www.spaceflightsoftware.com/ARISS_SSTV/index.php

Useful links on receiving SSTV from the ISS
https://amsat-uk.org/beginners/iss-sstv/

ARISS Celebrates its 20th Anniversary through SSTV Event
https://amsat-uk.org/2017/07/09/ariss-20th-anniversary-sstv/

If you receive a full or partial picture from the Space Station your Local Newspaper may like to know
http://www.southgatearc.org/news/2016/july/now-is-a-great-time-to-get-ham-radio-publicity.htm

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Schematic for the PLL EDUTEC 4-Band Digital Radio Weltempfänger?

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Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Cezar Vener, who writes with the following inquiry:

I would like to ask you if you can help me with a schematic diagram for an EDUTEC 4-Band digital radio (PLL EDUTEC 4-Band Digital Radio Weltempfänger). It is not broken, but I would like to modify it. Of course, I could spend some time and manually extract the schematic, but I would lose too much time.

While I know that “EDUTEC” is a registred trade mark for technical (“non-food”) products that was sold by “Eduscho Handelsgesellschaft” in Bremen and also I found that it is now owned by Tchibo, well – I would like to kindly ask you for help in this matter? (course, if you can).

It is an old product, probably made in the 90’s and until now, I didn’t find anything on the net about it. I opened it and I found that its core is TA8132AN, and the FM section is made around TA7358AP. The audio stage is built with C1212C, and there is one more integrated circuit there, TA8148S (no datasheet on the net, but I found that is a DC-DC converter for electric tuning – built-in stabilized supply output for biasing VHF tuner variable capacitor / sine wave oscillation).

BTW, I found it also in SONY CFS-W504L 🙂

The PLL chip is soldered with the unmarked side, so I don’t know what type it is.

[See photo at top of post.]

Here is a photo of the rear back stand:

Unfortunately, there is no other model or name written on the radio.

I see there “CENTRON LABORATORIES LTD”, that points to the company with the same name from Gujarat, India. Very interesting :))

In the hope of an answer from you, please allow me to thank you and to congratulate you for the very nice site that you maintain there!

Many thanks, Cezar! It’s readers like you who make this site such a great one!

Post Readers: I hope someone may be able to help Cezar. This radio looks familiar–perhaps I’ve seen it badged with a different company name? Please comment if you can help Cezar locate a schematic.

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Babcock Test Transmission on the Tecsun PL-310ET

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Many thanks to SWLing Post reader “J JA” who shares the following video/recording of a Babcock test transmission on 11,815 kHz with his Tecsun PL-310ET:

Click here to watch on YouTube.

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Mike spots the RCA AR-88 in series “Prime Suspect: Tennison”

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Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Mike Hansgen (K8RAT), who adds the following to our growing archive of radios in film. Mike writes:

Near the end of the current episode of “Prime Suspect: Tennison” [the radio operator mentions] he was listening on “the RCA 88”.

“Tennison” is set around the early ’70’s.

Great catch, Mike (and thanks to Eric WD8RIF for the screen cap).

According to the Crypto Museum:

The AR-88 was a valve-based shortwave general coverage communications receiver, developed and built by the Radio Corporation of America (RCA) in the early 1940s. Although the receiver was initially intended as the successor to the AR-77 amateur receiver, the outbreak of WWII made it evolve into a professional high-end military-grade receiver for which cost was no object.

The AR-88 is a 14-valve (tube) receiver, which covers a frequency range of 535 kHz to 32 MHz. Unlike the National HRO receiver, which had pluggable coil packs for each frequency band, the AR-88 uses a six-position band selector. A special version of the receiver, the AR-88LF, was suitable for LF and MF, covering 70 to 550 kHz (continuously) and 1.5 to 30 MHz (continuously).

Continue reading at the Crypto Museum online…

The Crypto Museum photo of the AR-88 jogged my memory…

Last year, I visited the Musée de la Défense Aérienne at the Canadian Forces Base (CFB) Bagotville (a museum I wholeheartedly recommend, by the way).

I snapped this shot of this display:

I’m sure I actually have a close up of this receiver somewhere. It also appears to be an RCA AR-88 based on dial and control configuration, though I certainly could be wrong.

Do any SWLing Post readers have an AR-88? Please comment!

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From the Isle of Music & Uncle Bill’s Melting Pot, July 23-29

The Tecsun PL-880: triple conversion architecture

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Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Larry Thompson, who writes:

There’s been some confusion on my part whether the Tecsun PL-880 is a dual conversion or triple conversion receiver. Amazon and eBay list the receiver as double conversion, whereas Universal Radio doesn’t mention either.

After scouring the Instruction Manual, I was pleased to learn that the PL-880 uses the Silicon Labs si4735 DSP microchip and has 4 Intermediate Frequencies.

1st IF: 55.845 MHz
2nd IF: 10.7 MHz
3rd IF: 45 kHz
4th IF: 128 kHz (exclusively for FM)

To me, that looks like a triple conversion architecture. The combination of the DSP microchip, and the triple conversion would explain why my Tecsun PL-880 is so much more sensitive and selective than my Sony ICF-SW8600GR.

My CountyCom GP-5/SSB emergency portable also has the same Silicon Labs DSP chip and it is almost as sensitive as the Tecsun PL-880, far more sensitive than the Sony. I’ve owned a Japan Radio JRC-525 and a Yaesu FT-900AT transceiver for many years, and the PL-880 digs out weak signals better than both those tabletop receivers, both dual conversion.

To quell the speculation, yesterday I contacted Anna at Anon-Co, the worldwide distributor for Tecsun radios. Her quick reply confirms my suspicions that the Tecsun PL-880 is indeed a triple conversion receiver. That would explain why it blows my Sony ICF-SW7600GR out of the water in senitivity and its ability to pull out weak stations.

Among all the other great attributes, this is an welcome discovery and one never mentioned in the specs by the various retailers of this receiver!

Thank you Larry, for shedding light on this–Anna would certainly know.

Your note makes me realize that I really should order a second, current production model PL-880. My PL-880 is from one of the first batches produced. I imagine I could benefit from some of the firmware tweaks that have been made to this receiver over time. Perhaps it would even be a good time to compare the 1st generation with the current generation?

I just checked and Anon-Co is selling the PL-880 on eBay for $153.99 US shipped.

Have any SWing Post readers compared early and late model PL-880 units? Please comment.

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Ian’s 80th birthday celebration

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Ian McFarland (Photo: Colin Newell at DXer.ca)

Earlier this month, Colin Newell asked SWLing Post readers for birthday wishes and memories to share with former Radio Canada International host, Ian McFarland.

Yesterday, I received the following message from Colin:

“For a guy who just turned 80, Ian McFarland looks and sounds amazing.

For the 50+ folks that sent their best wishes for this veteran of World Band Radio, thank you, thank you and thank you.”

Colin has posted photos over at DXer.ca.

You’re right, Colin…Ian looks great! Thanks everyone!

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