The Bulgarian DX blog posted the the following item:
GREECE Possible end of an ERT Voice of Greece transmitting on shortwave 9420 kHz via Avlis. The ERT CEO Giorgos Gambritsos, has signed a decree to close down the shortwave transmitting facility at Avlis from March 31, 2022. The news release by ERT is leaving the possibility of shortwave broadcasts to continue only if the Ministry of Defense and Foreign Ministry decide to oversee the continuation of broadcasts on shortwave.
Current schedule of Voice of Greece:
v1800-0805 on 9420 AVL 150 kW / 323 deg to WeEu Greek, BUT not daily & 0805-1200 very rarely
If the VOG on shortwave is closed permanently, it would be a sad day for me at least. Selfishly, they’ve become one of my staple stations for music and even a benchmark when checking out band conditions. I’ve listened to the Voice of Greece from so many different countries as I’ve travelled over the years; it’s been a constant companion.
With that said, I’m not at all surprised. It must cost a fortune to maintain the Avlis transmitting station and I’m not sure how large their audience is these days.
VOG has weathered many a shut-downs already though–even once broadcasting for weeks without a license.
We’ll post updates as they become available. If any of our readers in Greece learn more from listening to ERT news, please contact me.
Sadly, I have no more heard them in the past days. 9420 KHz has been a long time morning friend.
Back again! 🙂
May 31, listening since 3:30 pm utc.
Great signal and music like it’s always been.
I cross both fingers…
Frank
Hello from Greece. Despite strong protests from citizens and trade unions for ERT decision, ?nly the greek ministries of Foreign Affairs and Defense can save now the Avlis SW broadcasting center and (maybe) VOG SW transmittion. More news to follow after April.
ERT also decided to “upgrade and modernize” three MW broadcasting centers in Greece and dismantle the rest of them.
Finally, it’s so pity that a technology for digital radio and data in all radio bands like DRM is so underrated, especially from the lack of radio receivers. DRM could “revive” all AM and VHF radio bands. Hope that one day this technology will become an everyday use for RF radio lovers around the world.
The signal is and was quite good on this frequency. I could listen into their program in the Philippines, and also in Nicaragua some years ago. Also at home in Austria it was a nice program for me. I will miss this station – also cause of their nice music program. This will be a sad situation for us Shortwavelisteners.
Michael,
https://www.drm.org/products-2/
also http://kiwisdr.com/ you can hear and control a kiwisdr receiver on line. They will decode DRM.
You may also want to contact your country’s Greek Embassy. as well (or Consulate as applicable), The direct contact page for the Embassy of Greece in Washington, DC is: https://www.mfa.gr/usa/en/contact/contact-our-missions-in-the-usa/the-embassy.html
You can voice your opinion on this at
[email protected]
I sent them this:
Good afternoon. It was with great sadness that I saw that the VOICE OF GREECE is discontinuing their Shortwave broadcasts tentatively scheduled for March 31st, 2022. Please reconsider your decision and continue your broadcasts. I have listened regularly to your broadcasts to North America for many years on 9420f KHZ. You have many listeners here in the U.S.A. and I can confidently state that more Shortwave listeners tune in to the VOICE OF GREECE than do not Your 170 KW signal is easily heard in the Western Hemisphere and many would be disappointed if you ceased your Shortwave operation.
Again, please reconsider.
Thank you.
I just sent them a message as well. I listened to them here in California and have greatly enjoyed their music.
Sad news, indeed. I’ve listened to them for decades.
Another big one bites the dust.
Bill
The major problem for high frequency broadcasters is to know how many listeners there are.
I have recently filled out a GFK ratings book for a metropolitan area where the columns are the local radio stations including the digital only ones, they also asked where you were listening by what method ie analog, digital broadcast, phone, smart speaker and whether you listened on headphones.
The rows were 15 minute time slots for every quarter hour of the week.
Subjects were selected at random through the licence area.
The only option for HF broadcasters is the number of QSL cards requested, which is not very helpful, because they will only be requested for the first time the listener hears that station It does not tell the broadcaster how long and how often the listener listens to their programs.
Asking the audience to email the station or fill out a questionnaire on a website, will not include those who really need the HF broadcasts because often the internet is not available.
Any other suggestions when the target area can be huge?
It is sad news. Voice of Greece along with XEPPM Radio Educación of Mexico City play the finest music on shortwave. VOG is very dynamic and also plays up front music. I hope a solution is found to keep VOG on shortwave. I’ve collected some of their beautiful e-QSL cards with fine art.
Hi, Greece here. Unfortunately, they are doing this in many countries the latest years in the favour of the internet radio or sat. See for example the voice of Australia and so many others.
On the other hand CRI comes booming here in so many bands and frequencies. This was not the case 2-3 decades ago. China has made a “flood” on SW and I am not sure about the reason. They have Chinese teaching programs news in English and so many other interesting things, just like other stations used to have 2-3 or 4 decades ago and now ceased. Whereas countries suppress one way or the other (including SW radio) their cultures, China seems to push it’s cultural presence in radio as well, where other countries cease. We are going to pay this sooner or later.
Now I hear that Europeans try to establish their own semiconductor industry and this is 10 years behind the progress of China. But they want to get independent and overcome the semiconductor crisis after covid. They let China grow so much and now they are desperately try to fall back. What an irony. Although this will create jobs, It is not going to be competitive enough.
The voices of the countries are all about promoting the culture of each country. By closing down stations one by one they are shutting down the culture and free speech of the countries. In Greece they have tried a few years ago to close down the national TV channels, go figure out…
Why not do something more active to maintain it?
For example convert the transmitter to Digital Radio Mondiale. The electricity consumption for 150 kW transmitter to 75 kW DRM transmitter the electricity consumption drops by 45 % I don’t know the price of electricity in Greece at the transmitter site, so I don’t know what that is in real money.
The music would then become stereo with no noise, distortion or interference. More details on the drm.org website. They could even transmit English subtitles!
But who can receive DRM? I’ve been into this hobby for more than 10 years now, and as far as I know, there are no obtainable radios on the market for DRM reception?
I will also be sad, since VO Greece is a station playing lots of nice music. It is one of my most listened frequencies here in Denmark, especially in the morning hours when I have my days off work.
It will really be missed, but thank God it can be streamed.
One thing we can all do right now is contact the VOG & let them know that we listen regularly & would miss them greatly if they were gone. Here’s a video by Gilles Letourneau discussing how:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GJeWlPQ-ImI
V. of Greece Website : https://int.ert.gr/voice-greece-featu…
EMAIL: [email protected]
Will miss the beautiful Greek music programs heard here in the evenings on the East Coast. So much of what was good is gone, and if it wasn’t for UTES I’d be hard pressed to even turn on the SW radio. The AM broadcast band is looking better all the time.
Another sad day for shortwave listeners! VOG always has the best music and booms into the US Midwest nightly! I’ll miss their music!