Author Archives: Thomas

The FCC’s busting more pirates in smaller markets.

True, the Dallas office issues two Notices of Unlicensed Operation for an 87.9 in Houston, run out of New Beginnings Fellowship Church. But agents from Dallas also found a pirate FM at 93.5 up in the smallish Texas Panhandle town of Amarillo. (That one was also operated out of a church, the Iglesia Bautista Renovacion Ministerio Internacional.) The spectrum cops from Dallas also detected a 95.9 in Port Arthur, Texas. And out in California, agents from the L.A. office ventured up to Oxnard to respond to a complaint about a 99.1 operating from a business. (It was a business run by Maria Gonzalez, who gets the NOUO.) So while the traditional pirate radio hotbeds in South Florida, the New York City area and Boston get attention, there seem to be more complaints and more investigations in smaller markets. If the “PIRATE Act” that passed the House ever makes it through the Senate and is signed into law, the FCC would be required to make twice-yearly sweeps of the five most active areas for pirates. But it seems illegal FMs may simply be popping up in less-likely places. The equipment’s cheap and you might not get caught. Though one pirate in Miami got nabbed doing something novel – operating a pirate station out of a parked RV. (Sure keeps the costs down.)

Click here to read at Tom Taylor Now.

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The “Tecsun Radios Australia Q-3061” DRM Shortwave Radio

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Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Alan Hughes, who notes that Tecsun Radios Australia have announced a new DRM stand-alone receiver: the Q-3061.

When I first received Alan’s tip, I was surprised that I had not been been given some advance notice or even a hint about Tecsun developing and producing a DRM radio. Then I saw the Q-3061 product image and it looked to be a spitting image of the Gospell GR-216 DRM radio. A quick look at the radio’s back panel and the connection with the GR-216 was confirmed.

Reading through the product description, it appears they worked with Gospell to badge this for Tecsun Radios Australia’s primary markets:

“The Tecsun Radios Australia Q-3061 DRM Shortwave Radio is for experienced shortwave users. There a limited number of DRM signals available in our region although the total number of DRM broadcasts are increasing. This radio is squarely aimed at radio enthusiasts and DXers, most signals require an external antenna, experience, and patience. We recommend our Tecsun Radios Australia Q-3061 DRM Shortwave Radio be used in conjunction with our Tecsun Shortwave and AM Outdoor Antenna for the best results (this is the setup we have in our Brookvale NSW office).

The Tecsun Radios Australia Q-3061 DRM Shortwave Radio is the culmination of several years work. Tecsun Radios Australia has worked in close co-operation with the manufacturer providing testing results from locations across the Pacific, including Samoa, Vanuatu, Solomon Islands, Fiji, and New Zealand. Reception of DRM signals in Australia requires many factors to be optimised, because we are outside the traditional coverage area of most broadcasters. Nevertheless, with an optimised antenna, correct selection of DRM broadcaster, schedule and good propagation conditions DRM signals can be received. New DRM broadcasters are appearing every month.”

After the product description they also include this disclaimer: