Shortwave listening and everything radio including reviews, broadcasting, ham radio, field operation, DXing, maker kits, travel, emergency gear, events, and more
Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor Kris Partridge (G8AUU) who shares the following comment in reply to our post about Dave’s experience forcing the Shipping Forecast to repeat a broadcast:
Hi Dave, G4OYX, et al
Not the only time the Shipping Forecast has had to be repeated for ‘Operational Error’
I hold my hand up for having had a broadcast repeated.
One morning, whilst still under the duvet, I found myself still listening to the overnight simulcast of BBC World Service on the BBC Radio 4 outlets. The simulcast of World Service is scheduled from 0100 local, just after the 0048 Shipping Forecast, till 0520 when it is followed by the Shipping Forecast. That wasn’t right, it now being around 0540. A quick check on the LF output, I was listening on my VHF-FM alarm radio, again it’s World Service. Something not quite right..!
Having the internal extension number of LCR (London Control Room) at BH (Broadcasting House) I made a quick call. A voice I recognised answered and after a short conversation was assured it would be remedied.
It was a few minutes later the Shipping Forecast was going out on 198 kHz and other R4 frequencies, followed by a short apology ” for technical reasons”.
A later phone call and heard, the overnight software update had managed to have done an update where it shouldn’t have.! I think a few red faces all round in the IT department.
So Dave the transmitters were OK it was the feed this time.
73 de Kris (G8AUU)
Thank you so much for sharing your story, Kris!
I mean, what are the odds that two people in our Post community have forced a re-broadcast of the Shipping Forecast??? Anyone else want to make a confession? 🙂
“a day to celebrate radio as a medium; to improve international cooperation between broadcasters; and to encourage major networks and community radio alike to promote access to information, freedom of expression and gender equality over the airwaves.
Radio is the mass media reaching the widest audience in the world. It is also recognized as a powerful communication tool and a low cost medium.”
In honor of World Radio Day, at Ears To Our World, we sent 60 HumanaLights and 40 self-powered AM/FM/SW radios to be distributed in Haiti through our partners, the Haitian Health Foundation.
We’ve been working steadily in Haiti since 2009, shortly before the 2010 earthquake. You may know that Haiti has most recently been dealing with the effects of Hurricane Matthew which struck on October 4, 2016. Shortly after urgent food and medical supplies started making their way to the island, we began sending radios and other supplies.
The importance of radio access in disaster situations cannot be overstated, and the results getting receivers into the hands of those in need are both immediate and enduring. According to the Knight Foundation, a non-profit organization that advances journalism in the digital age, radio was “the undisputed lifeline for the Haitian public after the [2010] earthquake.” In their report, “Media, Information System and Communities: Lessons from HAITI,” the Foundation asserted, “Of all the available humanitarian information tools, radio was the most effective means to share information with the community and to distribute information to affected populations.”
This remains true today as Haiti rebuilds after Hurricane Matthew.
If you would like to help those who ETOW serves, please consider a donation of any amount. This is unquestionably a meaningful way to give the gift of radio, as well as education on World Radio Day!
If you’re considering purchasing the Tecsun S-8800, this is an important post.
I’ve had the S-8800 for about two weeks and had planned to have audio clip comparisons prepared and posted by now. My exceptionally busy schedule has made this difficult–and there a few other complicating factors.
First off, the good news: in terms of sensitivity, selectivity and audio fidelity, I’m very happy with the S-8800. I’ve compared it a number of times with the Tecsun PL-880 and the Sony ICF-SW7600GR and it either holds its own or even has a leg-up on both radios in terms of overall performance. I find that the S-8800’s AGC is more stable than my 1st generation PL-880.
Of course, what will be most telling is what you, dear reader, think of the performance when compared in a blind audio test.
As I mentioned, though, there are complicating factors–It’s not just my schedule which has made the S-8800 review come to a halt.
Birdies…
Yes, birdies. Lots of them.
At first, I thought the noises were due to the fact my mobile phone and Zoom H2N digital recorder were too close to the S-8800. I dismissed this interference as it didn’t sound like the typical steady tone/carrier birdies I’ve come to loath over the years.
As my testing continued, though, I quickly realized these variable heterodyne and digital hash noises must be internally-generated.
Quite literally, as I was outdoors testing the S-8800 and making this discovery last week, I received a message from SWLing Post contributor, Bertrand Stehle (F6GYY). You might recall, Bertrand provided us with an initial review of his S-8800e (the European version of the S-8800). He also started noticing the birdies and, like me, initially assumed they were due to an external source of RFI.
Bertrand kindly mapped out the extensive list of birdies he found on his S-8800e–he noted a total of 81 birdie/carrier locations:
14 birdies on longwave
4 birdies on mediumwave
63 birdies between 1859 – 29095 kHz
Comparing notes, there are some differences between Bertrand’s S-8800e and my S-8800:
Only 50-60% of the birdies on my S-8800 are in the same frequency locations as those mapped by Bertrand on his S-8800e
The total number of birdies, however, are likely identical–I find birdies where Bertrand hadn’t noted them
The appearance and intensity of the birdies can vary depending on listening location and the strength of any nearby broadcast signals. I’ve noticed four distinct birdie sounds: a variable carrier, a steady carrier, digital hash, and something I might describe as digital variable noises.
I’ve even noticed some change slightly as you move the radio around.
Obviously, this is a major issue for an enthusiast-grade portable.
I’m sharing all of this information with Anna at Anon-Co. No doubt, she’ll share this information with Tecsun engineering. The last I heard, projected availability of the S-8800 from Anon-Co is late March 2017. Perhaps there will be time for Tecsun to eliminate these birdies by improving internal grounding and/or shielding?
Until the birdie issue is sorted out, I’m not proceeding with audio comparisons or a full review. It goes without saying that, at present, I couldn’t recommend purchasing the S-8800. Sad, because this is otherwise a great radio.
I hope Tecsun can sort this out, though.
I will share any/all updates here on the SWLing Post.
Slow-scan television (SSTV) transmissions are planned from the International Space Station (ISS) on February 13-14, 2017
The SSTV images will be transmitted as part of the MAI-75 Experiment on 145.800 MHz FM using the Kenwood TM-D710 transceiver located in the Russian ISS Service module. It is thought they may use the PD-180 SSTV format.
The MAI-75 activities have been scheduled for the Russian crew on Monday, February 13 from 09:25-18:00 GMT and Tuesday, February 14 from 11:25-16:30 GMT.
Note the ISS transmissions on 145.800 MHz FM use the 5 kHz deviation standard rather than the narrow 2.5 kHz used in Europe. If your transceiver has selectable FM filters try the wider filter.
Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Jim Salmon, who shares the following press release:
95 years ago on Tuesday 14th February 1922, a small group of young, gifted, charismatic – & perhaps slightly irreverent – Marconi employees turned on a medium wave transmitter in a ‘long low hut’ in a waterlogged field in Writtle, Chelmsford, & began a year long experiment which is now regarded as the birth of broadcasting in the UK. Led by the irrepressible Captain Peter Pendleton Eckersley, the 2MT team broadcast regularly every Tuesday evening, & what started as a request for a station for ‘calibration purposes’ for the fast growing number of radio hams, transformed into an entertainment programme like none before.
A small group of us are celebrating the upcoming 95th anniversary of 2MT – ‘Two Emma Toc’ – with a combination of amateur radio transmissions & an internet radio service. On the 12th & 14th February, members of the Chelmsford Amateur Radio Society will be operating a special event amateur station using the callsign GB95 2MT, & these transmissions will emanate from the very same ‘long low hut’ now preserved at Sandford Mill Museum in Chelmsford, UK.
On the 12th, 13th & 14th February, radio enthusiast Jim Salmon will be running an internet radio service ‘Radio Emma Toc’ with radio related documentaries, vintage comedies, & 5 hours of live programming each day including a visit to the long low hut. We are not attempting to re-create 2MT, more a case of having fun, paying tribute & looking ahead to greater celebrations for the centenary in 2022.
We invite radio hams to join us on the bands & listeners to join us on ‘wired wireless’ (Peter Eckersley’s futuristic 1930’s phrase for what we now call the internet) to remember 2MT & pay tribute by having fun on the radio. Email us at Radio Emma Toc with your radio memories during our live programming & we will say hello to you !
For details of Radio Emma Toc including how to listen & our 3 day schedule – www.emmatoc.com
Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor Kris Partridge (G8AUU) who shares the following comment in reply to our post about Dave’s experience forcing the Shipping Forecast to repeat a broadcast:
