Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Frans Goddijn, who writes:
Dear Thomas,
Last week I bought & installed the new KiwiSDR receiver and shared it on the web so anyone can use my setup.
I posted a blog about it:
https://kostverlorenvaart.blogspot.com/2024/04/kiwisdr2-radio.html
Excellent, Frans! Thanks for sharing!
Readers, you can check out and use Frans’ KiwiSDR 2 online by clicking here. As you can see in the photos above, he is in an urban area and uses indoor loop antennas.
Photo by Paolo Viappiani
Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Dean Bianco, who writes:
Inspired by Chuck Yarbrough ‘s YouTube video, I ordered one of the newly-manufactured replacement power supplies for the WJ-8711A/HF-1000A series from WJ Systems, a new company run by noted WJ master technician Stephen Pappin. For those of us who own one (or more) of the dozen or so variants of these now-classic early DSP receivers, these new PS’s can provide an extension of their useful lifespans. These units are direct substitutions for the flawed Condor switching supplies, the Achilles heel of an otherwise fine general coverage radio. Nearly all of the original Condors have lived past their useful, in-spec lifespans and have become (or soon to become) malfunctioning ticking time bombs that will summarily go off the rails (pun intended) and spike all kinds of nasty voltages that will destroy your pricey beauty forever. While admittedly there are other inevitable EOL issues endemic to the 87xx series, e.g., expired time-keeping battery RAM and aging encoders making it harder to find spare parts, a well-cared for receiver can enjoy a much-welcomed rejuvenation and keep the grim reaper of radios at bay for a while!
The official website for WJ Systems is: www.wj-systems.com
Chuck Yarbrough’s YouTube videos demonstrating the installation and testing of the new power supply:
Part 1 of 2:
Part 2 of 2
Thanks!
Dean
Thank you for sharing this, Dean! This is a brilliant upgrade for an iconic receiver!
Many thanks to the National VOA Museum of Broadcasting for posting the following video on their YouTube channel:
Hi, FastRadioBurst 23 here letting you know of a couple of our shows this week. On Sunday 28th April 2024 at 0900/1300 hrs UTC on 6160 kHz and then at 2000 UTC on 6160 kHz and 3975 kHz we have The Shortwave Garage Sale beamed to Europe via Shortwave Gold. Pull open that garage door, crank up your shortwave radio to 11 and enjoy our rousing Garage and Psyche special. Why not even get into some overalls and lie down on one of those mechanic’s creeper things and really get into the garage vibe!
On our new day of Wednesday 1st May 2024 via the services of WRMI we bring you another episode of WMMR – Mystery Mix Radio at 0200 UTC on 9395 kHz. Who knows what DJ Frederick will play but we promise you it’ll be interesting and fun.
We are still looking for some financial help to cover our production and transmission costs for our shows on shortwave so here’s our fundraising video below. We’d love to keep our show on the air for the rest of the year and we are looking for donations (no matter how small as everything helps) to keep our shows bouncing off that ionosphere. Remember, radio connects us all!
For more information on the shows please email [email protected] and check out our old shows here.
Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Bill Tilford, who shares the following broadcast schedules:
The main feature will be special guest Kiki Valera with some of his new son cubano album “Vacilón Santiaguero”.
Broadcast times: May 11: 0900-1000 UTC 9670 kHz &
1900-2000 UTC 3955 and 6070 kHz
The main feature will be special guest Eugene Pao, Hong Kong’s foremost jazz guitarist, with some of his new album “Jazz at Lincoln Center”, recorded live during a tour of the US.
Broadcast times: May 18 0900-1000 UTC 9670 kHz &
1900-2000 UTC 3955 and 6070 kHz
Both programs will feature additional music to round out the hour.
It’s great to be back on Channel 292!
Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor and noted political cartoonist, Carlos Latuff, who shares his radio log art of a recent Voice of Korea broadcast.
Carlos notes:
Kim Jong Un guides combined tactical drill simulating nuclear counterattack, via Voice of Korea.
Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Carlos Latuff, who writes:
Hi Thomas,
I received today by radiofax in Porto Alegre the morning edition of Kyodo News and the front page news is that, due to lack of personnel, the Japanese government has not put into operation more FM radio stations for use in disasters.
Here’s an article dealing with the subject. https://www.tokyo-np.co.jp/article/322546
Since the original is in Japanese, here’s an English translation:
In four cities and towns in the Oku-Noto region of Wajima, Suzu, Noto, and Anamizu, Ishikawa Prefecture, which suffered severe damage from the Noto Peninsula Earthquake, local governments have set up ‘Temporary Disaster Broadcasting Stations” (Disaster FM) to disseminate support information to residents. Interviews with local governments revealed on the 20th that the government has not done so. The lack of personnel is said to be a contributing factor, and it has become clear that there are still issues with the way administrative information is communicated, such as procedures for restoring water outages and setting up temporary housing.
Disaster FM was institutionalized in 1995 based on the experience of the Great Hanshin Earthquake. If a local government applies to the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications and obtains permission, they can be temporarily installed. In the wake of the Great East Japan Earthquake in 2011, 28 municipalities opened and operated them. It was also opened during the 2016 Kumamoto Earthquake and the 2018 Hokkaido Eastern Iburi Earthquake.
Disaster FM broadcasts on the radio about the safety of residents, evacuation information, and the status of restoration of lifelines such as electricity and gas. It also provides administrative information on the reopening of roads, supermarkets, gas stations, etc., as well as disaster victim certification and donation procedures, and plays a role in supplementing disaster prevention administrative radio.
According to the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications, in the wake of the Noto earthquake, employees of the ministry’s Hokuriku General Communications Bureau visited city halls and appealed for the establishment of such systems.