The Grundig Edition (Eton) Field BT
Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Troy Riedel, who notes:
The Eton Field BT’s price has been reduced to $110.49 since last Monday on Amazon.
Click here to view on Amazon.com (affiliate link).
Click here to read Troy’s recent comparison of the Field BT to the Tecsun S-8800.
Halloween is typically the most active day of the year for shortwave pirates. Halloween falls on Tuesday, October 31st, however you should start listening for activity this weekend as the pirates emerge like The Great Pumpkin!
Here are three things you’ll want to do this weekend and on Halloween night:
Check out Andrew Yoder’s pirate radio blog ,the Hobby Broadcasting blog.
Andrew is the author of the Pirate Radio Annual and a guru on shortwave pirate radio. Andrew has already logged some Halloween stations this weekend.
Follow real-time pirate radio spots and loggings on the HF Underground discussion forum. Chris Smolinski at HFU typically posts post-Halloween pirate stats on the SWLing Post as well–always a fascinating overview.
Listen for pirate radio stations today and throughout the weekend! Turn on your radio anytime today, but especially around twilight and tune between 6,920 – 6,980 kHz. Pirates broadcast on both AM and SSB; you’re bound to hear a few. If you’re brand new to pirate radio listening, you might read my pirate radio primer by clicking here. I will be listening until late in the evening.
Happy Halloween to all!
Speaking of pirates, don’t forget: the 2017 Global HF Pirate Radio Weekend is next weekend (Nov 3-5)!
Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Rolf Snijder, who writes:
I have made the same modification to the Tecsun PL-680, that was done [by many on the] PL-660 earlier.
The PL-680 is now a great radio; I think now one of the best! I do not own a PL-660, so I cannot compare.
Overview of modification.
For disable soft mute you can see the 2 joints and you must scratch a path on the print near the switch. (same on a PL-660)
Closeup of joint #1 (click to enlarge)
Closeup of joint #2 (click to enlarge)
With the tone switch [on the left side panel of radio] you can turn the muting on and off. On FM I need to set it on for better results, but on LW MW and SW always off!
Frequency adjust is with the pot: adj1391 in the right corner. (for the 1 kHz off freq)
Click to enlarge.
Hope I can help someone with this on your great site.
Greetings,
Rolf Snijder
Netherlands
Many thanks for sharing this PL-680 mod, Rolf! This seems like a simple enough project and one that can be undone if you aren’t pleased with the results.
Post readers: Please comment if you’ve made this modification to your PL-680 or PL-660 or if you have other successful modifications to share!
Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor Paul Walker who notes that, according to their latest schedule, Deutsche Welle has dropped English language shortwave services. Paul shared the following links:
Current shortwave schedule:
http://www.dw.com/downloads/41133929/b17webkw.pdfLinked from this page:
http://www.dw.com/en/dw-radio-programs/a-1777509English only gets one hour a day on satellite
http://www.dw.com/downloads/41133930/b17websat.pdf
(Source: Vancouver Sun via William Lee)
Victor Jaeggle loved radios.
“He had a big, shortwave radio he kept by his bedside,” said his daughter, Susan. “This thing would buzz all night. He’d have headphones on, listening to San Francisco, the British news. He was just a radio junkie.”
Jaeggle wasn’t just a radio listener, he was a radio collector. He bought his first cabinet radio from an auction as a pre-teen, and over the decades amassed a huge collection.
“He spent many hours torturing his family with the screeches, whines and whistles of accurate restoration in an ever-shrinking house full of radios,” Susan recounts, with a laugh.
“(The basement) was chock-a-block with radios,” said his ex-wife, Anne. “You kind of wandered down this narrow pathway to get from the bottom of the stairs to the laundry room.”
Jaeggle died on Dec. 8, 2014, at age 72. Almost three years later, his family has put his radios and gramophones up for sale Oct. 28 at Able Auctions in Abbotsford.
Sam Garandza of Able has never sold anything quite like it.
“This is the biggest collection I’ve ever sold,” said Garandza. “I think I had 70 radios in one consignment, but this has to be 400 or 500 radios. (There are so many) we are selling some in group lots, so we might end up with 200 to 250 lots.”[…]
Continue reading at the Vancouver Sun…
Many thanks for the tip, William! Thankfully, I live too far away from this auction to attend, else I’d be tempted by these beauties!
Many thanks to SWLing Post reader, George T, who writes:
Just a tip that I found a bargain price on eBay for a new Tecsun PL-660. The price is £50.90 with free P&P…best I’ve ever seen. I grabbed one. The unit ships from China. The seller has a 97.4% positive rating and apparently sells a high volume. Many of his negatives are about shipping time. I suspect the shipping is basic post from China, so I don’t expect it to arrive anytime soon. Also, eBay will back the purchase. It appears they have at least a few more available.
Oh yes…the seller notes they ship worldwide with the following exceptions: “Germany, Puerto Rico, Hong Kong, Indonesia, United States, Burkina Faso, Lesotho, China” What an intriguing set of exceptions!
Click here to view deal on eBay.
Thanks for the tip, George!
Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, David Iurescia (LW4DAF), who notes that Radio Exterior de España’s has announced winter frequency changes on their website.
David passed along an English (Google) translation of the REE notice:
Due to the winter time change, from October 29, Radio Exterior of Spain changes its emission frequencies in Short Wave.
From Monday to Friday, between 19 and 23 hours, universal time coordinated, Radio Exterior of Spain will offer its emissions in 11,685 kilohertz for West Africa and the South Atlantic. At 15,390 kilohertz for South America and the Pacific Ocean. At 9,690 kilohertz for North America and Greenland. And at 15,500 kilohertz for the Indian Ocean, Middle East and Great Sun.
On weekends, for West Africa and the South Atlantic, between 15 and 19 hours, universal time coordinated, at 17,755 kilohertz; and between 19 and 23 hours at 11,685 kilohertz.
On Saturdays and Sundays, between 15 and 23 hours, at 15,390 kilohertz for South America and the Pacific Oceans; at 9,690 kilohertz for North America and Greenland; and 15,500 kilohertz for the Indian Ocean, Middle East and Great Sun.
These are the frequency changes of the Spanish Foreign Radio Broadcast Wave emissions that will come into effect on October 30 due to the time shift to the winter.
Radio Exterior of Spain can be followed through satellite radio in all parts of the planet 24 hours a day uninterruptedly:
SES Astra 1M: frequency 11,626.5 MHz. Vertical polarization.
Hispasat 30W-5: frequency 12,015 Mhz. Vertical polarization.
Asiasat 5: frequency 3,960 Mhz. Horizontal polarization.
Eutelsat 5 West A: frequency 3,727 Mhz. Circular polarization.
Intelsat Galaxy 23: Frequency 4,191.35 Mhz. Vertical polarization.
Radio Exterior of Spain is heard on the Internet, in streaming or in the podcast of all its programming.There are also mobile applications (link for Apple app or Android) for mobile applications, such as phones and tablets. And from any municipality and province of Spain you can enjoy, through television, Radio Exterior of Spain by DTT.
Thanks for the tip, David!