This is an amazing video – hand-made vacuum tubes! About 17 minutes long – well worth the watching if you have any interest at all in old equipment!
https://vimeo.com/47812871
Enjoy!
Robert Gulley, AK3Q, is the author of this post and a regular contributor to the SWLing Post. Robert also blogs at All Things Radio.
Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Thomas Cholakov (N1SPY), who shares his latest video explaining the operation of a simple homebrew AM loop antenna:
Click here to view on YouTube.
Brilliant video, Thomas! I love the fact you included a demonstration with your SDRplay RSP1A as well. Via the spectrum display, it’s easy to see the the loop’s bandwidth and also the gain it provides when tuned to a station.
I love your AM loop antenna as well–such a simple design and ideal for demonstrating the mechanics of a passive loop antenna since all of the components are visible. I’m willing to bet you built this antenna for less than $10. Smart design as it’s both portable and effective! Keep up the excellent work, Thomas! We look forward to all of your future videos.
Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Mike Hansgen (K8RAT), for sharing the latest forecast from Tamitha Skov:
Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Mark Hirst, who shares this short video from BBC News:
I’m in the process of writing up a review of the C. Crane CCRadio-EP Pro, but a number of readers have been asking about how pronounced muting is between frequencies while band scanning.
To be clear, the CCRadio-EP Pro is not a true analog set like the original CCRadio-EP (even though it looks like an analog set). The EP Pro is based on the Silicon Labs SI4734 DSP chip, hence the frequency steps in 10 kHz increments and are not fluid/seamless as they would on analog sets.
Muting is more pronounced on the AM broadcast band than it is on the FM band. Here are two video demonstrations:
Click here to view on YouTube.
Click here to view on YouTube.
The audio “pop” that I note (when the CCRadio-EP Pro is first turned on) is bit annoying and can even be heard in nearby radios if they’re on. While doing my comparisons with the Sony ICF-5500W and the Tecsun PL-660, for example, the audio pop could be heard in both units as I turned on the EP Pro. I’m willing to bet this is only prevalent in the DSP chip version of the EP series.
Follow CCRadio-EP Pro posts by bookmarking this tag: CCRadio-EP Pro
Click here to check out the CCRadio-EP Pro on C. Crane’s website.
Yesterday, I spent part of the better part of the day at the Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute (PARI): a place that has begun to feel like a home away from home.
As you might imagine, radio astronomy observatories are places with very low levels of radio frequency interference. Since I had a few hours on the PARI campus to play radio, I used it as an opportunity to evaluate the CCRadio-EP Pro‘s AM/mediumwave performance.
For comparison purposes, I packed the CCRadio-EP Pro, Tecsun PL-660 and (for kicks) my Sony ICF-5500W.
Now isn’t the ICF-5500W a handsome boy?
I’ll post some of the CCRadio-EP Pro videos in my final review.
Though it was immense fun tuning through the AM broadcast band right through the gray line, being an SWL, I eventually turned to the shortwaves. The only shortwave radio I had on hand was the amazing little Tecsun PL-660. Conditions weren’t as bad as I had expected–propagation was decent and did I mention no noise?
After tuning around a bit, I happened upon one of my favorite interval signals: that of the Voice of Turkey.
Everything around me–all that was on my mind–simply took a backseat to the simple pleasure of listening to an interval signal on a cool, foggy spring evening surrounded by the beauty of PARI’s campus and those giant radio telescopes.
Though the feeling was nearly impossible to capture, I did make a recording to share with SWLing Post friends and readers from around the world. I hope you enjoy:
Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Mike Hansgen (K8RAT), who shares the following film by RKO Radio Pictures via YouTube.
Click here to watch on YouTube.
Here’s the film description:
Made during WWII by RKO Radio Pictures, AIR WAVES gives a brief history of the radio, and shows the development of the technology as it progressed from a crystal set novelty to an indispensable part of American life. Radio City Music Hall and the Rockefeller Center are seen at the 2:00 mark, with the largest radio studios in the world. At 2:30, the NBC studios are seen and at 3:10 a demonstration is made of how sound effects are made using cellophane, wooden blocks, and rubber spheres. At 4:10, a studio is seen with actors rehearsing their lines, and an engineer working with the actors to make sure everything is technically okay. At 5:41, announcers Milton Cross is seen with Jack Costello and Calvin Keach. “Twin gods of radio broadcasting are the clock and the conference…” says the narrator, and at 6:00 you’ll see the discussions that lead up to the broadcast of any network show on radio (and today, on TV). At 7:15, records are played on the air, scripts are produced on steno and mimeograph machines, and all sorted… The music library is seen at 7:48 with sheet music laid out. At 8:06, all stations are notified of the latest information with the new program and a dress rehearsal undertaken. The stopwatch commands the attention of everyone, and the program is finally on the air at the 9:10 mark.
At 10:00, the film dramatically shifts to show December 7th in Hawaii, and speaks about the work of NBC to sell war bonds and promote national defense and “do its share unflinchingly”. The war effort is shown with men and women working on the air to help people working “at war” and boosting their morale. Lowell Thomas is shown at the 11:30 mark, keeping the public informed of the latest developments.
Thanks for the tip, Mike! It’s truly amazing to see the amount of effort that went into live radio broadcasts.