RCI Sackville Antenna Farm Map and Legend

I’ve been going through some old paperwork recently and discovered this map of the antenna farm at Radio Canada International’s former Sackville, NB, transmitting site (click to enlarge):

I was given this printout by one of the staff members at Sackville when I visited there in the summer of 2012–only a few months before they closed, permanently.

I thought perhaps some others here in the SWLing Post community might enjoy checking out this map.

I do miss hearing RCI on the air. Hard to believe it’s almost been a decade.

Spread the radio love

Radio Waves: Shortwave is Holding its Own, Solar Storms and Internet Outages, Trust in News, and RSGB Convention Trailer

Radio Waves:  Stories Making Waves in the World of Radio

Because I keep my ear to the waves, as well as receive many tips from others who do the same, I find myself privy to radio-related stories that might interest SWLing Post readers.  To that end: Welcome to the SWLing Post’s Radio Waves, a collection of links to interesting stories making waves in the world of radio. Enjoy!

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributors Dan Van Hoy, Dennis Dura, Rich Cuff, and the Southgate ARC for the following tips:


Shortwave Radios Keep Up With Tech (Radio World)

There’s still lots to listen to, and new ways to do it

Surprise! Shortwave radio as a broadcast medium is holding its own, despite the intrusion of the internet, transmission cutbacks by major broadcasters such as the BBC World Service and Voice of America and abandonment of the SW bands by other state-owned broadcasters.

Meanwhile, the ways in which people listen to SW radio transmissions are evolving, because SW receiver manufacturers are keeping up with the technological times.

Stayin’ alive

There is no doubt that the variety of stations on the SW bands has declined, due to the end of the Cold War — the propaganda war of which drove the medium in the 1950s and 1960s — and the emergence of the internet.

Continue reading

Spread the radio love

Monitoring Times cover from September 1993

Yesterday afternoon, I spent a few hours sorting through old radio books and magazines. I discovered this issue of Monitoring Times from September 1993:

It was the 20th anniversary of the September 11 attacks yesterday so this cover image, and especially the feature headlines, caught my attention. Of course, this feature referenced February 26, 1993, when a bomb exploded in a parking garage of the World Trade Center (WTC) in New York City.

Spread the radio love

SRAA: Remembering September 11, 2001 through off-air recordings

Today marks the 20th anniversary of 9/11; a day where we honor all of those who were lost, their families/friends, and all of those who who served during and after the attacks.

This morning, I’ve been listening to a number of off-air shortwave radio recordings made on September 11 and 12, 2001. Many thanks to the amazing contributors at the SRAA who shared these with us over the years. For this radio enthusiast, these recordings brings back memories even more vividly than video coverage.

Recordings:

If you have off-air recordings of 9/11coverage that you would like to share, please contact us at the archive.

Spread the radio love

Sale at Radioshack.com through September 30, 2021

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Paul, who writes:

Radioshack.com has a promo code, “LABORDAY”, which takes $40 off $80 and expires Sept. 30.

This makes the Eton executive shortwave radios (and other brands such as Sangean) quite a bit cheaper, with free shipping, if folks are interested.

Click here to browse radios at Radioshack.com.

Thanks for the tip, Paul!

Spread the radio love

Save The Date: México le canta a la Américas


Special Broadcast: 

México le canta a las Américas (Mexico Sings To the Americas)
Date/Time: Tuesday, September 28th, 0300-0400 UTC**
**Monday, September 27 2200-2300 Mexico City Time / CDT
WRMI 5800 kHz
In honor of the 200th anniversary of the end of the Mexican War of Independence, a special hour of Mexican music hosted by Luis Alejandro Vallebueno with guests Gabriela Ortíz and “Uncle Bill” Tilford  will air on WRMI with support from Grupo DX México.   It will be in Spanish and directed towards Central and South America, but the back end of the transmission should be listenable in most of North America and parts of Western Europe and Africa.  The music will be a combination of world-famous artists and others probably not known outside of Mexico.  There will also be some items regarding history, customs and shortwave in Mexico including  special appearances by a veteran of  Radio México Internacional (aka XERMX in its days on shortwave)  and a long-time member of Grupo DX México

Spread the radio love

Giuseppe’s Homebrew “TFerrite 2” Mediumwave & Shortwave Antenna

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Giuseppe Morlè (IZ0GZW), who shares the following:

Dear Thomas my friend,

I built another Tferrite, (TFERRITE 2), for medium waves–this time also with the shortwave option.

A single variable capacitor, 800 pf, and a primary winding on the 2 ferrites of about 46 turns, a secondary winding of 3 turns to pick up the signal and send it to the receiver.

On the PVC tube I wound 4 more coils, for the shortwaves, connecting the ends to the same variable together with the other ends.

I interposed a switch on one end to eliminate or insert shortwaves.

I am sending you these 3 links from my YT channel where you can see the tests I have done in these days with no propagation.

The yield in mediumwave is excellent, like the other one, yet also good for the shortwaves–to be so small it compares very well.

Let me know what you and the whole SWLing community think!

Thanks to you and a greeting from Italy, Formia on the Tyrrhenian Sea.
73. Giuseppe.

Videos

View on YouTube.

View on YouTube.

View on YouTube.

This is brilliant, Giuseppe! Thank you so much for sharing your homebrew antenna projects. It seems they work so well from your beautiful urban location in Italy!

Spread the radio love