Encore – Classical Music on Shortwave on Radio Tumbril

Encore – Classical Music on Shortwave – Broadcast on Sunday afternoon in Europe and USA

Encore – Classical Music this weekend is being broadcast as usual by Channel 292 (Europe) on 6070 kHz at 15:00 UTC Sunday 29th September.
And by WBCQ on 7490 kHz at 00:00 – 01:00 UTC Monday 30th September
There is a repeat on 6070 kHz on Friday 4th October at 19:00 UTC.
This week’s programme starts with the Much Ado about Nothing suite by Erich Korngold – with a madrigal by Bonnie Miksch performed by the excellent choral ensemble Siglo di Oro sandwiched in between. After that we have two versions of a movement from Arcadiana by Thomas Ades – one instrumental and the other choral – for comparison. Some electronic music from 1980s to follow then a couple of pieces by Rameau and finally a Beethoven piano sonata.
A great mix – hope you can receive at least one of the broadcasts.
Both Channel 292 and WBCQ do live streams if the reception is poor in your location. Easy to find their sites with a google search.
Thank you for spreading the word about Encore – Classical Music on Shortwave. And thank you to everyone for letting us know how well the signal is received with reception reports.
Brice Avery – Encore – Radio Tumbril.
Regular Broadcast times are:
15:00 – 16:00 UTC Sunday, and repeated 19:00 – 20:00 UTC Friday on 6070 kHz (Channel 292 Germany).
00:00 – 01:00 UTC Monday on 7490 kHz 9WBCQ – Maine).

Jim’s Vintage DX Audio Clips

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Jim (W4OXB), who writes:

I have been involved in SWLing and ham radio since the middle 1960s. Mostly listening before I got my ham ticket in 1969. My current call is W4OXB.

I used to record dx catches on mediumwave and shortwave that I put in my logbook. About 20 years ago, I transferred my recordings from reel-to-reel to digital format.

My goal is to share the old recordings with other radio enthusiasts and the easiest way I’ve found to do that is YouTube. So, I have been working on this for a few weeks.

Click here to check out W4OXB’s Vintage DX Audio Clips

Excellent, Jim! You’ve got some great recordings in your list already. Thanks for sharing and, Post readers, note that Jim also plans to share some of his recordings with the Shortwave Radio Audio Archive. We really appreciate the support, Jim!

eBay: Julian spots an excellent condition Sony ICF-7600A complete with box

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Julian Stargardt, who writes:

I was just browsing through eBay when I stumbled on this listing that may interest some SWLing readers: An excellent condition SONY ICF-7600A.

The listing is for a Sony ICF 7600 [with box and accessories] – the original ICF 7600, a very different beast from the still in production ICF 7600GR.

Must be over 40 years old and looks like it’s just left the shop.

Click here to view on eBay (partner link supports the SWLing Post).

Thanks for the tip, Julian. For someone seeking a complete ICF-7600A in great shape, this would be a good choice. The price is a bit steep compared to other 7600A’s on the market, but few come with a box, earpiece, and packing. I notice that the seller is accepting offers (that’s the route I’d go!). The ICF-7600A is a cool analog portable and one I’ve thought about acquiring at some point.

Video: Comparing SDR power consumption

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Ivan Cholakov, who writes:

If you are interested, here’s a video where the power consumption of nine different SDRs was compared:

Click here to view on YouTube.

Fascinating!  I’ve always been curious about SDR power consumption because many of my SDRs are rarely turned off. Thank you for sharing, Ivan!

Amazon Price Drop: Eton Elite Executive Portable Now $129.99

The relatively new Eton Elite Executive, formerly Eton Executive Satellit, has dropped $50 USD on its Amazon page to $129.99:

This rather major price drop lowers the cost to just $20 more than Amazon’s price for the older, silver-cased Eton Executive Satellit. According to Jay Allen’s review the new radio has identical performance to the older model; only the color is updated.

Guy Atkins is a Sr. Graphic Designer for T-Mobile and lives near Seattle, Washington.  He’s a regular contributor to the SWLing Post.

Gospell product lineup for IBC 2019 includes the GR-22 portable DRM radio

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

SWLing Post readers might be interested in learning about Gospell’s newly-announced DRM receivers and active antenna products. The GR-22 “pocket-sized” “full-wave” receiver that’s supposed to be available for purchase by June 2020 seems especially interesting.

(Source: Gospell Press Release)

Gospell to announce the DRM monitoring system and imminent release of portable DRM receiver, and more

Chengdu, China – Gospell, a leading supplier of pay TV system and equipment, satellite TV receiving products and microwave products, announces its product lineup for IBC 2019. The company will debut several new products featuring DRM (Digital Radio Mondiale) for both consumer and industry market, including:

    • GR-22 – Portable DRM/AM/FM Receiver
    • GR-227 – DRM Car Adapter
    • GR-301 – DRM/AM/FM Monitoring Receiver
    • GR-310 – Audio Broadcast Monitoring Platform
    • GR-AT3 – High Performance Active HF Antenna

GR-22 is a sleek and classy portable radio from Gospell, the contemporary stylistics of exterior design fits in your personal style, crystal clear DRM digital radio and AM/FM brings practicality and comfort to your daily enjoyment. Despite its pocket-size, it’s a nifty full wave band receiver packed up in a tiny body that enables you to explore a wide variety of radio stations. It is also future-proofed for the next generation DRM-E technology. You have access to all the presets, station names, program details and even Journaline news on the easy to ready large LCD in a simple and intuitive way. Sleep timer set your radio to automatically switch off or wake up at your convenience. Listen to your favorite radio programs anywhere you like with 4 x AA batteries or connect it to mains. GR-22 is a multi-functional radio that is flexible to your listen habits. GR-22 will be available for purchase on Q2 2020.

GR-227 is a car digital radio adapter that utilizes most advanced interference and noise cancellation technology to receive digital radio in car while achieving the best audio quality and serve it to the car audio system over aux cable or by transmitting over an unused FM frequency. The receiver is fully compatible with DRM standard that is being deployed over the world, with its latest audio codec xHE-AAC. Based on software defined radio technology, GR-227 is ready for the emerging DRM-E standard that extends the DRM broadcast to FM band.

GR-301 is a high performance monitoring receiver that supports DRM, AM and FM. GR-301 supports the collection of key parameters of audio broadcasting, including SNR, MER, CRC, PSD, RF level, audio availability and service information. The collection and uploading of parameters meets DRM RSCI standards. The GR-301 can work independently or be deployed with other receivers to become a node in the service evaluation network. The GR-301 supports the xHE-AAC audio codec and is capable of handling the latest DRM-E standard through software upgrades.

GR-310 is a management platform designed for audio broadcast monitoring and receiver control purposes, it manages the geographically distributed GR-301 receivers. The platform can formulate receiving schedules, configure the receivers to perform receiving tasks, perform real-time browsing of the reception status, store historical data, and visualize the statistic data in a intuitive way. In addition to monitoring and analyzing data, the GR-310 platform also supports real-time audio monitoring and configuration of alarm conditions, alarms will be triggered when rules are met.

GR-AT3 is a high-performance active monopole antenna with reception frequency ranges from 0.3 to 50MHz. It is designed to work in harsh environments with respect to strong man-made noise and stern natural conditions. It is compact and easy to install, supplied accessories enable rapid installation. The antenna is comprised of a wide band amplifier in an IP67 waterproof aluminum body together with an active element made of a stainless-steel. The solid construction ensures durability and maintenance-free operation.

“We’re constantly working to ensure we’re bring the latest technology in our product”, says Haochun Liu, assistant to general manager, “These products underscore the Gospell’s commitment to providing easy access to high quality information at affordable prices. Both consumer and industry can benefit from it.”

Gospell will be exhibiting at IBC 2019 in the Amsterdam International Broadcasting Convention (IBC) Hall 3 C67, September 13-17. To schedule a meeting at IBC 2019 or access a sample of the featured IBC showcase, email [email protected]

About Gospell

Established in 2001, Gospell Digital Technology Co Ltd (GOSPELL). is a hi-tech enterprise with R&D, manufacturing, business consultancy and planning, trade, delivery, project implementation and after sales service, acting as a complete DTV and triple-play solution provider for Digital TV/OTT related projects. Headquartered in GOSPELL INDUSTRIAL PARK at Chenzhou, Hunan Province for CPE related production manufacturing, GOSPELL also has its office in Shenzhen for business/marketing management and administration, in Chengdu for R&D and headend/transmitter system production/debugging and Customer Service Center, and in 12 cities in China as well as international offices in India, Africa and Mexico.

Thank you for sharing this, Ed. Looking through the press release, I don’t see any DRM radios where they note shortwave reception, however, the GR-22 is being called a “full wave band receiver.” Perhaps “full wave” is their way of indicating shortwave reception?

It looks like the GR-22, and all of the products listed above, are squarely targeting the new DRM market in India.

The radio man of Kumartuli

Set against this unlikely backdrop, Amit Ranjan Karmakar’s little shop is easy to miss. In his mid-60s, the ‘radio man’ of Kumartuli sits surrounded by radio sets of all sizes and vintages. (Express photo: Shashi Ghosh)

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Kim Elliott, who shares a link to this short but fantastic photo pdoc about Kumartuli’s radio man, Amit Ranjan Karmakar.

Click here to view at The Indian Express.