Tag Archives: Dan Greenall

Dan Revisits Radio Japan: A Half-Century Later

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor Dan Greenall, who shares:


Running into an old friend

Hi Thomas

I was doing some random tuning on shortwave this evening using the KiwiSDR at VK2ATZ in New South Wales, Australia, when I came upon a repeating music box-like tune on 13705 kHz that I thought had a familiar sound to it. It was like running into someone who you hadn’t seen in many years and trying to place where you knew them from. Yes, the sound was a bit different, perhaps even a little slower (age does that ?), but then it came to me, could it be Radio Japan, the overseas service of NHK? A quick check at Short-Wave.info revealed this was indeed NHK World Radio.

It felt like I had found an old friend, one that I knew from my high school days over a half century ago. Still recognizable after all those years, and it felt good to know that they are still around.

Attached are two recordings:

Radio Japan, interval signal and bilingual ID, as heard in Ancaster, Ontario, Canada on 9505 kHz in 1970:

Audio Player

NHK World Radio, interval signal and sign on in Thai on 13705 kHz, January 23, 2025 at 2300Z (via VK2ATZ KiwiSDR):

Audio Player

73

Dan Greenall
London, Ontario, Canada

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Bridging Two Worlds: Shortwave Listening Meets Amateur Radio

When the SWL and Amateur Radio hobbies meet

by  Dan Greenall

Many of us who are also amateur radio operators, got their start in the hobby through simply listening to shortwave radio, or perhaps, to stations in the AM or FM broadcast bands.  I suppose it is then inevitable that these two hobbies are bound to connect with each other from time to time.  Here are a few examples of this that relate to my experiences.

In 1972, while doing a random band scan on shortwave, I came across a point-to-point radio station from Managua, Nicaragua that was transmitting a repeating test message (recording attached below):

Audio Player

The station was operated by the Tropical Radio Telegraph Company and I sent off a reception report in hopes of receiving a QSL from them.  As luck would have it, the Plant Engineer, Guenter G. Zaenker, responded with a friendly letter including some details about their transmitter power and antennas used.

A couple of years later, when I got my amateur radio licence (VE3HLC), my SWL activities took a back seat to ham radio for a while.  In 1978, I received a QSL for a contact with station YN1Z in Managua who turned out to be none other than Guenther G. Zaenker.

I worked Guenter for a final time as TG9XGV in Guatemala City, Guatemala. How is that for completing a hat trick!

Shortly after receiving my amateur radio ticket in 1974, I made a contact with station PJ9BN, Jack Van Sciver on the island of Bonaire in the Netherlands Antilles.

It turns out he worked at Trans World Radio, a broadcaster I had listened to regularly on the SWBC bands and it was quite exciting to discover this connection.  Attached is a link to a recording I made of this station that same year as they were concluding a segment of their popular DX Special program:

Audio Player Audio Player

https://archive.org/details/trans-world-radio-bonaire

It seems that Jack is still going strong as I recently found this link to his current amateur callsign NA3F: https://www.qrz.com/db/NA3F

A final note, I had made a 2-way contact through the Oscar 6 amateur radio satellite (uplink on 2 metres, downlink on 10 metres) in 1976 with W.G. “George” Roach in Ottawa, Ontario.

Some 11 years later, I was able to pick up station CFMO FM on 93.9 MHz, over 300 miles away, through some great ducting conditions.  When I received a QSL from the station, it was signed by W.G. Roach who was the chief engineer at CFMO FM.

It certainly is a small world!  I wonder how many others out there have experiences similar to mine?

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From NDBs to TIS: A DXer’s Journey Across 1610-1700 kHz

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor Dan Greenall, who shares the following guest post and asks, “Wonder who can add to this list?“:


A Look Back – DXing between 1610 and 1700 kHz

by Dan Greenall

1. The Caribbean Beacon, Anguilla West Indies 1610 kHz (1985 QSL)

2. NDB stations (non-directional beacons)

  • transmitted call letters on CW, mostly from airports, heard in the 1970’s
  • examples: MDE Medellin, Colombia 1690 kHz and RAB Rabinal, Guatemala 1613 kHz

3. U.S. Army Broadcasting Service KTRK 1670 Fort Meade, MD Feb 1996          articles and recordings

https://www.radioheritage.com/ktrk-k-truck-1670-khz/

4. FCC Part 15 Radio Stations

Example:    WDKW 1630 “the Klaw” Dundalk High School near Baltimore, MD

Audio Player

Link to my recording made at a DX camp in Coe Hill, Ontario, Canada on April 20, 1997: https://archive.org/details/wdkw-the-klaw-1630

An internet search revealed the following;

Part 15 of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) rules allows some low-powered radio devices to operate without a license on the AM and FM radio broadcast bands. These devices are subject to certain restrictions, including:

  • Range: On FM frequencies, the effective service range is limited to about 200 feet (61 meters).
  • Field strength: The field strength should not exceed 250 ?V/m (48db) at 3 meters.
  • Detachable antennas: Part 15 rules prohibit detachable antennas on all Part 15 transmitters.

Some examples of Part 15 radio stations include:

  • Microbroadcasting

Often used by hobbyists, drive-in theaters, or on college or high school campuses.

  • Talking roadsigns, talking houses, or talking billboards

These transmitters air a repeating loop of information, such as traffic or highway construction. They typically operate on empty channels on the AM broadcast band.

  • InfOspot

A custom product that can include special audio systems, USB / internet connectivity, cabinets, and antenna mounting styles.

  • Free-radiate AM radio stations

Educational institutions can use a transmitter without a license if the signal coverage is limited to their property.

5. TIS (Travellers Information Stations)

1610 kHz with low power, usually around 10 watts, such as the one I hear near the Blue Water Bridge between Sarnia, Ontario and Port Huron, Michigan

6. Expanded AM broadcast band 

Over a quarter century ago, these frequencies began to be used in the U.S. by BCB stations.  I still have recordings of a half dozen of these from the early days.

WTDY 1670:

Audio Player

WNML 1670:

Audio Player

WMDM 1690:

Audio Player

KCNZ 1650:

Audio Player

KCJJ 1630:

Audio Player

KBGG 1700:

Audio Player

Also, here is a link to a column in Popular Communications magazine from February 1998.

https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-Popular-Communications/90s/Popular-Communications-1998-02.pdf

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VORW Radio International Updated Schedule (January 2025)

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Dan Greenall, who shares the following schedule via John at VORW Radio International:

[…]I’ve included an updated radio broadcast schedule below – I have my main broadcasts (which are always new shows) as well as repeat airings throughout the week.

Main Broadcasts:
4840 kHz at 2 AM Eastern every Saturday Morning (New Show)
4840 kHz at 12 AM Eastern every Monday Morning (New Show)

Repeat Airings:
5950 kHz at 7 PM Eastern every Saturday Evening (Rebroadcast)
5950 kHz at 8 PM Eastern every Sunday Evening (Rebroadcast)
15770 kHz at 3 PM Eastern every Tuesday Afternoon (Rebroadcast)
7570 kHz at 6 PM Eastern every Wednesday Evening (Rebroadcast)
9395 kHz at 10 PM Eastern every Wednesday Evening (Rebroadcast)
15770 kHz at 11 AM Eastern every Thursday Morning (Rebroadcast)
9955 kHz at 6 PM Eastern every Thursday Evening (Rebroadcast)

All the best,

John (VORW Radio International.)

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Rediscovering the Golden Age of Utility DXing

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Dan Greenall, who writes:

Hi Thomas

Back in the 1970’s, I used to enjoy hunting for “utility” radio stations outside the regular SWBC bands. When I came across a copy of the Utility DXer’s Handbook from 1971 recently on eBay, I couldn’t resist purchasing it. I have since made a page on archive.org for it to help preserve this unique piece of radio history. Anyone interested can follow this link and take a look at the world of utility radio as it was over 50 years ago.

Also, I have included links to some of the recordings and QSL’s from these stations that I have set up on the Internet Archive.

Wow, Dan! What a utility DXing treasure trove you’ve created on Archive.org. Thank you for sharing these resources and recordings with us!

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Archiving Cassettes: Dan’s Rewarding Journey to Preserve Off-Air Shortwave Radio Recordings

Many thanks to SWLing Post and Shortwave Radio Audio Archive contributor, Dan Greenall, for sharing the following guest post:


Preserving Radio History – Old Audio Cassettes

by Dan Greenall

A few years ago, during the Covid lockdowns, I rediscovered a box full of my old audio cassette tapes on the bottom shelf of a cupboard in the basement.  These cassettes contained many vintage recordings I made between 1970 and 1999, including shortwave, AM, FM and even a bit of TV audio.

I suppose I was a bit lucky, but sometimes not so much.

The box was closed and had basically been in a dust free, climate controlled environment for the previous 22 years (1999-2021).  Prior to that (1970-1999), the cassettes were subject to much use and reuse, often being left out (for convenience) unprotected, then being packed up and moved a few times to a new QTH, always within southern Ontario, Canada.

In the early 1970’s, and on a student’s budget, I even resorted to repurposing a couple of cheap demonstration music cassettes by placing a piece of scotch tape over the ends so I could record over the existing music.  Inevitably, some “prize” recordings were accidently erased over the years when a cassette was needed urgently and one was thrown hastily into the recorder without a proper check.

Around 1983, I made a decent recording of Radio Mogadishu in Somalia on the out of band frequency of 6790 kHz, but it seems to have been corrupted from being left in the recorder and not discovered until it was too late.  Unfortunately, the mistake occurred right over the moment of the actual station ID:

Audio Player

In spite of all of this, I need to feel fortunate that so many of my recordings actually survived for 30, 40 and even 50+ years in spite of my neglecting them for so long.  A great deal of this material has since been sorted through and digitised, then saved on the Internet Archive in order to preserve this radio history.  I have also regularly submitted some of these recordings to the Shortwave Radio Audio Archive.

Here is a link to my material on Archive.org, which I am constantly adding to.  Most files have audio, however, some are “read only.”

https://archive.org/details/@dan_greenall

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Clear Channel Stations: Dan’s gateway into the world of DXing

Many thanks to Dan Greenall, one of our dedicated Shortwave Radio Audio Archive contributors, who shares the following guest post:


Clear channel BCB stations – My Introduction to the world of DXing

by Dan Greenall

Sometime in the mid 1960’s, I acquired a Japanese made AM only transistor radio similar to the one pictured.

I was entering my teenage years and living in southern Ontario, Canada in relative proximity to the U.S. border, and was immediately fascinated that I could receive American stations from places such as Buffalo and Rochester NY as well as Detroit MI with amazing clarity.

Before long, I discovered that signals from much further afield would begin to come through at dusk and throughout the night time hours. Although I was unaware at the time, many of these would be from so-called “clear channel” stations, those operating on frequencies with the highest level of protection from interference from other stations.

In addition, many of these stations ran a full 50 kw of power.  Signals from the Atlantic seaboard to the Midwest could often be heard at near local strength if I turned my radio to just the right angle.  At this point, I was beginning to learn about the directional properties of the built-in ferrite rod antenna.  It gave me great pleasure to be able to listen to their local ads, newscasts, or a far away sporting event from the comfort of my home.

I recall listening regularly to WOWO in Fort Wayne IN on 1190 for their play by play announcements of the Fort Wayne Komets hockey games.  Then there was a station identifying as WFAA in Dallas.  That was back when they shared 820 kHz with WBAP whose famous cowbell you can hear in one of the audio clips below.

By the end of 1969, a friend of mine had encouraged me to try shortwave, and I “borrowed” my parents Philips kitchen radio for a few months, but that is another story. I wonder how many others got “hooked” in this manner?

A few brief recordings of clear channel stations that I made in the early 1970’s are presented here. Many, but not all, of the stations heard in the last two links are from clear channel stations. Reception for these recordings was made using a Realistic DX150A or a Hallicrafters S-52 receiver hooked up to an outdoor long wire antenna.

KFI Circa 1971:

Audio Player

WOAI Circa 1973

Audio Player

KSTP Circa 1970s:

Audio Player

Vintage AM Radio Airchecks 1973:

Audio Player

Vintage AM Radio Airchecks 1973 Part 2:

Audio Player

As a sidebar, the National Radio Club has put out a number of books showing the daytime/nighttime directional antenna patterns of AM broadcasting stations in the USA and Canada.

I gave up my copy from 1973 a number of years ago, but you can find this one and others online. I found this very useful.

For example, it is easy to see why I was more likely to hear WBT Charlotte NC on 1110 kHz from my listening post in southern Ontario, Canada, rather than KFAB Omaha, NE.

The links below will take you to the 1973, 1975 and 2018 versions of these books.

https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-Radio-Logbooks/NRC_Logs/NRC-Pattern-Book-First-1973.pdf

https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-Radio-Logbooks/NRC_Logs/NRC-Night-Pattern-Mapbook-2nd-1975.pdf

https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-Radio-Logbooks/NRC_Logs/NRC-Pattern-Book-8th-2018.pdf

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