Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Dave Zantow, who writes:
[Check out this] YouTube video :
Click here to view on YouTube.
This very interesting near 12 minute video shows Sony manufacturing plants.
At 2:10 you will see the CRF-150 / 160’s being manufactured.
Thank you so much for sharing this, Dave! This is chock-full of Sony nostalgia!
Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Dave (N9EWO), who shares the following:
“WKRP In Cincinnati” – “Tornado” S01 E12 (February 1979)
“The station staff finds themselves in danger when Herb unplugs a teleprinter just as it is receiving a local tornado warning.”
Look for the Radio Shack Realistic PRO-16 (cat no. 20-165) scanner receiver at 35:15 in this dual episode “Internet Archive” video. A Midland 13-902 weather radio sits on top of the PRO-16 scanner.
Dave Zantow N9EWO
Janesville WI
Sharp eyes there, Dave! Thank you for sharing this! WKRP is classic!
Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Dave (N9EWO), who writes:
Hey Thomas,
Interesting little tidbit.
Noticed a Sony CRF-320 being used as prop in a 1982 episode of “Taxi” (Season 4 Episode 11), See captured enhanced attached photo [above].
“I Wanna Be Around” : Louie turns the tool room into a survival shelter.
YouTube (marked at a point where shortwave was made comment to) :
Look for it just left of the CB and desk microphone.
73
Dave Zantow N9EWO
Thank you for sharing this, Dave! Wow! What a classy radio to have as a prop on display in Taxi! Great catch!
Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Dave Zantow (N9EWO), who notes that he has posted an updated review of the ATS-25 Si4732 receiver with the 4.0 firmware revision.
Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Dave (N9EWO), who writes:
A current YouTube Video I accidentally came across. Ever wonder about those digital displays used in the Apollo space missions ? What were they ? Actually it’s quite a story how these Raytheon displays were developed. One has to remember we are talking about the mid 1960’s here and before the days of LED’s. Reminds me of the electro luminance nightlights still sold today.
Click here to view on YouTube.
Many thanks for sharing this, Dave. Being a massive fan of all things Apollo era, I love the deep dive into this crucial, yet very basic computer. The screen looks (and sounds!) amazing.
Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Dan Robinson, who notes that Dave (N9EWO) has posted his review of the Sangean ATS-909X2. Click here to view.
I must admit: as I put the Sangean ATS-909X2 through the paces, I’m impressed with this fine machine. While no radio is perfect, the ‘909X2 has enthusiast-grade characteristics.
The ATS-909X2 truly smacks of a shortwave portable from the 1990s–the halcyon days of digital portables, in my opinion. I personally love the ergonomics, display, audio, tactile front panel, numerous connections, and the quality chassis. It’s a pleasure to operate.
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 Troy Riedel, Dave Zantow, NT, Wilbur Forcier, and Rob for the following tips:
Unlike today’s blank sun, the solar disk 20 years ago was peppered with sunspots, including a monster named “AR9393.” The biggest sunspot of Solar Cycle 23, AR9393 was a truly impressive sight, visible to the naked eye at sunset and crackling with X-class solar flares.
On March 29, 2001, AR9393 hurled a pair of CMEs directly toward Earth. The first one struck during the early hours of March 31, 2001. The leading edge of the shock front was dense (~150 protons/cc) and strongly magnetized — traits that give rise to powerful geomagnetic disturbances. Within hours, an extreme geomagnetic storm was underway, registering the maximum value of G5 on NOAA storm scales.
“I was fortunate to witness and photograph the event when I was just a teenager,” recalls Lukasz Gornisiewicz, who watched the show from Medicine Hat, Alberta:
In the hours that followed, Northern Lights spread as far south as Mexico. In 20 year old notes, Dr. Tony Phillips of Spaceweather.com describes “red and green auroras dancing for hours” over the Sierra Nevada mountains of California at latitude +37 degrees. Similar displays were seen in Houston, Texas; Denver Colorado; and San Diego, California.
“Here in Payson, Arizona, red curtains and green streamers were pulsating all across the sky,” wrote Dawn Schur when she submitted this picture to Spaceweather.com 20 years ago:
“We have seen some auroras here before, but this display was really special,” she wrote.
A second CME struck at ~2200 UT on March 31th. Instead of firing up the storm, however, the impact quenched it. When the CME passed Earth the interplanetary magnetic field surrounding our planet suddenly turned north — an unfavorable direction for geomagnetic activity.
Indeed, the quenching action of the second CME may have saved power grids and other technological systems from damage. The storm’s intensity (-Dst=367 nT) stopped just short of the famous March 14, 1989, event that caused the Quebec Blackout (-Dst=565 nT) and it was only a fraction of the powerful Carrington Event of 1859 (-Dst=~900 nT).
The whole episode lasted barely 24 hours, brief but intense. Visit Spaceweather.com archives for March 30, 31st and April 1, 2001, to re-live the event. Our photo gallery from 20 years ago is a must-see; almost all the pictures were taken on film! [Read more at Spaceweather.com…]
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday allowed the Federal Communication Commission to loosen local media ownership restrictions, handing a victory to broadcasters in a ruling that could facilitate industry consolidation as consumers increasingly move online.
In a 9-0 ruling authored by Justice Brett Kavanaugh, the justices overturned a lower court decision that had blocked the FCC’s repeal of some media ownership regulations in 2017 for failing to consider the effects on ownership by racial minorities and women. Critics of the industry have said further consolidation could limit media choices for consumers.
The justices acted in appeals by the FCC, companies including News Corp, Fox Corp and Sinclair Broadcast Group Inc and the National Association of Broadcasters.
The associations for other broadcast networks’ local affiliates, including ABC, NBC and CBS, backed the appeals, arguing that consolidation would help ensure the economic survival of local television amid heavy competition from internet companies that provide video content. Broadcast television stations have said they are increasingly losing advertising dollars to digital platforms.[…]
BERLIN (AP) — German authorities on Friday banned the sale and use of a New Age ‘water vitalizer’ device amid concerns that it is interfering with amateur radio signals.
The Federal Network Agency said it had received numerous reports that the device, sold by Swiss company Wassermatrix AG as a way to “activate” the body’s self-healing powers, was transmitting on the frequencies allocated for ham radio users.
The agency said owners of the 8,000-euro ($9,540) device, which has been sold more than 2,400 times in Germany, are allowed to keep but not use it.
Wassermatrix AG didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.[…]
Canadian rock star Geddy Lee is less than thrilled with Sportsnet’s decision to cut their dedicated radio broadcast of the Toronto Blue Jays for the 2021 season.
Sportsnet won’t directly broadcast a separate radio feed and will instead simulcast their television broadcast over the airwaves for the 2021 season, becoming the first MLB team to do so. The decision was made to minimize travel and closely adhere to team, league, and government protocols related to the pandemic, Sportsnet said in a press release.
Lee, the lead singer for Rush, spoke about the importance of preserving a radio feed during an interview earlier in March.
Lee has been avid Blue Jays fan for years, throwing out the first pitch during the 2013 Blue Jays opener, and was a regular attendee at home games for decades.
It would be easy enough to spin this into “old man yells at cloud” in defence of a slightly outdated medium, but the sports media business is tough enough as it is, and the radio broadcast does indeed have charms that television simply can’t replicate, which is especially important for the visually impaired.[…]
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