{"id":16460,"date":"2015-12-30T06:00:13","date_gmt":"2015-12-30T10:00:13","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/?p=16460"},"modified":"2015-12-29T22:21:32","modified_gmt":"2015-12-30T02:21:32","slug":"a-little-taste-of-cuba-on-free-to-air-satellite","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2015\/12\/a-little-taste-of-cuba-on-free-to-air-satellite\/","title":{"rendered":"A Little Taste of Cuba on Free To Air Satellite"},"content":{"rendered":"

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Mario Filippi, for the following guest post:<\/em><\/p>\n

\n

A Little Taste of Cuba on Free To Air Satellite<\/h2>\n

by Mario Filippi, N2HUN<\/strong><\/p>\n

(All photos courtesy of author)<\/span><\/p>\n

Tropical countries have always held a fascination for me, Cuba being at the top of the interest totem pole. \u00a0Perhaps it\u2019s due to the fact that baby boomers (such as me) remember early 1960\u2019s weekly drills in grammar school, ducking under our desks during the Cuban missile crisis when the cold war was a fact of life. President John Kennedy, Fidel Castro, and Nikita Khrushchev were the primary combatants in those days, and we had to be prepared for a possible attack. \u00a0Fortunately our country was spared from any stateside skirmishes, but since those days when Cuba became a forbidden place for US travelers, its history and its people have always captivated my imagination.<\/span><\/p>\n

For those interested in what\u2019s going on in Cuba there\u2019s always shortwave radio; Radio Habana Cuba always pegs the \u00a0shortwave \u201cS\u201d meter and is received loud and clear. On certain nights when propagation on the BCB (broadcast AM band) is favorable towards the Caribbean, Radio Reloj (Radio Clock) can be heard with its\u2019 \u201cRR\u201d identification in CW every minute on the minute. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

But there\u2019s another way to keep current with Cuban events in ways that a shortwave radio cannot provide, and that is through Free To Air satellite, which provides worldwide reception of television and radio stations. A typical FTA satellite installation appears below, consisting of a dish and an LNB pointed towards a satellite of interest. \u00a0There are about a dozen Ku band satellites available in the Clarke Belt 22,600 miles away in geostationary orbit all beaming programming to different parts of the globe.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"WS

WS International Ku band offset dish with Chapparal Ku LNB<\/p><\/div>\n

The signal from the satellite dish is fed via RG\/6 coax to a satellite receiver which decodes the satellites\u2019 data into TV and radio format that can be viewed or listened to on a standard television, and an example of a modern FTA receiver, the X-Square Premium Mini, sometimes called a STB (Set Top Box) is below. The X-Square Mini is one the smallest of the FTA receivers available and works very well.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"X-Square

X-Square FTA receiver, about the size of a cigarette pack.<\/p><\/div>\n

Okay, so we have our receiver, dish, etc., now all we need to know is where to find Cuban programming in the Ku satellite band. \u00a0As of this writing, Cuban television and radio programs are found on Hispasat at 30W, which has a spot beam to the USA and is easily received on the East coast. \u00a0For more information on Hispasat just Google it or look it up on <\/span>www.lyngsat.com<\/span><\/a>. \u00a0Pointing your dish at Hispasat, or for that matter at any other FTA satellite requires patience and knowledge, and you can check YouTube which has many videos on the subject. \u00a0Best bet would be to have someone who\u2019s experienced with FTA to assist you.<\/span><\/p>\n

You\u2019ll find about 55 TV channels on Hispasat covering S. America, Asia, Europe, USA, and the Middle East with several TV channels from Cuba such as Cubavision, \u00a0Cubavision International, \u00a0Senal ACN, Contribucion, Educativo, and Educativo 2. \u00a0And from the USA, Radio Martis\u2019 cousin TV Marti (yes there is a TV Marti!) is beamed. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Screen shots from some of these appear below:<\/span><\/p>\n

\"TV

TV Marti talk show with logo on lower right.<\/p><\/div>\n

\"senal

News, sports, music, info channel Senal ACN.<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Cubavision

Cubavision International \u00a0station identification.<\/p><\/div>\n

Let\u2019s move on to Cuban radio stations to be heard on Hispasat. \u00a0First off, Hispasat covers about 57 radio stations \u00a0from the Middle East, S. America, and Europe. \u00a0Some of them will be familiar to SWLs while others are local AM and FM stations originating from the mother country, a distinct advantage to having FTA satellite. \u00a0Cuban radio stations available on Hispasat are shown in the satellite scan below. \u00a0A total of ten stations come in with FM quality reception over FTA satellite, with no fading or hiss. \u00a0However, in the event of rain, Ku signals suffer terribly from moisture attenuation but that\u2019s about the only reception hurdle you\u2019ll have to endure. \u00a0One of my favorite stations is CMBF with its beautiful classical music.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Cuban

Cuban radio stations scanned in from satellite Hispasat at 30W.<\/p><\/div>\n

So \u00a0hopefully this little introduction into Cuban radio and TV using Free To Air satellite will kindle interest in this \u201cultra-shortwave\u201d \u00a0mode of looking \u00a0(and listening) into what\u2019s happening in this culturally rich island that\u2019s been out of reach for most United States citizens for over half a century.<\/span><\/p>\n

\n

Thank you so much for the excellent post, Mario. As I’ve mentioned before, I’m planning to install an FTA system at my house in the near future. Your guidance is most helpful!<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Mario Filippi, for the following guest post: A Little Taste of Cuba on Free To Air Satellite by Mario Filippi, N2HUN (All photos courtesy of author) Tropical countries have always held a fascination for me, Cuba being at the top of the interest totem pole. \u00a0Perhaps it\u2019s due to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[56,4583,3194,627,3],"tags":[4308,4312,4313,4311],"class_list":["post-16460","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-broadcasters","category-free-to-air-satellite","category-guest-posts","category-how-to","category-news","tag-free-to-air-satellite","tag-free-to-air-satellite-fta","tag-fta","tag-mario-filippi-n2hun"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pn3uc-4hu","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":15129,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2015\/10\/listening-to-international-radio-via-free-to-air-satellite\/","url_meta":{"origin":16460,"position":0},"title":"Listening to international radio via Free-To-Air Satellite","author":"Thomas","date":"October 11, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Mario Filippi (N2HUN), for the following guest post: International Radio Broadcasts via Satellite by\u00a0Mario Filippi I find your SWLing Post blog a constant fountain of information on the world of shortwave listening. Having been a shortwave listener since the early 1960\u2019s, I\u2019ve depended mainly\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Articles"","block_context":{"text":"Articles","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/articles\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Dish-001","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/10\/Dish-001.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/10\/Dish-001.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/10\/Dish-001.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":15755,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2015\/11\/guest-post-trip-down-shortwave-memory-lane-via-vintage-radioshack-catalogs\/","url_meta":{"origin":16460,"position":1},"title":"Guest post: Trip Down Shortwave Memory Lane via Vintage RadioShack Catalogs","author":"Thomas","date":"November 23, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Mario\u00a0Filippi (N2HUN), for the\u00a0following guest post: Trip Down Shortwave Memory Lane via Vintage RS Catalogs -Mario Filippi (N2HUN) Attached is a wonderful website containing archived Radio Shack catalogs and sales flyers going back to 1939, surely of interest to SWLs, hams, and other electronics\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Articles"","block_context":{"text":"Articles","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/articles\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"RadioShack-Catalog","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/RadioShack-Catalog.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/RadioShack-Catalog.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/RadioShack-Catalog.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":22477,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2016\/11\/radios-with-rotatable-am-antennas\/","url_meta":{"origin":16460,"position":2},"title":"Radios With Rotatable AM Antennas?","author":"Thomas","date":"November 29, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor,\u00a0Mario Filippi (N2HUN), who writes: With your broad knowledge of radios, wondering if you can add anything to this list of portable radios, past and present, that have 360 degree rotatable directional AM ferrite antennas. Reason is I am looking for an AM portable for\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "AM"","block_context":{"text":"AM","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/am\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"The Panasonic RF-2200 sports a rotatable AM\/MW antenna","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/Panasonic-RF2200-MtMitchell-3-1024x576.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/Panasonic-RF2200-MtMitchell-3-1024x576.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/Panasonic-RF2200-MtMitchell-3-1024x576.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":27332,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2017\/07\/guest-post-old-school-infrared-wireless-headphones\/","url_meta":{"origin":16460,"position":3},"title":"Guest Post: Old School Infrared Wireless Headphones","author":"Thomas","date":"July 26, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor,\u00a0Mario Filippi (N2HUN), who shares the following guest post: Old School (Infrared) Wireless Headphones by\u00a0Mario Filippi (N2HUN) Have you ever mindlessly walked away from your TV with headphones\/ear buds still tethered, causing all sorts of havoc? Been there, done that hi hi! Let\u2019s face it;\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Accessories"","block_context":{"text":"Accessories","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/accessories\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Sony-cordless-headphones-e1501068828925.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Sony-cordless-headphones-e1501068828925.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Sony-cordless-headphones-e1501068828925.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Sony-cordless-headphones-e1501068828925.jpg?resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":41697,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2020\/01\/the-sportys-air-scan-ii-has-a-unique-aviation-interrupt-feature\/","url_meta":{"origin":16460,"position":4},"title":"The Sporty’s Air Scan II has a unique “Aviation Interrupt” feature","author":"Thomas","date":"January 21, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor and supporter, Mario Filippi (N2HUN), who writes: Hope you are doing well, am really enjoying the SWLing Post, it's my daily version of the New York Times for the radio hobbyist. I realize that this is not SW related but did you know there\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Aviation"","block_context":{"text":"Aviation","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/aviation\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/Sportys-Aviation-Scanner-1024x1024.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/Sportys-Aviation-Scanner-1024x1024.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/Sportys-Aviation-Scanner-1024x1024.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":33183,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2018\/07\/sony-crf-330k-fetching-top-dollar-on-ebay\/","url_meta":{"origin":16460,"position":5},"title":"Sony CRF-330K fetching top dollar on eBay","author":"Thomas","date":"July 14, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Mario\u00a0Filippi (N2HUN), who writes: Saw this Sony receiver at a current high price on eBay: Interesting that it has a cassette recorder, although back in those days cassettes were popular and other radios had 'em installed to record your favorite shows or to just\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "News"","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/SONY-CRF-330K-Cassette.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16460","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/15"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=16460"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16460\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16460"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=16460"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=16460"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}