{"id":22871,"date":"2016-12-22T10:19:13","date_gmt":"2016-12-22T14:19:13","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/?p=22871"},"modified":"2016-12-22T10:47:33","modified_gmt":"2016-12-22T14:47:33","slug":"nows-the-time-to-grab-longwave-dx","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2016\/12\/nows-the-time-to-grab-longwave-dx\/","title":{"rendered":"Now’s the time to grab longwave DX!"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

If you’ve been wanting to log France Inter<\/a> as longwave DX, you’re running out of time. France Inter is shutting down their 162 kHz longwave service on December 31, 2016<\/a>.<\/p>\n

I’m grateful to SWLing Post<\/em> contributor, Ron, who has persistently reminded me that these are some of the last days to catch France Inter as LW DX here in North America. \u00a0Indeed, he shared a bit of interesting and encouraging news a couple weeks ago:<\/p>\n

On the Radiodiscussions DX forum, Jim Farmer over in San Antonio got and recorded France Inter on 162 khz using a PK loop and Sony 7600GR.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The PK Loop he’s referring to is this one<\/a>\u00a0and, of course, the Sony ICF-SW7600GR<\/a> is one of my staple portables.<\/p>\n

While I’d love to try to grab France Inter with my Sony, my schedule makes it very difficult to arrange. Fortunately, I have SDRs which allow me to record spectrum throughout the night, then review the recordings in the morning.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Throughout the month of December, I’ve been recording a small\u00a0chunk of longwave spectrum–with my WinRadio Excalibur<\/a>–during\u00a0the night and reviewing it in the morning in hopes that I could grab an opening from France Inter.<\/p>\n

I was rewarded on December 19, 2016 around 0300 UTC. Though there was atmospheric noise that night in the form of static crashes, I snagged France Inter on 162 kHz.<\/p>\n

<\/a>

My spectrum display from the Excalibur.<\/p><\/div>\n

The 162 kHz carrier was barely above the noise floor (see above), so it was certainly weak signal DX. Here’s an audio sample:<\/p>\nhttps:\/\/archive.org\/download\/FranceInter0.162MHz19DEC20160300U\/FranceInter-0.162MHz-19DEC2016-0300U.mp3<\/a><\/audio>\n

Click here to download the mp3 file<\/a>.<\/p>\n

When that short LW opening happened, I was also able to snag Medi 1<\/strong> from Morocco on 171 kHz. Again, not fantastic copy, but I’m happy:<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\nhttps:\/\/archive.org\/download\/FranceInter0.162MHz19DEC20160300U\/Medi1-0.171MHz-19DEC2016-0300UTC.mp3<\/a><\/audio>\n

Click here to download the mp3.<\/a><\/p>\n

Mind you, both France Inter and Medi 1 only transmit at 2,000 watts–that’s flea power compared to our shortwave broadcasters. It’s amazing those signals can even hop the Atlantic.<\/del><\/p>\n

Correction…an SWLing Post reader, qwerty.am, comments<\/a>:<\/p>\n

Actually, the power of France Inter and Medi1 is 2000 kW and 1600 kW respectively. So the power of most SW broadcasters should be called a “flea power” in comparison to what is used on longwave. The smallest output on LW band in Europe is 50 kW, it’s used by Denmark and Czech Rep. The 162 kHz transmitter is closing on Dec 26th, according to the latest news.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Wow!<\/p>\n

Again, if you’d like to grab \u00a0longwave stations before they disappear, now is the time!<\/em> Our LW broadcasters are disappearing rapidly. Fortunately, winter (here in the northern hemisphere) is the best time to chase LW DX.<\/p>\n

Thanks, again, Ron for your encouragement! I’ll keep listening and recording!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

If you’ve been wanting to log France Inter as longwave DX, you’re running out of time. France Inter is shutting down their 162 kHz longwave service on December 31, 2016. I’m grateful to SWLing Post contributor, Ron, who has persistently reminded me that these are some of the last days to catch France Inter as […]<\/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":true,"_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":[56,2436,3,746],"tags":[4025,4028,4123,4321,5754,121,1395],"class_list":["post-22871","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-broadcasters","category-longwave","category-news","category-recordings","tag-france-inter","tag-france-inter-cuts","tag-longwave","tag-lw","tag-medi-1","tag-sony-icf-sw7600gr","tag-winradio-excalibur"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pn3uc-5WT","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":22994,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2016\/12\/162-khz-longwave-csa-france-seeks-expressions-of-interest-for-broadcast-license\/","url_meta":{"origin":22871,"position":0},"title":"162 kHz longwave: CSA France seeks expressions of interest for broadcast license","author":"Thomas","date":"December 23, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"(Source: Southgate ARC via Mike Barraclough) French 162 kHz Broadcast Licence The French Superior Council of Audiovisual (Content), CSA, is calling for expressions of interest in broadcasting on 162 kHz They say: In accordance with the provisions of Article 26 of the amended Freedom of Communication Act of September 30,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Broadcasters"","block_context":{"text":"Broadcasters","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/broadcasters\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/FranceInter-LW-Spectrum-Capture-e1482412579526.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/FranceInter-LW-Spectrum-Capture-e1482412579526.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/FranceInter-LW-Spectrum-Capture-e1482412579526.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/FranceInter-LW-Spectrum-Capture-e1482412579526.jpg?resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":14214,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2015\/07\/online-petition-to-keep-radio-france-on-longwave\/","url_meta":{"origin":22871,"position":1},"title":"Online petition to keep Radio France on longwave","author":"Thomas","date":"July 30, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to SWLing Post reader, Clive Bilton, who\u00a0comments: An online petition has been started in an effort to keep Radio France on 162 kHz longwave, you can sign here: http:\/\/162khz.wesign.it\/fr Note that the petition is in French. It's quite simple to sign, though, as you simply enter your details\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "International Broadcasting"","block_context":{"text":"International Broadcasting","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/international-broadcasting\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Maison_de_la_Radio_Paris","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/07\/Maison_de_la_Radio_Paris-1024x539.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/07\/Maison_de_la_Radio_Paris-1024x539.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/07\/Maison_de_la_Radio_Paris-1024x539.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":16485,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2015\/12\/ayar-notes-lw-and-mw-transmitters-still-active-in-france\/","url_meta":{"origin":22871,"position":2},"title":"Ayar notes LW and MW transmitters still active in France","author":"Thomas","date":"December 31, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"In response to our previous post about France, Germany and Luxembourg leaving the AM broadcast bands, SWLing Post contributor Ayar (HB9EVW) comments: It is indeed a sad day for AM broadcasting. Not only Germany, France and Luxembourg, also the Czech Republic will turn off 3 MW transmitters on January 5th\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "AM"","block_context":{"text":"AM","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/am\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"AM-Dial-Digital-Grundig-Mediumwave-MW","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/AM-Dial-Digital-Grundig-Mediumwave-MW.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/AM-Dial-Digital-Grundig-Mediumwave-MW.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/AM-Dial-Digital-Grundig-Mediumwave-MW.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":12071,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2015\/01\/attila-notes-the-passing-of-deutschlandradio-longwave\/","url_meta":{"origin":22871,"position":3},"title":"Attila notes the passing of Deutschlandradio longwave","author":"Thomas","date":"January 28, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"SWLing Post reader, P\u00e1zm\u00e1ny Attila, writes: \"I'm a SWL-MWL-LWL from Hungary, Europe. I like your blog where I can read about radio news and reviews. You report about new stations if they appear in the air and about closed stations if they disappear from the air. I did not observed\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Longwave"","block_context":{"text":"Longwave","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/longwave\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"DL-Radio","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/01\/DL-Radio.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/01\/DL-Radio.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/01\/DL-Radio.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/01\/DL-Radio.jpg?resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":14210,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2015\/07\/radio-france-mediumwave-and-longwave-broadcasts-to-end\/","url_meta":{"origin":22871,"position":4},"title":"Radio France: mediumwave and longwave broadcasts to end","author":"Thomas","date":"July 29, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to SWLing Post reader, Marc, who sends\u00a0this news from France Inter. The article (in French) states that Radio France, in a cost-cutting measure, will end mediumwave transmissions by the end of this year (2015) and longwave transmissions\u00a0by the end of 2016. It's estimated that\u00a0this will save 13 million\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "International Broadcasting"","block_context":{"text":"International Broadcasting","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/international-broadcasting\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Maison_de_la_Radio_Paris","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/07\/Maison_de_la_Radio_Paris-1024x539.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/07\/Maison_de_la_Radio_Paris-1024x539.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/07\/Maison_de_la_Radio_Paris-1024x539.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":39252,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2019\/08\/ron-is-impressed-with-the-pk-loop-mini-a-loop-mtam\/","url_meta":{"origin":22871,"position":5},"title":"Ron is impressed with the PK Loop Mini (A-LOOP-MTAM)","author":"Thomas","date":"August 22, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Ron, who shares the following review of the PK Loop Mini (A-LOOP-MTAM): Standard PK Loose-Coupled Loops (the \"A\" series) are 14 inches in diameter...they are for use with a receiver having a built-in ferrite bar antenna. Don't think they're not capable of serious DX...a\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "AM"","block_context":{"text":"AM","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/am\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/PK-Loop-Mini-cropped.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/PK-Loop-Mini-cropped.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/PK-Loop-Mini-cropped.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22871","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=22871"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22871\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=22871"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=22871"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=22871"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}