The SWLing Post

SWLing Post contributor, Mark Fahey, has just announced that his new Beaglebone-powered KiwiSDR receiver is online. Mark notes: Please try out my multi-user 0-30MHz SDR[.] The test system is operating from my monitoring station at Freemans Reach in south east Australia (near Sydney). […]The test system is fully self contained and self operating. The antenna (ALA1530S+) […]

I’m very happy to see that the CBC has reported on the premier of Amanda Dawn Christie’s film, Spectres of Shortwave. (Source: CBC) For seven decades, a mysterious site on the Trans-Canada highway marked Sackville, New Brunswick. Where the hills and trees faded just past the Nova Scotia border, 13 120-metre towers rose up from the town’s Tantramar […]

If you’re around the radio this morning (Sunday, Sep 25), and you’d like to make some NPOTA contacts, note that I plan activate: Great Smoky Mountains (NP26) & Appalachian National Scenic Trail (TR01) starting around 13:30 UTC (9:30 EDT), Great Smoky Mountains (NP26) & Blue Ridge Parkway (PK01) starting around 15:00 UTC (11:00 EDT) and hopefully Trail of Tears National Historic […]

This is the first and only “WorldSpace” satellite receiver I’ve seen on Ebay, currently offered at a $175 Buy-It-Now price from a seller in Australia: http://www.ebay.com/itm/HITACHI-KW-WSI-DIGITAL-RECEIVER-WS-FM-MW-SW1-SW2-/282192383263 The radio is listed as in excellent condition with the original box and literature. Besides the long-gone WorldSpace satellite frequencies, the radio covers medium wave, FM, and most of […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, William Lee, who shares a link to this article on the BBC Blog: Currently there are over 15,000 permanently available programmes, largely radio programmes, on the BBC website dating back decades, but they can be very difficult to find. From today, we’re launching a new piece of technology called […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, London Shortwave, who shared a link to this Sony CRF-V21 on eBay: Click here to view on eBay UK. I’m sure a Sony collector will eventually snag this rig. Thought the listing mentions no shipping outside the UK, the Seller states otherwise: “[I]f you don’t live in uk you […]

(Source: YouTube and WRTH Facebook Page) Click here to view on YouTube.

Around noon (EDT) today, I’ll start my short journey to the W4DXCC conference in Sevierville, TN. En route, I’ll pass through three National Parks: the Blue Ridge Parkway, The Appalachian National Scenic Trail and the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. It’s a beautiful drive and the weather appears to be near-ideal–clear skies. This also affords me the opportunity to activate two […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, DanH, who writes: I read this news item today. AT&T has a new approach to broadband over power lines called AirGig. Supposedly, this technology will avoid RFI issues encountered with previous BPL technologies. This shouldn’t be an issue in my neighborhood where power lines are underground. Underground utilities still […]

Our September 27 (September 26 in the Americas on WBCQ) program offers special guest Yissy Garcia, one of Cuba’s most exciting young drummers and leader of Yissy & Bandancha, an explosive new project with which we think you’ll fall in love. And, of course, we’ll play a lot of other great Cuban music as well. […]

Many thanks to Luis Maria Barassi (RAE Director) and Adrian Korol (RAE Executive Advisor) for sharing the following press release: RAE- RADIODIFUSION ARGENTINA AL EXTERIOR becomes RAE- ARGENTINA TO THE WORLD A new stage begins in the history of RAE, that will transform from RAE-RADIODIFUSION ARGENTINA AL EXTERIOR to RAE- ARGENTINA TO THE WORLD, updating the identity […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Richard Langley, who noticed an error in the original announcement about the Spectres of Shortwave Premiere. Richard has confirmed with Amanda Dawn Christie that the simulcast is at 7:15 p.m. ADT (not 7:15 AST) as it will still be Daylight Savings Time. This means it will be 6:15 p.m. EDT or 22:15 […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post reader, John Cooper, who writes with the following update: Attention All Shortwave DXers and SW Listeners! The closing date for the Contest survey gauging the interest in having a North American Shortwave DX Contest is in 10 days from today. As of today’s date I have only received 18 […]

Hi there, I’ve owned my Sony ICF-SW100S for about a year now and in that time it has demonstrated a level of performance way beyond my expectations. Notwithstanding it’s incredibly small size (about the same as a packet of cigarettes, give-or-take), the DX results I have obtained with it are simply incredible. A fully featured […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Paul Walker, who writes: From time to time, I get some interesting shortwave catches here in Alaska. Sometimes on 10 MHz, I get WWV. Sometimes I get WWVH. Sometimes I get BPM China. And from time to time, I’ve heard all three at once. Well this clip is something […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post reader, Mike, who shares a link to the following interview with Fayyaz Sheheryar, Director General of All India Radio. I’ve pasted a couple of Sheheryar’s responses below–click here to read the full interview. But there had been some talk in the government at one time to disband short wave broadcasts? Yes, but we had […]

As I mentioned in a previous post, what I love about the National Parks On The Air program is that it combines two of my favorite things: national parks and ham radio. My family visits national parks regularly, so it’s easy for me to pack a small radio, do a quick NPOTA activation all while incorporating […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Mike Ladd (KD2KOG), who notes the release of SDRuno version 1.03: Beta testing is complete. Changelog is below. Version 1.03 (18th September 2016) Bug Fixes High DPI resolution issue. Various minor bug fixes and typos Updates Reworked filter cutoffs Separate out EXTIO functionality RSP Ready indicator in Main Window/SETT/Input […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Tom Ally, who shares the following short videos of the PatronX Titus II: Click here to view on YouTube. http://titusradio.com/files/titus%20intro%20to%20cover-base.mp4 Click here to download.

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Aaron Kuhn, who writes: The HFCC is now collecting “pre-orders” (really expressions of interest in purchasing/demand) for the PantronX Titus II Android Radio at http://hfcc.org/delivery/receivers.phtml “The purpose of this form is to collect the information on the demand for pre-production samples of the Titus II receiver. It is NOT […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, A. Black, who shares the following article from Slashdot: This week the U.S. House of Representatives unanimously passed “The Ham Radio Parity Act” — a huge victory for grass-roots advocates of amateur radio. Slashdot readerbobbied reports: This will allow for the reasonable accommodation of amateur radio antennas in many […]

(Source: RTÉ) Wherever you are in the world, here’s how you can follow this year’s All-Ireland football finals with RTÉ Sport. On TV with RTÉ television, online via RTÉ Player, worldwide with GAAGO, on your mobile device with RTÉ News Now and via shortwave to Africa with RTÉ Radio, there are no shortage of ways to […]

I’m very pleased to share this press release from filmmaker Amanda Dawn Christie: WORLD PREMIERE : Thursday, Sept. 22, 7:15 pm AST (11:15pm UTC) Spectres of Shortwave / Ombres des ondes courtes A film about radio waves, relationships, landscape, and loss. ============================================ Exciting news! Spectres of Shortwave is finally finished! After seven long years, it’s finally […]

Today, I plan to activate both the Blue Ridge Parkway (PK01) and Overmountain Victory National Historic Trail (TR10) two-fer for the National Parks on the Air (NPOTA). I should go on the air sometime between 16:00-17:00 UTC (12:00-13:00 EDT), weather permitting. I’ll plan to start on the 20 meter band (14286 kHz) then move to the 40 […]

TIMBA TIME, ONE MORE TIME! Our September 20 (September 19 in the Americas on WBCQ) program offers more of Caribe Nostrum, winner of Cubadisco 2016 in the Concert and Chamber Music category and one of the two Gran Premio winners. Guido López Gavilán, the Director, will join us to talk about the music. Then, special […]

Hi there, here is a selection of North American medium wave stations logged in Oxford UK, over the past couple of weeks using the Elad FDM DUO and Wellbrook ALA1530 active loop antenna (indoors). A quick list of stations logged follows below – with URL links which will take you directly to the respective reception video […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Gary Wise (W4EEY), who writes: A good friend of mine recently bought an RTL-SDR (Version 3) from Amazon after seeing the unit in action at my house. He primarily uses Apple computers, however, and the software selections for Apple’s IOS recommended at the RTL-SDR Quick Start Guide (http://www.rtl-sdr.com/rtl-sdr-quick-start-guide/) don’t […]

Though I have a lot of shortwave portables, the Sony ICF-SW7600GR is still one of my favorites. Why? Despite its ergonomic shortcomings, it’s a solid performer with a robust sync detector and stable AGC. Check out how it compared with other benchmark portables in our Mega Review. I understand that Sony no longer manufactures the ‘7600GR–perhaps […]

I’m honored to have been interviewed by Eric (4Z1UG) for his QSO Today podcast. The interview was posted as a podcast this week. We recorded it a couple weeks ago via Skype. My home Internet service was so terrible that day, I actually drove into town, parked in a parking lot, and used Skype via my mobile hotspot. I […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Ron, who notes that Jay Allen has just published a review of the Sangean PR-D6. Jay gives the PR-D6 high marks on AM performance–especially for a $30 radio. I also love the simple analog design! Thanks for the tip, Ron!

In late May, as I was packing for two months of travel in Canada, I received a message from long-time SWLing Post reader, Chris Aiken. Chris was seeking the right home for his Yaesu FRG-7 and Hallicrafters S-38 receivers. I was very interested–especially in the FRG-7. Many SWL friends (Robert Gulley and Mike Hansgen, to name just a couple) […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Dan Robinson, who shares a link to this Radio-Dakar QSL card that just sold on eBay for $1,195 US: As Dan stated…“Holy Crap!” Checking out the bidding history, it appears there was definitely a bidding war going on, with the buyers entering substantial bid increments. This QSL card started […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Mike Hansgen (K8RAT), who shares the following message from SDRplay: Monday September 12th Thanks to the weakening of the GB Pound, the dollar exchange rate has changed significantly over the past few months. We have decided that we would like to pass on the benefit of this to our […]

Hi there, I thought I would share some DX catches, all of which are rarely reported in Europe and yet I was fortunate enough to catch in Oxford UK, using a couple of different set-ups. The first is Radio Chaski Red Integridad from Urubamba Cusco, Peru, heard using an Elad FDM DUO and Wellbrook ALA1530 active loop antenna […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Bill, who writes: I was interested in the Sangean HDR-18 which showed up on SWLing Post. But I ended up going for the similar-looking WR-22 (here on the Sangean site) because it lookscooler. Well, yes, it also costs a bit less. Also, it trades the HDR-18’s HDRadio capability for Bluetooth streaming. […]

Regular SWLing Post readers might recall the gorgeous Sproutie MKII regenerative receiver my buddy Dave Richards (AA7EE) built last year. No doubt, Dave does a proper job with his homebrew radios–a talented builder and engineer indeed! Check out Dave’s latest homebrew project: A Scratch-Build of N6KR and Wilderness Radio’s SST for 20M. Dave’s notes and images are […]

My buddy, Rob Wagner (VK3BVW), has just posted an article with detailed photos of the Brandon Antenna farm on his excellent blog, the Mount Evelyn DX Report. Rob introduces his article: During our recent two month trip north from Mount Evelyn through Queensland and New South Wales, we had an opportunity to visit the former […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Mark Hirst, who writes: I noticed recently in an episode of the BBC series, “Death in Paradise“, a Yaesu FRG-8800 sat on a book case. [The screenshot is] from Season 4, Episode 1 “Stab in the Dark”, with the radio off DS Camille Bordey’s right shoulder. [See image above–click to enlarge] […]

This summer has been a tough one for me in many ways, not the least of which is the minimal amount of time I have been able to spend playing radio. I have several commitments involving radio each week/month, but I do not consider that “playing” radio. To me, playing radio is where we get […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post reader, Mark Harper, who writes: Must be LNIB season..here’s another one: Click here to view on eBay. $202 at the moment…Looks to be complete as well! Thanks, Mark! I believe Post reader, Moshe, also took notice of this Panasonic RF-4800. It appears it’s being sold by the same seller who […]

Yesterday, I fit in yet another activation of the Carl Sandburg Home (NS01) for the ARRL National Parks on the Air. You might recall, I activated the same site last Sunday. Second time’s a charm! Since I had already scoped out the site and the trail where I operated last time, I took a minimum […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Dan Robinson, who points out this “Like New In Box” (LNIB) Sony ICF-6800W on eBay. Even the box appears to be in good shape: Dan has been watching this auction and forecasts that it’ll fetch a healthy sum in the end. I’m pretty sure he’s correct. Click here to […]

This afternoon (September 8), I should have a chance to activate the Carl Sandburg Home again for the ARRL National Parks on the Air program. You might recall, I activated the site Sunday as well. I’ll plan to use the Elecraft KX2 and EFT TRail-Friendly antenna combo once again. I should be on the air […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Phil Brennan, who writes: [Recently] one of your contributors mentioned that he purchased a BHI DSP unit at a discounted price. I purchased one (a different model to the one in the previous post) some months ago before I headed away travelling. The post reminded me that I had made […]

TIMBA TIME! Our September 13 (September 12 in the Americas on WBCQ) program offers more of Caribe Nostrum, winner of Cubadisco 2016 in the Concert and Chamber Music category and one of the two Gran Premio winners. Guido López Gavilán, the Director, will join us to talk about the music. Then, special guest Lourdes Diez […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post reader, Rick Slobodian, who writes to request help with the following: I was on the beach at our lake, [where I was listening to my] Tecsun PL-606 receiver. [On Friday, August 19, 2016 at 1800 UTC, I noted a] “beeper”: beeps at Hz repetition rate , does not appear to be […]