The SWLing Post

Greg Blair’s radio story is the latest in our series called Listener Posts, where I place all of your personal radio histories. If you would like to add your story to the mix, simply send your story by email! In the meantime, many thanks to … Continue reading →

Many thanks to SWLing Post reader, David Iurescia (LW4DAF), who reminds us that 2015 is the 80th anniversary year of NHK Radio Japan. David shares the following link to NHK’s anniversary website: http://www.nhk.or.jp/intl80th/

(Source: National Endowment for the Humanities) For a Brief Time in the 1930s, Radio Station WLW in Ohio Became America’s One and Only “Super Station” by Katy June-Friesen When President Franklin Roosevelt, sitting in the White House, pushed a ceremonial button … Continue reading →

My friend, Wojtek Gwiazda, who has been a host and journalist for Radio Canada International–and an integral part of the RCI Action Committee–has retired. Click here to listen to an exit interview with Wojtek on RCI’s The Link. Also, check out this … Continue reading →

Many thanks to Sean Gilbert, International Editor at the World Radio TV Handbook, who is kindly sharing some international broadcasting statistics with us again. These statistics were originally posted on the WRTH Facebook group: Seasonal Language Output Comparison [F]or the … Continue reading →

Many thanks to Mehmet Burk of ReliefAnalysis.com for sharing the following about his new podcast: Disaster DX is a new audio series from ReliefAnalysis.com that looks at emerging disasters through the lens of humanitarian broadcasting. Episode 1 focuses on the impacts … Continue reading →

I’m very pleased to have just received a QSL card for the Radio Casablanca broadcast I heard last week. If you missed the show, click here to listen to my off air recording. This recording was also uploaded to the Shortwave … Continue reading →

Many thanks to @realmarkfahey who shares this tribute to the Shipping Forecast via Twitter: For anyone who's ever fallen under the hypnotic spell of The Shipping Forecast, a short tribute to its charm: http://t.co/BtGzby8fRE #R4in4 — BBC Radio 4 (@BBCRadio4) … Continue reading →

For your listening pleasure: one full hour of Radio Romania International‘s English language service. This recording was made on April 23 at 00:00 UTC on 9730 kHz. I used my Elad FDM-S2 software defined receiver to make this recording. As you … Continue reading →

My good pal David Korchin (K2WNW) posted the above photo in his Facebook feed yesterday, simply titled, “Today’s carry.” David is very much a kindred spirit; like me, he is constantly tweaking his go-gear. He works in New York City and likes to have … Continue reading →

Many thanks to SWLing Post reader, Bill Patalon, who writes: FCC’s LeBlanc wants to really crack down on Pirates …. And the “C” goes after the SW buccaneers as well as those on the commercial BCBs … http://www.radioworld.com/article/leblanc%E2%80%99s-goal-is-no-pirates/275622%20 While the … Continue reading →

Many thanks to SWLing Post reader, Ron, who shares this link to Jay Allen’s review of the classic Sony TFM-8000W. Last year, at the Dayton Hamvention, I picked up a Sony TFM-1600W; I find it to be an amazingly sensitive radio with … Continue reading →

SWLing Post reader, George (NJ3H), writes: First off, this short message is not about listening to anything over the radio, but over the internet. So I am sure that may be a disappointment for some. However, it does give folks a … Continue reading →

Thursday night at 00:00 UTC, I was pleased to hear the interval signal of one of my favorite pirate radio stations: Radio Casablanca. “Rick Blaine” fired up his AM transmitter and pumped out some amazing WWII era music on 6,940 … Continue reading →

SWLing Post reader, Murray, recently took the Tecsun PL-380 with him on a trip to view the solar eclipse and then to Morocco for an extended excursion. He writes: We flew out of Billund Denmark for the [solar] eclipse flight. A … Continue reading →

While Norway prepares to shut down FM, one group–the National Association of Broadcasters–is trying to unlock FM receivers in smart phones; receivers built into smart phones, but not allowed to be activated. Many thanks to SWLing Post reader, Benn, for sharing this … Continue reading →

(Source: Radio.no) NORWAY TO SWITCH OFF FM IN 2017 Within two years from now, the shutdown of national FM-networks begins in Norway. The switchover will begin in the North and will be implemented region by region. Thursday, the Ministry of … Continue reading →

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Dan Robinson, who shares this YouTube video comparing four of his receivers: the McKay Dymek DR33-C6, the East German made RFT EKD 515, Japan Radio Company NRD-301A, and his Watkins Johnson 8718A/MFPWJ WJ .

Many thanks to SWLing Post reader, Michael, for sharing a link to this opinion piece in the Wall Street Journal by Ed Royce (R), Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee. Here is a short clip from the piece: “Vladimir … Continue reading →

Jeff, over at the Herculodge, writes with some disappointing news: What a shame John bought the WR-15 and thinks it stinks: http://herculodge.typepad.com/herculodge/2015/04/john-cannot-recommend-the-sangean-wr-15-radio-due-to-subpar-am-and-fm.html Oh, that is a shame. An AM/FM radio with poor AM/FM sensitivity has little appeal (even if it … Continue reading →

Many thanks to an SWLing Post reader who shares this blog post by FCC Commissioner, Michael O’Rielly. In his post, Commissioner O’Rielly expresses his hatred of pirate radio stations and how he believes action should be taken against pirate stations. … Continue reading →

Regarding the Grundig G2, SWLing Post reader “Shortwave Listener 22007″ recently commented: I have owned this radio for about 2 months, here are the things I have noticed… The good: The G2 has shortwave reception almost matching that of my … Continue reading →

Many thanks to SWLing Post reader, Franz Miller, who writes: “I’ve pasted a link below to the webpage at Conrad in Germany for yet another Franzis radio kit; no idea how good it is, but it looks neato-retro to me. Covers … Continue reading →

SWLing Post reader, CJ, recently offered to host a chat room here on our site––quite a generous offering. I’d thought about implementing a radio-themed chat room in the past, but had to be realistic about it, as my schedule simply doesn’t allow … Continue reading →

(Source: NY Times) David Ensor, who as director of the Voice of America has presided over significant growth in the news agency’s audience despite budget cuts, announced Tuesday that he was stepping down. Mr. Ensor, who joined the Voice of … Continue reading →

Jonathan Marks writes: I published a few more old programmes which I think are relevant to the ongoing discussions in Washington about US International Broadcasting. One programme in particular from 1988 no less, shows me that not a lot has … Continue reading →

(Source: Mashable) Inventor Victor T. Hoeflich, founder of novelty manufacturing corporation American Merri-Lei of Brooklyn, New York, introduced his “Man-from-Mars Radio Hat” in March 1949. In the press conference, he used teenagers as models. Sold in department stores across the … Continue reading →

Radio Exterior de España has posted an updated broadcast schedule (in Spanish) on their website. I have translated and pasted the shortwave schedules below: Radio Exterior de España transmits its programming from 18:00 to 22:00 hours, Coordinated Universal Time, Monday … Continue reading →

My buddy, Dave Zantow (N9EWO), has apprised me of a new review he has published of the classic Kenwood R-1000 receiver. Dave comments that he doesn’t normally review discontinued sets anymore, but he made an exception for the R-1000 as it “was so unique/good and … Continue reading →

A few weeks ago, I made an impulse purchase: a Sony ICF-2001. Perhaps it was the post about John Lennon’s ICF-2001, or perhaps it was the simple fact I couldn’t afford a ‘2001 when I was a kid; either way, I … Continue reading →

After posting a link to Paul Litwinovich’s Zenith Transoceanic article, SWLing Post reader, Bob LaRose (W6ACU) sent me the following message: “Just a quick story to follow-up on the excellent Zenith Transoceanic article today. It brought back a lot of great … Continue reading →

Many thanks to SWLing Post reader, Paul, who points out this excellent article about the Zenith Transoceanic by Paul Litwinovich of WSHU. Litwinovich’s article covers a brief history of the Zenith Transoceanic series including photos from his amazing collection (check out his model … Continue reading →

Yesterday, Deutsche Welle transmitted its final broadcast from the Kigali, Rwanda relay station. Since I’ve only had moderate luck hearing the Kigali site the past few days–especially on 31 meters–I fired up the TitanSDR Pro (which is still currently under review) … Continue reading →

Many thanks to SWLing Post reader, Mike, who notes this brief announcement from Radio Taiwan International: “Starting from March 29th, RTI will terminate its transmission to Europe on 3965 KHz and to Africa on 11975 KHZ following the end of … Continue reading →

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Richard Cuff, for sharing this article from The National: Radio wars: information battle heats up as Russia and China muscle in For about 70 years it was the base of the BBC World Service. … Continue reading →

I’ve never been a fan of tablet PCs. I have an old Android tablet that I occasionally use to watch Netflix and read eBooks, but when I want to interact with a computer, I typically want the convenience of a … Continue reading →

If you enjoy listening to The Mighty KBC, you’ll want to note these frequency changes and additions: Frequency changes for The Mighty KBC We are delighted to announce that from the 1st June 2015, KBC will be heard daily on … Continue reading →

Many thanks to several readers (including Mike and Greg) who have shared a link to RTL-SDR.com’s Roundup of Software Defined Receivers. The list gives an excellent, comprehensive overview of SDRs currently on the market. I encourage you to check … Continue reading →

I’ve just heard from German manufacturer, Bonito, who has added several new products to their product line: MegaLoop ML200: The MegaLoop is a 5 meter active stainless steel loop antenna that can be used outdoors. The MegaLoop ML200 ships with a Dual Power power … Continue reading →

This morning, I noticed that Universal Radio is now bundling that AN200 medium wave loop with the purchase of a Eton Traveler III. I’ve had an AN200 for years and it does make quite a different when inductively coupled with portable … Continue reading →

(Source: Radio Australia) Broadcast communications that were knocked out by Cyclone Pam have been fully restored. Francis Herman, the ABC’s program manager for the Pacific Media Assistance Scheme, says transmission engineer Steve White and local technicians have fixed Radio Vanuatu’s … Continue reading →

Gary DeBock, acclaimed innovator in the realm of Ultralight DXing, has recently completed a exhaustive comparison of five popular Ultralight radios: the C.Crane CC Pocket, the Sangean DT-400W, the Eton Traveler III, the Tecsun PL-310ET, and the C.Crane CC Skywave. In this excellent guest post, … Continue reading →

After posting about the price reduction in the SDRplay RSP, Wyn Evans commented with his comparison of the SDRplay RSP and Airspy (another popular low-cost wideband SDR). Wyn writes: I have both and Airspy and the SDRplay RSP. I like them … Continue reading →

Dan Lewis, from RNI’s Mailbag show, describes the latest addition to his audio archive: You can’t keep a good pirate down. Another snow-filled weekend in NYC seems like a good time to go back in time to November 11, 1990. Al … Continue reading →

On a tip from my good friend Dave Cripe (NM0S), I just purchased this cute crystal receiver kit from a UK-based seller on eBay. The price is 8 GPB plus 3.50 GPB for shipping. After PayPal currency conversion, I paid … Continue reading →

Jeff over at the excellent Herculodg blog, is about to pull the trigger on this Sangean WR-15. I must admit, I’m mighty tempted, too–about as tempted as I get for radios lacking shortwave coverage. I love the simple design, the analog … Continue reading →

At the 2015 Winter SWL Fest, I co-hosting a forum on Software-Defined Radios. Afterwards, a radio friend–who happens to be visually impaired–approached me to ask: “What is the best SDR for those who are blind or visually impaired?” I’d never been asked … Continue reading →

My friend and fellow DXer, Rob Wagner, writes: R. Vanuatu has been off the air for ages. It has suddenly come back on in the last hour or so on 7259.95 kHz and 3945 kHz with post-cyclone assistance and information. … Continue reading →