The SWLing Post

From the Isle of Music, March 21-27: This week our special guests are Yasser Eden and Carlos Scott Hernandez, leaders of Zona Franka, which has just released an exciting new album, Se llama sabroso, that mixes changüi with urban Cuban music. One of the songs features Omara Portuondo as guest vocalist. Also: a new single […]

I’m a child of the 1970s and I’m glad I never knew about the Sony FX-300 “Jackal 300.” It would have been the ultimate unobtainable machine of my dreams…this, even despite the lack of shortwave. I was browsing eBay yesterday when I saw one of these pop up in the search results. Somehow, this radio […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, John Brandt, who shares this excellent video featuring the amazing Jean Shepherd (K2ORS): Click here to view on YouTube.

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Ralf Bender, who shares the following update from Channel 292 after recent damage to their antenna farm: Since 0910 UTC this morning we are back on air on all three frequencies; 9670 using the dipole, repair of the beam might last one to two weeks depending on the weather. Thanks […]

Radio Waves: Stories Making Waves in the World of Radio 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 […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Ralf Bender, who shares the following notice from Channel 292: A heavy storm that hit us Saturday afternoon, caused severe damage to our antennas. Since Saturday, 1528 UTC we are off air. We hope that we can repair some of the damages on Sunday, and to be back on […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Fastradioburst23, who shares the broadcast flyer above. Looking forward to some more KMRT Blue Light Specials!

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Dave Zantow, who shares the following video from the Computer History Archives Project YouTube channel:

Radio Waves: Stories Making Waves in the World of Radio 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 […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Jack Dully, who writes: I am just wondering what portable receivers are more susceptible to overloading with long dipoles, say 60-70 ft. I regularly use such and I have never noticed anything unusual happening with a Sony ICF-7600GR, Grundig G3, or PL-880 to name a few. I just ordered […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Paul Walker, who shares the following announcement: Tune into WRMI for “The LIVE Friday Night Virtual Dance Party Request Party Thingy” from community station 89.5 KSKO McGrath, Alaska. The broadcast will take place on Saturday, March 20th 2021 from 0300 to 0500 UTC on 7570 kHz for the west […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Michael Ye (BD4AAQ), for the following guest post: In the Loop: PL-990 and LA400, a Perfect Match by Michael Ye (BD4AAQ) I have been a happy owner of Tecsun’s PL-880 world band receivers for years. In fact I have two PL-880 radios, one sitting at home and the other staying […]

From the Isle of Music, March 14-20: This week our special guest flautista René Lorente, a veteran of Orquesta Aragon, Orquesta America and Senen Suarez’ combo among other groups, shares some of his solo project recordings as we converse about his career. The broadcasts take place: 1. For Eastern Europe but audible well beyond the […]

Image Credit: Wiki Logos Public Domain Guest Post by Troy Riedel In keeping with a popular theme here – “radio in/on TV & movies” – I wanted to share the following that I saw on the Science Channel (part of the Discovery Network): Show: What on Earth? S5 Ep2 Originally aired 1/15/19 The above referenced episode […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Matt Blaze, for the following guest post: The “Signal Sweeper”, a portable Wellbrook antenna setup by Matt Blaze Here’s a very simple construction project that’s really improved my travel shortwave and mediumwave listening experience. When I go somewhere interesting (whether a day trip on my bike or a longer […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Roseanna, with Radio Northern Europe International who shares the following announcement: Hei alle, We have put together a packed show for March for all the wonderful RNEI listeners ? We’ve got lots of extras including: • Folk listening on-demand ? and on WRMI ? will get to hear a pretty piece of music from the game Unravel […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, David, who shares the following random photos he recently inherited and scanned. These were taken at an Antique Wireless Association meeting (AWA) from 2000. Click on images to enlarge: Thank you for sharing these David!

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Dan Robinson who notes that there currently a Squires Sanders SS-1R on eBay. He notes: Ultra rare amateur receiver. The only thing rarer is a SS-IBS, the SW bands version. This is certainly a “fixer upper” in that it will need a re-stringing and likely at least a recapping. […]

Even though I do most of my blogging from a MacBook Air and use a Windows 10 PC in the shack for SDR work, I’m a huge fan of Linux. Over the past decade, I’ve used a number of Linux distributions including Puppy Linux, Ubuntu, Linux Mint, and Raspian. The past few years, I’ve been […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Mario Filippi (N2HUN), who writes: Not sure if you are familiar with this site, run by Tony, WB2JKJ, a NYC school teacher and a great guy: https://www.hamradiomanuals.com/ I’ve dealt with him in the past with excellent satisfaction. I know that many manuals can be found free on-line, but if […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Don, who notes that W2ENY has developed a full suite of products for the Mission RGO ONE (click here to read our review of the RGO One). Don notes that W2ENY is producing a military handset, desk mic, headset with boom mic, and PTT cable. Click here to check out […]

(Source: Terry Colgan via FB) LADIES OF TEXAS MUSIC TRIBUTE ON WRMI TONIGHT Cap’n Ric is pleased to announce the artists featured in the upcoming Ladies of Texas Music Tribute: Jeanie C. Riley Jamie Lin Wilson Sunny Sweeney Lisa Loeb Norah Jones Lydia Mendoza Marcia Ball Lucinda Williams St. Vincent Barbara Lynn “Sippie” Wallace “Big […]

Sometimes we radio enthusiasts discover odd things on the air. We’re listeners and we notice things. A few days ago our friendy, Matt Blaze, tweeted this: Yep, for eight years a DDOT TIS (Traffic Information System) transmitter has been broadcasting the same repeating message and few have noticed. You can read Matt’s whole Twitter chain […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Fastradioburst23, who shares the KDUB broadcast flyer above. Note that the broadcast will air on March 7 and 14, 2021 at 12:00 UTC on 9670 kHz.

Radio Waves: Stories Making Waves in the World of Radio 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 […]

I just received the following comment from Richard Levenson posted with this off-air recording of Radio Tirana on the Shortwave Radio Audio Archive: Lots of fond memories listening to Radio Tirana, Albania going back to the late 1950’s. Their broadcasts back then were loaded with anti-West propaganda and more. Their interval signal is a classic […]

In January 2021, C.Crane announced the latest addition to their radio line-up: the C.Crane CC WiFi-3. C.Crane was one of the first radio manufacturers that embraced the world of Internet radio with their CC WiFi product line. The WiFi-3 is the latest iteration and offers the following upgrades over previous models: This radio uses the […]

From the Isle of Music, March 7-13: This week we enjoy several new and recent releases on the EGREM label. The broadcasts take place: 1. For Eastern Europe but audible well beyond the target area in most of the Eastern Hemisphere (including parts of East Asia and Oceania) with 100Kw, Sunday 1500-1600 UTC on SpaceLine, […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Mark Hirst, who shares the following guest post: Using the Yaesu FT-891 for SWLing by Mark Hirst Introduction While I have a small collection of portable shortwave radios for outdoor listening, I’ve been looking to fill a gap in my amateur radio lineup for a while. Outdoor operation has […]

The following review was first published in the February 2021 issue of The Spectrum Monitor magazine: It sometimes seems that one of the biggest enemies of a radio enthusiast these days is RFI (radio frequency interference), which is to say, human-originated noise that infiltrates––and plagues––vast chunks of our radio spectrum. Yet I believe RFI has, in a […]

Guest Post by Troy Riedel Since the demise of my Sony ICF-SW100, I’ve decided to do some AM Dx’ing. A few years ago I purchased a Sangean PR-D15 as my dedicated “AM Dx Radio”. Despite owning it for a few years, I hadn’t yet really put it through its paces. Note: My 1994 Gründig Yacht […]

Yesterday, at the (Virtual) 2021 Winter SWL Fest, I gave a presentation about QRP general coverage transceivers that I regularly use for shortwave broadcast listening (SWLing). My discussion was limited to QRP–or low-power–transceivers designed for portable use, but they only represent a small fraction of the new and used transceivers on the market. So what […]

RADIO EMMA TOC WORLD SERVICE – SCHEDULE SUMMARY – MARCH. 2021 www.emmatoc.com Programme Contents – A look at the value of radio, Scandinavian Weekend Radio, Radio Sweden’s ‘The Saturday Show’, & lots of hellos to listeners, – followed by a 30 minute trial vintage music programme ‘The Wireless Years’. Ways to listen… Radio Emma […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Thomas Miller, who writes: This Saturday at 5 pm Eastern Standard Time / Midnight Central Africa Time, Wave Farm and WGXC-FM present a special radio edit of “Building Radio Bridges: Audio Letters between Lockdown NYC and the Zambezi Valley.” More than 100 people in Africa, North America, and Europe […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Ray Novak, who notes that Icom has issued the following firmware updates for the IC-7300 and IC-9700: Icom IC-7300 Update Changes from Version 1.30 [Spectrum scope is improved] – A Scroll mode that can seamlessly change the displaying scope range, depending on the operating frequency, is added. – A […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, DanH, who shares the following update to his first impressions of the Sangean ATS-909X2: Update: Sangean ATS-909X2 First Impressions by DanH Sangean USA will offer a free software update to customers who have purchased the first USA mass production version of Sangean ATS-909X2. These radios are equipped with software […]

The Virtual 2021 Winter SWL Fest starts today and one of the Fest traditions–the Shortwave Shindig hosted by David Goren–will be broadcast via WRMI at 0200 UTC Saturday (9:00 EST Friday/Today) on 5,800 and 7,780 kHz. Please tune in!

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Dan Robinson, who recently shared a message he received from his friend Randy regarding the VisAir HF DDC/DUC Transceiver: I recently acquired a VisAir transceiver from Russia. It is an amazing SDR unit developed by two amateur radio operators. It is about the same size as the RDR55, but […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Kevin, who writes: I often see people on the side of the road at intersections holding signs, “homeless, can you help”, that sort of thing. Like a lot of people I used to ignore them. A few years ago I decided that I wanted to help so I looked […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Dave (K4SV), who shares the following video: Click here to view on YouTube.

From the Isle of Music, February 28-March 6: This week, special guest Yunior Romero, leader of Yunior Romero y su Sello Cubano, helps us present music from his two albums. The broadcasts take place: 1. For Eastern Europe but audible well beyond the target area in most of the Eastern Hemisphere (including parts of East […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, DanH, who shares the following guest post: Sangean ATS-909X2 First Impressions by DanH A few hours spent tuning a new radio are enough to make me feel confident that I know most of the new features and how to use them. Then several days, weeks or months later I […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Dave Porter, who shares a link to the following site which contains an extensive galley of photos taken at the Rampisham HF transmitting site on October 11, 2003. Click here to view the gallery. Thank you for the tip, Dave!

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Ivan Cholakov, who writes: Hello Thomas, Something entertaining – Thomas, N1SPY got his hands on a QST Magazine dated April 2041 if you can believe it! So he shared some of the stories in the magazine in a video and also attached the magazine to this email. I found […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, David Iurescia (LW4DAF), who shares the following feature from Radio Bulgaria who celebrates their 85th anniversary: Speaking your language for 85 years 2021 marks the 85th anniversary of the Bulgarian National Radio’s foreign language service to the world. It all began on 16 February, 1936. One year after the […]

I recently took delivery of a better-than-new classic solid-state portable broadcast receiver: the venerable GE Superadio II. This Superadio II was generously given to me by SWLing Post contributor, Chuck Rippel (K8HU), who has–in his spare time–been re-capping and restoring all three of the GE Superadio series models and bringing them back to life. Chuck […]

Radio Waves: Stories Making Waves in the World of Radio 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 […]

Not much to say here other than it’s cold outside, but the BC-348 is keeping me warm inside. There are few radios in my collection I love more than this one. She’s built like a tank and warms my shack and my soul!

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, DanH, who writes: Thomas, My Sangean ATS-909X2 arrived in excellent condition late this Friday afternoon. I will enjoy a shortwave session with the radio this evening and early next morning. Other than setting the clock to UTC and tuning in XEPPM Radio Educacion in Mexico City I haven’t spent […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Chris Rogers, who writes: Hi Thomas, An interesting new product has just been released for pre order, a US made Chameleon model CHA-RXL receive loop covering from 137 kHz -30 MHz. Looking at the options it comes on the web page it mentions a Loop type ”US single section” […]