The SWLing Post

From the Isle of Music, December 6-12: This week, special guest Toni Basanta returns to share music from Expreso Rítmico and Grupo Los Yoyi, two popular dance bands in Cuba in the 1970-1980s, with us. The broadcasts take place: 1. For Eastern Europe but audible well beyond the target area in most of the Eastern […]

For those of you who have been asking about the new Xiegu GSOC controller, I just updated my unit with the latest firmware (version 1.1). Firmware notes show that it addresses the following items: Xiegu GSOC FW V1.1 1. Solved the CW sidetone delay problem 2. Solved the problem of unstable system and occasional crash […]

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 […]

(Source: FCC.gov) CHAIRMAN PAI ANNOUNCES HIS INTENT TO DEPART FCC — WASHINGTON, November 30, 2020—Today, Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai announced that he intends to leave the Federal Communications Commission on January 20, 2021. Chairman Pai issued the following statement: “It has been the honor of a lifetime to serve at the Federal Communications […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Alan Roe, who shares his latest update to his B20 season guide to music on shortwave. Click here to download as a PDF.

I just received an announcement from C.Crane noting that their Cyber Monday sale discounts everything in their catalog by 10%. If you’ve been considering one of their radios or accessories, today is a great day to pull the trigger. It’s rare that C.Crane discounts are lower than 10%. Click here to check out C.Crane’s Cyber […]

I just received an email announcement from Radioddity noting their holiday sale which lasts through November 30, 2020. Much of their inventory has been discounted. They’ve also added “Flash Sale” packages which include the Xiegu G90, Xiegu X5105, and the new GSOC. If you’ve been considering the purchase of any of these items, I’d encourage […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Istvan Biliczky, who writes: We would like to remind you that the TOP 10 DX OF THE YEAR contest will start soon. From 1 December 2020. 00:00 UTC to 31 December 2020 24:00 UTC The contest is open for all shortwave listeners and free of charge. All the information […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Matt Blaze (WB2SRI), for sharing another brilliant audio comparison featuring benchmark portable radios: Medium wave selectivity shootout by Matt Blaze I did another monster medium wave portable receiver comparison, this time with the aim of comparing receivers’ ability to deal with weak signals in the presence of strong adjacent […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Paul Evans, who passes along the following tips: Circuit Specialists have started Black Friday, but only 10% off everything. The code fer Circuit Specialists is CYBER2020 at checkout…10% off everything until midnight Monday. There’s also a raffle for free 100MHz 2x DSOs and some pen style 25MHz DSOs fer […]

Here in the States, we’re celebrating Thanksgiving today. It’s my favorite holiday because it’s all about giving thanks and spending time with friends, family, and eating some amazing food. Of course, it’ll be a bit different this year as families opt to meet virtually in an effort to stop the spread of Covid-19. I believe […]

A few weeks ago, I was contacted by author Ronald W. Kenyon who has written non-fiction books covering a variety of subjects, but primarily collections of essays and albums of photography. He was very proud to announce that his latest book, QSL: How I Traveled the World and Never Left Home, focuses on his pursuit […]

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, Dan Robinson, for the following guest post: Zenith Trans Oceanics Still Command Big Prices by Dan Robinson For many radio collectors and users, the Zenith Trans Oceanic R7000-2 is a must-have item in the collection. This was the final version of the Zenith Trans Oceanic line that stretched back […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Nick Hall-Patch, who writes: Since 1964, the International Radio Club of America has been documenting medium wave DXing and DXers’ efforts to improve their understanding of radio reception and to develop better listening techniques. During that time, over 900 articles have been written, that have furthered the art of […]

I just received a message from C.Crane noting that they’re discounting the excellent C.Crane CCRadio 2E $20 today (25 Nov 2020) until 11:59PM PT. Simply add the radio to our shopping cart and the price will be adjusted automatically. The CCRadio 2E, along with the CCRadio 3, is considered one of the best mediumwave portable […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Gregory Ivanov, who writes: Hi, found this video–I think it’s pretty cool. Shows some impressive 3D propagation simulation, I haven’t seen before: Wow! That is fascinating. Thank you for sharing this, Gregory. 3D tools like this could be invaluable for predicting propagation even for hams and SWLs. Of course, […]

From the Isle of Music, November 29-December 5: This week, special guest Toni Basanta shares music from Monte de Espuma and Expreso Ritmico, two popular dance bands in Cuba in the 1970-1980s, with us. The broadcasts take place: 1. For Eastern Europe but audible well beyond the target area in most of the Eastern Hemisphere […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, DanH, who writes: The YouTube channel Phuong DPRK Daily recently posted a video titled Listeners to Radio “Voice of Korea” in Pictures. This video offers a look at photos of VOK Voice of Korea (DPRK) shortwave listeners. I recognize the voice of one of the VOK newscasters as the […]

Just a heads up that Bioenno Power is having a 2020 Thanksgiving sale and offering a 10% discount with the coupon code “THANKS”. I’m a huge fan of Bioenno’s batteries and just pulled the trigger on yet another LiFePo battery. This time, a compact 3 aH battery. This will be more than enough battery to […]

Shortwave Radio Audio Archive contributor, Tom Gavaras, shares some of the most amazing off-air, studio, and personal recordings our archive. Recently, he submitted a very unique recording. Tom notes: Rudy Espinal of Radio Clarin (Dominican Republic) keynote speech at 1979 Association of North American Radio Clubs (ANARC) convention held in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Convention took place […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Don (W7SSB), who shares the following story from Forbes.com: Retail Ecommerce Ventures (REV), the retail acquisition company that bought Pier 1 and Modell’s Sporting Goods out of bankruptcy and snapped up the Dressbarn brand after it liquidated, has a new rescue mission: Radio Shack. REV announced the deal today […]

If you’ve been thinking about pulling the trigger on an Airspy product, now’s the time! Airspy is once again offering huge discounts during their 2020 Black Friday promotion. For example, their Airspy HF+ Discovery SDR–which I consider to be one of the best HF SDRs on the market–is 30% off ($119 US). This is a […]

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 Pete Polanyk, who shares the following story that all started with a recording he submitted to the Shortwave Radio Audio Archive: Remember I sent you that clip of Radio Canada (that went up on the Shortwave Radio Audio Archive) that was on the other side of a punk tape? […]

While I’m very happy for my friends Fred and Barbara Osterman as they head into a well-deserved retirement, I’m very sad that Universal Radio will be closing. I’ve been a Universal Radio customer since before I was a licensed ham radio operator. They have been–and are to this day–the one ham radio radio retailer that […]

A WBCQ Thanksgiving Date/Time: Thursday, November 26, 10-11pm EST (November 27, 0300-0400 UTC) Frequencies: 6160 & 7490 kHz It has been a rough year for so many of us, and yet there is much for which we can be thankful. In that spirit, WBCQ The Planet, courtesy of time donated by Allan and Angela Weiner, […]

(Source: Pete Madtone) The final Free Radio Skybird programme of this year (bar the repeat two weeks later) is on Sunday November 22nd at 1200 UTC on 6070 kHz via Channel 292. It features DJ Frederick, Justin Patrick Moore with The Radiophonic Laboratory and Weed’s own One Deck Pete with “Tunes to cheer you up.” Tune in! #shortwavesnotdead #freeradioskybird

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, David Shannon, who shares a link to a transcript on the UK Parliament website and notes that “it’s not often” the topic of CMEs comes up in the House of Commons. (We have discussed them here, of course.) Here’s the transcript taken from the UK Parliament website: Paul Maynard […]

This autumn, I’ve received a number of emails from new readers who’ve dusted off the radio in their closet and decided to get back into shortwave radio listening and/or ham radio. I can’t recall another time I’ve gotten so many similar messages and I can only attribute it to the fact so many people across […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, David Iurescia (LW4DAF), who shares the following announcement from Radio Romania International: Dear friends, RRI continues its traditional polling of listeners on short wave, the Internet and social media, with a new challenge, in spite of this complicated context generated by the Covid-19 pandemic. We would like to ask you which person […]

(Source: SDRplay via Mike Ladd) SDRuno 1.40.2 has been released. This is to fix the ini file corruption issue we posted about recently, but it also introduces some new features and more plugin functionality. Release notes can be found here: https://www.sdrplay.com/docs/SDRplay_SDRuno_Release_Notes.pdf Please note that the SDRplay plugins and community plugin installers that are included in […]

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, Christoph Ratzer, who recently shared the following video tour by Mika Mäkeläinen. Mika desxribes this video on YouTube: Join me on a virtual tour of the Aihkiniemi DXing base in Lapland, in northern Finland. This is a nonscripted five-cent tour looking at what the Aihkiniemi cabin can offer for […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, April TimeLady, who writes: In this email is a link to recordings I made from Japanese SDRs over the course of October 2020 and have uploaded to archive.org. This is the link: https://archive.org/details/JPSDROCT2020 The original files are in .wav, archive.org converts them to mp3 and flac. Files with sas in them […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Mario Filippi (N2HUN), who shares a link to HamEstate.com: an online site that simplifies the process of selling radio gear from family estates. I was not familiar with this site, but it appears they have good reviews. Possibly an option for families who’ve no one to help them sell […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Paul, who asks: What are good choices for ATU and 100W amplifier for the IC-705? [Also] will the Icom AH-4 antenna tuner work well with the IC-705? Great questions, Paul! 100 Watt Amplifiers I’ve limited experience pairing the IC-705 with external 100 watt amplifiers. I own the Elecraft KXPA100 […]

From the Isle of Music, November 22-28: This week, we dive into a couple of recordings from our vinyl collection. 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, […]

I was recently asked to make a table comparing the basic features and specifications of the new Xiegu GSOC/G90 combo, and comparing it with the Icom IC-7300 and IC-705. This is by no means a comprehensive list, and I plan to add to it as I test the GSOC. It doesn’t include some of the […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Paul Rawdon, who writes: Hi Thomas I was browsing through AliExpress and came across a cloned version of the SDRplay RSP1A, the price being asked is slightly lower than the genuine version from SDRplay. I notified SDRplay of what I found. They pointed out that as it is a […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Dan Van Hoy (VR2HF), who shares the following guest post: ARISS FM Repeater May Be Back on Early December and a Short Ham Satellite Summary by Dan Van Hoy (VR2HF) I’ve recently had a lot of fun learning about the current batch of ham satellites and operating through some […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Ed, who writes: Hi Thomas, SWLing Post readers who are fans of tube radios might enjoy reading about “The 11 Greatest Vacuum Tubes You’ve Never Heard Of” in this IEEE Spectrum article. While only a few of them have been used in radio and audio applications, they’re all weird […]

SWLing Post readers: I originally posted the following article on QRPer.com where I publish most of my ham radio field reports. It was the first full Parks On The Air activation with my recently re-acquired Elecraft KX1 transceiver and it was very memorable. I hope you enjoy: Yesterday [Saturday, November 14, 2020] my family decided […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Paolo Viappiani (SWL I1-11437), who shares the following guest post: A recent resurgence of Internet scams involving quality radios by Paolo Viappiani (SWL I1-11437) After my previous post on this subject, I found on the Internet other very dangerous fraud attempts concerning high-quality radios offered at very convenient prices. […]

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, Edward Ganshirt, who shares the following guest post: Pamela’s radio A neighbor gave me this radio. It had a story. It is a Norelco B5X-88A/03 Table radio AM FM SW1 SW2. (You can see it takes up the whole kitchen table…that is why it is called a table radio). […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Jack Dully, who notes that the Tecsun PL-990X is back in stock at Anon-Co. Click here to check out their ordering page. In addition, Tecsun Radios Australia is offering free shipping today (Friday 13, 2020). If you’ve been considering purchasing the PL-990 or PL-990x, I’d encourage you to check […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Brice Atchison, who shares the following announcement from the RAC: RAC Canada Winter Contest 2020: Contest Period: 0000 UTC to 2359 UTC December 19, 2020. New “Rookie” Subcategory and Sponsors for the RAC Contests https://www.rac.ca/rac-canada-winter-contest-2020/ For immediate release: In December each year, Radio Amateurs of Canada sponsors the RAC […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Kanwar Sandhu, who shares the following announcement/rules for the Top 10 DX of the Year Contest: Top 10 DX of the Year Rules The date of the contest: From 1 December 2020, 00:00 UTC to 31 December 2020, 24:00 UTC – The contest is open for all shortwave listeners. […]

In many ways, I’m old school. While I love leveraging technology to make the most of my radio world, I also have a sincere appreciation for simple “analog world” solutions to my needs. I’m a notepad guy. When I moved to France to do undergraduate studies in the early 90s, I became reliant on small […]