The SWLing Post

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Jim Meirose, who asks: Each day in NJ I am hearing China Radio International in German on 9.570 MHz. It “fades in” up out of the noise about 2 pm EDT, and strengthens until the broadcast signs off just before 3 pm (1800 UTC). Two things: first, I have […]

I mentioned in a previous post that I’ve been practicing my CW (Morse Code) skills in an effort to build confidence to do a Parks On The Air (POTA) CW activation. But how in the world do you practice handling a CW pile-up without actually going on the air–? I’m glad you asked! My DXing […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Jason W, who writes: You might be interested in this episode of the BBC series tomorrow’s world from 17th Feb 1993 on YouTube: 10:23 to 14:50 has a introduction and demonstration of digital radio in the UK and concluding with “the experts say we will be fully digital by […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Don (W7SSB), who shares the following photos of the new lab599 Discovery TX-500. Don notes that all of these photos were taken in Russia–where the TX-500 is manufactured–and include a number of Chameleon resonant field antennas. Thanks for sharing these, Don. The thin form-factor of the TX-500, paired with […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Dave Zantow, who notes that the SDRplay RSP1A metal case is available once again on eBay. The price is $24.95 US with free shipping. Click here to view on eBay.

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, Josh (KI6NAZ), who shares a link to his YouTube channel where he takes us on a tour of the lab599 TX-500 Discovery: Click here to check out Josh’s channel, Ham Radio Crash Course on YouTube. Thanks for sharing this, Josh! The TX-500 is certainly a unicorn in the world […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Richard Lacroix, I was intrigued by your post, “The ghostly radio station that no one claims to run (BBC Future)”. I attempted to listening to the station on 4625 kHz from my home location here in Toronto, Ontario Canada but unfortunately could not receive the signal. WebSDR to the […]

From the Isle of Music, July 26-August 1: This week, we present some of the more folkloric selections from the album Bendita Guanabacoa by Los Hermanos Arango with commentary in English as well as some rumba by Afrocuba de Matanzas. The broadcasts take place: 1. For Eastern Europe but audible well beyond the target area […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Paul, who asks: How does the Icom compare with the Xiegu G90, besides lack of a built-in antenna tuner, and having lower transmit power, and a better screen? Good question, Paul. The G90 is a great radio for sure and has better specs and features than I would expect […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Phillip, who writes: It’s worth sharing that this year’s HOPE conference is a completely on-line event and features an RF Village daily event: “This virtual village will help people experience various wireless communications used by makers, hackers, and amateur radio enthusiasts across the radio frequency (RF) spectrum.” https://www.hope.net/ If […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Paul Evans, who notes that The Radio Amateur Society of Australia Inc. has made two issues of their QTC Magazine available to view free online. Click here to view the free issues of QTC magazine. Thank you for the tip, Paul!

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Carlos Latuff, who writes: I have a tape with a recording I made in 1982 while listening to shortwave. I’m not really sure if I caught some kind of polytone numbers station. Could you or your readers be able to identify it? Post readers: If you can help Carlos […]

This evening, I discovered that HRO now has the long-awaited lab599 TX-500 transceiver available for purchase on their website. I had actually placed an order for the radio, but I’ve asked to cancel it because I should have a loaner available for review. Without a doubt, the TX-500 is one of the most anticipated QRP […]

I’ve been getting a number of inquiries from readers lately about the new, yet-to-be-released, Icom IC-705 QRP portable transceiver. Here are a few quick answers to frequent reader questions: “Will you review the IC-705?” Yes, I certainly will. If the loaner unit from Icom has a long lead time, I’ll plan to purchase one from […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Paul Evans, who notes that the July 2020 issue of Radio Rivista is available to view online or via a PDF download for free this month. Click here to download the July 2020 issue of Radio Rivista (PDF). Thank you for the tip, Paul!

This morning, I read a message from a ham radio operator who was just awarded a vanity call sign in honor of his father’s 1970s era CB radio call sign. He was obviously very proud of the role CB played in his “formative” radio years. Although I often only think of the impact my first […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributors Ulis (K3LU) and Harald (DL1AX) who note that Radio Nacional Arcángel San Gabriel (LRA36) will broadcast tests again Saturday July 18th and July 25th, 2020, from 1700 to 2000 UTC on 15476 kHz USB. Check out Harald’s LRA36 QSL card above!

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, David (G4EDR), who writes: I enjoyed reading about the vintage shortwave radio book memories from Bob W6ACU and it prompted me dig out the book which got me started in SWLing back in 1970. It was in a series of illustrated teach yourself books and the title was ‘Radio’ […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Bruce Atchison, who shares the following guest post: What is Lightning Scatter DX? by Bruce Atchison (VE6XTC) Believe it or not, it’s possible to receive distant FM stations during a thunder storm. While lightning makes it difficult to hear AM and shortwave broadcasts, its crackles aren’t as evident on […]

Herein lies one of the wonderful things about our SWLing Post community…. Yesterday, we posted a message from John (KC8RZM) asking readers to help identify a vintage radio book that had meaningful impact on his life. Within a few hours, SWLing Post contributor, Bob LaRose (W6ACU), came to the rescue with the following comment: I’ve […]

SWLing Post contributor, Dan Robinson, has recently written a series of opinion articles for the BBG-USAGM Watch website. Dan worked 34 years with the Voice of America, most recently serving as the senior White House correspondent from 2010 to 2014 before his retirement. Dan’s Op-Ed pieces (in five parts at time of posting) take a […]

From the Isle of Music, July 19-25: This week, special guest Ethiel Failde helps us present his new album Faidle con Tumbao, then we listen to some jazz from trombonist Juan Carlos Marín. The broadcasts take place: 1. For Eastern Europe but audible well beyond the target area in most of the Eastern Hemisphere (including […]

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, John (KC8RZM), who writes: I wonder if anyone at SWLing can help me identify this book on shortwave listening from my childhood. It was an older book when I checked it out from the local library mid-1970s but what I remember specifically is that it had a cartoon of […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Neil Goldstein, who writes: I added a sub-page to radiokitguide.com with a list of the remaining electronics and radio surplus outlets I was able to find and verify. The list is evolving, but is complete enough to publish at this point. Enjoy! https://fofio.blogspot.com/2020/07/sources-parts--outlets-and-more.html Many thanks for sharing, Neil!

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Rob, who writes: I recently made another video on the AirSpy YouLoop – this time paired in a configuration that shouldn’t really work. I used it with an RTL-SDR v3 dongle in direct sampling mode, and signals still came in. This was somewhat of a surprise given the RTL-SDR […]

Hello readers! I’m pleased to announce that I’ll be doing a special broadcast of VORW Radio International on Saturday the 18th of July and Sunday the 19th of July. This is purely being done for the fun of it and no other reason. The show will feature good music, listener requests, comments and responses to […]

I had planned on today being a rather laid-back Sunday with a good book lined-up and lots of radio time. Instead, my wife has convinced me to work on a home project this afternoon. That’s okay, because it is a project I’d like to get out of the way and the weather today is ideal. […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Frank (ON6UU), who shares the following guest post which expands upon his previous DB4020 article: The EA3GCY DB4020 transceiver now has CW mode by Frank Lagaet (ON6UU) After telling you all about the DB4020 SSB build I’m here with the CW part of the kit, let’s say this is […]

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 […]

Last week, I took delivery of an IQ32 SDR Transciever on loan from HobbyPCB. The IQ32 has been on the market for a few years now and is a fusion of the HobbyPCB RS-HFIQ and the STM32-SDR. I’ve been told by the HobbyPCB team that the STM32-SDR was developed a few years ago “when PSK31 […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, April TimeLady, who writes: This is a collection of SDR recordings made of Japanese language radio stations for June 2020.” It may be useful to note that I had encoded them at .ogg from .wav, and archive.org automatically converts audio to .mp3 format. The great majority of the recordings are from […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Adrian Korol, who shares the following notice from the Argentine Antarctic station, LRA36: Saturday, July 11, from 1400 to 1500 UTC, a test broadcast from LRA 36 Radio Nacional Arcángel San Gabriel on 15476 khz using USB. Thank you for the tip, Adrian!

Tuesday, many of us in the shortwave and DXing community learned about the unexpected passing of our good friend and veteran radio reporter, Allan Loudell. I got to know Allan via the Winter SWL Fest community. Allan attended every year and was well known for being not only wonderfully good-natured, the sort of guy who […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Dave Zantow, who shares the following video (in Japanese) where a technician performs an IC-705 cabinet breakdown and examines the internal PC board layers:

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Bennett Kobb, who shares an FCC Informal Objection he drafted and filed together with Kim Elliott and Christopher Rumbaugh. Click here to download the Informal Objection. (PDF) Radio World published a great summary of the filing today: There’s a plan in the works to build a new international shortwave […]

On Sunday, 21 June 2020, the BBC World Service officially transmitted the 2020 BBC Antarctic Midwinter Broadcast–an international radio broadcast intended for a small group of scientists, technicians, and support staff who work for the British Antarctic Survey. This is one of my favorite annual broadcasts, and I endeavor to listen every year. Once again, the SWLing Post called […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Mike, who writes: Hi, Tom: Icom Japan have just published a couple videos in Japanese where and enthusiastic JH1CBX takes us on a tour of the new IC-705. Although many of us don’t speak Japanese, it’s easy to understand what she’s talking about as she tours the radio features, […]

From the Isle of Music, July 12-18: This week, Arturo Cruz shares songs from his new release Benny por Siempre, a tribute to Benny Moré with ten prominent vocalists. 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 […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Bill Hemphill (WD9EQD), who writes: I’ve just finished reading “Sealand’s Caretakers”. Very fascinating. In the article, they give a link to an article “This excerpt describes the fallout that came from a gang of international scam artists bootlegging Sealand passports.” This article is titled: “The Plot Against the Principality […]

Last year, my friend Matt gave me his Icom IC-756 Pro transceiver. Yep, Matt’s a very generous fellow and, trust me, one of the coolest radio guys you’ll ever meet. Matt was in the process of moving and told me nothing would make him happier than the transceiver to go to a good home and […]

Many thanks to Apache Labs who share the following announcement: Sneak peek at the Andromeda 100W Transceiver…… 10th GEN Intel 6 Core i7, 7 inch built in touch screen and an option to add up to two External HD Monitors. Windows 10 Powerful PC and an Ultra High performance 100W SDR with PureSignal Goodness in […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Jack, who writes: Greetings, I was going through some old paperwork that belonged to my father-in-law, and I found a Christmas Greeting Card postmarked December 1956. The card contains greetings from the Antarctic, received by the Radio Amateurs of Greater Syracuse, then forwarded to my father-in-law at his posting […]

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 Madtone who shares the following announcement from Radio Lavalamp: Can you pass the ham radio test? Tune in to DJ Frederick’s Radio Lavalamp on Sunday 12th July at 2200 UTC (11pm UK time) on 3955 kHz via Channel 292. The transmission will feature amongst other things One Deck Pete with a mix called The Purple Nucleus of Creation 001 featuring Carlos Pizzetti, […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Roseanna, with Radio Northern Europe International who shares the following announcement: Radio Northern Europe International #6 & TIAEMS July 2020 annoucement! Hello everyone, This is just a little announcement post for the next instalment of RNEI! Our show for July 2020 will have a few pop, traditional and dance […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Franco Venturi (K4VZ), who writes: I just found out that the podcast ‘QSO today’ has organized a ‘Virtual Ham Expo’ (https://www.qsotodayhamexpo.com/). The current list of speakers and their topics looks interesting (click here to read), and I thought you and other readers of the SWLing Post might be interested […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Kris Partridge, who shares the following article that notes the UK will not follow a Norway-style digital switch-off. Rather, broadcasters will be allowed to switch off individual AM (and eventually FM) transmitters once they determine it is no longer a cost-effective strategy. From Radio Today: Analogue commercial radio licences to […]