The SWLing Post

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Alan Roe, who notes: I attach an updated version (version 2) of my “Music Programmes on Shortwave” PDF list for the current A-19 broadcast season for you to consider adding to your SWLing Post pages. I hope that you find it of interest. As always, I appreciate any updates or corrections. […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Kris Partridge, who shares the following film from the archives of the Radio Society of Great Britain (RSGB): Click here to view on YouTube. Wow! Thanks so much for sharing this film, Kris. What an amazing number of classic rigs. Hams back then needed some serious muscle to take […]

(Source: The Guardian via Michael Bird) ABC staff have been warned a $14.6m budget cut will be implemented in the next financial year after the re-election of the Coalition. The new managing director, David Anderson, told staff on Monday morning that a “budget challenge” was looming after his lobbying efforts in Canberra to reverse the […]

(Source: Southgate ARC) The National Voice of America Museum of Broadcasting in West Chester will host a 75th anniversary commemoration of the D-Day landing on Thursday, June 6 at 9 a.m. on the museum’s front lawn. The event sponsored by Kehoe Financial Advisors of Cincinnati will honor the memory of WW II soldiers who participated in D-Day […]

The 2019 Hamvention seemed to attract a very large crowd this year so I’m eager to see what the actual numbers are when they’re published. The weather was nearly perfect. From speaking with inside exhibitors, it sounds like sales were quite good this year, some told me it was a record event. On Saturday I […]

(Source: Inc42) […]Inntot Technologies provides software-enabled IP solutions for Digital Radio Mondiale (DRM for AM and FM band, a set of digital audio broadcasting guidelines) enabled receivers, DAB/DAB+ (digital audio broadcasting) enabled receivers and ISDB-T (A technical standard for digital TV broadcast) Digital Television paving way to digital radio transmission. Though the transmission side in […]

This morning, we’re about to head out to the Greene County Fairgrounds for the final day of the 2019 Hamvention. The past two days have been amazing and, as always, it’s been a pleasure to meet so many SWLing Post readers and contributors–thank you for stopping by! Below, I’ve posted photos I took at the Hamvention […]

(Source: Southgate ARC) The presentation by Noel Matthews G8GTZ on the Farnham WebSDR given to the 2018 RSGB Convention is now available on YouTube: Click here to view on YouTube. This presentation gives an overview of the Farnham WebSDR, available at http://farnham-sdr.com/ which currently covers the LF bands through to 10GHz. The presentation describes the system architecture and […]

Encore – Classical Music on Shortwave – Broadcast on Sunday afternoon in Europe and USA Encore – Classical Music this weekend is being broadcast as usual by Channel 292 (Europe) on 6070 kHz at 15:00 UTC Sunday 19th May. And by WBCQ on 7490 kHz at 00:00 – 01:00 UTC Monday 20th May. There is […]

Today, prior to the open of the 2019 Hamvention, I had an opportunity to hang with the folks at Elecraft and grab some photos of their newest transceiver: the Elecraft K4 direct-sampling SDR (click here to read the announcement). Elecraft has now published a K4 product page on their website with information about pre-orderswith information […]

Today we learned about the latest addition to the Elecraft product line, the Elecraft K4. This fills a niche in the Elecraft product line and is certain to directly compete with the likes of the Icom IC-7610 and a number of Flex Radio transceivers, among others. Elecraft describes the K4 as having a “modular hybrid […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Pete Eaton, who writes: Don’t know if you are familiar with this project, a full blown 5 watt HF SDR Transceiver for less than $300! No sound cards, DUC/DDC architecture. Here’s the project description by Steve Haynal via YouTube: The Hermes-Lite is a low-cost direct down/up conversion software defined […]

(Source: European DX Council) A reminder that this year’s EDXC Conference takes place in Andorra, starting on Friday 6th September, with a visit that morning to Radio Valira. Please can you let EDXC Secretary General Chrissy Brand (chrissylb@hotmail.co.uk) or EDXC Assistant Secretary General Christian Ghibaudo (chr.ghibaudo@gmail.com) know if you are planning to attend the conference? […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Ed, who shares this update regarding RM Broadcasting: (Source: Department of Justice, Office of Public Affairs) FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Monday, May 13, 2019 Court Finds RM Broadcasting Must Register as a Foreign Agent U.S. District Court Judge Robin L. Rosenberg has ruled that a Florida-based company, RM Broadcasting LLC (RM […]

For the tenth year in a row, fellow volunteers and I will be representing the charity Ears To Our World (ETOW), at the Hamvention now in Xenia, Ohio. You can find us at booth 6510. (Click here for a map.) I always enjoy meeting SWLing Post readers who stop by our booth to introduce themselves! If you’re not familiar with Ears […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor Stephen Cooper who shares photos from his recent visit to the Duga Soviet Union era over-the-horizon (OTH) radar system near Chernobyl. The following photo gallery contains images of the antenna, control room, training room and server room. Click on the thumbnails below to enlarge images and browse: What an amazing […]

Something new (to me) caught my eye this morning and brought an exclamation to my lips: the three-day geomagnetic forecast for today shows Purple!! This indicates some serious geomagnetic activity! Red is not uncommon, but Purple really got my attention! The disturbance is due to an active sunspot area 31 times the size of earth! […]

Credit: St. Louis Public Radio via RadioINK.com As the regular readers know, this site is not purely and entirely shortwave radio-centric … we enjoy all radio. I don’t think we’ve mentioned this web site before, but I recently ran across this article on RadioINK: People are no longer dependent on radio. That’s what St. Louis […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Ashok Shankar Das, who shares the following post from his blog SWLDAS: The extremely severe cyclonic storm #Fani recently visited Odisha. It is Peculiar to have a Cyclone in this time of year. Though history says earlier there are some cyclones hit Odisha coast during this summer season. […]I […]

Yesterday, I posted a photo and asked if you guess where I was when I took the shot. Those of you who guessed the Edward R. Murrow Transmitting Station (formerly, “VOA Site B”) near Greenville, North Carolina, were absolutely correct! My buddy, John Figliozzi, gave a presentation about NASWA and the Winter SWL Fest at the […]

A number of SWLing Post readers have asked about the metal case upgrade for the SDRplay RSP1A. It has been out-of-stock for several months. I just learned via Mike Ladd on Facebook, that the case is back in stock and shipping via eBay. He also noted that it will soon be available via Amazon.com. The […]

Encore – Classical Music this weekend is being broadcast as usual by Channel 292 (Europe) on 6070 kHz at 15:00 UTC Sunday 12th May. And by WBCQ on 7490 kHz at 00:00 – 01:00 UTC Monday 13th May. There is a repeat on 6070 kHz on Friday 17th May at 19:00 UTC. This week’s […]

Yesterday, I spent the day at this place. Can you guess where it is based on this photo hint? Please comment! Click here for the answer and photos!

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Dave Porter, who writes: After some 20 years I have rediscovered this radio song by the UK northern Irish singer Van Morrison. “In The Days Before Rock’n’Roll” There are some great TX station names in the song! It’s a full 8 minutes long…. Take a listen… Click here to […]

From the Isle of Music, May 12-June 1 (three weeks): A. May 12-18: Special guest Marcos Morales presents his new Jazz recording “Ruinas”. B. May 19-25: Cuban dance party with various groups C. May 26-June 1: Special guest Carlos Miyares presents his new Jazz Recording “One More Time” The broadcasts take place: 1. For Eastern […]

Many thanks to a number of SWLing Post readers who’ve contacted me regarding the ongoing issues with WiFi radios that rely on the Frontier Silicon/vTuner aggregator partnership. Two days ago, we mentioned this in a post about the service outage that affected Sangean and Como Audio WiFi radio devices. Turns out, the outage was a […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Christian, who writes: Hi Thomas. I know both of these deals have been posted already but just to let readers know that both the Eton Exec Traveller and Exec Satellite are still available on Amazon and the prices are both at historic lows. Right now the Satellite is $91.13 […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post reader and author, DM Barrett (N4ECW), who recently shared the following press release which features his latest book: FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE EQUINOX Blends Science Fiction And Amateur Radio 1 May 2019 (Tampa, Florida) A new science fiction narrative, EQUINOX, has taken amateur and shortwave radio into the cultural mainstream in […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post reader, Dave Mackie, who writes: I have a Sangean WFR-28 that just stopped working recently and through a bit of internet spelunking I happened across your site and explanation about Frontier Silicon as ‘aggregator’ for Sangean. A phone call to Sangean confirmed that Frontier Silicon was having a problem with […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Gene Paradis, who writes: I have something to share…It is on every night on 5.620 MHz around 010 UTC some folks talking language unknown..It goes on most of the night..This is an aero frequency but these folks are there every night. Hope to find out more. Maybe fishing vessels […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Pete Eaton, who shares the following vintage industry short film: Click here to view on YouTube. Like Pete, I’m impressed with the size of those soldering irons! Do you enjoy the SWLing Post? Please consider supporting us via Patreon or our Coffee Fund! Your support makes articles like this one possible. Thank you!

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Alex, who notes updates to his excellent frequency charts. Alex writes: My charts are updated again. This time I have changed format and made the charts less time consuming to compile and – I think – more user friendly too. The result is they are updated for the summer […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Eric McFadden (WD8RIF), who notes that the Global Radio Guide: Summer 2019 is now available at Amazon.com as an ebook. The price is $8.49, but if you belong to the Kindle Unlimited program, it’s free to read. Click here to check it out at Amazon.com (affiliate link).

(Source: Spaceweather via Troy Riedel) This weekend, old sunspot AR2738 is returning from a two-week trip around the farside of the sun. After re-appearing late yesterday, the sunspot quickly produced two CMEs (coronal mass ejections), signalling that it may be even more active than before. Last month when it crossed the face of the sun, […]

Encore – Classical Music on shortwave – broadcast Sunday afternoon in Europe & USA Encore – Classical Music this weekend is being broadcast as usual by Channel 292 (Europe) on 6070 kHz at 15:00 UTC Sunday 5th May. And by WBCQ on 7490 kHz at 00:00 – 01:00 UTC Monday 6th May. There is a […]

After posting recent shortwave broadcast schedules and updates for the A19 season, SWLing Post reader Tom Cook asked, “What is A19?” Excellent question, Tom! And, frankly, one I’ve never answered here on the SWLing Post even though it’s so fundamental to understand HF broadcast scheduling. Shortwave broadcast schedules are coordinated for two seasons: a summer […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post friend and contributor, Pete Madtone, who has just released his latest EP called, “This Frequency.” This EP features vocalist Jazz’min and off-air audio samples of contest station P49Y from Aruba. The EP, released this week, can be found on Madtone’s Bandcamp page: https://madtone.bandcamp.com/ Jazz’min put up “This Frequency” the title […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Ed, who shares the following story about Radio Biafra from the LA Times: Every evening as 5 o’clock approaches, the clogged, perpetually dusty streets of this industrial city in southeastern Nigeria begin to empty. Groups of men just off work go inside, shut their doors and tune their radios […]

(Source: The Guardian via Michael Bird) David Anderson, a 30-year veteran at the public broadcaster, has been appointed ABC managing director by the chair, Ita Buttrose, replacing the sacked Michelle Guthrie. “Mr Anderson is an exceptional media professional with strong content, digital and strategic experience,” Buttrose said. “The ABC Board resolved unanimously to appoint David Anderson […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Alan Roe, who notes: I attach a copy of my “Music Programmes on Shortwave” PDF list for the new A-19 broadcast season for you to consider adding to your SWLing Post pages. Alan, thanks so much for keeping this brilliant music guide updated each broadcast season and for sharing it here […]

Many thanks to the host of This is a Music Show who shares the following announcement: I’m moving to a better frequency for the longer days. The move also means a time shift 30 minutes later. Starting May 1, continuing every week for the summer: 9395 kHz 0130 UTC THURSDAY = Wed. evenings in the […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, John Hoad, who notes that the German broadcaster, Shortwave Service, has posted their A19 schedule. We’ve included it below for your convenience: (Source: Shortwave Service) 3985 kHz Montag-Freitag 1500-1530 UTC Radio Tirana Französisch 1530-1600 UTC Radio Slowakei Französisch 1600-1700 UTC SRF Echo der Zeit 1700-1800 UTC Radio Mi Amigo […]

From the Isle of Music, May 5-11, 2019: Part 2 of 2 Parts: We finish our discussion of “Las Oscuras Leyendas de Chano Pozo” with its author, Ricardo Oropesa, while listening to some important recordings by Chano. Our other special guest is singer/bandleader Wil Campa, who will share some of his Timba and Salsa Cubana […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Gregg Freeby, who writes: I just noticed the Eton Executive Satellite is now priced under $100 on Amazon. I’m sure it will change again soon but this is the lowest I’ve seen it at $96.68 at the time of this writing. Not too many sub $100 radios out there […]

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Roseanna, who shares the following note from her new blog regarding a change in CRI Japan’s QSL policy. Roseanna notes: You probably are unaware but CRI Japan has had a major change up in their QSL card policies. CRI Japan issue QSL cards for broadcasts in English which is […]

Many thanks to several SWLing Post readers who shared a link to this most recent single by the German rock band, Rammstein. The music site, Louder, posted an English translation of the lyrics: (Source: Louder) German alt-metallers Rammstein released their new single Radio late last week, and the internet has been abuzz with interpretations of the […]

(Source: Southgate ARC) The new amateur radio digital mode FT4 is now available for download as part of WSJT-X Release Candidate 5 You can download wsjtx-2.1.0-rc5-win64.exe (or for other O/S) from near the bottom of the page at http://physics.princeton.edu/pulsar/k1jt/wsjtx.html FT4 Protocol document http://physics.princeton.edu/pulsar/k1jt/FT4_Protocol.pdf See the WSJT Group at https://groups.io/g/WSJTX/ For more information about FT4, check out this […]