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Saturday 31 May 2014

Skegness Log: 31-05-14 (FM)

OIRT Sporadic E:
 67.70 1710 UKR UR 1 Persha Prog., Khmel'nyts'kyy/KHFKRRT, prosp. Myru, 43 (KM) Regional
                programme. Thanks Victor Rutkovsky for identifying.  1887km


Band 2 Tropospheric:
 91.2 0001  D  NDR 1 Niedersachsen, Dannenberg Zernien (nds) OM news, as web  705km
 91.9 0002  D  NDR 2, Bungsberg/NDR-Mast (shs) OM news, as web  694km
106.9 0640  D  Antenne Niedersachsen, Braunschweig-Broitzem (nds) ID and pops  691km
 93.0 0652  D  BFBS Radio, Braunschweig/Drachenberg (nds) YL presenter, pops, as 103.0  712km
103.1 0730  D  Radio ffn, Braunschweig-Broitzem (nds) Traffic and ID  691km **

** Personal Skegness 'First'

The early start to this season, April 26th - the same date that last year's excellent season began on band 2, we might have assumed we were in for another good season, but it has not been the case. We might also have assumed that the Es season would pick up as we head towards June. Not the case in the UK at all! The Es are actually going downhill. BUT, there's so much uncertainty with Es and they could pick up any day. There's still plenty of time.

Good DX!

John Faulkner, Skegness, Lincolnshire (JO03dd) <3m ASL.
Blog: http://skegnessdx.blogspot.co.uk
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCOrAbHyPpIflDXo62HWyOiA

Receivers:
Sony XDR-F1HD with Konrad i2c modification

Aerial:
Körner 9.2, 5.5 metres above the ground. QTH is 3 metres above sea level

Rotator:
Yaesu G-5500 azimuth & elevation rotator, allowing antenna to be vertical or horizontal, etc.

Skegness Log: 30-05-14 (FM)

Band 2 Tropospheric:
105.3 2200  D  NDR Info, Schwerin (mev) Jingle and OM ID  739km
105.6 2243  D  delta radio, Flensburg Freienwill (shs) Noise free. ID between pops  626km
104.1 2246  D  delta radio, Bungsberg/DTAG-Turm (shs) YL info, as 105.6  694km
103.3 2249  D  Deutschlandfunk (DLF), Flensburg Freienwill (shs) Radio play, as 105.3  626km
103.0 2252 DNK R.24/7, Århus/Søsterhøj/Ny Moesgårdsvej 61 (mjy) Danish OM  YL, as web  715km
101.4 2253  D  R.SH, Flensburg Freienwill (shs) Pops, as web  626km
101.9 2253  D  Deutschlandfunk (DLF), Bungsberg/DTAG-Turm (shs) Radio play, as others  694km
101.3 2254  D  Antenne MV, Schwerin (mev) YL over music, as web. No trace of WDR4 !!  739km
100.2 2255  D  R.SH, Bungsberg/DTAG-Turm (shs) Pops, ID  694km
 98.6 2256  D  NDR Info, Steinkimmen (nds) V weak OM, as web  543km
 98.5 2257  D  NDR 2, Schwerin (mev) NDR2 und WDR2 ID  739km
 97.8 2258  D  NDR 1 Welle Nord, Bungsberg/NDR-Mast (shs) Soft pops, as web  694km
 95.3 2300  D  Deutschlandradio Kultur, Schwerin (mev) OM news, as web  739km
 93.2 2302  D  NDR 2, Flensburg-Engelsby (shs) Presumed. Night service. Beaming 70
°  627km
 90.3 2305  D  NDR 90,3, Hamburg-Moorfleet (ham) NDR ID. Night service.   650km
 89.2 2306  D  NDR Kultur, Schwerin (mev) Classical, as web  739km
 89.6 2306  D  NDR 1 Welle Nord, Flensburg-Engelsby (shs) Pops, as web  627km
 89.0 2310 DNK DR P2, Sønder Højrup/Sdr. Højrupvejen 21 (sdk-fyn) Classical & OM, as web  700km
107.3 2326  D  Ostseewelle, Schwerin (mev) Pops, as web  739km
105.9 2327  D  delta radio, Kiel/Fernsehturm (shs) Pops, as 105.6  656km
105.1 2328  D  Antenne Niedersachsen, Rosengarten-Langenrehm (nds) YL news, as web  634km
104.2 2329  D  Antenne Niedersachsen, Visselhövede (nds) YL, as 105.7  620km
104.8 2334  D  Ostseewelle, Marlow (mev) Disco mix, as 107.3  813km
100.8 2336  D  Antenne MV, Marlow (mev) V weak club music, as web  813km **
102.9 2338  D  R.SH, Kaltenkirchen (shs) Pops, as web  647km
103.6 2340  D  Radio Hamburg, Hamburg-Moorfleet (ham) Pops, as web  650km
103.8 2341  D  R.SH, Heide Welmbüttel (shs) Pops, as web  599km
106.8 2343  D  alster radio 106!8, Hamburg-Rahlstedt (ham) V weak pops, as web  656km
107.0 2344  D  NDR 2, Röbel (mev) Pops, as web  807km
 98.5 2350  D  NDR 2, Schwerin (mev) Pops, as web  739km
 98.8 2351  D  NDR Kultur, Osnabrück/Schleptruper Egge (nds) Classical, as web  525km
 99.2 2351  D  NDR Kultur, Hamburg-Moorfleet (ham) Classical, as 98.8  650km
107.4 2357  D  delta radio, Kaltenkirchen (shs) OM, as web  647km
 87.6 2359  D  NDR 2, Hamburg-Moorfleet (ham) Pops, as web  650km

** Personal Skegness 'First'

A weak tropo into northern Germany with only Steinkimmen at RDS levels. No tropo in the direction of Denmark or Norway apart from the usual scatter to Rangstrup and Bjerkreim.

I briefly observed a spell of tropo around late afternoon where parts of Holland were enhanced to 41dB - the strongest tropo experienced so far at the new QTH! Pity I wasn't able to listen at the time.

Good DX!

John Faulkner, Skegness, Lincolnshire (JO03dd) <3m ASL.
Blog: http://skegnessdx.blogspot.co.uk
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCOrAbHyPpIflDXo62HWyOiA

Receivers:
Sony XDR-F1HD with Konrad i2c modification

Aerial:
Körner 9.2, 5.5 metres above the ground. QTH is 3 metres above sea level

Rotator:
Yaesu G-5500 azimuth & elevation rotator, allowing antenna to be vertical or horizontal, etc.

Thursday 29 May 2014

Skegness Log: 29-05-14 (FM)

Band 2 Meteor Scatter:
 87.6 1914 TUN RTT Radio Tataouine, Zarzis (med) OM phone caller with stuttering and distinctive
               vocal, as web. NOT Es  2342km **
 87.6 1932 CZE Radio Impuls, Brno/Kojál (JM) 2203. Unattended. Approximate time  1219km

Band 2 General Scatter:
 97.0 1050 HOL Club Bam Bam, Nunspeet (GLD) Pirate. Dutch pops, as web  378km


** Personal Skegness 'First' via the respective mode

I was stunned to hear Radio Tataouine coming through by meteor scatter this evening. This is another new personal record, but I can't help but think that the existing sporadic E event between East Sussex and Italy might have had a hand in it, which the path would have intersected. Prior to the meteor burst I had brief and very weak Es on 87.6 and had got the web streams of Chaine 3, Radio Laghouat (ALG) and Radio Tataouine up and ready as I was trying to work out where 87.6 was coming from. It faded all too quickly. I was beamed south-east at the time and seconds later a sudden meteor burst appeared for a second or so in which a hesitant and stuttering Arabic male phone caller could be heard. I realised who it was straight away and re-checked the streams. There was no question, Radio Tataouine had the same male caller, exhibiting exactly the same mannerisms. I could scarcely believe my ears as the Zarzis transmitter is 2342 km from here! Naturally I wasn't recording at the time, but I am determined to grab a recording of this in the days ahead, in the same way I caught Club Bam Bam earlier with the web stream running alongside.

Good DX!

John Faulkner, Skegness, Lincolnshire (JO03dd) <3m ASL.
Blog: http://skegnessdx.blogspot.co.uk
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCOrAbHyPpIflDXo62HWyOiA

Receivers:
Sony XDR-F1HD with Konrad i2c modification

Aerial:
Körner 9.2, 5.5 metres above the ground. QTH is 3 metres above sea level

Rotator:
Yaesu G-5500 azimuth & elevation rotator, allowing antenna to be vertical or horizontal, etc.

Wednesday 28 May 2014

Skegness Log: 28-05-14 (FM)

OIRT Band Sporadic E:
 66.38 0807 RUS Radio Rossii, Bologoye (TV) Presumed site. Russian OM talk, as web 
            2163km **
 66.98 1620 UKR UR 1 Persha Prog., Kirovohrad/KFKRRT, vul. Sadova, 88 (KH) YL, as web 
            2282km **
 66.08 1621 UKR UR 1 Persha Prog., Krasnohorivka/PFKRRT, vul. Gogolya, 15 (PO) YLs, as web 
            2327km **
 67.88 1622 UKR UR 1 Persha Prog., Buky/CHFKRRT, vul. Kirova, 67 (CK) ID in news  2129km
 68.51 1623 UKR UR 1 Persha Prog., Kyiv/KFKRRT, vul. Dorogozhyts'ka, 10 (KY)
                YL, as others  2077km
 68.60 1623 UKR UR 2 Radio Promin', Krasnohorivka/PFKRRT, vul. Gogolya, 15 (PO) ID and
                pops  2327km **
 68.84 1624 UKR UR 2 Radio Promin', Kirovohrad/KFKRRT, vul. Sadova, 88 (KH) OM  YL phone in,
                as web  2282km
 70.64 1625 UKR UR 2 Radio Promin', Cherkasy/CHFKRRT, vul. Pal'okhy, 2 (CK) As others 
                2223km
 71.90 1625 UKR UR 2 Radio Promin', Andrijivka/ZHFKRRT (ZH) As others  1956km **
 72.20 1625 UKR UR 1 Persha Prog., Cherkasy/CHFKRRT, vul. Pal'okhy, 2 (CK) YL  2223km
 66.53 1628 UKR UR 1 Persha Prog., Antopil'/RFKRRT, vul. Kyivs'ka, 12 (RI) OM, as
                web  1803km
 68.24 1629 UKR Radio Mariya v Ukraini, Antopil'/RFKRRT, vul. Kyivs'ka, 12 (RI) Phone in,
                as web  1803km

Band 2 Sporadic E:
 88.1 1035 HRV HRT Radio Sljeme, Zagreb/Sljeme (zg) C31C R-SLJEME  1381km
 87.8 1037 SVN Radio Antena, Celje/Svetina (ce) 9361 _ANTENA_  1323km
 89.3 1038 SVN Radio Student, Ljubljana 3-Sance (lj) 9440 __UDENT_  1288km **
 89.5 1038  D  Bayern 2, Wendelstein (bay) D312 Bayern_2  1024km
 88.0 1039 SVN Slovenija 1, Krim (lj) 9201  1295km **
 87.7 1040 HRV HRT-HR 1, Licka Pljesivica (gs) C201 HRT-HR_1  1456km
 90.5 1040 HRV HRT-HR 2, Licka Pljesivica (gs) C202 HRT-HR_2  1456km
 93.4 1046  I  m2o, Belluno/Nevegal-La Casera (bl) 5233 _M_DUE_-  1163km **
 92.6 1047  I  Radio Gardena=Radio Gröden, Seceda (bz) 5432 __04DEN_  1092km **
 89.4 1049  I  Radio Padova, Asiago/Località Cima Ekar (Cima Echar) (vi) 5360 R.PADOVA 
               1146km **
 94.0 1051  I  Ravegnana Radio, Ravenna/via Trieste 290 (ra) Vocal ID  1302km **
 92.8 1052  I  Radio Studio Delta, Cesena/Frazione Borello-Via Luzzena 5366P-Monte
               Cavallo (fc) 53FB Scrolling RDS  1328km **
 93.9 1056  I  RAI Radio3, Bologna/Colle Barbiano (RAI) (bo) 5203 __RAI___ _RADIO3_  1256km
 91.1 1057  I  Radio Gamma (Savignano), Cesena/Frazione Borello-Via Luzzena 5366P-Monte
               Cavallo (fc) 5843  1328km **
 91.7 1057  I  RAI Radio2, Bologna/Colle Barbiano (RAI) (bo) 5202  1256km
 90.2 1058  I  Radio Maria, Asiago/Località Cima Ekar (Cima Echar) (vi) 51CC R.MARIA_ 
               1146km **
 90.7 1058  I  Radio Mater, Barzanò/Cascina Giovanna (lc) Vocal ID. Mono signal  1050km **
107.9 1059  I  Radio 24, Rocca di Papa/Monte Cavo (rm) 5245 RADIO_24  1568km
107.1 1100  I  Antenna Uno, Rocca di Papa/Monte Cavo (rm) 5E84 ANTENNA1  1568km
107.2 1101  I  Radio Maria, Buccheri/Monte Lauro (sr) English preacher, as others  2106km
104.8 1102 SRB Radio B92, Deli Jovan (Srb) D25C __B_92__  1878km **
103.0 1103 BUL BNR Horizont, Sofia/Kopitoto-KRTTS Vitosa (sfg) 8210 HORIZONT  2056km
102.8 1104  I  Radio Bruno (Toscana), Buti/Monte Serra (pi) 534D R/_BRUNO  1286km **
101.9 1105  I  Dimensione Suono Roma, Rocca di Papa/Monte Cavo (rm) 5E65 _*ROMA*_  1568km **
101.6 1106  I  Dimensione Suono Roma, Caprarola/Poggio Nibbio (vt) Pops, as 101.9  1486km **
 87.5 1107  I  RDS - Radio Dimensione Suono, Capo d'Orlando/Monte San Martino (me) Vocal ID  

               2001km
108.0 1107  I  Radio Maria, Palomonte/Monte Palo (sa) Guess at this site. Had it before 
               1784km
 90.1 1109  I  RAI Radio1, Monte Argentario (RAI) (gr) 5501 __RAI___  1441km
 92.2 1109  I  Radio Nostalgia, Genova/Monte Fasce (ge) 536B NOSTLGIA  1161km
 94.3 1110  I  RAI Radio3, Monte Argentario (RAI) (gr) 5203 _RADI___  1441km
 97.2 1111  I  Radio 24, Genova/Monte Fasce (ge) 5245 RADIO_24  1161km **
 98.0 1112  I  PrimaRadio-inBlu, Rocchetta Palafea (at) 5B63  1105km **
 98.5 1112  I  Radio Piombino, Piombino/Il Semaforo (li) 55EE __OM____  1364km
 89.8 1118  I  Fantastica (Piemonte), Asti/Località Vallarone (at) 5292 FANT..CA  1081km **
 92.4 1126  F  France Inter, Ajaccio/Coti-Chiavari Chialone (20A) F201 __INTER_  1414km
 93.0 1127  F  Nostalgie, Ajaccio/Coti-Chiavari Pinselli (20A) French music, as web  1414km
 87.7 1128  F  Rire et Chansons, Nice/Mont Vinaigrier (06) F226 _RIRE__  1168km
 88.0 1134  F  France Musique, Ajaccio/Coti-Chiavari Chialone (20A) F203 MUSIQUE_  1414km
 88.2 1135  I  Radio Deejay, Tempio Pausania/Monte Limbara (ot) 5214 _DEEJAY_  1521km
 89.2 1135  I  R101, Siniscola/Arturu Mele (nu) 5215 _R_101__  1570km
 89.5 1136  F  France Musique, Figari/Punta di Valanincu (20A) OM, as web  1447km **
 93.9 1136  F  France Inter, Figari/Punta di Valanincu (20A) Flute music, as 103.7  1447km
 88.0 1137  I  Radiolina, Sassari/Monte Oro (ss) 544B Scrolling RDS. Cagliari ads  1513km
 87.5 1143  I  Radio Maria, Sant'Antioco/Località Batteria/Monte Cresia (ci) 51CC R.MARIA_ 
               1684km
 87.9 1143  I  R101, Sant'Antioco/Località Batteria/Monte Cresia (ci) 5215 _R_101__  1684km
 87.6 1214 ALG Chaîne 3, Kef El Akhal (25) French OM, as web  1927km
 87.7 1218  I  Radio Venere (Puglia), Lecce (le) 5D4A  1958km
 88.3 1219  I  Radio Margherita, Parabita/Contrada Turrisi-Serra di San Eleuterio (le) 5242 
               1982km
 88.5 1220  I  m2o, Bari/Via Principe Amedeo (ba) 5233 _M_DUE_O  1823km
 88.3 1222  I  Radio 24, Martina Franca/Monte Trazzonara-Strada Carbonico Zona H (ta) 5245
               RADIO_24  1894km
 91.1 1224  I  RAI Radio2, Martina Franca/Masseria Trasconi (ta) 5202 __RAI___ _RADIO2_  1883km
 93.8 1225  I  Radio Maria, Bari/Strada vicinale San Giorgio Martire (ba) 51CC R.MARIA_ 
               1823km
 87.8 1229  I  Ritmo 80, Corato/Contrada Murgetta (ba) 5A72 RITMO_80  1797km
 88.2 1233  E  RNE Radio Nacional, Pont de Suert/Fallada de Malpas (CAT-L) E211 RNE_1___ 
               1199km

UNIDs:
106.1 1102  ?  UNID,  C383
 90.2 1118  ?  UNID,  D201. Libya? Radio Msallata has this code

Band 2 Meteor Scatter:
 87.6 0835 CZE Radio Impuls, Brno/Kojál (JM) 2203  1219km

Band 2 General Scatter:
 89.4 0928  D  NE-WS 89,4, Düsseldorf/Rheinturm (nrw) Pops, as web  488km
 89.4 0930 HOL Radio Oost, Hengelo/Novec mast (Hazenweg) (ove) remained after NE-WS Dusseldorf
               faded  445km
 97.2 0936 DNK DR P3, Rangstrup/Gammel Tøndervej 28 (sdk-sjy) Pops, as web  617km
 91.8 0942 NOR NRK Petre, Bjerkreim/Urdalsnipa (ro) Lifting nicely above the noise.
               Atmospheric pops, as web  703km
107.4 0947  D  Radio Wuppertal, Wuppertal/Westfalenweg (nrw) ID and Bruce Springbok track  508km
 87.8 0949  D  WDR 2, Schwerte/Sommerberg (nrw) YL talk, then pops, as web  525km
 89.7 0955  D  WDR 3, Münster/Baumberg (nrw) Breaking over a 9.2-reduced Tacolneston. Classical,
               as web  493km
 91.2 0957  D  NDR 1 Niedersachsen, Dannenberg Zernien (nds) Pops, v weak atop Brussel,
               as web  705km
 97.2 1002  D  Deutschlandradio Kultur, Inselsberg (thü) German OM news, as web  739km
100.8 1004  D  Bremen Vier, Schiffdorf [nds] (Bremerhaven) (bre) YL info and familiar pips
               effect, as web  554km
101.4 1005  D  Radio SAW, Brocken (san) YL info over music and SAW Land ID  712km
102.6 1006  D  NDR 2, Stadthagen/Bückeberge (nds) German YL info, as web  606km
103.4 1009  D  Radio ffn, Osnabrück/Schleptruper Egge (nds) Pops, as web  525km
 87.9 1012  D  NDR Info, Heide Welmbüttel (shs) OM chat, as web  599km
 90.0 1013  D  NDR Kultur, Aurich (nds) Noise free. Classical, as web  478km
 90.3 1014  D  NDR 90,3, Hamburg-Moorfleet (ham) A German Abba soundalike, as web  650km
 93.4 1018  D  Bayern 3, Pfaffenberg (bay) John Parr song, v weak on Radio Rijnmond fade  712km
105.3 1021  D  B5 aktuell, Kreuzberg (Rhön) (bay) OM and crowds, as web  732km


** Personal Skegness 'First' via meteor scatter

A fruitful day, not just for sporadic E, but also for general scatter with some good distances acheived once again. The current pattern of the weather is one of low pressure and, since Denmark and Norway are now received almost every day when I check for them, I think I can conclude that they are definitely both being received by general scatter.

Two highlights for me were receiving Bavaria on Es. Most of the stations 'got away', with the exception of Bayern 2, Wendelstein on 89.5. The other was the reception of Radio Gardena in the Tirol/Dolomite region of Bolzano. This station is familiar to me as I stayed in the picturesque village of Ortesei Sankt Ulrich some years ago. I remember listening to several radio stations in this region, some of which I *think* were broadcasting in the Laden language. There was some unusual language around the time of this logging and more can be heard on my video at: http://vimeo.com/96703804. Maybe there are even a few more stations in there I missed (hint, hint ;O)

Good DX!

John Faulkner, Skegness, Lincolnshire (JO03dd) <3m ASL.
Blog: http://skegnessdx.blogspot.co.uk
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCOrAbHyPpIflDXo62HWyOiA

Receivers:
Sony XDR-F1HD with Konrad i2c modification

Aerial:
Körner 9.2, 5.5 metres above the ground. QTH is 3 metres above sea level

Rotator:
Yaesu G-5500 azimuth & elevation rotator, allowing antenna to be vertical or horizontal, etc.  

Video: Another Sporadic E Opening: Ukraine in the OIRT Band

A second sporadic E opening today. These signals are from central Ukraine and appeared on the OIRT band during the late afternoon. 

Video: Today's Sporadic E Opening to The Balkans, Italy, Corsica, etc.

Here is a video of today's sporadic E opening to the Balkans, Germany, Italy, Corsica, Spain and Algeria.


 Sporadic E Opening: 28-05-14


Tuesday 27 May 2014

Skegness Log: 27-05-14 (FM)

Band 2 Sporadic E:
 87.6 1632 MRC Médi 1, Settat/Regraga (cho) French OM, as web  2331km
 88.5 1635 MRC SNRT Al Idaâ Al-Watania, Assa (ges) OM, as web  2844km
 88.2 1637 MRC Medradio, Casablanca/Merchiche (gcb) 125B MEDRADIO  2279km
 88.6 1638 MRC Medradio, Marrakech/Oukaïmeden (mth) OM and YL on phone, as 88.2  2528km
 91.2 1638  E  RNE Radio Nacional, Valencina de la Concepción (AND-SE) E211  1818km
 91.2 1640 MRC Radio Mars, Casablanca/Merchiche (gcb) OMs phone in, as web  2279km
 91.7 1642 MRC SNRT Quran, Marrakech/Oukaïmeden (mth) Presumed with Quran  2528km
 94.2 1644 MRC SNRT Quran, Rabat (SNRT) (rsz) V weak Quran, as 91.7  2212km
 94.0 1645 MRC Radio Plus, Casablanca=Dar el-Beida (gcb) Arabic OM, as web  2281km **
 93.5 1646 MRC Radio 2M, Rabat (rsz) OM, as 93.8  2213km
 93.8 1646 MRC Radio 2M, Marrakech/Oukaïmeden (mth) 1005  2528km
 92.5 1648 MRC Atlantic Radio, Casablanca/Merchiche (gcb) 1119 ATLA____  2279km
102.9 1651 MRC Casa FM, Settat/Regraga (cho) Arabic FM, as web  2331km **
104.3 1653 MRC Aswat, Casablanca/Merchiche (gcb) Arabic music, as web  2279km
105.0 1654  E  RNE Radio Nacional, Tajo de las Escobas/Sierra de la Luna (AND-CA) OM and YL, as web  1951km
106.9 1655 MRC Atlantic Radio, Rabat (rsz) French OM news over music, as web  2213km
 89.2 1658 MRC MFM Oriental, Béni-Mellal/Tazerkounte (tda) 1283  2397km
 89.4 1700  E  Los 40 Principales, San Fernando (AND-CA) E235 CUARENTA  1905km
 89.4 1700 GIB BFBS Radio 2, North Mole News in English, as web  1942km **
 92.6 1703 GIB Radio Gibraltar, O'Hara's Battery OM English news, as web  1944km **
 90.0 1705 MRC SNRT Chaîne Inter, Casablanca/Merchiche (gcb) YL news in French, as web  2279km
 97.8 1707 GIB BFBS Radio, O'Hara's Battery YL ID  1944km **
 87.8 1712 MRC Atlantic Radio, Tétouan/Hafa Safa (ttn) Arabic OM, as web  2014km
 87.9 1712 MRC SNRT Chaîne Inter, Rabat (SNRT) (rsz) French YL, as web  2212km
 89.6 1713  E  Radio Andalucía Información, Prado del Rey/Cerro del Verdugo (AND-CA) E333 _R.A.I._  1877km
 90.6 1715 MRC SNRT Al Idaâ Al-Watania, Tétouan/Hafa Safa (ttn) Arabic OM, as web  2014km
 91.0 1717 MRC SNRT Al Idaâ Al-Watania, Rabat (SNRT) (rsz) 1201 SNRT-Nat  2212km
 91.6 1719 MRC Radio Mars, Béni-Mellal/Tazerkounte (tda) Arabic OMs, as web  2397km
 93.3 1723  E  Los 40 Principales, Estepona (AND-MA) EFFF  1907km
 95.3 1724 MRC SNRT Al Idaâ Al Amazighia, Casablanca/Merchiche (gcb) 1203 SNRT-Amz  2279km
 98.6 1727 MRC SNRT Quran, Casablanca/Merchiche (gcb) Presumed, with Quran  2279km
 88.1 1731 MRC Radio Mars, Ifrane/Azougar (mkt) OM, as web  2236km
 89.8 1735 MRC SNRT Chaîne Inter, Béni-Mellal/Tazerkounte (tda) Vocal ID  2397km
 96.5 1746 MRC Radio Mars, Rabat (rsz) French OMs, as web  2213km
 89.4 1747  E  Cadena 100, Alhaurin el Grande/S. Mijas/Mte Viego (AND-MA) Ad break, as web  1879km

UNIDs:
103.1 1652  ?  UNID,  Arabic or North African Chants
 99.4 1728  ?  SNRT Quran, Unlisted site As 98.6. Presume MRC


Band 2 General Scatter:
 98.6 0955  D  WDR 5, Olsberg (nrw) German YL topping weak Egem  592km
 89.2 0957  D  NDR 2, Osnabrück/Schleptruper Egge (nds) Ads, ID and pops  525km
103.7 1000  D  WDR Eins Live, Kleve/Bresserberg (nrw) Lively news, over music, as 106.7  420km
104.3 1000  D  Antenne Niedersachsen, Lingen-Damaschke (nds) Jingle ID  477km
103.0 1001  D  BFBS Radio, Bielefeld/Hünenburg (nrw) BFBS News, as web  564km
107.6 1133  D  Antenne Thüringen, Remda (Saalfeld) (thü) Ads and ID. Adele song. Stereo. Clearest so far  788km
104.9 1138  D  big fm (Rheinland-Pfalz), Ahrweiler/Schöneberg (rlp) Black Eyed Peas, as 104.0  553km


** Personal Skegness 'First' via the mode

A nice opening into Morocco with the Assa transmitter getting through on a possible double-hop, or maybe getting a push with a bit of tropo enhancement at the far end.

I got quite excited about the two stations on 99.4. One was definitely an outlet of SNRT Quran, but from an unknown site. The station was also briefly mixing with another Arabic sounding station, but there have no clues as to who it might have been.

Good DX!

John Faulkner, Skegness, Lincolnshire (JO03dd) <3m ASL.
Blog: http://skegnessdx.blogspot.co.uk
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCOrAbHyPpIflDXo62HWyOiA

Receivers:
Sony XDR-F1HD with Konrad i2c modification

Aerial:
Körner 9.2, 5.5 metres above the ground. QTH is 3 metres above sea level

Rotator:
Yaesu G-5500 azimuth & elevation rotator, allowing antenna to be vertical or horizontal, etc.

Sunday 25 May 2014

Skegness Log: 25-05-14 (FM)

Band 2 Meteor Scatter:
 87.6 1459 ALG Radio Laghouat, Aflou (3) Arabic OM song, as web. Live listening and // web
               stream. Other web streams also checked to rule them out, i.e. not Chaine 3,
               not Chaine Inter (MRC), etc.  New personal MS distance record at 2120km **


Band 2 Sporadic E:
 89.5 0827  ?  UNID,  PI 3342
 89.5 0828 ROU Radio Brasov Special, Sacele (BV) EA0C  2004km **
 93.9 0833 ROU Pro FM, Baneasa/Dobrogea Sud (CL) E059 and jingle ID  2237km
 87.9 0834 BUL Z-Rock, Pleven/kv. Druzba-RRTS Pleven (plv) 8386 Z-ROCK__  2086km **
 91.4 0836 ROU SRR Radio România Actualitati, Drobeta-Turnu Severin/Balota (MH) FF00 RRACTUAL  1888km
 88.1 0838 BUL BNR Horizont, Plovdiv/RRTS Zdravets (pld) 8210 __BNR___ HORIZONT  2193km **
 89.0 0840 ROU Radio ZU, Bucuresti (BU) E2AA _89,0_FM  2107km
 89.9 0841 BUL Radio Fresh!, Pleven/kv. Druzba-RRTS Pleven (plv) Jingle ID  2086km **
 90.3 0843 BUL BNR Radio Shumen, Silistra/RRS Medzit tabija (sil) English YL singer, as web  2202km
 87.6 0845 BUL BNR Radio Shumen, Shumen/RRTS Venets (shm) English YL singer, as web  2220km
 90.8 0846 ROU Magic FM, Bucuresti/Turnul IFMA (BU) Jingle ID  2103km **
 91.2 0847 ROU Magic FM, Three low power listed E210
 92.9 0849 ROU SRR Radio România Actualitati, Novaci/Vârful Cerbu (GJ) FF00  1900km **
 95.3 0850 BUL BNR Hristo Botev, Nesebar/Slancev brig-RRTS Edelvajs (bur) 8220 ___BNR__ HR.BOTEV  2317km
 98.5 0852 ROU Pro FM, Petrosani/Parâng (HD) Jingle ID  1877km **
102.5 0853 BUL BNR Horizont, Nesebar/Slancev brig-RRTS Edelvajs (bur) ID and YL, as 103.0  2317km **
103.0 0853 BUL BNR Horizont, Sofia/Kopitoto-KRTTS Vitosa (sfg) 8210  2056km
 93.4 0856 ROU Radio Europa FM, Alexandria (TR) Pops, as web  2091km
 96.0 0859 BUL BNR Horizont, Veliko Tarnovo/RPTS Rezonans (vlt) 8210  2171km **
 98.5 0859 ROU Radio Trinitas, Drobeta-Turnu Severin/Balota (MH) Religious chanting, as web 
               1888km **
 99.6 0900 BUL BNR Hristo Botev, Veliko Tarnovo/RPTS Rezonans (vlt) Jingle and OM, as web 
               2171km **
100.2 0903 BUL BNR Hristo Botev, Pleven/kv. Druzba-RRTS Pleven (plv) 8220  2086km **
 92.2 0909 BUL BNR Hristo Botev, RRTS Botev Vrah (pld) 8220 HR.BOTEV  2152km
 88.6 1025  I  RAI Radio1, Motta Montecorvino/Monte Sambuco (RAI) (fg) Jingle and local Puglia
               ID  1698km
 87.6 1032  I  Radio Capital, Bari/Via Adolfo Omodeo, 51-Grand Hotel Ambasciatori (ba) Vocal ID in ads  1825km
 87.8 1032  I  Ritmo 80, Corato/Monte Ripanno (ba) 5A72 RITMO_80  1796km
 87.7 1045  I  Radio Radicale, Monopoli/Contrada Impalata (ba) Echoey YL, as web  1865km
 87.5 1046  I  Radio Radicale, Martina Franca/Monte Trazzonara (ta) Echoey YL, as 87.7  1894km **
 88.6 1112  I  Radio Delta 1, Roccamorice-Maiella-Fonte Tettone (pe) 545E   1594km


** Personal Skegness 'First'

Good DX!

John Faulkner, Skegness, Lincolnshire (JO03dd) <3m ASL.
Blog: http://skegnessdx.blogspot.co.uk
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCOrAbHyPpIflDXo62HWyOiA

Receivers:
Sony XDR-F1HD with Konrad i2c modification

Aerial:
Körner 9.2, 5.5 metres above the ground. QTH is 3 metres above sea level

Rotator:
Yaesu G-5500 azimuth & elevation rotator, allowing antenna to be vertical or horizontal, etc.

Sporadic E Opening: 25-05-14 to The Balkans

 Sporadic E Opening: 25-05-14

A few highlights:
07:16 87.9 Z Rock, Pleven,Bulgaria
09:12 91.4 Radio Romania Actualitati, Drobeta-Turnu Severin, Romania
13:17 89.0 Radio Zu, Bucuresti, Romania
31:53 96.0 BNR Horizont, Veliko Tarnovo, Bulgaria
36:10 100.2 BNR Hristo Botev, Pleven, Bulgaria
42:18 92.2 BNR Hristo Botev, Botev Vrah, Bulgaria
The last few minutes of the opening became more interesting as the ES zone moved further to the east. I wondered if double-hop was at play. I am not qualified to state the type of music being played. It could be something less exotic than I am hoping for, but this was an interesting opening nonetheless.
44:09 89.5 Unidentified singing. Mono signal.
47:08 89.5 Unusual music / modulation. Arabic sounding perhaps
48:13 89.5 Stereo station takes over. Turkish?
51:38 89.5 Turkish singing?
52:02 89.5 Unidentified language. Turkish?
54:06 87.5 Arabic singing? Who could this be? Maybe double hop?
The intermittent whining noise, particularly noticeable at the end of the video, is interference my main desktop computer. I don't think it's the power supply. That would be too easy to replace! ;O)

Saturday 24 May 2014

Skegness Log: 24-05-14 (FM)

Band 2 Sporadic E:
 88.1 1800 ALG Radio Batna, Metlili (5) Top of the hour ID  2033km
 91.2 1807 ALG Radio Biskra, Metlili (5) Arabic YL singer, as web  2033km
 94.4 1808 ALG Chaîne 1, Metlili (5) Arabic OM over music, as web  2033km
 87.7 1818 ALG Radio Bouira, Zouggara (35) Tragic sounding Arabic song, as web  1856km **
 91.1 1826 ALG Radio Djelfa, Sbaa Mokrane (17) YL Arabic song, as web  2081km
 87.7 1827  I  R Venere, Lecce or Specchia Vocal ID
 87.9 1836  I  R101, Cammarata/Monte Cammarata (ag) 5215 _R_101__  2007km
 91.1 1836  I  RAI Radio1, Cammarata/Monte Cammarata (RAI) (ag) 5201 __RAI___ _RADIO1_  2007km
 88.0 1841  I  Radio 105 Network, Alcamo/Monte Bonifato (tp) 5211 _105_FM_  1949km
 87.6 1844  I  Virgin Radio, Monte Erice vetta/Piana delle Forche (tp) Web address heard  1927km
 88.4 1845  I  RAI Radio1, Monte Erice vetta/Piana delle Forche (tp) 5201  1927km **
 90.2 1846 ALG Chaîne 1, Dirah (10) Arabic OM  YL, as web  1915km
 92.1 1848 ALG Radio Ouargla, Ouargla (30) Presume with Arabic phone in  2392km
 92.6 1849 ALG Chaîne 1, approx. 50km east of Algiers Arabic stuff, as web  1843km
 90.0 1851 LBY Sama FM, Unknown transmitter. D311 Arabic music and pops
 87.6 1853 ALG Radio Laghouat, Aflou (3) Arabic OM, as web  2120km
 87.8 1854 ALG Chaîne 1, Mecheria (45) Football commentary, as web  2177km
 97.4 1855 ALG Chaîne 3, Mecheria (45) Lively Arabic pops, as web  2177km
 88.4 1902 ALG Chaîne 3, Chréa (9) Prayer, ID and YL news, as web  1872km
 88.0 1913  E  Megaparty FM, Benitatxell/Puig Llorença (VAL-A) Megaparty Jingle ID between
               pops  1605km **
 90.7 1914 ALG Chaîne 1, Aflou (3) Arabic OMs, as web  2120km
 93.9 1916 ALG Chaîne 2, Aflou (3) Arabic pops, as web  2120km


** Personal Skegness 'First'

A slow, teasing and slightly disappointing opening, but still nice to have some Es. It was one of those opening which felt like it took a long time to hear very little.

My logging of an unidentified Arabic station on 90.0 is interesting. The PI code, D311, was correct, according to the software - in other words there was no question mark next to it, so error checking would have been done. I received a suggestion that this might be Libya. Is "D" their prefix? I cannot find the RDS Country Code List which used to be available on the internet. It seems there are a few Libyans using RDS now.

Good DX!

John Faulkner, Skegness, Lincolnshire (JO03dd) <3m ASL.
Blog: http://skegnessdx.blogspot.co.uk
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCOrAbHyPpIflDXo62HWyOiA

Receivers:
Sony XDR-F1HD with Konrad i2c modification

Aerial:
Körner 9.2, 5.5 metres above the ground. QTH is 3 metres above sea level

Rotator:
Yaesu G-5500 azimuth & elevation rotator, allowing antenna to be vertical or horizontal, etc.

Skegness Log: 23-05-14 (FM)

Band 2 Sporadic E:
 87.7 1005  E  Hit FM, Jerez de la Frontera/San Cristóbal (AND-CA) E200  1904km
 87.6 1007 MRC Médi 1, Settat/Regraga (cho) 1281 MEDI_1__  2331km
 87.9 1009 MRC SNRT Chaîne Inter, Rabat (SNRT) (rsz) 1202 SNRT-Int  2212km
 87.8 1013  E  Onda Valencina, Valencina de la Concepción (AND-SE) E011  1818km
 90.0 1016 MRC SNRT Chaîne Inter, Casablanca/Merchiche (gcb) 1202 SNRT-Int  2279km
 95.3 1018 MRC SNRT Al Idaâ Al Amazighia, Casablanca/Merchiche (gcb) 1203 SNRT-Amz  2279km
 92.5 1019 MRC Atlantic Radio, Casablanca/Merchiche (gcb) 1119 ATLANTIC  2279km
 98.6 1020 MRC SNRT Quran, Casablanca/Merchiche (gcb) 1204 SNRT-Cor. 51dBf  2279km
 99.2 1021 MRC Luxe Radio, Casablanca/Merchiche (gcb) 111A __X_____  2279km
 99.4 1025  ?  UNID,  Arabic phone in
 88.2 1026 MRC Medradio, Casablanca/Merchiche (gcb) OM, as web  2279km
 88.0 1039  E  RNE Radio 5 Todo Noticias, Punta Umbría (AND-H) E215 RNE_5-H_  1862km
 87.6 1040  E  COPE, Badajoz/Cansa Burros (EXT-BA) ID heard just before fade  1683km
 89.6 1042 POR RFM, Faro/São Miguel-Goldra (agv) 8231   1893km
 93.4 1043 POR RDP Antena 2, Faro/São Miguel-Goldra (agv) Classical music, as web  1893km
 96.1 1046 POR Rádio Comercial, Faro/São Miguel-Goldra (agv) Portuguese pops, as web  1893km


** Personal Skegness 'First'

Good DX!

John Faulkner, Skegness, Lincolnshire (JO03dd) <3m ASL.
Blog: http://skegnessdx.blogspot.co.uk
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCOrAbHyPpIflDXo62HWyOiA

Receivers:
Sony XDR-F1HD with Konrad i2c modification

Aerial:
Körner 9.2, 5.5 metres above the ground. QTH is 3 metres above sea level

Rotator:
Yaesu G-5500 azimuth & elevation rotator, allowing antenna to be vertical or horizontal, etc.

Friday 23 May 2014

New Personal Scatter Distance Record!

Click to listen!
Band 2 General Scatter:
107.6 0826  D  Antenne Thüringen, Remda (Saalfeld) (thü) Ads, ID and pop song. First time
               via scatter!  788km


This was received via scatter today and becomes a new record distance for me via this mode.

I don't have a video to show but the identification was heard and the reception was also confirmed by checking the songs heard against the station's web stream. I will gt a video next time as I am sure this will reappear in the near future.

Antenne Thuringen can be heard peaking noise free on scatter when visiting the nearby high spot of Kenwick Top in the Lincolnshire Wolds, bridging a distance of 817 km (508 miles)!

Good DX!

John Faulkner, Skegness, Lincolnshire (JO03dd) <3m ASL.
Blog: http://skegnessdx.blogspot.co.uk
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCOrAbHyPpIflDXo62HWyOiA

Receivers:
Sony XDR-F1HD with Konrad i2c modification

Aerial:
Körner 9.2, 5.5 metres above the ground. QTH is 3 metres above sea level

Rotator:
Yaesu G-5500 azimuth & elevation rotator, allowing antenna to be vertical or horizontal, etc.

Thursday 22 May 2014

Skegness Log: 22-05-14 (FM)

Band 2 Sporadic E:
 88.0 1208  E  RNE Radio 5 Todo Noticias, Punta Umbría (AND-H) E215 RNE_5-H_  1862km
 88.2 1209  E  Radio Católica, Almonaster la Real (AND-H) A00B. Religious ranting  1783km
 87.7 1227 POR RDP Antena 1, Serra do Mendro (bej) OM, as web  1770km
 88.9 1240 POR RDP Antena 2, Banática/Almada (lis) Pizzicato violin, as web  1767km **
 87.8 1244 MRC Atlantic Radio, Tétouan/Hafa Safa (ttn) Maria Magdalena pop song, as web 
               2014km
 90.6 1244 MRC SNRT Al Idaâ Al-Watania, Tétouan/Hafa Safa (ttn) Arabic singing, as web  2014km
 87.9 1250 MRC SNRT Chaîne Inter, Rabat (SNRT) (rsz) 1202 _____Int. English language
               class  2212km
 88.1 1508 ALG Radio Batna, Metlili (5) YL, as web  2033km
 91.2 1510 ALG Radio Biskra, Metlili (5) YL and OM, as web  2033km
 94.4 1512 ALG Chaîne 1, Metlili (5) OM, as web  2033km
 92.1 1518 ALG Radio Ouargla, Ouargla (30) Vocal ID.
               2392km **

 91.1 1524 ALG Radio Djelfa, Sbaa Mokrane (17) Arabic music, as web  2081km
 93.9 1529 ALG Chaîne 2, Aflou (3) OMs, as web  2120km
 87.6 1530 ALG Radio Laghouat, Aflou (3) OM over music, as web  2120km
 87.7 1531 ALG Radio Chlef, Aïn N'sour (48) OMs, as web  1913km
 88.7 1532 ALG Radio Soummam, Akfadou (6) OM, as web  1867km
 89.4 1532 ALG Chaîne 1, Tiaret - Gzoul (14) Husky voiced OM, as web  1976km
 90.2 1533 ALG Chaîne 1, Dirah (10) OM, as 88.7  1915km
 90.7 1534 ALG Chaîne 1, Aflou (3) OM, as 90.2  2120km
 91.8 1535 ALG Chaîne 2, Akfadou (6) Music, as web  1867km
 92.6 1536 ALG Chaîne 1, approx. 50km east of Algiers Prayer, as web  1843km
 94.0 1536 ALG Chaîne 1, Aïn N'sour (48) Prayer, as web  1913km
 95.4 1539 ALG Radio Batna, Batna (5) OMs, as web  2010km **
 96.5 1540 ALG Chaîne 2, Dirah (10) North African music, as web  1915km **
 88.0 1542 ALG Chaîne 2, Tizi Ouzou - Belloua (15) North African music, as web  1848km **
 90.4 1543 ALG Radio Setif, Meghriss (19) OM, as web  1911km **
 91.0 1543 ALG Chaîne 1, Bordj El Bahri (16) OM, as web  1833km
 93.5 1544 ALG Chaîne 1, Meghriss (19) OM, as web  1911km
 98.0 1548 ALG Radio Laghouat, Hassi R'Mel (3) OM and music, as web  2256km **
 87.8 1551 ALG Chaîne 1, Mecheria (45) North African music, as web  2177km **
 89.0 1552 ALG Radio Ghardaia, Berriane (47) OMs, as web  2277km **
 87.6 1558 ALG Chaîne 3, Kef El Akhal (25) French ads, as web  1927km
 90.7 1559 ALG Chaîne 1, Kef El Akhal (25) Ad break, as web  1927km
 89.2 1619 MRC MFM Oriental, Béni-Mellal/Tazerkounte (tda) 1283 __MFM___  2397km
 89.4 1620  E  Cadena 100, Alhaurin el Grande/S. Mijas/Mte Viego (AND-MA) E2CE CAD-100_  1879km
 90.4 1621 POR Antena Sul, Almodôvar/Pico do Mu (bej) 84DE ANT._SUL  1871km
 90.6 1622 POR Rádio Campanário, Vila Viçosa (evo) 80C1 CAMPNARI  1705km
 91.1 1622 POR RDP Antena 2, Serra do Mendro (bej) Classical  1770km
 88.1 1624 POR Rádio Comercial, Monchique/Fóia (agv) 8203 COMRCIAL  1891km
 88.3 1624  E  Canal Fiesta Radio, Tajo de las Escobas/Sierra de la Luna (AND-CA) E331 ______T_ 
               1951km
 88.9 1625 POR RDP Antena 1, Monchique/Fóia (agv) Vocal ID  1891km
 92.0 1631 POR Rádio Comercial, Serra do Mendro (bej) 8203 COMRCIAL  1770km
107.6 1708  E  UNID,  E06B ROCIANA_
106.9 1709  E  UNID,  E287
105.5 1710  E  Cadena 100, Sevilla (AND-SE) E2CE CAD-100_  1821km
104.6 1713 MRC SNRT Al Idaâ Al Amazighia, Rabat (SNRT) (rsz) 1203  2212km
104.8 1713  E  Canal Fiesta Radio, Jerez de la Frontera/San Cristóbal (AND-CA) Jingle ID  1904km
103.5 1714  E  RNE Radio Nacional, Jerez de la Frontera/San Cristóbal (AND-CA) E211
               RNE_1___  1904km
 89.9 1716 POR RFM, Arrábida (set) 8231 __RFM___  1778km
 88.4 1717  I  RAI Radio1, UNID low powered relay, but which one? 5401 __ADIO__ **
 87.6 1718 TUN RTT Radio Tataouine, Zarzis (med) 7205 TATAOUIN  2342km
 87.7 1723  I  Radio Italia Anni 60, Itri (lt) 5495 R.ITALO_  1643km
 87.8 1723  I  R101, Tramonti/Monte Sant'Angelo (sa) 5215 _R_101__  1755km
 87.5 1724  I  Radio Capital, Vittoria/Contrada Cava Giumenta (rg) 5219 _CAPITAL  2111km
 89.5 1727  I  RAI Radio1, Bologna/Colle Barbiano (RAI) (bo) 5201 56dB!!!  1256km
 88.1 1728  I  RAI GR Parlamento, Milano/Corso Sempione, 27-Torre Rai (mi) 5206 RAIGRPR_ 60dB.
               Strong  1065km **
 88.4 1729  I  Radio Globo, Ercolano-Vesuvio/Area Osservatorio (na) 5E29 _GLOBO__ 67dB!!! 
               1730km **
 89.4 1730  I  Radio Kiss Kiss, Perdifumo (sa) 5335 KISSKISS  1811km
 91.7 1731  I  RAI Radio2, Bologna/Colle Barbiano (RAI) (bo) 5202 __RAI___  1256km
108.0 1732  I  Radio Studio Emme, Ercolano-Vesuvio/Area Osservatorio (na) 5023 _STUDIO_,
               etc.  1730km
 89.2 1734  I  RDS - Radio Dimensione Suono, Valstagna/San Martino (vi) Presumed site.
               5264 *_RDS_*_  1149km **
102.0 1734  I  Radio 105 Network, Seven sites listed 5211 **
 97.3 1735  I  UNID,  50FE
 87.5 1737  I  Radio Italia Solo Musica Italiana, Ercolano-Vesuvio/Area Osservatorio (na)
               5220 R_ITALIA  1730km
 87.5 1737  I  Radio Subasio, Sigillo/Monte Columeo (Monte Cucco) (pg) 53FD SUBASIO_  1423km
 88.0 1738  I  Radio Maria, Augusta (sr) 51CC R.MARIA_  2109km
 90.7 1739 TUN RTT Radio Culture, Zarzis (med) OM sounding like an Arabic version of Zippy
               from Rainbow, as web  2342km
 88.0 1741 TUN Radio Zitouna FM, Djebel Zaghouan (zag) 7211 ZITOUNA_  2016km  
 89.9 1742 TUN Radio Zitouna FM, Sfax/El-Ghraba (sfa) 7211 ZITOUNA_  2183km  
 90.2 1743 TUN Radio Zitouna, Unlisted site OM, as 89.9. Definitely Not Radio Jeunes
 92.0 1745 TUN RTT R.Tunis Chaîne Int., Djebel Zaghouan (zag) 7202 RTCI____  2016km
 93.0 1745 TUN RTT Radio Jeunes, Sfax/El-Ghraba (sfa) Arabic YL, as web  2183km
 87.7 1749 TUN RTT Radio Culture, Djebel Trozza (kai) 7212 CULTURE_  2086km
 88.2 1749  I  RAI Radio1, Sant’Antioco/Sa Scrocca Manna (RAI) (ci) 5201  1681km
 88.5 1751 TUN RTT Radio Sfax, Kerkennah (sfa) OM, as web  2222km
 89.5 1752 TUN RTT Radio Culture, Bizerte/Djebel Kochbata (biz) Arabic music, as web  1933km
 89.6 1753  I  Radio Planargia, Santu Lussurgiu/Punta Badde Urbara (or) 56F9  1576km
 90.6 1753 TUN Shems FM, Monastir (mon) Jingle ID  2100km
 91.0 1754 TUN MFM Tunisie, Ksour-Essaf (mah) Phone in, as web  2142km
 91.3 1754  I  RAI Radio1, Santu Lussurgiu/Punta Badde Urbara (RAI) (or) 5201 __RAI___
               _RADIO1_  1575km
 91.7 1755  I  Radio Margherita, Sassari/Monte Oro (ss) 5242 MARGHRTA  1513km
 92.1 1757  I  RTL 102.5, Rocca di Papa/Monte Cavo (rm) Pops, as 92.4  1569km
 92.4 1757  I  RTL 102.5, Rocca di Papa/Monte Cavo (rm) 5218 RTL102.5  1568km
 92.5 1758 TUN RTT Radio Jeunes, Ksour-Essaf (mah) 7201 JEUNES__  2142km **
 92.7 1759  I  RAI Radio2, Sinnai/Monte Serpeddi (RAI) (ca) 5202 __RAI___ (RADIO2)  1678km
 93.0 1759  I  Radio 105 Network, Sinnai/Monte Serpeddi (ca) 5211  1678km
 93.9 1802 TUN RTT Radio Jeunes, Zarzis (med) French YL, as web  2342km
 88.3 1803 ALG Radio El Tarf, Oum Ali (36) Distorted OMs, as web  1934km
 89.4 1804 TUN Jawhara FM, Kairouan=Al-Qayrawan (kai) 7210 JAWHARA_  2089km
 90.5 1805  I  Radio Studio 2000, Santu Lussurgiu/Punta Badde Urbara (or) 5499  1576km
 93.3 1806  I  RAI Radio2, Santu Lussurgiu/Punta Badde Urbara (RAI) (or) 5202 __RAI___
               _RADIO2_  1575km
 93.8 1807  I  Radio Internazionale, Sinnai/Monte Serpeddi (ca) 56D7 ____RN__  1678km
 87.5 1808  I  Radio Planet Music, Santa Flavia/Monte Solunto (pa) 507E  1959km
 95.2 1808 TUN Cap FM, Unlisted site 7222 CAP_FM__ **
 88.2 1809  I  Radiolina, Capoterra/Poggio dei Pini (ca) 544B RD____NA. Cagliari ads  1689km **
 88.4 1809  I  Radio Margherita, Ravanusa/Poggio Rotondo (ag) 5242  2057km
 90.4 1810  I  RDS - Radio Dimensione Suono, Villasimius/Monte Minniminni (ca) 5264 *_RDS_*_ 
               1700km
 88.2 1811 TUN RTT Radio Kef, Djebel ech Chambi (kas) 7208 KEF_____  2100km
 90.0 1811 TUN RTT Radio Kef, Medhrene (elk) 7208  1991km **
 90.3 1812 TUN RTT Radio Kef, Aïn Draham/Djebel Al-Bi'r (jen) Jingle ID and music, as 90.0 
               1934km
 87.9 1814  I  R101, Sant'Antioco/Località Batteria/Monte Cresia (ci) 5215 _R_101__  1684km
 88.0 1814  I  Radiolina, Sassari/Monte Oro (ss) 544B RDIOLINA  1513km
 89.9 1815  I  Radio Studio One, Cagliari/Palazzo Griffa (ca) 5495 ST__IONE  1688km
 98.0 1815  I  Radiolina, Cagliari/Castello (ca) 544B RDIOLINA  1688km
 87.5 1820  I  Radio Maria, Sant'Antioco/Località Batteria/Monte Cresia (ci) 51CC R.MARIA_ 
               1684km
 87.6 1821  I  R101, Cagliari/Palazzo Griffa (ca) Ads, as 87.9  1688km
 91.7 1822  I  R101, Four sites listed 5215 _R_101__ **
 92.2 1822  I  Radio 24, Villacidro/Loc. Giarranas (md) 5245 RADIO_24  1652km **
 88.7 1823 TUN Shems FM, Gafsa/Djebel Biadha (gaf) 7213 SHEM____  2197km
 91.8 1825 TUN RTT Radio Gafsa, Gafsa/Djebel Biadha (gaf) Arabic music, as web  2197km
 92.9 1826 TUN Mosaïque FM, Kef-Errand (nab) Arabic pops, as web. Jingle ID  1988km
 93.4 1827 TUN RTT R.Tunis Chaîne Int., Aïn Draham/Djebel Al-Bi'r (jen) 7202  1934km
 95.0 1827 TUN RTT Radio Jeunes, Gafsa/Djebel Biadha (gaf) Phone in, as web  2197km **
 97.5 1830 ALG Chaîne 2, Doukhane (12) Arabic football comentary, as web  2071km
 87.9 1832 ALG Radio Tébessa, Doukhane (12) YL, as web  2071km
 89.2 1833  I  Radio Iglesias, Carloforte (ci) 50FA IGLESIAS  1673km
 89.8 1834 TUN RTT Radio Nationale, Kef-Errand (nab) Arabic OM on phone, as web  1988km **
 89.0 1837 TUN RTT Radio Sfax, Skhira (sfa) 7204 SFAX____  2230km
 91.5 1840 TUN Radio Cap FM, Kef-Errand (nab) Lively Arabic pops, as web  1988km **
 92.2 1841 TUN Radio Zitouna FM, Gorraa (bej) 7211 ZITOUNA_  1976km
 93.3 1841 TUN RTT Radio Culture, Gabès (gab) Instrumental Arabic music, as web  2284km
 93.7 1842 TUN Shems FM, Sousse (sou) 7213 SHEMS_FM  2087km
 93.8 1843 TUN RTT R.Tunis Chaîne Int., Bizerte/Djebel Kochbata (biz) 7202 RTCI____  1933km
 94.0 1843 TUN Radio Zitouna FM, Djebel Trozza (kai) Koran, as web  2086km
 94.2 1844 ALG Chaîne 1, Doukhane (12) Echoey OM, as web  2071km **
 94.3 1844 TUN RTT Radio Nationale, Djebel Zaghouan (zag) 7207 NATIONAL  2016km
107.0 1845 TUN Shems FM, Kairouan=Al-Qayrawan (kai) 7213 SHEMS_FM  2089km
103.0 1847 TUN RTT Radio Culture, Sfax/El-Ghraba (sfa) 7212 CULTURE_  2183km
101.3 1848 TUN RTT Radio Culture, Maktar/Souk Jomaa (kas) 7212 CULTURE_  2039km
100.4 1849 TUN Radio Zitouna FM, Aïn Draham/Djebel Al-Bi'r (jen) Koran, as web  1934km **
 98.5 1850 TUN RTT Radio Monastir, Sidi Abdessalem (nab) OM on phone, as web  2015km **
 97.8 1851 TUN Radio Zitouna FM, Maktar/Souk Jomaa (kas) 7211 ZITOUNA_  2039km
 97.2 1857 ALG Chaîne 2, Kef El Akhal (25) Arabic football commentary, as web  1927km


** Personal Skegness 'First'. Underlined stations are unidentified.

The first good Es opening of the season, starting with fleeting appearances of Spain around midday. Portugal and Morocco soon followed. Then there was a decent opening into Algeria with a few new ones. Italy popped up late afternoon and then there was a good opening to Tunisia.

Italy reached an impressive 67 dBf at 1729 courtesy of Radio Globo from Ercolano-Vesuvio on 88.4. This is the strongest signal I have observed so far with the GTK software. Again, no boost was used.

I thought I might have had Libya once or twice while Tunisia was dominating. 87.9 and 97.7 had Arabic stations which did not seem to be from Algeria or Tunisia. I ruled them all out with web parallels but, as luck would have it, the Libyan web streams did not work.

Good DX!

John Faulkner, Skegness, Lincolnshire (JO03dd) <3m ASL.
Blog: http://skegnessdx.blogspot.co.uk
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCOrAbHyPpIflDXo62HWyOiA

Receivers:
Sony XDR-F1HD with Konrad i2c modification & XDR-GTK software.

Aerial:
Körner 9.2 at 5.5 metres AGL. Yaesu G-5500 elevation/azimuth rotator.

Wednesday 21 May 2014

Skegness Log: 21-05-14 (FM)

Band 2 Sporadic E:
 87.7 1019  E  Europa FM, Unsure which site E2ED. Unattended. 16dBf
 87.6 1109 ALG Radio Laghouat, Aflou (3) YL, as web  2120km
 90.7 1111 ALG Chaîne 1, Aflou (3) YL, as web  2120km
 88.1 1118  E  Onda Cero, Chinchilla de Monte Aragón (CAM-AB) E2EE ONDACERO  1590km
 87.7 1119  E  Radio Canela, Sierra de Carrascoy (MUR-MU) 5158  1708km
 87.9 1127  E  RNE Radio 5 Todo Noticias, Cambil/Sierra Almadén (AND-J) E215 RNE___J_  1740km
 88.2 1133 MRC SNRT Al Idaâ Al-Watania, Tata (ges) Arabic music, as web  2691km
 87.6 1159  E  COPE, Granada (AND-GR) E2CA __COPE__ Granada in radiotext  1800km
 88.0 1204  E  RNE Radio 5 Todo Noticias, Alhaurin el Grande/S. Mijas/Mte Viego (AND-MA)
               E215 RNE_5-MA  1879km
 87.7 1205  E  Europa FM, Alcalá de Henares (MAD-M) E5ED  1439km


Good DX!

John Faulkner, Skegness, Lincolnshire (JO03dd) <3m ASL.
Blog: http://skegnessdx.blogspot.co.uk
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCOrAbHyPpIflDXo62HWyOiA

Receivers:
Sony XDR-F1HD with Konrad i2c modification & XDR-GTK software.

Aerial:
Körner 9.2 at 5.5 metres AGL. Yaesu G-5500 elevation/azimuth rotator.

Skegness Log: 20-05-14 (FM)

Band 2 Sporadic E:
 87.6 1734 MRC Médi 1, Settat/Regraga (cho) French OM, as web. Fleeting appearances and very weak.   2331km
 87.9 1736 MRC SNRT Chaîne Inter, Rabat (SNRT) (rsz) French OM on phone to YL, as web  2212km
 87.7 1912 ALG Radio Chlef, Aïn N'sour (48) Arabic music, as web  1913km
 90.8 1913 ALG Radio Relizane, Aïn N'sour (48) Arabic OM, as web  1913km
 87.6 1915 ALG Radio Laghouat, Aflou (3) Presume. Web stream down  2120km


A weak and intermittent Es opening to North Africa today

Good DX!

John Faulkner, Skegness, Lincolnshire (JO03dd) <3m ASL.
Blog: http://skegnessdx.blogspot.co.uk
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCOrAbHyPpIflDXo62HWyOiA

Receivers:
Sony XDR-F1HD with Konrad i2c modification & XDR-GTK software.

Aerial:
Körner 9.2 at 5.5 metres AGL. Yaesu G-5500 elevation/azimuth rotator.

Monday 19 May 2014

Skegness Log: 19-05-14 (FM)

Band 2 Sporadic E:
 88.4 1741 MRC MFM Oriental, Taourirt (otl) 1283 __MFM___  2102km
 88.1 1743  E  Onda Cero, Chinchilla de Monte Aragón (CAM-AB) E2EE ONDACERO  1590km
 88.4 1743  E  RNE Radio Clásica, Caravaca de la Cruz (MUR-MU) E212  1680km
 91.3 1745 MRC SNRT Al Amazighia, Unlisted site 1203 SNRT-Amz **
 87.9 1747  E  Plus FM, Unknown location. plusfmradio.es 3000 PLUS_FM_ **
 89.1 1748  E  RNE Radio Nacional, Jumilla (MUR-MU) E211 RNE_1__.  1642km **
 89.2 1750  E  COPE, Lorca (MUR-MU) E2CA __COPE__. Murcia ID  1729km
 89.4 1750  E  Cadena Dial, Yecla (MUR-MU) E274 YECLA___ CAD-DIAL  1622km
 91.0 1752  E  Radio María, Murcia/Pico del Relojero (MUR-MU) 509B _R.MARIA  1698km **
 92.1 1753  E  RNE Radio 5 Todo Noticias, Sierra de Carrascoy (MUR-MU) E216 RNE_5-MA  1706km
 92.1 1754  E  Metropolis FM, Unlisted site E0D8 METROFM_ Metropolis FM de Murcia ID **
 92.9 1755  E  Onda Cero, Murcia/Pico del Relojero (MUR-MU) E2EE ONDACERO  1698km
 93.5 1756  E  Cadena 100, Lorca (MUR-MU) E2CE _CAD-100  1731km
 87.7 1757  E  Radio Canela, Sierra de Carrascoy (MUR-MU) 5158  1708km
 87.9 1758 MRC Medina FM, Unlisted site 111D MEDINAFM **
 89.9 1802  E  Big FM, San Fulgencio (VAL-A) 1000 _Big_FM_  1674km
 90.5 1803  E  SER, Orihuela/Cabezo Hurchillo (VAL-A) E0FE __SER___ ORIHUELA. 51dBf  1682km
 89.1 1807  E  Bay Radio, Orihuela/Sierra de Hurchillo (VAL-A) E985 BayRadio  1682km **
 91.8 1809  E  SER, Mojácar (AND-AL) E239 __SER.._ 53dBf  1789km
 93.2 1810  E  esRadio, Sierra de Carrascoy (MUR-MU) E4F5 liidad (Corrupted PS)  1708km **
 93.8 1811  E  Onda Cero, Torrevieja (VAL-A) E222 ONDA____  1686km **
 87.5 1812  E  Spektra FM, Torrent/Perentxissa=Calicanto (VAL-V) E0F0 SPEKTR__  1527km **
 87.5 1813  E  Revive FM, Murcia/Puente Tocinos (MUR-MU) E022 DESICA__  1689km
 87.7 1813  E  Radio Torre Pacheco, Torre-Pacheco (MUR-MU) E079 RADIO___ TORRE___ PACHECO_ 
               1717km
 88.3 1814  E  COPE, Santomera/Cabezos Ásperos (MUR-MU) (Presumed - ??)  A21F Beni__.m
               (Corrupted PS)  1676km

 89.2 1815  E  Kiss FM, Alicante/Castillo San Fernando (VAL-A) E2EC KISS_FM_  1647km
 89.4 1815  E  COPE, Cartagena (MUR-MU) E2CA __COPE__   1728km
 90.4 1818  E  Radio Rusa, Alicante=Alacant (VAL-A) A0BF Russian songs.  1647km **
 91.7 1819  E  SER, Alicante/Castillo San Fernando (VAL-A) EEAA  1647km
 91.1 1822  I  RAI Radio1, Cammarata/Monte Cammarata (RAI) (ag) 5201 __RAI___ _RADIO1_  2007km
 88.0 1823  I  Radio 105 Network, Alcamo/Monte Bonifato (tp) 5211 _105_FM_  1949km
 87.6 1824  E  RNE Radio Nacional, Benidorm/Serra Gelada (VAL-A) E211 RNE_1___. Guessing this is
               the Benidorm tx  1623km

 87.9 1825  I  R101, Cammarata/Monte Cammarata (ag) 5215 _R_1____  2007km
 88.6 1826  E  RNE Radio Clásica, Confrides/Aitana (VAL-A) E212 RNE-CLAS  1613km
 89.0 1827  I  RAI Radio1, Alcamo/Monte Bonifato (RAI) (tp) 5201 __RAI___ _RADIO1_  1949km
 89.2 1828  I  RAI Radio1, Presume low power Sicilia tx OM on phone, as 89.0 **
 89.6 1830  I  Radio Cuore (Hobby Network), Alcamo/Monte Bonifato (tp) Jingle ID  1949km **
 88.0 1832  I  Radio Maria, Augusta (sr) Tentative site. 51CC R.MARIA_  2109km **


** Personal Skegness 'First'

Almost an hour's worth of sporadic E this evening to Spain, Morocco and a tiny bit of Sicily.

I have listed presumed sites and anything unidentified/tentative in bold lettering.

Here is the log in frequency order.

 87.5 1812  E  Spektra FM, Torrent/Perentxissa=Calicanto (VAL-V) E0F0 SPEKTR__  1527km **
 87.5 1813  E  Revive FM, Murcia/Puente Tocinos (MUR-MU) E022 DESICA__  1689km
 87.6 1824  E  RNE Radio Nacional, Benidorm/Serra Gelada (VAL-A) E211 RNE_1___. Guessing this is
               the Benidorm tx  1623km
 87.7 1757  E  Radio Canela, Sierra de Carrascoy (MUR-MU) 5158  1708km
 87.7 1813  E  Radio Torre Pacheco, Torre-Pacheco (MUR-MU) E079 RADIO___ TORRE___ PACHECO_ 
               1717km
 87.9 1747  E  Plus FM, Unknown location. plusfmradio.es 3000 PLUS_FM_ **
 87.9 1758 MRC Medina FM, Unlisted site 111D MEDINAFM **
 87.9 1825  I  R101, Cammarata/Monte Cammarata (ag) 5215 _R_1____  2007km
 88.0 1823  I  Radio 105 Network, Alcamo/Monte Bonifato (tp) 5211 _105_FM_  1949km
 88.0 1832  I  Radio Maria, Augusta (sr) Tentative site. 51CC R.MARIA_  2109km **
 88.1 1743  E  Onda Cero, Chinchilla de Monte Aragón (CAM-AB) E2EE ONDACERO  1590km
 88.3 1814  E  COPE, Santomera/Cabezos Ásperos (MUR-MU) (Presumed - ??)  A21F Beni__.m
               (Corrupted PS)  1676km
 88.4 1741 MRC MFM Oriental, Taourirt (otl) 1283 __MFM___  2102km
 88.4 1743  E  RNE Radio Clásica, Caravaca de la Cruz (MUR-MU) E212  1680km
 88.6 1826  E  RNE Radio Clásica, Confrides/Aitana (VAL-A) E212 RNE-CLAS  1613km
 89.0 1827  I  RAI Radio1, Alcamo/Monte Bonifato (RAI) (tp) 5201 __RAI___ _RADIO1_  1949km
 89.1 1748  E  RNE Radio Nacional, Jumilla (MUR-MU) E211 RNE_1__.  1642km **
 89.1 1807  E  Bay Radio, Orihuela/Sierra de Hurchillo (VAL-A) E985 BayRadio  1682km **
 89.2 1750  E  COPE, Lorca (MUR-MU) E2CA __COPE__. Murcia ID  1729km
 89.2 1815  E  Kiss FM, Alicante/Castillo San Fernando (VAL-A) E2EC KISS_FM_  1647km
 89.2 1828  I  RAI Radio1, Presume low power Sicilia tx OM on phone, as 89.0 **
 89.4 1750  E  Cadena Dial, Yecla (MUR-MU) E274 YECLA___ CAD-DIAL  1622km
 89.4 1815  E  COPE, Cartagena (MUR-MU) E2CA __COPE__   1728km
 89.6 1830  I  Radio Cuore (Hobby Network), Alcamo/Monte Bonifato (tp) Jingle ID  1949km **
 89.9 1802  E  Big FM, San Fulgencio (VAL-A) 1000 _Big_FM_  1674km
 90.4 1818  E  Radio Rusa, Alicante=Alacant (VAL-A) A0BF Russian songs.  1647km **
 90.5 1803  E  SER, Orihuela/Cabezo Hurchillo (VAL-A) E0FE __SER___ ORIHUELA. 51dBf  1682km
 91.0 1752  E  Radio María, Murcia/Pico del Relojero (MUR-MU) 509B _R.MARIA  1698km **
 91.1 1822  I  RAI Radio1, Cammarata/Monte Cammarata (RAI) (ag) 5201 __RAI___ _RADIO1_  2007km
 91.3 1745 MRC SNRT Al Amazighia, Unlisted site 1203 SNRT-Amz **
 91.7 1819  E  SER, Alicante/Castillo San Fernando (VAL-A) EEAA  1647km
 91.8 1809  E  SER, Mojácar (AND-AL) E239 __SER.._ 53dBf  1789km
 92.1 1753  E  RNE Radio 5 Todo Noticias, Sierra de Carrascoy (MUR-MU) E216 RNE_5-MA  1706km
 92.1 1754  E  Metropolis FM, Unlisted site E0D8 METROFM_ Metropolis FM de Murcia ID **
 92.9 1755  E  Onda Cero, Murcia/Pico del Relojero (MUR-MU) E2EE ONDACERO  1698km
 93.2 1810  E  esRadio, Sierra de Carrascoy (MUR-MU) E4F5 liidad (Corrupted PS)  1708km **
 93.5 1756  E  Cadena 100, Lorca (MUR-MU) E2CE _CAD-100  1731km
 93.8 1811  E  Onda Cero, Torrevieja (VAL-A) E222 ONDA____  1686km **


Good DX!

John Faulkner, Skegness, Lincolnshire (JO03dd) <3m ASL.
Blog: http://skegnessdx.blogspot.co.uk
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCOrAbHyPpIflDXo62HWyOiA

Receivers:
Sony XDR-F1HD with Konrad i2c modification & XDR-GTK software.

Aerial:
Körner 9.2 at 5.5 metres AGL. Yaesu G-5500 elevation/azimuth rotator.

Blog Updates

I am in the process of adding "Labels" and re-naming post titles, plus a bit of general spring cleaning. This should make it easier to search for specific topics, such as propagation modes and individual bands. My recent attempts to do this by including this information in the post title is somewhat long-winded and unnecessary. I hope this will streamline the blog to some degree.

In many respects, I am a novice when it comes to blogging. I set this up this one as a kind of diary and backup facility for personal use, but it's become a useful side to the hobby. There are now a few hundred posts here so I thought I should organise it a bit better.

32,000 hits have been recorded so far and I have received many comments from fellow DXers. True enough, most of those visitors are probably web bots, but I realise now what a great way this is to communicate the hobby to the world.

Sunday 18 May 2014

Skegness Log: 18-05-14 (FM)

Band 2 Sporadic E:
 87.6 1625 ALG Radio Laghouat, Aflou (3) Arabic phone in, as web  2120km
 90.7 1626 ALG Chaîne 1, Aflou (3) Arabic OM, as web  2120km

Band 2 Tropospheric/Scatter:
107.3 1322  D  hr4, Heidelstein (Rhön) [bay] (hes) German OM talk in outside event, as web  729km
 91.8 1340  D  WDR 2, Hohe Warte (nrw) Pops, as web  544km
 97.1 1528 HOL NPO 3FM, Wieringermeer/Robbenoordbos (nho) ID and pops, as 96.8  318km
 95.3 1534 HOL L1 Radio, Hulsberg/Emmaberg (lim) Pops, as web  455km
103.4 1537 BEL Joe FM, Genk, Antwerpen or Brussel Pops, as 104.1
103.9 1539 HOL NPO 3FM, Hulsberg/Emmaberg (lim) Screechy guitar song, as web  455km **


** Personal Skegness 'First'

The briefest of brief sporadic E openings on FM today, plus a new station on 103.9 for me via scatter - not sure why I haven't heard this one before.

My gut feeling for the 103.4 transmitter of Joe FM is Genk since this transmitter comes through well on several other frequencies, but impossible to be certain.

Good DX!

John Faulkner, Skegness, Lincolnshire (JO03dd) <3m ASL.
Blog: http://skegnessdx.blogspot.co.uk
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCOrAbHyPpIflDXo62HWyOiA

Receivers:
Sony XDR-F1HD with Konrad i2c modification & XDR-GTK software.

Aerial:
Körner 9.2 at 5.5 metres AGL. Yaesu G-5500 elevation/azimuth rotator.

Saturday 17 May 2014

Skegness Log: 17-05-14 (FM)

Band 2 Tropospheric/Scatter:
 97.2 0740 DNK DR P3, Rangstrup/Gammel Tøndervej 28 (sdk-sjy) Scatter. Discussion about
               blow jobs !!! As web  617km


Good DX!

John Faulkner, Skegness, Lincolnshire (JO03dd) <3m ASL.
Blog: http://skegnessdx.blogspot.co.uk
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCOrAbHyPpIflDXo62HWyOiA

Receivers:
Sony XDR-F1HD with Konrad i2c modification & XDR-GTK software.

Aerial:
Körner 9.2 at 5.5 metres AGL. Yaesu G-5500 elevation/azimuth rotator.

Meteor Scatter DXing: A New Approach

Meteor Scatter DXing, using WaveLab's "Montage" window

The Foreword:
For the last five months I have been trying to put together a video to demonstrate the system I use for my band 2 meteor scatter DXing. After being attacked by various technical problems I am just going to do this text version. It should suffice anyway, but the video would have been useful to show the method I use in action.

The History:
I used to do well with meteor scatter when I lived in Nottinghamshire, but I have had a lot of problems with noise levels since moving to Skegness, more so at my previous address, so I wondered how I might have more success with meteor scatter in terms of identifying these fleetingly brief signals. It all came about by accident really.

The Idea:
At the end of last year, 2013, I had an idea. I recorded an empty frequency on the FM broadcast band while simultaneously recording the web stream of a station which used that frequency, via its internet web stream. I couldn't receive that station, but I would hope it might suddenly pop up via meteor scatter. Simple? In theory, but this ave me my first problem. I only had one audio channel available on the computer. This was stereo of course, so the audio from my XDR would be fed to one channel, let's say the left side of the stereo channel, while the web audio would come in on the right side. It's easy enough to split these via your sound card mixer control panel. I would leave these recording overnight.

Come the following morning, I would played back the two recordings. I use WaveLab to do this. WaveLab has multi-channel playback via its "Montage" files and up to 256 channels are available, not that I am ever likely to use that many. With the audio from my XDR on one montage channel, and the web audio on another, I can toggle between the two, or play them back simultaneously.

I can quickly locate each meteor burst by scanning along the visual waveform. This is useful as it means I don't need to play all eight hours of recorded audio to hear the meteor bursts. I can actually see them. Thus scanning through eight hours of recorded audio can often be done in a matter of minutes.

So I hear a burst and then toggle to the web audio to see if I hear the same audio, allowing for internet lag of course. If there is a match, then it *may* be safe to assume the identity of the recorded meteor burst. This is exactly the same thing many of us do when we want confirmation of a received tropo or E skip signal for instance, we simply check it against the web stream. I say *may* be possible". This depends on several things, which I'm sure speak for themselves and which I will cover later in more depth.

StreamWriter. Multiple web stream recording!

The Software:
What if I could record more than web stream? Was there any software which would enable me to do this? So I began to look into this and, in particular, at Virtual Audio Cable, but I had trouble configuring it to work with multiple instances of VLC Player. Then I would have needed to configure each VLC channel to play back individually. How would this all work? My brain cell struggles to get around this little piece of software at the best of times, so I began searching the internet for other software which might do the same thing, but more simply. I was pleased to find several programmes which did the job, but which one was best? Eventually I settled with StreamWriter. Let's say this was the least problematical of those I tried. It may not be the best solution but it seemed to do the job pretty well, so I stuck with it.

StreamWriter has the drawback of not being able to record asx files, despite supposedly being able to do this, so I can only record m3u files. Pay close attention from here because this is where it starts to get complicated.
Any Audio Converter. Free audio conversion software

StreamWriter converts m3u files which end up on my hard drive as MP3 or MP2 files. Firstly, mp2 files need converting to mp3. Some of the mp3 files end up with different bitrates and different sample rates. mp3 files need converting to a common format so they can all be loaded into WaveLab simultaneously. I use Free m4a To mp3 Converter for the conversion of the mp2 files. Then I use Any Audio Converter to modify each file so they end up with the same bitrates and sample rates. Without checking, I think you can do all the necessary conversions with Any Audio Converter, so the "Free m4a To mp3 Converter" might be surplus to requirements.

The Playback:
Next, load all the files, including your recorded off-air recording, into a WaveLab Montage. This is time-consuming to say the least. Since I typically record 20 to 30 web streams simultaneously, sometimes more, with each one being as much as nine or ten hours long, I end up with a lot of data which takes a lot of time to convert and import. Thankfully, you can let the computer get on with this itself while you can go and do something mroe useful, like mow the garden or paint the living room. Yes, it can take an hour or two to load in all the files.

The Bandwidth:
A problem for some will be the enormous amount of bandwidth used when recording all these files. Typically, I transfer 500GB of data. or more, each month, but my Sky broadband package is supposed to be genuinely 'unlimited' regarding bandwidth. I spoke to one of their operators about this and he confirmed that this wouldn't be a problem, but somehow, I suspect that were I to exceed this amount they would say something or slow down my connection speed. So far so good.

The Benefits and Pitfalls:
All you have to do is toggle between each recorded web stream to see if you have a match, but it is important to be aware of a few potential pitfalls when doing this. There are also a few benefits. I have listed some bullet points:

By using this method of meteor scatter recording, it ensures you can rule out sporadic E being responsible for your catches as you will be seeing and hearing the DX as it happens, so you'll know instantly if a station came in via Es or meteor scatter.
  • Since Wavelab shows you a visual representation of the audio, you can zoom straight to the meteor bursts without needing to play through the whole duration of the recording, making the task of listening very quick and simple. 
  • Beware of popular songs, which can be played, by more than one station on the frequency, at the same time. The internet lag will usually sort that out for you, plus I find you tend to hear each station several times anyway, which confirms the station you have received is the correct one. It's about using common sense.
  • Beware of shared programming on overnight networks which can carry the same music at the same time. Using Germany as an example, it is advisable to record ALL web streams on the frequency to be sure you don't identify the wrong stream. Also be aware that there are shared classical music programmes between different countries. 
  • Meteor scatter can bring in stations which are not typically received via any other propagation mode. Some FM DXers describe a 'gap' between the outer limits of tropospheric propagation and the shorter distances associated with E skip. From my location, just about all of those big transmitters in eastern parts of Germany have been received. 
  • I have discovered that it is also possible to regularly receive very low power transmissions via meteor scatter, in the order of less than 100 watts. 
  • You don't need an elaborate antenna for this. My three element beam just one metre above the ground, and even an old home-made FM loop, have provided very good reception of meteor scatter propagation, even to RDS levels. 
  • A small drawback is the learning curve: It seemed quite daunting at first, but I quickly developed a knack and a system which simplified the processes involved. 
My guess is that there will be better and more appropriate software, plus you may easily work out a simpler or better system than the one I have described here. Things will probably be simpler than ever in years to come.


The Conclusion:
So, that's the theory. Now here's the practice. And this is where the poor quality video work comes in. I think you'll see clearly enough what's happening though.

I hope this explanation is useful and may encourage other DXers to try their hand at multiple-channel stream recording.

Finally, an update: I have been asked to upload the video I have been trying to produce to demonstrate this method and had hoped to use in this article. This is far from complete and only shows a couple of brief examples. The quality is shocking and blurry. Odd to say I did this all in HD. Something obviously went wrong. I hope it's of use however. Please write to me if there is anything else you need to know about this or if there is something which needs clarification.


These are short recorded samples of me using the various software to identify meteor scatter. Both examples used are brief, but the second example was used more to demonstrate a meteor burst which was probably too short to be of use. User discretion is advised.

Your comments and questions are welcome. I am happy to answer any questions.


Enjoy! This is John signing off.

Friday 16 May 2014

Video: Today's Sporadic E Opening to The Balkans, Czech Republic & Poland

 Sporadic E Opening to The Balkans, Czech Republic & Poland

A mid-afternoon sporadic E opening. Most of the DX came from the Balkan area, including Macedonia, Montenegro, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Croatia and Slovenia. Also heard were the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Poland.

The log for this opening can be found here:

Note: The audio to this video has been blocked to some countries. I don't know which, but blame YouTube and their ridiculous rules regarding copyright.

Skegness Log: 16-05-14 (FM)

Band 2 Sporadic E:
 87.6 1231 BUL BNR Radio Shumen, Shumen/RRTS Venets (shm) 8236 _SHUMEN_ (Approximate time) 
               2220km
 89.4 1401 ROU Magic FM, Cluj-Napoca (CJ) Presume Cluj. E210 MAGIC_FM  1798km **
 88.2 1404 SVK SRo 2 Rádio Regina, Lucenec/Blatný vrch (BB) 5960 _REGINA_  1464km
 89.1 1405 ROU Pro FM, Târgu Mures (MS) E059 89,1_F__  1877km
 88.1 1406 BIH BH Radio 1, Tusnica (k10) F001 BHRADIO1  1615km
 88.4 1407 MNE Radio Prva, Ulcinj/Mozura (UL) D2DE RADIO___ PR______  1877km **
 89.0 1408 ALB New Planet Radio 89 FM, Tiranë (Tirana)/Fushë Dajt (tir) 5400 RADIO___ CLASSIC_
               NEW_____ etc.  1964km
 89.5 1408 HRV HRT Radio Dubrovnik, Gruda/Sveti Ilija (du) C315 R-DUBROV  1785km **
 87.6 1409 MNE Antena M, Podgorica/Sjenica (PG) 30FE ANTENA_M  1841km
 87.7 1409 HRV HRT-HR 1, Licka Pljesivica (gs) C201 HRT-HR_1  1456km
 88.0 1411 MNE Radio Crne Gore 1, Niksic/Tovic-Sudina Glava (NK) 63C1 Tovic___ Niksic__   1795km
 97.4 1412 MNE Star FM, Cetinje D455 STAR_FM_ **
 91.7 1416 BIH Federalni Radio, Mostar/Fortica (hgn) F012 RADIO-F_  1685km **
 91.0 1417 ALB Radio Tirana, Shkodër/Tarabosh (shk) 5158 Scrolling RDS  1882km **
 90.5 1418 HRV HRT-HR 2, Licka Pljesivica (gs) C202 HRT-HR_2  1456km
 90.7 1418 MNE Atlas Radio, Podgorica/Sjenica (PG) D222 _ATLAS__  1841km **
 90.0 1419 BIH Radio Kalman, Mostar/Fortica (hgn) F0F2 *KALMAN*  1685km **
 88.7 1420 BIH RTRS Radio Republike Srpske, Sarajevo/Trebevic (sar) F042  1684km
 88.0 1421 SVN Slovenija 1, Krim (lj) 9201 and vocal ID  1295km
102.8 1423 BIH Bobar Radio, Sarajevo/Trebevic (sar) F0A3 *BOBAR*_  1684km **
103.0 1423 SVN Radio Aktual, Trdinov Vrh (nm) 944E  1356km **
107.8 1425 BIH Radio Kalman, Several transmitters listed F0F2 KALMAN*B   **
107.6 1426 ALB Radio Jehona, Shkodër/Tarabosh (shk) 959B O_JEHONA  1882km **
104.6 1428 BIH Soundset Studio 88, Mostar/Fortica (hgn) 1000 STUDIO88  1685km **
105.7 1428 MNE TDI Radio, Podgorica/Sjenica (PG) D246 T__D__I  1841km **
 89.3 1431 BIH Federalni Radio, Vlasic (sbs) F012  1600km **
 95.7 1436 BIH Federalni Radio, Sarajevo/Hum (sar) F012  1676km **
 96.8 1437 MNE Radio Crne Gore 1, Pljevlja/Tvrdas (PV) 63C1 ___RCG1_  1775km **
 97.2 1437 HRV Radio Kaj, Ivanscica 2 or Japetic  C31F __KAJ___   **
 98.7 1439 BIH Radio M, Sarajevo/Grdonj (sar) F079 RADIO_M_  1678km **
100.1 1440 BIH Radio Breza, Breza/Kolovaj (sar) F064 R.BREZA_  1654km **
100.3 1440 BIH BH Radio 1, Konjic/Lisin (hgn) F001 BHRADIO1  1661km **
101.0 1441 BIH Radio Bugojno, Bugojno/Gladov (sbs) RBUGOJNO  1612km **
 87.6 1442 MNE Radio Crne Gore 1, Savnik/Krnovska glavica (SN) 63C1 ___R__1_  1793km
 91.4 1444 BIH Radio Herceg Bosne, Gornji Vakuf-Uskoplje/Zekina gruda (sbs) F01B RADIO-__ 
               1629km **
 88.1 1451 MNE Radio Cool / Glas Rusije, Podgorica (PG) FFFF SRPSKI__  1841km **
 91.2 1451 BIH Radio Kalman, Konjic/Lisin (hgn) F0F2 ____AN__  1661km **
 87.5 1525 POL PR 1, Czestochowa/Wreczyca (SL) 3211 ____NK__  1291km
 87.9 1526 POL PR 2, Walbrzych/G.Chelmiec II (DS) 3222 eleci_lu wadzi_lu  1117km
 87.8 1527 HRV Radio Zabok, Zabok/Grdenci (kr) C46C _ZABOK__  1371km
 88.0 1528 POL PR 1, Krosno/Sucha Góra (PK) 3211 JEDYNKA_  1530km
 90.5 1528 POL PR Radio Rzeszów, Krosno/Sucha Góra (PK) 3417 kultur__   1530km
 88.1 1529 HRV HRT Radio Sljeme, Zagreb/Sljeme (zg) C31C R-SLJEME  1381km
 89.0 1530 CZE Radio Impuls, Ostrava/Hostálkovice (MO) 2203 _IMPULS_  1287km **
 89.0 1530 POL PR Radio Wroclaw, Bogatynia/G.Wysoka (DS) 3403  1033km **
 89.9 1530 BIH Vikom Radio, Bosanska Dubica/Gig (srp) B080 Z_KOM__C  1510km **
 89.9 1531 BIH RTRS Radio Republike Srpske, Udrigovo (srp) F042 RTRS-RRS  1645km
 88.3 1533 POL PR 1, Opole/Chrzelice (OP) 3211 JEDYNKA_  1229km

Band 2 Tropospheric:
 93.0 0904  D  SWR2, Haardtkopf (rlp) Classical, as web  593km
104.9 0905  D  big fm (Rheinland-Pfalz), Ahrweiler/Schöneberg (rlp) Pops, as 104.0  553km
 99.0 0907  D  hr1, Hoher Meißner (hes) Pops, as web. Almost noise free on peak  684km
107.4 0923  D  Radio Wuppertal, Wuppertal/Westfalenweg (nrw) IDs between songs. Radio
               Wuppertal, 100% Wuppertal. Almost noise free  508km
107.6 0929  D  big fm (Rheinland-Pfalz), Bornberg (rlp) Pops and YL, as 104.0  640km
107.0 0936  D  WDR Eins Live, Olsberg (nrw) Decent peaks today. Almost noise free. As 106.7 
               592km
 95.3 0956 HOL BNR Nieuwsradio, Zwollerkerspel/Alticom Toren (ove) Dutch OMs, as 95.4 
               396km
 98.7 0958 HOL Freez FM, Smilde/Alticom Toren (dre) Ad break, as web  407km
107.3 1036 BEL VBRO, Diksmuide/IJzertoren (vlg-wvl) IDs galore, then Dutch music  292km
107.5 1037 HOL Scheldemond FM, Oostburg/Watertoren (zee) Dutch music, as web  296km
107.1 1039 HOL Radio Schouwen-Duiveland, Zierikzee/Silo Vissersdijk (zee) V weak,
               but pops, as web  296km
107.2 1046 BEL Radio Bingo, Roeselare/Zilverberg (vlg-wvl) Vocal ID after ad break  313km
107.9 1049 BEL VBRO, Torhout (vlg-wvl) Phone caller, as 107.3. Presume Torhout  297km
 88.4 1103 HOL Slam!FM, Roosendaal/Alticom Toren (nbr) 82A5 SLAM!FM_  334km
 89.3 1104 HOL 89,3 Radio West, Rotterdam/Alticom Toren (Waalhaven) (zho) ID after
               news  313km
 91.8 1105 HOL FunX, Rotterdam/Alticom Toren (Waalhaven) (zho) Jingle ID  313km

Unidentified:
 92.9 1413 MKD Radio Antena 5?, Unlisted site 4221 St__io__ **
 92.5 1415  ?  UNID,  3417 92______
100.4 1421  ?  UNID,  F078
101.7 1424  ?  UNID,  "Arabesque" said as if ID or programme name. Exotic sounding. Thought
               it was Arabic at one point.


** Personal Skegness 'First'

I had to go out this morning and missed most of the opening. I watched remotely, helpless as TeamViewer software just froze while Bulgaria was coming through. This was extremely annoying. After several attempts I finally managed to get CamStudio (I hate it with a passion) t record what was coming in on 87.6. An hour or two later, still connecting remotely, I stopped CamStudio to save the file. Of course it crashed and I lost the lot. So I swore (I did, believe me!) that I would invest in a full and registered version of Bandicam, so I did. That's the last time CamStudio messes up my DXing!

Luckily, my return home saw the Es opening still in progress and it was a decent top-of-the-band opening to the Balkans with quite a few personal firsts, some of which were less than 1kW. A bit of detective work solved most of my unids, though a few remain. Signals were very good, reaching 50dBf at best, without RF or IF boost!

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I made a YouTube video of the highlights at: Click here to watch
There were a few interesting station in there, notably:


11:28  92.5. Mono unid language? PI 3417. Partial PS 92______
15:44  89.9. ??
18:23 101.7. Arabic or similar?
31.19  90.7  Arabic?

The times above are references to the position of the video. Actual times are displayed in the GTK window. Help with these would be really appreciated.
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Good DX!

John Faulkner, Skegness, Lincolnshire (JO03dd) <3m ASL.
Blog: http://skegnessdx.blogspot.co.uk
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCOrAbHyPpIflDXo62HWyOiA

Receivers:
Sony XDR-F1HD with Konrad i2c modification & XDR-GTK software.

Aerial:
Körner 9.2 at 5.5 metres AGL. Yaesu G-5500 elevation/azimuth rotator.