Skegness Band 2 Log: 15-11-12

Band 2 Tropospheric Log: 15-11-12

97.8 0002  F  France Culture, Tours/Chissay [41] (37)  OM talk, as others  646km

107.2 0033  D  WDR Eins Live, Ederkopf (nrw)  YL on phone to OM. As web stream  593km

93.6 0037  D  SWR4 Rheinland-Pfalz, Scharteberg (Eifel) (rlp)  Pops, as web stream. V weak  550km

89.2 0110  F  France Culture, Cherbourg-Octeville/Digosville (50)  OMs, as 98.0  413km

100.7 0111  F  France Bleu Cotentin, Cherbourg-Octeville/Digosville (50)  French song, as 94.7  413km

105.7 0119  D  B5 aktuell, Wendelstein (bay)  OM  YL discussion, as web stream. V weak  1024km

105.6 0130  D  SWR4 Rheinland-Pfalz, Donnersberg (rlp)  Mull Of Kintyre, as web stream  657km

107.1 0131  D  SWR4 Rheinland-Pfalz, Haardtkopf (rlp)  Mull Of Kintyre, as web stream  593km

107.1 0134  D  Radio TON Ostwürttemberg, Aalen/Braunenberg (bwü)  ID jingle after news. Pops  835km **

98.1 0138  D  SWR3, Aalen/Braunenberg (bwü)  Bryan Adams, as web stream  835km **

91.1 0140  D  SWR2, Aalen/Braunenberg (bwü)  Classical music, as web stream  835km **

97.1 0303  G  BBC Radio 1, Les Platons (JER)  Club beats, as 98.3  466km **

89.6 0306  G  BBC Radio 2, Les Platons (JER)  As others  466km **

91.1 0306  G  BBC Radio 3, Les Platons (JER)  As others  466km **

94.8 0308  G  BBC Radio 4 FM, Les Platons (JER)  As others  466km **

107.6 0814  D  big fm (Rheinland-Pfalz), Bornberg (rlp)  Modern pops, OM  YL, as web stream  640km

107.3 0816  D  SWR4 Baden-Württemberg, Raichberg (bwü)  Neil Diamond song, as web stream  813km

106.9 0817  D  B5 aktuell, Grünten (Allgäu) (bay)  YL, as web stream  942km

88.4 0821  F  France Culture, Bar-le-Duc/Willeroncourt (55)  OM  YL talk, as web stream  607km **

88.3 0823  F  France Culture, Longwy/Bois de Châ (54)  OMs, as 88.4  554km

88.9 0825 LUX RTL Radio Lëtzebuerg, Dudelange/Ginsterberg (gld)  Pops, as web stream  574km

97.9 0827  F  France Culture, Troyes/les Riceys (10)  CULTURE  643km

95.3 0829  F  France Inter, Troyes/les Riceys (10)  INTER  643km

93.3 0830  F  France Musique, Chaumont/Chalindrey (52)  MUSIQUE  694km

92.2 0832  D  SWR3, Stuttgart/Hoher Bopser (bwü)  Stuttgart traffic report. ID  790km

99.0 0835 AUT Hitradio Ö3, Salzburg 1/Gaisberg (ORS) (sal)  Vweak with various pops, as web stream  1081km **

99.0 0840  D  hr1, Hoher Meißner (hes)  YL as web, mixing pops from ORF3  684km

97.5 0842  D  SWR3, Bornberg (rlp)  YL  OM lively chat, as web stream  640km

98.4 0843  D  SWR3, Hornisgrinde/SWR (bwü)  US pop song, as web stream  748km

100.4 0844  D  Radio Regenbogen, Hornisgrinde/SWR (bwü)  Icehouse song, as web stream. Noise free 2 bars  748km

100.6 0848  D  Deutschlandfunk (DLF), Witthoh (Tuttlingen) (bwü)  Echoey OM, as web stream  834km **

101.7 0852  D  Radio Salü, Saarbrücken/Schoksberg (saa)  Ads, as web stream  628km

102.8 0859  F  France Bleu Besançon, Besançon/Montfaucon (25)  Local jingle ID after chat  774km **

95.0 0902  F  France Musique, Besançon/Montfaucon (25)  Classical, as 91.8, etc.  774km **

99.2 0908  F  France Inter, Orléans/Traînou (45)  OM, as web stream  590km

99.5 0909  F  France Inter, Auxerre/Molesmes (89)  OM, as 99.2  655km **

106.3 0913  D  Deutschlandfunk (DLF), Hornisgrinde/SWR (bwü)  OM, as web stream  748km

95.4 0918 SUI DRS2, Säntis (ar)  GM OM serious talk, as web stream  917km

94.3 0919  D  SWR3, Raichberg (bwü)  Rock song, as web stream  813km

93.8 0920  D  SWR2, Waldenburg (bwü)  YL featuring rap music, as 93.0  786km **

93.0 0922  D  SWR2, Haardtkopf (rlp)  YL featuring rap music, as 93.8  593km

92.7 0926  D  hr3, Hardberg (hes)  OM promo, ID and pops  712km

92.1 0928  F  France Musique, Laval-Evron/Mont Rochard (53)  Classical, as 91.8, etc.  550km

90.4 0933  F  France Culture, Chaumont/Chalindrey (52)  YL and spooky music, as web. Two bars!  694km

96.5 0947  F  France Inter, Chaumont/Chalindrey (52)  OM with echo against Rouen  694km **

98.5 0957  F  France Culture, Sens/Gisy-les-Nobles (89)  OMs, as 98.0  577km

99.8 0959  F  France Inter, Metz/Luttange (57)  OM  YL, as 99.6  600km

99.9 1000  F  France Inter, Tours/Chissay [41] (37)  YLs and pops, as 99.8  646km

101.6 1003  D  hr4, Hardberg (hes)  Deep voiced OM, as web stream  712km

105.7 1008  D  B5 aktuell, Wendelstein (bay)  V weak. YL as web stream  1024km

106.8 1013  D  Hit Radio FFH, Driedorf/Höllberg (hes)  Pops, as 105.9  605km

101.3 1025  F  France Bleu Auxerre, Auxerre/Molesmes (89)  Phone in competition, as web stream  655km

105.7 1030  D  SWR2, Stuttgart/Hoher Bopser (bwü)  Discordant strings, as web stream  790km

107.9 1037  D  BR Klassik, Kreuzberg (Rhön) (bay)  Classical, as web stream  732km

107.7 1040 LUX Den Neie Radio (DNR), Blaschette/Kandel (gld)  DNR Mit Gud Musik ID  557km

105.3 1048  D  B5 aktuell, Kreuzberg (Rhön) (bay)  YL, as 106.9  732km

104.9 1052  D  big fm (Rheinland-Pfalz), Ahrweiler/Schöneberg (rlp)  Rap, as web stream  554km

104.8 1054  D  hr1, Heidelstein (Rhön) [bay] (hes)  Pop/rock song, as web stream  729km

107.3 1108  F  Radio Classique, Chantilly/Apremont (60)  Piano concerto, as web stream  461km **

87.8 1128  F  Radio Courtoisie, Cherbourg-Octeville (50)  Discussion group, as web stream  414km

107.1 1129  F  France Bleu 107.1, Paris/Tour Eiffel (75)  Vocal ID  497km

89.5 1151  F  France Culture, Auxerre/Molesmes (89)  OM  YL, as 88.5  655km

96.2 1152  D  SWR2, Hornisgrinde/SWR (bwü)  YL talk, as web stream  748km **

105.9 1155  D  Hit Radio FFH, Großer Feldberg (Taunus)/hr (hes)  FFH  648km

105.0 1158  D  Hit Radio FFH, Krehberg (hes)  ID and traffic report  698km

107.6 1208  D  B5 aktuell, Hühnerberg (bay)  ID and chat  871km **

87.9 1214  D  MDR Figaro, Inselsberg (thü)  OM on phone, as web stream  739km

87.8 1219  F  France Inter, Paris/Tour Eiffel (75)  Echo with second Inter tx  497km

87.8 1220  F  France Inter, Several low power txs listed  Echo against Paris. Possibilities: 
                 Péronne (80) 400 km 
                 Avesnes-sur-Helpe (59) 421  
                 Wissingnicourt (02) 456 km 
                 Saint-Dié 2 (88) 714 km **

90.6 1223  D  hr1, Hardberg (hes)  OM  YL talking over pops, as web stream  712km

93.9 1242  D  SWR2, Bornberg (rlp)  Jolly wind section, as web stream  640km

107.7 1244  D  Antenne Bayern, Hochries (bay)  OM  YL, ID  music, as web stream  1034km

98.6 1309  F  France Inter, Épinal/Bois de la Vierge (88)  ID after TV review. Almost noise free on peak  704km **

92.4 1310  F  France Culture, Épinal/Bois de la Vierge (88)  YL, as 98.0  704km **

91.6 1317  F  France Musique, Mulhouse/Belvédère (68)  Classical music, as 91.8, etc.  781km **

98.2 1342  F  France Inter, Vittel/Thuillières (88)  OM  YLs, as web stream  684km **

104.5 1352  F  France Info, Bar-le-Duc/Willeroncourt (55)  Presume Bar Le Duc as Culture  88.4 is weak to fair  607km **

104.1 1354  D  WDR 4, Olsberg (nrw)  Noise free stereo, as 103.8 Nordhelle  592km

103.5 1355  D  RPR 1., Ahrweiler/Schöneberg (rlp)  Vocal ID and pops  554km

103.6 1355  D  RPR 1., Kalmit (rlp)  Vocal ID, as 103.5  688km

101.2 1412  D  hr3, Habichtswald (hes)  Rembrandts and Pet Shop Boys, as web stream  647km

 99.4 1419  F  France Culture, Sarrebourg/le Donon (57)  OMs, as 98.0  704km **

106.8 1422  F  France Info, Metz/Luttange (57)  OM  YL, as web stream  600km

90.7 1426  D  Bayern 1, Grünten (Allgäu) (bay)  Soft rock song, as web stream  942km **

92.1 1430  D  NDR 2, Torfhaus (Harz-West) (nds)  Rock song, YL ID and info  707km

94.0 1439  F  France Musique, Vittel/Thuillières (88)  Screeching strings, as 93.8  684km

94.6 1440  D  MDR 1 Radio Sachsen-Anhalt, Brocken (san)  Murray Head song, as web stream  713km

95.1 1441  D  SWR1 Baden-Württemberg, Aalen/Braunenberg (bwü)  Peaking above Langenberg briefly, as web stream  835km **

95.8 1444  D  WDR 5, Ederkopf (nrw)  OM  YL talk, as web stream  593km

96.3 1447  D  Bayern 3, Kreuzberg (Rhön) (bay)  U2 With Or Without You, as web stream  732km

97.7 1448  D  SWR1 Rheinland-Pfalz, Haardtkopf (rlp)  Bee Gees cover song, as web stream  593km

101.8 1452  D  WDR 2, Ederkopf (nrw)  OM  YL talk, as 101.0  593km

103.4 1455  D  Antenne 1, Raichberg (bwü)  Jingle ID between info  813km **

106.1 1504  D  Deutschlandradio Kultur, Olsberg (nrw)  OM talk, as web stream  592km

106.2 1504  D  hr3, Heidelstein (Rhön) [bay] (hes)  HR3 Wetter  729km

87.6 1511  F  RMC, Le Havre/Harfleur (76)  Discussion, as web stream  406km

89.0 1513  F  RFI Paris, Paris/Tour Eiffel (75)  FR YL talking over music, as web stream  497km

92.8 1515  F  Music Box, Pontoise/Vaux-sur-Seine (95)  Gospel soul, as web atream  475km

93.3 1518  F  France Culture, Le Havre/Harfleur (76)  YL vocal ID  406km **

93.9 1520  F  Vivre FM/R. Campus Paris, Paris/Fort de Romainville (93)  OMs talk, as web stream  496km **

94.3 1526  F  Radio Orient, Paris/Tour Eiffel (75)  Almost noise free. Asian music, as web stream  497km **

101.4 1548  F  France Bleu Besançon, Besançon/Lomont (25)  Local ID and info  783km **

105.1 1555  F  FIP, Paris/Tour Eiffel (75)  Jazzy French song, as web stream  497km **

105.9 1556  F  RTL 2, Paris/Tour Eiffel (75)  Jingle ID and pops  497km **

107.0 1610  F  Eole, Montbard/Les Justices (21)  IDs and pops, as web stream. Almost noise free peaks  676km **

107.2 1616  F  Chérie FM, Besançon/Fort de Brégille (25)  Grungy love song, ads, phone caller, as web stream  773km **

107.5 1625  F  Plein Coeur, Vesoul/la Croix de Cassini (70)  Jingle ID and pops  744km **

87.7 1641  F  France Culture, Strasbourg/TDF Nordheim (67)  OM phone in, as 98.0. Noise free!  709km

95.0 1643  F  France Musique, Strasbourg/TDF Nordheim (67)  Classical music, as 91.8, etc.  709km **

97.3 1644  F  France Inter, Strasbourg/TDF Nordheim (67)  OM talk, as web stream. Over LBC  709km **

101.4 1646  F  France Bleu Alsace, Strasbourg/TDF Nordheim (67)  OM and jingle ID. Phone caller  709km **

88.0 1657  D  SR 1 Europawelle, Göttelborner Höhe (saa)  ID after traffic report  629km

106.7 1659  D  big fm (Rheinland-Pfalz), Kalmit (rlp)  Pops, as web stream. Langenberg nulled beaming further to south  688km

102.3 1714  D  AFN Stuttgart-The Eagle, Stuttgart/Frauenkopf (bwü)  Santa Claus Stars and Strips promo, ID  790km **

103.0 1719  D  SWR3, Grünten (Allgäu) [bay] (bwü)  OM talking over soft music, as web stream  942km **

103.4 1721  F  France Info, Lyon/Mont Pilat (42)  YL correspondent, as web stream  917km

99.8 1723  F  France Inter, Lyon/Mont Pilat (42)  Live concert, as web stream  917km

92.4 1724  F  France Musique, Lyon/Mont Pilat (42)  Jazzy music, as 88.7  917km

89.6 1725  F  France Musique, Gex/Montrond (01)  Jazz, as 88.7  858km **

99.9 1740 SUI RTS La Première, Säntis (ar)  OM and YL political talks, as web stream  917km **

107.8 1740 SUI RSI1, Säntis (ar)  Noise free. Italian OM, as web stream  917km

101.5 1742  D  RPR 1., Koblenz/Kühkopf (rlp)  Almost noise free. ID. Tacolneston nulled a little  590km **

101.6 1745  D  Bayern 1, Gelbelsee (bay)  YL and OM, old pop song, as web stream.  905km **

101.9 1747  D  Antenne Bayern, Prob Heidelstein (Rhon) but Hoher Bogen also here  Pops, as web stream **

102.0 1749  D  B5 aktuell, Dillberg (bay)  Political talk, as web stream  879km **

103.1 1753  D  RPR 1., Bornberg (rlp)  Move Like Jagger, as 103.5  640km **

88.4 1804  D  Bayern 2, Pfaffenberg (bay)  OM serious talk, as web stream  713km

93.4 1805  D  Bayern 3, Pfaffenberg (bay)  Jingle ID after traffic report  713km

89.0 1806  D  89.0 RTL, Brocken (san)  Rock music, as web stream  713km

89.3 1809  D  hr3, Großer Feldberg (Taunus)/hr (hes)  German pops, in Holme Moss null, as web stream  648km

89.9 1812  D  NDR Kultur, Torfhaus (Harz-West) (nds)  ID and piano music  707km

89.9 1814  D  NDR Kultur, Torfhaus (Harz-West) (nds)  ID and piano piece  707km

90.2 1816  D  MDR JUMP, Inselsberg (thü)  ID and rock song  739km

91.8 1819  D  SWR2, Raichberg (bwü)  OM interview, as web stream  813km **

92.3 1820  D  WDR 2, Sackpfeife (Wittgenstein) [hes] (nrw)  Rock song, ID and phone caller, as web stream  612km **

92.9 1823  D  SWR1 Baden-Württemberg, Langenbrand (bwü)  Pops, as web stream  755km **

97.1 1845  D  SWR3, Witthoh (Tuttlingen) (bwü)  Blondie song, as web stream  834km **

97.2 1846  D  Deutschlandradio Kultur, Inselsberg (thü)  YL talk, as web stream  739km

92.5 1853 LUX RTL Radio Lëtzebuerg, Hosingen/Banert (gld)  OM and Luxembourgian song, as 88.9  530km **

97.0 1854 LUX RTL Radio, Hosingen/Banert (gld)  Youssou NDour song, as web stream  530km **

93.7 1915  F  France Musique, Mende/Truc de Fortunio (48)  Shrieking operatics, as web stream  974km

88.0 1931  F  Fréquence Horizon, Béthune-Lens/Bouvigny-Boyeffles CV11 (62)  Ad break, ID and Michael Jackson, as web stream  344km

87.7 2207  D  MDR Figaro, Chemnitz/Geyer (sac)  Clasical, as 87.9  905km

107.1 2348  D  B5 aktuell, Ochsenkopf (bay)  YL talk, as web stream  865km

** Personal Skegness 'First'

This was day two of the best tropo I have experienced since moving to Skegness. No fewer than 55 personal firsts were received today! I doubt that figure will ever be beaten in future tropo events.

For me, one of the most impressive parts of today's tropo was when I rotated the FM5 to the vertical plane. Because there was such widespread tropo to France I thought the possilibities would be very interesting. Going vertical enabled be to hear lots of lower powered French vertcals which I wouldn't have heard in horizontal. It wasn't just the nearer French stations which came through. I was amazed by the reception of Eole and Plein Coeur, two stations I had not previously heard, nor even known! Many stations simply 'got away', there were so many of them. I didn't even bother checking Belgium and Holland, which were also greatly enhanced. How much can you do?

The highlight was reception of Austria's Hitradio O3 on 99.0 though it wasn't handed to me on a plate: I was convinced I was hearing this after midnight on the 15th but it was extremely weak and there was so much splatter from BBC Radio 1 on 98.9 I could never get enough of a window on 99.0. The signal was so weak I just wasn't convinced enough. I usually like to hear at least a couple of songs in parallel with the station's web stream to be certain. Come 08:35 however I was clearly hearing songs from Hitradio 03, but signals were still very weak. I checked with their web stream once more and, after hearing two songs which were definitely those of Hitradio 03's and not HR1's, I was satisfied my reception was 100%.

Luck was on my side regarding being at home for this magnificent tropo as Crystal, our Rottweiler, gave birth to ten pups over the weekend so we have had a few days away from work to help look after them. This has meant no going out!

Recordings:

100.4 Radio Regengogen, Hornisgrinde 0843 15-11-12

102.8 France Bleu Besancon, Besancon-Montfaucon 0857 15-11-12

107.7 DNR Blaschette 1040 15-11-12

106.9 B5 Aktuell, Grunten 1044 15-11-12

105.9 Hit Radio FFH, Grosse Feldberg 1155 15-11-12

107.1 Radio TON, Aalen 1200 15-11-12

107.6 B5 Aktuell, Huhnerberg 1206 15-11-12

98.6 France Inter, Epinal 1308 15-11-12

107.7 Antenne Bayern, Hochries 1326 14-03-12

103.6 RPR1, Kalmit 1457 15-11-12

103.4 Antenne 1, Raichberg 1454 15-11-12

106.3 HR3, Heidelstein (Rhon) 1504 15-11-12

93.3 France Culture, Le Havre 1517 15-11-12

101.4 France Bleu Besancon, Besancon-Lomont 1547 15-11-12

105.9 RTL2, Paris Tour Eifel 1554 15-11-12

107.0 Eole, Montbard 1608 15-11-12

107.5 Plein Coeur, Vesoul 1624 15-11-12

106.9 B5 Aktuell, Grunten 1712 15-11-12

102.3 AFN The Eagle, Stuttgart 1714 15-11-12

101.5 RPR1, Koblenz 1743 15-11-12

92.3 WDR2, Sackpfeife (Wittgenstein) 1819 15-11-12

92.9 SWR1, Langenbrand 1826 15-11-12


A couple of other recordings of interest:


A snippet of Swiss reception on 107.8. This is Rete Uno from Santis:

107.8 Rete Uno, Santis, peaking around mid afternoon


Finally, to demonstrate how I separated France Inter's Chaumont Chalindrey transmitter from France Inter's Rouen transmitter on 96.5: The following recording demonstrates how rotating the FM5 from south-east to south enabled me to separate the two transmitters. If it wasn't for the split-second time lag between the two I wouldn't have been able to do this.

96.5 France Inter, Chaumont Chalindrey > Rouen > Chaumont Chalindrey 0935 15-11-12


Receivers:
Sony XDR-F1HD (tropospheric)
Kenwood KT6040 (sporadic E & meteor scatter)
Icom IC7000 (OIRT)
Conrad RDS Manager

Aerials:
Rooftop Triax FM5, 8m AGL
Yaesu G-5500 azimuthal/elevation rotator

Software:
RDS Spy v0.97
VAC v4.10

Skegness Band 2 Log: 14-11-12

Band 2 Tropospheric Log: 14-11-12

92.8 1927  F  France Musique, Auxerre/Molesmes (89)  Modern classical, as 91.8, etc.  655km

94.3 1930  F  France Bleu Creuse, Guéret/Signal du Maupuy (23)  Awful Des'ree song and FR OM, as 94.7  785km

94.6 1932  F  France Inter, Chartres/Montlandon (28)  Hit The Road Jack song, as 103.7  531km

95.0 1933  F  France Inter, Mantes-la-Jolie/Maudétour [95] (78)  Hit The Road Jack song, as 103.7  463km

95.3 1934  F  France Inter, Troyes/les Riceys (10)  Hit The Road Jack song, as 103.7  643km

92.2 1945  F  France Musique, Tours/Chissay [41] (37)  String concerto, as 91.8. Noise free  646km

105.0 1946  F  France Bleu Touraine, Tours/Chissay [41] (37)  FR OM, as 94.7  646km

98.1 1948  F  France Culture, Chartres/Montlandon (28)  Documentary, as 98.0  531km

93.3 2005  F  France Musique, Chaumont/Chalindrey (52)  String concerto, as 91.8. V weak  694km

91.4 2011  F  France Musique, Troyes/les Riceys (10)  Classical, as others. More scatter than tropo  643km

89.8 2012  F  France Musique, Abbeville/Limeux (80)  String concerto, as 91.8. V weak  364km

91.0 2012  F  France Musique, Alençon/Mont d'Amain (61)  String concerto, as 91.8. V weak  498km

88.0 2013  F  France Culture, Alençon/Mont d'Amain (61)  OM  YL, as 98.0  498km

107.8 2224 SUI RSI1, Säntis (ar)  Rolling Stones/Jagger song, as web stream  917km

97.9 2235  F  France Culture, Troyes/les Riceys (10)  Nasal OM, as 98.0. Weak  643km

89.9 2238  F  France Musique, Rennes/Saint-Pern (35)  Discordant piano, as others. Almost noise free  564km

93.8 2354  F  France Musique, Sens/Gisy-les-Nobles (89)  Sombre strings, as 91.8, etc. Vweak  577km

95.8 2357  F  France Culture, Orléans/Traînou (45)  Echoey OM, as 98.0  590km

Day one of the best tropo I have experienced since moving to Skegness.

Receivers:
Sony XDR-F1HD (tropospheric)
Kenwood KT6040 (sporadic E & meteor scatter)
Icom IC7000 (OIRT)
Conrad RDS Manager

Aerials:
Rooftop Triax FM5, 8m AGL
Yaesu G-5500 azimuthal/elevation rotator

Software:
RDS Spy v0.97
VAC v4.10

Beverages In The Wash! 1500 File

What a bizarre title. It sounds like I have put some drinks in the washing machine! Luckily, most of us radio folk know what this means. For those who don't, it involves rolling out hundreds of metres of wire along the ground in remote places, only to coil it back up again a few hours later. Wait a minute ... it's easier to put the drinks in the washing machine. I'll do that next time. ;O)

My plan was to create a dedicated logbook on the FM List where DX reports could be submitted and credited to DXers who have listened to my Perseus SDR files recorded at The Wash using a beverage pointing towards the far east. As I am no expert in identification of stations from the far east I know I am going to need some help. Tim Bucknall has been enormously supportive of this project and has offered an immense amount of help, going through my various far east files over the last few years.

If anybody does download this, or any other Perseus file and makes a log, full credit will always be given to them, providing there's a small mention of the originating location, etc. Please let me know if you do this or if you hear something interesting or unusual on the recording.

Comments and opinions are always welcome.

The file can be downloaded at: Perseus SDR File: 12-11-12 1500

Below is a simple list of a few of the more notable stations I heard on the file. I will update the detail concerning transmitter sites, etc. as necessary.

Please note that the PC clock time was 35 seconds fast at the time. I have allowed for this so that the exact top of the hour is centered correctly along the playback bar.

 567 Radio Rossii, Asiatic, mixing Volgograd
 594 Radio Mayak, Krasnoyarsk or Surgut
 639 2 x CNR1, multi-tx
 666 Chinese time pips. Various regionals listed
 666 Oriental music? 
 684 Chinese. Oriental OM mixing Oriental woman preaching
 711 Radio Rossii, Naryan-Mar
 711 China very weak
 720 Chinese time pips, better in USB
 756 CNR1, Harbin. At least two Chinese time pips, maybe three
 783 Chinese time pips in LSB
 810 Radio Mayak, Volgograd
 810 Chinese time pips
 855 Chinese time pips
 891 Radio Mayak, Tyumen
 891 HLKB KBS2, Busan
 900 Chinese time pips. Many stations listed
 900 Oriental OM not part of time pips. Usual "Guangbo.. " ID ***
 918 Very weak Chinese time signal. Shangdong RGD Presumed. Many
     transmitters though
 918 Woman talking in Thai?
 927 At least three Chinese time pips
 927 Oriental OM
 927 Oriental music
 936 Chinese time pips. Lots of possibilities
 936 Echoey Chinese OM. Several possibilities
 945 Two lots of Chinese time pips. CNR1 multiple sites
 963 Two lots of Chinese time pips. Multiple sites
 972 HLCA KBS Liberty 1, Dangjin
 981 CNR1, Easily a dozen Chinese time pips! Changchung the usual
     one
1008 Japanese or Korean time pips
1008 Radio Taiwan International, Lukang
1017 CRI, Changchun
1017 Chinese time pips
1017 Weak Oriental music and speech
1035 CNR1 multi. At least two, maybe three Chinese time pips
1044 CRI, Changzhou
1044 Chinese time pips
1071 Chinese time pips
1098 Radio Taiwan International, Kouhu
1125 Two lots of Chinese time pips
1134 Japanese or Korean time pips
1170 KBS World, Gimje
1170 CNR1, Unknown site
1179 Chinese time pips in LSB
1224 Japanese or Korean time pips
1278 Chinese. V weak
1287 Chinese time pips
1287 Oriental singing
1296 Chinese time pips
1305 CNR2, Multiple
1341 Chinese time pips and OM on USB
1350 Chinese time pips
1359 Chinese time pips
1377 Chinese time pips - mostly over France!
1404 Chinese time pips
1413 Japanese or Korean time pips
1413 Chinese time pips
1467 Oriental
1467 Chinese time pips
1476 Chinese time pips
1512 Jinan PBS, Tentative. "Gushi Guanbo" ID. Tnx Mika Makelainen
1521 CRI, Urumqi
1539 CNR1,
1557 BCC, BCC Kouhu
1566 Oriental OM
1575 Oriental OM
1575 Chinese time pips
1593 Japanese or Korean time pips. V weak Chinese station
1593 CNR1, Changzhou

Receiver:
Perseus SDR

Antenna:
Beverage (on the ground), approximately 380m in length at 45 degrees, terminated directly to earth.

Modern Technology Vs Tradition

Looking back through some old posts on several radio groups, I see some fairly sharp criticism dished out to members for the way in which they enjoy their hobby. Much of this is technology related. It is bad enough, as a DXer, that we are sometimes singled out as weirdos because we have a niche hobby, but you would expect that we hobbyists who share the same interests would understand each other better and all get along well. This is not always the case, for we have divided ourselves into even smaller, nichier (is there such a word?) little communities. Some examples:

List Loggers:
There are those who prefer to listen to their DX for several minutes, if they are able, while others just want to log something and quickly move to the next frequency to see if something else is coming through. Why not stay with the DX and enjoy it?

Broadband DXing:
Some people like to DX with their broadband SDR receivers, recording large chunks of the radio spectrum while others would rather have a big knob in their face! (Yes, I did say that) so they can replay the band, as it was on the day, or night.

Propagation Alerts & DX Clusters:
Some of us radio creatures like to monitor DX Clusters so we can see where the activity is and act accordingly, while others like to fend for themselves and tune around, determined to find the DX for themselves.

Carrier Monitoring
Some DXers monitor the carriers of radio and television stations. These can act as a pointer to the current state of propagation if those precise carrier frequencies are stable and can be relied upon. "But it's not radio" some say. Yet it clearly is radio, but in a more fundamental way. Carriers can be of great use, despite the lack of audio or video which would provide station identification, yet these carriers can actually provide a kind of ID in their own right. The precise 'offsets' of some carriers can be deliberate. Of course, they are not a vocal identification, which is, arguably, absolutely necssary for a logging.

Social Media:
Lo and behold a new one cropped up on SkywavesMW today where a member was criticised for making use of YouTube, where he was able to show the world how he used his receiver to pick up some rare DX catches. The argument was that he should have reported his loggings directly to the group itself. Many people make use of social media these days to stay in touch and promote the hobby. We have Bloggers, Facebookers, Tweeters and a huge range of other filesharing methods. Surely it is up to the individual how they want to store and share their files?

To some, these issues obviously matter, but they are just different ways to enjoy our hobby. I do find it sad and unfortunate that a few DXers are prepared to fall out over some of these methods, stating that one method is right while the other is wrong. In the space of a few days I was accused of cheating for using an SDR receiver, then blow me, somebody had a go at me for List Logging - that is, purposely logging as many stations as they can. Yes, that's me. Once I have identified a new station, I am off looking for the next. Is that wrong? Consider amateur radio where "Radio Sport" is a popular pastime, also known as Contesting. This has become a big part of the amateur radio community. The purpose of which is to collect points while logging as many countries or grid squares as possible along the way. It's all a bit of fun and I would say "each to their own". For me, the radio ham contest gives me the opportunity to add new countries to my logbook in a much simpler way as opposed to having to wait in a long queue while other hams finish their chinwag before I can try to work them.

As for the new breed of radio, the SDR (Software Defined Radio) has simply enabled me to realise my full DX potential. Before the days of the SDR I could only listen, or record, a single frequency in the hope of receiving something new and exciting. This was restrictive, because I never considered my location was any good for receiving exotic DX and, at the time, I never once received anything from the North American west coast or from the Canadian Prairies on medium wave after many years of listening. The moment I purchased a Perseus SDR receiver I was able to record ALL medium wave frequencies overnight and play them back at a later time to suit me, so I missed nothing. If the exotic DX was there then I would have it. Almost from day one of owning the SDR, I received many exotic west coast USA and Canadian stations, including the Canadian Prairies, the North West Territories AND the impossible (so I thought) ... ALASKA! and several times! So, whether you consider this cheating or not, the full DX potential of my location was quickly realised and my logbook grew in size accordingly.

Even the use of the "DX Cluster" has become a bone of contention to some, suggesting that enthusiasts are finding the location and frequency of the DX and going straight to it as a result - the cheats! Really? These are excellent facilities which enable the DXer to share their good fortunes so that others may receive them. I suppose I do see how this could take out the element of chance for some.

Would I like to go back to single frequency listening with a tuning knob? Will I continue to dash around the bands like there's no tomorrow? Will I continue to use DX clusters so I can see where the propagation is? The answer is simple: If it helps me dig out new and exciting DX opportunities, then I'll happily do it. I confess I am a DX junkie. A List Logger! Call me whatever you like. If you like to do the opposite then that's fine with me. There's no accounting for our listening tastes. I have my own preferences, but I really don't have a problem with the alternatives.

CBG Carrier - 1400 kHz

This is a screen grab of the Perseus SDR receiver, showing what I presume to be the carrier of CBG in Gander, Newfoundland, on 1400 kHz medium wave. This appeared today at approximately 17:35. I hope this is a precursor to good transatlantic conditions overnight on the 4th/5th. (Please note: The Perseus SDR had not been calibrated prior to this)

A Lazy Weekend (10m Activity)

Not much work to do over the weekend and so I lounged around on 10m. My intention was to get up to 50 countries worked (up from 42) but I only increased to 43 countries thanks to working Moldova via Es.

But today, I tried something different, just to see how my 10 watts were getting out. Fellow ham David, MM3FYA in Ayrshire, suggested I call CQ on 10m but at the same time check to see if I have been 'spotted' on the Reverse Beacon website. I did so, to no avail at first, but it wasn't long before my signal was reported as being heard as far away as Curacao! The Reverse Beacon website listed the following 'spotters' thus:

de	dx	freq	cq/dx	snr	speed	time
K3MM	G1VVP	28022.9	CW CQ	7 dB	20 wpm	1621z 04 Nov
W3LPL	G1VVP	28022.9	CW CQ	3 dB	20 wpm	1621z 04 Nov
PJ2T	G1VVP	28022.8	CW CQ	5 dB	20 wpm	1619z 04 Nov
NY3A	G1VVP	28022.8	CW CQ	5 dB	20 wpm	1439z 04 Nov
W3LPL	G1VVP	28022.9	CW CQ	8 dB	20 wpm	1439z 04 Nov
K3MM	G1VVP	28022.9	CW CQ	9 dB	20 wpm	1438z 04 Nov

I think I might put a few more calls out tomorrow to see where my signal is getting! ;O)

A Quick 10m Update

This brings my 10m QRP country total to 41.

Breaking through the pile-up intoto Senegal on the 1st was no problem at all with 10 watts and my half wave wire dipole at only six feet above the ground. It took just one call.  However, trying to break through today's pile-up into Saudi Arabia was a different matter. I gave up after several dozen calls. To be fair, HZ1TT was reporting signals around 5/9+20dB from many callers, so I would have been buried. Some you win, some you lose!

Date         GMT     Call       Grid     In    Out   Mode  Prop  Distance
01/11/2012   17:20   PY5QW      GG54FO   5/7   5/5   SSB   ES    9964
01/11/2012   17:09   CU7MD      HM58QM   5/7   5/9   SSB   ES    2737
01/11/2012   17:05   6V7S       IK14KR   5/9   5/9   SSB   ES    4536
31/10/2012   10:02   CT9/DJ8VC  IM12MS   5/9   5/7   SSB   ES    2649

Good Riddance To Bad Rubbish!

That may seem a tad cruel, but I heard on the radio today that electrical retail giant Comet have gone into administration. GOOD! Let's hope Currys and PC World follow very quickly. These companies deserve to go under, in my humble opinion.

I have been in the unfortunate situation of purchasing a laptop from all three aforementioned companies and in each case, they were faulty and had to be returned (I know, I should have known better than to shop at these places but there were no local alternatives at the time). These companies have their own sets of rules when it comes to refunds, the main rule being "They don't give refunds"! To be fair, PC World were probably the lesser of the three evils as I obtained a refund after the shop told me to take the laptop to their repair centre in Leeds, where they admitted that their machine was faulty. In the case of Currys, I only had to raise my voice in the shop, causing a minor scene such that they would wish to get me out of the shop as quickly as possible. They were walking all over me until the moment I started kicking off. Comet presented me with more of a challenge ...

Comet have no regard for their customers whatsoever. All the staff I had dealings with had clearly been brainwashed into promoting their brand as the be all and end all. They were, of course, faultless and their equipment could not possible be faulty. Yet the £850 Sony Vaio laptop I purchased from them clearly was. Removing their 'bloat' from the machine and installing my own purchased Windows 7 Professional was impossible. A "hardware Error" message would appear at Startup. The sales staff assured me that Sony Vaios NEVER WENT WRONG. They wanted to know why I had uninstalled the  pre-installed software bundle which came with the new laptop as it was absolutely necessary for the thing to work properly. I explained that this extra "bloat" was completely unnecessary and would only serve to slow down the machine. Why on earth would I want Adobe Acrobat and the entire Norton Suite to control my laptop? "you shouldn't have uninstalled that" said the sales girl, "You have invalidated the guarantee".

I could not have a refund, nor could I have a replacement model. The best bit was when the sales girl told me that the laptop could possibly be faulty as they NEVER GO WRONG!. I insisted that the machine was faulty after running a few tests, which I explained in some detail. I politely told them that the machine was unfit for purpose and that they should either replace it or give me a full refund. They would not budge. I had broken all the rules and NOTHING could be done. They wouldn't even test it. After a good deal of arguing the sales girl said she would see the manager the following day and find out if it could be sent away to their test centre for analysis, BUT I would have to pay £40 for the privilege. I told them I would see them in court.

After several weeks waiting for a Small Claims Court hearing, I finally arrived at the court building in Mansfield, where Comet were supposed to have sent an Area Manager to state his side of the case, yet nobody turned up. It would be unfair for me to say that monkeys would have represented Comet better as that would be deeply insulting to monkeys. The judge listened to my account and concluded the session, ordering that Comet should fully test the laptop and report back with their findings. He also casually dropped in the fact that Comet were regular visitors to the Small Claims Court, but cheekily mentioned that they were a large company and so probably should have a higher number of visits because of that fact. ;O) A second hearing date was set, by which time Comet should produce their test results.

The second hearing date arrived but it took such a long time that I had moved out of the area by then, almost 100 miles away to the east coast. Yet I still managed to make the journey to the court in Mansfield. The representatives from Comet, however, did not. Again, it was a no-show on their part. The judge was clearly disgusted by this and he commented that I had had the decency to make the more lengthy journey while the local Comet manager couldn't even be bothered to walk from their store, literally just across the road. The judge had some news, however: Comet had written a letter to the judge, enclosing some test results they maintained were the very ones they carried out on my laptop immediately after I first returned it, one day after the purchase almost a year earlier. One small problem for Comet, however and this is where they really shot themselves in the foot. They had eroneously dated the letter just two days before the date of the second hearing. The judge deemed this to be a fake and said he would now write to Comet and order them to give me a full refund, plus cover all my travel expenses.

What a sorry state of affairs we have from some of our high street giants. Sadly, this example from Comet is far from being an isolated incident. It's good to be able to report that the little guy won in the end. I also feel some sympathy for the staff who lose their jobs when companies like these close down. these companies force their emplyees to tow the company line and that selling is king while reducing the customer to something far less significant.

Improved Conditions On 10m

There was far more activity on 10m this weekend in which F2 propagation combined with an all day sporadic E event. I added a few more countries to my log, now totalling 38 and I was pleased to add French Guyana, plus several new States. 

Once again my Icom IC7000 was in use, running just 10 watts. I replaced my 10m 5/8 wave vertical for a simple half-wave dipole, cut to 28.5 MHz. This is only a simple wire, stretched six feet above the ground and supported in the middle by a washing line post. Isn't QRP great?

Date         GMT     Call    Grid     In       Out   Mode  Prop Distance
28/10/2012   22:21   F5TMJ   JN03SM   5/9      5/5   SSB   ES   1074
28/10/2012   20:25   HB9EE   JN47GN   5/9      5/9   SSB   ES   852
28/10/2012   20:06   9A6B    JN74EC   5/9      5/9   SSB   ES   1438
28/10/2012   20:03   IZ8GNR  JN71EF   5/9      5/9   SSB   ES   1693
28/10/2012   20:02   9A2KD   JN85EL   5/9      5/9   SSB   ES   1439
28/10/2012   19:59   DQ4W    JN58SC   5/9      5/9   SSB   ES   970
28/10/2012   19:58   YT5CT   JN95VE   5/9      5/9   SSB   ES   1663
28/10/2012   19:53   SP7HKK  JO91QI   5/9      5/9   SSB   ES   1310
28/10/2012   19:51   S50K    JN66XB   5/9      5/9   SSB   ES   1257
28/10/2012   19:46   HG1S    JN87VN   5/9      5/9   SSB   ES   1383
28/10/2012   19:33   DL3BQA  JO73CF   5/9      5/9   SSB   ES   926
28/10/2012   19:30   SP8CUR  KO10CB   5/9      5/9   SSB   ES   1545
28/10/2012   19:28   SP4Z    KO12KX   5/9      5/9   SSB   ES   1502
28/10/2012   13:34   LY8O    KO24OP   5/9      5/9   SSB   F2   1632
28/10/2012   17:19   W4ZV    EM95UK   5/9      5/9   SSB   F2   6342
28/10/2012   17:15   K4ZW    FM18GL   5/9      5/9   SSB   F2   5926
28/10/2012   17:12   K8AZ    EN91HM   5/9      5/9   SSB   F2   5942
28/10/2012   17:07   K3LR    EN91SE   5/9      5/9   SSB   F2   5910
28/10/2012   17:04   WB9Z    EN60BR   5/9      5/9   SSB   F2   6397
28/10/2012   17:00   LT1F    FF96PU   5/9      5/9   SSB   F2   11248
28/10/2012   16:59   EA8MT   IL27HV   5/9      5/9   SSB   F2   3088
28/10/2012   16:55   K3WW    FN20II   5/9      5/9   SSB   F2   5648
28/10/2012   16:49   LU7HN   FF88XS   5/9      5/9   SSB   F2   11136
28/10/2012   16:43   W1NA    FN41SP   5/9      5/9   SSB   F2   5246
28/10/2012   16:40   K1LZ    FN42HG   5/9      5/9   SSB   F2   5261
28/10/2012   16:28   CN3A    IM52JJ   5/9      5/9   SSB   F2   2428
28/10/2012   16:25   K1HI    FN42FT   5/9      5/9   SSB   F2   5233
28/10/2012   16:23   K4XS    EL88PF   5/9      5/9   SSB   F2   7082
28/10/2012   16:20   K2SSS   FN13DE   5/9      5/9   SSB   F2   5593
28/10/2012   16:17   K1KI    FN32PA   5/9      5/9   SSB   F2   5363
28/10/2012   16:13   N1DD    FN42MQ   5/9      5/9   SSB   F2   5205
28/10/2012   12:35   9K2HN   LL39XI   5/9      5/9   SSB   F2   4658
28/10/2012   12:23   K1DG    FN42IT   5/9 +10  5/9   SSB   F2   5218
27/10/2012   14:33   TO2A    GJ35QD   5/5      5/9   SSB   F2   7160
27/10/2012   14:31   VE3JM   FN25CH   5/9      5/9   SSB   F2   5325
27/10/2012   14:27   LU8EEM  FF95EC   5/7      5/9   SSB   F2   11458
27/10/2012   14:22   LP1H    FF78SG   5/9      5/9   SSB   F2   11308
27/10/2012   14:09   II9P    JM76IX   5/9 +30  5/9   SSB   F2   2115
27/10/2012   14:06   YP3A    KN34BJ   5/9 +10  5/9   SSB   F2   2112