Solar Minimum Medium Wave DX Log

The following are extracts from my medium wave logbook during the last solar minimum period.

Equipment used was a Perseus SDR receiver and standard sized flag antenna on the rear garden of my previous address in Sutton-in-Ashfield, Nottinghamshire.

 530  CAN  CIAO Brampton ON. Tentative. Possible commercial break over the hour. Sounded 
                Indian. Difficult copy due to huge 531 splatter. Weak 0700 05-11-08

      CUB  CM-- Radio Enciclopedia, La Habana. Tentative. POssibly ID by YL but muffled.
                Elevator muzak style. Fair 0700 11-11-08

 540  CAN  CBT  Grand Falls NL. "CBC Radio 1" ID and news jingle. 0600 30-09-08

      CAN  CBGA-1 New Carlisle PQ. ID "Vous ecoutez la premiere chaine de Radio Canada.
                CBGA Gaspesie et les isles". Weak 0600 03-10-08

      USA  WFLF Pine Hills FL. Personal First! News station. I could only make out
                "... online 540wflf.com". Fair 0700 08-11-09

      MEX  XEWA W Radio, San Luis Potosi. Personal First! Nice ID by YL heard in the mix.
                Weak 0600 08-11-09 

 550  USA  WGR  Buffalo NY (Presumed). Personal First! ESPN sports. IDing as "ESPN
                Sports 10-50". Fair 0302 29-09-08

 560  CAN  CHVO Spaniard's Bay NL. "Kixx Country" IDs. Fair 0139 11-09-08

 560  USA  WGAN Portland ME. "on Newsradio 5-60 WGAN" ID. Weak 0000 01-11-08

      USA  WSAU Wausau WI. Personal First! OM with WSAU ID. then full toh ID "On Newstalk
                __?__ (the Newstalk Superstation?)" then sung jingle "WSAU Wausau".
                ABC News. Weak 0800 24-01-09

      USA  WQAM Miami FL. Personal First! Confusing at first as there seemed to be two
                stations IDing as "WGAN". Further listening and investigation revealed
                one was a sports network station carrying "Dolphin Sports" which
                points to WQAM. Weak 0500 23-09-09

      USA  KFYR Bismarck ND. Tentative. Possible "K-Fire" ID in the pile-up along with
                "Newstalk". Very difficult copy. Weak 0400 21-10-01

      CUB  CM-- Radio Rebelde, Moa. ID jingles at top of hour. Weak 0700 05-11-08

 570  CAN  CFCB Corner Brook NL. Pops, noted in // with 790 CFNW for several minutes.
                Weak 0605 07-10-09

      CAN  CKGL Kitchener ON. Personal First! "We are located at ... online and around the
                world by visiting 570news.com". Fair 0600 03-10-09

      USA  WMCA New York City NY. "This is WMCA New York" dominating Cuba for a change.
                Then "FRN(?) News". Weak 0700 05-11-08

      USA  WSYR Syracuse NY. "5-70 WSYR Syracuse" at the top of the hour. Weak 0500 27-10-08

      USA  WNAX Yankton SD. "Coast To Coast" then lengthy ID on which I caught the
                important part "WNAX Yankton". CBS News jingle. Weak 0600 20-10-09

      CAN  CKSW Swift Current SK. Personal First! C&W music, peaking fair at 0800 but
                no ID. Managed to record a "CKSW" ID at 0808 however. Fair 0800 13-12-09

      CUB  CMDC Radio Reloj, Santa Clara. Time pips and "RR" in morse code. Fair 0605 30-09-08

 580  CAN  CFRA Ottawa ON. Call letters clearly heardin brief gap in splatter from that damn
                RNE news jingle which was attacking 580 from both sides. Fair 0100 03-11-08

 590  CAN  VOCM St Johns NB. Regularly heard.

      USA  WEZE Boston MA. Just caught ID underneath VOCM. Weak 0600 07-10-09

 600  CAN  CBNA St Anthony NL. "The Choice" programme. Weak 0215 13-08-08

      CUB  CMKV Radio Rebelde, Urbano Noris. YL & OM talk // 560, 620, etc. Fair 0700 09-11-08 

      VEN  YVQB Radio Sucre, Cumana. Slowly spoken ID beneath CBNA. Personally not heard
                since the 1980s. Weak 0700 02-11-08

 610  CAN  CHNC New Carlisle QC. French songs, as web stream. Weak 0200 13-08-08

      USA  WIOD Miami FL. Long break in CHNC audio allowed ID through "WIOD Fort Lauderdale.
                Newsradio 6-10 WIOD Miami". Weak 0600 03-10-08

      CUB  CM-- Radio Rebelde, two sites listed. YL & OM talk, as others. Fair 0700 09-11-08

 620  CAN  CKCM Grand Falls NL. Regularly heard.

      CUB  CMGN Radio Rebelde, Colon. YL & OM talk, as 560 & 600, etc. Good 0700 09-11-08

 640  CAN  CBN  St Johns NL. "CBC Radio" ID, as 1400. Fair 0400 14-08-08

      CAN  CFMJ Richmond Hill ON. "You're listening to AM 6-40 (?) in the morning, Waters
                in the afternoon, CFMJ". Then "AM 6-40 News". Fair 0500 03-11-08

 650  CAN  CKGA Gander NL. C&W music and "VOCM" IDs. Weak 0230 16-06-08

      USA  WSM  Nashville TN. Weather forecast (rain) "on 6-50 AM and around the world
                at wsm.com". C&W music. Fair 07-02-08

 670  USA  WSCR Chicago IL. ID as "WSCR HD" then Sporting News Radio jingle.
                Weak 0700 21-12-08

      CUB  CMBA Radio Rebelde, Arroyo Arenas. Echo produced as another site also coming
                in. Fair 0500 11-09-08

 680  CAN  CFTR Toronto ON. "At 680news.com, this is 6-80 News" ID. Fair 0400 16-08-08

      USA  WRKO Boston MA. "Only here on Boston's Talk Station, AM 6-80 WRKO".
                Fair 0600 07-10-08

      CAN  CJOB  Winnipeg MB. "Online and in demand, this is Manitoba's Information
                 Superstation, CJOB" in nasty 675 Spanish splatter. Fair 0400 06-11-08

      USA  KBRW Barrow AK. Personal First! "NPR Morning Show" followed by local Alaskan
                weather forecast, then forecast from the National Weather Service.
                Weak 1719 01-12-08

                Slightly better reception on 02-12-08. "NPR Morning Edition".
                Barrow weather with Glenn Hoffman sponsored by Power & Brown law firm
                (in Bethel, Alaska) at powerbrown.com. NPR jingle ID. Christmas song. NPR
                Economic Report. Weak 1619 02-12-08

                Also heard 23-01-09 & 24-01-09

      PTR  WAPA San Juan PR. Personal First! Network ID at toh and "Noticias". 
                Weak 0200 06-12-08

 700  USA  WLW  Cincinnati OH. "Newsradio Seven Hundred WLW" ID. Fair 0300 07-07-08  

      JMC  NBC  Kingstown, St Vincent. Heard regularly with hymns. BBC World Service
                relay // web stream. Weak 0400 08-08-08

 710  CAN  CKVO Clarenville NL. Regularly heard.

 710  USA  WOR  New York City NY. Dr Joy Brown phone in. Weak 0245 13-08-08

 720  USA  WGN  Chicago IL. ID clearly heard in gap in 720 BBC talk. Fair 0800 06-01-09

 730  CAN  CKAC MOntrel QC. French pops, Disneyworld ad, CKAC ID. Fair 0400 16-08-08

 740  CAN  CHCM Marystown NL. "Your Information Superstation VOCM" ID. Fair 0030 05-07-08

      CAN  CFZM Toronto ON. "The All Night Jukebox, right here on Zoomer AM 7-40" ID.
                Equal levels with CHCM. Fair 0500 08-09-09

      CAN  CBX  Edmonton AB. Personal First! Since CBC Radio 1 changed their news jingle it
                can be heard quite clearly - even when it is very weak or buried in a pile-up!
                CBC News jingle clearly heard at 0500, 0700 and very clearly at 0900.
                Fair 0500 06-11-09

       B   ZYH446 Radio Sociedade Da Bahia, Salvador. ID at top of hour. Weak 0000 20-06-08

 750  CAN  CBGY Bonavista Bay NL. Regularly heard.

      USA  WSB  Atlanta GA. "Around the clock. On the hour. wsbradio.com. This is AM
                7-50 WSB Atlanta, 24 hour news and weather" etc. and into WSB Sports.
                Weak 0430 06-11-08

      CAN  CJVR Melfort SK. Personal First! Mike & The Mechanics "All I Need Is A Miracle"
                then "CK 7-50" IDs. Oldies format. Fair on brief peak. 0731 25-01-09

      VEN  YVKS RCR, Caracas. "Radio Caracas Radio" ID. Mixing CBGY. Fair 0200 28-10-08

 760  USA  WJR  Detroit MI. "From the golden towers of the Fisher Building, this is
                The Great Voice Of The Great Lakes, Newstalk 7-60" Then sung
                jingle ID "WJR Detroit". Weak 0030 07-07-08

 770  USA  WABC  New York City NY. "This is WABC New York" ID. ABC News. Fair 0700 12-11-08

      CAN  CHQR Calgary AB. Personal First! "For breaking news, we're at 770chqr.com".
                Fair levels over WABC! Fair 0500 06-11-09

      CLM  RCN  Bogota. Ads and sung "RCN" ID on the hour, then more ads. Weak 0055 09-09-08

 780  CAN  CFDR Dartmouth NS. Job ad for "New Cap Radio" then "Kixx Country" ID.
                Good 0350 08-09-08

 790  USA  WAXY South Miami FL. Ad then "Sportsradio 7-90 WAXY South Miami, The Ticket" ID.
                Fair 0403 08-09-08

      USA  WBBM Chicago IL. "This is Newsradio 7-80 WBBM Chicago" ID. Weak 0600 01-10-08

      CAN  CFNW Port Au Choix NL. Pops, noted in // with 570 CFCB. Fair 0605 06-10-09

      CAN  CFRW Camrose AB. Presumed. Classic country music heard between 0700 and 0800,
                mixing with WAXY and Cuba. Weak 0700 24-01-09
 800  VOWR St Johns NL. Regularly heard. 

      CAN  CHRC Quebec QC. (Presumed) French talk in the mix. Fair 0800 14-05-08 

      CAN  CKLW Windsor ON. Patchy ID in 801 splatter "800 Hamilton (?) and Windsor ....
                CKLW". Weak 0600 29-09-08

 820  CAN  CHAM Hamilton ON. "8-20 Cham" jingle. C&W music. Fair 0444 18-08-08

      USA  WBAP Fort Worth TX. "here on Newstalk 8-20 WBAP". Fair 0336 16-08-08

      USA  WFFD Frederick MD. Personal First! Thanks to Paul Crankshaw for the tip.
                I could hear this weakly in parallel with WWWT 1500. Weak 0531 18-09-08

      CUB  CM-- Radio Reloj, Two sites listed. Usual time pips. Weak 0400 18-08-08

 830  USA  WCRN Worcester MA. "WCRN. 50,000 watts of talk for New England. AM 8-30 WRCN
                Worcester". CBS News. Fair 0000 06-11-08

      USA  WCCO Minneapolis MN. Personal First. "Your information for the Tri-Cities and
                (Minnesota?). CCO Eight Three Oh. WCCO Radio News". No trace of WCRN.
                Fair 0503 26-01-09

 840  USA  WHAS Louisville KY. WHAS ID and mention of whas.com. Fair 0700 06-11-08

 850  USA  WEEI Boston MA. "Sports Radio 8-50 WEEI Boston" ID. Fair 0200 26-10-08

      USA  WFTL West Palm Beach FL. "WFTL, Newstalk Eight Five O, WFTL" ID. Weak 0700 01-11-08

      USA  KOA  Denver CO. Personal First! Traffic report, followed by "Newsradio 8-50
                KOA" ID. Almost fair on peak! Fair 0805 09-12-09

 860  CAN  CJBC Toronto ON. "Premiere chaine ... Radio Canada ... CJBC Toronto".
                Fair 0600 29-09-08

 870  USA  WWL New Orleans LA. Very weak ID in 873 splatter. V weak 0300 07-07-08

      CUB  CMDT Radio Reloj, Sancti Spiritus. Time pips and ID over WWL. Fair 0700 11-11-08

 890  USA  WLS  Chicago IL. "The world is changing - are you listening?" then sing WLS jingle.
                Fair 0700 03-11-08

      USA  WAMG Dedham MA. "WAMG in Boston" heard at toh. ESPN Sports. Weak 0500 16-09-08

 900  MEX  XEW  W Radio, Mexico City DF. Personal First! Italy removed, thanks to the
                flag antenna. Spain faded thanks to daylight. "W Radio 900 AM Mexico" ID,
                all alone on channel. Weak 0900 08-11-09

 920  CAN  CJCH Halifax NS. "The greatest oldies of all time, 92 CJCH" ID. Fair 0230 13-05-08 

      CAN  CKNX Wingham ON. "AM 9-20 CKNX" vocal drop-in between C&W music. Fair 0252 12-07-08

      CAN  CFRY Portage La Prairie MB. Personal First! CFRY call letters in promo, then
                "Coming to you first, CFRY Real Country Radio proud to be part of
                Golden West Media, Winnipeg's (?) ... " etc. Weak 0419 06-11-08

      USA  KDHL Faribault MN. Personal First! "This is The Voice Of The Nation, Radio
                America" IDs. Later identified with full call letters. Weak 0600 24-01-09

      USA  WHJJ Providence RI. Personal First! Top of the hour ID with call letters, also
                mentioning another W call in its ID. "Newsradio 9-20", despite it being
                listed on Topaz as "Newstalk 9-20". Recording available. Alone on channel.
                Weak 0900 24-12-09

       ?        Two unids. ESPN ID at toh with mention of "Mike And Mike In The Morning"
                and another with "USA Radio Network News" ID. Weak 0800 25-01-09

      MEX  XERE La Comadre, Guanajuato. Presumed. Mentions of Mexico in lively announcements
                at top of hour. Fairly sure of "Comadre" ID and mention of Celaya, then
                straight into lively music. Weak 0700 25-10-08

 930  CAN  CJYQ St Johns NL. Regularly heard

      CAN  CFBC St John NB. "Good Time Oldies 93 CFBC". Fair 0300 25-05-08

      USA  WBEN Buffalo NY. Heard "on Newsradio 9-30 WBEN Buffalo" beneath CFBC's oldies.
                Weak 0600 25-09-08

      USA  WPAT Paterson NJ. Personal First! "WPAT is 9-30 AM. WPAT Paterson New Jersey"
                ID. Weak 0600 07-10-09

      CUB  CM-- Radio Reloj, several transmitters listed. Time pips and morse "RR" ID
                on the minute. Weak 0025 03-11-08

 940  CAN  CINW Montreal QC. "AM 9-40. Montreal's Greatest Hits". Fair 0800 22-11-08

 950  CAN  CKNB Campbellton NB. "Your Community, Your Radio Station, 95 CKNB" ID and
                commercial. Fair 0438 03-09-08

      CAN  CFAM Altona MB. Personal First! Woodwind piece // 1250 CHSM. Fair 0802 24-01-09

 960  USA  WEAV Plattsburgh NY. WEAV ID and mention of Fox News Radio. Weak 0600 03-10-08

      CAN  CFAC Calgary AB. Personal First! Call letters obscured by splatter but "ESPN Radio
                Calgary" ID heard. Fair 0800 07-11-09

      USA  KMA  Shenandoah IA. Personal First! Mention of "Regional Radio" then
                references to KMA. ABC News. Difficult copy. Weak 0600 07-10-09

      USA       Unid. ID as "Fox News Radio" on the hour and continued to do so for
                the next five minutes without local ID. Fair 0600 07-10-09

 970  USA  WZAN Portland ME. "9-70 WZAN" ID and sports promo. Weak 0400 18-08-08

      USA  KQAQ Austin MN. Personal First! "Classic Country" IDs mid-song.
                Fair peaks 0454 26-01-09

      USA  WDAY Fargo ND. Personal First! ID heard immediately after WZAN ID. I thought
                I was hearing WZAN at first until I realized that WDAY was spoken over the top
                of WZAN's CBS News jingle. "Breaking News First on WDAY". Weak 0600 10-10-09

      MEX  XERFR Radio Formula, Mexico City DF. Personal First! "Nueve Setenta, Radio
                Formula" ID after OM talk. Weak 0700 21-10-09

 980  CAN  CKRU Peterborough ON. "We play all your favourite songs, from your first
                date to your wedding day. Putting the music to your memory, 9-80 Kruz
                (cruise)". Motown music. Fair 0700 12-11-08

      USA  KKMS Richfield MN. Personal First! "Welcome to Super ... AM 9-80 Minneapolis St
                Paul". Difficult copy. Weak 0800 11-12-09

      USA  WCUB Two Rivers WI. Personal First! "... and now more of the new and old, Your
                Kind Of Country, with ... on AM 9-80 WCUB". Weak 0901 08-11-09

      CAN  CJME Regina SK. Personal First! "Regina's number one news and information station,
                9-80 CJME, a Rawlco Radio Station". V weak and alone 0900 16-12-09

       B   ZYH707 Radio Nacional Brasilia, Brasilia. Radio Nacional ID at the top of
                the hour. Fair 0000 11-09-08

 990  CAN  CBY  Corner Brook NL. Personal First! CBC Radio 1 news jingle clearly heard amid
                the co-channel pile-up. Fair 0700 24-10-08

1000  USA  WMVP Chicago IL. Checked against their web stream for some time but eventually
                heard an "ESPN One Thousand" ID live on air. Fair 0025 06-10-09

1010  USA  WINS New York City NY. Regularly heard.

      CAN  CFRB Toronto ON. Regularly heard.

      CAN  CBR  Calgary AB. CBC Radio ID after the news at 08:03:30. Fair 0803 24-01-09

1020  USA  KDKA Pittsburgh PA. Several KDKA IDs in promo. Fair 0430 16-08-08

      CMAP      Radio Guama, Bahia Honda. Personal First! Announcement at toh and YL news
                and info. Thanks Chris, Gert and Henrik at RealDX for assistance.
                Weak 0600 30-11-08

1030  USA  WBZ  Boston MA. Clear WBZ ID heard in 1026 Sheffield splatter. Fair 0600 07-10-08

1040  USA  WHO  Des Moines IA. "Newsradio Ten Forty WHO" ID. I have been struggling to
                dig this one out for some time. 1040 is very difficult here because
                of splash from local BBC Radio Sheffield on 1035. Weak 0300 14-10-09

1050  CAN  CHUM Toronto ON. Regularly heard.

      USA  WEPN New York City NY. Regularly heard.

1060  USA  WBIX Natick MA. Financial talk. "Business Talk Radio" IDs. Weak 0300 02-06-08

      CAN  CKMX Calgary AB. Personal First! "Classic Country AM 10-60" and a mention of
                southern Alberta. Fair 0832 22-11-08

      CUB  CM-- Radio 26, Matanzas. "Radio Varadero" IDs - relay of FM station.
                Weak 0300 17-07-08

      MEX  XEEP Radio Educacion, Mexico City DF. National anthem and full ID.
                Fair 0500 13-09-08

1070  CAN  CHOK Sarnia ON. Personal First! "The Country Connection on Country One Oh
                Three Nine CHOK". Weak 0041 06-10-09

      ARG  LR1  Radio El Mundo, Capital Federal. Two OMs talking, as web stream.
                Weak 0208 05-10-09

      CLM  HCJG Radio Santa Fe, Bogota. Lively Latin rhythms, in parallel with web stream.
                Weak 0230 05-10-09

      VEN  YVMA Radio Mundial Zulia, Maracaibo. ID after lively Latin music. Not heard
                this since the mid-80s. Hearing it now thanks to fine tuning of the flag
                antenna. Fair 0200 05-10-09

1080  USA  WTIC Hartford CT. "On the hour, every hour, around the clock. Newstalk 10-80 WTIC".
                Weak 0700 02-11-08

1090  USA  WBAL Baltmore MD. Just timed this right as I could just make out the call
                letters amid 1089 Talk Sport splatter. Good 0400 06-10-09

1100  USA  WTAM Cleveland OH. Promo for "Coast To Coast". Fair 0300 02-06-08

       B   ZYK694 Radio Globo, Sao Paulo. "Globo" jingle then spoken ID. Fair 0300 13-05-08

1110  USA  WBT  Charlotte NC. Tara Servatius Show. Phone number and ID "704 570 1110 WBT 11-10".
                Fair 0341 14-08-08

1120  USA  KMOX St Louis MO. Ad for "Daniel's Farm & Greenhouses" then ID "The Officual
                Traffic Station, Newsradio 11-20 KMOX, KMOX HD, St Louis" and CBS News.
                Fair 0100 06-10-09

1130  USA  WBBR New York City NY. "Bloomberg 11 Three Oh" IDs. Fair 0335 13-05-08

      USA  KWKH Shrevport LA. "The Home Of The Legends, AM 11-30 KWKH. Fair 0555 23-09-09

      USA  KFAN Minneapolis MN. "On AM 11-30 KFAN Minneapolis St Paul" ID. Fair 0800 22-11-08

1140  CAN  CBI  Sydney NS. CBC News jingle and vocal ID. Fair 0300 13-05-08

      USA  WQBA Miami FL. "Univision" IDs in Spanish mentioning studios in Florida.
                Fair 0600 23-09-09

      CAN  CHRB High River AB. Personal First! At last! I have been after this one for
                a long time. ".. on southern Alberta's community radio station, AM 11-40"
                heard weakly on CBI & WQBA fade. Weak 0500 21-10-09

      CUB  CM-- Radio Rebelde, unlisted site. Jingle ID on the hour under WQBA.
                Weak 0700 06-11-08

1150  USA  WHBY Kimberly WI. Much splatter but caught ID "This is the (?) WHBY" with locations                 given, including Kimberly. Fair 0100 06-11-08 

1160  USA  WYLL Chicago IL. "WYLL Newstime" at top of hour. Weak 0400 08-08-08

      USA  KSL  Salt Lake City UT. Personal First! Snow and ice forecast, then ID " ... for
                Cougar fans around the world, KSL Newsradio 102.7 FM and 11-60, Utah's
                exclusive home of the Cougars". 

1170  USA  WWVA Wheeling WV. Personal First! "This is The Big One, Newsradio ...
                11-70 WWVA Wheeling. We know the way!" ID. ABC News. Good 0700 23-01-09

1180  USA  WHAM Rochester NY. "Wham Radio Rochester New York" ID. Fair 0300 02-05-08

1190  USA  WLIB New York City NY.  "Miracle Revival Hour". Fair 0230 13-05-08

      USA  WOWO Fort Wayne IN. "Coast To Coast" then ID "Right now and every night on
                Newstalk 11-90 WOWO". Weak 0530 02-11-08

      MEX  XEWK W Radio, Guadalajara. ID "W Radio, la frecuencia once noventa AM".
                Fair 0100 28-10-08

      ARG  LR9  Radio America, Buenos Aires. "Radio America Informa" ID. Fair 0230 17-05-08

       B   UNID. Portuguese talk over the hour. V weak 2300 21-05-08

1200  CAN  CFGO Ottawa ON. Fox Sports IDs. Fair 0300 14-05-08

      USA  WKOX Newton MA. Presumed with Rumba music. Fair 0400 08-09-09

1230  CAN       Unid. CBC Radio 1 news jingle on the hour. Presume CFGN Port Au Basques
                NL but other possibilities on channel. Maybe even CFFB Iqaluit NU.
                Weak 0500 07-11-09

1250  CAN  CJYE Oakville ON. "You're listening to Overnight on the Wide Open Ministry.
                Radio station CJYE and CJMR AM 13-20" Weak 0500 06-09-09

      USA  WSSP Milwaukee WI. Programme promo "Makes you a winner, WSSP Milwaukee"
                under CJYE's religious songs. Weak 0600 25-09-08

      USA  WGAM Manchester NH. "Sportsradio WGAM Manchester, WGHM Nashua(?)" ID at toh.
                V weak 0900 14-12-08

      USA  WEAE Pittsburgh PA. "WEAE Pittsburgh" ID heard in pile-up. Fair 0500 06-11-08

      CAN  CHSM Steinbach MB. Presumed with lengthy classical piece above CJYE.
                Weak but dominant. 0530 02-11-08

1270  CAN  CJCB Sydney NS. "Cape Breeton's Country, CFCB" jingle ID. Weak 0157 16-10-09

      USA  WTSN Dover NH. Personal First! "WTSN AM 12-70" ID heard in splatter
                from 1269 at top of hour. V weak 0700 24-11-08

      USA  WXYT Detroit MI. Sung "Sporting News Flash" jingle in pile-up. Weak 0800 23-01-09

      USA  WRLZ Eatonville FL. Personal First! Spanish pops and ID "por Radio Luz,
                doce setanta". Weak 0400 18-08-08

      ARG  LS11 Radio Provincia De Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires. // web stream. Weak 0050 09-09-08

1280  USA  WFAU Gardiner ME. Top of the hour ID, including a string of stations on the
                network, including WFAU. Fair 0000 06-09-09

      CAN  CFMB Montreal QC. Haitian programming as web stream. Fair 0030 21-10-08

      USA  WNAM Neenah-Menasha WI. Ad break. Nostalgia format and sing "WNAM" jingle.
                Weak 0434 22-11-08

      USA  Unid Westwood One programming. Weak 0400 14-09-09

      PTR  WCMN Noti Uno, Arecibo PR. "Noti Uno" IDs and rolling Spanish news.
                Weak 0300 03-06-08

      BER  VSB2 Hamilton, Bermuda. BBN Radio. Weak 0100 05-08-08

       B   ZYJ455 Radio Tupi, Rio De Janerio. OM in Portuguese with possible ID.
                Weak 0341 21-05-08

1290  USA  WKBK Keene NH. "AM 12-90 WKBK Keene" ID and CBS News. Weak 0600 23-01-09

      USA  WJNO West Palm Beach FL. "Right now it's 4 o' clock in south Florida, then 
                killed by unnecessarily wide 1296 splatter. Weak

      CAN  CJBK London ON. End of promo and ID "Weekdays on Newstalk 121-90 CJBL".
                Weak 0700 03-11-08

      CAN  CFRW Winnipeg MB. Personal First! Oldies in // with web playlist. ID at
                top of the hour then Beach Boys song. "You're listening to CFRW,
                a Chum Radio Station". Fair 0400 06-11-08

      USA  WRNO Providence RI. "WRNO Rhode Island heard in gaps between splatter.
                Weak 0300 12-09-08

      USA  WIRL Peoria IL. Personal First! WIRL call lellters heard. Weak 0037 04-10-09

      USA  KKAR Omaha NE. Personal First! "Dr Laura, only on Newstalk 12-90 K-Kar.
                KKAR Omaha"  ABC News. Fair 0500 26-01-09

1300  USA  WOOD Grand Rapids MI. ID "On Newsradio 13 Hundred WOOD" heard by chance.
                Fair 0119 05-11-08

1310  CAN  CIWW Ottawa ON. Showing early at 21:30 with oldies // web stream.
                Weak 2130 01-11-08

      USA  WLOB Portland ME. ID "WLOB AM Portland, 13-10 and wlobradio.com".
                Weak 0200 06-11-08

      USA  WCCW Traverse City MI. Personal First! ID "13-10 ESPN Radio, WCCW AM Traverse City".
                Weak 0600 14-10-09

1320  CAN  CJMR Mississauga ON. "You're listening to CJMR 13-20".  Weak 0300 16-05-08

      USA  WBOB Jacksonville FL. "Talk radio that has everyone talking, AM 13-20,
                north-east Florida's WBOB Jacksonville". I last heard this more
                than 20 years ago when it was WVOJ. Weak 0700 27-10-08

      USA  WJAS Pittsburgh PA. Personal First! Oldies format and WJAS jingle drop-in noted
                at 06:18:40. Weak 0618 26-01-09

      USA  WDER Derry NH. Tentative. Back to back Christian music with ad break mentioning
                Boston (Derry is near Boston). Programming would fit with schedule.
                Weak 0404 17-08-08

      USA  WILS Lansing MI. Personal First! ID weakly heard in 1323 splatter. Tricky! Weak 0800 13-12-09

      CAN  CHMB Vancouver BC. Presumed with Chinese YL, first noted mixing with
                CJMR at 0742 then heard with a CRI ID at 0800. Fair 0800 22-11-08

1330  USA  WRCA Waltham MA. ID at top of hour, then banging tune! Weak 0300 14-08-08

      USA  WFNN Erie PA.  "Fox Sports Radio, AM 13-30 The Fan, WFNN Erie". Fair 0600 29-09-08

      USA  WLOL Minneapolis MN. Personal First! "You're tuned to Relevant Radio" ID by
                YL. Difficult in pile-up. Weak 0600 22-11-08

1350  USA  WOYK York PA. Presumed with "Sporting News Flash" jingle under nearby Radio
                Nightingale. Weak 0600 03-10-09

1360  USA  WDRC Hartford CT. "This is the talk of Connecticut, WDRC AM 13-60 Hartford.
                Fair 0100 03-11-08

      USA  WKAT North Miami FL. "Esta es WKAT North Miami" ID. Fair 0000 05-11-08

           UNID. R&B/urban style music. No break for ID at top of hour. Weak 0800 01-11-08

1370  USA  WDEA Ellsworth ME. ID heard in 1368 splatter. Weak 0100 13-05-08

1380  CAN  CKPC Brantford ON. Personal First! "13-80 CKPC" heard heard over news headlines
                from another station. Weak 0800 28-01-10
      USA  WABH Bath NY. Personal First! "13-80 WABH Bath, a ... station and it's ... at
                Pembroke Pines". Fair 0800 28-01-10

      USA  KOTA Rapid City SD. Personal First! "Newsradio 13-80 KOTA Rapid City" ID.
                Weak 0400 06-11-08

      MEX  XECO 1380 AM Musica Romantica, Iztacalco. Personal First! Thanks to AB for
                transcription "Estas escuchando XECO, Romantica, AM Musica, 50,000
                vatios de potencia ... desde Radio Valle De Mexico" and station address.
                Weak 0600 11-01-09

      VEN  YVNG Ondas Del Mar, Puerto Cabello. ID and slogan between Latin songs.
                Mixing US nostalgia station. Weak 0425 16-08-08

1390  USA  WEGP Preseue Isle ME. Jingle ID after ad break. Fair 0108 13-05-08

      USA  WXTC Charleston SC. (Presumed) Inspirational Gospel music. Weak 0340 13-05-08

      USA  WPLM Plymouth NH. Nostalgia, "on Easy 99.1 WPLM". Weak 0200 22-06-08

      USA  WFBL Syracuse NY. "The golden age of rock and roll on Oldies 13-90 WFBL.
                Then CNN News. Weak 0600 17-11-08

      USA  WRIG Schofield WI. Personal First! Difficult copy under consistent WEGP signal.
                "Your Greatest Hits weekend. Everything you want. One phone number,
                 659 ???5". Thanks to Paul Crankshaw for help with this. He pointed
                 me to this website: www.dxgert.se/2007.htm which lists the full phone
                 number: 1-800-659-1965, WRIG's phone number. WRIG's slogans include:
                 "The Greatest Hits" and "your Greatest Hit Weekend". Weak 0636 23-11-08

      USA  WLCM Holt MI. Personal First! "... right here on WLCM, Holt Lansing".
                Weak 0500 14-10-09

      PTR  WISA Isabella PR. Esta es la WISA AM 13-90 Isabella" in Spanish. Weak 0300 03-11-08

1400  CAN  CBG  Gander NL. Regularly heard.

      USA  WOND Pleasantville NJ. "Newstalk 14 Hundred WOND, WGYN and on the worldwide
                web at wond1400.com. It's 2 o' clock". Weak 0600 05-10-08

      GRD  Harbour Light Of The Windwards, Carriacou. "Harbour Light" ID, programme info
                and hymns. Weak 0100 05-08-08

      CLM  HKJM Emisora Mariana, Bogota. Personal First! Emisora Mariana IDs heard. Many
                references to Mariana. Weak 0449 16-11-08

1410  USA  WPOP Hartford CT. "This is ESPN Radio 14-10 WPOP Hartford" ID. Fair 0300 13-05-08

      USA  WMYR Fort Myers FL. "Relevant Radio" IDs // 1660 WCNZ. Fair 0400 03-11-08

      CAN  CFUN Vancouver BC. Tentative. Talk station. Promo prior to top of hour
                mentioning .ca web address. WPOP very weak at the time. Weak 0800 22-11-08

1420  CAN  CKDY Digby NS. "AVR" ID in promos. Fair 0136 15-08-08

      USA  WBSM New Bedford MA. "First with local news, talk and sports, this is WBSM
                New Bedford, Citadel Broadcasting, AM 14-20 WBSM" then ABC News.
                Weak 0500 09-09-08

      USA  WOC  Davenport IA. Personal First! "Newstalk 14-20 Davenport, Quad Cities.
                The News ... Starts ... Now" Weak 0700 06-11-08

      USA  WHK  Cleveland OH. "WHK" ID and rolling news. Weak 0400 08-08-08

      USA  KTOE Mankato MN. Personal First! ID heard in gap in splatter from 1422.
                Weak 0300 20-10-09

1430  USA  WENE Endicott NY. "Fox Sports Radio 14-30 The Team ID. Fair 0243 17-05-08

      CAN  CHKT Toronto ON. "14-30 CHKT Fairchild Radio, Toronto" ID. Fair 0300 16-05-08

      USA  WNSW Newark NJ. Presumed. "Newark New York City" heard in the toh ID. Very tricky.
                Thanks to Paul Crankshaw too who also heard the city references. 

1440  USA  WJJB Westbrook ME. "Big Jab" sports commentary, mixing UNID Spanish.
                Weak 0100 13-05-08

      USA  WHKZ Warren OH. "The Word" ID in ad break. Weak 0231 06-06-08

      USA  WVEI Worcester MA. "... here on the WEEI Red Sox Radio Network". Fair 0106 10-10-09

       B   ZYH285 Radio Globo, Manaus. Personal First! Many mentions of "Globo" and
                football commentary "Go-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-oal"! Mixing another Brazilian.
                Fair 0000 20-06-08

1450  USA  WENJ Atlantic City NJ. WENJ call heard in splatter and  "espn.com".
                Weak 0300 03-06-08

1460  CAN  CJOY Guelph ON. Oldies and "14-60 CJOY, the Royal City's Greatest Hits" ID.
                Fair 0602 23-01-09

      USA  WDDY Albany NY. "Radio Disney" ID heard at 0607. Weak 0607 30-09-08

1470  USA  WLAM Lewiston ME. Regularly heard.

      USA  WBKV West Bend WI. "WBKV West Bend" heard mixing with the oldies of WLAM.
                Weak 0700 10-12-09

      USA  WNYY Ithaca NY. "Serving the Finger Lakes, this is your progressive talk station, 
                14-70 WNYY Ithaca". Also mentioning WNYY TV. Fair 2300 30-09-08

      CAN  CJVB Vancouver BC. Usual three time pips and Chinese OM. Weak 0600 09-10-08

      MEX  XEAI Radio Formula, Mexico City. ID clearly heard in pile-up. Fair 0400 08-08-08

      URG  CX147 Radio Cristal Del Uruguay, Las Piedras. Familiar "Cristal" jingle heard.
                V weak 2100 21-05-08

1480  USA  WSAR Fall River MA. "All day, every day, on the Boston ..(?).. WSAR" ID.
                V weak 0000 03-10-08

      USA  WHBC Canton OH. WThis is WHBC Canton" ID at top of hour. Weak 0400 30-09-08

      USA  WGVU Kentwood MI. Weak ID at toh "We are WGVU AM Kentwood, WGVS AM 850(?)"
                Weak 0200 06-11-08

      USA  WMLV Madison WI. Personal First! "La Movida" and "WMLV 14-80" IDs heard after
                Mexican music. Weak 0804 24-01-09          

      PRT  WMDD Radio Tropical, Fajardo. Fajardo sports commentary. Fair 0100 14-05-08

1490  USA  WBAE Portland ME. "14 Hundred WBAE" ID heard in noise at top of hour.
                Weak 0800 22-11-08

      USA       Unid. "ESPN Radio" ID Weak 0300 06-11-08

1500  USA  WWWT Washington DC. Talk show. Fair 0330 13-05-08

      USA  WLQV Detroit MI. Personal First! This is the most listened to Christian talk,
                AM 15 Hundred, WLQV Detroit M__?__'s (not Michigan's) talk
                radio" ID. Weak 0600 21-12-08

      USA  KSTP St Paul MN. "This is talk station __?__ 15 Hundred KSTP St Paul
                Minneapolis, stay tuned ... " Fair 0000 24-01-09

      MEX  XEDF Radio Formula, Mexico City DF. Personal First! Familiar 'falling' jingle
                stab and "Radio Formala" ID. Weak 0200 06-11-08

1510  USA  WWZN Boston MA. Regularly heard.

      USA  WLAC Nashville TN. Call letters heard under WWZN. Weak 0500 24-10-08

      USA  KCKK Littleton CO. "Mile High Sports, 15-10 KCKK" heard over WWZN!
                Fair 0600 03-10-09

      USA  KGA  Spokane WA. Personal First! "Newsradio 15-10 KGA Spokane" ID heard on
                WWZN fade. Weak 0400 13-09-08

                Again with YL ID at top of hour "15-10 KGA Spokane" heard weakly under
                WWZN. Weak 0600 09-10-08
      USA  WRRD Waukesha WI. Personal First! Obliterating WWZN at this time so obviously still 
                on day power. Phone-in and commercials as their web stream. Good 2305 14-01-09

1520  USA  WWKB Buffalo NY. Regularly heard.

      USA  KOKC Oklahoma City OK. ID in WWKB gap "KOKC Oklahoma City. The news starts now.
                It's 1 o' clock". Weak 0600 29-09-08

1530  USA  WCKY Cincinnati OH. Personal First! "You're listening to the fifty thousand watt
                __?__ WCKY Cincinnati 15-30. Jesus Christ is coming!" heard in co-channel
                mess. Good 0800 23-01-09

1540  CAN  CHIN Toronto ON. "Broadcasting to Toronto on AM 15-40. This is the voice of
                multicultural radio. This is CHIN" ID. Fair 0130 13-05-08

      USA  KXEL Waterloo IA. "Newstalk 15-40 KXEL" mixing CHIN & WDCD. Fair 0000 27-10-08

1550  CAN  CBE  Windsor ON. CBC ID and CBC news at toh. Fair 0000 27-10-08

1560  USA  WQEW New York City NY. Regularly heard.

      USA  KGOW Bellaire TX. Sports mixing WQEW. Fair 0700 21-10-09

1570  CAN  CFAV Montreal QC. Regularly heard.

      CAN  CKMW Morden-Winkler MB. Personal First! Nice peak over XERF & CFAV. "Country 15-70"
                IDs and commercial break. Fair 0153 06-11-08

      MEX  XERF La Poderosa, Ciudad Acuna. Regularly heard.

1580  CAN  CKDO Oshawa ON. "You're listening to Oshawa's Radio Station, CKDO at 107.7 FM
                and 15-80 AM". Fair 0601 30-09-08

1590  USA  WARV Warwick RI. Vocal ID heard. Difficult in German digital splatter.
                Fair 0800 23-01-09

      USA  WAKR Akron OH. "... with news. 15-90, Akron's News Authority". Difficult in
                German digital splatter. Fair 0800 23-01-09

      USA  WVNA Tuscumbia AL. Personal First! "Newstalk 15-90 WVNA, the voice of north
                Alabama" ID heard on the half hour. Weak 0530 16-10-09

      USA  KVGB Great Bend KS. Personal First! Messy ID in the noise, something like "144,
                The Talk Of The Town ... radio ... KVGB". Thanks to Ken Baird for
                the tip and translation, this should be "... right here on the
                Dave Ramsay Show, weekday afternoons from 1 until 4, on The Talk Of The
                Town, 15-90 AM KVGB". V weak 0534 15-10-09

      USA  KCNN East Grand Forks MN. Personal First! Echoey ID obscured in the pile-up
                "Grand Forks ... Station ... KCNN". This heard twice in the toh ID.
                Weak 0500 21-10-09

      MEX  XEVOZ Radio Luz 15-90, Distrito Federal. Regularly heard.

1600  USA  WUNR Brookline MA. "WUNR" ID in Spanish at toh. Fair 0500 23-01-09

      USA  WWRL New York City NY. "Sixteen Hundred WWRL New York" alternating OM & YL ID.
                Only heard on USB. Fair 0500 17-09-09

      USA  WKKX Wheeling WV. Personal First! "WKKX Wheeiling" ID and "The Fox National Sports
                Report". Thanks PC for confirmation. Weak 0800 23-01-09

      USA  KPNP Watertown MN. Presumed Personal First! Programming in the Hmong 
                language. Weak 0700 21-10-09

      USA       Unid "ESPN Radio" ID at toh. Topaz lists KEPN Lakewood CO and KGYM Cedar
                Rapids IA as only likely candidates, probably the latter. Both have been heard
                previously in England. I hear a vague K  call but nothing else to go on.
                V weak 0800 24-11-08

1610            Caribbean Beacon, The Valley, Anguilla. Presumed. Long time no hear. Good signals
                with Gospel programming. Good 0500 22-01-09

      CAN  CHHA Toronto ON. "Radio Voces Latina" ID and full slogan in Spanish.
                Weak 0600 30-09-08

      CAN  CJWI Montreal QC. Vous ecoutez a CJWI a Monreal" heard shortly after 0103, then
                modern version of Christmas song. Weak 0103 15-12-08

1620  USA  WTAW College Station TX. Could just make out "16-20 WTAW College Station" at
                the top of the hour. Weak 0400 03-10-09

      USA  WNRP Gulf Breeze FL. Personal First! ... only Fox News station, Newsradio 16-20.
                You're listening to Newsradio 16-20, WNRP Gulf Breeze. Fair 0800 25-01-10

      USA  KOZN Bellevue NE. ESPN sports programming dominant over WTAW and others.
                Weak 0004 27-10-08

1630  USA  KCJJ Iowa City IA. "Broadcast Station Coralville's Iowa River Landing 16-30, 
                KCJJ Iowa City and Coralville". Weak 0500 30-09-08

      USA  WDRW Augusta GA. Weak in noise. Rarely heard lately. Weak 0000 15-11-08

      USA  KKGM Fort Worth TX. Personal First! "This is AM 16-30 KKGM Fort Worth-Dallas,
                a Mortenson Broadcasting Station" ID at toh. Fair 0000 01-11-08 

      USA  KRND Fox Farm WY. "La Grande" ID and ad break. Fair 2344 05-11-08

1640  USA  WKSH Sussex WI. "Radio Disney" IDs and kids music // 1650. Weak 0400 21-11-08

1650  USA  WHKT Portsmouth VA. "Radio Disney" ID. Weak 0400 13-05-08

      USA  KCNZ Cedar Falls IA. "This is The Fan KCNZ. This is the home of the
                Dan Patrick Show. 16-50 The Fan, KCNZ Cedar Falls, Waterloo".
                Fair 0500 30-09-08

      CAN  CJRS Montreal QC. Bilingual ID in Enlgish and French "CJRS Montreal 16-50 AM
                Montreal" and "CJRS Montreal seize cinquante AM Radio Shalom".
                Weak 0500 06-09-09

      USA  KFOX Torrance CA. Personal First! Sung "Radio Seoul" jingle, then "AM 16-50
                K-Fox. You're listening to southern California's number one Korean language 
                radio station". Fair 20-10-09

1660  USA  WCNZ Marco Island FL. "WCNZ, Relevant Radio" ID. Fair 0400 13-05-08

      USA  WWRU Jersey City NJ. "16-60 AM WWRU Jersey City" ID. Weak 0300 13-05-08

      USA  WFNA Charlotte NC. "The Sports Station, WFNA Charlotte" ID. Weak 0600 30-09-08

      USA  KQWB West Fargo ND. "Fargo-Moorhead" part of legal ID heard at toh.
                V weak 0700 26-10

      USA  KXTR Kansas City KS. Presumed, with lengthy classical pieces. Fair 0100 06-11-08

      USA  WQLR Kalamazoo MI. Personal First! "WQLR Kalamazoo 16-60 The Fan" ID. "The Fox
                National Sports Report". Weak 0700 23-01-09

      PTR  WGIT Canonovas PR. ID at toh including a list of other W calls and Puerto Rican
                stations on the network. Weak 0000 28-10-08

1670  USA  WVVM Dry Branch GA. "Viva" IDs and Mexican music. Weak 0321 13-05-08

      CAN  CJEU Gatineau QC. Personal First! "Les Enfants" IDs in French. Lots of kids singing! Good 0515 11-12-09

      USA  WTDY Madison WI. Personal First! Two WTDY IDs. V weak 0100 06-11-08

1680  USA  WOKB Winter Garden FL. "WOKB Winter Garden" ID heard very weakly.
                V weak 0500 01-10-08

      USA  WTTM Lindenwood NJ. Brief English ID "16-80 WTTM" before Spanish ID at toh.
                Fair 0000 15-11-08

1690  CAN  CJLO Montreal QC. Promotion for CJLO Magazine at cjlo.com. Weak 0500 01-10-08

      USA  WMLB Avondale Estates GA. "American Aligator Sports Centre ... WMLB Avondale
                Estates Altanta AM 16-90" ID and CBS News. Fair 0200 06-11-08

      USA  KDDZ Arvada CO. Personal First! Radio Disney with local ID "This is KDDZ
                and KDDZ 81 Arvada". Fair 0100 28-10-08

1700  USA  WJCC Miami Springs FL. Full ID in Spanish with call sign. Fair 0600 30-09-08

      USA  KVNS Brownsville TX. Rolling Stones song then "this is the sound of rock & roll
                on your oldies station KVNS Brownsville" ID. Fair 0600 07-10-08

      USA  KKLF Richardson TX. Personal First! Rapid-fire call letters of stations on
                the network, mentioning Fort Worth. "KKLF Richardson" also
                heard, then "Sporting News" jingle. Fair 0700 12-11-08

      MEX  XEPE Tecate, Baja California. Personal First! "San Diego 17 Hundred" ID and business news. Competing with KVNS. Fair 0233 06-11-08

RDS Spy v0.99

Today I moved up to RDS Spy v0.99. This latest version is compatible with most modern sound cards and is designed to work at 16 bit, 44100 kHz. This means I can take VAC out of the equation as all the conversions are done in the new RDS Spy software.

True to form, I installed the software and it didn't work. After performing a System Restore (Windows 7/64), reinstalling the soundcard software and removing Perseus from my laptop, which never worked either but I suspect was part of the conflict, I still had to struggle to make my soundcard find the RDS data and clock signals from my Kenwood KT6040. The problem was not RDS Spy, but my soundcard which had defaulted to use all manner of pointless digital effects which included noise reduction, audio compression and all kinds of other things I didn't need. Realising (eventually) that by switching off all these features, RDS Spy would spring to life.

So, what's v0.99 like? In terms of sensitivity, it seems exactly the same as all the previous versions I have used, but maybe slightly more so. Previous versions I have used include 0.95. 0.97 and 0.98. Initial trials of RDS Spy 0.99 were a little strange though. The first time I ran it I could not get a bitrate error on local Belmont BBC Radio 2 on 88.8 (strong local signal) of less than 20%. This was unusual as all Belmont frequencies produced a 0% error rate on previous versions, yet v0.99 seemed to be slightly more sensitive, producing RDS, with weak signals. I feed the RDS data and clock directly from the demodulator on my Kenwood KT6040 which in turn goes to a Conrad RDS Manager. From this, I tap the clock and data again and run it directly into the microphone input into my laptop. Previous versions of RDS Spy would typically produce PI codes and partial PS names with a signal registering two to three lights on the KT6040's display. This is when using the widest IF filter position and I check this using semi-local stations on which I can vary the signl levels with my rotatable Triax FM5 antenna. With v0.99 I seem to get PI and partial PS with only two lights on the KT6040, virtually without fail. This is impressive.

About an hour later, Windows prompted me to perform some important updates and so it went through the motions and I re-started my laptop accordingly. I don't know if the updates were responsible but something changed after this and I found I could then get a 0% BER on signals from the Belmont transmitter. I did not notice any further improvements in RDS decoding on weaker signals though. It's one of those strange quirks which come along from time to time. Perhaps the re-starting of the laptop made some adjustments to the sound card. Anyway, it all seems to be working well again. Just one odd thing with RDS Spy v0.99 however, when running on an empty channel, it likes to produce a false PI code of "0100" within seconds. I wonder if anybody else experiences this.

RDS Spy can be downloaded freely from www.rdsspy.com  It looks like a full, non-beta version may be on the cards shortly too. I would not hesitate to recommend this software, though configuring it can be tricky, depending on the complexities of individual sound cards and audio levels.

UPDATE 25-11-08
After using version 0.99 for a few days I have to say that this is the most sensitive edition of the software to date! I have a had a few instances of PI and even PS names forming. This is quite unusual as meteor scatter has not been productive since February of this year when I had to lower my FM5s from the mast at the bottom of the garden. One of the FM5s was then transferred to the roof of our bungalow.

My garden FM5s had to be removed due to issues with one of the neighbours and I first thought that the new rooftop location was the reason my continental 'scatter' reception, i.e. meteor scatter, aircraft scatter and troposcatter, had suddenly taken a dive. It's taken almost a year to realise that this was purely coincidence and it was conditions in general which were to blame. This can be readily backed up by comparisons with known DX locations in the Lincolnshire Wolds which also suffered. DXers across the UK also niticed the sudden drop in general scatter conditions around the beginning of the year.

My FM5 is still in free space on the roof and is roughly at the same height as when it was on the mast at the bottom of the garden. A small degree of noise now extends across band 2 as the FM5 is receiving general mains type interference, thankfully not all the time and it is very weak. Most of it emanates from the neighbours who initially made the complaints about my FM5s.

How do I know v0.99 is more sensitive? With the possibility of receiving some meteor scatter from the Leonids I decided to fire up the KT6040 and RDS Spy again and I did this several days in advance see if it would decode a few pings. Quite simply it didn't! I had been using v0.98 but decided to upgrade to v0.99 on the 19th. Suddenly I was able to see several decodes of meteor pings and troposcatter. This has to be down to increased sensitivity from v0.99.

Unfortunately, there is now much more in the way of random PI code generation and this backs up my observations about the increase in sensitivity. Providing you know how to interpret the random PI codes you should be OK though. The random codes tend to be repetitious and the following appear very regularly: 0100 F880 FCE0 and FFE5. There are others but they are quite obviously incorrect. So far though, genuine PI codes show "PTY History".

India on 10 Metres

It's been another one of those lazy Sundays where I have been ambling around various bands, not quite settling on any one in particular. 10 metres seemed quite active around midday and there were some good signals, but it was one of those days where nothing seemed to work for me. I just couldn't break through the pile-ups. I even moved to the bottom of the band calling CQ in morse and looking at the Reverse Beacon Network to see where my signal might land. Alas, after several calls I finally struggled through to Moscow with a pathetic 4dB signal. 4dB is the lowest signal I have seen reported on the network. I even wondered if there was something was wrong with the aerial, my trusty half-wave wire dipole, strung up just two metres above the ground.

Several CQ calls later in CW and I gave up as there were no further beacon reports. I switched off the IC7000, feeling quite despondent and tried to console myself with a cuppa. I don't know what possessed me to return to the radio and try again but, after making that cuppa, I returned to 10 metres and heard VU2XO calling on 28.535. Th resulting pile-up was too much to contemplate, yet I couldn't resist giving it another try regardless and, to my amazement, I managed to break through with my 10 watts and piece of wire after only two calls, offering a 5/7 report into the New Delhi area! What a result! OK, this wouldn't be a big deal if you were running 1kW and an antenna in the clouds, but I was quite chuffed.

        Date          Time     Call     Locator   In     Out    Mode   Prop  Distance

        18/11/2012    12:15    VU2XO    ML88PQ    5/5    5/7    SSB    F2    6651

You never know if you don't try!

Skegness Band 2 Log: 16-11-12

Band 2 Troposhperic Log: 16-11-12

106.5 0045  G  Project Radio 106.5, London pirate  Deep house  139 km approx **

105.7 0940  D  B5 aktuell, Wendelstein (bay)  ID in talk  1024km

102.3 0943  D  BR Klassik, Wendelstein (bay)  End of classical piece and OM, as web stream  1024km **

103.2 0944  D  hr4, Habichtswald (hes)  German songs, as web stream  647km

87.7 0946  D  MDR Figaro, Chemnitz/Geyer (sac)  ID and classical, as 87.9  905km

87.9 0947  D  MDR Figaro, Inselsberg (thü)  ID and classical, as 87.7  739km

105.4 0950  D  Hitradio RTL Sachsen, Chemnitz/Geyer (sac)  Stefanie Heinzmann song, as web stream  905km

106.3 0952  D  Hit-R. Antenne Niedersachsen, Torfhaus/DTAG (nds)  IDs after pops  707km

106.3 0952  D  SWR4 Rheinland-Pfalz, Bad Marienberg (rlp)  German song, as web stream  592km

107.6 0953  D  Antenne Thüringen, Remda (Saalfeld) (thü)  ID and ads  789km

106.8 0956  D  Hit Radio FFH, Driedorf/Höllberg (hes)  ID in news items  605km

106.2 0957  D  hr3, Heidelstein (Rhön) [bay] (hes)  Ad for HR3 Party  729km

105.3 0959  D  B5 aktuell, Kreuzberg (Rhön) (bay)  Weather and ID  732km

103.7 1001  D  Hit Radio FFH, Habichtswald (hes)  Rock track, over Lille  647km

103.5 1002  D  Deutschlandfunk (DLF), Torfhaus/DTAG (nds)  News, as web stream  707km

102.7 1003  D  Deutschlandfunk (DLF), Nordhelle (nrw)  YL news, as 103.5  554km

102.1 1005  D  WDR 2, Olsberg (nrw)  ID in Lincs FM splatter  592km

101.9 1006  D  Antenne Bayern, Heidelstein (Rhön) (bay)  Pops, as web stream  729km **

101.2 1007  D  hr3, Habichtswald (hes)  Rock, as web stream  647km

101.4 1007  D  Radio SAW, Brocken (san)  Pops, as web stream  713km

99.8 1009  D  NDR 2, Steinkimmen (nds)  Pops, as web stream  543km

99.5 1010  D  NDR Info, Torfhaus (Harz-West) (nds)  YL talk, as web stream  707km

99.0 1011  D  hr1, Hoher Meißner (hes)  Uriah Heep, ID  684km

98.0 1014  D  NDR 1 Niedersachsen, Torfhaus (Harz-West) (nds)  Italian song, as 99.8  707km

98.6 1014  D  NDR Info, Steinkimmen (nds)  Weak mixing WDR5 Olsberg. As web stream  543km

97.2 1016  D  Deutschlandradio Kultur, Inselsberg (thü)  YL and OM, as 97.4  739km

97.4 1016  D  Deutschlandradio Kultur, Brocken (san)  YL, as web stream  713km

96.7 1018  D  hr2, Großer Feldberg (Taunus)/hr (hes)  Clasical, over KLFM!  648km

96.3 1019  D  Bayern 3, Kreuzberg (Rhön) (bay)  Pumped Up Kicks, as web stream  732km

94.7 1025  D  Bayern 3, Hoher Bogen (bay)  Difficult in Lille null. Ads and ID  976km **

96.8 1111  D  Bayern 1, Hoher Bogen (bay)  ID and promo  976km **

89.5 1117  D  hr3, Hoher Meißner (hes)  OM phone caller, as web stream  684km

105.1 1150  D  Hit Radio FFH, Hoher Meißner (hes)  Pops, ID and ads  684km

* Personal Skegness 'First'

The final day of the excellent three day tropo event. The last dregs of tropo finally fizzled out during the early part of the afternoon.


Recordings:

94.7 Bayern 3, Hoher Bogen 1024 16-11-12

96.8 Bayern 1, Hoher Bogen 1113 16-11-12


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: 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.