Shortwave Listeners?

[KAL-EL]

Currently don’t, but have thought about getting one for a while now.

 

[Iñigo]

Tecsun PL-600 with 6 meter Antenna

and i'm thinking of buying Tecsun 330

Tecsun PL-330 radio

Tecsun PL-330 is a portable PLL DSP multiband receiver with SSB and Synchronous Detection. The DSP microchip digitizes the analog radio signal which, in combination with the PLL (Phase-Locked Loop) circuitry, greatly improves the radio's sensitivity, selectivity, S/N ratio and anti-interference...

www.anon-co.com

 

[denel]

I was. Till my Grundig Sattlelit DXing "hand me down" set folded up.
DXing was the next best thing to the internet. I still know my bands.

13,16, 19, 25, 31, 41, 49, 60, 70, 90 Most popular were the 19, 25, 49 meter bands. The world was at our finger tips.

I loved that one; when it used to be made in Germany not the elcheapo version.

Tecsun PL-600 with 6 meter Antenna

and i'm thinking of buying Tecsun 330

Tecsun PL-330 radio

Tecsun PL-330 is a portable PLL DSP multiband receiver with SSB and Synchronous Detection. The DSP microchip digitizes the analog radio signal which, in combination with the PLL (Phase-Locked Loop) circuitry, greatly improves the radio's sensitivity, selectivity, S/N ratio and anti-interference...

www.anon-co.com

Sangean is really good.

 

[Paul2]

Any folks who are or were shortwave radio listeners?

What were your radio stations? Do you still listen to shortwave broadcasts?

Equipment used?
Antenna?

I started listening to shortwave at the age of 8. To hear overseas stations plus foreign languages. that started me into this career. I still do listen but a lot of stations have shutdown permanently.

Favourite stations:
- Radio Netherlands
- BBC
- Hunt for other broadcasters:
- Radio Uzbekistan, Czech, Poland, DW, Radio France, then tune in to low bands for our continent.
- On Medium Wave - pick up here KSA, Radio Monte Carlo.

Equipment I have is regular shortwave:
Sony ICF7600G.
Specialised : Kenwood R1000 still going strong.
Antenna: I have a large Rhombic directional array.

Used to have ICOM 706 more than a decade ago when I lived in Canada.

When I moved to Shenzhen, it became impossible to hear anything over RF noise of the big city.

13 years ago though I had a cousen who had no problem getting to hear broadcast HF from Australia, and US on a good night with the same 706 in Guangzhou without tuners or anything.

HF rigs are now near impossible to buy in China. Funny given that they are all made here.

It's also near impossible to get a legal callsign after 2017. Most legal rig owners I knew got their licenses a decade, and more ago as militia members.

 

[jamahir]

Favourite stations:
- Radio Netherlands
- BBC
- Hunt for other broadcasters:
- Radio Uzbekistan, Czech, Poland, DW, Radio France

Nice to know SWers on this forum.

My father had an old National two-in-one and until 2010 ( the year the set got irreparably damaged ) I used to listen mainly to Radio Netherlands and BBC World Service. But sometimes ( rarely ) to Radio France International and Deutsche Welle. Once or twice China's too.

For some years I would get monthly ( or was it once in four months ? ) program booklets from Radio Netherlands. I forgot what they were called.

On BBC among my favorite programs were Charlie Gillet, Outlook and a few others ( I forgot their names ) which were 15 minute readings of a book from Monday to Friday, a business program and a program on computing. I got to know of SpaceX from that business program.

 

[denel]

Nice to know SWers on this forum.

My father had an old National two-in-one and until 2010 ( the year the set got irreparably damaged ) I used to listen mainly to Radio Netherlands and BBC World Service. But sometimes ( rarely ) to Radio France International and Deutsche Welle. Once or twice China's too.

For some years I would get monthly ( or was it once in four months ? ) program booklets from Radio Netherlands. I forgot what they were called.

On BBC among my favorite programs were Charlie Gillet, Outlook and a few others ( I forgot their names ) which were 15 minute readings of a book from Monday to Friday, a business program and a program on computing. I got to know of SpaceX from that business program.

Not sure All India Radio is still broadcasting on SW; Radio Pak appears to have ceased - they were being heard here but i was told they never bothered to upgrade the amplifier valves.
You are correct - that RNW brochure, i used to get.
The biggest kick i got was from exactly opposite side of the world with DXing - Hearld of Christian Science Monitor - Mariana Islands - that is dead of 180 deg from thsi side of the world.
I was hopeing that digital mode would take hold on hf but internet streaming put this to rest.

Still nothing beats the magic of shortwave.

wow... National... that was tape recorder/radio combo - I used it for over 2 decades; I think i still have it - about 40 some old.

Similar to this - no FM - Just AM, SW1, SW2, SW3

National Panasonic Stereo Radio Cassette Recorder Radio Panasonic, |Radiomuseum.org

National Panasonic Stereo Radio Cassette Radio Panasonic, Matsushita, National ナショナル also tubes;, build 1988 ??, 4 pictures, Japan, schematics, tubes

www.radiomuseum.org

 

[denel]

Used to have ICOM 706 more than a decade ago when I lived in Canada.

When I moved to Shenzhen, it became impossible to hear anything over RF noise of the big city.

13 years ago though I had a cousen who had no problem getting to hear broadcast HF from Australia, and US on a good night with the same 706 in Guangzhou without tuners or anything.

HF rigs are now near impossible to buy in China. Funny given that they are all made here.

It's also near impossible to get a legal callsign after 2017. Most legal rig owners I knew got their licenses a decade, and more ago as militia members.

You must be joking? Really? wow. Sangean, Tecsun etc. all made there in China. I had the Degen as well; it goes with me when i travel.

ic706 is a hf/vhf/uhf transceiver. You will need amateur radio licence if you decide to transmit. Are you also a ham radio operator? I am radio op - been one for over 38 yrs now. I use FT-857D plus a grinel TR11.

can you let us know if shuguang is back producing transmission tubes?

 

[jamahir]

Still nothing beats the magic of shortwave.

Indeed.

wow... National... that was tape recorder/radio combo - I used it for over 2 decades; I think i still have it - about 40 some old.

Similar to this - no FM - Just AM, SW1, SW2, SW3

National Panasonic Stereo Radio Cassette Recorder Radio Panasonic, |Radiomuseum.org

National Panasonic Stereo Radio Cassette Radio Panasonic, Matsushita, National ナショナル also tubes;, build 1988 ??, 4 pictures, Japan, schematics, tubes

www.radiomuseum.org

40 years old !

Mine looked more sleek and had FM too. Two speakers. The FM I would use for All India Radio Vividh Bharati service ( Hindi ) which would broadcast songs and a program called Hawa Mahal which was 15 minute voicing of radio drama.

And radio drama reminds me again of drama on BBC World Service. Count Dracula, The Day of the Jackal, Report on an Unidentified Space Station are three radio dramas that I remember. Benedict Cumberbatch was a marvelous drama voicer.

I was hopeing that digital mode would take hold on hf but internet streaming put this to rest.

After 2010 for some years I would listen to BBC on the net. Again, voiced dramas, music programs etc.

 

[Paul2]

You must be joking? Really? wow. Sangean, Tecsun etc. all made there in China. I had the Degen as well; it goes with me when i travel.

ic706 is a hf/vhf/uhf transceiver. You will need amateur radio licence if you decide to transmit. Are you also a ham radio operator? I am radio op - been one for over 38 yrs now. I use FT-857D plus a grinel TR11.

can you let us know if shuguang is back producing transmission tubes?

Sale of transmitters is heavily, heavily regulated. I would not risk buying a new one these days for the fear of being caught in the new round of spy-o-mania. You can't catch anything almost anywhere in China so strong is the RF noise from cities. Even in the complete middle of nowhere villages in Guangdong, RF noise is like you are in a city downtown anywhere else.

My cousin has a class 2 license from his years in militia. I used to play with his rig in my teen years. Now, it's just a rather dangerous paperweight.

 

[denel]

Sale of transmitters is heavily, heavily regulated. I would not risk buying a new one these days for the fear of being caught in the new round of spy-o-mania. You can't catch anything almost anywhere in China so strong is the RF noise from cities. Even in the complete middle of nowhere villages in Guangdong, RF noise is like you are in a city downtown anywhere else.

My cousin has a class 2 license from his years in militia. I used to play with his rig in my teen years. Now, it's just a rather dangerous paperweight.

YEs, you need to write a complete licence, undergo security background check as well.

Long long time back - 1995; i did make hf cw contact - one school - 12 yr old children with their teacher .. I was really impressed with cw. I sent a qsl card and received a reciprocating card with entire class with the small girl who was the radio operator. A truly memorable contact as it was my first BY contact in any mode.

If you have a good transceiver, the filters are pretty hardened. You are right, newer LED are very dirty and a lot of rf noise.

 

[denel]

Rahul Gandhi: Avid ham radio operator

VU2RG Callsign Page

VU2RG personal biography

www.qrz.com

Welcome to the Homepage of Shaikh Sadaqathullah (VU2 SDU) from India

Rajiv Gandhi Memorial SEANET

www.sadaqathullah.com

King Hussain of Jordan.

A one-to-one call with his majesty

JY1 was an enigma. When a radio ham from Nottingham put out a general call during a radio festival in the early 1970s, a man calling himself Hussein, with the call sign JY1, responded. That he claimed to be Jordanian was clear enough from the first two letters. But who, from a nation that used...

www.theguardian.com

While I never contacted VU2RG, I had the pleasure 3 hf radio QSOs with JY1 Hussain himself. To get his QSL card was excellent - when i went to my post office, my village post office lady said there is an interesting package for you; with Royal Seal.

I would encourage those of us who are avid shortwave listeners to review getting a ham radio ticket. It is now 45 yrs since i got mine. It has been an amazing feeling to speak to another radio operator on the other side of the world. We never are alone. Another great contact with R0MIR - MIR Space station as well as Space shuttle/MIR docking special event.