log your SW catches here:)

[k9rzz]

Agreed, good conditions right now! I've been playing in the ham bands lately but today I've got the Icom R71E rocking (that I bought from China on ebay) and MAY have heard Yemen on 17,770khz this afternoon.

This evening, 60 meters is cooking with these before 0500z: 4960khz VOA Sao Tome, 4930khz VOA Botswana both at S9, good. Radio Clube, Brazil is S9+ on 4885khz (audible every night, but not this good), and now listening to Radio Verdad, Guatemala on 4055khz at S7, Good in English. Recording Verdad for a good ident at 0600z (I hope!).

Love this R71E. Perfect for AM shortwave listening

 

[k9rzz]

6090khz Radio Nigeria Kaduna, 2030z Fair S7-9 into Wisconsin Hausa language with good African music, reggae type. New one for me! 2 Hours before my sunset.

 

[ridgescan]

Conditions to the Middle East were good today. I caught one new to me-Radio Sanna transmitting with 50,000 watts from Jeddah in western Saudi Arabia. Time was about 1645UTC which was 7:45AM my time.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mqeqcKhrOMc

 

[Boombox]

Tuned across the 31, 25, and 49 meter bands earlier tonight. Everything MIA, except RHC on 6060. Ext. weak Radiobras on 6180. Even WwV on 10 MHz and 5 MHz were barely readable. Yikes.

 

[Boombox]

Tuned around the 49 meter band on the ol' DX-398, heard a few stations. On 5910 kHz I heard CRI in Tagalog or Filipino, barely readable but definitely Chinese music playing at signoff at 1200 UTC. 5965 kHz I heard CRI again with a partial ID "Zhong Guo ... Tai" and into Korean -- CRI is scheduled with Korean on that frequency. Signal was SIO 253.

Heard Radio Marti on 5980 kHz (with jamming, although the jamming is not that audible this far north); then I heard North Korea in French, and then in Korean on 6170 kHz from 1225 onwards....

I also heard CRI in Russian on 6100 kHz, extremely strong signals. And Japan's Radio Nikkei on 6055 kHz playing some cool, 80's sounding electronic pop music in either Japanese or another language around 1217 UTC.

After a few weeks of hearing very little whenever I tune the shortwaves it was a pleasant surprise to hear Asia coming over the Pacific again.

 

[majoco]

Things may be looking up - quiet background this evening Thursday 16th local just dark outside.

0755z/2055local Radio Voz Missionara Brazil 5940kHz and only 500watts! S3 to 5 Music and singing but no announcement on the hour. Dr. Gene Scott next door on 5935 took a bit of filtering!

0810z/2110a Radio Aparecida Brazil 6135kHz 25kWatts - more music and singing - S3 to 4.

...then some utilities..

0815z WLO Mobile 6317kHz CW, NMF Boston Wefax 6340kHz both S3.

0820z Gander/NY Volmet 6604kHz S3 and clear.

0825z NY MWARA NAT E 6628kHz S4 - woman's voice wid Noo Yoik accent.

0830z Trenton Volmet 6754kHz S3 rapid fading.

0835z Shannon Volmet 5505kHz S3

...then all of a sudden the Gray Line turned to black and they all disappeared!

WinRadio G33DDC, 40ft/20ft OCFD 9:1 balun up 15feet

 

[ridgescan]

I'm getting a Chinese BC now at 0:43UTC on 15920kHz. No listing as far as I could see.
EDIT: so I start spinning the dial and came across a VOA BC in Chinese on 15425kHz that totally matches with the one on 15920. What's up with that?

 

[Boombox]

Earlier this a.m., 1613 UTC, I heard Vividh Bharati on 9865 khz, SIO253-353 with fast fading, playing Hindustani movie music. By 1640 the signal began to degrade to S1-S2. Was cool hearing India, and a station coming over the pole.

This was all on my Grundig G2 off the whip, which I've found is nearly as sensitive/selective as any of my other radios off the indoor 25-30 foot indoor wire. Even recorded some of the broadcast. The G2 has a good sound, great radio for SW and FM. Fair for MW -- need a loop to DX with it on MW.

Not much else on the 31 meter band, except an excellent copy of the BBC in Bengali, from Kranji Singapore on 9540 kHz. Signal was SIO353-354, with moderate fading. Frequent mentions of the word "Bangladeshi" -- the Bengali language sounds a little different from Hindustani. Weird how you can pick out differences in the sounds if you hear an unknown language group enough.

ON the 49 meter band, I mainly heard China. The signals weren't all that strong, maybe S2-S3 on most of them.

Still -- decent DX morning here. At least I was able to hear South and Southeast Asia.

 

[majoco]

Hey, Boombox, what's your location? Lots of AIR stations here in the early morning but they quickly fade out as the sun comes up.

 

[Boombox]

Hey, Boombox, what's your location? Lots of AIR stations here in the early morning but they quickly fade out as the sun comes up.

I'm in the NW US, in Washington state. Had the same thing you described... sun comes up, India disappears. Although the BBC in Kranji was still fairly strong. Probably because the signal was less polar?

PS: the Grundig G2 sounds great only on headphones. Through the little speakers it's a bit on the tinny side. The recording function is easy to use and very handy....

But it's basically a headphones only radio. Sounds good that way.

 

[Boombox]

Early this a.m., around 1245UTC, I heard Radio Nikkei on 3945 kHz broadcasting Japanese pop music, from Hokkaido. SIO353-4. The other R. Nikkei stations were weaker (the 31 meter transmissions absent).

I also got a tentative logging of Radio Verdad (1 KW in Guatemala) on 4055 kHz around 1228UTC. It was a very weak broadcast in Spanish, but it was mostly unreadable due to the fading. They played some mountain music (guitars and banjos) and the talk was definitely in Spanish ("de la noche..." "luego..."). Very unusual.

There either is another Spanish tropical station here (unlikely, because it's the only one listed on SW Info, EIBI or SW Schedule at this timeslot) or I received Guatemala just off the whip on my Grundig G2.

I also heard the VOA in Chinese from Thailand on 6045 kHz around the same time period. SIO353. Same radio.

I'm very impressed with the performance of these small Degen made radios with SiLabs chips in them. If the G2 is any indication, they are quite good. Very handy radios as well.

 

[Boombox]

This AM around 13-1500 UTC I tuned the Grundig G2 around the 75, 90 and 49 meter bands and heard Radio Nikkei on 3925 kHz, S3 signals with jazz; Echo Of Hope in Korean, being jammed on all of its frequencies -- 3985 kHz, 4885 kHz, 6005 kHz, and 6350 kHz. The best frequency 6350, where it was SIO242-3 with some fading.

I also heard several Chinese CNR1 outlets -- it's nice to see the Asian pipeline up and running again.

 

[Boombox]

Last few nights when I've checked the SW bands (early evenings) it's the Brother Stair and Radio Havana show. Marti shows up, jammed, on 6030 kHz. Gene & Melissa Scott are back without the distortion. Rebelde is on 5025 with S3 signals. The other evening I heard China, very weak (unreadable) and very grainy, on 6020 or somewhere thereabouts.

That's about it.

No Radiobras, either on 6180 or 11780. That station used to be Mr. Dependable.

Not any more, I guess.

All using the G2, which -- with its whip antenna -- brings in as much as my other radios do with the 25 ft indoor wire.

 

[ridgescan]

You gotta get your antenna outside. I get tons of overseas SW stuff here every day/night and we're in the same zone.

 

[Boombox]

^^^^^^ Yes and no. I've been using the same indoor antenna since 2011, and used to pull in a *lot* more SW than I do now. Especially Radiobras (Amazonia) -- conditions had to be abysmal for it not to come in.

Conditions are mediocre lately -- they have been for over a year actually.

Eventually I may put up another 100 ft. wire, but it's not on the short list of things to do right now.

Glad to hear you're getting SW signals where you are in CALIF.

73
Boombox

 

[ridgescan]

^^^^^^ Yes and no. I've been using the same indoor antenna since 2011, and used to pull in a *lot* more SW than I do now. Especially Radiobras (Amazonia) -- conditions had to be abysmal for it not to come in.

Conditions are mediocre lately -- they have been for over a year actually.

Eventually I may put up another 100 ft. wire, but it's not on the short list of things to do right now.

Glad to hear you're getting SW signals where you are in CALIF.

73
Boombox

Weird-I've been enjoying shortwave here every night as a reliable medium for my evenings. Alex Jones, WTTW, and WRMI are my nightly regulars. I hope you do get time to deploy that outdoor wire as you are one who deserves the best shortwave enjoyment IMO.

 

[Boombox]

Weird-I've been enjoying shortwave here every night as a reliable medium for my evenings. Alex Jones, WTTW, and WRMI are my nightly regulars. I hope you do get time to deploy that outdoor wire as you are one who deserves the best shortwave enjoyment IMO.

It could be the difference in latitude, or maybe just the times I'm tuning in, although the early a.m. pipeline to Asia has been reduced -- at least the mornings I've switched on the radios....

I'm definitely putting up a 100 ft. antenna, once I find the wire left over from the last one. Finally got a decent ladder again to work with... last time I had a 100 footer up was 2002-2003, and how cool it was to hear China and India competing with each other on 31 and 49 meters in hi-fi, on headphones with my DX-440.

 

[western_pa_radio]

3 or 4 days ago got the numbers lady on 17 mhz. Never before heard that high for me. Must be putting out a lot of power.

 

[ridgescan]

3 or 4 days ago got the numbers lady on 17 mhz. Never before heard that high for me. Must be putting out a lot of power.

Someone correct me if I'm wrong but I think they sometimes borrow Radio Havana's SWBC transmitter antennas?

 

[Boombox]

Someone correct me if I'm wrong but I think they sometimes borrow Radio Havana's SWBC transmitter antennas?

I remember reading that somewhere, years ago, prob. in Pop Comm or Monitoring Times.