I think I got bored with shortwave and like medium wave better now

[Patch42]

My record daytime DX was picking up KOA (850 KHz) in Denver at high noon. That's an 850 mile haul which is very unusual for daytime MW. What was really odd was that was the only DX station I was hearing on the band. Somehow just that one 'path' existed between us.

That's a very impressive catch. KOA covers most of the country at night but not at high noon. I think my most distant daytime catch is about 500 miles. I've gotten further when the sun is setting in the east and I'm still in daylight, but nothing like that near midday.

What kind of gear were you using?

 

[jwt873]

What kind of gear were you using?

I use my Icom IC-7600 ham radio with a Wellbrook ALA100LN loop. This combo works very well on the AM broadcast band. Out of interest, I've been listening for KOA off and on since I last posted.. It's getting dark right now, and still no sign of it.

 

[mmckenna]

KOA is pretty easy catch on the West Coast.

660 KTNN out of Window Rock Arizona is another easy one, 50kw and comes in pretty reliably at night throughout a big chunk of the Western USA. I think it was the last of the AM "Clear Channel" stations licensed. There are some small pip-squeak stations on the same frequency, but KTNN usually blasts through. They are omnidirectional during the day, and directional to the west at night to protect a co-channel station on the East Coast.

Also on the west coast and good strong stations:
810 KGO San Francisco
1000 KOMO Seattle
640 KFI out of Los Angeles.

I actually listen to KTNN quite a bit. I've got an end fed wire in my back yard that's resonate around 18MHz, but works well for pulling in AM. I've got it connected to a Radio Shack/Sangean receiver sitting in the garage. I can get it really well in my truck at night, especially away from town.

MW DX'ing can be enjoyable, but the proliferation of networked stations makes it pretty boring.
I used to chase LW NDB's, and bagged quite a few, but they are getting few and far between.

 

[Patch42]

I use my Icom IC-7600 ham radio with a Wellbrook ALA100LN loop. This combo works very well on the AM broadcast band. Out of interest, I've been listening for KOA off and on since I last posted.. It's getting dark right now, and still no sign of it.

That would explain it. I'm not using nearly that much antenna and my current radios are much more pedestrian. I've mostly been using a Panasonic RF-2200 and a CCRadio 2E. I also have a QX Quantum Loop, but with the necessity of the antenna being near the radio I'm a bit hampered by the antenna being indoors most of the time. At least I do have everything set up in a spot that has minimal interference from other devices in the house.

 

[Boombox]

I sometimes listen to the broadcast band during the day. I keep a log of the stations that I can count on hearing without fail during day. That way if something that's not on the list pops up, I'll know it's not just regular propagation.

My record daytime DX was picking up KOA (850 KHz) in Denver at high noon. That's an 850 mile haul which is very unusual for daytime MW. What was really odd was that was the only DX station I was hearing on the band. Somehow just that one 'path' existed between us.

KOA at 800 or so miles (I've found that the air-distance calculators online all seem to vary) would definitely be a good daytime catch from Manitoba.

My best daytime catch was CBK 540 around 2 p.m. or so here in Western WA state, during winter 2014 I think. I think that's around 700-800 or so air miles (depending on the particular air-distance calculator -- one distance calculator says 1300 miles, another 1088 miles, another 765 miles, I'm opting mostly for the latter). I am not sure which radio I used. It might have been my Sangean PR-D5. I don't remember if I added an external loop. I don't think I did. I remember holding the radio up, orienting it mostly NE-SW, and hearing CBK. I may have boosted it also with a loop later on. I often switch between the two methods just to see what a radio will pull in.

MW is odd that some paths will exist and others won't. Even when there aren't Auroral conditions, the DX 'paths' can vary. It's kind of like fishing, you never know exactly what is going to appear.

RE: KTNN: it's generally overriden here by CFFR, the news station out of Calgary. A lot of Canada slams us here in the northern tier of states.

 

[Patch42]

My best daytime catch was CBK 540 around 2 p.m. or so here in Western WA state, during winter 2014 I think. I think that's around 700-800 or so air miles (depending on the particular air-distance calculator -- one distance calculator says 1300 miles, another 1088 miles, another 765 miles, I'm opting mostly for the latter).

Google Earth says right about 800 miles to Seattle. CBK has the largest over land daytime pattern I've seen in North America. It dwarfs most of the other clear channel stations. But Seattle is still a good 300 miles beyond the edge of the fringe reception pattern for CBK so that's an excellent catch, particularly on a consumer-level radio.

 

[jwt873]

CBK is in my "Can always receive during the day" list.. Only 330 miles. Out of interest, I've been listening for KOA during the day since I mentioned it in a previous post. Had no luck. It does come booming in about 2h after sunset.

 

[Patch42]

KOA's daytime fringe reception pattern extends to about the northern border of Nebraska, two states short of the Canadian border. At night it owns North America west of the Mississippi River.

 

[highwayman1224]

I have been DXing medium wave since I was a kid in the early 70's. Mostly now though I listen to the clear channel stations but occasionally log a low power station from the USA. Here are a couple of my analogue radios I like to use for receiving AM.

I have also been using this little micro powered medium wave transmitter to broadcast my own music throughout my apt.

It can also be found in kit form to build it yourself. With a 15' antenna it works pretty good.

That old Patolman was a great radio! I'm 56 and my parents bought me one for Xmas when I was around 14. I used the hell outta that radio!

 

[JohnDistai]

I use my Icom IC-7600 ham radio with a Wellbrook ALA100LN loop. This combo works very well on the AM broadcast band. Out of interest, I've been listening for KOA off and on since I last posted.. It's getting dark right now, and still no sign of it.

I grew up on KOA! But then again, I only lived an hour from Denver and used a standard radio.