numbers 12179.8

[ridgescan]

Spanish #s usb 5-character.

 

[chrizby]

Just caught the very end of it.
final final final -- and I guess that is what I thought was 'goodnight, goodnight, goodnight'

female spanish #.
12.179.9 usb
19:43z

 

[ridgescan]

Just curious what was the signal strength there in Kentucky-it was pretty weak here but totally copyable.

 

[chrizby]

Well, I can't say it was 599 but it was very readable. Quite good actually. I was lucky to catch it when I did.
According to 'Token', she is saying - final, final, final - and I would have bet the farm she was saying goodnight, goodnight, goodnight.
Spooky voice thats all i can say.

 

[AGS]

Just caught the very end of it.
final final final -- and I guess that is what I thought was 'goodnight, goodnight, goodnight'

female spanish #.
12.179.9 usb
19:43z

Chrizby, mind if I ask a question. The thread poster registered 121798. First question, is it 1.217.98 Mhz? Second question, the poster was from California. Did you have the same frequency number in Kentucky as in California? Third, if I am in Toronto is there a varying frequency number that I must type to listen to the same station.? Thanks for everything guys..

 

[Token]

ridgescan, did you try any other modes, such as AM? 12180 kHz (close enough to 12179.9 for Cuban work) is a known V02 frequency, and both your description and chrizby's description could fit for a possible Cuban V02a. Most of the time V02a is in AM, not USB, but it has been seen in both USB and LSB, with LSB being the more common of the sidebands used.

For future reference, and this is meant to help everyone who is not a regular numbers station listener, more data is better.

For example, ridgescan said Spanish numbers in 5 character groups. Without further data that really does not tell a person much when trying to identify what the source of the transmission is (although it is fine as a "pointer" so other people know to look at the frequency, and probably how ridgescan intended it). chrizby said it finished in "final....final....final" and that is a key feature, almost certainly V02. Neither poster said if the voice was male or female, and that would add more ammunition to the ID. If you combined female voice, Spanish numbers, 5 character groups, ending in "final....final....final" you get an extremely high probability it is the Cuban numbers station carrying the Enigma ID of V02.

So, to sum it up, if you want the best chance of identifying or classifying a numbers station transmission, to know if it is a "known" regular station or maybe something new, more data is better. Of course as a heads-up any data is a help, but for the best results with identification you should try to include as many of the following as you can, the more the better:
- Time (UTC)
- Date (UTC)
- Day of the week (UTC) Some stations are only active on some days
- Frequency
- Mode (USB, LSB, AM, and check them all every time even if one works, some stations use USB + carrier and that would be detectable as working in both USB and AM, but not in LSB, where "regular" AM would be detectable in all three modes, AM, USB, and LSB)
- Language
- Male/female
- Number of characters in the groups
- Any other noteworthy items (such as ending in "final, final, final", which for V02 can sound like "fin-nigh, fin-nigh, fin-nigh")

T!

 

[Token]

Chrizby, mind if I ask a question. The thread poster registered 121798. First question, is it 1.217.98 Mhz? Second question, the poster was from California. Did you have the same frequency number in Kentucky as in California? Third, if I am in Toronto is there a varying frequency number that I must type to listen to the same station.? Thanks for everything guys..

The original poster, ridgescan, posted "12179.8" (note the location of the decimal point). chirzby posted "12.179.9 usb". This is 12179.8 kHz (or 12.1798 MHz) and 12179.9 kHz (or 12.1799 MHz). The two disagree by 100 Hz, and that is perfectly normal. If the signal was really USB instead of AM the exact fine tuning could be up to the users ear and it could easily vary by more than 100 Hz. Also, it is very common for a radios digital indicator to be "off" by a few Hz, sometimes several 10's or even 100's of Hz, unless it has been recently calibrated or checked, something most people never actually do.

The "target" frequency here is 12180 kHz (12.180 MHz). This is the most reported frequency for this station. However, this station is known for technical issues, and it is quite possible it was actually slightly off frequency and really on 12179.9 or 12179.8 kHz.

The most used convention for reporting frequency in the HF range is in kHz. While either kHz or MHz are acceptable when I see a frequency notation with no units designator I start with the assumption of kHz, and see if it makes sense from there. The best way, naturally, is to include the units designator to avoid confusion.

But, in the example of this frequency, both the notation of 12179.8 and 12.179.9 without units, we know we are in the LW/MW/HF forum. 12179.8 in MHz would be way up in the microwave range and outside the 30 kHz to 30 MHz (30000 kHz) range covered by "LW/MW/HF", so that points to kHz. And 12.179.9 in chrizby's post would be below the bottom of LW, so that points to his notation as being MHz.

Next, your question about locations and varying frequency numbers. No. The frequency will not vary by any noticeable amount from location to location, except the normal user tuning variations I have already pointed out. If everyone’s radios are all calibrated the same, and everyone tunes to the same pitch by ear on an SSB signal, then the frequency readout will be the same. The tuning by pitch to the ear is probably the largest variable here. However, with an SSB signal, a couple hundred Hz will not make the difference between receiving a station and not receiving it. So, it does not matter if you tune to 12179.8 kHz, or 12179.9 kHz, or 12180 kHz, you will still hear the station, just with a slightly different pitch for each tuning if it is honestly in SSB.

This numbers station, V02a, is heard pretty easily all across North America. It originates in Cuba using some pretty large transmitters and, depending on frequency and time of day, is probably the easiest numbers station for a person in North America to receive. But, keep in mind, it, like all numbers stations, does not broadcast all the time. It is on a specific frequency only a few hours a week, and it has many frequencies it uses. You have to be listening at the right time, and on the right frequency.

T!

 

[ridgescan]

Points noted Token.

 

[Token]

Well, I can't say it was 599 but it was very readable. Quite good actually. I was lucky to catch it when I did.
According to 'Token', she is saying - final, final, final - and I would have bet the farm she was saying goodnight, goodnight, goodnight.
Spooky voice thats all i can say.

Here is a video of V02a doing her thing, YouTube - ‪Spanish Numbers Station V02a, April 07, 2011, 0800 UTC, 5898 kHz AM, beginning and end of signal‬‏ . This entire transmission was about 42 minutes long so I have just shown in the video important portions of the three main parts of the message, lead-in, message format, and ending. Vid starts with the destinct beginning that includes "Atencion" and three 5 digit groups repeated several times (the first 30 seconds of the vid, but this lead-in goes on for several minutes). At about the 31 second mark I jump to the last 40 seconds or so of the transmission, including a few 5 figure groups to show the pace and format, and the end of the transmission, with "final" sent 3 times.

Note that in the video I am using USB mode to avoid noise from the strong broadcast station on 5890 kHz (since the 5890 kHz station is causing significant energy in the lower side band of the 5898 signal). But, the V02a signal is sent in the AM mode in this example, as can be seen by the energy in the lower side band and the large AM carrier.

T!

 

[AGS]

Thanks so much, token and ridgscan.