MORE RALLIES & EVENTS!

March 2019 £4.50 www.radioenthusiast.co.uk

CLUB PROFILES: The Radio Amateur
Old Timers’ Association & the BATC

Telo
TE590
Review
We take a look at this
new network radio

Radio in History
The Volksempfänger’s
role in Nazi radio
propaganda

Frequency Listings Review:

ISSN 1748-8117

Your Guides to the Bands

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Index
Contents
March 2019 Vol. 14 No 3
On sale: 28th February 2019
Next issue on sale: 28th March 2019
RadioUser
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4 RadioUser March 2019
Favourites Reviews
52
7 News & Products
Radios and software from AOR, ICOM and SDRPlay;
News, Research, Resources and Obituaries.
14 The RadioUser Annual Review
of Frequency Guides
Our reviewer and the editor look at this year’s selec-
tion of listeners’ guides, frequency schedules and
global radio books, both paper-based and digital.
17 The Radio Amateur Old
Timers’ Association (RAOTA)
A newsletter, an archive, and a lively membership.
Ian Brothwell offers an introduction.
20 Airband News
David Smith presents UK Airspace news and updates
us on digital flight strips, re-shaped flight routes, and
Airband communications. He also outlines general
ATC operations at Cardiff Airport.
23 Maritime Matters
Robert Connolly surveys different kinds of comms
modes in use on the maritime VHF band, introduces
private channels and listens to maritime safety
information on MF and NAVTEX.
26 Emerging Issues in Radio
Chrissy Brand draws a distinction between linear
and non-linear radio listening, applauds enhanced
consumer choice and admires the skills of two very
successful radio presenters.
30 The British Amateur
Television Club (BATC)
In our second club proile this month, Dave Crump
contours the BATC, looking at the fascinating techni-
cal aspects of this branch of the hobby, and at this
club’s key activities and publications.
Features News
Cover Story
52 Network Radio
Chris Rolinson reviews the Telo TE590 network
radio, passes on ten useful technical hints for
new uses of network radio and shares some
exciting news on the new 700MHz band.
36 DXTV – Special
Keith Hamer and Garry Smith offer the irst part in
their new mini-series on the Telstar Satellite, examin-
ing irst the technical and historical background to
pioneering early space communications.
39 Scanning Scene
Tim Kirby delves into some overlooked frequency
bands, shows how to overcome tricky scanning
settings, scans with an Anytone AT-868 DMR rig and
consults an innovative scanning directory.
42 Aerials Now!
Keith Rawlings delivers valuable aerial advice and
constructs a simple, mini-whip-type, active aerial,
investigating how it measures up on a range of
frequency bands from VLF to MF and beyond.
45 Digital Radio
Kevin Ryan surveys new Ofcom approvals, digests
the most recent news on DAB and digital-only radio
stations, consults the Radio Times and logs DRM sta-
tions heard at his location in late 2018.
48 International Radio Scene
Chrissy Brand reports on World Music Radio (WMR)
from Denmark and on the diversity of the global
broadcasting landscape.
30

36
55 Corrections and Feedback
A sample of your letters, emails, comments, and
messages, as well as some corrections and clariica-
tions covering the last few issues of this magazine.
56 Utility Monitoring
In a contribution extraordinarily rich in illustrations,
Nils Schiffhauer introduces Digital Selective Calling
(DSC) on HF, in the context of the Global Maritime
Distress and Safety System (GMDSS).
61 Radio in History
Scott Caldwell looks at how radio became a propa-
ganda tool in Germany, during the transition from the
culturally-rich Weimar Republic (1919-1933) to the
Fascism of the ‘Third Reich’ (1933-1945).
64 Software Defined Radio
Andrew Barron demonstrates how the use of open-
source software such as SDR# (SDR-Sharp) has been
a godsend for the developer community and SDR
radio enthusiasts alike.
66 Off the Record
In his valedictory column for RadioUser, Oscar the
Engineer reports on a recent Ofcom involvement in a
case of a free radio broadcasting interfering with HF
emergency communications.
68 Time-Travel with Radio Telex
The editor inds that a compilation of radio telex
messages brings back memories and offers a unique
insight into Cold-War-era communications.
71 Rallies & Events
Our seasonally-expanded listing of radio rallies,
conferences, club initiatives, and other events.
Why not visit our new online bookshop at www.radioenthusiast.co.uk/store
RadioUser March 2019
Welcome
Associations & Guides
H
ello and welcome to
the March 2019 issue
of RadioUser. Allow me
to remind you that you
can beat the cover price
increase of this magazine – and save
money– by taking advantage of our
subscription offer advertised on page
six and on the website. This will cost
you just £3.33 per issue, and you will get
your favourite radio magazine straight
to your door, at a great saving, and
before anyone else.
We are now almost one quarter into
2019, and the world of radio is changing
like never before, both in terms of the way
we listen and in relation to the broader
range of signals now easily accessible to
many hobbyists using new technologies.
As we move towards Spring, I strive to re-
lect those wider radio choices and evolv-
ing technologies in a modern-day, well-in-
formed, manner, but without losing sight
of radio’s roots and traditions.
Therefore, this issue, once again,
embraces a broad spectrum of ra-
dio-related matters.
I am keen to bring to the fore the many
UK radio organisations, clubs and enthu-
siasts’ groups. In this vein, we continue
our series of proiles of some of those
this month, by introducing the Radio
Amateurs Old Timers Association and
the British Amateur Television Club.
The other highlight this month is our
extended annual review of the new crop
of frequency books, listening guides and
radio review compilations, which are an
integral part of the hobby for many.
Moreover, you will ind the Part Two
of our series on the history of the Telstar
satellite, compiled by Keith Hamer and
Garry Smith, who will come back with a
re-shaped DVTV News and Monitoring
section in April.
Meanwhile, Keith Rawlings contin-
ues his evaluation of active aerials,
and Chris Rolinson offers a much-an-
ticipated review of the new Telo TE590
network radio.
With the rallies season – as well as the
weather (one hopes) – warming up, our
Rallies & Events section is now even more
comprehensive, and it will be spread over
Editorial
two pages for the next few months.
In our regular columns, you will learn
about a range of issues this month, from
Cardiff Airport operations, private chan-
nels on the marine band, non-linear radio
listening and neglected scanning fre-
quencies, to logs on DRM, short and me-
dium wave, digital selective calling on HF,
open-source software for SDR receivers,
and the (ab-)use of radio and radio tech-
nology in Nazi Germany.
Furthermore, the editor embarks on a
nostalgic trip down memory lane, with an
older book on Radiotelex.
With this issue, we are saying good-bye
to two long-standing columns, Comms
from Europe and Off the Record. The is-
sues covered in these sections are being
reorganised at the moment, and they will
ind a place in RadioUser in a different
format in the future.
Initially, from next month onwards,
we will initially publish a new column on
emergency radio communications in the
UK, looking at a wide range of frequen-
cies and modes used in this area.
Last but not least, for those of you who
are looking for Robert Connolly’s quarter-
ly NDB-DXing column, it has been moved
to the April issue on this occasion only,
so please keep a look out for it.
Enjoy this issue of RadioUser and
don’t forget to keep your much-valued
feedback coming.
Georg Wiessala
Editor, Radio User Magazine
5
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Review by Tim Kirby G4VXE
● E-mail: tim@g4vxe.com ● Twitter: g4vxe
The Yaesu FTM-7250DE 144/432MHz
C4FM/FM Dual-Band Transceiver
A
s part of our short se-
ries of articles revisiting
the Yaesu digital voice
system, System Fusion
II, we thought we would
review the new FTM-7250DE dual-
band transceiver. It was introduced about
a year ago as an addition to the range of
System Fusion transceivers. This, along
with the FTM-3200DE (144MHz single
band) and FTM-3207DE (432MHz single
band) was introduced as a lower-cost entry
point, allowing people the option of a digital
capable rig, without features that they may
not necessarily want, such as GPS or APRS.
Here, we are looking at the FTM-7250DE,
but Karl Brazier from Yaesu tells me that
the features on the FTM-3200DE and FTM-
3207DE are identical – the only difference
being that they are single-band radios,
rather than dual-band like the FTM-7250DE.
The features and specification, from
Yaesu, are set out in the sidebar.
First Impressions
I first encountered the FTM-7250DE when
I visited Yaesu UK to meet Karl Brazier to
have a demonstration of the new System
Fusion II features. The FTM-7250DE has a
solid, simple look to it, with a nice display.
I asked Karl if I could borrow one to review
and he very kindly agreed.
Pretty much the first thing I do with
any digital transceiver these days is to try
it out on my digital hotspot at home and
this is exactly what I did with the FTM-
7250DE. When you first switch on, you
have the option to set your callsign into
the radio. This is what will be displayed
on other people’s radios, when you are in
Digital (C4FM) mode. You can enter up to
ten characters so if you have a short name
such as Tim, you can set your callsign and
name, in my case as G4VXE-Tim. Also, I
set the power to 5W (there are three power
levels – 50W/25W/5W), popped a dummy
load in the antenna socket and set the
frequency to that of my digital hotspot. With
the hotspot connected to one of the Yaesu
System Fusion reflectors, America Link, I
soon started to see traffic and hear voices
12
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6 RadioUser March 2019
coming through the radio. My first contact,
as a quick test, was actually with Scott
KH6AGL in Hawaii! Although, of course, it’s
not the same as working Hawaii directly,
it still makes for an interesting contact.
Scott kindly confirmed that the rig’s audio
sounded good.
Programming the FTM-7250DE
Because I wanted to take the FTM-7250DE
Continuing his look at Yaesu’s System Fusion, Tim Kirby
mobile, I thought I would program up some
memory channels to keep an ear on while I
G4VXE reviews the FTM-7250DE Fusion Transceiver. was out and about. The first nice discovery
was that programming the memories was
pretty intuitive and I didn’t have to resort to
the instruction manual. Having said all that,
the Operating Manual is simple and concise
– and written in straightforward and clear
English. It runs to a modest 47 pages. There
is also an Advanced Manual that covers less
frequently used but useful features. This is
not supplied but you can download it from
the Yaesu website (click on the Files tab) at:
https://tinyurl.com/y7afx5ux
Anyway, back to programming the
memories. I programmed a variety of 145
and 433MHz repeaters that I thought I was
likely to hear on my travels. Unfortunately
for testing, the area around West Oxford-
shire where we are currently living does not
have any nearby Fusion repeaters. Never-
theless, I programmed up some, optimisti-
cally, which I thought I might hear. I decided
to program up the digital simplex calling
frequencies on both 144 and 438MHz
(144.6125 and 438.6125MHz) in the hope
of making a simplex contact or two. Finally,
to take advantage of the FTM-7250DE’s
wideband receive coverage, I set up a few
memories with airband and marine frequen-
cies of interest.
With all that done, I connected the rig to
the V-2000 triband vertical at home to check
that everything was working as it should. It
all sounded promising.
Fitting any rig into modern cars is always
a challenge and the FTM-7250DE is too
large to fit in the centre console of my car –
most radios are! However, I found a way of
safely mounting it and then connected it up
to the 144/432MHz mobile antenna.
Setting the rig scanning as I drove
around suggested a couple of things. Firstly,
that it was nice and sensitive – I noticed
one or two weak signals that I hadn’t heard
since using one of the cheaper (and great
value) Chinese mobile sets. Secondly, the
receiver was pretty bomb-proof and there
were fewer funny noises when I passed
shops, buses and other well-known noise
The FTM-7250 in digital mode, receiving the GB3CF repeater. sources.
Practical Wireless February 2019 February 2019 Practical Wireless
66-67
The rear panel of the FTM-7250 is simple, with antenna, speaker, power and data connectors.
With 50W available from the FTM-7250,
transmitter performance was good with
distant repeaters, or indifferent locations.
The three power levels are quite sensible, al-
though perhaps Foundation licensees would
have appreciated a 10W power setting as
well. When running the rig on 50W, the heat-
sink gets warm, but not super hot, so the
cooling system seems to work very well.
With conditions slightly up one day,
I noticed the rig stop in digital mode on
145.600MHz, where both GB3CF and GB-
3WR can be heard (I’m located on the fringe
of both of their coverage areas, somewhere
in the middle of them) but I only got the odd
word. It was promising though.
I didn’t get the chance to try a digital
Fusion repeater until Julie and I drove up
to Warwickshire for an appointment. While
I waited for Julie to return, I tuned the rig
to the GB3CF frequency to find that the
repeater was an excellent S7 or S8. I waited
for the QSO to end and put a call through. I
was delighted to find that it all worked very
well and I had a series of excellent con-
tacts, including Colin MU0FAL and Peter
G7RPG.. I discovered that GB3CF was
not hooked up to the Wires-X system, but
instead connected to the Hubnet system,
which seemed busy with lots of interesting
contacts. I found that with a strong signal
from GB3CF, I was able to drop power to
5W without any detrimental effect on my
outgoing transmission quality.
Digital and Wires-X Features
The FTM-7250DE firmware includes support
for the Digital Group ID (DGID) and Digital
Personal ID (DPID) capabilities that I men-
tioned in last month’s Reintroducing System
Fusion article. The default DGID is set to 00,
meaning that everyone hears everyone but,
as I mentioned last month, you can change
the value as required, should this be used
on your local Fusion repeater. Similarly,
DPID is available and could be used, for ex-
ample, to identify you as a control channel
operator for a Fusion repeater.
If you are connected to a Wires-X node
or Wires-X enabled repeater, you can use
the FTM-7250DE to select another node
to connect to. Unlike the FTM-100DE and
FTM-400XDE models, you cannot press
the Dx button and scroll down a list. On the
FTM-7250, you’ll need to enter the Wires-
X number of the node you want to con-
nect to (for example GB3SP in Pembroke
Dock is number 43417). You can look up
whatever nodes you want to connect to at
the URL below and obtain the appropriate
node number. If you connect to a particular
node regularly, then you can save the node
number for regular use. Once you’re done
with having connected to the node, you
can hit the ‘*’ button and it will disconnect
you. Note that you don’t have to do this
each time you connect to a Fusion repeater.
If the repeater you connect to is already
connected to a Wires-X room, then you’ll
often be content to leave it as it is, but this
feature gives you the option to disconnect
and connect somewhere else if you want
to (and have permission to do so). Karl
and I tried this feature at Yaesu HQ and it
worked just fine and although it sounds a bit
cumbersome, was actually pretty easy to do
in practice.
https://tinyurl.com/ydfdoc3b
Like all System Fusion capable rigs, the
FTM-7250DE has Automatic Mode Select
(AMS), such that when it receives a Digital
Fusion signal, it will automatically change to
the appropriate narrow or wide digital mode
or, of course, analogue FM.
In case you’re wondering, you can’t use
the FTM-7250DE in conjunction with an
13

What’s New
Have you got something new to tell our readers about? If so, then drop a line to wiessala@hotmail.com
Radio News
A MEMORABLE VISIT: Our Scanning Scene
columnist Tim Kirby recently paid a visit to
Nevada and met Mike Devereux. Mike said:
“It was good to meet Tim Kirby this week at
our premises. Tim is an old friend I have not
seen for a number of years”. By the looks of
it, Tim was in his element during his visit and
appreciated a number of radios displayed in
the warehouse and offices”.
SOURCE: TK/ MD/ Nevada
BAUER TO LAUNCH CLASSICAL STATION
SCALA RADIO: Simon Mayo is returning
to daily radio with Bauer from 4th March as
the host, in mid-morning, of a new classical
music station called Scala Radio. The station
will be the first national classical station in
nearly 30 years and is set to challenge Classic
FM. It is understood, at the time of writing,
that Scala Radio will broadcast on the SDL
national DAB multiplex, replacing heat Radio.
SOURCE: RADIO TODAY
https://tinyurl.com/y9bef6hp
A19 FREQUENCY COORDINATION:
Tunisia in North Africa will be the site of
the A19 Global Coordination Conference
for short wave broadcasters. The A19
broadcast season runs from March 31
to Oct. 27, 2019. Most of the world’s
major shortwave broadcasters and many
government regulatory authorities attend
these conferences, organized by the HFCC,
the Arab States Broadcasting Union and the
Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union. The A19
Conference will be hosted by ASBU, which is
For the latest news and product reviews, visit www.radioenthusiast.co.uk
RadioUser March 2019
What’s new in the world of radio
ICOM IC-9700 VHF/UHF
SDR Transceiver
The IC-9700 is the first VHF/UHF/1200
MHz transceiver which introduces the RF
direct sampling system for the 144 and
430 MHz bands, a real-time spectrum
scope and waterfall function. The RF direct
sampling system has already provided high
performance in the ICOM IC-7610 and IC-7300
HF transceivers. In addition, the spectrum
scope and waterfall function have been
indispensable tools for operators to increase
QSO opportunities, without missing weak
signals. The radio has many other impressive
features, including a built-in 1200 MHz band,
a 4.3-inch TFT colour touchscreen display,
full duplex with Dualwatch on separate bands,
Satellite mode, D-STAR DV (Digital Voice) /
DD (Digital Data) modes and Terminal/Access
point modes. Also, a newly-designed power
amplifier and cooling system provide stable
and high-efficiency operation, even when
headquartered in Tunisia. Nearly 100 delegates
from more than 40 countries are expected to
participate. The purpose of these meetings is
to coordinate station transmission schedules,
prior to the start of each semi-annual broadcast
season so that no two stations are broadcasting
on the same frequency at the same time to the
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continuously transmitting for a long time.
The IC-9700 is also the perfect companion
to the IC-7300 HF radio. Measuring the
same size, both radios provide almost
identical operation. Using the IC-9700 and
IC-7300 creates the ultimate, compact
radio station covering the VHF, UHF, HF and
1200 MHz bands. The IC-9700 is the only
VHF/UHF all mode transceiver that enables
a variety of VHF/UHF operation including
DX, contests, satellite/EME and D-STAR.
ICOM UK made a short video giving a basic
overview of the IC-9700. You can find this
video by visiting their YouTube Channel.
ICOM UK is hopeful to have the IC-9700
available for sale from authorised dealers
in March 2019, with a suggested retail price
of £1,799.99 incl. VAT.
(Source: ICOM UK/ Ian Lockyer)
www.icomuk.co.uk
same region of the world. About 85 per cent of the
world’s short wave transmissions is coordinated
at these conferences, virtually eliminating any
potential interference issues before the start of
each season.
SOURCE: Jeff White/RADIOWORLD
https://tinyurl.com/y7nprg8n
7
News What’s new in the world of radio
Radio News
BBC PRESENTER DIANNE OXBERRY DIES
AFTER SHORT ILLNESS: Former Radio 1
and BBC Radio Manchester presenter Dianne
Oxberry has died aged 51, after recently
being diagnosed with cancer. News of
Dianne’s death was announced by BBC North
West Tonight, where she has been the main
regional TV weather presenter for the past
23 years.
In the early 1990s, she was a household name
across the UK, for her role on the Radio 1
Breakfast Show, alongside Simon Mayo and
as a presenter on the summer 1991 series of
Saturday morning kids’ TV show ‘The 8.15
From Manchester’ on BBC One.
Dianne started at the BBC as a personal
assistant at Radio 2, before moving to Radio
1 where her first on-air role was on Steve
Wright In the Afternoon. She later moved
to Breakfast, joining Simon Mayo and
newsreader Rod McKenzie.
BBC REJECTS NEWS UK-FUNDED REPORT
ON 5 LIVE: The BBC says it rejects the
headline findings of a report by academics at
the University of Kent into the levels of news
and current affairs output on Radio 5 live. The
university’s Centre for Journalism was given
a £25,000 research grant by News UK, the
parent company of talkSPORT and talkRADIO
operator Wireless, to produce the report,
which finds that 5 live is not meeting Ofcom’s
requirement that 75% of output should be
news and current affairs.
The report claims the station’s 2018 output
was 44.95% news and 55.05% ‘non-news’.
The proportion of news and current affairs
Enter our competitions at www.radioenthusiast.co.uk/competitions
8 RadioUser March 2019
ADSB Filter at Moonraker
Chris Taylor at Moonraker got in touch to let
us know about the availability of a new ADSB
filter for aircraft spotters, to improve the
quality of received signals. The FlightAware
1090 ADSB/ Mode S Filter is suitable for
output was 48.28% on weekdays, and 36.625% at
weekends, it says.
Head of the Centre for Journalism, Professor
Tim Luckhurst, a former Assistant Editor at 5 Live
and a senior member of the team that designed
and launched the station, said: “The role of news
has never been more important to democratic
societies. It is crucial that the public has excellent
access to factual, accurate journalism. BBC Radio
5 Live was created to provide such journalism.
Our research demonstrates that it is no longer
fulfilling all of its commitments as a news provider.
We think our findings are important both for the
BBC and for its new regulator, Ofcom.”
The researchers say 5 live has “ceased to be a
news and sports station”, instead suggesting it is
a “sport and talk station with a fierce commitment
to the sport and a lesser, legacy commitment to
news”.
The report also asserts that the news coverage
“reveals an appetite for entertainment, celebrity
and music stories in preference to public affairs.”
News UK says the research was carried out
according to the University of Kent’s Standard
Terms and Conditions for Research Grants, and
without the company’s involvement.
The university says that in common with most
research grants – public or private – it was for
a specific purpose: in this case to “assess the
delivery of BBC Radio 5 Live’s public service
commitments”
SOURCE: RADIOWORLD, 30th January 2019)
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any 1090 ADSB receiver. The unit simply
sits between the antenna and receiver to
reduce out-of-band interference. It costs
£ 16.99.
(Source: CHRIS TAYLOR/ MOONRAKER)
ULTRA-LIGHT DXING BLOG: The ‘Ultralight
Radio DXer ‘is a blog about short wave DXing from
Launceton, Tasmania, achieved with the simplest
of means and equipment.
The author, Paul, has been involved in the radio
hobby for more than 20 years, and his main
interests are UHF, CB, amateur radio and scanning.
His ‘portable ultralight radio DXing session’
reports, and his advice on how to prepare for them,
make for fascinating reading.
https://tinyurl.com/y7utu3m8
HEIL PRAS PARAMETRIC AMPLIFIER SYSTEM:
Peter Waters, of Waters and Stanton, wrote in to
let readers know that the firm recently received
the first delivery of the Heil PRAS Parametric
Amplifier system. This is aimed at reception, and
the improvement and manipulation of the audio
output. W&S has a demo set up in Portsmouth, and
Peter was impressed with how this system can
‘shape’ the audio, especially for users with hearing
issues.
SOURCE:Waters and Stanton
2019 EUROPEAN RADIO PRODUCT SOURCE
LIST : The catalogue of the ‘2019 European
Radio Product Source List’ makes for interesting
browsing. It is a wider resource for everything
radio-related. Find information on companies
worldwide that offer products and services to
media facilities, stations and reviewers:
https://tinyurl.com/yaq9nexf
 What’s new in the world of radio News

Radio News

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CQ-DATV NEWSLETTER: The December

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2018 CQ-DATV Newsletter is now available

S!
at the following URL. There are also back
issues of the newsletter. CQ-DATV is a
monthly magazine dedicated to the digital
amateur television hobby. You can sign up
to receive the newsletters for free. Read it
online too.
https://cq-datv.mobi

CMA APPOINTMENTS : The Community

Media Association has appointed Danny
Lawrence of Gateway 97.8 as the new
Chair and Janey Gordon of the University
of Bedfordshire as Vice Chair. The new
positions follow the December Annual
General Meeting and the first meeting of
its newly elected Council. Danny Lawrence
stated: “I’m delighted to be elected Chair
of the Community Media Association and I
look forward to a very important year ahead.
However, I’d first like to thank the outgoing
Chair, Lucinda Guy of Soundart Radio, for the
three years of hard work and dedication to
Nevada: AOR AR-DV1
community radio that she has put in - 2019
will be a crucial year for community radio
Update and SGC Aerials
with the legislation for small-scale DAB to
Mike Devereux, of Nevada, informed us scanning, as well as audio/discriminator
be finalised, new community radio stations
that a new firmware update has empowered recording onto SD card .
licensed, licence variations for coverage
the popular AR-DV1 Digital Voice Receiver In other news, Nevada has been ap-
extensions and improvements granted.
with decoding of TRUNKED TETRA signals. pointed Authorised UK Dealers for the
Hopefully, we expect to see a resolution for
The AR-DV1 is now the world’s first and only SGC range of automatic antenna tuners.
fourth-term community radio licences. I’d
stand-alone wideband receiver to decode SGC has been established for more
also like to thank Rob Watson who has been
the traffic channel audio of trunked TETRA than 30 years in the USA and was one of
Acting Chair for the last month.
networks. Tetra is used by government the first companies to produce a fully
I’m looking forward to working with my Vice
agencies, emergency services, public safe- weatherproof automatic antenna tuner.
Chair, Janey Gordon of the University of
ty, rail transport, metro, airports, and so on. Although they supply mainly commercial,
Bedfordshire, and with the rest of the CMA
The AR-DV1 100kHz to 1300MHz wideband military and marine customers, they have
Council and staff.”
receiver decodes numerous digital signals always had a presence in the amateur ra-
https://www.commedia.org.uk
including TETRA, DMR, D-STAR, NXDN, dio market. Nevada will stock the full line
dPMR, P25, D-CR, Yaesu C4FM, and Alinco of SGC indoor and outdoor ATUs, with the
DIVERSITY AND BAME EMPOWERMENT:
EJ47U. Its unique FPGA technology allows first shipments arriving in January 2019.
Commercial radio and the BBC, in
auto-detection of those digital modes while (Source: AOR/ Nevada)
conjunction with Creative Access, organised
an event on January 16th, which aimed at
young BAME (black, Asian, and minority
ethnic) people looking to get into the radio While it is similar to TuneIn and other apps, which on the radio, and now with just a quick tap you can
industry. The masterclass follows similar provide access to radio stations on smartphones, add it straight to your library!”
events at Google, ad agencies, parliament, Radio By Deezer will enable users to ‘like’ any SOURCE: RADIO TODAY
ITV and Channel 4, all geared towards song they hear from the radio, and immediately
helping young people secure paid training add this to their Favourite Tracks Library within RADIO WORLD INTERNATIONAL ISSUE: The
opportunities in what many now call the Radio By Deezer. February issue of the ‘Radio World International’
‘creative industries’. Olivier Miljeu, Product Manager of Radio By Newsletter is out and can be accessed for free at
SOURCE: michael.ireland@radiocentre.org) Deezer, commented: “Radio fans deserve an the URL below. It focuses on news from the radio
experience tailored to their exact needs. Our industry, and technical developments, but it also
DEEZER CREATES SUBSCRIPTION-FREE easy-to-use app provides fast access to their contains items of interest to RU readers, such
RADIO APP: ‘Radio By Deezer’ is a free app, favourite stations, all with an undisturbed, ad- as transmission sites, Ohm’s Law, and a range of
launched on the Android platform, providing free, listening experience. Gone are the days of other, international, topics.
access to 30,000 radio stations worldwide. thinking it’s too late to get the song you just heard https://tinyurl.com/ybla4csb

For the latest news and product reviews, visit www.radioenthusiast.co.uk

RadioUser March 2019 9
News What’s new in the world of radio
Radio News
INTERNATIONAL RADIO FOR DISASTER
RELIEF (IRDR): The International Radio for
Disaster Relief project was the brainchild of
former chief engineer of Radio Prague and
HFCC co-founder Oldrich Cip, who passed
away last year.
The idea was to arrange for designated short
wave frequencies that are reserved and
can be used by international broadcasters
in the event of natural disasters such as
hurricanes, earthquakes, floods, landslides,
tsunamis, and so on. Short wave radio is
often known as ‘crisis radio’, as people tend
to listen to it in greater numbers in the event
of emergencies. When a disaster occurs,
local and regional radio stations, satellite
and Internet coverage may be off the air due
to damage, but short wave stations in distant
locations can still get through to listeners
who have low-cost battery-powered (or
solar-powered or wind-up) radios. In some
cases, aid workers distribute these types of
radios to affected communities, so they can
hear shortwave broadcasts. In the event of
a disaster, any shortwave broadcaster can
register temporary usage of the allocated
IRDR frequencies through the HFCC, on a
first-come-first-served basis. For some time,
the IRDR Working Group has been monitoring
the short wave bands, finding available
frequencies in each major band that have
been allocated for more permanent IRDR
use.
EECC CODE IN FOCUS AT BRUSSELS
MOTOR SHOW: EU rules, which took
effect on 29th December, and which require
new car radios to be able to receive digital
terrestrial radio, were in focus at the recent
Brussels Motor Show. The European
Electronic Communications Code (EECC)
entered into force on 20 December 2018.
EU members have two years to transpose
the code into national legislation. The EECC
states that “any car radio receiver integrated
in a new vehicle available for sale or rent in
the EU will be required to include a receiver
capable of receiving and reproducing radio
services provided via digital terrestrial
radio broadcasting [...] Having all radios in
passenger cars capable of digital terrestrial
radio reception, opens up new opportunities
for broadcasters to develop ever more
innovative services, and for audiences to
enjoy an enriched and better-quality offer
when they are on the move,” said Noel Curran
of the EBU
SOURCE: Radio Today
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10
Aircraft Wring
Rain out of Clouds
Planes flying over rain or snow can intensify
the precipitation by as much as 10-fold,
according to a new study. The rain- and
snow-bursts are not caused by emissions
from the aircraft but are the peculiar
consequence of the aircraft’s wings
passing through clouds of supercooled
water droplets in cloud layers above a
layer of active rain or snow. Under the
right conditions, this effect can boost
rain and snow storms over airports, where
many planes intersect the cloud layer on
approach and descent. “The interesting
thing about this feature is that it is caused
by aircraft, but it is not caused by pollution,”
said Dimitri Moisseev - a researcher at the
University of Helsinki - in the AGUJournal
of Geophysical Research: “Even if there
would be absolutely ecological aeroplanes,
which don’t have any combustion, no fuel or
anything, it would still happen.” Although
the bands of enhanced precipitation are
artificially created, the physical process
jump-started by the passage of planes
can occur naturally, which makes them
useful laboratories for studying the
formation of precipitation, according to
ISLE OF WIGHT RS ANNIVERSARY: The Isle
of Wight Radio Society is celebrating its 50th
Anniversary with an awards scheme in which all
amateurs and SWLs can take part. Certificates
will be awarded for working IWRS members, the
society’s callsign G3SKY, and any special event
stations during the anniversary year.
This will include working IWRS members through
the Isle of Wight Repeater GB3IW.
The type of certificate awarded, Gold, Silver
or Bronze, will depend on the number of IWRS
stations worked. The scheme will run from 1st
April to 30th March 2020. Full details of the rules
etc can be found on the Society’s Facebook page.
Point of contact for this awards scheme is Paul
G0GMY.
paul.g0gmy@gmail.com
https://tinyurl.com/yb4rzxjz
SOLIHULL ARS NETWORK RADIO TALK
PRIZE: Solihull Amateur Radio Society, which
was celebrating its 70th year in 2018, has many
different talks at their monthly meetings. The
subject of one of these talks was “Network Radio,
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Moisseev. Observing them may help
meteorologists ‘now-cast’ natural rain
and snow conditions two to six hours
into the future, which is essential for
airport operations. “When you, like
myself, look at the radar data every day
there is always something interesting
going on,” Moisseev said. Moisseev
discovered streamers of heightened
precipitation in scans from the radar
antenna at the University of Helsinki
Kumpula. The unnaturally straight
patches of intense precipitation
appeared against a background of lighter
rain or snow and seemed to bend toward
the nearby Helsinki-Vantaa airport.
Their shapes looked like the inverse of
cloud formations known as ‘fallstreaks’,
hole-punch or canal clouds, phenomena
which can occur when aircraft fly through
clouds of water droplets that are colder
than 0 degrees Celsius , but aren’t
freezing. How these effects translate
into propagation conditions, is not yet
clear.
(AGUPress Release, 31st January 2019)
https://tinyurl.com/y9tau9nj
an introduction of the concept, equipment and the
Network Radios Suite of Channels on Zello”, given
by David G0PDL.
The talk was so well received that the Midlands-
based club set up their own Club Zello Channel for
use by members.
In the weeks after the talk, several members
had purchased network radios from dealers
and were using them on the Network Radios
Channels, as well as on IRN and Echolink. Fast
forward to January 2019, and club members
voted the network radio talk as the best in 2018.
Subsequently, David was invited back and
presented with the Frank Bridges Award. Frank,
G3WPM, held the position of Chairman of the Club
for 42 years between 1970 and 2012.
https://tinyurl.com/y8wcdrdo
MAJOR WORLD AIR ROUTE AREA (MWARA)
FREQUENCIES: Here is a rich resource from ‘HF
Underground’, including some very informative
radio coverage maps and aeronautical HF maps,
relating to MWARA global routes.
https://tinyurl.com/ybabmnqq
RadioUser March 2019
 What’s new in the world of radio News

Radio News

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SMALL MARKET RADIO NEWSLETTER: If

ES
your interest lies in smaller and community

S!
radio stations, in particular in the USA, you
can subscribe to the ‘Small Market Radio
Newsletter’ here, following a four-week free
trial period:
www.smallmarketradio.com

SPACE WEATHER NEWS : An interesting

article of interest to all radio amateurs,
DXers and space weather watchers, and
entitled ‘Plasma Activity Around Sunspots
May Foreshadow Solar Storms’ can be found
on the web pages of EoS – Earth & Space
Science News. Citation: Sidder, A. (2018)
Eos, 99. Find it at this URL:
https://tinyurl.com/yb9ta9o5

SPANISH FLU CENTENARY RADIO

COMMEMORATION: BBC English Regions
recently marked the centenary of ‘Spanish
Flu’, in partnership with the Wellcome
Collection, the Imperial War Museum and
New Scanning
the Arts and Humanities Research Council
(AHRC). BBC Local Radio stations and
Software for SDRplay
regional TV in the South West highlighted
SDRplay Limited, UK-based manufacturers SDRplay’s downloads page (see the first
the epidemic with interviews, features and
of the RSP range of software-defined URL below). SDRplay has also released an
programmes revealing the impact of the
Radio products, have enhanced their updated version of the RSP TCP server.
disease on people living in the cities, towns
SDRuno software to add some exciting The standard ‘RTL-compatible’ mode
and villages of their local areas, as well as
new features. The introduction of a fast has been revisited to improve things like
investigating the legacy of the pandemic.
frequency scanner for SDRplay products has the gain control, and options have been
The BBC Local Radio programmes revealed
been greatly anticipated, and this update added to start the server with RSP-
statistics based on medical reports
makes SDRuno the first fully-featured specific options such as ‘Antenna-select’,
recording how communities in many parts
SDR package with integrated frequency ‘Bias-T enable’, and the use of specific
of England – including places such as
scanning. The scanner has two modes; it hardware broadcast notch filters. This
Cornwall, Exeter, Jersey and Guernsey
can scan an arbitrary frequency range, or new version also has an ‘Extended’ mode,
– were affected by the virus which killed
it can scan through a list of frequencies whereby these RSP-specific controls
228,000 people in the UK. This is well worth
from the memory panel. It can store found can be changed ‘on-the-fly’ when client
another listen.
signals, has a number of built-in pre-sets developers add them to their software.
SOURCE: Radioworld
(including the marine and air-bands) and has This updated version can be found on
https://tinyurl.com/y8dvgofw
the ability to both wait on a signal and hold SDRplay’s GitHub repository (see the
for a period of time on a signal. The scanner second URL below).
‘VIRTUALIZATION’ AND RADIO: While it
will work with all existing SDRplay SDR (Source: JON HUDSON/ SDRPlay)
is still, in its infancy, virtualization, or the
receivers, including the original RSP1. The https://www.sdrplay.com/downloads
‘de-materialization’ of hardware, appears
latest version of SDRuno can be found on https://github.com/SDRplay
to be positioned to offer real benefits to
broadcasters. Obvious advantages include
reduced hardware costs, space savings,
improved efficiency, easier updates and server failure risks, licensing costs, ways to and diversity in British TV and radio content. VLV
scalable architecture. But what about the ensure adequate redundancy, and much more. represents the interests of listeners and viewers
potential challenges that may arise with the You can access thiss Radio World International as citizens and consumers across the full range
onset of this new technology? eBook by an online search. of broadcasting issues. VLV is concerned with the
The latest Radio World International SOURCE: marguerite.clark@futurenet.com structures, regulation, funding and institutions
eBook examines the different aspects of that underpin the British broadcasting
virtualization in the broadcast realm and VOICE OF THE LISTENER AND VIEWER: The system and makes the case for public service
addresses such issues as station staff skill- VLV is an independent, non-profit, membership broadcasting, which ensures the interests of
set requirements, virtualization for ‘mission- association, free from political, commercial and listeners are kept in mind.
critical’ work, managing audio latency, VM sectarian affiliations, and working for quality http://www.vlv.org.uk

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RadioUser March 2019 11
News What’s new in the world of radio

Radio News

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GO GREEN FOR ST PATRICK’S DAY: Bobby

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Wadey wrote in to let us know about the ‘Go

S!
Green For St Patrick’s Day’ initiative. During
this event, amateur radio stations from across
the world will, once again, be on the air to ‘turn
the bands green’, as part of the St Patrick’s
Day Award. This fun, 48-hour, annual award
will follow the celebrations across the world,
from the 16th March, 12:00 UTC to the 18th
March, 12:00 UTC. This year the organisers
have incorporated a new award, covering any
other modes requiring software or a computer
in addition to your radio. To find out more, for
all the latest updates on stations on the air, or
to register as a station, go to the website and
follow the Facebook page below:
https://stpatrickaward.webs.com
https://tinyurl.com/ycfbu4z7
stpatrickaward@gmail.com

OFCOM PROPOSES NEW DAB+ STATIONS:

Ofcom has published a consultation, which
is proposing changes to technical rules
DAB broadcasters need to follow. One of the
proposals includes removing the 30% limit
on DAB+ stations on the SDL multiplex. At the
moment, the multiplex must have at least 70%
of its services in original standard DAB. For
all other multiplex operators, the Technical
Code states that DAB+ can only be used when
specifically permitted by Ofcom.
The default expectation in the Ofcom Code is
that conventional DAB audio encoding will be
New Plasma Wave Observations
used.
The regulator says DAB+ compatible receivers
from the Earth’s Magnetosphere
have become widespread in recent years,
and DAB+ more widely used, so it wants to The first simultaneous observations of the FIELDS instruments aboard NASA’s
remove the requirement for licensees to multiple electromagnetic wave types in Magnetospheric Multiscale Satellites,
obtain authorisation from Ofcom for adopting Earth’s magnetosphere may inaugurate a scientists have now identified a series of
DAB+Whereas it will be easier to launch a new field of inquiry into cross-frequency electromagnetic ion cyclotron waves—
station using DAB+, any multiplex operator wave interactions. Plasmas are swirling high-frequency oscillations that can be
switching a current station from DAB to DAB+ mixtures of gas so hot that many of the divided into several bands on the basis of
will be expected to liaise with the individual constituent atoms have been stripped of their vibrational frequencies. In addition
radio station(s), with the aim of providing their electrons, creating a dynamic field to measuring multiple harmonics of these
information to listeners on the changes (e.g. on- of both negatively and positively charged waves in the oxygen frequency band, the
the-air announcements) and providing advice particles that are strongly influenced by satellite instruments also unexpectedly
on steps listeners can take to continue receiving magnetic and electrical fields. Plasmas detected other accompanying waves,
the service (e.g. purchasing a DAB+-capable account for more than 99% of the matter including higher-frequency broadband
receiver). The new technical rules ensure that in the universe and can disrupt satellite and ‘whistler-mode’ chorus waves
digital radio signals are transmitted in a uniform navigation systems and other technologies, that modulate at the same frequency.
way and don’t conflict or interfere with one but scientists are still working to understand By presenting the first simultaneous
other. The consultation proposes changes to the fundamental processes occurring observations of these various wave
ensure the Technical Codes keep pace with within them. A new report now discusses types, this study is likely to open up an
new technology and industry developments, new observations of plasma waves in the entirely new area of inquiry into cross-
including making the rules more suitable for the magnetosphere, the region surrounding our frequency wave interactions at both
needs of future ‘small-scale DAB’ services. The planet where Earth’s magnetic field controls electron and ion scales.
consultation closes on 18 March 2019. the charged particles. Using data from http://tinyurl.com/y7obnvyw
SOURCE: RadioToday UK, 5th February 2019

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12 RadioUser March 2019
 Book Store

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Auntie’s War World Radio TV
A curated collection of articles
gleaned from the BBC archives Handbook 2019
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A generous log section with plenty about the RSGB, the committees This electronic version of the RSGB The 31st edition of the annual
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ns, The Maltings, West St

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ubli

A curated collection of articles

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pP

2018fromArchive CD in
ou ur n
Gr e,
rs Lin
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ar

gleaned the BBC archives

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RadioUser March 2019 13
Book Review
The Latest Crop of Frequency
Books and Listening Guides
David Harris
mydogisinn@gmail.com
Georg Wiessala
wiessala@hotmail.com
Radio Listeners Guide
Despite all of the ‘prophets of doom’,
89% of the UK adult population still
listen to the radio at least once a week.
For anyone interested in radio in the
UK, Radio Listeners Guide 2019 (RLG
2019) is a must-buy.
The book opens with a 10-page digest of
radio news, covering BBC MW switch-offs,
the apparent U-turn over switching off AM/
FM, and local DAB coverage.
There are a lot of radio stories you may
have missed, such as the takeover of Jazz
FM by Bauer, the rebranding of some Bauer
local stations as Greatest Hits Network and
the launch of Lovesport radio on AM.
RLG keeps up to date with technology,
with news about Google Home Max and
Alexa smart speakers, music streaming
services, and the idea of broadcasting radio
over 5G mobile phone networks.
The unique selling point of this book
is the 28-page review section which lists
virtually every AM, FM and DAB radio on the
UK market. There are in-depth reviews of 26
new products, including the XHDATA D-808
world band radio (reviewed in RadioUser,
October 2018: 10-14).
Whether you are looking for a pocket-
sized DAB radio (e.g. Pure Move R3) or a
desktop radio/CD player (e.g. Pure Siesta)
you will ind something that meets your
needs. There are also reviews of wireless
speakers and turntables, as well as data on
over 140 domestic radios, which range in
price from £22 to £2,300.
If advances in technology have left you
feeling somewhat bafled, then RLG 2019
offers helpful chapters on Bluetooth and
other streaming systems, multi-room
systems, voice control, smart speakers
and music apps.
Podcasting seems to be this year’s ‘big
thing’, especially amongst many younger
people. The RLG 2019 provides plenty of
information about BBC iPlayer, Radioplayer
and some other ways of accessing radio
programmes online.
RLG 2019 contains a 60-page guide to UK
Visit our Book Store at www.radioenthusiast.co.uk
14
Woodyear C.
Radio Listener’s Guide 2019;
Radio Guide Publications, 2018; 162pp.; pbk.;
£6.95; (ISBN 9781871611304).
www.radioguide.co.uk
World Radio TV Handbook (WRTH)
The Directory of Global Broadcasting 2019;
WRTH Publications 2018; 672pp.; pbk.; £35
(ISBN 9781999830014).
www.wrth.com
Gayle van Horn
Global Radio Guide; 11th edition.
Winter 2018 – 2019;
Teak Publications (USA) 2018; £6.66 ($8.50);
eBook format only; 433pp.; ASIN: B07L3RYTPG.
www.amazon.co.uk
Klingenfuss, J.
2019 Shortwave Frequency Guide;
Klingenfuss Publications (ISBN
9783941040694),
Klingenfuss, J.
2019/2020 Guide to Utility Radio Stations;
Klingenfuss Publications (ISBN
9783941040199).
www.klingenfuss.org
radio stations, with detailed maps showing
the location of transmitters for both BBC
and commercial stations. Moreover, there
are full listings of all BBC and commercial
radio transmitters. All DAB multiplexes
are included with full station listings.
Furthermore, all AM and FM community
stations are also included, along with
long-term Restricted-Service License
(RSL) stations.
RLG 2019 also contains a four-page
listing of stations in the Republic of Ireland.
Sky, Freesat and Freeview radio stations
are all logged, and there is LW/MW/
FM frequency index to help you identify
unknown stations.
Helpfully, the book closes with contact
details for all BBC and commercial
stations, radio trade bodies, community
radio organisations, clubs, manufacturers,
and so on. RLG 2019 is a full colour, glossy,
A5 format, publication now in its 30th
year. Whether you buy the book to help in
choosing a radio, or as an indispensable
reference source, it is incredible value for
money at only £6.95 (excluding postage).
DH
World Radio TV
Handbook (WRTH) 2019
WRTH 2019 is the 73rd edition of this
stalwart of the radio world. Guidebooks,
directories, and even technology come
and go, but this bulwark of broadcasting
remains the go-to source of information
for radio listeners, DXers, radio station
personnel, and anyone with an interest in
broadcasting around the world.
The format has remained unchanged
throughout the years. This is a good
thing, because keen readers will buy this
book every year, and they don’t want to
waste time trying to ind the sections
relevant to them.
WRTH commences with six in-depth
reviews of new SW radios: the WinRadio
Excalibur Sigma; SDRPlay RSPduo; Airspy
HF+; Reuter RDR51; XHDATA D-808 and
Icom IC-R30. These radios range in price
from £70, for the XHDATA, to an eye-
watering £6,200 for the WinRadio.
There is also a short listing of 42 world
band radios, communications receivers
and SDR radios, all of which are currently
available on world markets. If you are
looking at buying a communications
receiver, then this compilation alone
justiies purchasing the WRTH.
The guide further provides a number of
short articles on HF curtain arrays, African
stations DKRI and RNI (which broadcasts
to the troubled Lake Chad area), V7MI
Marshall Islands, and TWR Bonaire.
There is a longer article on digital
broadcasting, which ends with the
reassuring statement that AM and FM
broadcasts are likely to remain the global
standard for many years to come, mainly
because AM/FM radios are cheap, reliable
and use little in the way of battery power.
Readers will ind a 13-page full-colour
atlas. This is particularly useful if you are
struggling to locate places such as Palau,
Guam and Anguilla, all of which host well-
known SW radio stations.
The bulk of WRTH is taken up with 388
pages listing every country and territory in
RadioUser March 2019

the world, and virtually all of their domestic
radio stations. We learn, for instance, that
there are seven FM radio stations serving
the Argentinian, Chilean and American
bases in the Antarctic. Radio reaches every
part of the world, from Easter Island, with
ive stations serving its 5,700 population
to Timor-Leste with 32 community
stations for its 1.3 million people. It is also
reassuring to learn that Norwegians still
have a few FM stations to listen to, after
ditching most of them in favour of DAB.
If you are planning a holiday abroad, the
WRTH will give you an impressive overview
of local broadcasters on AM, FM and DAB.
What is really notable about this book is
the depth of the information provided. For
each station, readers get the full postal
address, telephone number, website,
e-mail, transmitter power and frequency. If
you are working for a company supplying
broadcast hardware or software, WRTH
encompasses the whole world of
broadcasting in one volume.
In the cases of larger countries, such
as the USA, the listings are limited to
stations above a certain power. However,
WRTH manages to list 2,035 of the 4,626
American AM stations. Concerning US FM
stations, WRTH lists around 2,000 of the
total of 13,000 commercial and educational
broadcasters stateside.
For short wave listeners, the
international radio section will be of
interest. It comprises of 62 pages, listing
the 91 countries broadcasting on short
wave around the world. Afghanistan,
Madagascar, Taiwan and Zambia are just
a few examples of countries, broadcasting
English language programmes
receivable in the UK.
Much contemporary short wave
broadcasting is dominated by religious
broadcasters, often based in the
USA. In this group, WRTH lists 21 US
Christian stations, together with eight
private SW stations.
Moreover, the US government is a major
SW broadcaster in many languages,
and programmes are targeted at Cuba,
Iran, China, Afghanistan, Pakistan and
the Middle East.
China is also a major player,
broadcasting in over 40 languages. The
BBC World Service now broadcasts in 19
languages, chiely aimed at Africa, Middle
East and Asia.
The title offers a 46-page section on
terrestrial TV stations, with listings for
almost every country in the world. One
of the most useful parts of WRTH is the
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RadioUser March 2019
Book Review
frequency listings for medium and short
wave stations. If you hear a station on a
certain frequency but cannot identify it, the
broadcaster in question is likely to be listed
in WRTH unless it is a pirate station.
There are not many publications
that are truly indispensable, but WRTH
occupies a unique position in the world of
broadcasting, as the only comprehensive
guide to global radio.
No other publication or website comes
anywhere near the scope of WRTH.
In short, this I an essential book for
anyone with an interest in radio.
DH
Global Radio Guide
The Global Radio Guide - previously known
as International Shortwave Broadcast Guide
(ISBG) - originated back in 1993 as a part of
the former US radio magazine Monitoring
Times (now: The Spectrum Monitor, TSM).
Gayle van Horn has been publishing her
Guide as a twice-yearly e-Book since 2014.
The publication is clearly a labour of love, monitor Cuban AM and FM signals.
rather than a commercial enterprise, and The DRM article updates on how DRM
readers will get a tremendous amount of seems to be increasing with more SW
information for a relatively small price. It stations using this transmission method,
takes Gayle several months to compile all even though there do not appear to be
the infoirmation in this guide. any DRM radios on the market. The article
The publication is organised into three does include a step-by-step guide on how
main parts. Part one consists of several to decode DRM using a computer and the
interesting articles on broadcasts to and relevant software.
from Cuba, DRM, VOA Radiograms, and Part two has a comprehensive overview
smart speakers. of the SW bands from tropical bands up
These are all well written and researched, to 13m. This basic information would be
although the Cuban article is probably more very useful to any newcomer to the hobby
relevant to listeners in the southern part of SW listening, as there do not appear to
of the USA, who are in a better position to have been any general books on SW radio
15
Book Review
published for at least 20 years now.
The listing also covers utility monitoring
and includes the ‘top-1,000’ of utility
frequencies (aviation, marine and US
military). Again, these are mainly US
frequencies, but some should be receivable
in Western Europe.
There is also a brief roundup of SW radio
news, including information about the
proposed 500kW WBCQ transmitter, which
should be on the air fairly soon.
Part three (which makes up more
than half of the book) is an hour-by-
hour listening guide to global short wave
broadcasts in all languages. One just
checks the time and is presented with a
list of stations that can be logged. The
guide is published twice a year in line with
the A (April – October) and B (November
– March) short wave seasons. There is
also a long list of website addresses for
short wave stations.
This useful e-book can be obtained
from Amazon and downloaded to a
Kindle, smartphone, tablet, PC or other
digital platform. If you are happy using
this method of accessing information,
the GRG is an essential addition to your
radio resources. It does not try to compete
with World Radio TV Handbook (WRTH,
see elsewhere in this section), but it is
complementary to this resource and only
costs about one-sixth of the price.
I have nothing but admiration for the
author who is clearly a radio lover and has
put a huge amount of effort into this very
ine guide. Highly recommended.
DH
Klingenfuss Guides 2019
All of the 2019 editions of the equally
indispensable publications from the radio
publications stable of Jörg Klingenfuss
are of huge potential interest to readers
of RadioUser. I have had two books, in
particular, crossing my desk this year; the
2019 Shortwave Frequency Guide and the
2019/2020 Guide to Utility Radio Stations.
Both of these, and other Klingenfuss
products are widely used in professional
as well as hobby monitoring circles
worldwide, and, in 2019, they continue to
set the benchmark for how listening guides
should be done.
The 2019 Shortwave Frequency Guide
is the 23rd edition of this excellent
publication, and it, once more, offers
extremely comprehensive frequency
lists of both professional HF utility and
broadcast radio stations on a global scale,
including indispensable information,
Visit our Book Store at www.radioenthusiast.co.uk
16
such as mode, the location target area(s),
transmission times, language information,
and much more besides.
Don’t skip over Chapters One and Two,
on monitoring utility signals, because
the depth of background information on
everything from politics and equipment
offered here, is unprecedented and
includes SDR receivers, web-SDR
technology, automatic monitoring
and types of services, such as HF
e-mail and others.
Both the listings of utility stations, and
those on broadcast radio are prefaced by
informative, and meticulously-researched
introductions, on such issues as DRM and
the future of radio.
Among all frequency guides I am aware
of, the Klingenfuss books are the only
ones, which provide insightful critical
comment and analysis on the history
and politics of short wave broadcasting,
touching on topics like EU regulations,
Chinese short wave dominance, the
vulnerability of internet-infrastructure,
the internet, SATCOM and HF radio
in dictatorial regimes, the absurdly
premature abandonment of short wave
by some states – Germany among them
– and much else. This provides some
much-needed context to your DXing if
you are interested in more than merely
accumulating ‘catches’.
A number of meaningful screenshots
and an alphabetical list of broadcast
radio stations, as well as, a number of
other indices and lists of acronyms
and transmission sites make this
volume complete.
If you are specialising in utility signals,
you might also wish to acquire other
Klingenfuss books and CDs, such as
the 2019/ 2020 Guide to Utility Radio
Stations. The 30th edition of the latter
(which includes the 38th edition of the
Guide to Radioteletype Stations) stands
out for its depth. There are 216+ pages of
comprehensive utility stations listings, from
LW to HF. The additional and background
details provided include information on IDs,
callsigns, classes of stations, Q/Z codes,
acronyms, and much more.
I particularly liked (and used)
the chapters on (the A-Z of) utility
stations, aeronautical, maritime
mobile, meteorological and NAVTEX
transmissions. A noteworthy, and
unusual, innovation in both books has to
be the content relating to the possibilities
afforded for direction-inding using the
KIWI-SDR system, which readers can ind
at the end of Chapter Two (in both books).
These show worklow screenshots, which
I am not aware of being offered in any
other frequency books at the moment.
Receiving NAVTEX from India with the Kiwi-
SDR of 4S7VK, for example, is now easily
achievable with this technology.
Whatever your slice of the hobby cake
is, you will ind a wealth of information
on it in these guides – all signiicantly
enriched by those indispensable, high-
quality, screenshots and auxiliary
reference materials.
Klingenfuss offer packages of their most
popular guides available - as usual, check
the website for details.
GW
RadioUser March 2019

The Radio Amateur Old
Timers’ Association (RAOTA)
David Reynolds (G3ZPF)
g3zpf@raota.org
David Reynolds offers a profile of
the UK Radio Amateur Old Timers’
Association (RAOTA), looking at
its history, networks, newsletter
(OTNews), publications and archive.
The Radio Amateur Old Timers’
Association (RAOTA) aims to maintain the
traditions and spirit of amateur radio.
We are passionately interested in the
history and traditions of amateur radio, and
we are fortunate that we can get a lot of
this first-hand from our members.
We are equally passionate about the
future of our hobby, and we have been
vociferous in warning of the hazards
presented to it by EMC and RF pollution
One of our magazine covers
demonstrates this quite succinctly: It
shows a picture of communications in
WW1, next to one of a DDS synthesiser
kit. An article about each is contained in
that same issue.
One of the enduring ‘myths’ about
RAOTA is that you need to have been
licensed for 25 years to become a
member. However, you don’t. Anyone
with an active interest in amateur radio is
welcome to become a member. There is
no need to hold (or be qualified to hold) an
amateur radio licence, and we have several
SWLs in our ranks.
We have two categories of membership
– ‘Associate’ and ‘Full’.
Associate membership is open to
anyone, regardless of how recently they
have come into the hobby.
Full membership is open to anyone who
has been actively involved in amateur radio
for at least 25 years.
The annual subscription for each
category is the same, the magazine
members receive is identical, and our
warm welcome is guaranteed too.
The only difference in terms of
membership ‘benefits’, is that full
members have a vote in RAOTA’s activities,
whereas associate members do not.
Many of our members say that the main
Why not visit our new online bookshop at www.radioenthusiast.co.uk/store
RadioUser March 2019
benefit of being a member is our quarterly
magazine OTNews, and we hope you will
agree with them.
OTNews (OTN, Fig. 1) is produced to a
high standard, in terms of both content and
print quality.
We are especially fortunate that so many
of our members are ready and willing to
contribute to OTNews, by writing articles
and letters for it. OTNews is printed in an
A5 stapled booklet format and usually has
at least 54 pages. It is also available on
audio media for the benefit of members
with limited eyesight.
In addition to the newsletter, RAOTA
publishes a range of books, all in A4
stapled format: The Early Years (Volumes
1 and 2) are collections of material about
the pioneer days of radio experimenters
and amateur radio. They include personal
recollections of members who actually
were there at the time.
Proven Aerials & Related Subjects
(currently available: Vols. 1-5) offers
designs for aerials constructed or
modified by our members, very much on a
practical basis.
Digest of Horizontal Wire Aerials is based
on the original book by Dennis Hoult G4OO.
In addition to these publications, we
produce a high-quality log book with
fifty double-sided pages and a ‘lay
-flat’ type binding.
RAOTA has a number of nets. We
operate these in a variety of modes,
including SSB, CW and digimodes, on a
range of HF bands (including 5MHz) and
2m. Our net controllers usually use our
G2OT club callsign. If you hear one of
our nets, please feel free to join in. Non-
members are always welcome, and there
is no ‘arm-twisting’ to join.
QSOs heard or worked on our nets
qualify towards our Worked RAOTA
Members award, which is open to
everyone, not just to RAOTA members.
RAOTA is a national club and does
not have a club room, so we organise
occasional informal meetings (we
call them ‘Get-Togethers’), where our
members can meet face-to-face to chat
and reminisce, accompanied by an
Feature
RAOTA
1
informal meal.
A relatively new project is our Archive,
based on collections of members’
memories on topics such as amateur
radio magazines, books from their
formative years, amateur radio rallies, and
amateur radio traders.
Many of our members are part of
amateur radio history and well past the
first flush of youth, as it were.
In addition to producing OTNews in a
variety of audio formats, we also have
an almoner who is there to assist, in
confidence, members who are becoming
less able to maintain and operate
their own stations.
Perhaps they need assistance with an
aerial at their own home; or, perhaps, some
help to set up a station at a residential
home. Whatever their need, our almoner
will try to help.
We have been around since 1958 (Fig.
3). Our Diamond Jubilee celebrations last
year included a special Jubilee Award, a
commemorative cake at our AGM, and (of
course) a celebratory mug.
Whether you meet us on the air, at a rally
such as the National Hamfest (Fig. 4), at
one of our social events, or via our web
site, if the history, traditions and future of
17
Feature

RAOTA

RAOTA GEORG WIESSALA

Fig. 1: OTNews, RAOTA’s main newsletter.

Fig. 2: Pioneer days: A radio shack from the
1950s. Fig. 3: The Diamond Jubilee logbook.
Fig. 4: RAOTA’s Editor, President and General
Secretary at the National Hamfest 2018.

amateur radio interest you, we hope you

will be attracted to becoming a member.
To find out more, you can visit
our website or you can write
to the email or postal address.

RAOTA, Membership Secretary

65 Montgomery Street
Hove, East Sussex BN3 5BE
memsec@raota.org
www.raota.org
4

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18 RadioUser March 2019
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Airband News
An Airbus A-317 D-ABGQ of Eurowings at Manchester.
Government Gives Green
Light to Modernised Airspace
David Smith reports on plans to modernise UK airspace, digital flight strips
at Bristol Airport, re-designation of flight routes, and drone tests. He also
profiles ATC operations at Cardiff Airport.
David Smith
dj.daviator@btinternet.com
viation 2050 – The Future of UK
A Aviation is a recent government
aviation strategy green paper.
It explains why UK airspace
needs to be modernised, how
this will be achieved, and what the roles of
all the stakeholders in the process will be.
In 2017, NATS was tasked by the
Secretary of State for Transport to review
the technical feasibility of modernising air-
space. The resulting report concluded that
– in conjunction with procedures to reduce
noise for those overlown communities
near to airports – future growth aspirations
could realistically be met.
The design of today’s airspace originated
in the 1950s. It was made for a very differ-
ent generation of aircraft capability and air
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20
trafic technology. To better handle today’s
trafic levels requires making the best use
of both the latest and of emerging technolo-
gies to manage noise, reduce carbon emis-
sions and increase capacity.
There is a growing evidence base that
this can also deliver signiicant beneit to lo-
cal communities. For example, CAA analy-
sis of London City’s airspace modernisation
in 2016 showed that the number of people
overlown by aircraft at 7,000ft and below
had been reduced by 1.2m.
The report for the Government shows
that airspace modernisation is feasible and
has beneits for local communities, pas-
sengers and the environment, while also ac-
commodating any future growth.
NATS has , therefore, been tasked with
coordinating and delivering this huge
programme, which involves up to 15
airports in south-east England. All of them
will be working closely together to ensure
the delivery of the very best options for
change that modern technologies allow.
In the words of a spokesman, “With
a further 700,000 lights expected by
2030, we also need to ensure they can be
accommodated safely and sustainably,
without signiicant delays and cancellations,
providing the connectivity for an open and
global Britain.”
The new digital light strip system
at Bristol Airport (Proile: RadioUser,
September 2018: 19) incorporates the
airport’s tower and approach services,
which handle over 75,000 lights per year,
carrying more than 8.5 million passengers
to destinations across Europe and beyond.
The roll-out follows the system’s
previous, successful, implementations
at Belfast International, Belfast City and
Farnborough Airports. Here, controllers
stopped using paper strips to record
aircraft information, in favour of electronic
RadioUser March 2019
 Airband News

ATC Profiles 11: Cardiff Airport

The new electronic light information
ICAO Code: EGFF I ATA Code: CWL system delivers beneits in infrastructure
costs, as well as enhancing the way in
which airport towers can transfer and share
Frequencies (MHz) Hours of Operation
Cardiff Approach 119.150 H24 data from the same single database.
Cardiff Approach/Radar 125.855 As directed by ATC In Bristol’s case, EFPS will also improve
Cardiff Tower 133.100 H24
the airport’s stand-management system
ATIS after it successfully passes integration
Cardiff Information 132.480 H24 (Tel: 01446-729319)
testing. The new system will also be intro-
duced at Southampton, Cardiff and London
Navaids ILS CAT I on Runway 30
NDB CDF 388.500kHz City airports. It means that the controllers’
workloads are reduced; this is seen to be
Runways 12 2354m x 45m
30 2354m x 45m bringing safety and capacity beneits, be-
Holds CDF NDB cause controllers have more time to handle
Notes (A-Z) more lights and monitor increased levels
CAT II/III Operations of air trafic.
Cardiff Airport is not equipped for Cat II/III operations. However Low-Visibility Procedures (LVPs) are used to protect
Cat I operations. LVPs will commence when RVR (Runway Visual Range) or Met visibility falls to 800m or less. Since 2010, the UK ATS Route Network
inside Controlled Airspace (CAS) has been
Continuous Descent Approaches
Subject to ATC instructions, inbound aircraft are to maintain as high an altitude as practical and adopt a continuous promulgated as RNAV-5, with all aircraft re-
descent proile, when appropriate. ATC will advise pilots of an estimate of the track distance to run to a touchdown quiring RNAV-5 capability, unless specii-
as soon as possible after the irst call on the approach frequency.
cally exempted. RNAV 5 (Area Navigation
Frequency Monitoring Code (FMC)
Pilots operating in the vicinity of, but intending to remain outside, Cardiff controlled airspace and maintaining 5) permits the steering of aircraft along any
a listening watch only on Cardiff Approach frequency, 119.150MHz, are encouraged to select SSR code 3636. desired path within the coverage of ground-
Selection of 3636 does not imply the receipt of an ATC service. Aircraft displaying the code are not expected to
contact Cardiff. While squawking 3636, pilots should be aware that Cardiff Approach may make blind transmissions
or space-based navigational aids. This
in order to ascertain a particular aircraft’s intentions/route. When a pilot ceases to maintain a listening watch, code happens within the capability of self-con-
3636 should be deselected.
tained aids or by means of a combination
Ground Movement of both methods.
Departing aircraft on the irst contact with Cardiff ATC must state aircraft type, stand number and the code letter of
the latest ATIS received. Pilots of departing aircraft are reminded to contact Cardiff Tower for clearance 10 minutes For reasons too complex to describe
before star- up. One-way trafic low system Southside using holding points G and H. The access through holding here, designating the routes below FL
points G and H is restricted to one aircraft movement at a time. When Runway 30 is the notiied runway in use,
aircraft will line up via holding point H and vacate though holding point G, unless otherwise instructed by ATC. When 245 as airways did not conform to ICAO
runway 12 is the notiied runway in use aircraft will line up via holding point G and vacate via holding point H, unless (International Civil Aviation Organisation)
otherwise instructed by ATC. During Low-Visibility Procedures, access to and from the runway in use will be via H.
standards. Under ICAO, such routes are
Handling Agents
Handling for all aircraft is mandatory:
designated as Control Areas (CTAs) and
Swissport (Commercial): 131.555MHz the UK has now adopted this terminology.
Signature Flight Support (Executive GA and Cargo: 131.615MHz Simultaneously, for further simpliication,
Aeros Flying Club.
it is proposed to remove the ‘U’ designa-
Helicopter Operations
A helicopter set-down point (marked with an ‘H’) is situated on taxiway Alpha, to the south of Stand 12. Helicopters tor preix associated with Upper RNAV Air
will be required to ground taxi or hover for parking, as instructed by ATC. Trafic Services (ATS) Routes.
RAF St Athan The European Safedrone Project will
The attention of pilots of aircraft inbound to Runway 12, or outbound from Runway 30, at Cardiff Airport, is drawn to carry out one of the largest European light
the close proximity of St Athan aerodrome and the St Athan Local Flying Zone (LFZ) to the Cardiff arrival/departure
tracks. Pilots of VFR aircraft to/from Cardiff Airport may be required by Cardiff ATC to enter/leave the Control Zone demonstrations of drones and conven-
at Visual Reference Points which avoid the St Athan Local Flying Zone. Additionally, St Athan-based aircraft may tional aircraft sharing airspace at a low
carry out aerobatic manoeuvres and other unusual activities above, within and below the western part of the Cardiff
Control Area. Pilots operating in the St Athan LFZ are responsible for maintaining their own visual separation from level. The project aims to unleash the ca-
other aircraft, including aircraft on inal approach to Runway 12 and departing from Runway 30 at Cardiff, which are pability of unmanned aircraft to provide all
in close proximity to the LFZ (Trafic information will be passed by St Athan ATC).
kinds of services in rural areas and cities in
Use of Runways
Circuit direction is normally to the north. the next decade.
Funded by the EU, the project is launched
Visual Reference Points (VRP)
Cardiff Docks; Clatworthy Reservoir; Flat Holm Lighthouse; Lavernock Point; Llandegfedd Reservoir; M4 Junction 24; by a consortium led by Spanish technology
M4 Junction 36 (Services north of Bridgend); Minehead; Nash Point Lighthouse; Old Severn Bridge (M48); St Hilary and consultancy company Indra. It compris-
TV Mast; Taff Ely Wind Farm.
es of the Centre for Advanced Aerospace
Warnings
Pilots are reminded of the close proximity of RAF St Athan to the west north west of Cardiff Airport (see above). Technologies (FADA-CATEC), Israel
Pilots are warned, when landing on Runway 30 in strong west to southwesterly winds, of the possibility of terrain- Aerospace Industries (IAI), the Unily (EU)
induced turbulence on short inal. Due to the possibility of turbulence caused by hangar north east of Runway 12
threshold, caution should be exercised during periods of strong northwesterly to northeasterly winds. Single-engine
Project, the University of Seville, ENAIRE (air
aircraft should avoid overlying the chemical complex at Barry. trafic management and navigation servic-
es state-owned company) and CRIDA (ATM
Research, Development and Innovation
light progress data. They used a new hub- drive operational screens in connected Reference Centre).
and-spoke system architecture. airports. This removes the need for every https://www.unily.aero/eu-projects
While the concept of electronic strips is airport tower to host its own, locally- It will develop a series of innova-
not new, all NATS hub-and-spoke systems installed, servers and the provision of tive services, forming what is known
link to a centralised set of data servers to individual data links at a speciic site. as the ‘U-Space’.

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RadioUser March 2019 21
Airband News

A Boeing 777-300 A7-BAQ, of Qatar Airways, at Manchester.

This will facilitate access for drones
to airspace extending from the ground to
120m in height.
The Safedrone demonstrations will deine
the operational context for these services.
Exercises will involve up to eight aircraft
of different types – drones, light aircraft
and helicopters – lying simultaneously in
the same airspace.
They includes beyond-visual-line-of-sight
(BVLOS) operations in rural and semi-urban
areas, recreating situations such as delivery
of medical supplies, aerial mapping and electronic identiication, planning and
land surveying. light approval) as well as in-light services
All the tests and lights will take place at (geo-limitation or geo-fencing, light
the Atlas Experimental Flight Centre locat- tracking, dynamic airspace information and
ed in Villacarrillo, Spain. automatic technologies to detect and avoid
https://tinyurl.com/y75mumpz obstacles), in order to provide evidence to
Maintaining security levels in air support the safe integration of drones in
operations at very low altitude will require VLL operations.
a very high degree of digitalisation and My monthly pictures are of a Boeing
automation of a large number of functions. 777-300 A7-BAQ of Qatar Airways, at
Safedrone aims to deine and detail Manchester and of an Airbus A-317
prelight services (electronic registration, D-ABGQ of Eurowings at Manchester.

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 Maritime Matters

COURTESY OF XOCEAN
Channels, Modes
and MSI Broadcasts
Robert Connolly traces the historical reasons for the organisation of the
maritime VHF band, explains Simplex, Duplex and Link Call, examines
Private Channels and QRM, and monitors HF MSI and NAVTEX.

Fig.1: Royal Gibraltar Police vessel Sir John Chapple.

Robert Connolly Back then transceivers used crystals for a receive-only frequency (Y).
gi7ivx@btinternet.com the various channels, and consideration You may be asking why some channels
had to be given as to which channels users are using duplex rather than simplex mode.

T
he newcomer to monitoring ma-
rine VHF radio transmissions of-
ten inds that the organisation of
the marine VHF band is slightly
confusing, due to some of the
higher channels interspaced between the
lower channels.
Historical reasons are responsible for
this. The international marine VHF band
was initially set up shortly after the end of
World War Two, using the frequency range
of 156 to 162MHz. It consisted of just 28
channels, which were numbered consecu-
tively.
wanted to be installed in their equipment
since the various channels were assigned
to different uses, from port operations to
public correspondence, and from distress
and calling to inter-ship use.
It was not unusual to ind marine VHF
transceivers to be itted with just two or
three channels. The channels had a 25kHz
separation, and, while some were simplex,
others were duplex. Duplex means a station
A transmits on a certain frequency (X), and
station B only receives on that frequency
(X). To reply, station B transmits on a differ-
ent frequency (Y), and station A has this as
Simplex and Duplex
For an answer, we need to go back in his-
tory a little: Duplex stations were mainly
operated by the various former coast sta-
tions located around the UK, for example,
Portpatrick, Cullercoats, Niton and so on.
These were operated by the General Post
Ofice (GPO). The stations not only han-
dled general marine radio trafic, including
the broadcast of maritime safety informa-
tion and distress calls, but were also used
to handle ships’ telegrams, and (later)
ship-to-shore telephone calls. They were

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RadioUser March 2019 23
 Maritime Matters

Channel Ship Ship There are some places where SAR tasks are
Number Transmit Receive MHz
difficult and complicated, due to sheer remoteness.
29
xx
157.450
157.475
162.050
162.075 The worst sea area for rescuing a casualty is,
30
xx
157.500
157.525
162.100
162.125 arguably, the Southern Ocean
31 157.550 162.150 1
xx 157.575 162.175
32 157.600 162.200
xx 157.625 162.225 also receiving weather information from of available channels without having to ex-
33 157.650 162.250 ships that were registered with the World tend the actual band.
xx 157.675 162.275 Metrological Organisation (WMO) as vol-
34 157.700 162.300
xx 157.725 162.325 untary observation stations (VOS). They Private Channels
35 157.750 162.350 passed on current weather observation de- When you look at the international marine
xx 157.775 157.775 tails for their current position every three VHF channels available on a marine trans-
xx 157.775 162.375
36 157.800 162.400 hours. These data were then used to pro- ceiver, you will see that channel numbers
xx 157.825 162.425 duce a more comprehensive marine weath- run from one to 28, and then from 60 to
37 (M1) 157.850 157.8502 er report and forecast information. 88. Furthermore, there are also channels
xx 157.875 162.475
38 157.900 162.500 In this context, the use of duplex chan- that run from 29 to 59. These are desig-
xx 157.925 162.525 nels was mainly meant to facilitate ship-to- nated as ‘private’ channels. They can be
39 157.950 162.550 shore telephone calls, or ‘link calls’ as they used by shipping companies, ferry opera-
xx 157.975 162.575
40 158.000 162.600 were then referred to. tors, marinas, some ish processing facto-
xx 158.025 162.625 ries, and similar businesses, for operational
41 158.050 162.650 Link Calls communications with their own vessels.
xx 158.075 158.075
xx 158.075 162.675 A ship could call a coast station and re- Like Channel 0 (156.0MHz, the main UK
42 158.100 162.700 quest a link call to a particular landline tel- Coastguard private channel) these do not
xx 158.125 162.725 ephone number. This may have been the appear on normal marine VHF transceivers,
43 158.150 162.750
xx 158.175 158.175 telephone number of their company, ship- as they are not part of the oficial interna-
44 158.200 162.800 ping agent or even a crew member’s family. tional channels available.
xx 158.225 158.225 Once the shore station had established the If a shipping company has been issued
xx 158.225 162.825
45 158.250 162.850 landline connection, it called the ship con- with a license for private ship/shore chan-
xx 158.275 162.875 cerned and patch the land-line call through nels, any channels it may have been allocat-
46 158.300 162.900 via radio link. Using duplex frequencies ed can, of course, be programmed into the
xx 158.325 162.925
47 158.350 162.950 eliminated the requirement for each party company’s transceivers.
xx 158.375 162.975 having to say ‘over’ during the exchange, Private channels can be either simplex
48 158.400 163.000 and the system operated more like an ex- or duplex depending on the user’s require-
xx 158.425 158.425
xx 158.425 163.025 tension to the telephone service. ments.
49 158.450 163.050 Landline users were also able to call a Table 1 shows the frequencies used for
xx 158.475 158.475 particular ship, by means of contacting a private channels.
xx 158.475 163.075
50 158.500 163.100 shore station with details of the vessel they It is worth mentioning that using a shore-
51 158.550 163.150 wanted to call. Normally, after the coast sta- based transmitter for the marine VHF band
52 158.600 163.200 tion broadcast the weather forecast and is subject to a completely different Ofcom
53 158.650 163.250
54 158.700 163.300 maritime safety information (MSI), it would license and is not covered by the ‘normal’
55 158.750 163.350 broadcast a list of ships’ names that they marine VHF license for ships. If you live on
56 158.800 163.400 had ‘trafic on hand’ for; once the ship had the coast and have a friend or relation who
99 160.600 160.6003
xx 161.125 161.125 made contact, the coast station made the is frequently at sea, and if you thought it
xx 161.150 161.150 landline connection and linked it through may be a great idea to put a cheap marine
xx 161.175 161.175 via radio. VHF transceiver in your house, in order that
xx 161.200 161.200
xx 161.225 161.2254 It was not until 1972 – when the band you may chat to your friend while s/he is at
xx 161.250 161.250 was re-organised due to enhanced usage sea, then forget it, as you do require a differ-
xx 161.275 161.275 – that channel separation was reduced ent license in that case.
xx 161.300 161.300
xx 161.325 161.325 from 25 to 12.5kHz. This allowed additional However, there is nothing to prevent you
xx 161.350 161.350 channels to be itted into the available gaps from installing a CB transceiver for those
xx 161.375 161.375 generated, and it doubled the available fre- chats; CB frequencies propagate very well
xx 161.400 161.4005
M2 161.425 161.4256 quencies, without having to extend the allo- over water.
xx 161.450 161.4507 cated band.
In a similar vein, last year we saw the in- Antennas and QRM
1. (RNLI lifeboat to boat-house) 2. (UK Marinas and Yacht Clubs)
3. (HM Coastguard land SAR & training) 4. (Old M3 channel)
troduction of a number of newly available Regular readers will recall that my main re-
5. (Radio Navigation) 6. (UK Yacht Clubs) 7. Private onboard comms channels. This was done by separating ceiving antenna, a Datong AD370, suffered
some of the unused duplex channels into physical and water ingress damage during
Table 1: Frequencies in use for private VHF two separate simplex channels. This tech- a recent storm. Despite having replaced
marine channels. nique, once again, augmented the number several suspect components, unfortunate-

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24 RadioUser March 2019

ly, it is still out of action, due to lack of time
available in the run-up to Christmas to carry
out further tests.
In its place is a mini whip antenna cov-
ering 20kHz to 30MHz. That antenna is
working reasonably well (not as well as
the Datong though) on frequencies above
1.5MHz. Below that, everything is wiped
out, due to severe noise. In the past week
– in an attempt to reduce noise levels at
the lower frequencies – I put in a couple of
ground radials. This has reduced the noise
threshold to below 500kHz, enabling me to
re-commence Navtex monitoring, although
I am suffering severe QRM. The latter origi-
nates in a neighbour’s sodium security light,
which operates between 1700 and 2330
UTC, at which time it seems to switch off
automatically.
‘Sabotaging’ it keeps running through my
mind, but his son is an electrician and he
would quickly discover me. I will, however,
have a chat with them, as we are quite good
neighbours, to see if, between us, this prob-
lem can be resolved. It has been a problem
for quite a while, although I initially thought
that the culprit was an elderly neighbour’s
television. It was only when I was using a
handheld NDB radio direction inder that I
established that it was, in fact, the securi-
ty light. However, it does now leave 518kHz
clear for overnight reception.
Over the coming weeks, I hope to carry
out further work to get my receiving anten-
nas up to the usual reception standards for
here.
Bahrain-Boston-Simiutaq: Re-
cent HF MSI Observations
I have recently been playing with HF MSI
and, as a test, I have left the gear running
24/7 on several HF MSI frequencies, us-
ing my SeaTTY decoder software. The irst
frequency I left running for several days
was 8416.5kHz, and it was regularly receiv-
ing the 0300 UTC MSI transmission from
Buenos Aires, Argentina.
In addition to this, on several nights it
also received partial transmissions from
their 0030 UTC broadcast, but the 0300 UTC
transmission was better here. I also tried
Buenos Aires on their 12579kHz frequency
and again received their 0300 transmission,
although this was more broken, compared
with the 8416.5kHz frequency. Moreover,
on 12579kHz, the 0715 UTC MSI transmis-
sion from UAT Moscow was being received
on a regular basis, although I was not re-
ceiving their 1915 UTC transmission on
8431.5kHz.
Interestingly, I did not receive any MSI
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RadioUser March 2019
transmissions from North America during
my recent intensive monitoring period.
Other previous HF MSI broadcasts that
have been received here were as follows:
Boston USA 0140 UTC on 6314 kHz, 8416.5
kHz, and 12579 kHz; Honolulu 0730 UTC
on 8416.5 kHz; Iqaluit Canada 0330 UTC
on 8416.5 kHz; and Comodoro Rivadavia
Argentina 2300 UTC on 8416.5 kHz.
Being able to receive 518kHz Navtex sig-
nals again threw up a couple of interest-
ing catches. Bahrain, in Navarea 9, using
time slot B is receivable here from time to
time, and a couple of nights running in early
January, its 0010 UTC transmission was re-
ceived here quite well. However, there was a
surprise, when the 0200 UTC transmission
from Simiutaq, Greenland, using time slot M
in Navarea 4, was received here for the irst
time, although there was no sign of other
North American stations.
Denny O’Dwyer from Limerick in the
Republic of Ireland reported receiving
Bahrain’s 2010 UTC transmission and tells
me that he was using an Alinco DX RAT / E
receiver and a BOG beverage on-the-ground
antenna, with his SeaTTY software.
Transmission News and Updates
Now for a few updates for DSC listeners:
Snargate Radio, a marine radio training
school located in the south of England, has
ceased its MF and HF DSC test acknowl-
edgements and has been deleted from the
Admiralty List of Radio Signals (ALRS).
For Navtex monitors, Navarea 1, Tallinn,
has been transmitting on 518kHz, using
time slot T for a while now. In Navarea 3.
Tunisia (using time slot T) is out of service;
Malta is providing temporary coverage for
that area on time slot T, in addition to their
own scheduled slot of O.
Bandimara (Turkey) has an addition-
al transmitter on 478kHz. It is using CW,
with transmissions at 0700 and 1900 UTC.
In Navarea 4, Santa Maria is testing on
518kHz, using time slot C. A recent new
Navtex catch for me here in January was
Simiutaq, Greenland in Navarea 4, using
time slot M (see the previous section).
Turning to HF MSI, Hammerfest
(Norway) is transmitting on 4210, 6425 and
8416.5kHz at 0645, 1115, 1845 and 2315
UTC. Constanta, Romania also has a CW
service, using 446.5kHz at 0650, 1250, and
1850 UTC.
In Navarea 1, new 518kHz transmitters
are planned for Butt of Lewis, Scotland and
Riga, Latvia.
Furthermore, there are several new 490
kHz transmitters planned for Denmark,
Maritime Matters
Norway and Sweden, as you can see from
the following website:
www.dxinfocentre.com
A new 490 kHz transmitter is planned for
Split, Croatia. I have also heard reports that
Libya is currently testing its new 518kHz
transmitter, located at Surt, and using time
slot S. The un-approved Navarea 3 Navtex
transmissions from Cyprus-Turk Radio, us-
ing time slot E, still continue.
Rogue Waves and Electronics
As we are all aware, modern shipping is be-
coming more and more reliant on contem-
porary electronic technology, for example,
electronic charts and navigation systems.
Recently I watched a television programme
on the effect of ‘rogue waves’ on shipping.
Rogue waves are exceptionally high
waves; they might be up to 30 metres or
more in height.
For many years, rogue waves were
thought to be a very rare occurrence.
However, recent research has discovered
that they happen much more often. When
a vessel is hit by a rogue wave, it can wash
deck cargo, such as timber or containers,
overboard, punch in the bridge windows, or
even knock a vessel onto its side (this hap-
pened a cross channel ferry I was on one
night many years ago; it was rather frighten-
ing at the time). Either of the last two cases
will allow sea water to enter the vessel.
As we all know, water and electronics
are not a good mixture, with the electronics
normally coming off worse, by failing. A ves-
sel could ind itself in the position of hav-
ing been hit by a rogue wave that punched
out the bridge windows. This could allow
sea-water to enter the electronics on the
bridge, from where the electronic navigation
charts, GPS navigation system, and autopi-
lot are controlled.
This can result in all of those systems,
and others, failing. Currently, an experi-
enced skipper and his/her crew could prob-
ably still navigate the vessel, using basic
equipment, such as compass and manual
position plotting on paper charts. However, I
do wonder how a skipper and crew on a ves-
sel 15 or 20 years from now would manage
– it seems likely that they would have little
experience of using what would be deemed
‘old-fashioned’ navigation methods by then.
Finally, my thanks to Kevin Hewitt, for
kindly providing our monthly maritime pic-
ture (Fig. 1). It shows the Royal Gibraltar
Police vessel Sir John Chapple, one of four
vessels operated by the local police marine
unit there.
Until next time “fair winds”.
25
Emerging Issues in Radio
Chrissy Brand
chrissyLB@hotmail.co.uk
criticism often levelled at ra-
A dio broadcasts by some of the
younger generation concerns
their ‘restrictive’, ‘linear’, for-
mat. By ‘linear’, I mean that a
radio station’s traditional mode of operation
is to air a set amount of hours of program-
ming each day. Starting with a breakfast
show and progressing through the day, with
news bulletins on the hour, trafic updates,
drive time banter, and maybe a more chilled-
out evening show. Presenters and guests
come and go at the microphone, songs are
played but it’s all a steady, linear, progres-
sion from dawn to night time.
Until the ideas of streaming and listen-
ing on demand came about, the audience
had two choices: to dip in and out or to stay
tuned in through the entire schedule. Today,
thanks to listening to radio programmes
on Soundcloud, Mixcloud, BBC Sounds
and other apps and sites, the listener has
control. Don’t like a track or DJ? Jump
to the next one.
KRONEHIT Radio in Vienna has now
introduced a piece of technology that al-
lows you to do that with live radio! The
KRONEHIT Smart app won an App of the
Year Futurezone award. It is the irst live
radio app where the listener can skip and
rewind with a swipe. There are also four
channels or playlists to skip between. On
its release in 2017, a station spokesperson
stated, “Listeners now decide very personal-
ly what they want to hear. If a song in the cur-
rent radio programme is not liked, the user is
played another hit immediately after a skip.
However, packaging elements, beds, mod-
eration entries and advertising remain inte-
grated in the schedule without any changes
and thus remain available to the listener.”
KRONEHIT Radio (Figs. 1 and 2) reaches
one million listeners a day and is targeted at
a young, predominantly female, audience.
Along with Top 40 music, the station sup-
ports other genres, including KRONEHIT Our
House, an underground house music show
presented by Mathias Daniel.
Old to New
The old, tried-and-tested, method of linear
radio was never previously questioned –
why would it be? Radio was always some-
thing that progressed through the day,
along with the clock on the wall. Terming it
as ‘linear’ was never necessary. However,
with the recent advances in ideas and tech-
For the latest news and product reviews, visit www.radioenthusiast.co.uk
26
Non-Linear
Listeners
Take Control
Chrissy Brand looks at some key challenges radio
stations face in this age of almost infinite listener
choice. She also checks in with two programme
presenters.
CHRISSY BRAND
nology, traditional linear radio has become
somewhat alien to whole swathes of the
potential listening audiences.
This might sound strange to those who
grew up on a diet of Nicky Horne’s Your
Mother Wouldn’t Like It on Capital Radio, or
the John Peel Show on BBC Radio One. We
enjoyed being in the hands of respected
DJs for a few hours, listening to their sug-
gestions of new, often intelligent and pro-
gressive, music.
I still sometimes require being led by the
hand through music programmes, as differ-
ent talents are unearthed, for instance, on
BBC Radio Six, Radio Taiwan International’s
Jukebox Republic or WRMI Blues Radio
International. Otherwise, you’re only going
to listen to what you already know, which is
rather dull and doesn’t expand your mind or
knowledge. Is that also the case when peo-
ple listen to music and skip through tracks Fig. 1: KRONEHIT in Vienna aims for a younger
they don’t like? It might have been true a audience.
decade ago, but now we can be exposed to
all kinds of music all the time. most ininite. It’s not just the other commer-
Social media and music streams like cial station across town or the national BBC
Pandora, Deezer, Spotify and Apple Music network or Classic FM. Competition can
offer endless suggestions for music to try come from almost every broadcaster on
out that might be in the same genre or vibe the planet. It’s potentially every station from
that you like. Likewise, this can happen KFQD News Radio in Anchorage, Alaska to
through friends sharing new and old tracks Wellington Access Radio in New Zealand!
on social media, and via the self-promo- www.kfqd.com/podcasts
tion of bands and individual artists. There www.accessradio.org.nz
are now many ways to discover more mu- When you add to that the tens of thou-
sic, including radio – but also increasingly sands of podcasters, it’s no surprise that
going beyond it. your local FM station (“all the hits, all the
Having a wider choice of radio stations time”), is breaking into a cold sweat, as
available is progress, and it keeps present- they look over their shoulder to see chas-
ers, producers, and entire stations on their ing competitors, eating into advertising rev-
toes. The competition in radio is now al- enues. With the advent of the connected car
RadioUser March 2019
 Emerging Issues in Radio

CHRISSY BRAND

I’m sick of hearing the

same sounds over and
over. Plant nothing new,
nothing new grows!

and an ability to access anything you want

to hear on your in-car entertainment sys-
tem, not just what happens to be on the FM
or DAB bands, the listener is at the controls
– in more ways than one.
At the International Radio Festival in
Malta (RadioUser: January 2019: 60-62), I
spoke with Hattie Pearson from Hits Radio
Manchester (Fig. 3). She presented her Hits
Chilled show at the festival, an innovative
concept of playing alternate mixes of well-
known songs. I asked how life had been at
Hits Music since it subsumed legendary
Manchester station Key 103 (which itself
started as Piccadilly Radio in 1974) earlier
in 2018. Hattie told me there was an inevita-
ble transition period, but she acknowledged
the huge heritage of Key 103 that Hits had
inherited and was mindful of. That was
good to hear, Brand loyalty exists and goes
a long way, but listeners can be ickle when
there is so much choice on offer.
www.mixcloud.com/IRF
https://tinyurl.com/ycymcqae
I agree with Eighties superstar Boy
George when he tweeted, in January, “More
radio DJs need to break free and start
championing new acts. Unsigned acts. Not
just the pretend alternative (secretly) cor-
porate bands. I’m sick of hearing the same
sounds over and over. Plant nothing new,
nothing new grows!”

Talented Presenters
The proliferation of podcasts and radio
programmes continues apace. Most radio
stations use their current on-the-air talent
to front additional audio material that gets
put out on social media. However, the thou-
sands of independent podcasts and pro-
grammes on internet-only stations are of-
ten presented by new talent.
Many wannabe DJs and radio present-
ers are able to hone their skills, by means of
broadcasting or podcasting to a small au-
dience. This way they can gain experience
and, they hope, the programme they front
will develop a loyal following. Many of these
presenters have other day jobs and turn to
a stint behind the microphone in their spare
time. Maybe it’s a case of that old adage if
you want something doing then give it to a
busy person. Podcasters can rise from be-
Fig. 2: KRONEHIT is the most popular private station in Austria.
ing bedroom broadcasters to global, or at
the very least, cult stars.
I recently met Juliet Harris, who works
in the legal world but still inds time and
enthusiasm to present radio shows and
podcasts, as well as being a DJ (she is also
one-half of DJ duo Sheilas Take a Bow) and
performing in a band called Go! Boadicea.
Juliet has hosted a number of radio pro-
grammes including Indie Wonderland on
Barricade Radio, a weekly stroll through the
land of Indie, Alt-Rock and miscellaneous
music. She has also been the presenter of
The Saturday Soulcial, a blast of northern
soul, Motown and 1960s RnB to start off
your Saturday evening. Barricade Radio is
an internet station that specialises in al-
ternative dance music, although, sadly, it
closed late last year.
As an eight-year-old, Juliet created radio
shows at home, recording songs from the
radio and speaking in between. She can’t re-
member a time when she didn’t listen to the
radio, starting with Southern Sound Radio
(a Brighton-based station in the 1980s and
1990s) and later on, Heart FM.

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RadioUser March 2019 27
Emerging Issues in Radio
Fig. 3: Hattie Pearson in the DJ booth presenting Hits Chilled.
She regrets not getting involved with stu-
dent radio at university, but it doesn’t seem
to have hindered her. Juliet can clearly turn
her hand to anything; that she even spent
a short time in stand-up comedy is prov-
ing the case. A radio breakthrough came
during 2011 with local community station
Hastings Rock (the longest RSL station in
the UK, which will be in its 26th annual year
of transmission this spring). Juliet was
asked to present a show on women in rock
music history, from Joni Mitchell to Anna
Calvi. This led to a show in each of the four
weeks that the station licence permits.
Juliet honed her craft, learning how to
present without a producer, along with other
necessary radio skills, such as talking natu-
rally to the clock and building an audience,
She had a spell on ARFM, a mostly rock, in-
ternet station (now based in Nottingham)
where she hosted the A to Z of Indie
music programme.
The station was of an impressive pedi-
gree, earning a runner-up spot in the best in-
ternet-only station category at the European
Radio Awards back in 2007. ARFM had
For the latest news and product reviews, visit www.radioenthusiast.co.uk
28
170,000 listeners per month, with 8,700 be-
ing the highest recorded igure for a single
show. This is a huge number, in internet-on-
ly radio terms, especially twelve years ago.
www.arfm.co.uk
Juliet’s Indie Wonderland is recorded as
live and then archived on a Mixcloud chan-
nel. She is proud that it attracts a world-
wide fan base, with listeners as far away
as Canada and New York. She operates a
cheap but effective set up at home, with a
laptop, microphone, an Ableton Live soft-
ware music sequencer and a digital au-
dio workstation.
www.mixcloud.com/julietlharris
Tony Davies is another local radio pre-
senter I have befriended. He is involved in
two regular, short-term Restricted Service
License (RSL) stations in Hastings, Festival
Radio and Hastings Rock, as well as in hos-
pital radio. His latest venture sets him free
from any playlists, in an online show of
rock music and news
http://1066sound.com
Tony said, “It’s a more holistic view of
the music scene, with no restrictions, just
INTERNATIONAL RADIO FESTIVAL
me enjoying myself. There will be inter-
views with bands and fans, local acts, con-
certs and reviews.”
Tony mixes old favourites, lesser-known
songs from big names and – best of all in
my view – songs from up-and-coming or
smaller bands. I enjoyed hearing Far Behind
from Seattle band Candlebox and Homeboy
by Susto, who formed in Havana and are
now based in Charleston.
Radio Events
WORLDWIDE RADIO SUMMIT Burbank,
California, USA, March 27th to 29th
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RADIODAYS EUROPE Lausanne,
Switzerland, March 31st to April 2nd
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HOSPITAL BROADCASTING
ASSOCIATION RADIO CONFERENCE AND
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www.hbauk.com/conference
RadioUser March 2019
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Feature
The British Amateur
Television Club (BATC)
Dave Crump presents an introduction to digital
amateur television and profiles the British
Amateur Television Club (BATC), including its
main activities and its newsletter CQ-DATV.
Dave Crump, G8GKQ
dave.g8gkq@gmail.com
any readers will have heard
M of DX-TV – the activity of
receiving TV broadcast
stations from outside your
area. This magazine is
running columns on both general DXTV
reception and special topics.
Well, there are other TV signals that you
can look out for in the amateur radio bands.
For the latest news and product reviews, visit www.radioenthusiast.co.uk
30
The normal amateur radio licence
allows the transmission of television on
those bands, where there is suficient
frequency space. There are a few hundred
radio amateurs in the UK who have
built equipment to transmit amateur TV
(ATV, Fig. 1) and a number of ‘always-on’
amateur TV repeaters.
A Little History
Amateur television started in the late
1940s, using 405-line black and white
pictures on the 70 cm band. Much of
the equipment was built using ex-War
Department kit, and early pictures were
generated by lying spot scanners, with the
staticon tubes then required to build TV
cameras not being available (at ‘amateur’-
prices) until 1952.
Fig. 2 shows Ian Waters G6KKD/T,
transmitting TV in 1964.
Amateur TV thrived on 70cm and on the
higher bands, using the 405-line standard
in the 1950s and 1960s. In the mid-70s, it
followed the BBC and ITV in adopting the
625-line standard.
It was not long before regular amateur
colour transmissions started. These
used false-colour images generated from
black and white pictures (think: Top of
The Pops special effects) or home-built
RadioUser March 2019
 Feature

There are a few hundred

radio amateurs in the
UK who have built
equipment to transmit
amateur TV (ATV) and
a number of always-on
amateur TV repeaters 2 3

colour TV cameras.
As frequency space in the 70cm band
for colour AM ATV transmissions became
more restricted (the band used to be
420–450MHz but was reduced to 432–
440MHz to be shared between all amateur
users), FM ATV transmissions on 23cm
(1240–1325MHz) became more popular,
especially as they could be received on the 5

Satellite TV receivers of the day.

Now that satellite and terrestrial
broadcast TV have moved to digital,
amateur TV has followed. Initial tests
conducted in 2002 proved that the DVB-S
standard, initially intended to be used for
satellite broadcasting, was robust enough 4

for terrestrial ATV. It was also much easier

to transmit and receive than DVB-T using What Can You Expect To See?
ex-broadcast equipment. And it had the As with voice transmissions, there is
added advantage that colour TV with a requirement that the station callsign 6

sound could, once again, be squeezed must be transmitted every 15 minutes;

into the 70cm band.
Recent Developments
Using modiied satellite receiving
equipment, and custom-built computer-
based transmitters, it has become
possible to develop a lower-bandwidth
version of the DVB-S standard, known
as Reduced-Bandwidth TV (RB-TV). It
can squeeze a good colour picture into
500KHz of spectrum.
This technology has allowed UK radio
amateurs to transmit colour TV in the
experimental bands of 146–147MHz and,
more recently, from 70.5 to 71.5MHz.
There has also been a lot of ATV
activity on the 6cm band recently. Many
of the ‘irst-person-view’ transmitters
and receivers sold for use on drones will
tune to 5665MHz, which is within the
6cm amateur band.
These transmit analogue FM and are a
really cheap way to get on the air with ATV.
that, combined with the fact that many
constructors want to make technical
adjustments, means that a lot of test cards
are transmitted.
Once the contact is established (usually
after making contact on the ATV voice
calling channel of 144.75MHz FM), most
operators will switch to the camera
in their shack and show the receiving
station and the progress of their latest
construction project.
If the station is operating from a portable
location, views of the portable station
and the countryside are popular. Fig. 3
shows a typical, electronically-produced
amateur test card.
Some stations show recordings of
events they have attended. However,
as with all amateur radio transmissions
(except GB2RS), broadcasting is not
permitted. Therefore, the content is very
much on a one-to-one basis, and normal
copyright and decency rules apply.
Fig. 1: 24GHz portable digital ATV operation.
Fig.2: Ian Waters G6KKD/T, transmitting
TV in 1964 Fig. 3: A typical, electronically-
produced, amateur TV test card.
Fig. 4: Some typical ATV Aerials for 2m, 70,
23 and 3cm. Fig. 5: ATV Repeater GB3VL,
which has its aerials on Lincoln Cathedral.
Fig. 6: The author, as received (on 10GHz)
using a MiniTiouner and the MiniTioune
software.
Where and When to Look
The most common frequencies and modes
for simplex operation are listed in Table 1.
The best starting point to listen to – or
call for – activity is on 144.75MHz, which is
the NBFM Voice ATV talkback channel.
Most amateurs equipped for TV are
monitoring this channel, and a number of
ATV repeaters transmit the audio from this
channel on one of their audio carriers.
Although ATV activity can happen at any

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RadioUser March 2019 31
Feature

time, once a month the BATC organises

‘activity-weekends’. These generally take
place on the irst or second weekend of the
month and provide an incentive for ATV
operators to go out portable, or to make a
special effort to get on the air from home.
Fig. 1 shows 24GHz portable digital ATV
operation during an activity weekend.
There are always discussions about who
is going where, and at what time, on the
BATC Forum beforehand.
https://forum.batc.org.uk

ATV Repeaters
Another interesting starting point is to
look for your local ATV repeater. Most
of these transmit 24/7, with a ‘carousel’
of information, and with pictures being
displayed when there are no incoming
images to be relayed.
Table 2 shows some of the more active
repeaters. In Fig. 5, you can see the ATV 7

Repeater GB3VL, which has its aerials on

Lincoln Cathedral.
Repeaters such as this one can be
also be viewed on the internet. They are
streamed by the BATC on their streaming
page at this URL:
https://batc.org.uk/live

What Equipment Do I Need?

The most important parts of the receiving
station are the aerial and preampliier. 8 9

There is no difference here between the

equipment that you would require for voice
operation and that required for TV. Just
make sure that it covers the right frequency
and that you can point the aerial directly at
the transmitting station.
For 2m, 70cms, 23cms and 13cms, a Yagi
aerial is best. For the higher microwave
bands, a dish will be required.
The image in Fig. 4 is of some typical
ATV Aerials for 2m, 70, 23 and 3cm.
In terms of the receiver, you can use an
old FM satellite receiver to receive FM TV
transmissions on 23cm directly. Similarly,
you can use a free-to-air digital satellite
receiver (not a Sky receiver) to receive the
digital transmissions on 23 cm.
For the higher bands, you will need a
downconverter. Normal C-band LNBs work
well for receiving 9cm, and modiied Ku-
band LNBs can be used for 3cm.
To operate on 6 cm, the best option
is to purchase a cheap irst-person-
view transmitter and receiver from eBay;
make sure that they can be tuned to
5665MHz (generally, the 32-channel and
48-channel ones can).
Using very small aerials, some 10km line-
of-sight paths can easily be covered.
Using dish aerials, a range of more than
100km has been achieved.
Receiving and Transmitting
Reduced-Bandwidth TV
Reduced-bandwidth TV (RB-TV) is an
extension of the commercial DVB-S
and DVB-S2 standards to enable lower
symbol rates and narrower bandwidth
transmissions. The commercial standards
specify a minimum symbol rate of 1
million symbols/second (1MS); amateur
experiments have proved that pictures can
still be transmitted at symbol rates as low
as 66,000 symbols/second (66KS).
Reducing the bandwidth allows the
transmissions to be itted into crowded or
narrow bands and increases the signal-to-
noise ratio, allowing contacts over longer
distances, or the use of reduced power.
Picture quality does reduce at lower
symbol rates – but it is better than no
picture at all.
To receive RB-TV, Jean-Pierre F6DZP has
designed some software to be used with
a satellite tuner and a USB interface with a
Fig. 7: A Lime SDR Mini Transmitting TV,
driven by a Raspberry-Pi Portsdown. Fig.
8: The BATC Logo. Fig. 9: The MiniTiouner
digital TV receiver with a PC interface. Fig.
10: The BATC Stand at Friedrichshafen in
June 2018.
PC; it is called MiniTioune.
Fig. 6 shows the author, as received
(on 10GHz) using a MiniTiouner and the
MiniTioune software. And in Fig. 9, you
can see a homebuilt MiniTiouner digital TV
receiver with a PC interface.
Full details of the system, which can
also receive normal DVB-S and DVB-S2
signals, are here:
https://wiki.batc.org.uk/MiniTioune
ATV transmission is normally
accomplished by generating the
transmitted signal at a low power level, and
simply using a linear ampliier to boost the
signal up to the required level, or by feeding
it to a transverter and linear ampliier for the
higher microwave bands.
Digital ATV signals can be generated
by SDRs or by using specialist

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32 RadioUser March 2019
 Feature

available to download – Ed.].

The BATC also hosts a website:
https://batc.org.uk
Furthermore, there is a forum and some
further resources for helping to distribute
information about the hobby.
The BATC also runs a video streamer
service for members and ATV repeaters.
Fig. 8 is an image of the BATC logo.
Additionally, the BATC represents
the needs of amateur TV enthusiasts
to OFCOM and the RSGB. This
representation has been key to the release
of the new 146MHz and 71MHz bands
for amateur use.
The club runs a small online shop selling
hard-to-get parts and printed circuit boards
for ATV projects.
10 Our members also run stands at major
radio rallies, demonstrating amateur TV
Band Frequencies Modes
and answering questions.
2 Metres 144.75MHz NBFM Amateur TV Voice Talkback
2 Metres 146.5MHz RB-TV 333 KS, RB-TV 125 KS You can join online or at a rally, which
70 cm 437.0MHz DVB-S 1MS, DVB-S 2 MS gives you access to the latest issues of CQ-
23 cm 1255.0MHz FM-TV, DVB-S 1 MS, 2 MS and 4MS DATV, as well as the shop items.
6 cm 5665.0MHz FM-TV Fig. 10 shows the BATC stand at the
.... 1: The most common frequencies and modes for simplex operation in ATV
Table Friedrichshafen Show in June 2018.
Location Callsign Frequency Mode
NW London GB3BH 10.065 GHz FM
What Next?
8 km NW Leicester GB3GV 1318.5 MHz DVB-S 4 MS 1/2 FEC The geostationary Es’hail-2 satellite, which
Kirk Merrington, Co Durham GB3KM 3406 MHz DVB-S 2 MS 7/8 FEC was launched on 15 November 2018,
Norwich GB3NV 3406 MHz DVB-S 2 MS 5/6 FEC carries a dedicated transponder for digital
Anglesey GB3TM 1316 MHz DVB-S 4.167 MS amateur TV. This should be capable of
Tacolneston, Norfolk GB3TN 1316 MHz DVB-S being received on a 90cm dish anywhere
Shefield GB3TT 1310 MHz FM
in the UK; transmissions will require a
Dunstable Downs GB3TV 1318.5 MHz FM
slightly larger dish.
Dunstable GB3TZ 2326 MHz DVB-S 4 MS 3/4 FEC
Mow Cop GB3UD 1319 MHz DVB-S 4.167 MS FEC 1/2 More details will be published on the
Bath GB3UT 1311.5 MHz FM BATC Forum once testing has started.
Lincoln GB3VL 1310 MHz DVB-S 4MS 1/2 FEC Exciting times!
Mirield, West Yorkshire GB3YT 1316 MHz DVB-S 4MS 1/2 FEC
Bristol GB3ZZ 1316 MHz DVB-S 4MS 1/2 FEC [if you run a similar, or otherwise radio-
Table 2: Active ATV repeaters. related club, association or hobby-
group, I would like to hear from you for
(homebuilt) hardware. also available. a possible future proile in the pages of
There are 2 options currently available: TV contacts over distances between RadioUser – Ed.].
First, you can use a PC with the DATV 50 and 100km can easily be achieved.
Express software to drive a Lime SDR or During the recent tropospheric propagation Addendum: Free Membership for Students
a Pluto SDR. Full details of this option enhancement, ATV pictures were (31 January 2019)
are at this URL: exchanged between Devon and the The BATC is pleased to announce a new
https://tinyurl.com/y9qh33gn North York Moors on 2m and 3cm, at a ‘student membership’ category, open
Second, you can use a Raspberry Pi 3B distance of 407km. to anyone in full-time education. This
with a touchscreen and the Portsdown membership is being offered for 5 years,
software to drive a ‘Portsdown Filter Finding Out More free of charge, to students, with the aim of
Modulator Board’ or a Lime SDR. Again, The British Amateur Television Club attracting younger members to learn about
more details can be found at this website: (BATC) was formed in 1949 by a group amateur TV, one of the fastest-growing
https://tinyurl.com/ycoh7r2e of enthusiasts to encourage amateur technical areas of amateur radio. Students
The image in Fig. 7 is a Lime SDR television, and it currently has over 1,100 should apply using the online form at
Mini Transmitting TV, driven by a members worldwide. the URL below. Once your application is
Raspberry-Pi Portsdown. The club produce a quarterly magazine approved, you will be sent details of how to
The picture source can be a Webcam, (CQ-DATV - ISSN 2059-2191). obtain the free-of-charge membership from
Pi Camera or a normal video camera. [At the time of writing, the February 2019 the BATC on-line shop.
Software-generated test cards are issue, and an Index-Issue of CQ-DATV were https://batc.org.uk/student-membership

Why not visit our new online bookshop at www.radioenthusiast.co.uk/store

RadioUser March 2019 33
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DXTV Special

Space Dogs & Sputniks: The Path

to Satellite TV & Telstar (Part I)
Keith Hamer COURTESY OF THE NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRATION, TEXAS, USA.

Keith405625.kh1@gmail.com
Garry Smith
garry405625.gs@gmail.com

In the first instalment of their DXTV

Special series for 2019, Keith Hamer
and Garry Smith examine the tech-
nological and political preconditions,
which paved the way for early satellite
communications and preceded the first
Telstar Satellite.

Perhaps most non-technical people, if asked

what they know about ‘Telstar’, would prob-
ably say it was a number one instrumental
chart hit composed and produced by Joe
Meek and played by The Tornados.
Pop music buffs may even know that it
was recorded at RGM Sound in London and
released on August 17th, 1962 with Jungle
Fever featuring on the B side. This may all be
true, but avid readers of RadioUser will also
know that Telstar was a telecommunications
satellite, which provided the irst-ever ‘live’ tel-
evision transmissions between America and
Europe in 1962.
‘Telstar’ was, in fact, a more generic name
for various telecommunications satellites.
The irst two Telstar craft were virtually iden- 1

tical, and both were launched purely for ex- BELOW: KEITH HAMER+GARRY SMITH ARCHIVE COLLECTION.

perimental tests. The craft we are focusing

on in these articles was called ‘Telstar-1’. It
was launched atop a Thor-Delta rocket on
July 10th, 1962, from the Cape Canaveral Air
Force Station in Florida, USA (Fig. 1).
The spherical satellite had a diameter
of 88cm (approximately 35 inches) and
weighed 35kg (approximately 77lbs). Its suc-
cessor, Telstar-2, was launched a year later
on May 7th, 1963.
Telstar was by no means the irst satel- 2 3

lite to be placed into orbit. That honour went

Fig.1: Telstar-1 was launched atop a Thor-

Delta rocket on July 10th, 1962, from the Cape
Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida, USA.
Fig. 2: The Baikonur launch-pad in Kazakhstan.
Fig. 3: Sputnik-1 was launched on October 4th,
1957. Fig. 4: This rare off-screen photograph
shows Cosmonaut Yuri Alekseyevich Gagarin,
greeted in 1961 by the then Soviet leader, Nikita
Khrushchev. Fig. 5: The Russian Sputnik-1
spacecraft. 4 5

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36 RadioUser March 2019

A replica of Sputnik 1, the irst artiicial satellite in the world to be put into outer space.
to the former Soviet Union when it success-
fully launched Sputnik-1 (or Спутник-1 in
Russian), which literally means ‘companion’
or ‘satellite’ in the astronomical sense.
This was the World’s irst artiicial (that is,
man-made) satellite, and it measured only
58cm (22.8 inches) in diameter. It weighed
83.6kg (183.9lbs in old money) and its ellip-
tical path took approximately 98 minutes to
orbit the Earth.
USSR: First into Space
It was on October 4th, 1957, when the world
of telecommunications made a giant leap
forward. The Soviet Union had success-
fully launched Sputnik-1 and, in the pro-
cess, had beaten the USA in the space race.
The satellite didn’t actually do very much;
it mainly transmitted just a series of regu-
lar radio beeps and limited data, but it was
the irst step towards telecommunica-
tions from space.
Sputnik-1 was launched from what is now-
adays known as the Baikonur Cosmodrome
at Tyuratam (370km south-west of the small
town of Baikonur) in Kazakhstan – then part
of the former Soviet Union (Fig. 2).
The idea of placing geostationary (rath-
er than orbiting) communication satellites
into orbit around the Earth was irst promul-
gated by the famous mathematician and au-
thor, Arthur C. Clarke, in his article published
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RadioUser March 2019
in the technical magazine, Wireless World
in February 1945. Some 32 years later, the
authors of this article too were privileged to
write a series of articles for Wireless World.
However, the notion of launching satellites
(not necessarily ‘geostationary’ craft) was
actually discussed as far back as 1885, when
Konstantin Tsiolkovsky irst described in his
book, Dreams of Earth and Sky, how a satellite
could be launched into a low-altitude orbit.
A geostationary satellite is one which
is placed in an equatorial circular orbit at
a distance of approximately 42,164km
(26,205 miles) from the centre of the Earth.
This equates to a distance of approximate-
ly 35,787km (22,242 miles) above mean
sea-level. The satellite would have an orbiting
period equal to the Earth’s rotation on its axis.
One sidereal day equals 23 hours and 56
minutes (rather than the easier time period
of 24 hours in a day which everyone is fa-
miliar with). The satellite would, therefore,
remain geostationary over the same point
on the Earth’s equator. This is known as
the Clarke Orbit.
Solar Cycles
The idea of launching research satellites
oficially began in 1952. The International
Council of Scientiic Unions decided to in-
augurate the International Geophysical Year
(IGY), which would run from July 1st, 1957,
DXTV Special
NASA
until December 31st, 1958. This period was
speciically chosen because the solar cycle
would be at its maximum.
High activity in solar cycles usually produc-
es a massive increase in the number of sun-
spots and solar eruptions. This phenomenon
was of particular interest to DXTV enthusi-
asts, as standard broadcast television signals
could be received from transmitters located
thousands of miles away during high solar
activity. This occurs approximately every
eleven years, in line with the sunspot cycle.
It was decided in October 1954 that man-
made (or ‘artiicial’, as physicists prefer to call
them) satellites should be deployed during
the International Geophysical Year 1957/58, in
order to map the surface of the Earth.
www.nas.edu/history/igy
Technical experts in the USA were given
the task to develop such a craft before the
Russians did. Consequently, in July 1955,
the White House boasted to the World
that, following exhaustive meetings and
discussions with a plethora of government
research agencies, the manufacture of
an orbiting satellite would be complete in
time for the IGY.
The USA Naval Research Laboratory was
chosen to produce the Vanguard system in
September 1955. The craft was designed to
have a payload of 1.59kg (3.5lbs).
Everything seemed to be in place for
37
DXTV Special
Soviet space race propaganda of the era.
the Americans to beat the Russians in
the space-race.
Unfortunately, the American dream
was turned into a nightmare, when Russia
launched their Sputnik-1 satellite on October
4th, 1957 (Fig. 3). This craft was smaller and
more advanced than the American Vanguard
design. Sputnik-1 remained in orbit un-
til January 4th, 1958, then it re-entered the
Earth’s atmosphere and burned up.
Sputnik-2 Launched
It wasn’t too long before the American gov-
ernment, and the general public realised
that rocket technology employed to launch
a satellite (which was originally intended to
simply map the Earth’s surface) could eas-
ily be modiied to send ballistic missiles
which could carry nuclear weapons from
Europe to the USA.
Before anyone had had time to digest all
the implications, the Russians struck again.
Sputnik-2 was successfully launched on
November 3rd, 1957. This had a much heavi-
er payload and in amongst the huge glowing
thermionic valves and sparking coils which
Russian equipment manufacturers seemed
to love until around the 1980s, there was even
room for a dog called Laika. It’s not certain
whether suficient tins of Winalot were on-
board (or if the Russians had remembered
to pack a tin-opener!) However, sadly, Laika
didn’t survive long enough to admire the
splendid views from space.
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38
Laika’s real name was Kudryavka (or Little
Curly), but a Russian word, which embraced
all dog breeds similar to a husky, was picked
up by the international press. Similarly, the el-
ephant who disgraced herself ‘live’ in the Blue
Peter studio (with Valerie Singleton, John
Noakes and Peter Perves) wasn’t really called
‘Lulu’ – but we digress.
It wasn’t too long before American report-
ers dubbed Laika as ‘Muttnik’! The orbit of
Sputnik-2 decayed and re-entered the Earth’s
atmosphere on April 14th, 1958, after 162
days in service.
The First Man in Space
The USSR was also ahead of USA when
they launched the irst man into space. Yuri
Alekseyevich Gagarin was a Soviet pilot and
cosmonaut. He made space history when his
Vostok-1 spacecraft completed one orbit of
the Earth on April 12th, 1961.
On his return to Earth, he was greeted
by the jubilant leader of the Soviet Union,
Nikita Khrushchev. Television coverage of
the welcome home was broadcast to view-
ers throughout Europe via Intervision and
Eurovision (Fig. 4).
Sputnik-1 Construction
Sputnik-1 was the irst in a series of four
satellites to be part of the Soviet Union’s
programme of space exploration. Three
of these satellites (Sputnik 1, 2 and 3)
reached Earth orbit.
The Sputnik-1 satellite consisted of an alu-
minium sphere, 58.0cm in diameter, that car-
ried four whip-like aerials, which were 2.4 to
2.9 metres in length (Fig. 5).
The whisker-like aerials were directed to-
wards one side. The spacecraft gathered var-
ious data, including the density of the upper
layers of the atmosphere and the propaga-
tion of radio signals in the ionosphere. The
instruments and electric power sources were
housed in a sealed capsule.
This also included transmitters which op-
erated at 20.005 and 40.002MHz (about 15
and 7.5m in wavelength). The duration of the
emissions was arranged in alternating groups
of 0.3 seconds. The downlink telemetry in-
cluded data on the sphere’s internal and ex-
ternal temperatures.
The sphere was illed with nitrogen under
pressure and provided the irst opportunity
for meteoroid detection (not that any such
events were reported) because losses in in-
ternal pressure, due to meteoroid penetra-
tion of the outer surface would have been
evident in the temperature data. The satellite
transmitters operated for three weeks, and
the data was monitored with great interest
around the World until the onboard chemical
batteries expired.
The orbit of the subsequently inactive sat-
ellite was then observed optically. The orbit
decayed 92 days after launch (on January
4th, 1958) after having completed about
1,400 orbits of the Earth over a cumulative
travelled distance of some 70 million kilome-
tres. The orbital apogee declined from 947km
after launch to 600km by December 9th.
RadioUser readers will, of course, instant-
ly recall that the apogee denotes the furthest
distance from the Earth of an object orbit-
ing the planet, which is not to be confused
with the perigee, which is the closest dis-
tance and is the stage at which the Moon ap-
pears larger. It’s amazing what you can learn
in this magazine!
From this prototype, thousands of satel-
lites have been launched in Earth-orbit since
the 1960s, mostly for military, scientiic and
telecommunications purposes.
The Sputnik-1 rocket booster also reached
Earth orbit and was visible from the ground at
night as a irst magnitude object. Meanwhile,
the very small but highly polished sphere,
barely visible at sixth magnitude, was more
dificult to follow optically. In astronomical
terms, the magnitude scale is a logarithmic
system in which an integral step corresponds
to a change of approximately 2.5 times in
brightness. The magnitude scale was devised
by the Greek astronomer and mathematician,
Hipparchus, who designated the brightest
stars as ‘irst magnitude’ and the faintest as
‘sixth magnitude’.
A replica of the Sputnik-1 satellite was
placed on display in the Smithsonian National
Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C.
as well as various museums in Russia.
In Part Two, in May 2019, we will be looking
in some detail at the irst ‘live’ television trans-
missions between the USA and Europe, and
we will offer nothing short of a brief explora-
tion of the Universe!
Editor’s Reading Suggestions
Brzezinski, M. (2008) Red Moon Rising: Sputnik
and the Hidden Rivalries that Ignited the Space Age
(Holt Paperbacks)
Caswell, K. (2018) Laika’s Window: The Legacy of a
Soviet Space Dog (Trinity University Press)
Impey, C. and Henry, H. (2013) Dreams of Other
Worlds: The Amazing Story of Unmanned Space
Exploration (Princeton UP)
Launius, R. D. and Fleming, J. R. Globalizing Polar
Science: Reconsidering the International Polar and
Geophysical Years (Palgrave)
Science Museum London: Cosmonauts: Birth of the
Space Age (Former Exhibition)
https://tinyurl.com/y8ut9ul2
Turkina, O. et al (2014) Soviet Space Dogs
(FUEL Publishers)
RadioUser March 2019

Scanning, High,
Low and In-between
Fig.1: The Anytone AT-868 in digital monitor mode – the bottom row of data tells you the talkgroup, the
colour code and the timeslot respectively.
Tim Kirby
tim@g4vxe.com
Tim Kirby explores lesser-noticed
frequency bands for scanning,
continues to advise on scanning
from challenging locations, uses an
Anytone AT-868 DMR rig and consults
the KimmyJS19 Scanning Directory.
One of the things that I have been thinking
about as I settle in to writing this column
is just what to include. There are so many
aspects to the umbrella term of ‘scanning’,
and this means there is plenty of scope!
My ‘default’ perception of scanning is
that it largely covers comms on VHF and
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RadioUser March 2019
PICTURES: TIM KIRBY
UHF (perhaps from 66MHz up). I think that
was where coverage on my irst scanner
started. Transmissions are largely in FM
mode, with AM used for the airband(s).
However, I think we can successfully
challenge those preconceptions.
Many scanners start around the CB
band (27MHz), and in times of sunspot
maximum and sporadic-E (generally
summer, but there’s a winter peak too),
these can provide lots of interest.
If you have not listened to the US
Superbowl Channel (Channel 6 or
27.025MHz) on AM, then you really should
give it a go. Being AM, you ind signals fade
in and out quite gracefully.
With conditions as they are, you may not
Scanning Scene
notice signals very often, but you may well
get some surprises. I have seen reports
of signals being heard this season, so it’s
well worth a go.
For details of CB frequencies, you can
have a look here:
https://tinyurl.com/y8tucrqt
Some discone aerials will cover the
CB bands, others won’t. If you want to try
listening on the CB band and your discone
won’t cover it, don’t worry – just knock up
a quick wire dipole aerial. If it’s for receive,
you can make it very cheap and cheerful.
Use a choc-block for the centre of the
dipole. Each side should be around 2.6m,
so the overall length of the dipole will be
5.2m – but don’t stress too much. Use a bit
of coaxial cable from the choc-block to an
antenna connector that your scanner will
accept, and you’re sorted. Get the antenna
in the clear as best you can – if the outside
isn’t an option, try the loft!
Of course, it’s not just CB at the lower end
of the scanner ranges that you can listen to!
There’s some amateur band activity on FM,
centred around 29.600MHz, and based on
10kHz channels. There are some repeaters,
which you may hear if conditions are good,
both in Europe and the USA.
Radio amateurs also use AM, generally
centred around 29.000MHz, and again,
usually on 10kHz channels. Don’t expect to
hear these channels in use every day at the
moment – but it is deinitely worth checking
these frequencies often – propagation is
full of surprises.
Above 30MHz
Going above 30MHz now – it’s worth
looking between 30 and 40MHz, as there
are sometimes some land- mobile stations
to be heard, depending on where you are in
the country. You might ind that some lists
on the web give you clues about where to
look more locally to you. For example, here
in Oxfordshire, I know that military trafic on
Salisbury Plain can be heard on occasion in
this part of the spectrum.
The lower part of the scanner’s coverage
is often neglected, but it’s well worthwhile
keeping an ear on this area. Owing to the
nature of propagation in this area, you
could ind yourself listening to something
39
Scanning Scene
from many thousands of miles away! And
of course, if your scanner covers USB/
LSB, you will ind other signals to listen
to, especially in the CB and radio amateur
parts of the band.
Curiously, I don’t often consider
narrowband modes such as USB/LSB in
‘scanning’. With the exception of amateur
radio operators, perhaps, there is little use
of USB/LSB above 50MHz, but when I’ve
had a scanner capable of USB/LSB I have
found it interesting – perhaps monitoring
certain centres of activity on the amateur
bands or even an amateur radio satellite
downlink frequency or beacon.
Scanning in Difficult Locations
It was good to hear from Paul Beaumont
again, who wrote in response to a query by
Martin Rolls. It concerned outside aerials
in cases when you can’t drill holes in walls
and window frames. Paul said, “I was
very interested in Martin Rolls’ unsavoury
position with antennas. Far from drilling
holes, air bricks, outlets for fans and such
like the solution I used in 1973 to 1982
when we moved to my current property is
easy: I merely passed a piece of twin pair
through the window when open and shut
the metal window on it. At an angle from
the window sill, courtesy of a small-model
makers G Cramp was a metre-long piece of
stiff 16SWG wire. Good for two metres and
70cms. A metre length along the window sill
was a rudimentary earth plan. Coaxial cable
feeding the antenna connected to each end
of the twin pair.
“I also used a ribbon cable to feed a long
wire with a balun at my old university, where
I worked until recently. Used for transmitting
I discovered that increasing the number
of wires used for both the inner and braid
allowed some variation of SWR at HF. Never
tried it at 2m.”
Thanks, Paul. Over the years, I have
certainly poked various wires through
window frames, and this always worked
well. At some point, it’s possible that the
cable that you are passing through the
window frame will fail, especially if you
frequently open and close the window!
However, that’s probably not a major
sacriice and easily solved. Any other
‘stealth’ operating tips are very welcome –
please let me know.
Digital Scanning using an
Anytone AT-868 DMR Rig
Mike Burgess was kind enough to write
again with some news about Wayne
Richards’ excellent aid to scanning, the
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40
Fig. 2: An excerpt from the KimmyJS19 Scanning Directory.
WTR Browser software – a directory
of frequencies and locations, based
on OFCOM’s databases. Mike wrote,
“Many scanner enthusiasts use cheaper
Chinese DMR transceivers, rather than
the more expensive digital scanners; you
might be interested to know that Wayne
Richards’s WTR Browser now has an
addition, to be able to export frequencies
from WTR Browser into Anytone’s AT-
D868UV Dual Band DMR transceiver CPS/
programming software.
“Sensibly, the mobile transmit
frequencies have been masked to prevent
any ‘accidents’.
“The Anytone 868 is proving popular with
enthusiasts with its VFO mode and Digital
Monitor, enabling a user to search a bank
of frequencies and any DMR* signals found
to be monitored and slot, colour code, talk-
group and caller ID displayed. (DMR*: with
the exception of encrypted signals and any
that are RAS enabled - Mototrbo Restricted
Access to System).The Anytone 868 ex-
port facility joins the list of other exports
in WTR Browser: Chirp, Whistler, SDR
Sharp and SDRuno.”
Thanks, Mike – yes, this is a great
point, and indeed, the Anytone DMR set
(Fig. 1 – it also covers regular analogue
FM) is a nice unit, and it will lend itself to
portable listening. It can be connected
to an outdoor antenna, by means of a
suitable adapter cable.
If you want to read more about the
Anytone AT-868, I was lucky enough
to review one, for amateur radio pur-
poses recently (Practical Wireless,
October 2018: 10).
If you want to see how to set up an
Anytone AT-868 as a digital scanner, take
a look on YouTube and search for ‘Chris
Andrews Digital Scanner’. You’ll ind Chris’
video about which DMR rig you can use as
a digital scanner and he takes you through
the procedure of setting it up.
I’ll be interested to hear from any readers
who are using an Anytone, or any of the oth-
er, cheaper, DMR handsets around, to listen
to digital signals. Generally speaking, one of
the downsides to using such equipment is
that the speed of scanning is much slower
than a dedicated scanner.
Nevertheless, this can certain-
ly be a more cost-effective route into
digital scanning.
Where to Listen
As I have said before, one of the chal-
lenges for scanner enthusiasts is inding
out where to listen. I’ve covered the WTR
Browser and Squawker software in the col-
umn. But how else can you ind out where
you might be able to hear something?
When I irst started scanning, you
could buy books with lists of frequencies,
and I would avidly try listening to those.
Sometimes, you heard things and some-
times you didn’t, but it was a good place
to start. One of the issues with lists of fre-
quencies is that they can quickly go out of
date, and, of course, once a frequency gets
listed, it’s easy for it to stay in the list even if
it’s no longer used.
That said, sometimes it can be use-
ful to browse a list. When I was writing
the section about the spectrum around
30MHz, I wanted to quickly check where
those military frequencies were that I
mentioned earlier.
One resource you may want to consider
using – if you like lists of frequencies – is
the KimmyJS19 Scanning Directory (Fig. 2).
You can ind it at this URL:
RadioUser March 2019

My secondary aerial
system consists of a
vertically-polarised
log-periodic TV aerial,
pointing at the local
High Street
https://ukscanningdirectory.co.uk
This list contains – it is claimed – 80,000
UK frequencies, and it costs £7.99. I decid-
ed to give it a go. I paid my fee by PayPal
and waited for my CD-ROM to arrive in the
post, which it did (by First Class post).
Actually, the irst challenge was to ind
a CD-ROM drive, as most of my computers
don’t have one anymore!
Fortunately, one of my old laptops still
does, and I was able to copy the data off
the CD-ROM and place it on a network drive
where any of my computers can access
the data. The frequency data is contained
in text iles, a ile for each frequency range
(e.g. 25 to 108MHz) and shows an entry
as displayed in the screenshot in Fig. 2.
The irst frequency is the output frequen-
cy of the repeater, the second one is the
input frequency, and then it goes on to de-
scribe the repeater.
The last column shows when the data
was added to the directory. The list con-
tains text iles containing frequencies all
the way up to 134GHz.
The only ‘snag’ with this format is that it’s
hard to search for all frequencies in, say,
Oxfordshire. On the other hand, it is great
for browsing, to see what interesting fre-
quencies exist. If you have some IT skills,
you could easily take the text iles supplied
and import them into an Access database
or Excel spreadsheet. This will allow you
to do a lot more, in the way of searching,
based on location or other details.
As well as the listings by frequency, there
are some miscellaneous iles listing, for in-
stance, frequencies in use by particular air-
ports, or marine frequencies.
At £7.99, there’s plenty of information
here, and this database might give you a
great start if you’re not sure where to listen.
Make sure that you have a CD-ROM drive,
though – maybe in time, the information
could be provided as a digital download,
which might be easier for many people.
Listening Post
Many thanks to Kevin from Chatham who
wrote, “My monitoring station in south-
east England consists of a Realistic
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RadioUser March 2019
Fig. 3: London holding patterns, as captured by reader Kevin from Chatham.
PRO2043, Realistic PRO2045 and a Uniden
UBC780XLT. I also have two handhelds; a
Yupiteru 7100 and a Uniden UBC3500XLT
with CloseCall. The main station aerial is a
Diamond 144MHz/446MHz dual band white
stick, connected to the scanners via a 4-way
wideband (47-826MHz) TV amplifier.
“My secondary aerial system consists of
a vertically-polarised log-periodic TV aerial,
pointing at the local High Street. I have FM
(88-108MHz) and DAB (175-240MHz) folded
dipoles connected to a 3-way diecast signal
combiner, with the single down lead coaxial
cable connected to a second 4-way wide-
band (47-826MHz) TV amplifier.
“This is feeding a scanner, a DAB radio and
an FM Tuner. I also have a crossed dipole for
receiving NOAA weather images, satellites
and the International Space Station.
“I use the Uniden UBC 3500XLT CloseCall
feature whilst walking or driving around the
local towns or attending events. CloseCall
captures nearby strong transmissions,
with the option to a monitor or store any
frequencies found. The active frequencies
found are programmed into the desktop
scanner memories.
“The PRO2045 has been fitted with a dis-
criminator tap, this unfiltered audio output is
used to decode AIS, pager and DMR data sig-
nals. My scanners are programmed to moni-
tor Air Traffic Control at Gatwick airport, ma-
rine activity, the local Shop/Pub watch, VHF/
UHF PMR and PMR446.
“The Yupiteru 7100 is programmed with
space-related frequencies and connected
Scanning Scene
to the crossed dipole. I also use an RTL-SDR
dongle to plot shipping and aircraft posi-
tions, monitor DMR, receive SSTV images
from the International Space Station and
weather images from NOAA satellites.
‘Feed-hunting is another longstanding
activity. This involves scanning the Direct
To Home satellites for outside broadcasts.
Television media companies routinely use
Outside Broadcast Units with satellite uplink
trucks transmitting feeds back to the studio.
“Feeds cover a variety of events, Satellite
News Gathering (SNG) developing and
breaking news items, major national and
international events, rocket launches, ISS
activities and spacewalks, war zones, mo-
torsports, sports, racing, parades, opera,
concerts, product launches and compa-
ny presentations.
“My setup includes a motorised satellite
dish and a satellite receiver with Blindscan.
Blindscan searches for active transpon-
ders, instead of searching a preprogrammed
list of transponder frequencies and symbol
rates stored in the receiver.
“I captured the London holding pattern
with RTL1090, PlanePlotter and an RTL-
SDR dongle, connected to a one-for-all VHF/
UHF set-top TV aerial sitting on the win-
dowsill (Fig. 3).”
See You Next Month!
That’s it for this month! Next month I
hope to be back with something a lit-
tle different. Please keep your news and
questions coming.
41
Aerials Now!

PICTURES: KEITH RAWLINGS

Constructing a PA0RDT
Mini-Whip Aerial
In this month’s column, Keith Rawlings continues his exploration of
active aerials, constructing a mini whip, and finding that it performs well,
especially from VLF to MF. He also offers some general aerial advice.

Keith Rawlings es; an internet search will, in all likelihood, By all means, do follow the ‘oficial’
Keith.g4miu@gmail.com bring up various designs for these. PA0RDT design, as it may well offer im-
The version described here replaces the proved performance igures.

Y
ou may remember that last
month, I discussed active
aerials, and I mentioned that I
would follow up on this subject
this month, by describing the
construction of a PA0RDT mini whip.
This particular mini whip provides sur-
prisingly good results, from VLF up to well
into the HF range.
The original design uses a J310 JFET,
along with a 2N5109 bipolar transistor.
Both are still readily available, but it is
also possible to utilise other, cheaper, devic-
J310 with a 2N3819 and a 2N2222A, as a
substitute for the 2N5109. One reason for
why I have used a 2N2222 is because my
supply of 2N5109s is running low, and the
few I have left are old devices, which I know
are not cheap Chinese ‘knock-offs’.
Hence, I am trying to conserve them;
and as I have a box full of 2N2222’s and
2N3819s, I thought “why not try these”. I
wanted this Mini Whip for casual use over
at my new workshop.
Therefore, the ultimate in performance
was not needed.
In either case, my construction informa-
tion will be applicable to both, bearing in
mind any component changes.
The Circuit Board
The irst thing to do is make the circuit
board, which the ampliier is built on. It
also contains the aerial’s ‘probe’ element.
As the gain of this circuit has proven to
be a little lower than the original design, I
have increased the probe length from 45
to 105mm to compensate slightly. To start
with, I cut a piece of PCB material, 150mm

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42 RadioUser March 2019
 Aerials Now!

long by 30mm wide; after measuring out

and marking with a ‘Sharpie’ pen, I then
cut away the copper to the dimensions
found in Fig. 2. To do this, I used my Bosch
oscillating multi-tool. A junior hacksaw
and Stanley knife or scalpel could also be
used for this task, but – need I say – take
care when doing so!

Time To Solder
Construction is now just a matter of placing 2

the components ‘ugly-style’ on the board.

Ugly-style construction uses a section of
the un-etched copper cad circuit board,
which forms a ground plane, and grounded
components are soldered directly onto it
with short leads.
Non-grounded parts are soldered to, and
supported by, the grounded parts; all com-
ponents are placed by following the sche-
matic in the manner shown in Fig 3.
Next, and referring to Fig. 4, begin by fol-
lowing the circuit, from right to left. First,
choke L1 was soldered into place, from
the pad marked 5mm, to the pad marked
6mm in Fig. 2.
I then soldered C1 to the 5mm pad and 3

R1 to ground, placed the 2N2222 on the

board and soldered the emitter (E) to join
with C1 and R1.
Next, R2 was soldered to ground, and R3
to the +V pad; after this, the Base(B) of the
2N2222 was soldered to the join with the
two resistors. The transistor collector (C)
was then soldered to the 12V pad.
Capacitor C2 was soldered to the junc-
tion of R2&R3; R4 was placed on the
board, and the source (S) of the 2N3819
was soldered to it. The drain (D) connec- 4

tion was soldered to the +V pad, and the
gate (G) was soldered to the probe sec-
tion of the board.
This just left R5 & R6 to be ixed in place,
R5 to ground, R6 to +V; one end of R7 was
connected to their intersection and the oth-
er end to the probe.
Not shown on the circuit – but placed on
the board – are two 100nf disc ceramic ca-
pacitors. In Fig. 3, one can be seen next to
the 100uf electrolytic capacitor, and the oth-
er one is next to the collector of the 2N2222
transistor. Both are soldered to the +V track
and to ground and provide decoupling for
the 12V supply.
Clearly, the two transistors have to be sol-
dered in correctly; the pin outs for these can
be seen in Fig. 5.
Also, C3, being an electrolytic, is polar-
ised and has to be itted correctly. The + ter-
minal has to be soldered to the 12V+V pad,
Fig. 1: Parts awaiting assembly. Fig.2: The circuit board dimensions. Fig. 3: Mini whip ‘ugly-style’
construction format. Fig. 4: Mini whip circuit diagram.
and the terminal that is usually marked with
a large ‘-’ goes to ground.
Some constructors might add a 10uh
choke, in series with the Gate of the 2N3819
and the probe. This is to prevent interfer-
ence from strong VHF stations, should
this be a problem.
What needs to be done now, is to make
a connection to pad ‘output’, either with a
suitable connector or with a coaxial cable
that runs to the bias-T.
Casing and Grounding
I have built my mini whip into a section of
32mm PVC waste water pipe that can be
bought cheaply at DIY stores. Buying a 3m
length, I cut a short section to house the
aerial itself, and the rest will be used as a
support. As I have a lathe, I have been able
to turn an end-cap to insert into the top of
the tube, and a sleeve to it in the bottom,
that will also slide-it into the support.
DIY stores also stock blanking caps,
which can be used to seal the tube with-
out the need for any machining, other than
drilling a hole for the feeder or suitable
socket (Fig. 1).
I have not included any photographs of
my mini whip aloft, because it just looks like
a piece of PVC water pipe sticking up in the
air! As my mast is made of plastic, I have
run a separate wire down to ground. Ideally,
the outer of the coaxial cable should be
grounded at the bottom of the mast.
In my case, the mast may have to be
moved occasionally, making it dificult to

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RadioUser March 2019 43
Aerials Now!
5 The Right Aerial For the Job
Fig. 5: Transistor pin configuration.
have a single point of grounding, so I have a
separate wire; this has some excess length
so that it can be moved.
In order to reduce noise pick-up, the mini
whip aerial will need a half decent ground. If
you already have one in use, and you do not
have it grounded, it may well be worth the
time and effort to do so.
The cable I am using with this installation
is a run of about 30ft of good quality RG58.
A few years ago, I ran a mini whip with about
55-60ft of 75Ω TV coaxial cable, without any
noticeable performance problems.
In the few months that I have been using
it, this design has performed excellently.
Moreover, it offers no clues as to the
fact that it is an aerial, or that valuable
equipment may be used nearby.
As stated, it just looks like a bit of plastic
pipe - and nothing else.
Like the one I have at home (following
the original PA0RDT design, with J310 and
2N5109 devices), this aerial performs very
well up to about 15MHz; above this, it does
appear to fall off a little.
Where it really does seem to come into its
own is at VLF to MF, and it is often my ‘go-
to’ aerial for the medium wave bands and
below (especially for NDBs)
For the latest news and product reviews, visit www.radioenthusiast.co.uk
44
Powering the Aerial
We now have an active device sitting up
high on a pole, and somehow, we still
have to power it.
While batteries make for a good, clean,
power source, they are not practical if the
aerial is mounted up where it is not easy to
access. The method I use is to power my
active aerials via the coaxial feeder; this is a
very common method.
However, this is not just a matter of
applying the DC supply across the coaxial
cable. The power source and RF circuits
have to be isolated, and a device to do this
is called a bias-T. This is something I will
cover in next month’s column.
In the meantime, the mini whip may be
used by disconnecting L1 from the circuit
completely and applying 12V DC, with
positive going to +V point in Fig 2, and -V
going to ground.
Under no circumstances allow DC to go
back down the feeder into your receiver,
as this may cause serious damage.
Some radios have DC blocking protection
in the front end, but others do not –
so do be careful.
In a wider context, a question I am often
asked is: What is the best aerial to use?
This is rather dificult to answer because
there are so many different aspects to con-
sider: For example, which frequencies are
of interest to you, and are they in the LF, HF,
VHF or UHF bands? Are there speciic geo-
graphical areas of interest, such as coun-
tries on the HF bands or, on VHF/UHF, a
particular town or other location?
There really is no single ‘best aerial’
that will do everything, and some will al-
ways work better than others for particu-
lar applications.
For now, let’s take general VHF/UHF lis-
tening; the useful advice, which was of-
ten provided by the late Chris Lorek is still
sound: A decent amateur dual/tri-band col-
linear is an excellent choice.
I have a Diamond V2000 Tri Band Co-
Linear that covers the 6/2/70cm bands. I
use it mainly for transmitting, but it also per-
forms well for reception outside of the am-
ateur bands. The 50MHz section provides
good coverage of the lower VHF bands. As
the 2m band is close enough to the VHF air
band, the marine band and the upper VHF
band, results here are also excellent.
Similarly, the 70cm band sits in the mid-
dle of the sections used by UHF PMR and
mobile radio users; once again, therefore,
results can be particularly good.
On all these bands, reception with the
V2000 is always superior to either of my
two discones (one loft-mounted, and the
other one erected outside, on the same
mast as the V2000).
Where I ind the V2000 is not so good is
on the UHF airband; here I tend to use either
of the discones.
All of these aerials are omni-directional,
that is to say, they have a 360-degree ra-
diation pattern.
The discones have a wider frequency
coverage than the V2000 and, overall, they
have a more level response across the
bands. However, when used near the fre-
quencies it was designed for, the V2000
shows a marked improvement in reception
over either of the discones.
If I am looking for VHF/UHF signals in a
certain direction, I use a couple of verti-
cally-mounted log-periodic arrays (LPDA).
They offer the broadband characteristics of
the discone, but with the directivity and gain
of a directional aerial. However, in some
ways, they are a compromise, because a
dedicated beam for a single frequency –
and with a similar number of elements –
should yield a slightly higher gain and direc-
tivity, but at a narrower bandwidth.
Also, LPDAs need to be rotatable, in order
to offer 360-degree coverage.
I will have more general information on
selecting the right aerial next month.
That’s it for now, and I hope I have
encouraged some of you to pick up a
soldering iron!
I usually reply to correspondence only
through the column.
However, because this month’s
column has contained an element of
construction, I am happy to help, via e-mail,
with any problems relating to the circuit
presented here.
Mini Whip Parts List
R1 220Ω
R2-3-5-6 10kΩ
R4 4.7kΩ
R7 10M
C1-2 470nf ceramic
C3 100uf 35V electrolytic
C4-5 100nf ceramic (not shown on the circuit)
2N2222A and 2N3819 transistors
470uh choke 100ma or more
Single-sided PCB.
FURTHER INFORMATION
https://tinyurl.com/ydb7aggo
https://tinyurl.com/y6vkk2xz
https://tinyurl.com/y7djslpg
RadioUser March 2019
 Digital Radio

Ofcom Approvals, DAB

Changes, BBC Sounds & DRM
Kevin Ryan looks at recent changes on the UK DAB scene and shares his loggings
of DRM stations collected over the 2018 festive period.
PICTURES: KEVIN RYAN

Kevin Ryan
kevin@kpr-web.co.uk

V
irgin Radio is back on DAB
with three new stations on the
SDL National Multiplex. Virgin
Radio is in DAB mono (80kb/s),
while Virgin Anthems, playing 1
80’s and 90’s music and Virgin Chilled, play-
ing mellow tracks, are using DAB+ stereo at
32kb/s. Their big selling point is that Chris
Evans starts hosting the Breakfast Show
from the 21st of January. It looks like this
will be from 0600-1000 am. The live shows
from various presenters run until 11 pm, af-
ter which there is continuous music over-
night. The programme schedule is on the
website, and the presenters change over
every three to four hours.
The station is part of the Wireless Group,
a division of Rupert Murdoch’s News UK,
first launched in 2016 as part of the consor-
tium behind the UK’s second national DAB
multiplex, Sound Digital. Previously, it was
UTV Media, based in Northern Ireland. The
Virgin Radio brand was relaunched in the
UK after an eight-year gap when the origi-
nal Virgin Radio became Absolute Radio in
2018. Interestingly, the Virgin website has 2

a choice of four stations in a top banner;

three of the four are from the TalkSport fam-
ily of stations.
The latest RAJAR figures record Virgin
Radio’s listeners as 414,000, and those fig-
ures are before it came on the DAB platform.
I think we can expect to see a significant in-
crease in the next set of RAJAR figures.
https://virginradio.co.uk
https://tinyurl.com/ydgtezep
You can listen to Virgin Radio on DAB
on the SDL national multiplex and on the
Swansea and West Wales and Aberdeen
local multiplexes. The station is also on
Sky Digital (Channel 0125) and on Freesat
(Channel 736). So far as I know, it is not on
Virgin Media’s cable system. The stations
are available on Android and iOS apps, via
the internet and on Radioplayer.
Other DAB Changes
Fix Radio (London 2, 12A), a specialist chan-
nel for tradespeople, extended its service
to Manchester, using the small-scale DAB
multiplex. There was a brief period when the
channel aired Property Radio on Tuesdays
and Sundays, with information on property,
health, holidays and travel. I think this was a
short-lived venture that will not reappear.
http://www.fixradio.co.uk
http://www.propertyradio.co.uk
Meanwhile, Greatest Hits Radio is now
on 23 local multiplexes across Southern
England and Wales and has replaced exist-
ing services on a dozen multiplexes in the
north of England. Chances are that you will
be able to hear its mix of music from the
70s, 80s, and 90s. I wonder how many more
stations are yet to launch with this format.
It is meant to compliment Hits Radio, which
should be on the same multiplexes. Both
services are in mono, except in London,
where they are in joint stereo.
Gold has moved to DAB+; the first station
to make the move on the London 1 multi-
plex. TalkSport 2 and TalkRadio are now
on the Swansea and West Wales mux, in
addition to Virgin Radio. It must be filling
in a hole in the coverage provided by SDL
D2 because the two operators share some
transmission sites.
More Ofcom Approvals
The latest regulatory information from
Ofcom gives the approval to add Atlas Radio
(“a community-based station that will be
broadcasting a tailor-made service that large
chains of radio stations cannot offer to com-

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RadioUser March 2019 45
Digital Radio

munities in specific areas)” to the Hereford

and Worcester local DAB multiplex (Fig. 1).
http://www.atlasradio.co.uk
Other recent approvals are the addition
of Absolute, Classic Rock in Ayr, Coventry,
Wolverhampton and Shropshire, Rathergood
Radio in London, replacing The Wireless, and
the removal of Coast and Country in North
Yorkshire. Rathergood Radio claims to be
advert-free so I wonder how they are funded.
The brand is part of the Local Radio Group.
http://rathergood.co.uk/advert-free-radio
http://localradiogroup.com

DAB Stations
DAB stations change regularly but how do 3
we find out about them? The best way is to
go to the Digital Radio website and input I was quite excited by this and cre- Fig.1: Atlas Radio is a community station on a
your postcode and house name/number to ated my own list. local multiplex, but is it viable in the long term?
get a list of stations. However, it just didn’t work as well as I Fig. 2: The search on the Get Digital Radio website
https://getdigitalradio.com expected, and I found it to be a bit temper- lists the three new stations from Virgin Radio.
A search at my address returned 51 sta- amental, giving different results depending Fig. 3: The Radio Times website is good, but it
tions (Fig. 2). It predicted ‘good’ reception on stations, and sometimes not display- could be so much better with a little more work.
from the three national multiplexes and ing them at all.
the Reading & Basingstoke local multiplex At first, I thought that it might detect
and 15 at ‘fair’ reception from the London my location, because it offered a listing World Service is unique, so far as I know,
2 multiplex. Of course, there are local fac- for RTE R1 LW 252 but not RTE R1 FM; it in condensing its schedule to a handy one-
tors to consider, such as the orientation of is possible to receive LW in Reading. This page format of an A4 pdf, which changes in
your house, whether you have an external or wasn’t it, however, because Riviera Radio, March and October, to coincide with short
loft antenna, whether you have an upstairs from Monte Carlo, had its information wave schedules changes.
and the construction materials used in your displayed. I concluded that the database To get a schedule, go to the website below
house or apartment; all these may change doesn’t work very well with many stations, or and click on How to Listen at the bottom
any prediction. that it, perhaps, just does not have the right of the page. Under the Frequently Asked
https://getdigitalradio.com information loaded into it. Questions, expand the How can I listen to the
BBC World Service in my area’.
Digital-Only Stations BBC Sounds I think these single sheets are a
There are a lot of digital-only stations, and BBC Sounds now has detailed schedules for really handy concept.
Table 1 is my list of the top 10 stations in all BBC radio stations, including local radio. https://www.bbc.co.uk/worldserviceradio
2018 compared with 2016. I haven’t includ- The opt-outs found in the BBC regions, such
ed Capital XTRA or Absolute Classic Rock, as the Orkney and Shetland opt-outs from DRM Broadcasts
as they both have three FM transmitters in BBC Radio Scotland, are part of the main I made good use of the Christmas break
London and the Midlands respectively. The entry for regional service. The listing tells and heard many DRM broadcasts from Asia
commercial stations are more successful you whether the station is on digital. and the Pacific using the KiWi SDR network
than the BBC at increasing their audiences. https://tinyurl.com/y9o5nkvh (Table 2). China has several transmitters
The BBC World Service’s regional testing DRM, and China National Radio
Radio Times variations are on BBC Sounds, including (CNR) seems to be adding to their number
How do you know what is available on these those for the UK on DAB/Freeview. The each month. KTWR in Guam had a number
stations? Of course, you can go to their web-
site or just listen in. Daily newspapers carry Station 2016 2018 % +/- Notes
a selection of stations. 1. BBC 6 Music 2.346 2.518 +7.3 ---
However, the best source for planning 2. Kisstory 1.611 2.158 +34 ---
your listening I have found is the Radio 3. BBC R4 Extra 2.01 2.043 +1.6 ---
Times, both in print and online (Fig. 3). 4. Absolute R 80’s 1.458 1.762 +21 ---
https://tinyurl.com/yc85uk9d 5. BBC R 5 Sports X 1.601 1.672 +4.4 ---
Select Radio from the horizontal menu, 6. Smooth Extra 1.07 1.162 +8.5 ---
and you will see a list of 24 national chan- 7. Planet Rock 1.06 1.057 -0.3 ---
nels, mainly BBC. Click on My Channels and 8. BBC R1 X 1.026 1.036 +1 ---
then More Channels to expand the list by an- 9. Absolute Radio 90’s 0.703 0.913 +30 Replaced Heat
other 232 stations, including some from the 10. Heart Extra 0.664 0.681 +2.5 Replaced Kerrang!
Republic of Ireland and the Mediterranean
areas favoured by UK holidaymakers. Table 1: My list of the Top-10 (digital-only) stations in 2018 (compiled from RAJAR data).

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46 RadioUser March 2019
 Digital Radio

of DRM tests in English, and they also

replied to my reception report (Fig. 4).
On the 11th of January 2019, I tuned to
WINB on 13690 kHz, via a remote SDR. The
audio output from the DREAM decoder was
a data signal, rather than speech. I am not a
utility expert, but it sounded like an FSK/PSK
signal. A little later, an audio announcement
confirmed that they were transmitting
VOA Radiogram, which uses MFSK32 and
MFSK64 to transmit data and images. This
seems a strange use of DRM, given that the
mode has its own features to do just that.
The full details of Programme No. 79 are
on the website.
http://voaradiogram.net

Summary
DAB is changing in the UK, but I fear we are
going to end up with many services carrying
the same type of programming because lo-
cal commercial stations are becoming part
of national brands.
The local multiplexes are filling up with
versions of the same stations. I wonder
whether we will run out of DAB capacity in
the near future. Fig. 4: I was very pleased to get an eQSL from KTWR.

Frequency Time Station Details Audio SNR RX

3955 06.40 BBCWS in English Mono 21dB SDR - D

3965 06.45 RFI in French. Unusual 16-16QAM config. Mono 20dB SDR - BEL
5955 19.10 RRI Saftica TX site in Italian Stereo 21dB SDR - I
6030 07.20 CNR from China. Chinese Stereo 15dB SDR - KOR
6030 16.00 RRI Ţigăneşti E1 TTXX. Russian Stereo 17dB SDR - RUS
6030 21.30 RRI Galbeni TX1. English Mono 17dB SDR - UK
7315 08.10 WINB, USA. English. B/5 kHz Mono 13.5dB SDR - I
7550 21.25 AIR Delhi. Two channels – GOS IV and RAGAM.
Both in English at this time. Mono 25dB SDR - QAT
9380 12.15 KTWR Guam Special TXSM.
Christmas carols in English. Mode A. Mono 13dB SDR - AUS
9655 09.20 CNR in Chinese Stereo 20dB SDR - HKG
9770 06.50 RRI Galbeni TX1 English Mono 15dB SDR - BEL
9770 07.20 RRI Ţigăneşti E1 TXER. German Stereo 12dB SDR - D
9870 09.00 CNR in Chinese Stereo 17dB SDR - HKG
9870 17.00 RRI Ţigăneşti E1 TX French. Stereo 17dB SDR - BEL
11690 19.15 RNZI in English 16-64QAM. Mono 16dB SDR - HWA
11695 08.55 CNR in Chinese Mono 16dB SDR - RUS
11970 07.35 Kuwait (label: DRM Radio Kuwait) English Stereo 23dB SDR - IND
11995 10.30 KTWR Guam Test. Christmas carols in English. Stereo 22dB SDR - AUS
13690 14.35 WINB, USA. English and Spanish preaching.
Directed to Southern Europe and North Africa. Mono 15dB SDR - E
13690 15.15 WINB USA. DRM audio carrying VOA Radiogram
from December 2018.
Most MFSK data signals carrying
a special Tecsun competition. (11/01/19 until 15.30) Mono 19dB SDR-I
13840 19.50 RNZI starting in English. 16-16QAM. Mono 16dB SDR - AUS
13850 07.30 CNR in Chinese Stereo 21dB SDR - KOR
15110 10.03 Kuwait (label DRM Radio Kuwait) Arabic. 4-64QAM. Stereo 14dB KR
15580 05.05 CNR in Chinese Stereo 8dB SDR - RUS
15620 08.00 BBCWS in English, Journaline in Arabic and English.
Label (BBC World Service). Mono 15dB SDR - IND
17800 05.00 CNR in Chinese Stereo 7dB SDR – RUS
Legend: KR = received in Reading. SDR = KiWi SDR. SDR Location codes: RUS=Russia, IND=India, KOR= South Korea, AUS=Australia, E=Spain, HWA=Hawaii, BEL=Belgium,
HKG=Hong Kong, D=Germany, QAT=Qatar, UK=United Kingdom, I=Italy. RRI = Radio Romania International; CNR=China National Radio; RNZI=Radio New Zealand International.
Table 2: DRM broadcasts from Asia and the Pacific, logged via the KiWi SDR network.

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RadioUser March 2019 47
International Radio Scene
Fig. 1: World Music Radio (WMR) from Denmark is online and on short wave with tropical music 24/7.
Chrissy Brand
chrissyLB@hotmail.co.uk
he international broadcast
T scene can flourish when there
are private as well as state
broadcasters, ensuring a
wide range of engaging pro-
grammes, delivered in as many mediums
as possible. Of course, there are still disap-
pointments when a station deserts short
and medium wave, with Belgian stations
RTBF La Première (621kHz) and Vivacité
(1125kHz) among the latest examples.
RTBF can be heard on FM and DAB+ in
Wallonia and Brussels. However, these and
tens of thousands of other stations can still
be heard - and followed - online.
Admittedly, for many, online listening is
a poor substitute for hearing the real thing
over the airwaves through a receiver. It can
be argued that online delivery (certainly on-
line-only) does the traditional DX commu-
nity few favours. All that can be done is to
campaign, as individuals and as commu-
nities, and lobby stations to stay on the air-
waves. Join your local and national radio
and DX club and maintain contact with ra-
dio stations by writing as an individual too.
A World Beat
World Music Radio (Fig. 1) is one of many
independent broadcasting success sto-
ries. Transmitting from a site in Randers,
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48
World Music
and New QSLs
Chrissy Brand rounds up some recent broadcast
band news, examines QSL cards and shares a
number of fascinating radio programme tips.
Denmark, the station added 15805kHz
to its canon of frequencies late last year,
with a power of 200W. Stationmaster, Stig
Hartvig Nielsen, wrote in early January that,
“the aerial (a simple dipole) is not very effi-
cient so reception is quite difficult and irreg-
ular. So far, poor to fair reception in southern
Europe has been observed in daytime till
around 1300 UTC, and fair to good reception
in Ireland, Scotland, western England and
Iceland has been experienced during eve-
nings around 1700 to 2000 UTC.”
The 15805kHz frequency is used on
Saturdays and Sundays from 0700 to 2000
UTC. World Music Radio’s transmissions
on 5840kHz continue 24 hours a day with
a power of 100W, although that transmitter
developed a fault in January. WMR returned
to short wave in January 2018 and still has
WMR
plans to use a medium wave frequency of
927kHz in Copenhagen. It’s proving tough
to ind a suitable transmitter. The station’s
music format is now a mix of music from
all corners of the world but with a focus on
tropical world music.
[watch out for a longer article on WMR in a
future issue of RadioUser – Ed.]
Continuing in a similar vein, World Music
Matters is a wonderful weekly music pro-
gramme on Radio France International,
Recent programmes covered Edgar, who
is hailed as a new voice of rap from Brazil’s
favelas and a new rock pop band called
Kristel. The latter is from Madagascar, led
by Christelle Ratri. According to the Radio
France International Talent programme,
who helped with the band’s debut album,
Irony, Kristel are, “fast becoming the voice
RadioUser March 2019
 International Radio Scene

CHRISSY BRAND

of a young generation – ready for change

and opportunity.”
The irst edition of World Music Matters
in 2019 featured Taraful Bucureştilor, a
Romany troubadour group specialising in
the acoustic style as played in Romania
from the 1960s to 1980s. The ive-piece
band spoke to Radio France International
about inheriting this musical tradition and
why they believe it will survive.
https://tinyurl.com/yaekn52n
Sadly, most of Radio France
International’s programmes aren’t available
on short wave now, although you can listen
online. The current English language short
wave output for RFI is minimal. It is aimed
at North America, and even that only exists
thanks to relays from WRMI, via a feed from
the World Radio Network. Good luck in try-
ing to hear the signal on 5950kHz, for an
hour at 0600, 1600 and 2300 UTC.
https://tinyurl.com/y8u9nqbm

New QSL Cards

Radio Free Asia has commemorated the
Lunar New Year with a special QSL card.
(Fig. 2). The Year of the Pig QSL is avail-
able to listeners who send in a reception
report before April. RFA stated that those
born in a pig year are considered energet-
ic, positive thinkers and gentle. The station
was founded in 1996 by the US Congress.
It broadcasts in the languages of Burmese,
Cantonese, Khmer, Korean, Lao, Mandarin,
Vietnamese, Tibetan (Uke, Amdo, and
Kham), and Uyghur.
Reception reports can be sent by post to
Radio Free Asia, Reception Reports, Radio
Free Asia, 2025 M. Street NW, Suite 300,
Washington DC 20036, USA, by email to
qsl@rfa.org
or through an online form.
http://techweb.rfa.org
World Music Radio (see the previous
section) has a new QSL card design for
2019. There is an eQSL for reports sent
by email, while a printed version is avail-
able for reports sent by post (return post-
age is required). For a quick reply, enclose
€5 or US$5 (the QSL will be mailed from
Denmark, where postage rates are the high-
est in the world). If less return postage is
enclosed, you will still get a QSL card but
will have to wait for a while, until the QSLs
can be posted from outside of Denmark. No
QSL cards are available for reports made by
listening via remote receivers.
Email: wmr@wmr.dk
World Music Radio, PO Box 112
DK-8960 Randers SØ, Denmark
Radio Prague’s QSL card series this year
Fig. 2: Radio Free Asia marks the Year of the Pig.
features Czech modern architecture (Fig.
3). The series on radio equipment in 2018
(Fig. 4) was a hard act to follow, but I feel it
is a good choice. You can collect the series
by contacting the station with reception
reports, even if you hear the programmes
online. It is an unusual QSL policy but one I
am grateful for. Daniela Lazarová explained
on a recent Mailbox programme that QSL
cards were still issued simply because they
are so popular with listeners. Check out
(pun intended) the Radio Prague web pages
that showcase their QSL cards. How many
are in your collection?
www.radio.cz/en/static/qsl/qsl-cards
The daily 30-minute English programmes
from Radio Prague can be heard on short
wave,+ via WRMI in Florida. Although aimed
at the Americas, the 0200 UTC broadcast
on 7780kHz is also aired to Europe. At
0300 UTC, 5950 and 9395kHz are used;
at 0400 UTC on Sundays and Mondays,
tune to 9955kHz; at 1300 UTC, except for
Sundays, listen on 9955kHz; at 1530 UTC
on 5950kHz; at 1730 UTC on weekdays on
5950kHz and at 2330 UTC on Fridays on
5850kHz. (Schedule courtesy of the BDXC
publication Broadcasts In English).
The Radio Romania International monthly
QSL card series for 2019 had not been an-
nounced at the time of writing. However, the
station’s latest contest was publicised, to
tie in with celebrations of the country’s pres-
idency of the EU in 2019. The winners will
visit the Baile Govora spa resort, which is
also hosting various EU meetings through-
out the year. The contest deadline is very
soon, February 28th, and details are online.
https://tinyurl.com/y9xv4ghk
The Trans World Radio QSL card featured
in RadioUser (January 2019: 50) stirred
memories for David Shore. He wrote, “I be-
gan to have an interest in radio in 1950; I
was just eleven when I made my first crystal
set. Soon after, I read a Practical Wireless
article, which had a shortwave design,
and I noticed that it only had ten turns on
the tuning coil.
“Substituting my eighty turn coil for a ten
turn coil opened up the world of short wave
radio to me. The Voice of America from
Tangier, the Swiss Short Wave Service from
Berne and Moscow Radio. Tuning an FRG7
receiver, I heard TWR Bonaire testing on
short wave requesting reception reports.
That was my very first QSL card.
“Years later, when my church was interest-
ed in radio broadcasting, I was asked for ad-
vice and, in late 1979, we began the Search
for Truth radio broadcast from Trans World
Radio Monte Carlo. This expanded to TWR
Swaziland, ELWA Monrovia in Liberia, TWR
Benin, TWR Malawi, TWR on Sky, HCJB Quito
Ecuador, now Reach Beyond Australia, and
Hope 90.1 in Bournemouth, my home town.”
Medium and Short Wave
During December, Tony Stickells got some

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RadioUser March 2019 49
International Radio Scene

Short Wave Logs

UTC kHz Station and Location Language SINPO Initials
0200 5900 Bible Voice Broadcasting Arabic 45545 GS
0430 5875 BBC World Service Arabic 25544 GS
1515 7550 Trans World Radio India, Yerevan Gavar Hindi 45233 LC
1528 7540 Radio Free Asia, Dushanbe-Yangiyul Tibetan 44333 LC
1535 7495 Voice of America, Udon Thani, Thailand Pashto 45334 LC
1540 7475 Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Udon Thani Tajik 45444 LC
1543 7465 BBC World Service, Kranji Pashto 55444 LC
1923 6030 Radio Oromiya, Addis Ababa Afar Oromo 45233 LC
1933 15880 Voice of America, Selebi-Phikwe. Botswana English 35233 LC
1938 12095 BBC World Service, Ascension Island English 35333 LC, OR
1946 7475 Radio Thailand, Udon-Thani English 45333 LC, OR
1948 7445 BBC World Service, Talata-Volondry English 45344 LC
1953 6050 TRT Voice of Turkey, Emirler English 45444 LC, OR
1956 5875 BBC World Service, Woofferton English 45233 LC, OR
2007 3995 HCJB, Weenermeer, Germany German 45233 LC
2013 3985 Radio Slovakia international English 45223 LC, OR
2015 3955 KBS World, Woofferton German 55454 LC
2105 5940 Radio Algérienne, Issoudun, France Arabic 45333 LC
2111 12075 Voice of America, Selebi-Phikwe. Botswana French 35333 LC
2111 7585 Radio Farda, Udon Thani, Thailand Persian 35433 LC
2116 7375 Radio Romania International, Galbeni French 45554 LC
2120 7365 Vatican Radio, Santa Maria Galeria Portuguese 45454 LC
2124 9420 Helliniki Radiophonia, Avliss, Greece Greek 45444 LC, OR
2125 7205 Radio France International, Issoudun, France French 35233 LC
2130 7375 Radio Romania International, Galbeni English 55454 LC, OR
2130 7310 Radio Romania International, Ţigăneşti-Saftica English 55555 LC, OR
2144 6040 Radio Algérienne, Issoudun, France Arabic 45444 LC
CHRISSY BRAND

Fig. 3: A church in Černošice – one of Radio Prague’s QSL cards on modern architecture. Fig. 4: A Rode NT2 microphone on a 2018 Radio Prague QSL card.

fair catches, especially from across the
pond. Texas and Kentucky were among
the far-flung States Tony picked up. US
East Coast stations are regular and ex-
citing catches but it’s even more special
when you hear from even further aield. He
logged WBAP from Fort Worth in Texas on
820kHz. This station dates back to 1922
when stations in Texas were still given call
signs beginning with ‘W’ instead of ‘K’.
It later became the norm that stations
east of the Mississippi River were given a
‘W’, and stations to the west were allocated
the ‘K’. In 2017, WBAP marked its 95th anni-
versary on the air with a series of celebra-
tory programmes, The station was named
by the then Secretary of Commerce Herbert
Hoover, who stated that WBAP stood for We
Bring a Programme
https://tinyurl.com/y8yrtyla
Tony also logged another station that
commenced broadcasting in 1922. WHAS
from Louisville in Kentucky on 840kHz,
which is a distance of almost 3,900 miles
from his QTH. There is a four-minute re-
cording on YouTube of another DXer’s catch
of WHAS, made last summer in New York
by Danny (Shortwave Radio and DX).
https://tinyurl.com/y963ptaf
An unidentiied station emanating from
Ankara puzzled Lionel Clyne. He said it
wasn’t the Voice of Turkey that he heard
at 2154 UTC on 5970kHz in English with
a 45444 SINPO. There was a chat show
with music and an announcement stat-
ing that it was a broadcast from Ankara.

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50 RadioUser March 2019
 International Radio Scene

Medium Wave Logs

kHz UTC Station Location Country SINPO Initials
531 1316 Kringvarp Føroya Akraberg Faroe Islands 33423 TS
540 1405 MR1 Kossuth Rádió Solt Hungary 55555 TS
549 0006 Jil FM Sidi Hamadouche Alegria 53424 TS
558 0012 Radio Slovenija 1 Murska Sobota/Nemčavci Slovenia 52432 TS
570 0015 CFCB Corner Brook, NL Canada 44243 TS
600 0018 CBNA St. Anthony, NL Canada 45244 TS
621 1320 RTBF International (Le Premier) Wavre Belgium 43434 TS
639 1322 ČRo Dvojka Praha/Liblice Czech Republic 43433 TS
670 0059 WSCR Chicago, IL USA 45333 TS
700 0355 WLW Cincinnati, OH USA 52242 TS
710 0103 CKVO Clarenville, NL Canada 43444 TS
710 0102 Radio Rebelde Chambas/CTOM3 Cuba 43444 TS
730 0358 CKAC Montréal/Pointe-Calumet QC Canada 44244 TS
740 0107 CHCM Marystown, NL Canada 42442 TS
750 0110 CBGY Bonavista Bay, NL Canada 42243 TS
760 0401 WJR Detroit, MI USA 33443 TS
765 0111 IRIB Radio Iran Chah Bahar Iran 43333 TS
792 1407 Rádio Dechovka Hradec Kralove/Stěžery Czech Republic 35333 TS
800 0117 VOWR St. John’s, NL Canada 42223 TS
810 0119 Makedonsko Radio 1 Ovče Pole Macedonia 52543 TS
820 0404 WBAP Fort Worth, TX USA 44244 TS
840 0409 WHAS Louisville USA 44223 TS
981 1629 Chaîne 2 Ouled Fayet Algeria 54544 TS
1130 2322 WBBR New York/Carlstadt, NJ USA 44443 TS
1140 2323 CBI Sydney Canada 42242 TS
1251 1721 MR Dankó Rádió Szombathely Hungary 53244 TS
1332 1627 ČRo Dvojka Moravske Budějovice/Domamil Czech Republic 53333 TS
1332 1627 SRR Radio România Actualități Galați/Barboși Romania 53333 TS
1350 1629 MR4 Nemzetiségi Adások Győr/Sárás Hungary 44223 TS
1386 1631 Radio Poland Viešintos Lithuania 54554 TS
1386 2232 Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty Viešintos Lithuania 54544 TS
1395 1142 Radio Seabreeze AM Grou/Aquaverium The Netherlands 35243 TS
1400 2233 CBG Gander, NL Canada 45333 TS
1430 2237 CHKT Toronto Island, ON Canada 45233 TS
1467 2239 TWR Europe Roumoules France 54555 TS
1476 2000 Asfalttelegrafen Borås Sweden 22222 OR
1503 1644 RNE Radio 5 Monforte de Lemos/Piñeira Spain 53444 TS
1520 2242 WWKB Buffalo, NY USA 44334 TS
1566 2248 All India Radio National Channel Nagpur/Buttibori India 52443 TS
1602 2251 SER Segovia/San Agustín Spain 53333 TS

LOG CONTRIBUTORS: GS = Graham Smith, Bury St.
Edmunds, Suffolk. Sony ICF-SW600 and a telescopic
antenna. LC = Lionel Clyne, Faversham, Kent. Lowe
HF-150, random wire or homemade loop. OR = Owen
Rutherford, London. Lowe HF-150 and a Wellbrook
loop. TS = Tony Stickells, Wrexham. SDRplay RSP2,
AOR AR7030 and a 500ft long wire.
It went off air suddenly at 2158 UTC, be-
fore a formal identiication could be made.
That frequency (5970kHz) is used by TRT,
although at that time only English to Asia
and Australia is scheduled from Turkey, on
9610kHz. Perhaps it actually was the Voice
of Turkey, (which uses 5970kHz in the time
slot from 2030 to 2130 UTC), aired due to
a switching error? Other broadcasters us-
ing 5970kHz include BBC World Service via
Armenia, China Radio International, AWR
and Radio Free Asia.
Graham Smith heard Bible Voice
Broadcasting in Arabic from 0200 to 0230
UTC on 5900kHz. There was no interval
signal or announcement in English, just
the Arabic station name of ‘Dardasha 7’.
He commented that, “the timing is a bit
odd: most of the Arab world will be asleep
at 0200 UTC, except in Oman, where it will
be 0600 local time. There is also a strange
break at 0215 UTC.”
Graham also heard a numbers station on
the morning of November 20th, from about
0205 to 0214 UTC on 5930kHz. There was a
male voice reading numbers in English. He
thinks this was a one-off broadcast as he
hasn’t heard it again.
Graham questions online listening. He
wrote, “These days when stations leave the
short waves, we are often told to use our
computers and listen online instead. But if
you are going to use your computer anyway,
why would you listen to the radio when you
can watch television? There are lots of tele-
vision channels online, and I watch some
of them. One new channel I have noticed is
called PolandIN, in English. You can watch
the live stream. Another programme I have
noticed is the news from Hungary. Scroll
down at the website and you should see a
programme in English and others in German,
Chinese, Russian and Hungarian.”
https://polandin.com
www.hirado.hu/video/hirmusorok
Personally, I prefer listening to radio on-
line over watching television online for sev-
eral reasons; it enables me to get on with
other tasks at the same time or to just close
my eyes and soak it all in. I rarely watch tele-
vision of any kind as I ind it too distract-
ing. I prefer news, entertainment and music
from the radio, whether it’s online or with
the thrill of listening on an analogue receiv-
er. The pictures are always so much better
and brighter in my imagination than any-
thing that television can offer me!

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RadioUser March 2019 51
Network Radio

Brexit and a Network

Radio for Power-Users G7DDN

Chris Rolinson system. If you are holidaying in the EU

g7ddn@g7ddn.com
Chris Rolinson counts the costs of
‘Brexit’ for network radio users, offers
a review of the Telo TE590 network
radio, passes on ten key hints on
network-radio problem-solving, and
has news on the new 700MHz band.
On March 29th, we will, in all likelihood,
see ‘Brexit’; and whichever way you may
have voted, you may well not have realised
that there would be implications for your
network radio hobby.
At the time of writing, it is not certain
what kind of ‘deal’, if any, will be agreed
with the EU. But it was intriguing recently to
see some pre-Brexit advice about roaming
charges appear on the government’s
website. This will affect anyone using
network radio in the EU after this month.
this summer, the advice is to check
your roaming package carefully for
changes – and charges.
More on the New 700MHz Band
I mentioned in January the forthcoming
availability of the 700MHz band to cell
operators. Ofcom reports that it is still on
track to deliver this by the second quarter
of 2020. However, it hadn’t occurred to me
that some network radio devices might
not be able to take advantage of the new
frequencies, so I am grateful to Hairy Paul
NR707 for drawing my attention to the
Inrico T320’s FCC write-up at this URL:
https://fccid.io/2AIV6-T320
From this, it is clear that, at least, parts of
the new band are already covered by that
device (Fig. 1).
It may well be worth a scout around, in
order to check if your network device is 1

‘700MHz-ready’. Fig.1: The T320 700MHz Frequency Ranges on

The Cost of ‘Brexit’
If there is a ‘deal’, roaming charges
will remain as they are until a new
economic partnership is agreed, but
after then the future is unknown, and
anything could happen.
https://tinyurl.com/y6u6m39v
If there is no ‘deal’, then, according
to this information, “…the costs that EU
mobile operators would be able to charge
UK operators for providing roaming
services would no longer be regulated. This
would mean that surcharge-free roaming
when you travel to the EU could no longer
be guaranteed.”
The government says it will, in this
eventuality, legislate a £45-per-month ‘cap’
on EU roaming charges, but this comes
with a warning to the effect that, “…the
availability and pricing of mobile roaming in
the EU would be a commercial question for
the mobile operators. As a consequence,
surcharge-free mobile roaming in the EU
may not continue to be standard across
every mobile phone package.”
Deal or no deal, leaving the EU will
have financial ramifications for using
your network radio on an EU cellular
Let me know what you find.
Handy Hints from Hairy Paul
While chatting with ‘Hairy Paul’, the
conversation drifted to the sheer number
of technical issues on which he is often
asked for advice. Therefore, I asked him to
consider compiling a set of HP’s 10 Handy
Hints, which we could publish to help us
(and him!). Hence, Table 1 contains a
summary of those points. If you like these
tips, please let me know, and I will ask HP
to keep them coming.
Telo TE590 Review: A Network
Radio for Power-Users
I noticed that ‘Android-Guru’ Filip Everaert
NR001, has recently been waxing lyrical
about the Telo TE590 radio. Those of you
who have come across Filip will know he
is a bit of a perfectionist and very fussy
about his devices. I was intrigued to find
out what it was about the Telo that made
him declare this his ‘favourite’ Network
device so far. This is what he said: “In my
continuous search for the ‘perfect’ network
radio, I recently came across a device called
the Telo TE590:
the FCC Website. Fig. 2: The Telo Systems TE590.
Fig. 3: The Telo Systems TE590 on its side.
Fig. 4: Battery and SIM card tray of the TE590.
https://tinyurl.com/y8r3pt6v
“The irst thing that drew me to it
was its slim-looking design (Fig. 2). I
searched the internet for dealers and came
across this website:
www.network-radios.co.uk
It is part of G6 Global Communications,
and they appear to be the main Telo
dealer for the UK.
“At around £395, the TE590 wasn’t
inexpensive; on the other hand, this looked
like it could be the high-end device I had
been searching for. Because my interests
in NR are more on the Android side, I don’t
spend money on ‘traditional’ radios!
“The device arrived in Belgium within
just a few days, and I was struck by how
professional even the packaging looked,
compared to the boxes of other makes.
Inside, I found the radio and desktop charger,
a USB-C type cable, a wall charger, a belt
clip, and a little screwdriver (to access the
SIM card holder).

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52 RadioUser March 2019
 Network Radio

G7DDN FILIP EVERAERT

FILIP EVERAERT

2 4

“The TE590 runs Android 6 feedback (Fig. 3).

(Marshmallow) and has 2GB RAM with 16GB
ROM. Therefore, it is well capable. It has a
very ‘positive’ and ‘professional’ feel in the
hand, a large 3.5” touchscreen, and the build
quality is excellent!
“A 13mp rear camera is paired with a 2mp
front camera, for sending photos over Zello,
and NFC is also provided if you like passing
data to other devices in that way. The feel
of the smaller buttons is great, and the PTT
button itself is both a good size and what
Telo call ‘radio-grade’ – it has very positive
“The volume is adjusted by two buttons
A 13mp rear camera
below the PTT button; although this lack is paired with a 2mp
of a volume ‘knob’ seems awkward at irst,
this makes one-handed operation very
front camera, for
easy. This pair of buttons also works when sending photos over
the screen is off, not something which can
be said of all NR devices. The rotary knob
Zello, and NFC is also
on the top is set up as a power button. provided if you like
Check out the excellent Button Mapper
software at this URL:
passing data to other
https://buttonmapper.app devices in that way
“It can be ‘re-mapped’ to ‘volume’ instead

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RadioUser March 2019 53
Network Radio
FILIP EVERAERT
Fig. 5: Zello Channels - switched on and off.
if you prefer that. I used Button Mapper
to make the small button above the PTT
shift the device into ‘Do Not Disturb’ mode
at night time. That’s proved very handy!
Battery life is great. The device comes with
a 4200mAH battery, which I charge every
night, and it lasts me all day long while out
at work – there are no issues running out of
power in the middle of a busy day (Fig. 4).
“The short, ixed antenna its in nicely with
the overall design and is small enough to
not get in the way when putting the device
in your pocket. The front-facing (2W, 40mm)
waterproof-rated loudspeaker has excel-
lent sound quality; the volume is easily loud
enough for use in noisy environments. The
belt clip that comes with the device is unusu-
al. It is more like a ‘holder’ that you ‘click’ the
device ‘into’ – not the typical clip that comes
on most network radios.
“This device can easily be used as a
smartphone, for people who like to carry
only one device with them. This is owing to
a larger touchscreen than most NR devices
have. A PC connection is achieved via the
new-style USB-C cable. Personally, I prefer
Google Drive, or similar, for ile transfer.
“The connector for external accessories
is the same as on radios such as the Inrico
T320. The speciications include IP68 and
MIL-STD-810G. This means that the Telo is
waterproof up to 1.5m for up to 30 minutes,
should you want to take a bath with your ra-
dio. I have been using this device daily for
some time now. My conclusions? Expensive
but deinitely worth the price and made for
‘power-users’ who expect that little bit extra.”
My thanks to Filip for this comprehensive
and up-to-date user report.
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54
1. How to stop Wi-Fi ‘dropping out’ when your screen turns off:
Go to Android settings – Wi-fi - tap cog wheel at top right (N.B.: On some versions, tap the 3 dots and choose
‘Advanced’) - set ‘Keep Wi-Fi on during sleep’ to ‘Always’.
2. How to reduce ‘drop outs’ when operating Zello on a mobile connection:
Zello settings (three dots at top right) - Options - Support - Advanced Settings - Networking (Mobile) - change
“Keep Alive Interval” to a lower number. Paul says settings of 110 or 140 seconds seem to work well, espe-
cially when travelling in vehicles.
3. Improve screen visibility:
Zello settings - Options - Appearance - Theme - set the colour you prefer.
4. Reduce battery power drain:
Turn down screen brightness when possible. Android Settings - Display - Brightness. The screen is a huge
energy drain; keeping the brightness low extends your operating time.
5. Reduce mobile data usage on Zello:
Only turn ON the channel on which you are operating. Turn OFF all other channels in your channel list. If the
international on/off symbol to the right of the channel in your list is grey, then it is off and will report ‘dis-
connected’. (Fig. 5.) This stops Zello receiving and recording activity on other channels. In addition, use a
Wi-Fi network when available.
6. A quick adjustment tip for receive volume level for individual stations:
While the station received is talking, hold your finger on the screen beside the on-screen PTT button, then
drag your finger into the PTT button area and rotate it clockwise/anticlockwise to adjust the individual vol-
ume for that station.
7. Adjust time before screen ‘goes to sleep’:
Android Settings – Display - Sleep. This controls the time in minutes that the screen remains on after the
last user input before turning it off automatically to save power. HP says he prefers a setting of 10 minutes.
8. Use the hardware PTT when the screen goes to sleep:
Zello settings - Options - Push-to-talk-buttons - then select the PTT you wish to use from the list and then
tick the option “Handle button in the background when possible” – note: this can sometimes make Zello hi-
jack the PTT from other apps.
9. How to avoid noise when speaking into the microphone:
NR microphones are sensitive, so talk ‘across’ the mic instead of ‘into’ it. This greatly reduces the occur-
rence of pops and sibilance which makes your audio sound poor. On that note, make use of the Echo feature
in your Zello Contacts list to test the quality of your transmitted audio - on Network Radio, you don’t need a
‘radio check’ – you can do it yourself.
10. Audio Reporting on Network Radios:
On traditional radio, we use RS reports - Readability (out of 5) and Signal Strength (out of 9). However, Network
Radios deal with RF signal level adjustments automatically - they don’t have a signal meter either, so giving
an ‘S’ or signal report is meaningless. However, readability can still be reported using the usual scale: 1 =
Unreadable; 2 = Barely readable; 3 = Readable with considerable difficulty; 4 = Readable with practically no
difficulty, and 5 = Perfectly readable.
Table 1: Ten Hairy Hints for Network Radio.
More Reviews over £1 billion pounds per MHz per year for
Our editor spotted that the well-known US 900MHz band access; and an only slightly
Ham website Ham Radio Science start- less eye-watering £805 million per MHz per
ed reviewing a few network radio units year, for access to the 1800MHz band.
now too. Check out their evaluation of the Other band fees, such as 800MHz and
Kyocera E6560, a rugged smartphone, dou- 2.6GHz, have already been set.
bling up as a Network Radio: In terms of spectrum holdings at these
https://tinyurl.com/ydfdcxeu frequencies, Vodafone & O2 have around
There is also a report on the Boxchip 46MHz, Three occupies 30MHz, and EE
S700A, the DMR/NR Hybrid radio I have takes 90MHz. Whichever way you do the
mentioned in previous columns: maths, that’s a lot of money, and they have
https://tinyurl.com/ybyc9qpd to make a profit on top of that! Something
it’s easy to forget when in the middle of a
The Rising Costs of Spectrum mobile contact outdoors.
Ofcom released an interesting document
at the end of 2018. In it, the regulatory body Keep in Touch!
sets the 2019 fees that mobile operators And with those thoughts of how much
have to pay for access to certain parts money the network really costs to imple-
of the spectrum: ment, I close with a reminder to let me
https://tinyurl.com/y76mdr2k know your news and views to the usual e-
I was unaware of this, so maybe you are mail address at the top of the column.
too? This year, operators will be paying Happy ‘Brexit’, everyone!
RadioUser March 2019

Feedback & Corrections
Feedback
Michael de Jong PA7MDJ wrote to me from
The Netherlands to say, “Dear Georg, I read
with much interest your article The INSPIRE
Project: Art & Science in the RadioUser issue
of October 2018. I’m highly fascinated by ELF
and VLF, both man-made signals and ‘natural
radio’. I would love to read some more about
your experiences with the VLF natural radio
receivers mentioned in your article, about per-
formance in general, performance in an urban
location, the natural radio emissions picked
up, antenna set-up, etc. I’ve always been in-
terested in ELF, VLF, and the lower part of LF,
but never had a suitable receiver and anten-
na. This recently changed when I purchased
an RSP1A SDR receiver and a MegActiv
MA305FT E-ield probe. This combination of
equipment now enables me to explore the
VLF and LF bands from about 9 kHz upwards.
It has been fascinating listening to some of
the time signal stations and the various naval
stations transmitting coded messages to sub-
merged submarines (one of the properties of
VLF, as you may know, being to be able to pen-
etrate at least 10 to 40 meters into saltwater).
I hope to be able to catch the signals of the
historical station SAQ Grimeton in Sweden on
17.2 kHz on the next available opportunity. I’m
also planning on doing some experiments us-
ing a PC soundcard with suitable software as
VLF receiver. I’ve always been fascinated by
Natural Radio. I remember back in the 1990s
one of the experts in the ield was Stephen P.
McGreevy. He went on many an expedition
to the ‘High North’ recording the sounds of
natural radio while watching the Aurora danc-
ing overhead. His ‘Electric Enigma’ natural
radio recordings can be found and listened
to on the internet. For a while, Stephen also
built and offered VLF natural radio receivers
for sale. I never bought one nor did I ever try
to build a VLF natural radio receiver myself,
for which nowadays many schematics and
building instructions are available on the in-
ternet. I guess I never did because I thought
using one in a noisy urban location like mine
would be useless, with the natural radio emis-
sions being drowned out in 50Hz ‘hum’ and
other noise. Surprisingly, VLF reception with
the RSP1A and E-ield probe so far has been
relatively quiet though, the part below 9kHz
however still remains unexplored. It would be
great to see continued coverage of VLF and
‘Natural Radio’ topics in future RadioUser is-
sues. Thanks, and keep up the good work!”
Why not visit our new online bookshop at www.radioenthusiast.co.uk/store
RadioUser March 2019
A Typical VLF screenshot (ca. 10-90kHz; GW)
Veel dank inderdaad, Michael, I will cover VLF
matters on an occasional basis in RadioUser,
especially around the issues of decoding,
software, special transmissions and receiv-
er/ SDR technology. Stephen P. McGreevy is
still around, and I have a collection of most of
his recordings – the ‘sound of the planet’, as
it were. I ind the combination of an SDRPlay
RSPduo and PA0RDT mini-whip aerial works
best at my location here in the Ribble Valley
[Ed.].
Hello Georg and Chrissy, my name is Roger
Burchell. I have just read your International
Radio Scene column in the January issue
(RadioUser, January 2019: 48-51) and may be
able to shed a bit of light on the ‘slight mys-
tery’ referred to in the article: I believe Lionel
heard communication on the HF Oceanic air-
band frequencies. The number that immedi-
ately jumped out at me was 5649kHz, which
various ground stations, notably Shanwick,
use to speak to aircraft lying across the
Atlantic Ocean. The ‘beep’, ‘beep’ noises
heard could well be the Selcall tones which
are allotted to each aircraft; a strong clue
lies in the comment “higher level available, is
that correct?” I assume that Lionel heard this
between 4650 and 4700kHz; this is the Civil
aeronautical band. Funnily enough, I heard
Icelandic Radio on 4675kHz only this last
Sunday (6th January 2019) I have listened to
HF Oceanic trafic for many years now and
am certain the communications heard were
from aircraft. Other useful airband frequen-
cies you could try are 5598, 5616, 8879, 8891,
8864kHz. There are also RAF Volmet on
5450kHz, and Shannon Volmet on 5505kHz.
Feature
These are basically weather forecasts for
various airields and airports. Finally, I must
say I enjoy your columns in RadioUser. Best
regards Roger Burchell.
Many thanks, Roger, on behalf of Chrissy and
myself, for your informative comments and
kind words. I have retained a strong inter-
est in HF Volmet myself and enjoy the way
you can relate this information to the gen-
eral weather situation and isobar distribu-
tion across Europe, which may be visualised
through programs such as Zorns-Lemma and
others – [Ed/ CB.].
Corrections
RadioUser, December 2018 (Digital Radio):
Fig. 4 had a caption error. The correct caption
should have read: ‘Details of the welle.io app
are on the Google Play store’.
[My apologies, and my thanks to the column au-
thor, for pointing this out – Ed.].
Practical Wireless, January 2019: (Rallies
and Events)
In this issue, the Newbury Radio rally was inad-
vertently advertised with the wrong date. The
event is not taking place on 23rd March 2019,
but instead on 23rd June 2019.
[My apologies to Don Field, Phill Morris and the
Club – Ed.]
RadioUser, February 2019 (STEMTera
Breadboard)
Under the headline ‘Direct Conversion’:
Roger’s previous series in RadioUser was
published in 2017, not in 2007 as stated.
[Sincere apologies to Roger Thomas – Ed.].
55
Utility Monitoring

Digital Selective
Nils Schiffhauer, DK8OK
dk8ok@gmx.net

D
igital Selective Calling (DSC) is

Calling on HF -
a clever technique to establish
contact ship-to-shore and
shore-to-ship, but also ship-to-
ship and even shore-to-shore.

Anchors Aweigh!
The system is widely used on seven main
channels in the maritime bands. These are:
2177, 2187.5, 4207.5, 6312, 8414.5, 12577
and 16804.5kHz.
On these designated channels, you can
receive ships, as well as coastal stations Nils Schiffhauer sets sail to receive GMDSS
from around the world – see Figs. 1 and 2.
The power of the ship transmitters can
messages, regularly transmitted by both ship and
range, from some ten to around 100W. coastal stations on HF.
Icom’s GM800, for example, provides 125W,
and it is a typical transceiver matching all
the requirements for DSC, where HF must
be used. Let us have a proper look at what
to expect from DSC on our receivers:
Each station has an individual number,
called a Maritime Mobile Service Identity
(MMSI). In short, one station calls another
with their respective MMSI, by means of a
short message.
This includes information on both the
calling and the called station, and on the
purpose of the message, for instance start-
ing voice communications on a particu-
lar SSB channel, which is then specified
by the message.
The mode is FSK, 100Bd, 170Hz (Fig. 3).
The coding scheme is error-correct- 1
ing by redundancy (FEC – Forward Error
Correction). The details of the scheme have
been published in the ITU Recommendation
ITU-R M.493-14:
https://tinyurl.com/ybpwvvvx
Scottish radio amateur John Pumford-
Green, GM4SLV, spent a lot of effort go-
ing into even more detail for SWLs in his
free PDF, entitled GMDSS DSC Messages,
which can get here:
https://tinyurl.com/ya3t6fcm
Moreover, his website – offering live re-
ception and an archived database of nearly
six million entries – is a must, if you are in-
terested in this form of communication:
http://gm4slv.plus.com:8000/index.php 2

Facilitating Reception
Reception couldn’t be easier: You simply
switch your receiver to one of the above-
mentioned channels (mode: USB or CW,
bandwidth: down to 400Hz), match its
output to the decoder, and let time do the
rest. After a night on, say, 8414.5 kHz,
you should have some hundred(s) of mes-
sages in your log.
I received each channel over a period of
24 hours around the 2018 autumn equinox,
using an SDR FDM-S2 and a 2x2.5m verti-
cal active dipole (MegaDipole MD300DX) in
Northern Germany.
The image in Fig. 4 shows the absolute
numbers of (altogether around) 4,000 error-
free messages, sorted by channel, and ac-
cumulated within 24 hours.
In Fig. 5, you can see more detail on the
percentage- distribution of the messages
for each hour and channel.
On each channel, messages from ships
prevail (Fig. 6). You will get similar results
around the Spring Equinox in mid-March in
the UK. Despite being in the trough of the
sunspot cycle and experiencing some ad-
verse geomagnetic conditions, the ‘24/7
approach’ (of 24 hours and 7 channels) al-
ways yields some surprising DX.
The picture in Fig. 7 provides an over-

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56 RadioUser March 2019
 Utility Monitoring

Fig. 1: YaDD draws correctly received coast stations on

the DX Atlas map, which has been zoomed in to Europe.
Fig. 2: […] zoomed-out, it shows the whole world, with
stations from the USA to New Zealand.
Fig. 3: DSC is transmitted via FSK modulation with
100Bd and a shift of 170Hz, as seen here in the W-Code
Classifier.
Fig. 4: Reception of all seven DSC channels over a period
of 24 hours shows activity, as well as propagation.
Fig. 5: The influence of propagation becomes even
clearer in this diagram, showing the percentage-
distribution of DSC messages for each channel/hour.

view of activities and signal strengths on

8414.5kHz for a 24-hour interval.

Decoding the Signals

The key to all this is a decoder with
two main functions: first, to decode the
CCIR493-4 formatted FSK into groups
of three numbers each; and second, to
transform these cryptic triples into, for
example, MMSIs and messages. If you
would like to read the MMSIs as ship’s
names, you will need some look-up table
in the background, in order to translate
numbers such as ‘311027500’ directly into
words like ‘Oil Tanker Nansen Spirit’. With
around 60’000 MMSIs registered, you will 3
otherwise enter rough seas, as it were.
There are several decoders around,
which have DSC on board. In my opinion,
Dirk Claessen’s YaDD (for: ‘Yet Another DSC
Decoder’) is the (free) tool of choice:
https://tinyurl.com/yd2tz7bh
It consists of a capable FSK decoder,
combined with some smart functions
for documenting, reporting, and even
visualising, the coastal stations on the DX
Atlas software. It accepts the audio from
the receiver, and you can choose the proper
source under the Audio Input option (Fig. 8).
Don’t forget to specify your own location
(in decimal degrees), which you can get via
Google Maps, under ‘Coast Stations’ (Fig. 4
10). Here, you can also see the number of
MMSIs and their corresponding Ship names
on file, at the bottom right.
The most recent version of YaDD
comes with a file containing 7,763
MMSIs. You should update these data
through a list, which is maintained by
Andreas Ibold, DO1DXX, and available on
the UDXF website:
http://www.udxf.nl/ShipData.txt
Download it, rename it to YADD_MMSI_
SHIP.tx and swap this with the default
list YADD_MMSI_SHIP.txt in your YaDD
folder. The former 7763 MMSIs then
should have changed.
Next, click the Spectrum/Msgs tab 5

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RadioUser March 2019 57
Utility Monitoring

of YaDD, showing the incoming audio

spectrum and the decoded messages. In
the spectrum, you see a 600Hz-wide block,
in dark blue. This is the AFC range.
If AUTOTUNING is clicked (as is
recommended) the software automatically
searches for signals within this range. Then
you don’t miss any signals, which might be
slightly off-channel, as can usually be the
case with many ship stations, despite the
ITU requiring stability of ±10 Hz for both
coastal and ship transmitters (Fig. 11). The
ITU also recommends that “the bandwidth
should not exceed 300Hz”.
I made had my best reception 6
experiences with a setting of around 400
Hz, bearing in mind instabilities on both
sides. The centre frequency is 1700Hz,
which is achieved in CW with a BFO
tone of 1700Hz.
The mode should be SSB-USB or CW-
USB, otherwise, you must click Reverse
under SIGNAL POLARITY.
After a while of autonomous monitoring,
you can harvest the results, neatly arranged
according to different points of view.
Among those tabs, there is also one for
drawing all received coast stations onto
DX Atlas, the universal software by Alex
Shovkoplyas, VE3NEA:
http://www.dxatlas.com 7
SDRs with a wide HF bandwidth offer
the opportunity of receiving more than one
GMDSS channels – and up to all the main
seven ones. The recommended software
used here is again SDR-Radio V3 by Simon
Brown, G4ELI. The main challenge of such
a professional approach is to keep some
order to all the incoming data – expect
many thousands of messages over 24
hours! To do so, we have to put the cart
before the horse. The cart, in this case,
is the module GMDSS-Display, in Mike
Simpson’s free software Display-Launcher. 8
https://www.sdr-radio.com
https://tinyurl.com/y84q9csa
This tool accepts up to seven different
inputs of decoded GMDSS messages,
combining them into one spreadsheet-like
database (Fig. 12). As Mike told RadioUser,
his software cannot use the data format of
the YaDD software. But he found a solution,
using MultiPSK Decoder, by Patrick
Lindecker F6CTE:
http://f6cte.free.fr/index_anglais.htm
The setup is as per usual, with multi-
channel reception, demodulating and
decoding. You must control your SDR with
software, allowing for placing at least seven
demodulators in parallel over the SDR’s HF
bandwidth. Each demodulator (RX1 to RX7) 9

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58 RadioUser March 2019
 Utility Monitoring

8414.5 kHz

10

is fed to an appropriate virtual audio card

(VAC1 to VAC7).
Each output of those VACs, in turn,
feeds an instance of MultiPSK decoder. To
achieve this, you have to install MultiPSK
seven times, each instance in a different
folder (MultiPSK1 to MultiPSK7).
Don’t forget to copy your MultiPSK
licence file USER.COD into each of the Slightly off frequency
folders. When all is running smoothly (this
may take some ten minutes), MultiPSK will
start decoding the demodulated audio from
your SDR, according to this pattern:
RX1->VAC1->MultiPSK1 … RX7-
>VAC7->MultiPSK7.
MultiPSK subsequently writes the Over-modulated
decoded messages to an individual .txt
file within the QSO folder of each MultiPSK
instance. These files are automatically
named QSO YYY-MM-DD.txt. They can be 11
read by Mike’s GMDSS-Display software.
Before doing so, you need to perform some
more steps, which are described in Mike’s
manual. One of them is to ‘convince’ each
instance of MultiPSK to back up its QSO
file every 20 seconds (Fig. 9). Another one
is to fill in the channel frequency and to
activate the HF frequency display under
Other options GMDSS.
If all is running, this setup will run
unattended for hours. To achieve this,
will qualify you for a BM, a Bachelor of
Monitoring. It took me three times to
pass this examination because I thought
I knew it all.
To avoid my mistakes, follow the manual
and Help menu closely. By doing so, you
will pass it at the first attempt, and with
flying colours!
Despite the ubiquitous presence of GPS,
GLONASS, Galileo, and so on, ships will
only rarely transmit their positions. This
function has been shifted to the Automatic
Identification System (AIS), transmitted on 12

Fig.6: On all channels, messages from ships are prevailing, but with different percentages. Fig.7: 8414.5kHz is the most promising DX-channel for DSC, as this signal history over
24 hours reveals. Fig.8: YaDD DSC Decoder offers a menu to choose from the audio input for this specific instance, here from Virtual Audio Cable #7. Fig. 9: MultiPSK has to be
prepared for letting GMDSS-Display crunch the data. Regular backup of data occurs every 20 seconds. Fig. 10: In YaDD, you have to specify your own position under the tab ‘Coast
Stations’ (in decimal degrees). Fig.11: With 13 signals right on the listed frequency – marked by the read vertical – you need the help of AFC for correct decoding. Fig.12: Mike
Simpson’s software GMDSS-Display collects messages from up to seven different DSC decoders in parallel, organizing them in a spreadsheet-like database.

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RadioUser March 2019 59
Utility Monitoring

Fig.13: The cargo ship Grande Argentina of Grimaldi Lines arriving at Hamburg, guided by the pilot ‘Boxer’ - as seen by the apps Shipfinder, via AIS, and using ‘augmented-reality’
features on an iPad from St. Pauli Landungsbrücken/Hamburg. Fig.14: Shipfinder also provides a bird’s eye view of seas, lakes and rivers like the Elbe. This screenshot shows
just 27 vessels of a total of the 32,510 visible worldwide. Fig.15: The cruise liner Akademik Ioffe, sailing between Greenland and Newfoundland in the centre of the Labrador Sea.
Fig.16: Greenpeace’s Rainbow Warrior was received on 8MHz, from its location in the Mediterranean.

13

VHF and via satellite. With the help of AIS

and some web services, you can follow
in the wake of many ships worldwide,
even with the additional tools afforded by
augmented reality (Figs. 13 and 14).

QSL
Many coast stations and nearly every
ship will QSL your reception report
(Figs. 15 and 16). 14
The aforementioned Andy Ibold has a
fine collection of nearly 1,400 verifications
from ships alone. His advice is to send
a homemade reply-card or letter to the
captain since there are usually no radio
officers anymore. You should add some
information about yourself, such as your
home city. You may wish to add some
photos, to give your report a personal
style. In Andy’s experience, these reports
are often welcomed, if only for technical
reasons: “Some answered that my report
was actually proof of their DSC equipment
working fine because they got no reply to
their call from the coastal station …” 15 16

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 Radio in History

PHIL NELSON

Figs. 1 & 2: The Volksempfänger (‘People’s Receiver’) VE301 (Front and Rear).

Radio: The Voice of the

Totalitarian State
Scott Caldwell examines the role radio played in the period of
transformation from the Weimar Republic (1919-1933) to the Third Reich
(1933-1945) in Germany.

Scott Caldwell Josef Goebbels (1897-1945) who pro- ical trend has been subjected to revalua-
Scottandrew.caldwell@yahoo.co.uk claimed in 1933 that “the radio will be to the tion, in the light of the relationship between
Twentieth Century what the press was to the concepts of “Volk and Heimat” cul-

F
or many, the era of the Weimar
Republic in Germany (1919-
1933) was a period of unprec-
edented cultural and political
diversity. It ended when, the
‘Great Depression’ of the early 1930s – to-
gether with wider international and domes-
tic developments – provided the Nazi Party
(NSDAP, Nationalsozialistische Deutsche
Arbeiterpartei) with an opportunity to ‘legal-
ly’ acquire power, in Hitler’s Machtergreifung
(literally: the ‘seizure of power’).
To sustain and increase both his power
base and popularity, Adolf Hitler (1889-
1945) turned to the medium of broadcast
radio, exploiting its unique ability to enter
the home of the German electorate.
The signiicant role of radio in the
Fascist regime was also advocated by
the Nineteenth”.
The task of providing a continu-
ous source of radio propaganda fell to
Goebbels, through his position as Minister
for ‘Public Enlightenment and Propaganda’.
German Radio Heritage
Previously, many historians viewed radio
broadcasts in Weimar Germany as ‘avant-
garde’ and carefree, relecting a positive
outlook. After all, the economy contin-
ued to recover from the political instabil-
ity that was rampant after the end of the
First World War.
Many social observers commented that,
in Weimar Germany, radio was an instru-
ment of modernity and plurality, which
counteracted the radical politics of the far
right and left. Recently, this historiograph-
ture, on the one hand, and the transition
to a Nazi-controlled totalitarian state, on
the other hand.
The Wall Street Crash of October 1929,
deepened an international crisis that led to
American inancial institutions calling in
their loans and investments. This changed
both the quality and the positive tone of pre-
vious German broadcasts.
It appeared that German radio and culture
needed a new voice to promote and sta-
bilise the idea of German nationalism; the
Nazi party soon illed this void and dominat-
ed radio until the end of the regime in 1945.
A Changing Dynamic
This rapidly changing dynamic of German
radio broadcasting in the late Weimar
Republic was revealed in the politically-ori-

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RadioUser March 2019 61
Radio in History
entated programs of the time, produced by
regional broadcasters. These broadcasts
relected the creeping anxiety and progres-
sive pessimism in the era’s public life – a
phenomenon the Nazis exploited.
A glance at some representative pro-
gramme titles is revealing offers a hint
of the changing lavour. Programmes
like these were increasingly subjected to
censorship, especially during the Great
Depression of the early 1930s.
Frankfurt: The 1929 program Wo uns der
Schuh drückt (Where our shoes are painful,
i.e., ‘what is bothering us’).
Leipzig: The 1930 series Tagesfragen der
Wirtschaft (Economic Issues of the Day).
Cologne: The 1931 irst ‘worker’s radio play’,
Toter Mann (Dead Man).
Radio in an Economic Crisis
The early Weimar Republic was beset with
numerous crises, such as inlation from
1923. The period also coincided with the
irst public radio broadcasts. The minis-
ter in charge was former HF technician
Hans Carl August Friedrich Bredow (1879-
1959), who devised a policy of not sched-
uling more current affairs content, a move
that was seen as a misguided attempt
to enhance the popular support for the
failing Republic.
Bredow stated that: “At a time when one
did not know whether today’s wages would
pay for tomorrow, when battles between po-
litical parties were tearing the land asunder,
when the audience intolerance of politics
had reached its limits and when the Reich
was faltering under internal and external
pressure, the nation wanted to hear no more
about politics and party quarrelling”.
By contrast, by the end of the 1930s, ra-
dio under the Nazi dictatorship had trans-
formed the political landscape, resulting in
persistent calls for the stronger politiciza-
tion of programming schedules. Essentially,
it was then thought, radio’s function was to
speak to the nation under the slogan of “One
People, One Reich, One Führer”.
An in the respectable radio magazine Die
Sendung in 1930, hinted at the political revo-
lution that radio would instigate: “One of ra-
dio’s most admirable functions is its ability to
bring the different classes together. The na-
tion (Volk) is torn apart by ideology and party
politics. In this situation only, radio can help.
Radio alone is nonpartisan”.
Technical Aspects
There is a view among social historians
that the Great Depression of the early
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62
1930s acted as a spur to the production of
radio sets. Here, at last, was a consumer
product, which boosted the ailing manufac-
turing and distribution industries. At irst,
broadcasters beneited from this, due to
the view that advertisements could be pro-
duced and broadcast, in an attempt to gen-
erate stronger consumer conidence.
Later, the production of political program-
ming, without commercials, assisted the
Nazis in their propaganda war against both
economic deprivation and the promotion
of Fascism. Henceforth, the broadcasting
industry was to be heavily regulated by the
Nazis, and it offered little diversity in pro-
gramming schedules.
Radio Nazification
In July 1932, the Reich Broadcasting
Chamber (Reichsrundfunkkammer, RRK)
was established, under the Ministry of
the Interior. It was aligned to the Reich
Chamber of Culture (Reichskulturkammer,
RKK) and a few other, similar, bodies with
a brief to constrain media outlets. The RRK
set the tone early on, by prohibiting the
broadcasting of commercials, and it adopt-
ed a much more overt political program-
ming content and strategy.
In many respects, this was an attempt
to counter the Weimar Republic. In the
minds of many, it was failing and was as-
sociated with both ‘defeat’ in the First
World War and the ‘humiliation’ through the
Treaty of Versailles.
Erich Scholz, a radio commissioner at the
Ministry of the Interior, that the RRK should
solely serve the ‘German Nation’, without
question or foreign intervention.
This was the complete opposite of,
for instance, Britain, France, and The
Netherlands, where listeners tuned into a
number of new, international stations like
Radio Luxembourg or Radio Normandy,
which played popular music.
Volksempfänger 1:
The VE301 Receiver
The RRK promoted the development of a
Volksempfänger (VE, a ‘People’s Radio’).
The availability of this set of the VE301 type
(Figs. 1 and 2) enabled German households
to purchase a radio of a good standard of
build quality for the time.
Whatever ‘class-divide’ there may have
been within German society did not provide
an obstacle to the reception of the wave of
propaganda broadcast under the jurisdic-
tion of the Reich Broadcasting Corporation.
To facilitate the process of mass produc-
tion, leading manufacturers like Siemens
and Telefunken were instructed to produce
Volksempfänger sets and prioritize them
over more lucrative models. This created a
virtual monopoly on the market, and it pre-
vented free enterprise, as the needs of the
state took precedence.
The VE301 was marketed at a low re-
tail price of 76 Reichsmark (RM). In or-
der to discourage people from listening
to foreign broadcasters, many sets had
no shortwave reception, thus depriving
the German nation of independent point
of view. Receivers had to be declared and
were subjected to a monthly fee of 2RM, in
order to cover the production and opera-
tional costs of the broadcasts. To ensure
that there was a strong source of supply,
28 German manufacturers were involved,
using the same design speciications.
Production was monitored by independent
commissions, who reported directly to the
Ministry of Propaganda.
The two-band VE301 had the option of ei-
ther long wave or medium wave reception.
Long wave covered 150–350 kHz, and a
popular station was the Deutschlandsender.
Medium wave offered 570–1,700 KHz. The
names of local stations, like Berlin, Dresden,
Salzburg, and Vienna, were included on
the tuning panel.
Later, radio production director Eugen
Hadamovsky (1904-1945), who reported
directly to Goebbels, was tasked with the
‘liquidation of anti-Nazi opposition’ in the ra-
dio broadcasting industry. He reported that:
“We National Socialists must show enough
dynamism and enthusiasm, coupled with
lightning-speed, to impress Germany and
the whole world. Party comrade Dr Goebbels
ordered me on July 13th (1933) to purge
German radio of inluence opposed to our
cause. I can now report that the work has
been thoroughly done”.
Hadamovsky believed that radio propa-
ganda was the strongest weapon against
the independent mind, and he indicated
that, “broadcasting was propaganda’s per-
fect instrument”.
Volksempfänger 2:
The DKE 38 Radio
The DK38 model, made from 1938 onwards,
was a mass-produced receiver that was
relatively inexpensive, costing only 35RM. It
was designed by G. Schaub and housed in
a unique Bakelite case, a remarkable, style
for its time. Many Germans nicknamed this
receiver the ‘Goebbelsschnauze’. Loosely
translated into English, this means some-
thing along the lines of “Goebbels’ Shout-
out Piece/ Big Mouth”.
RadioUser March 2019

From 1933 to 1939, 7 million
Volksempfänger sets were produced, ac-
counting for over 40% of total production in
Germany. Historians have concluded that
the Volksempfänger was the most success-
ful “people’s product” of the Nazi regime.
This was relected in the contemporary slo-
gan of, “The whole of Germany hears the
Führer on the Volksempfänger”.
Next to Goebbels, Hans Georg Fritzsche
(1900-1953) led radio propaganda through-
out the Third Reich. His shows were simplis-
tic in content, as relected by in title such as
“Hans Fritzsche Speaks”. He regularly por-
trayed Hitler as a political genius. His show
had an audience of over 16 million listen-
ers, whom he tried to inluence with inlam-
matory speeches and displays of strength
Fritzsche’s importance in the Nazi regime
would ultimately result in his trial for war
crimes in 1945, and he would face the sen-
tence of immediate execution.
https://tinyurl.com/y7p8llb4
Europe on the Brink:
Conflict on the Air Waves
The Munich Crisis of Summer 1938 wit-
nessed the irst broadcasts by the BBC’s
German Service, whose objective it was to
broadcast anti-war propaganda in a more
discreet manner.
By early Summer 1939, Europe was on the
brink of a military confrontation. European
diplomatic relations were strained over the
continued expansion of the ‘Third Reich’, in
direct violation of the Versailles Treaty.
The airwaves also relected the upsurge
in political tension and were thus subjected
to frequent jamming of signals, as interna-
tional broadcasts were in direct competi-
tion with each other. This was demonstrat-
ed by the upsurge in signal strength: In
1926, the combined power of European
transmitters was 116kW, compared to over
8,000kW in 1938.
On August 31st, 1936 Czechoslovakia
launched its own, independent, short wave
service. Programming aimed at audiences
abroad, with a schedule of 4 hours per day,
which consisted of ive languages (Czech,
French, German, English, and Russian). It
was vital for Czechoslovakia to put her argu-
ment to the international community, in the
build-up to the Munich Crisis.
In Russia, by 1939, Stalin’s consolida-
tion of power was complete. The purg-
es of the oficer class and the elimination
of Kulak opposition enabled the develop-
ment of a policy that brought the Soviets
time to modernize their armed forces. The
voice behind this policy was Radio Moscow,
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RadioUser March 2019
which, by 1939, was broadcasting on short
wave in Russian, English, French, German,
Italian, and Arabic.
Legal and Psychological
Control
On 1st September 1939, Hitler introduced
the Ordinance Concerning Extraordinary
Radio Measures. This measure prohibited
the reception of foreign broadcasts, em-
phasizing the perceived attempt of foreign
broadcasters to ‘destroy the ighting spirit
of the German nation’.
The law’s principal deterrent lay in the
threat of imprisonment in the notorious con-
centration camps. In connection with the
latter, rumours of crimes against humanity
had already emerged within German soci-
ety. That notwithstanding, the punishment
was described as ‘hard labour’.
In cases of openly discussing ‘enemy pro-
paganda’, the death penalty was advocated.
In the irst year of hostilities, approximately
1,500 Germans had been sentenced, based
on circumstantial evidence from neigh-
bours, who were actively encouraged to re-
port on ‘acts against the state’.
To assist the state in attempting to con-
trol the reception of foreign broadcasts,
radios with limited sensitivity were pro-
duced, making it dificult to receive long-dis-
tance broadcasts.
During the Second World War, all radio
receivers sold came with a chilling warning
that was prominently attached to the tuning
knob, “Think about this: Listening to foreign
broadcasts is a crime against the nation-
al security of our people. It is a Führer Order
punishable by prison and hard labour”
Gleiwitz:
A Crime Against Peace
On the evening of August 31st, 1939, a
group of SS troops, led by Alfred Helmut
Naujocks (aka ‘Hans Müller’, ‘Alfred
Bonsen’, or ‘Rudolf Möbert’, 1911-1966),
and disguised in Polish uniforms, staged
an attack on the radio station in Gleiwitz
(Gliwice, then Upper Silesia). The suppos-
edly ‘dead’ German radio personnel were,
in fact, unfortunate concentration camp
prisoners who were forced to wear Polish
clothing before being systematically ex-
ecuted and placed within the radio sta-
tion complex. Hitler utilized this as the
pretext for the imminent military action
against Poland.
It was alleged that Polish troops had bro-
ken into a locked compound within the ra-
dio station, three radio station personnel
were subsequently beaten up and detained.
Radio in History
However, the attack soon degenerated into
a complete farce: No one could locate a mi-
crophone to broadcast the Polish-inspired
anti-German propaganda.
This led to the realization that the radio
station was merely a relay transmitter site
for Radio Breslau. In sheer panic and des-
peration, an emergency frequency was uti-
lized; this was a designated lood warning
service for the local community. It is doubt-
ful as to how many listeners received the al-
leged Polish propaganda.
However, the staged Polish attack served
its initial purpose and provided the Nazi
Party with a justiication to instigate military
action; the ‘casualties’ were exhibited to the
international community.
Radio Propaganda
The role of radio propaganda was not con-
ined to the German Home Front. The no-
torious programme presented by William
Joyce, which commenced with the sig-
nature announcement “Germany Calling!!
Germany Calling”, was a regular feature.
It was beamed predominantly towards
Britain, with the aim of destroying the mo-
rale and ighting spirit of the Home Front,
especially, in the Summer of 1940, when
Britain stood alone.
Later, the Russians managed to devise a
way of interrupting these and other German
broadcasts. They offered a contrasting
view of how the ighting on the Eastern
Front was developing. Their most dam-
aging broadcasts aimed toward the Third
Reich were simply a list of the names of the
German military who had surrendered and
became prisoners of war. For families of
frontline troops, this listening became a ne-
cessity, especially if their loved ones were
missing in action.
Further Reading
Barović, V. (2015) Radio and TV in the Nazi Media
System (DOI: 10.5937/vojdelo1506176B)
Doherty, M. R. (2000) Nazi Wireless Propaganda: Lord
Haw-Haw and British Public Opinion in the Second
World War (Edinburgh UP)
Hilmes, E. L. J. (2002) Essays in the Cultural History of
Radio, Routledge: London.
Holmes, C. (2016) Searching for Lord Haw-
Haw: The Political Lives of William Joyce, 1st ed,
Routledge: Abingdon.
Kater, M. (Forthcoming, April 2019) Culture in Nazi
Germany (Yale University Press)
Tidy, R. (2011) Hitler’s Radio War (Robert Hale Ltd.)
Von Saldern, A. (2004) Volk-and-Heimat Culture in
Radio Broadcasting During the Period of Transition
from Weimar to Nazi Germany; The Journal of Modern
History, 76 (2): 312-346.
63
Software-Defined Radio
Open Source SDR
Software and SDR#
Andrew Barron
andrew.barron@broadspectrum.com
Andrew Barron investigates Open
Source software, especially SDR#,
looking at the benefits of this technol-
ogy for the SDR developer community
and end-users.
All the small ‘box-and-dongle’ type SDR re-
ceivers rely on the fact that you will have an
SDR program on your PC; the radio hardware
is only part of the complete radio. It is easy
to forget that the software is not just display-
ing the panadapter spectrum and waterfall.
It is actually creating the picture, from the
data being sent to the computer.
Likewise, the sound you hear from your
receiver is not coming from the radio as a
demodulated audio signal. All digital sig-
nal processing, demodulation, bandwidth
and noise iltering is performed by the soft-
ware on your PC.
Right from the very early days of SDR de-
velopment in 2001, almost all SDR software
has been ‘open source’ and was made avail-
able to the public, completely free of charge.
I ind this quite remarkable, and it is a real
testimony to the software developers who
spend hundreds, sometimes thousands, of
hours creating excellent software for no i-
nancial reward at all.
‘Open source’ doesn’t mean ‘poor quality’
either. Every SDR software package I have
tried so far has worked well, and all the de-
velopers seem to be extremely approacha-
ble, interested and responsive.
Early SDR Packages
PowerSDR was one of the earliest SDR soft-
ware packages (Fig. 1). Originally called
‘SDR Console,’ it was irst developed in
2002 by Gerald Youngblood K5SDR, for
the FlexRadio Systems Flex-1000 trans-
ceiver. PowerSDR has always been open
source, and many people have helped to ex-
tend the program.
It has been extensively modiied and im-
proved over the years – notably by the new
wdsp.dll DSP code-block, developed by
Warren Pratt NR0V. As new technology ar-
rived, PowerSDR was modiied to support it.
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64
There are variants for all generations
of SDR, and for different interfaces. Some
of these variants (or ‘forks’) include ver-
sions for connecting to the IF output from
a receiver, and there are Genesis and
SoftRock versions.
A version for the FlexRadio Systems FLEX-
1500, FLEX-3000, and FLEX-5000 models is
also available.
Moreover, you can ind a PowerSDR mRX
PS version, for use with the OpenHPSDR
boards, HermesLite, and Apache
ANAN transceivers.
Flexibility & New Programs
The ability to freely pick up a piece of soft-
ware and modify it for another type of SDR
illustrates the beneits of the collaborative
‘open source’ model. Developers help each
other to create a better application and can
use sections of the software code for their
own projects, eliminating the need for every-
one to start from scratch. PowerSDR mRX,
for instance, evolves fast! There were 24
software releases between January 2014
and April 2016.
Another pivotal SDR software program
was Rocky, written by Alex Shovkoplyas
VE3NEA (Fig. 2). Alex developed the pro-
gram for use with the SoftRock kits de-
veloped by Tony Parks KB9YIG. Buying a
SoftRock SDRs kit was the irst introduc-
tion to the world of SDR receivers for me
and many others.
These days, the RTL dongle receivers are
more popular, but SoftRock receivers and
transceivers are still available. Alex invent-
ed the adaptive image cancelling algorithm,
used in Rocky. It was subsequently inte-
grated into almost all other SDR software
for quadrature sampling detector (QSD)
based receivers.
At the time, those few lines of software
code were a major advancement. Alex’s al-
gorithm learns the characteristics of the re-
ceiver, by comparing on-air signals and by
continuously adapting phase and amplitude
compensation to reduce the correspond-
ing image signals.
This technique vastly improves image
cancellation and revolutionizes SDR soft-
ware. Without the open source movement,
his clever technique might not have been
available to other programmers. This adap-
tive control is not necessary for direct sam-
pling SDRs, because the I and Q streams
are created in software or irmware, en-
suring that the level of each stream is al-
ways identical, and the phase relationship
is exactly 90O.
These days, there are many excellent
software packages, and in many cases,
you can use more than one with your radio.
You can try out several applications and
use the one you like the best. Some pro-
grams may offer different features, such as
DRM digital broadcast reception, wideband
FM, or scanning.
SDR Sharp
I am going to feature SDR# (‘SDR Sharp’)
because it further demonstrates the ben-
eits of development by the open source
software movement. The program is an ex-
cellent SDR receiving package. It was de-
veloped by AirSpy for its range of radios,
and I’m not sure if the actual code is open
source. But that doesn’t really matter, be-
cause the package is speciically designed
to allow developers to add ‘plug-in’ soft-
ware modules to extend the capabilities of
the main program.
There are many of these plug-ins avail-
able, resulting in a versatile platform (e.g.:
Fig. 3). The program is named after the soft-
ware that was used to write it. C# (‘C-sharp’)
is a variant of the C programming lan-
guage. Another advantage of SDR# is that
it supports quite a few SDR receiver mod-
els. Some are supported ‘natively’, while
others rely on a data interface manager
called extio.dll.
Of course, the software works with the
AirSpy, Airspy HF+, and Spy Server radios
made by Airspy. However, it also works with
the FUNcube Dongle pro and pro+, Hack RF
boards, RTL dongles, SoftRock boards, the
Afedri SDR, and the RF Space radios. Other
radios might work as well.
Without the addition of any plug-in mod-
ules, the radio supports AM, FM and SSB
with a single panadapter spectrum and wa-
terfall display. It has memories, the ability
to make recordings, and a number of band-
RadioUser March 2019
 Software-Defined Radio

WILLIAM T DIAZ KC9XG (WWW.QRZ.COM) HTTPS://WWW.RTL-SDR.COM

3
1 HTTPS://WWW.RTL-SDR.COM

WWW.DXATLAS.COM

2 4
Fig.1: This screenshot of an early version of PowerSDR mRX shows two panadapters and two receivers. Both panadapters are tuned to the same frequency,
but the lower panadapter is zoomed-in. Fig. 2: The Rocky 3.6 SDR program includes a PSK decoder and adaptive image frequency rejection. Fig. 3: SDR#,
showing the ‘heatmap’ plug-in developed by Alex Shovkoplyas. Other plug-ins are can be seen at the left of the panadapter. Fig. 4: The ‘visual tuner knob’
plugin developed for SDR# by Eddie MacDonald.

width controls and ilters. Overall, it looks
good and performs well.
Plug-in code blocks for SDR#
At the last count, there were at least 25 plug-
in modules for SDR#. There is even a ‘plug-
in manager’ to make installing them easier.
It is itself a plug-in.
Some of these modules, which may be
of interest to Radio User readers, include
a frequency manager and scanner. There
are also DDE modules, which allow satel-
lite prediction software like GPredict and
WXTrack to control the receiver frequency
for Doppler correction.
‘Net Remote’ is a program that allows
SDR# to be controlled over a network con-
nection. In it, a ‘time-shifter’ delays the audio,
so that users have time to click on the sig-
nal and hear the transmission. There is also
a tracking notch ilter, and ‘Calico CAT’. The
latter is a module that allows digital mode
software like WSJT-X and MixW to change
the SDR# frequency and other controls.
In addition to these expanded SDR# func-
tionalities, you can have a ‘virtual tuner knob’
module (Fig. 4) for tuning via a touchscreen,
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an alternative level meter, a logging program
interface, ‘night mode’ (which dims the dis-
play at night), and an ‘FFT grabber’, which
can save a screenshot of the spectrum and
waterfall display.
Additional functionalities include a TETRA
digital mobile radio decoder, a QPSK de-
modulator for the Meteor M2 weather sat-
ellites, a CTCSS tone decoder for repeaters
that use tone squelch, a DCS decoder for
repeaters that use digital coded squelch, a
passive radar detector plug-in, and a PAL
and SECAM video decoder (black and white
only). Most of the other plug-ins offer techni-
cal enhancements to the ilters, audio pro-
cessing and GUI.
Plug-in modules for SDR# are usually writ-
ten in C#, but some are written in C++. If you
are interested in writing your own add-on, or
you just want to see how they are coded, you
At the last count, there were at least 25 plug-
in modules for SDR#. There is even a ‘plug-in
manager’ to make installing them easier.
It is itself a plug-in
can download the code for an existing plug-
in and modify it to perform another task.
Without open source software, SDR re-
ceivers and transceivers would not have
developed into the mainstream products
we see today. The cost of software devel-
opment would have hampered the advance
of new radios, and the cost of buying that
software would have limited the adop-
tion of SDR technology by hackers and ra-
dio enthusiasts.
I believe that all SDR users owe a big
thank you to the open source software de-
velopers. For this reason, next time you
download some free software, consider
clicking the Donate button.
[Andrew Barron’s recent books include
‘Radio Today Guide to the Icom-1C7610’,
‘SDR Software Deined Radio,’ and ‘Amsats
and Hamsats’ – Ed.]
65
Off the Record

The Final Free Radio Column

In his valedictory Off the Record column, Oscar the Engineer looks at the
way in which free radio can interfere with HF emergency communications,
citing one recent example of an Ofcom enforcement action.

Oscar the Engineer

oscartheengineer@yahoo.com

ello, and welcome to my col-

H umn. This is one of my fa-

vourite months because it
usually brings with it the arriv-
al of flowers and the warmth
of spring. My mission here is to spend a bit of
time in your company each month, chatting
about free radio, freedom of expression in ra-
dio, and anything else, which has been on my
mind or on my radar, and which I think may
be of interest to fellow radio enthusiasts.
Radio is a wonderful topic for us to be able
to focus on and explore. It has been with us
for a considerable amount of time now as
a phenomenon, but it has never gone out of
fashion. Although certain technological and
regulatory aspects of it have evolved and de-
veloped, some of the core elements of what
radio actually is, and what it can achieve,
have remained pretty much the same.
Overall radio, Including free radio, provides
us with an expanded version of everyday life.
We communicate with each other, and we
provide each other with sensory stimuli in or-
der to invoke a response. Radio enables us
to magnify and multiply these positive life ex-
periences, so I don’t see the enthusiasm for
it diminishing any time soon. Furthermore,
radio has both specialised niche appeal, as
well as a mass appeal. Therefore, my hope
with this column is that I will be able to in-
clude technical topics, where called for,
such as the differences between silicon
and germanium diodes, but also have a nat-
ter about some of the things that the wider
population take an interest in, when simply
having a good old listen to the programmes
that they hear when they turn on, and tune
in to, whatever broadcasters are providing
for our pleasure.
Enforcement Action
Reports have been doing the rounds that
Ofcom enforcement officials, accompa-
nied by officers from the West Midlands
Police carried out a raid in that area of
the UK on the 22nd December 2018. The
allegation appears to be that an unli-
A QSL from Radio Dublin, who sometimes used to broadcast on 6910 kHz.
censed broadcast was taking place and
that the operator known to many as ‘The
Bogusman’ was involved.
It has been further suggested that trans-
missions were on the short wave frequency
of 6312kHz, which does fall into the part of
the spectrum which free radio enthusiasts
often refer to as the ’48-metre band’.
This has tended to be one of the busiest of
the HF pirate bands in the UK and Europe for
many decades, but if you look at a chart of
spectrum allocations you will probably find
that frequencies between 6200 and 6525
kHz are designated for maritime mobile com-
munications use, rather than broadcasting.
Out Of Band
Historically, this situation arose because pi-
rates seeking to find a suitable frequency
found that their preferred broadcast bands
were full. Even if you could identify a gap,
the chances were that your relatively weak
signal would be squashed in between two
strong ones in a band with only 5 kHz chan-
nel spacing. Moreover, there was always
the likelihood that scheduled continental
broadcast transmissions would appear di-
rectly on top of you as well. With free radio
broadcasters squeezed off the ends of the
official broadcast bands, this, in turn, has ob-
viously led to the habit of free radio listeners
tuning around in these areas, rather than ex-
ploring in-band.
This then reinforces the tendency of free
radio stations to remain out of band when,
in fact, with the reduction in use of many of
these official broadcast bands, I now believe
it makes a lot of sense for the diminished
number of free radio operators that remain
active to consider taking a serious look to
see if perhaps an in-band channel might now
be a better place to be.
For a long time, some of the more adven-
turous operators have tried to be more crea-
tive and original with their frequency selec-
tions, but the trade-off is always the feeling
that it might take listeners a bit longer to find
your signal. People will perhaps remember
the very successful use of 5805kHz by Radio
Free London. However, at the time, the sta-
tion was operating for a good number of
hours each weekend with a regular schedule.
Several UK and Irish free radio opera-
tors have made use of frequencies around

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66 RadioUser March 2019

A Radio Free London meeting back in 1969.
6.9MHz, which are usually preferred by the
pirates in the USA. The notorious Radio
Dublin had an outlet on 6910kHz for a long
time. The point is that frequencies around
6MHz are very popular, because they ef-
fectively provide both national and inter-
national coverage, even on low power, via
near-vertical incidence skywave (NVIS) high-
angle reflection.
Once you move higher in frequency, this
kind of propagation tends to diminish be-
cause the skip distance lengthens out. This
is the reason why the HF end of the 41m
band has never proved quite as popular as
the HF end of the 49m band, even though, in
some ways, there may be more space there
and fewer risks of clashes with utilities.
If you move lower in frequency, below
around 5.0MHz, sky-wave propagation dur-
ing daylight hours starts to diminish due to
absorption. Thus, I am not expecting free ra-
dio stations to discontinue using 48m quite
yet, especially those that just come on-the-
air for relatively short broadcasts when the
mood takes them.
Distress Frequencies
In addition to broadcast and amateur bands,
the spectrum has been divided by agree-
ments and conventions into blocks that are
designated for utility and communications
use with divisions between categories, such
as land, aeronautical, and maritime as well
as fixed and mobile.
If there are any legitimate users attempt-
ing to operate in these bands, it is under-
standable that they might see any stray
AM broadcast signals as unwelcome. As a
broadcast listener, I always consider utili-
FREE P&P for all UK orders purchased at www.radioenthusiast.co.uk/store
RadioUser March 2019
ties such as navigational beacons on the
medium and long waves as something that
should never have been put there. I hate hear-
ing DRM signals among analogue AM broad-
cast stations. In that case, it is still a broad-
cast station, but it is the transmission mode
which is disruptive.
Anyway, the issue that was raised in con-
nection with the aforementioned raid is
that, within these frequency block alloca-
tions, there are certain spot frequencies of
an especially sensitive nature, because they
are nominated as emergency and distress
calling channels.
As it turns out - and as many of you will
know - the Global Maritime Distress and
Safety System’s Digital Selective Calling
System (GMDSS-DSC) uses USB mode and
FSK modulation. This system has six spot
MF/HF frequencies, listed for distress and
urgency; one of those is 6312.0kHz.
I also note that 6331.0 is mentioned as a
duplex channel. Looking at the rest of the list
I don’t see any others that are close to fre-
quencies, which free radio operators would
be likely to consider using. There is an infor-
mation page about this system here:
https://tinyurl.com/y9fyacyh
You should, of course, always be aware
that there may be other systems with oth-
er emergency frequencies, which should be
avoided. To be honest, I suspect that some
of the free radio operators who use the HF
bands were not aware of this one. In the past,
I have heard it mentioned that 6215 kHz is a
channel to avoid since it is designated as a
distress frequency for voice calls.
I note that 6268 kHz is mentioned in the
Ofcom UK frequency allocation list as an
Off the Record
international distress frequency for nar-
row-band direct printing telegraphy. I think
that generally speaking, there has been
something of a belief that these bands are
used relatively little and they have become
even less frequently used over time. This is
because other, more advanced, technolog-
ical solutions, such as satellite systems for
things like navigation and communication,
have superseded the use of HF. The latter is,
of course, always going to be subject to vari-
ations in propagation conditions, which are
bound to make it highly unreliable.
Responsible Operation
What I can say for sure is that the free radio
operators I have come into contact with do
not seek to cause problems and would al-
ways be prepared to take steps as neces-
sary to avoid doing so. Of course, no-one
can know everything, and in practice, infor-
mation about this sort of thing tends to be
scattered all over the place, and it is not al-
ways easy to find.
I always point out that a transmission be-
ing licensed is never any guarantee that it will
be technically perfect at all times. My per-
sonal belief is that free radio stations should
always regularly give out a means of rapid
contact over the air, in whatever waveband
they are using.
In addition to soliciting feedback from lis-
teners, this enables the reporting of any con-
flicting and technical issues. Freedom does
mean that the individual carries the respon-
sibility for making sure that his or her actions
are not harming others.
If people are going to be required to follow
rules, rather than acting on their own initia-
tive, it is essential that those rules are framed
and applied in a fair and just way.
The nature of short wave radio makes it
difficult to regulate on the basis of national
boundaries, but it remains deplorable that,
within the UK, there is no provision for small
independent broadcasters to apply for a li-
cence to operate on HF at all.
Some serious steps need to be taken to
get more people onto medium wave right
now as well. The turn of the year saw the big
Belgian station on 621kHz fall silent.
The Dutch station on 1008kHz was
switched off and the mast demol-
ished within days.
There is, therefore, plenty of potential for
those of us who love that band.
[I would like to thank Oscar very warmly
for many years of writing on free radio, free
speech and radio technology for this maga-
zine and its predecessors. My best wishes for
the future - Ed.].
67
Feature
Georg Wiessala
wiessala@hotmail.com
The editor is inspired by an older
publication to travel back to a time,
when Radio Telex messages offered
a mirror of everything weird and
wonderful in the global politics of the
Cold War.
My loft - minute as it is - is an amazing
treasure trove of books, old radios, files,
and of the paraphernalia of a life lived in
two countries over 56 years. When New
Year’s resolutions are still fresh, usually in
January each year, I pluck up the courage
to climb up, and my XYL will not see me for
days on end – the madman in the attic.
This year, at just about the time when
I was preparing to publish our annual
survey of frequency lists and listening
guides (elsewhere in this issue), I came
upon an old box, crammed full of radio
books from days gone by. Half a life of
enthusiasm for monitoring the short
waves was here, distilled into such gems
as old issues of the WRTH, Passport to
World Band Radio, Radio Listeners’ Guides,
Sender und Frequenzen, Klingenfuss,
and so much more.
Of course, I got a bit nostalgic,
browsing through paper versions of
old books, which were once the only
keys to surfing the bands, and which
have but Liebhaberwert today (literally:
‘lovers’ value’ – of sentimental interest to
collectors and radio historians). The attic
as a Tardis - a time capsule.
When I eventually came down, I was
perplexed to see my wife was not there
any more, there was a new family now,
everything was re-decorated and there
were no radios with any knobs on – was
I caught in a time-warp, like H.G. Wells’
traveller in The Sleeper Awakes? Had I
emerged in a different dimension?
Not really, of course, and my wife was
still there; but what I did emerge with,
took me back well and truly, both to my
earlier career in teaching and to the radio
hobby. I opened the 1st edition of the
Klingenfuss Guide to Radiotelex Messages
(1998, ISBN 3-924509-16-6). At the time,
this book covered 25 years of global radio
monitoring, mainly in terms of radio-
teleprinter and data comms.
Leafing through a book like this, which,
even then, was divided into ‘Then’ (in
the mid-1970s) and ‘Now’ (until the late
1990s), made me aware that – then as
now – there is no medium as political as
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68
Quick Brown Foxes,
Global Power-Play
& Happy Polar Bears
is international radio. I took advantage of
this in front of many cohorts of eager - at
times puzzled - students of Politics and
International Relations, when – often to
great amusement – I lugged my short
wave receiver into class with me, to give
the youngsters a taste of the news ‘straight
from the horse’s mouth’, as they say.
There are plenty of quick brown foxes in
this gem of a book, jumping over lazy dogs,
and many giant brigs are being closely
examined near big wharves, the French
equivalent (Voyez le brick géant que
j’examine près du grand wharf).
Some transmissions here claim – what
else? – that now is the time for all young
men to come to the aid of the party.
These texts and similar ones were, of
course, send to test transmission lines and
propagation conditions, since they contain
all of the letters of the alphabet.
And there are plenty of complaints about drifting
frequencies and bad weather, low temperatures
and high winds, low clouds and fog – and not all
of them from Britain
But there is much else to be discovered
here, and much of it reflects the landscape
(and language) of international power of
former decades. For example, the reader
discovers transmissions on such diverse
issues as human rights in Egypt and
(what was then) Czechoslovakia, French
news bulletins from Algeria to Central
America, reports on assassinations of
members of the government in Pakistan
and Russia, notes on the initiation of a new
transmission network in Northeast China’s
Jilin Province, announcements of high-
level meetings between the power-brokers
of the day in Germany, arrests of suspects
in Turkey, and news on the ever-volatile
situation in the Middle East, and on Jewish
settlements. Some of this is ‘old hat’, but
some still strongly resonates today.
Perhaps my favourite is the 1978 Fax
from the Austrian Ministry of Foreign
Affairs, informing recipients that it was
-20 degrees centigrade at the time. “This,”
the sender adds, “will make the polar bears
at Schönbrunn Castle happy”. Pearls of
Austrian humour, indeed.
Apart from the serious, and the globally-
political, there is the very mundane too;
purchases of furniture for the Indian
Embassy, a request for photographs to
a named person in Libya, commands
to pass on messages, orders to change
transmission mode, and so on.
And there are plenty of complaints
about drifting frequencies and bad
weather, low temperatures and high
winds, low clouds and fog – and not all of
them from Britain.
Of course, there is no point in trying to
use this ancient treasure as a frequency
guide now – for that, look elsewhere in this
issue. But as a historical memento, this
is riveting stuff. Who says time-travel by
radio is not possible...?
RadioUser March 2019
Devon
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Tiverton, Devon, EX16 9JU
Phone/Fax - 01202 490099
Specialist Suppliers of Amateur Airband
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go to www.technofix.co.uk or technofix.uk

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Trading
TradingPost
FOR SALE JRC NRD535, nice condition with manual
FIBO 90CM SATELLITE DISH. Gregorian £375ono. ICOM IC-R75 nice condition with PSU
high gain design. Motorised with positioner. (Icom) and manual £375ono
Instructions. Dual output, L.N.B. Used, working. Tel: Stephen 01582 503806 Luton
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or ian.purkiss@mail.com OLD HALF INCH FERRITE RODS. Must be half
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A complete range of ZLP ELECTRONICS DIGIMASTER PRO3, top
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RadioUser March 2019 69

Airband News

Rallies & Events

Plan your rally visits with our comprehensive list of forthcoming events. RadioUser will be at events marked with an
asterisk – come along to our stand for great deals on subscriptions to Practical Wireless and RadioUser. If you would
like your event to appear in RU, please send in details as early as possible to: wiessala@hotmail.com

February 24th (Sunday)

BRATS RAINHAM RADIO RALLY: The
Bredhurst Receiving and Transmitting
Society (BRATS) Rainham Radio Rally
takes place at the Victory Academy,
Magpie Hall Road, Chatham, Kent, ME4
5JB. Doors are open from 10 am to 4
pm; £2.50 adult entry, free entry for kids;
there will be local and national traders, a
BRATS Kitchen, a BRATS Interactive Zone
for Kids, and a BRATS junk stall. Talk-in
station is on 145.550MHz using callsign
GB4RRR.
Rally-coordinator@brats-qth.org

February 24th (Sunday)

RED ROSE RALLY: The Red Rose Winter
Rally, of the West Manchester Radio Club
(WMRC), is taking place in St Joseph’s
Hall, Chapel Street, Leigh WN7 2PQ.
Doors are open from 11 am. There will
be free parking, cafe services, a licenced
bar, and meeting space.
The event is all at one level, offering
disabled facilities. There will be traders,
individual, and club stands including an
RSGB stall, as well as a low-cost bring-
and-buy table.
www.wmrc.co.uk

March 3rd (Sunday)

EXETER RADIO & ELECTRONICS RAL-
LY: The Exeter Radio & Electronic Rally
will be held at America Hall, De La Rue
Way, Pinhoe, Exeter EX4 8PW. The doors
will open at 10.30 am (10.15 am for disa-
bled visitors). Admission is £2.00 (under
16’s free). There will be trade stands, a
bring-and-buy (book-in is from 10.15am).
Catering will be available.
g3zvi@yahoo.co.uk
March 16th (Saturday)
LAUGHARNE RALLY: The Laugharne
Rally of the UK Microwave Group will take
place, from 10 am to 1 pm, at Laugharne
Millennium Memorial Hall, Clifton Street,
Laugharne, Wales SA33 4QG.
https://tinyurl.com/y9jwxgz3
March 17th (Sunday)
WHYTHALL RADIO CLUB HAMFEST:
The 34th Wythall Radio Club Hamfest will
be held at The Club HQ, Wythall House,
Silver Street, Wythall B47 6LZ. Doors will
open at 9.45 am, with access for disabled
visitors from approximately 9.30 am.
Free on-site parking will be available. Ad-
mission costs £4.00. There will be four
halls of traders, including bring-and-buy,
and the club stand. A selection of re-
freshments will be available all day.
www.wythallradioclub.co.uk
March 24th (Sunday)
CALLINGTON RADIO RALLY: The Cal-
lington Radio Rally is organised jointly by
the Devon and Cornwall Repeater Group
and the Callington Amateur Radio So-
ciety. It will be held at Callington Town
Hall, New Road, Callington, Cornwall
PL17 7BD.
The doors will open at 10 am and admis-
sion is £2.00, with those under 14 years
going free. There is ample free car park-
ing adjacent to the venue, trade stands,
amateur radio sellers, a bring-and-buy,
and on-site catering.
E-mail: 2e0rph@gmail.com
March 24th (Sunday)
HAMZILLA RADIO FEST AND ELEC-
TRONICS FAIR: The Hamzilla Radio Fest
and Electronics Fair, hosted by the Dover
ARC, will take place at the Discovery Sci-
ence Park, Gateway House, Ramsgate
Road, Sandwich, Kent, CT13 9FF. Open 10
am to 4 pm. Online ticket entrance £3.00;
Limited early bird tickets £5.00. Tables
cost £10.00. Online purchase/book-
ings are now available; bring-and-buy
sale, catering, lectures/seminars, RSGB
bookstall, special interest groups, trade
stands, guest speakers, digital village,
demos. Icom, SDRPlay and many more
exhibitors. Disabled facilities. Plenty of
free parking. RSGB examinations will
be held.
www.hamzilla.uk
March 31st (Sunday)
BATC REGIONAL CONVENTION: The
British Amateur Television Club (BATC)
will hold a number of “mini-conventions”
in various regions of the country dur-
ing 2019. The irst event will take place
from 10 am to 4 pm, at the premises of
the North Bristol ARC, SHE7 building,
Braemar Crescent, Filton, Bristol BS7
0TD. These are not regular rallies, involv-
ing traders, but technical meetings for
ATV enthusiasts, and for those thinking
of making a start in this aspect of the
hobby. There will be a full day of talks and
demonstrations and the opportunity to
meet some of the most active ATV en-
thusiasts.
https://forum.batc.org.uk
March 31st (Sunday)
PENCOED RADIO CLUB TABLE TOP
SALE: Doors are open 9.30am, stall hold-
ers have admittance from 8 am. Refresh-
ments available on site.
Madeline Roberts Tel: 0773 837 5775
April 6th (Saturday)
GMDX CONVENTION : The GMDX Con-
vention 2019 – Scotland’s only annual DX
Convention – will take place at the King
Robert Hotel in Stirling. Booking/ pay-
ment details and information about the
conference programme and DX Dinner
can be found on the website. Don Field,
the editor of Practical Wireless, will be
one of the guest speakers at this event.
www.gmdx.org.uk

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70 RadioUser March 2019
 Rallies & Events

April 7th (Sunday)
CAMBRIDGESHIRE REPEATER
GROUP RALLY: The CRG Rally is taking
place at the Foxton Village Hall, Hard-
man Road, Foxton, Cambridge CB22 6RN.
Car parking is free. Doors open 9.30 am
for public entry and 7.30 am for traders.
Entry is £2. There will also be a talk-in sta-
tion, traders, a bring-and-buy table, and
an RSGB bookstall. Catering is available
on site – the burger van has been booked.
www.cambridgerepeaters.net
April 7th (Sunday)
YEOVIL ARC 35TH QRP CONVENTION:
The 35th Yeovil ARC will take place at
Digby Hall, Sherborne, Dorset DT9 3AA.
Doors are open 09:30 am to 3.30 pm.
Admission is £3,00. The venue is wheel-
chair-friendly. The rally is supported by
RSGB RAFARS and BYLARA. There will be
refreshments and parking, club stands,
and new and second-hand stalls.
http://yeovil-arc.com
April 12th to 14th (Friday to Sunday)
INTERNATIONAL DX CONVENTION
(IDXC) : The 70th International DX Con-
vention, sponsored by the Northern Cali-
fornia DX Club, will again be held at the
Visalia Conference Center in downtown
Visalia, California, USA. If you are a DXer
or interested in any aspect of amateur
radio, then IDXC is the place to be. Top DX
operators and contesters from around
the world will be there. You’ll match those
familiar callsigns with new faces and
shake hands with the person you have
had a sched with for the past 10 years,
but whom you have never met.
https://tinyurl.com/ybudjrbz
April 14th (Sunday)
HACK GREEN BUNKER RALLY : The
Hack Green Bunker Rally will take place
at the Hack Green Secret Nuclear Bunker,
French Lane, Hack Green, Nr Nantwich,
Baddington, Cheshire CW5 8AL. There
will be sales of electronic equipment,
amateur gear, components, military radio
items and vehicle spares. Doors are open
from 10 am, and there will be refresh-
ments available on site.
coldwar@hackgreen.co.uk
www.hackgreen.co.uk
April 14th (Sunday)
WEST LONDON RADIO & ELECTRON-
ICS SHOW (KEMPTON RALLY): The
Kempton Rally will take place at the
Kempton Park Racecourse, Staines Road
East, Sunbury on Thames, TW16 5AQ. A
talk-in station will be on the air. Car park-
ing is free, and the doors open at 10 am;
disabled visitors will gain access 10 min-
utes earlier. There will be trade stands
and a bring-and-buy, as well as special
interest groups and lectures. Catering is
available on site.
info@radiofairs.co.uk
www.radiofairs.co.uk
April 28th (Sunday)
NARSA – NORTHERN AMATEUR RA-
DIO SOCIETIES ASSOCIATION EX-
HIBITION (BLACKPOOL RALLY): The
2019 Northern Amateur Radio Society
Association’s Blackpool Rally will take
place at the Norbreck Castle Exhibition
Centre, Blackpool FY2 9AA. There will
be a talk-in station, plenty of car parking,
trade stands, a bring-and-buy stall, spe-
cial interest groups, and an RSGB book-
stall. Doors open at 10.30 am (10.15 am
for disabled visitors). Catering is avail-
able on site.
dwilson@btinternet.com
www.narsa.org.uk
May 6th (Bank Holiday Monday)
DARTMOOR RADIO CLUB RALLY: The
35th Dartmoor Radio Club Rally is taking
place at the Butchers Hall, Pannier Mar-
ket, Tavistock. Entrance to the rally will
be from the square, and doors open at 10
am. Admission is £2. There will be trad-
ers, a bring-and-buy, and an RSGB book-
stall. Refreshments will be available.
2e0rph@gmail.com
June 9th (Sunday)
EAST SUFFOLK WIRELESS REVIVAL
(IPSWICH RADIO RALLY): The Ipswich
Radio Rally will be at the Kirton Recrea-
tion Ground, Back Road, Kirton IP10 0PW
(just off the A14). Doors are open at 9.30
am, and the entry fee for visitors is £2.
The venue has free car parking. Trade
tables cost from £10. There will be trade
stands, a car boot sale, a bring-and-buy,
special interests groups, GB4SWR HF
station, and an RSGB bookstall. Catering
is available on site.
www.eswr.org.uk
June 9th (Sunday)
JUNCTION 28 RADIO RALLY: The Junc-
tion 28 Radio Rally will be held at the
Alfreton Leisure Centre, Alfreton, Derby-
shire. Doors are open at 10.15 am (trad-
ers’ setup is from 7.30 am). The event is
run by South Normanton & Alfreton & Dis-
trict ARC. There will be full disabled facili-
ties, a bar selling alcoholic drinks, hot and
cold beverages, and a selection of cobs
on the day. Hot food is also available in
the on-site café. Free parking on the day.
adylawri@btinternet.com
June 15th (Saturday)
ROCHDALE & DISTRICT ARS SUM-
MER RALLY: The Rochdale and District
ARS Rally takes place at St Vincent de
Paul’s, Caldershaw Road, off Edenield
Road (A680), Norden, Rochdale OL12
7QR. Proceeds from this rally ensure the
continued operation of the DMR repeater
GB7MR. Doors are open to the public at
10.15 am, with disabled visitors gaining
access 15 minutes earlier. Admission is
£2.50, with those under 12 years free. £5
per pitch (for traders with own tables) or
£10 for a pitch, with a table provided. Re-
freshments available.
m0nvq@outlook.com
 June 16th (Sunday)
GMDX SCOTTISH RADIO RALLY
https://tinyurl.com/y9eknee3
June 16th (Sunday)
WEST OF ENGLAND RADIO RALLY:
The 16th West of England Radio Rally will
take place at the Cheese & Grain venue,
Market Yard, Bridge Street, Frome, Som-
erset BA11 1BE. Doors are open 10 am
to 2 pm. The event will feature inside &
outside trade stands, an RSGB bookstall,
cafe, disabled access & facilities, and
car parking.
rallymanager@westrally.org.uk
www.westrally.org.uk
June 21st to 23rd (Friday to Sunday)
HAM RADIO FRIEDRICHSHAFEN : The
44th Amateur Radio Exhibition will take
place in Friedrichshafen, Germany. “In
staging the event during the penultimate
weekend in June, we have responded in
particular to the wishes of exhibitors and
visitors whose needs naturally play a ma-
jor role for us, as the event organisers,”
said project manager Petra Rathgeber.
https://tinyurl.com/yc9jls2o
June 22nd (Saturday)
BANGOR & DISTRICT ARS RALLY:
The Bangor and District ARS Rally will be
held at The Hub, Hamilton Road, Bangor.
Doors are open at 10 am.
samanumi11@gmail.com
June 23rd (Sunday)
NEWBURY RADIO RALLY AND BOOT
SALE: The Newbury Rally will take place
at the Newbury Showground, next to M4
J13. A talk-in station will be on S22 (V44).
There is free car parking. Traders can
gain access at 8 am and visitors at 9 am.
Admissions will be £2.50. Car boot sale
pitches are £12.50. The show will have a
huge radio, electronics & computing boot
sale area, and a demonstration marquee
with a display of amateur radio on the air.
There are also clubs and national society
stands. Catering is available on site.
NewburyRally@nadars.org.uk
www.nadars.org.uk
July 14th (Sunday)
CORNISH RADIO AMATEUR CLUB
RALLY : The Cornish Radio Amateur Club
Rally Will be held, from 10.30 am to 4 pm,
at the sports hall at Penair School, St Cle-
ments Hill, Truro TR1 1TN. There will be
trade stands, local groups, catering, and
car parking.
mike.g1nrf@hotmail.com

In next month’s
onitoring
Utility MTim tions
Radio e Signal Sta
e-Defineduipment Receiving
■ New Column: Emergency Comms in the UK and Beyond Softwarthe
Selecting
Right Eq

■ Review: Cross Country Wireless Indoor Loop Aerial

o.uk
enthusiast.c
■ A New-style DX-TV, FM & Satellite News Review section October 201
8 £3.99
www.radio
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sile the
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ing Col
Radiast Propaganda
and Internation
Plus all your favourite regular features and columns Broadc

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HOW TO... ur GPS
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RadioUser March 2019 71

Martin Lynch & Sons Ltd. Wessex House, Drake Avenue, Staines, Middlesex TW18 2AP. E-mail: sales@hamradio.co.uk
Opening Hours: Mon - Fri: 8.30am to 5pm. Sat: 9am to 4.30pm. International Tel: +44 1932 567 333 FOLLOW US ON
TWITTER AND
FACEBOOK

0345 2300 599 HamRadioUK

SAFE ONLINE SHOPPING

Shopping online with ML&S is

Web: www.HamRadio.co.uk safe and secure. E&OE

GEOCHRON 4K UHD DIGITAL AOR AR-DV1

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The Geochron Digital 4k UHD displays a The ULTIMATE all mode

full-featured Geochron World Clock on any all band scanner.
4k TV, with every mapset and lighting option 100kHz-1300MHz Analogue & Covers 100kHz to 1300MHz in traditional
available in our famous mechanical clock but Digital Modes. analogue modes (SSB, CW, AM, FM, S-FM,
at a fraction of the cost. Now in the digital W-FM) as well as various digital modes. In fact,
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can decode Icom's D-STAR mode, Yaesu's new
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NOW IN STOCK interesting features!
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Tune in to the world wherever you go. ML&S: £849.95 ML&S: £1289.95
ICOM IC-R30 SCANNER 100kHz-3GHz Receiver with SDR
The Icom IC-R30 has extremely wide coverage (exact coverage
ICOM IC-R8600
Technology from IC-7300.
range unknown). Modes of reception include: FM, WFM, AM, (SSB) ML&S: £2499.95 www.HamRadio.co.uk/icr8600
USB, LSB, CW and digital modes to be announced. It is expected to
include an effective spectrum display and also support dual receive
including analog/analog and analog/digital. SDR RECEIVERS
ML&S: £569.95 ELAD FDM-DUOr A Receive-only FUNcube Dongle Pro+
www.HamRadio.co.uk/icr30 NOW IN STOCK Version of the famous FDM-DUO!
10kHz-54MHz Direct Conversion
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GREAT SCOTT GADGETS HackRF ONE www.HamRadio.co.uk/
HackRF One from Great Scott Gadgets is a Software Defined Radio peripheral
capable of transmission or reception of radio signals from 1MHz to 6GHz. Designed
funcube
to enable test and development of modern and next generation radio technologies,
Wideband SDR Receiver.
HackRF One is an open source hardware platform that can be used as a USB 150kHz-1.9GHz incl SAW Filters.
peripheral or programmed for stand-alone operation. See web for specification.
ONLY £229.95 ML&S: £149.95
DIGITAL AND ANALOGUE RECEIVERS www.HamRadio.co.uk/ ML&S: £699.95 LATEST MODEL - ELAD FDM-S2
whistler The FDM-S2 is the second device created
Expert Electronics Colibri DDC from the ELAD SDR sampler technology line
Whistler TRX-2 Shortwave Receiver up.
Desktop/Mobile Whistler TRX-1 This small-size Direct sampling
version of the TRX-1 Digital Trunking receiver based on
receiver is intended
Only £479.95 Technology Scanner to receive signals 122.88MHz. 16-bit
Only £419.95 covering the HF single channel ADC
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help of external filters) to receive frequencies up undersampling. ML&S: £449.95
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covers 25-1300MHz wideband Communications handheld
frequencies.
receiver. While retaining ML&S: £439.95 www.HamRadio.co.uk/fdms2
basic features of its popular
The TruckTracker V operation allows predecessor the IC-R5, the IC-R6
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contains many improvements
1 and Phase 2, DMR, Motorola,
EDACS, LTR Trucked Systems as
including 100 channel per
second scanning speed, 1,300
Small dongle sized SDR receiver covering
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ML&S: £239.95
well as conventional analog and P25 memory channels, 15 hours of www.HamRadio.co.uk/sunsdrnano
digital channels. continuous receive capability,
optional drop-in charger stand
ML&S:
ML&S: £425.99 and voice control squelch. £199.95 RSPduo DUAL TUNER 14-BIT SDR
Dual-Tuner wideband full feature 14-bit SDR, 1kHz to 2GHz, 10MHz of
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ANTENNAS AND ACCESSORIES www.HamRadio.co.uk/
of spectrum between 1kHz and 2GHz. 3 software selectable antenna
inputs, & clocking features ideally suited to industrial, scientific, Ham &
BONITO RANGE AT ML&S bonito £239.95 educational applications. Windows 10. www.HamRadio.co.uk/RSPDUO
The Antenna Jet AAS300 A USB powered antenna splitter designed to work between 9kHz
and 300MHz. Now you can use your one antenna with up to 3
receivers simultaneously. Finally, you can listen to marine band
traffic, The Archers on Radio 4 and the air band at the same time
SDRPLAY RSP1a SDRplay range also
available. RSP1a, RSP2
Brand new design, the RSP1a is a and RSP2pro
(provided your antenna will cover it all!) Only £234.95 major upgrade to the popular RSP1
offering a powerful wideband full Identical to the FDM-Duo transceiver
featured SDR covering 1kHz to 2GHz with the TX strip removed.
Antenna Jet ASM-300 Only £224.95 & up to 10MHz visible bandwidth.
A USB controlled antenna switch and mixer. It can be used
as a simple switch, or can be used to switch in more than
Better still, it’s “Built & Designed in
Britain”!!
£89.95 www.HamRadio.co.uk/sdrplay
one antenna, to aid receiving to an optimum performance.

Megaloop ML200 The perfect antenna for small scale listening. The
ML200 is an active loop antenna that packs a serious punch. Covering 9kHz
to 200MHz without the need for any tuning! Included in the box is the antenna
wire, the amplifier and the coax power inserter. It’s a simple case of just add
coax! Only £284.95
GigActiv GA3005
A portable active antenna capable of covering 9kHz
to 3GHz. Perfect if you are say on holiday and want to
have a listen to the bands. You’ll need to provide it with
5V via a USB cable (included) and some coax but it is
just ready to go. Only £319.95
Boni-Whip The active antenna that is raved about. Covering 20kHz to
300MHz and ideal for times when you can’t erect a wire antenna. For home,
for travelling and for DX camps. And despite the whip being only 4 inches
long, it actually works! Only £99.95
bhi ParaPro EQ20
The bhi ParaPro EQ20 product range features a 20W modular audio power
amplifier with a parametric equaliser plus the option of having bhi’s latest dual
Channel DSP Noise Cancelling technology and Bluetooth technology.
See web for prices.
www.HamRadio.co.uk/parapro
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You can order from ML&S for delivery on a Saturday or AVAILABLE VIA
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Web purchases: Just select Saturday or Sunday at the check-out or call to place your order for
Saturday or Sunday delivery on 0345 2300 599
ML&S can deliver your new purchase to your local “Access Point” whether it is a small corner
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If you are at work all day and want to collect at a time suitable for you, just check “UPS Access
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