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#21
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FM radio reception at ~24MHz?
"Geoffrey S. Mendelson" wrote: sctvguy1 wrote: You are so right, Michael. The illusion, the sitting up all night on Friday and Saturday night, with headphones on, being about 12-17 years old, hoping for that illusive foreign station, the dial light glowing, my pencil and pad waiting for something to copy and to send off for a QSL! Now, my wireless radio will pick up all the stations I want, all over the world, just like a local. I remember that well too. When I was a teenager someone had a Normande (probably spelled wrong) AM/FM/Shortwave radio they dropped and it broke in half. I was able to get it working, and using various things such as my bed frame, the telephone line, etc, I was able to receive SW signals in a "garden" (basement) apartment. Before that I had something, but I don't remember what, maybe a 5 or 6 tube "all american special" with some SW coverage. I used that until around the time I turned 18, and was given an S-38B. Unfortuantely I gave that away in my 30's when I started buying "real" shortwave radios. I bought one of the first ICF-2010's in the US, brought in a few months early from Japan. When I got married in 1989, my wife had one too, and we kept hers, being a few years newer. My current shortwave radio is a Drake SPR-4, although I have a TR-7 "in the works". I still have my restored Lafayette SWL receiver, a big brother look a like of the S-38. I turn it on every once in a while, hook up a wire antenna, and relive the past. There is not much there anymore, but still can MW DX a lot! Here in Texas, it will pick up both coasts pretty well. I had an old ham repairman wire it to accept a Heathkit Q- Multiplier that I also have. With that, and the bandspread, and the IF/ RF amplifier, it works very well! I sure miss mine. MW DXing here is worthless because of the high noise. Although in a previous apartment I was on the edge of a nature preserve, and with a sheilded MW loop on the fence and the SPR-4, was able to receive the BBC station on 648kHz, about 3,000 miles away. Geoff. -- Geoffrey S. Mendelson, N3OWJ/4X1GM/KBUH7245/KBUW5379 I got started again back in '81 or '82 or so with a Yaesu FRG-7700. Originally my Dad built me a Knight Kit Star Roamer in 1966 and my first QSL is from January of 1967. What got me going again was digital readout... that was the key to it all. No guessing, find the frequency, and listen. |
#22
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FM radio reception at ~24MHz?
On Wed, 19 Mar 2014 16:47:10 -0400, dxAce wrote:
snip I got started again back in '81 or '82 or so with a Yaesu FRG-7700. Originally my Dad built me a Knight Kit Star Roamer in 1966 and my first QSL is from January of 1967. What got me going again was digital readout... that was the key to it all. No guessing, find the frequency, and listen. I also had a Star Roamer, got it from a radio guy who restores old radios in Orlando. It was stone deaf! I started SWL'ing in the 6th grade, around 1963. I got the usual "big" station QSLs, i.e., BBC, DW, Radio Moscow, Prague, Bulgaria, Spain, Vatican, Peking, Havana, etc. I still have them in a shoe box. I also had the Electronics Illustrated "SWL Certificate" that was given by the magazine, the editor was a bearded guy, can't remember his name. I got back into SWL when I was in the USAF, stationed at Keesler AFB, MS. While on TDY with my C-130 crewmates at Nellis AFB, NV, I went and bought a new FRG-7. I thought it was the greatest thing since cornflakes! I kept if for a few years, giving it to a MSgt who was really into SWL, but only had a Panasonic portable. After that, he always made sure that I had the best inlight lunch(for free) and other little perks. I miss that radio, it was a classic. |
#23
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FM radio reception at ~24MHz?
sctvguy1 wrote: On Wed, 19 Mar 2014 16:47:10 -0400, dxAce wrote: snip I got started again back in '81 or '82 or so with a Yaesu FRG-7700. Originally my Dad built me a Knight Kit Star Roamer in 1966 and my first QSL is from January of 1967. What got me going again was digital readout... that was the key to it all. No guessing, find the frequency, and listen. I also had a Star Roamer, got it from a radio guy who restores old radios in Orlando. It was stone deaf! I started SWL'ing in the 6th grade, around 1963. I got the usual "big" station QSLs, i.e., BBC, DW, Radio Moscow, Prague, Bulgaria, Spain, Vatican, Peking, Havana, etc. I still have them in a shoe box. I also had the Electronics Illustrated "SWL Certificate" that was given by the magazine, the editor was a bearded guy, can't remember his name. Wow, I have a couple of those Electronics Illustrated certificates myself. I got back into SWL when I was in the USAF, stationed at Keesler AFB, MS. While on TDY with my C-130 crewmates at Nellis AFB, NV, I went and bought a new FRG-7. I thought it was the greatest thing since cornflakes! I kept if for a few years, giving it to a MSgt who was really into SWL, but only had a Panasonic portable. After that, he always made sure that I had the best inlight lunch(for free) and other little perks. I miss that radio, it was a classic. |
#24
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FM radio reception at ~24MHz?
dxAce wrote: sctvguy1 wrote: On Wed, 19 Mar 2014 16:47:10 -0400, dxAce wrote: snip I got started again back in '81 or '82 or so with a Yaesu FRG-7700. Originally my Dad built me a Knight Kit Star Roamer in 1966 and my first QSL is from January of 1967. What got me going again was digital readout... that was the key to it all. No guessing, find the frequency, and listen. I also had a Star Roamer, got it from a radio guy who restores old radios in Orlando. It was stone deaf! I started SWL'ing in the 6th grade, around 1963. I got the usual "big" station QSLs, i.e., BBC, DW, Radio Moscow, Prague, Bulgaria, Spain, Vatican, Peking, Havana, etc. I still have them in a shoe box. I also had the Electronics Illustrated "SWL Certificate" that was given by the magazine, the editor was a bearded guy, can't remember his name. Wow, I have a couple of those Electronics Illustrated certificates myself. I'll have to dig them out. I also had the Popular Electronics WPE certificate, giving me the callsign WPE8JSS, however, it got destroyed or lost somehow. I got back into SWL when I was in the USAF, stationed at Keesler AFB, MS. While on TDY with my C-130 crewmates at Nellis AFB, NV, I went and bought a new FRG-7. I thought it was the greatest thing since cornflakes! I kept if for a few years, giving it to a MSgt who was really into SWL, but only had a Panasonic portable. After that, he always made sure that I had the best inlight lunch(for free) and other little perks. I miss that radio, it was a classic. |
#25
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FM radio reception at ~24MHz?
On Wed, 19 Mar 2014, sctvguy1 wrote:
I also had a Star Roamer, got it from a radio guy who restores old radios in Orlando. It was stone deaf! I started SWL'ing in the 6th grade, around 1963. I got the usual "big" station QSLs, i.e., BBC, DW, Radio Moscow, Prague, Bulgaria, Spain, Vatican, Peking, Havana, etc. I still have them in a shoe box. I also had the Electronics Illustrated "SWL Certificate" that was given by the magazine, the editor was a bearded guy, can't remember his name. Was it Tom Kneitel? He certainly wrote for Electronics Illustrated, stories about Radio Swan and certainly when I started reading it at the beginning of 1971, he had a sort of Q&A column, "Uncle Tom's Cabin" if I remember properly, that was more a chance for him to give snarky replies to letter writers. The magazines would run plenty of fiction, short stories related to electronics and radio. One was about some local radio club having a contest, and someone getting their last QSL card by some freak accident, someone else challenging them, until he proved that he could hear the station despite not having a receiver to tune that frequency, by some scheme that involved NAA at some really low frequency. But i think Electronics Illustrated took the cake with the contest they had in 1971. A big announcement, and pages of equipment that would be the prizes, all that neat stuff when it was all so new to me. And then followup announcements, you had to get QSL cards from a certain number of countries or stations. If they ever announced the winners, I don't remember. At the very best, it was a low key thing, "here are the winners", not matching the announcement of the contest. Of course, the magazine folded into Mechanix Illustrated towards the end of 1972, a special section for a few months and then it was gone. Michael |
#26
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FM radio reception at ~24MHz?
dxAce wrote: sctvguy1 wrote: On Wed, 19 Mar 2014 16:47:10 -0400, dxAce wrote: snip I got started again back in '81 or '82 or so with a Yaesu FRG-7700. Originally my Dad built me a Knight Kit Star Roamer in 1966 and my first QSL is from January of 1967. What got me going again was digital readout... that was the key to it all. No guessing, find the frequency, and listen. I also had a Star Roamer, got it from a radio guy who restores old radios in Orlando. It was stone deaf! I started SWL'ing in the 6th grade, around 1963. I got the usual "big" station QSLs, i.e., BBC, DW, Radio Moscow, Prague, Bulgaria, Spain, Vatican, Peking, Havana, etc. I still have them in a shoe box. I also had the Electronics Illustrated "SWL Certificate" that was given by the magazine, the editor was a bearded guy, can't remember his name. Wow, I have a couple of those Electronics Illustrated certificates myself. I have one for hearing 6 Continents, dated February 10, 1970, and one for hearing 10 Countries, dated May 21, 1968, both signed (stamped) by Robert G. Beason, editor. Both measure about 8 x 5. I got back into SWL when I was in the USAF, stationed at Keesler AFB, MS. While on TDY with my C-130 crewmates at Nellis AFB, NV, I went and bought a new FRG-7. I thought it was the greatest thing since cornflakes! I kept if for a few years, giving it to a MSgt who was really into SWL, but only had a Panasonic portable. After that, he always made sure that I had the best inlight lunch(for free) and other little perks. I miss that radio, it was a classic. |
#27
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FM radio reception at ~24MHz?
On 03/19/2014 12:49 PM, sctvguy1 wrote:
On Tue, 18 Mar 2014 22:36:00 -0400, Michael Black wrote: snip At the same time, that past is gone. I think I'd rather have the illusion of it, the hope that it could happen, than being older and the world a lot smaller, and that exotic world completely gone. Michael You are so right, Michael. The illusion, the sitting up all night on Friday and Saturday night, with headphones on, being about 12-17 years old, hoping for that illusive foreign station, the dial light glowing, my pencil and pad waiting for something to copy and to send off for a QSL! Now, my wireless radio will pick up all the stations I want, all over the world, just like a local. I still have my restored Lafayette SWL receiver, a big brother look a like of the S-38. I turn it on every once in a while, hook up a wire antenna, and relive the past. There is not much there anymore, but still can MW DX a lot! Here in Texas, it will pick up both coasts pretty well. I had an old ham repairman wire it to accept a Heathkit Q- Multiplier that I also have. With that, and the bandspread, and the IF/ RF amplifier, it works very well! I enjoy the hardware, antennas, etc. DXing now means picking up a 5 Watt Siberian digital ham, as opposed to a 500 KW HFBC station. The AM band is pathetically homogenized. If you don't like Coast to Coast or Redeye Radio, you are left out. I will always have the BBC World Service, by hook or by crook. |
#28
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FM radio reception at ~24MHz?
On 3/19/14 15:39 , Geoffrey S. Mendelson wrote:
I remember that well too. When I was a teenager someone had a Normande (probably spelled wrong) AM/FM/Shortwave radio they dropped and it broke in half. I was able to get it working, and using various things such as my bed frame, the telephone line, etc, I was able to receive SW signals in a "garden" (basement) apartment. My first was a Hallicrafters S-53A. And a not so long random wire. That was shortly followed up with a Hammarlund Super Pro (Mil designation BC-794.) It was my grandfather's amateur radio receiver. Still have it. And a not so recently acquired S-53. Antennae were always the issue. Random wires were noisy. But could be concealed. More efficient, and more noise immune antenna required visible artifacts which drew fire from the parents. (Her father was a ham and she hated radio gear. He was an idiot who refused to accept that I could not listen to WNYW on the AM band in St Louis. Both heartily believed that listening to stations not local to the area damaged both the radio and create a fire hazard from the increased current draw needed to reach out for distant stations. They once caught me listening to WLS on a Philco Transitone, and about beat me senseless for 'trying to burn the house down.' Mensa was not an option for either of them.) When I got out on my own, I set up the antennae I wanted, and using those same receivers travelled the world through a headset. Still do. But, I rarely use the Hammar. Mostly it's a Drake R8A, and/or Lowe HF-150, or AOR 7030 Plus. Out here in the suburban weeds, noise is low. But up in the North Woods, it can be eerily quiet. And there's enough realestate to put up some real antennae. |
#29
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FM radio reception at ~24MHz?
On Fri, 21 Mar 2014, D. Peter Maus wrote:
On 3/19/14 15:39 , Geoffrey S. Mendelson wrote: I remember that well too. When I was a teenager someone had a Normande (probably spelled wrong) AM/FM/Shortwave radio they dropped and it broke in half. I was able to get it working, and using various things such as my bed frame, the telephone line, etc, I was able to receive SW signals in a "garden" (basement) apartment. My first was a Hallicrafters S-53A. And a not so long random wire. That was shortly followed up with a Hammarlund Super Pro (Mil designation BC-794.) It was my grandfather's amateur radio receiver. Still have it. And a not so recently acquired S-53. What's the S-53? Is it just one of the many variations of the S38 (ie basically an All AMerican Five that covered shortwave) or is there something fancier to it? They made so many, it's hard to remember. Antennae were always the issue. Random wires were noisy. But could be concealed. More efficient, and more noise immune antenna required visible artifacts which drew fire from the parents. (Her father was a ham and she hated radio gear. He was an idiot who refused to accept that I could not listen to WNYW on the AM band in St Louis. Both heartily believed that listening to stations not local to the area damaged both the radio and create a fire hazard from the increased current draw needed to reach out for distant stations. They once caught me listening to WLS on a Philco Transitone, and about beat me senseless for 'trying to burn the house down.' Mensa was not an option for either of them.) I think for many people, they don't even tune at random, or maybe specifically at night. They tune in the stations they know are local, and forget the rest. One local station carried "Coast to Coast" and every time the station changed format, and finally went under, locals would say "I hope CJAD grabs Coast to Coast", it being the other AM station that might carry it. And it did. It works great for the local stations, but it really kills the overnight listening, the same program up and down the band. Admittedly, it wasn't that different back when Larry King ruled the night, but it's gotten worse since. If people did some tuning at night, they would have found how easy it was to get the program. I'd much rather have the choice. When Larry King was on, I could listen to it, or the local overnight station, or something else. Now there isn't much else. When I got out on my own, I set up the antennae I wanted, and using those same receivers travelled the world through a headset. Still do. But, I rarely use the Hammar. Mostly it's a Drake R8A, and/or Lowe HF-150, or AOR 7030 Plus. Out here in the suburban weeds, noise is low. But up in the North Woods, it can be eerily quiet. And there's enough realestate to put up some real antennae. It's amazing how much noisier things have gotten in forty years. I had the SP-600 and a length of wire just hanging off the back. Not great, but I just remember endless signals. If I try any of the current portable radios inside, I don't hear much, until I move towards the window, where the signals peak up. So much electronic junk that's now become common, nost of it digital in some way, and many using switching supplies. Pretty much none of it was there in 1971 when I first listened to shortwave. Michael |
#30
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FM radio reception at ~24MHz?
Michael Black wrote: On Fri, 21 Mar 2014, D. Peter Maus wrote: On 3/19/14 15:39 , Geoffrey S. Mendelson wrote: I remember that well too. When I was a teenager someone had a Normande (probably spelled wrong) AM/FM/Shortwave radio they dropped and it broke in half. I was able to get it working, and using various things such as my bed frame, the telephone line, etc, I was able to receive SW signals in a "garden" (basement) apartment. My first was a Hallicrafters S-53A. And a not so long random wire. That was shortly followed up with a Hammarlund Super Pro (Mil designation BC-794.) It was my grandfather's amateur radio receiver. Still have it. And a not so recently acquired S-53. What's the S-53? Just Google "s-53 radio" and you'll soon find out. Is it just one of the many variations of the S38 (ie basically an All AMerican Five that covered shortwave) or is there something fancier to it? They made so many, it's hard to remember. Antennae were always the issue. Random wires were noisy. But could be concealed. More efficient, and more noise immune antenna required visible artifacts which drew fire from the parents. (Her father was a ham and she hated radio gear. He was an idiot who refused to accept that I could not listen to WNYW on the AM band in St Louis. Both heartily believed that listening to stations not local to the area damaged both the radio and create a fire hazard from the increased current draw needed to reach out for distant stations. They once caught me listening to WLS on a Philco Transitone, and about beat me senseless for 'trying to burn the house down.' Mensa was not an option for either of them.) I think for many people, they don't even tune at random, or maybe specifically at night. They tune in the stations they know are local, and forget the rest. One local station carried "Coast to Coast" and every time the station changed format, and finally went under, locals would say "I hope CJAD grabs Coast to Coast", it being the other AM station that might carry it. And it did. It works great for the local stations, but it really kills the overnight listening, the same program up and down the band. Admittedly, it wasn't that different back when Larry King ruled the night, but it's gotten worse since. If people did some tuning at night, they would have found how easy it was to get the program. I'd much rather have the choice. When Larry King was on, I could listen to it, or the local overnight station, or something else. Now there isn't much else. When I got out on my own, I set up the antennae I wanted, and using those same receivers travelled the world through a headset. Still do. But, I rarely use the Hammar. Mostly it's a Drake R8A, and/or Lowe HF-150, or AOR 7030 Plus. Out here in the suburban weeds, noise is low. But up in the North Woods, it can be eerily quiet. And there's enough realestate to put up some real antennae. It's amazing how much noisier things have gotten in forty years. I had the SP-600 and a length of wire just hanging off the back. Not great, but I just remember endless signals. If I try any of the current portable radios inside, I don't hear much, until I move towards the window, where the signals peak up. So much electronic junk that's now become common, nost of it digital in some way, and many using switching supplies. Pretty much none of it was there in 1971 when I first listened to shortwave. Michael |
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