The peak of amateur radio?

When I was first interested in amateur radio in the early 1960s radio really was magic.  Arguably the golden years were just after WW2 . 

These magazines were on this blog some years ago. They were bought at a bookshop in Hay-On-Wye which is famous for its bookshops. 

Reading them you get a sense of just how exciting radio really was back then.

Shortwave changing

Shortwave use is changing. 

When I was young, there was a raft of shortwave broadcast stations in multiple languages. Many broadcasters have closed for good as most people now get their information by other means including the internet. Some broadcasters have closed to save costs.  

Also many amateur bands are far quieter as a result of modes like FT8.

No, things are very different today.

People may think of shortwaves as a backup when the internet or satellites are not available. It would not surprise me if the military reserves multiple frequencies.

SW interval signals

If you were like me, you will recall the old shortwave interval signals of old. I remember the sound of Radio Moscow and VOA on the shortwave bands. These days, the shortwaves are a lot different with far fewer English language broadcasts.

See https://sites.google.com/view/g3xbm4/home/hf-mf-and-lf/sw-interval-signals .

Fewer shortwave broadcast stations

Today Southgate News reports on more shortwave broadcasters closing, this time in South Africa. I guess more broadcasters are turning to the internet as it is probably cheaper and more reliable.

I guess this means more shortwave spectrum for amateurs potentially, but the nature of the shortwave broadcast bands is changing. In 20 years a casual tune from 3-30MHz will sound quite different, assuming the manmade QRM is low enough!

It would not entirely surprise me if OFCOM released the entire shortwave spectrum at a limited power level on a non-interference basis.  This could happen within 5 years. Increasingly, people are deserting shortwaves as too unreliable, which suits amateurs perfectly. Maybe they will release spectrum on something like the FCC's Part 15 rules.

See http://southgatearc.org/news/2019/march/bloemendal-shortwave-station-final-transmission.htm#.XJircfZ2u00  .

See also https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Title_47_CFR_Part_15   .

Broadcasting on shortwave

Like many in my generation, I came to amateur radio via shortwave broadcasters. As a young teenager I enjoyed getting QSL cards from broadcast stations around the world. In those days there were a great many broadcasters and many of these were in English. Not so today! Many broadcasters have left shortwave and opted instead for internet streaming as this is clearer and easier. It is probably cheaper too as big transmitters and antennas don't need to be maintained. 

Many of the shortwave stations transmitted propaganda, not that most of us cared. Certainly all many of us wanted was that QSL card. If they were proud of their tractor factory output, we could not have cared less!

I hear today via Southgate News that All India Radio may close its external shortwave service. Years ago this was one of the stations I heard direct from India on a crystal set here in the UK. Times are changing.

If you want to take a nostalgic listen to those interval signals, you can. I know this has appeared on this blog before, but it is fun!

See https://sites.google.com/site/g3xbmqrp3/hf/interval

Short Waves

As a child, we had low noise levels (apart from LORAN on the top part of topband) and lots of shortwave broadcasters, many in English. These days many (most?) are plagued with very high manmade noise and there are few English language broadcasters. I enjoyed QSLing many stations. Some sent me gifts too as recently as the 1970s.  Much was communist propaganda. Most of this was ignored. What was more important was that QSL card.

As I have said before, you can take a nostalgic trip into the past. The shortwave bands are not the same!

See https://sites.google.com/site/g3xbmqrp3/hf/interval

SW BC interval signals

I know this has been posted before, but it is quite good to hear some of these again. If you are like me, your first introduction to amateur radio was via shortwave broadcast signals. Shortwave is quite different these days with far fewer English language broadcasts. It is no longer the magic it was to oldies like me!

See https://sites.google.com/site/g3xbmqrp3/hf/interval

Nostalgia - SW interval Signals

Well I am pretty sure I've posted this link before, not that it matters.

When I started in the 1960s my first experiences were with short wave broadcast stations.  There was no such thing as TV live from the USA or Australia. Skype and FaceTime were in the far future.

Radio Australia would fade in and out. Radio New Zealand was a good catch. Many broadcasters had English language services. On the hours and half hours we'd listen for the interval signals. Many communist nations tried to blast us with propaganda. All I wanted was a QSL card!

Anyway, grab a drink and listen to the past. Enjoy.

See https://sites.google.com/site/g3xbmqrp3/hf/interval.

Shortwave interval and announcement signals

Nostalgia time!

See https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/15047843/SWintervalsigs.mp3 .

I first shared this some years ago, but I guarantee these sounds will bring a tear to some eyes.

I cannot recall where I found this recording and I hope the originator won't mind me sharing it here.

These are shortwave interval/announcement signals now long gone. For many of us I think these sounds will bring back happy memories. The communist broadcasters tried hard, but I was more interested in the interval signals than their propaganda. 

No, it is not the same these days.

Historic adverts?

Thanks to Phil G4HFU (see earlier post) I have been reacquainted with the old PW adverts that got me dreaming over 50 years ago. I wonder if other blog readers can point me in the direction of old UK magazines and adverts? I was first interested in radio and SWLing in the early 1960s.

Back then, the world was a very different place. The Beatles were still in the future.  We lived under the constant fear of all out nuclear war (I was terrified in the 1962 Cuba crisis) and most amateur DX was by CW or AM. Although RTTY was around, most digital modes were not. Magazines like Practical Wireless, Radio Constructor and Short Wave Magazine were filled with goodies I drooled over, but could not afford. Even now I do not like parting with money for amateur gear unless there is a good chance of getting very many years of good service from it.

The future of HF broadcasters

Deutsche Welle (DW) is closing its last relay station, which is in Kigali, Rwanda. In recent years DW like many shortwave broadcasters, has been facing financial cutbacks. Also there are far fewer broadcasters using shortwaves these days.

As a youngster in the 1960s, I recall shortwaves crowded with AM broadcast stations, many from all over the world transmitting in English, with their distinctive interval signals. There was a magic about shortwave broadcasting back then. Quite a few could be copied with very simple receivers too. There is something quite nostalgic about listening again to those long-gone interval signals from behind the Iron Curtain. I remember getting some excellent freebees from China back in the early 1980s. Of course, it was all to spread the propaganda.  All I really wanted was their QSL card!

These days, users are often reached using the internet. Of course, it begs the question, "who is now filling the empty, vacated channels?"  In the long run amateur radio might gain some allocations, although the noise floor on HF is increasing too. SMPUs, cable TV and numerous other sources are mainly to blame.

See http://www.dw.de/deutsche-welle-closes-kigali-outpost/a-18340960.

Crystal Set DX log from 1991

As I clear out my stuff ready for our move, I've discovered my Crystal Set DX Log from 1991, which was 2 sunspot cycle peaks ago. Looking through the entries in the log (all received with a VERY simple shortwave crystal set using a toroid, a germanium diode, a resistor and a crystal earpiece and a longwire antenna about 15-20m long) it is quite astounding how the HF world has changed.

Shortwave Crystal Set DX log - from 1991

For a start, many of the coast radio stations used to transmit in CW on HF and these could often be read due to the cross-modulation from other stations. This was the technique used to detect those shown in the log above.

Also, the shortwave bands were still filled with English language broadcasts. In the few days covered by this log I managed to receive broadcast stations from Cuba, UAE, India and Australia directly (not via relays) as well as plenty of Europeans. Before this date I had no idea that worldwide reception on a crystal set would be possible.

There is no doubt that conditions were very good back in 1991 and I am not so sure that it would be possible to repeat this in 2013, but I would be delighted to hear of success by others with crystal set DXing on HF in more recent times.

I still enjoy crystal sets: they are simple and fun to make yet there is still something unbelievably good about using the electricity from the TXing station to hear them, not my own, especially when the signal comes from very far away.

Shortwave Radio Archive

Just spotted on the Southgate site that K4SWL is creating a website to archive shortwave broadcast  recordings before these disappear. Already many SW BC stations have closed at least parts of their services. The HF broadcast bands are nothing like they were even 20 years ago. See http://shortwavearchive.com/ . 

My shortwave radio experience started over 50 years ago listening to SW broadcast stations on a simple crystal set in my bedroom. As much as I hated the propaganda from the communist broadcasters like Radio Moscow and Radio Sofia, Bulgaria, I do miss them and their evocative interval signals.

See also https://sites.google.com/site/g3xbmqrp3/hf/interval and take a nostalgic trip down memory lane.

Radio Nederland and shortwave broadcasts

One of my favorite shortwave broadcast stations back in the 1960s was Radio Netherlands . I still have my QSL card from them somewhere. When testing my shortwave crystal set today I noticed a strong transmission of the Dutch language service today in the 31m band. Little did I realise (until tonight) that this is the very last day ever of transmissions in their worldwide Dutch language service.

The HF broadcast scene is quite a lot different from when I last seriously listened some years ago: there are far fewer English language services to be heard. I guess these days people who want to find out about different countries listen to broadcasts on the internet.

Also, the CW maritime services, which could be perfectly copied sometimes on a crystal set as a result of cross-modulation (the CW sounded like a raspy hiss keyed) are long gone. One of my interests some years ago was seeing how many HF marine coast radio stations I could positively ID on a simple crystal set: the answer was quite a few around western Europe.

In fact SWLing on HF is rather a dying scene I think, although devotees will no doubt disagree.

Shortwave broadcast QSLs

Talking about QSL cards makes me think of my very first QSL cards received back in the 1960s. In those days I used the ISWL QSL bureau which handled broadcast band QSLs (I think it still does) and well remember the thrill when I got my very first cards. The first ever QSL was from Radio Nederland and it was an exciting moment. Somewhere I still have that red card with a windmill on!

In the subsequent years I did a fair bit of QSLing when using just my shortwave crystal set and got a few cards back from these reports. I heard stations all over the globe using that simple crystal set with best DX being Radio Havana Cuba, All India Radio and even Radio Australia, all direct and not via any relays. Not bad for just a tuned circuit, a diode a resistor and a crystal earpiece. I must have another go at a shortwave crystal set just for fun, especially as HF conditions are so good now, but these days shortwave broadcasting is not what it was. Using a decent toroid and a bridge detector it should be possible to arrive at a sensitive design with quite good selectivity.

Nostaglia - listen again to famous shortwave interval signals

If, like me, your first experience of short-wave radio was listening to DX broadcast stations back in the 1950s or 1960s on a simple home built radio you may want to take a nostalgic listen to the recordings of a large number of the interval signals from those far-off days. Even now, those evocative tunes send a shiver of excitement down my spine.  Some browsers may not like the link which is to my public Dropbox folder, but I assure you it is safe.