Messages

2986

Shortwave Broadcast / Re: UNID 6870.1 AM 0000 UTC 01/06/2016

« on: January 06, 2016, 0237 UTC »

RHC is producing all sorts of spurs this evening. See this thread:  http://www.hfunderground.com/board/index.php/topic,25568.0.html

When the signal comes up, I can see/hear identical signals on several frequencies, 6924.5, 6890.5, 6894.5, 6885, 6840.5, etc.  It's all over the place.  The signal strength goes from nearly regular broadcast quality to way down in the noise.  Sometimes its distorted and sounds like its mixing with another station, other times not.

Somebody needs to take a look at their transmitter!  

EDIT:

Looks like there's spurs showing up inside the 40-meter ham band as well.  7000.5 kHz AM and 7004.5 kHz AM.  Not continuous, but short bursts of high power wide AM signals are going to get noticed in the CW section of 40 meters.

Unless the K2SDR is just being overwhelmed and generating the spurs on its own...

2987

General Radio Discussion / Re: New to this please define

« on: January 06, 2016, 0137 UTC »

Spanish for "fishermen".  They're the two-way stations (generally marine mobile, I'm sure some of them are land-based, or at least marina-based...) chattering away on various frequencies on 43 meters (and in various other parts of HF, cf. 25-30 MHz when the band is open...).  They usually use LSB mode and 6925 kHz is one of their favorite frequencies.  You'll usually see them using 5 kHz steps but sometimes they'll pop up on a "split" frequency, for example 6919 kHz or 6868 kHz. 

You'll hear Spanish, Portuguese and sometimes other languages (including English).

They'll sometimes even play music to each other, and when they do, you'll see a thread on here for "Peskie Party Radio"

2988

Other / UNID 6924.5 AM 0120 01/06/2016

« on: January 06, 2016, 0127 UTC »

Intermittent audio, mixing with the pescadores, but there is a carrier with this signal when its there.  Carrier on and off randomly.  When its working, hearing an OM talking with music in the background.  Now (0127 UTC) it sounds like two stations are there on AM (plus the pescadores on 6925.0 kHz
LSB)

Signal came back on for roughly 5 seconds at 0129:55, dropped off for around 30 seconds, and is now back at 0130:45.  There's either two stations going at once or somebody is feeding audio from two sources into the same transmitter.  Very strange.  

Back at 0132:25, with distorted audio.  Gone again right before 0133:00, then back up for a few seconds....then gone again?  I don't think this is a fading issue, maybe a transmitter problem?  Or somebody is messing around/testing/tuning up?  

Back at 0215, same distorted audio, and what sounds like two different stations at once (although it could just be the pescadores on 6925 LSB mixing in).  Difficult to tell since the signal strength is strong enough to actually understand what is said for only a few seconds at a time and then it
disappears again.

0217: "World War II started..." "the various..."
0221: Spanish language heard (in AM mode this time).  Lots of OTH radar QRM in addition to the LSB voice traffic.  
0222: Severe OTHR QRM
0223: Hearing an OM and a YL talking at the same time.  Distorted/overdriven audio. 
0224: Pescadores seem to have quieted down.  The distorted AM station is still there though, way down in the noise.
0225: Spanish language (in AM) - then getting blasted by OTHR again

Frequency is pretty messy right now.

2989

Other / Re: UNID 6926.9 AM 0055 UTC 01/06/2016

« on: January 06, 2016, 0101 UTC »

Came back up very rapidly right at 0100 and then disappeared just as quickly. 

2990

Other / UNID 6926.9 AM 0055 UTC 01/06/2016

« on: January 06, 2016, 0058 UTC »

Hearing bits and pieces of music on 6926.9 AM, signal will pop up for a few seconds and then disappear. This has happened a couple times in the past few minutes. Perhaps somebody is doing some testing? 

2991

Shortwave Broadcast / UNID 6870.1 AM 0000 UTC 01/06/2016

« on: January 06, 2016, 0001 UTC »

I'm seeing a carrier at 6870.1 kHz or thereabouts.  I can't hear any audio in AM mode but in USB mode I hear what sounds like it could be music at the noise floor.  There's lots of static crashes, hopefully somebody else can hear it better than I can (I'm listening on the K2SDR WebSDR remote).  There's another continuous signal on 6869.7 kHz that creates a heterodyne when tuning 6870.1 in AM mode.  Add the carrier on 6872 and its a mess.  There's something there though.

0003 - CW heard, another carrier pops up on 6872 kHz
0005 - 6872 carrier gone, there are several groups of pescadores around this frequency (namely 6868 kHz in LSB mode) and they're not helping either.  Maybe its just my imagination combined with the various signals mixing together  

2992

Equipment / Re: "Legal power" in the world

« on: January 05, 2016, 1656 UTC »

It states that maximum power for amateurs in the USA is 2500 watts.  Per Part 97 of FCC rules, maximum PEP power is 1500 watts.

2993

North American Shortwave Pirate / Re: Cold Country Canada 6969 LSB 0114 UTC 5 Jan 2016

« on: January 05, 2016, 0131 UTC »

0131 - "Thank you everybody for tuning in" over Led Zeppelin
0131 - "There ya go.  Cold Country Canada, the weakest pirate station in the nation!" into music

2994

North American Shortwave Pirate / Re: UNID 3440 kHz AM 01/05/16 0100Z

« on: January 05, 2016, 0109 UTC »

Got them on 3440 kHz AM at S8-S9 with some decent modulation at 0102 UTC.  Blues/rock music with a bit of fading and some noise.  Right next to whichever utility signal is on 3433.7 (er, 3433.0 if you're in USB mode).

0106 UTC - Signal has improved a bit, holding S9 nicely now, with some minor fades down to S8.  Sounding nicely!
0107 UTC - Queens of the Stone Age - I Wanna Make It Wit Chu - awesome track!  
0111 UTC - Some more fading now, dipping down to S6, peaking at S9 still, however.  
0116 UTC - Weak het in the background, looks like there may be a carrier at 3442 kHz.  Music still sounding great though.  Blues tune.
0117 UTC - Went QRT rather abruptly - off the air with no ID

2995

10/11 meters / Re: UNID Music 27285 AM 0656 UTC Jan 2 2016

« on: January 05, 2016, 0056 UTC »

27285 is CB channel 28, one of the high power "AM DX" channels, companion to channel 26 (27265).  Other high power AM CB frequencies include channel 6 - The Superbowl (27025), channel 11 - the original AM calling channel back when CB required licenses and was only 23 channels - channel 11 being 27085.  People will run high power on any of the 40 channels (and above and below the legal band, of course), but 6, 11, 26 and 28 are the big ones...which makes it that much more interesting that people are transmitting music over all the other signals on a heavily used frequency. 

2996

North American Shortwave Pirate / UNID 6926 USB 01/05/2016 0040 UTC

« on: January 05, 2016, 0043 UTC »

OMs and YLs talking, just above the noise level.  Seems to be right at 6926.0 kHz

2997

North American Shortwave Pirate / Re: Bangalore Poacher IS 6935 USB 0039 UTC Jan 5, 2015

« on: January 05, 2016, 0042 UTC »

Seeing a very faint signal on 6935 USB at 0042 UTC, now there's some pescadores on 6935 LSB as well

2998

Utility / Pescadores Very Loud on 6900 - 6950 kHz 0030 UTC 01/08/2016

« on: January 05, 2016, 0035 UTC »

Normally I hear these guys at much lower signal levels than pirate stations.  But, for whatever reason, they're much louder tonight.  Hearing S9 level signals on 6900 kHz LSB and 6950 kHz LSB, with weaker signals on 6905 kHz LSB, 6925 kHz LSB, 6930 kHz LSB.

At least they're staying on LSB. 

2999

North American Shortwave Pirate / Re: Old Time Radio OTR 6770 KHZ 1330 UTC 01/03/2016

« on: January 03, 2016, 2155 UTC »

OTR has been on more or less continuously for about a year and a half now.  From what I've read (mostly things posted by members/admins of this forum, actually) and elsewhere on the Internet, there are no legal stations licensed for that frequency.

According to this post --> http://www.radiohobbyist.org/blog/?p=1495 on Chris S's blog, the first logging on HF Underground of Old Time Radio was on May 18th, 2014. It has been going since then. 

3000

North American Shortwave Pirate / Re: UNID 3440am 0255 UTC 1/3/2016

« on: January 03, 2016, 0303 UTC »

Saw a brief carrier at 0302 UTC on 3440 kHz.  Signal went up, down, and then up again.  Likely somebody tuning up.