Topics

841

North American Shortwave Pirate / UNID 6850 USB

« on: June 14, 2008, 0320 UTC »

6850 USB, 0144-0216 UTC, Kingsmen "Louie Louie," Doors "Light My Fire," possibly parody news broadcast, commentary.
0206z - Possible ID after song, buried under static crashes.
0216z - Off after tones, possibly brief CW?
SINPO - 35232, good signal, noisy conditions.
(Fort Worth, TX)

842

North American Shortwave Pirate / UNID 6955 USB & 6925 USB Sci-Fi/horror music & sound fx

« on: June 13, 2008, 0712 UTC »

Not Voice Of Prozac (confirmed by op, longwire); heard shortly after others logged VOP just before 0100 UTC Thursday night.
6955 USB (not AM as VOP has transmitted recently), from 0107-0110z, distorted music (similar to sound track of "Mars Attacks!"), voice speed/pitch altered and distorted with echo/reverb fx. Then off. Short audio clip available.
SINPO - 34242
Same or similar programming heard between 2300-2320z Friday 6/13/08 on 6925 USB, weaker signal.
(Fort Worth, TX)

843

North American Shortwave Pirate / Radio Artificial Intelligence?

« on: June 11, 2008, 0743 UTC »

Around 0600z, after a couple of hours of Sycko Radio, heard AI type programming with AI ID around 0603z.  Same freq, 6925.1 U, similar signal strength, no apparent transition between Sycko and AI.  Interview or mock-interview on space theme, etc.

844

Utility / Fax on WWV 5000 kHz

« on: June 11, 2008, 0728 UTC »

First time I've heard this.  From 0700-0720 UTC, 6/11/08, very clear fax on WWV 5000 kHz.  (Kicking self for not buying SeaTTY after trial expired.)  Update: This was logged by others around N. America.
http://forums.qrz.com/showthread.php?p=1249724

845

North American Shortwave Pirate / Sycko Radio late show 6925 USB

« on: June 11, 2008, 0523 UTC »

Started around 6925.3/.4 USB, gradually drifted and settled at 6925.1 kHz.
0341 to well past 0500 UTC: Cutups, possibly sampling, some Radio Jamba International programming, Uncle Bob blowing a gasket, Sycko talking.  Signature "International Shortwave" jingles and rock song "Heavy" by Over Core, a definitive Sycko Radio tune.  SINPO - 24322.  Tough copy but definitive Sycko material.
(Fort Worth, TX)

846

North American Shortwave Pirate / "Dark Star"? 6925 U

« on: June 07, 2008, 0808 UTC »

Hoping someone else can help with this ID.

Thursday night, 6/6/08, 0030 UTC 'til just after 0100z, heard two overlapping shows around 6925 USB, slightly off less than 1 kHz from each other, swapping signal strength. Moody, emo type stuff heard loudest, 0030-0100, possible ID with male and female ops just before 0100z.
0102z After Joni Mitchell, "Big Yellow Taxi," ID sounded like "Far beyond ... (inaudible) ... "This is Dark Star - Real Pirate Radio."
Signal strength dropped for this station, second increased, retuned to song by Morissey or Smiths.

Audio file: http://www.archive.org/details/DarkStar-RealPirateRadio6925Usb6-6-080030-0100Utc

847

Equipment / Electrostatic discharge protection tips?

« on: June 06, 2008, 0642 UTC »

Hot dry winds this week have been kicking up some fierce static.  I'm wondering whether to be concerned about static damage.  My Palstar R30C has what appears to be a neon ESD bulb inline with the antenna input, but I don't want to take chances.

Right now my antenna is 25' or so of magnet wire up a tree fed via a bit of TV coax.  I tested a spare TV balun, the cannister type shaped like a small tube, the usual socket on the 50 Ohm end, a pair of leads with spade lugs on the Hi-Z end.  A quick check with the meter shows no electrical continuity across the ends. I put it between the coax and magnet wire.  I'm not using this as an impedance transformer for shortwave purposes since the core probably isn't the correct type, but does it seem logical that the lack of electrical continuity between the magnet wire antenna and TV coax feedline would help protect against ESD?

848

North American Shortwave Pirate / The Hole 6945 USB

« on: June 05, 2008, 0721 UTC »

6/5/08 - Heard in N. Central TX
0200z - Warmups with horn sounds (foghorn, car horn), several seconds dead air.
0207z-0255z - Rock music, Pantera, Led Zep, War, Hendrix, Trashmen, AC/DC, Bloodhound Gang ("Vagina Song," parody of "They Call the Wind Mariah," a signature tune for The Hole).
ID's at 0210z, 0216z, 0230z, end of show, 0255z, off after car siren/horn sound fx.
Op ID'd as Kahn, QSL e-mail kahn at whoever dot com.
SINPO - 35242 (heavy static crashes from regional t-storms.)

849

Utility / 7575 kHz CW, data, Spanish voice in USB under music in AM

« on: June 03, 2008, 0958 UTC »

June 2, 2008 (0130-0150 UTC, 6/3/08 world time/date), 7575 kHz.  In AM mode musical programming similar to Voice of Russia.  Underneath in SSB, CW, data and voice.  Spanish language voice 7575 kHz USB.  Unable to pinpoint frequency for CW/data, seemed to be 7576.5 kHz.  Brief QSO's, apparently to confirm data.

Audio here:

http://www.archive.org/details/UnidShortwaveDataVoice7575Khz6208

Update: ID'd as Tadiran voice scrambler in secure and bypass modes.  Possibly Mexican Navy comms.  Thanks to LDO of wunclub for the help in this ID.