HFU HF Underground
General Category => General Radio Discussion => Topic started by: yuni on June 10, 2025, 0137 UTC
-
Hello, I am very new to shortwave radio and have just recently found this medium, sorry if these questions are, well, .. stupid?
How do I know from which location I gotta tune in to the stations logged here? So far, every time I try to chase a station that has been posted here I seem to not get any reception. Is the subcategory North American Shortwave Pirate the indicator on which web SDR I have to use (NA located SDR)?
And would someone be so kind and explain to me what something like this means: 77LJS 6930 USB 2149 UTC 8 JUN 2025
I understand that 6930.0 USB is the frequency and the rest is timezone and date, but the first part is where I am asking myself whether or not I'm missing important information? :o
Hope this was coherent enough for you guys, english is not my mother tongue.
Oh, and one last question: is it normal that so much stuff aired are religious preachers? Sometimes I use short-wave.info to find different program, but when I'm on my own looking for stuff I mostly stumble across preachers and live church services or chinese broadcasts ;D
Cheers :)
-
Hi Yuni and welcome to the board.
The first part of the post is the station name as given by broadcaster during the transmission. If a station cannot be identified, it is listed as "Unid" for unidentified. Some broadcast throughout the year, some for special events, and others for a single broadcast.
Yes, you should use a North American sdr for postings under that NA heading. In terms of what sdr should be used, I would check where the posters are located that receive the broadcast and check sdrs near them. If I receive a transmission, you can usually hear it on the sdr in Milford, PA about 200 kilometers west of me. A number of loggers from outside the USA will indicate what USA sdr they are using. Here are examples (first post shown in each case):
https://www.hfunderground.com/board/index.php/topic,146262.msg446945.html#msg446945
https://www.hfunderground.com/board/index.php/topic,146184.msg446753.html#msg446753
https://www.hfunderground.com/board/index.php/topic,145908.msg446025.html#msg446025
Most loggings are by listeners east of the Mississippi River and seem to be grouped in 2 areas: The east coast of the US between New Hampshire and North Carolina and the Midwest: Michigan, Ohio, and Illinois (I frequently won't hear broadcasts they hear - 1,000 kilometers west of me).
Finally, there is a lot of religious programming on US privately operated licensed stations, I guess it pays the bills. However, there is also much music, political talk, and radio focused broadcasts. You can check the schedules on line for WRMI, WBCQ, and WWCR. China Radio International is omnipresent on the airwaves, like the BBC from years ago. VOA is a memory at the moment.
73, hope this will help.
PS - There are no stupid questions here and your English is commendable.
-
Hey Yuni,
"77LJS" was simply the name of the station being heard .I understand how you may have been confused.
"77LJS" is a type of verbal "contraction" . Example : Many years ago WABC 770 Khz New York City would just simply identify as "77 ABC" or "77 WABC".
Much more typical pirate station names would be ie "Liquid Radio" , "Radio Free Whatever", "Pumpkin Radio" -OR- using "self chosen" fake U.S. format call signs like WLIS, WBZA , KDOG etc.
N.A. or North America is simply the location of "whatever" receiver a person is using. It COULD be either an SDR OR home receiver . Most guys here seem to listen on their own radios and antennas.
What you'll hear :
This will vary a LOT. It depends on what you are using for a receiver and antenna/Earth system ,how much natural and /or man made noise you have locally ,radio propagation conditions at any given time, etc.
Sometimes just a short trip to a location free of radio interference can make a huge difference.
I am sure you have seen the European pirate section of this website. It may provide some insight as to what you may hear in Germany, either on a European SDR or perhaps directly to your own personal radio.
For North American pirates you may do better to try a U.S. SDR first and then check to see if you can hear it directly on your receiver.
Same procedure for Euro pirates as well.
Hope this is of some help.
BTW your English is great .
FWIW, I lived in Germany for 3 years.
de NQC
-
Hello,
thank you Yankee and NQC, this helped a lot and I'm listening as we speak :)
Cheers
-
Kein problem :).
NQC