HFU HF Underground
Loggings => Longwave Loggings => Topic started by: NM8R on March 18, 2017, 0007 UTC
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It's a few minutes before local sunset and 252 (presumed Algeria) is coming in nicely already. Also 171 is copyable.
Good DX, to all.
Scott
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Scott,
FB on ur LWBC DX. :)
Nothing but noise on both freqs here near Detroit. :(
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Pinto,
Earlier: The Pet Shop Boys. Now, Donna Summers. (Not exactly what I typically think of for music from Algeria.)
Signals are on a QSB rollercoaster; not as strong as earlier.
Hope propagation smiles on your QTH yet tonight.
Scott
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Now: Boogie Nights. This Algerian DJ is rockin'.
Male announcer speaking in French.
Signal up nicely right now (0048Z).
Scott
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Reviewing the overnight LWBC recordings. Conditions were quite good.
As usual, 171 (Morocco) and 252 (Algeria) rode the QSB see-saw, toggling back and forth.
Algeria had a rockin' DJ. His pop mx selection was outstanding. Maybe he (or she) will be back tonight.
Iceland even made an appearance around 05Z or so, in spite of its northerly path. They are kind of rare here. K index was low though...
Sunset is still about 3 hours off, but the party did start well before s/s, yesterday.
Stay tuned here, for details.
Scott
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If you have any interest at all in LWBC, fire up the radio.
252 (Algeria) is BIG, and 171 (Morocco) is nearly so.
0055Z
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They're back. 171 and 252 both very nice into Michigan, at 2355Z - yet a few minutes before local sunset.
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252 is making the trip to Kentucky tonight with good copy, a rare feat.
Nothing on 171 though.
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Just slightly above the noise floor here on 252. About an S2.
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Making an account of themselves tonight in Michigan:
171 good signal
183 weak
198 vy weak - never strong here
252 fair to good signal (QSB)
0138Z
Thanks for checking in REFMO and RRr. I was kind of thinking I was talking to myself last few nights... What are your radio and antenna setups?
Scott
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Most of my equipment is in the signature below.
I almost always use the Afedri SDR's.
252 khz was best with the Wellbrook loop antenna.
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Sorry - I overlooked the signature line.
My whip and loop are on par at 252 KHz and right now show Algeria at -84 dBm (approx. S7), at 0213Z.
Below that, the active whip far outperforms my loop. There's little contest, in spite of the advertisement spec's. Mine a PRO-1B.
I think your Wellbrook may exceed my Pixel, from what I have read.
Good DX!
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3/21/2017 -- 252 doing even better tonight, steady S7 @ 0130 with various American rock music. UGS beacon in the background.
Getting some audio on 198 also, but DIW beacon is pretty strong here.
Still nothing on 171.
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A small thunderstorm kept me away from LW Sunday evening - in spite of propagation being superb.
Tonight conditions are good, though not quite as optimal as last evening.
At any rate, 171 and 252 are riding the usual see-saw of signal strength I seem to observe often here. One is up and the other down, then they reverse roles. 252 is the stronger at this point.
183 a whisper; no other broadcasters present.
Good DX, all.
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Update:
Took a quick excursion away from LWBC as the WWLN MTU site showed TACAMO was banging away on 17.8 KHz. But it was gone by the time I got dialed in down there.
Back in the upper reaches, we find 252 nicely copyable right now (0250Z), at 17 dBm above the noise floor. Signal strength reads -76 dBm presently.
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Reviewing the tapes right now, from last night. It's always interesting to see what was captured.
Around 03Z it was all '70's hour, on Algeria 252. What an odd mix of mx, too. I'm guessing they did NOT get the Program Director from WCFL or WABC of that same era. Or the Big 8. Bonus points if you can tell me what station that was.
Morocco on 171 corrected the mistake of their LW neighbor, and got some traditional AA mx on the turntable, around that same time. Their signal also peaked and held nicely.
Other participants:
183 Europa 1 (vy weak)
198 BBC 4 (just weak voices under powerhouse NDB DIW)
What did you guys hear?
Scott
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Too much RFI/EMI hr in the evening. Have to do my LW listening in the early morning hours when the QRM goes away.
Anyway, "The Big 8" would be CKLW AM 800 late 60s.
Bonus points if you can tell me what the Drake Format was. ;)
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You're a Detroit'er, right? You smoked that question.
Drake Format - I do not know. Standing by.
And LWBC conditions tonight stink. Presume the geomagnetic storm is taking its toll on the TA path. It seems to be making a mess out of 40 meters, as well.
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LW also in bad shape hr tonight. The local QRM along with K Index of 5 making for poor conditions.
yup, Detroiter.
The Drake Format was CKLWs answer to WKNR. WKNR 1310, aka Keener 13, suddenly appeared in late 1963 and quickly eclipsed the three other metro Detroit top 40 rockers (CKLW 800 actually in Windsor Ontario, WXYZ 1270, WJBK 1500) with a lowly signal that barely reached the east side of Detroit from its transmitter site south of Dearborn. CKLW hired West Coast programming consultant Bill Drake to tighten up their format and regain the position of the top rocker. An interesting story if you care to research it but even more interesting to have been part of it. Those were the glory days of AM radio.
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Scott
LW conditions somewhat better hr this evening. Hearing NDB 253 DD Columbus OH on 252 but no LWBC.
How about up ur way?
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P.V.,
Very interesting on the Drake format. CKLW was an incredible station. It sounds like you may have been a part of it. I'd like to hear more if you are inclined.
Can any fellow Michiganders verify what my ears are discerning?
When I listen to 252 Algeria I often hear two NDB's banging away and they both have the identifier of "MB". I know about Manistee airport, but when I looked it up on:
http://www.dxinfocentre.com/ndb.htm
it shows loggings for the call MB at both Manistee and MBS airports.
So the FAA actually was dunderheaded enough to assign the same identifier to two airports within radio range of each other in the same state? Audible here, day and night.
Scott
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And LW conditions have been poor last few nights, thus no loggings from Up North...
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LW update: fair to good signals from 252, presumed Algeria, with TexMex/Ranchero music. I did not know that format resonated in the Mediterranean. (0155Z). Nil all other LW channels. And before I hit post, they took a fade.
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Scott,
Yes, identifier MB is assigned to both beacons. 254 MB is the outer marker locator (LOM) for ILS/LOC RWY 28 @ Manistee Co. Blacker MBL. 257 MB is the LOM for ILS/LOC RWY 5 @ Saginaw/MBS (actually in Freeland and formerly known as "Tri-City"). Both beacons are +/- 1020 cycles so if you are using a narrow enough filter in SSB or CW mode they will be heard by that amount above and below the carrier frequency. So, in other words, you may hear Manistee at 255.02 and Saginaw at 255.98. Oh, and they both have an ID period of 6 seconds. (please note, some NDBs only use one sideband and the Canadians use 400 cycle modulation not 1020) Confused yet?
In the AM mode, your receiver would probably hear the beacon ID on the carrier frequency. So assuming you are listening to Algeria on 252 in AM mode and your radio has a wide AM filter, you may (from your location 60 mi to MBL and 90 mi to MBS) hear Algeria and Manistee and Saginaw simultaneously. My guess is that this is what your ears are hearing. Things only start to get really sticky if you switch in a narrow enough filter and the beacons begin to appear at two locations.
As far as the CKLW thing is concerned, my involvement was only tangential. Did get an insite though on the inner workings of the station. Could go on all night about broadcast station operation but don't want to bore you or get way off topic. It was a fun time in AM radio.
If you have any more questions or my rambling response needs clarification, just ask. 73, PV
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Just some further comment as to the wisdom (?) of assigning the same identifier to 2 beacons so close together in frequency and geographically (110 mi).
Today with most pilots not using their LW/MW Automatic Direction Finder (ADF) all that much since everything is becoming GPS based along with the fact that all modern ADFs are digitally tuned and considering that the purpose of an outer marker locator LOM is for close-in short range navigation, say less than 25 mi, so as to find the outer marker as the name implies, this issue of the same IDs is maybe not that much of an issue.
However, back in the day when ADF usage was more prevalent but the dials were analog it would have been easier to tune the ADF to the wrong beacon. :(
You gotta wonder...
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P.V.,
For a few years I did engineering work for a small AM stick, and the owner of an FM outlet to the north heard of this and being the thrifty type he was, enlisted my help when his long time C.E. got fed up and walked. The FM was a disaster. Not b/c of the previous engineer, but due to the owner's cheapness.
At any rate, I got to know some of the personalities and the young lady in one of the overnight slots was amusing. This girl had an on-air persona as a non stop walking party diva. But she confessed she disliked the music quite a bit and was actually classically trained. Very smart young lady, too.
The MB NDB matter - looks like the Dep't of Ambiguity struck, hard.
171 very weak at this writing (0035Z).
Scott
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And off topic ramblings about CKLW would be quite welcome. Besides, LW is poor right now.
I figure the silent masses might like to hear, also.
Scott