Messages

3046

North American Shortwave Pirate / Re: WRRI Random Radio International 6925 USB 1514 11/15/15

« on: November 15, 2015, 1539 UTC »

Hearing "Daddy Won't Sell The Farm" among other country tunes at tune in (1530 UTC).

S8-S9 (with high local QRN noise levels) on my local RX setup.  Bouncing between S7-S9 on the K2SDR NJ WebSDR

YL synth voice "Radio Random International WRRI" repeated 3 times at 1539.

Dead air (or signoff?) following ID. 

3047

10/11 meters / Re: 11m report for 11 Nov 2015

« on: November 11, 2015, 1637 UTC »

Taxi dispatch activity heard so far today (as of 1630 UTC)

26005 AM
26125 AM
26905 AM
26955 AM
27425 AM
27515 AM (with heavy QRM from 27515 LSB)
27815 AM
27855 AM

3048

10/11 meters / Re: 27815 AM Spanish Language YL Dispatcher

« on: November 09, 2015, 1619 UTC »

Conditions seem to be evening out a bit.  I've been monitoring 27555 USB for the past 15-20 minutes and have heard France, England, Ireland, Mexico, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic calling as well I'm sure others that are down in the noise/hit by QRM. 

Flipped over to 27700 for a second and heard the tail end of a SSTV signal too!

3049

10/11 meters / 27815 AM Spanish Language YL Dispatcher

« on: November 09, 2015, 1540 UTC »

This is a new catch for me.  Usually the taxicabs hang around the "lows" (25-26 range) as opposed to the higher parts of 11 meters closer to 28000.  I found this one while tuning around for UK FM activity.

27815 AM.  Signal is anywhere from an S4 (nearly the noise level at this location) to a loud and clear S9.  Hearing the female dispatcher only.

3050

10/11 meters / 11 meter DX 8 November 2015 1600 UTC +

« on: November 08, 2015, 1609 UTC »

All logged with Ranger Voyage VR9000 all-mode export radio (25615-28305 frequency coverage) and 11-meter dipole.


26555 LSB - Latin America SSB DX calling frequency (see also 27455 USB)
26585 AM - Mexican AM chat freq, busy
26845 AM - Carrier, strong (S9).  Could be local.
27455 USB - Latin America SSB DX calling frequency (similar to 27555 USB, only for Spanish language operators)
27465 USB - Spanish language traffic
27500 CW - Dasher beacon of some kind.  One dash every second or so.  Gone at 1605 UTC
27825 AM - Spanish language traffic.  Since this is in AM, I'm guessing its truckers.  Would say taxi if there was  YL dispatcher.

Update starting at 1745 UTC:

26585 AM - Mexican calling frequency.  Not as busy as it was earlier today.
26615 AM - Seems like the guys usually on 26705/26715
26635 AM - Spanish language with "Better Off Alone" by Alice Deejay playing in background.  Rapid fades from S9 down to S3-4
26715 AM - The usual super loud (and sometimes overmodulated) signals from Puerto Rico
27415 AM - Spanish language
27425 AM - Spanish language, with roger beep.  OM talking to other (unreadable) stations.  S3-S4 signal.
27445 LSB - English language.  Southern US accents
27455 USB - Latin America SSB DX calling frequency.  Station in Mexico calling CQ
27535 AM - Spanish speaking OMs talking.  Could be truckers since they're using AM
27555 USB - Hearing beeps.  10AD340 calling CQ requesting QSY to 27600 (said this in Spanish and then English!).
27600 USB - 10AD718 (also IDing as 10AD340 ??) working another Spanish-speaking station in Aruba - other operator corrected him, its actually Curaçao!
27665 USB - Spanish language traffic.  Busy
27675 USB - Spanish language traffic, nice powerful signals.  Operators discussing antennas and their mobile radio setups
27685 USB - Spanish language traffic
27690 USB - Spanish language traffic
27745 AM - Spanish language traffic, getting obliterated by OTH radar QRM
27775 AM - Spanish heard, with roger beeps.  YL and OM.  Possibly taxi dispatch

On a personal note, I have visited Aruba a couple years ago with my VHF/UHF scanning equipment (RadioShack Pro-96) and scanned 25-50 with a VHF rubber duck and heard several very powerful stations in AM and SSB in the 27400-27900 region.  

The very strong signals on 26615 make sense too.  Channel 9 (27065) is listed on Spanish-language 11 meter DXer websites as a AM calling frequency, and 26615 is Channel 9 "down one band".  So I bet they just flicked the bandswitch down from "D" to "C" and continued talking.  

3051

10/11 meters / Re: 11 meter DX 7 November 2015 1700 UTC +

« on: November 08, 2015, 1604 UTC »

You should get yourself a 1/2 wave (or even 1/4 wave) vertical for 11m.  You can do this on the cheap too.  Get a 102" or 108" steel whip, a stud mount and some basic sort of counterpoise system (really a 9 foot piece of wire would work perfectly) and see how your reception changes.  You could easily replicate that with a vertical dipole system.  Your performance on 10/11 will probably get a lot better.  You'd be surprised how some of these mobile antenna systems perform compared to wire antennas, especially when they're higher up. 

3052

10/11 meters / Re: 11 meter DX 7 November 2015 1700 UTC +

« on: November 07, 2015, 2218 UTC »

I've noticed that a good majority of the SSTV images you've gotten recently have callsigns with the "10" prefix (Mexico) on them. 

Do you think that your antenna system might have some directionality to it.  Perhaps north-south? 

3053

10/11 meters / Re: 11 meter DX 7 November 2015 1700 UTC +

« on: November 07, 2015, 1800 UTC »

I use two antennas for fixed operations.  I have a dipole cut for 26.000 and a random wire, roughly 40 feet long.  

I also run various mobile antennas, most of them base loaded whips of various types, as well as a 108" whip.

3054

10/11 meters / Re: 11 meter DX 7 November 2015 1700 UTC +

« on: November 07, 2015, 1738 UTC »

I'm hearing some SSTV on 27700 now as well.  Still no UK FM CB or ROS stuff on 27635 though.  

Propagation seems to be favoring North/South America vs. Europe at this time.  27385 LSB as well as the usual US AMer frequencies (27025, 27085, 27265 and 27285 are all quite active)

Now (1739 UTC) hearing some CW on 27500 too.

1759 UTC:  27635 USB - ROS signals, S9+30 signal strength.  Very very loud for a second there.

3055

10/11 meters / 11 meter DX 7 November 2015 1700 UTC +

« on: November 07, 2015, 1720 UTC »

Logs 1700 to 1720 UTC


26375 AM - SS
26395 AM - SS
26525 AM - SS, OMs and YLs talking
26535 AM - SS with roger beeps
26555 LSB - SS Latin American DX Calling Frequency, active
26585 AM - Mexican AM DX Calling Frequency, very active
26605 AM - Similar to 26585 AM
26625 AM - SS, heavy fading
26635 AM - SS voice and music
26735 AM - EE US Truckers (channel 19 down one band on export radios)
26885 AM - EE Southern US accents
26915 AM - EE Southern US accents, very loud stations.  Heard station with UK accent talking to US stations as well
26925 AM - SS Taxi Dispatch
27435 LSB - EE Midwestern US accents
27450 USB - SS station OP "Ramon" working another, much weaker station
27455 USB - SS Latin American DX Calling Frequency, active
27480 USB - SS
27515 AM - SS, likely taxis
27515 LSB - EE, Jamaican stations working DX
27545 USB - "34 division" working station 10AD089 Mexico City, very strong clear signals
27555 USB - Stations calling CQ DX, English and Spanish
27575 AM - EE "You can switch to LSB and listen to them"
27595 USB - SS, "Hola! Hola! Hola!" and whistling into mic.  Slightly overmodulated, difficult to tune in at first.
27605 AM - EE Southern US (see 27615 AM)
27615 AM - "I went outside and smoked a cigarette there".  Sounds like Southern US operators.  Later QSYed to "605" (27605 AM)
27645 USB - SS
27665 USB - SS
27695 LSB - SS
27765 USB - SS

3056

10/11 meters / Re: 11 meter DX 4 November 2015 1600 UTC +

« on: November 04, 2015, 2048 UTC »

I've heard stations playing music at each other (or just playing music) in the legal CB band (26965-27405) and above and below that frequency range - so its entirely possible you were hearing somebody playing music.  Especially with the propagation being the way it is today you could have heard a CB station retransmitting another station's signal.

3057

10/11 meters / Re: 11 meter DX 4 November 2015 1600 UTC +

« on: November 04, 2015, 1745 UTC »

Got nothing on 27125 right now.  27125 is CB channel 14 which is one of the channels used by local CB stations in my area.

I've got a weak STL signal on 25910 FM and barely a signal on 26110 FM, nothing on the other usual STL frequencies however.  The band seems to have quieted down a bit over the past hour or so.

This is the first time I've heard something on 26110 FM though

3058

10/11 meters / 11 meter DX 4 November 2015 1600 UTC +

« on: November 04, 2015, 1701 UTC »

Since the band seems to be opening up, I'm going to do a log thread instead of a new thread for each frequency/user I hear.

SS - Spanish Language, EE - English Language.  Other languages will be noted.

25735 AM - SS, weak
25775 AM - SS taxi dispatch with YL dispatcher and roger beeps
25970 FM (AM?) - Carrier heard.  This is a STL freq
26045 AM - SS, likely taxis
26225 USB - SS, very strong signals.  Mexico, Dominican Republic mentioned
26375 AM - SS, heterodyne.  Lots of stations.
26395 AM - SS, similar to 26375 AM
26425 AM - SS
26500 USB - SS
26515 AM - SS and EE, weak
26555 LSB - SS, Mexico, QSB
26575 AM - SS
26585 AM - SS - Latin American AM DX calling frequency
26605 AM - SS
26635 AM - SS, roger beeps and music heard
26715 AM - SS - very loud Puerto Rico
26725 AM - SS, much weaker, getting slammed by QRM from 26715 AM
26735 AM - EE Truckers with SS YL (likely taxi dispatch) underneath
26805 AM - SS taxi dispatch
26885 AM - EE, stations mentioning locations in Colorado.  "Have you heard from Grandpa lately?  Is he still on that usual 805 frequency?"
26955 AM - SS
26985 AM - CB channel 3, busy
27015 AM - CB channel 5, busy, Mexican version of channel 6/27025 AM
27025 AM - CB channel 6 - "The Superbowl"
27035 AM - CB channel 7 - American truckers underneath SS traffic (similar to 27015 AM)
27065 AM - CB channel 9 - Puerto Rico - Latin American DX calling frequency
27085 AM - CB channel 11 - Original American AM calling frequency, strong het
27135 AM - CB channel 15 - SS, sounds like truckers
27185 AM - CB channel 19 - Truckstop prostitutes (lot lizards) advertising.  $50 for "truck wash".  El Paso, TX. Lots of traffic, QSB
27195 AM - CB channel "19A" - "306 in the Big Horn Country" - this is actually a R/C frequency (see also 26995, 27045, 27095 and 27145)
27255 AM - CB channel 23 - SS, with pager tones underneath.  
27265 AM - CB channel 26 - US AM DX calling channel
27275 AM - CB channel 27 - SS
27285 AM - CB channel 28 - US AM DX calling channel
27315 AM - CB channel 31 - SS
27375 AM - CB channel 37 - SS, Mexican accents.  SSB heard underneath
27385 LSB - CB channel 38 - SSB calling channel.  US, French, UK/Irish stations heard calling
27395 LSB - CB channel 39 - "World Radio" club stations heard QSO.  With loud AM het tone QRM
27415 AM - Italian "big gun" stations, normally heard on 27465 AM.  Very loud with way too much echo fx
27420 LSB - EE, Southern USA
27425 USB - SS, with AM whine QRM
27425 AM - SS taxi dispatch
27430 LSB - EE
27455 USB - Latin American SSB DX calling frequency.  Active
27470 LSB - EE
27485 USB - SS
27495 USB - SS, beeps
27500 AM/CW - CW heard
27515 AM - SS taxi dispatch
27550 USB - French language
27555 USB - International SSB DX calling frequency
27590 USB - SS
27635 USB - SS voice traffic, with ROS digital mode heard as well
27655 AM - SS, maybe taxi dispatch.  Usually SSB is heard in this part of the band
27665 USB - SS, powerful signals.  Very busy
27695 LSB - SS
27700 USB - SSTV heard
27705 AM - SS
27705 LSB - SS, with AM and SSTV QRM
27725 USB - SS
27845 AM - SS, possibly truckers

3059

10/11 meters / Strong Italian Language 27415 AM 1553 UTC 4 Nov 2015

« on: November 04, 2015, 1556 UTC »

Some European DX coming in now.  Hearing a very loud Italian station on 27415 AM.  Sounds like the high power stations that usually hang out on 27465 AM. 

Getting some fading now at 1556 UTC.  He's working another station and there's some SSB underneath.

3060

10/11 meters / 26805 AM Mexico City La Ciudad de Mexico 1430 UTC 4 November 2015

« on: November 04, 2015, 1432 UTC »

I know this is a freeband frequency often used by taxicab companies (you'll notice the YL dispatcher) but there's now a station playing music on top of/with the taxi dispatcher lady, IDing as "La Ciudad de Mexico" followed by all sorts of roger beeps and noise toys.

This is likely indicative of another 11 meter band opening today

1433 UTC - Now hearing the taxi YL lady again, with music in the background.  
1435 UTC - OM ID something unintelligible followed by "La Ciudad de Mexico" and more music.  Now slightly stronger than the YL taxicab dispatcher.