martedì 26 ottobre 2010

Glenn Hauser logs October 25-26, 2010

** ANTARCTICA. 15476, Oct 26 at 1321, LRA36 carrier detectable, weaker than UK 15480 (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** CANADA. 800, Oct 26 at 1307 UT, ``AM 800`` weather in Celsius for Windsor, et al., some Fahrenheit too; 1308 ``CKLW, The Information Station``. Quite clear in KQCV OKC null. No sign of XEROK Chihuahua now, which was in well an hour earlier, but now all the Mexicans are gone, and it`s back northeast over full daytime, but lower-sun path (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST) See also USA: Chicago logs

** CUBA [and non]. 9965, DentroCuban Jamming Command, wall of noise at 1153 Oct 26 vs creamed inaudible R. República; same level of jamming on 9955 against WRMI at this hour. After 1400 in scheduled RFI relay, no jamming on 9955 and no signal from WRMI either, while WON continued on 9965 (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** EQUATORIAL GUINEA. 6250-, Oct 26 at 0550 poor signal, seems Spanish talk, vs intermittent uteburst QRM. Previously, RNGE has been spot-on 6250.0, but comparing this now to MW 1250, 6250 is on the low side. Of course, could be misled by the dominant 1250 signal being on the hi side, but I have not noticed any significant hets there elsewhen (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** FRANCE [non?]. 17620, RFI in French news Oct 26 at 1407, with `generator hum` making me suspect it`s the GUIANA FRENCH relay, since both it and Issoudun have been registered on 17620 at this time. However, it`s // and synchronized with 15300, listed as Issoudun only, so unseems GUF. Unless both are taking same satellite feed from Paris with same delay. Further, GUF is also doubling on 15300 per HFCC, but only until 1400 (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** GREECE. 7450, Oct 26 at 0550 VOG in Greek talk, so I stayed on it to see exactly when it would cut off for QSY: 0552:08* (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** GUATEMALA. 4052.5, still nothing from R. Verdad, at 0120 check Oct 26, nor at 0603 when it would normally be about to close down with NA. Then I heard from Dr. Madrid at 0503 UT Oct 26:

``I am so sorry, Glenn and Dave, we have worked very hard today making many tests and tryouts, but we are not ready to come on the air yet (even though our transmitter is working fine already. The small transmitter too). May be tomorrow (?) we may come on the air (I hope). The electrical difficulties are still on. Two electrical line keepers came this afternoon and reviewed and readjusted electric connections of the power transformer. The problems are still on. Tomorrow I will report the problems to the electric company to see if this can be corrected soon. Just be expecting our signal. I will inform everybody as soon as we are permanently on the air. The engineer has moved frequencies several times, but just for testing purposes. Our frequency will keep on 4052.5 kHz, as it has been before.

Our problem right now is that the engineer was supposed to return to Canada tomorrow evening, and I think we'll have to postpone his trip (with some unconveniencies for him). He won't leave until all difficulties are solved. Thank you very much for your help. May God bless you --- Dr. Édgar Amílcar Madrid, Radio Truth - Radio Verdad``

24 hours EARLIER, at 0544 Oct 25, he had told me: ``I am sorry, Glenn and Dave, we were not able to come on the air today Sunday, because we discovered some electrical difficulties which we have to fix. We were on the air several times during the day, sometimes with the small transmitter, and some other times with the big transmitter, but without audio frequency, just making many tests. We may come on the air tomorrow Monday (some time on the day). We are working too hard on it, but, the big transmitter is alright. Our problems are with a deficient ground. May God bless you for your valuable help --- Dr. Édgar Amílcar Madrid, Radio Truth - Radio Verdad`` (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** INDONESIA. 9526-, VOI signal absent for the second day in a row, Oct 26 at 1152 check and 1319, so another excursion to Banjarmasin in Exotic Indonesia will have to wait at least until another Tuesday.

Is anyone hearing it at other dayparts? Atsunori Ishida
http://rri.jpn.org/ reports on Oct 25: ``9526 - (Carrier at 1000-1059) and *1550-1800- 1550 (IN), 1600 NA, 1602 AA, 1700 SS, 1800 GG.`` So maybe it`s a problem with the antenna USward between 11 and 14/15 rather than the transmitter (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** KUWAIT. 21540, R. Kuwait in Qur`an, Oct 26 at 1404, SSOB with slight SAH from REE. Chuck Bolland in FL was still hearing the English broadcast around 1900 Oct 23 on 15540 (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** MEXICO. Pre-sunrise DX Oct 26 on DX-398 inside with internal antenna only:

540, at 1159 UT Oct 26 in CBK null, Hoy por Hoy program promo, government PSAs including Senado 1202; then Hoy por Hoy, San Luís Potosí, ``la fuerza local de noticias``, YL caster, so it`s XEWA.

580, at 1206 UT Oct 26, choral NA, mixing with another Spanish station; 1208 sign-on as XEFI, Radio Mexicana, AM-580, temp 22. Chihuahua city

620, at 1203 UT Oct 26, orchestral NA, 1205 sign-on, XEBU, La Rancherita, street address, Chihuahua (Glenn Hauser, Enid OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** NIGERIA. 7350, Oct 26 at 0544 poor with tone test which really audiblizes what must be R. Nigeria, Abuja about to open. 0545:30 goes to drumming and whistling; 0546:30 military band, presumably NA; but at 0547:30 I hear nothing further, dead air, or fading down? (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** OKLAHOMA. Re my report from two months ago: ``1050 on caradio with a low het rumble, surely between the two OK stations, as much closer than any others on daytime groundwave; someone is significantly off-frequency. Dominant station had soul music, Aug 17 at 2013 UT.

Trouble is, new NRC AM Log 2010-2011, just received Aug 18, shows both are UC:AC (urban contemporary/American contemporary) music formats: KKRX Lawton, U3 250 watts, and KGTO Tulsa, U1 1000 watts. Of course, with a direxional receiver each could be nulled, but not on the caradio whip. More likely Tulsa, a bit closer and stronger, non direxional, while Lawton is direxional to the SW.``

Since I am still hearing this audible het on the caradio, I finally get around to resolving this Oct 25 at 2123 UT. Using the DX-398 in the yard away from as much local noise as possible, by rotating it with BFO on and slightly mistuned, and comparing to pitch of neighboring stations on dial (not including KLIO 1070 Wichita, already pinned as off-frequency itself), the 1050 off-frequency is: KKRX Lawton, the weaker one, which is on the low side, probably somewhat less than 100 Hz, circa 1049.9+.

1580, KOKB Blackwell, after behaving itself for a few weeks whenever checked, back to dead air = open carrier Monday Oct 25 at several tunes, 1930, 1935, 2010, 2057 UT and no telling how long before or after. But it was remodulating at 1705 October 26.

While we`re at it, routine check of our other oddities, Oct 25 around 1935 UT:
1120, KEOR Sperry-Tulsa is on air at the moment, and 1705 Oct 26.
97.7, ``WECS`` part 15 loop at Emmanuel Christian School, Enid is on
99.9, GCN pirate in Enid is on with Alex from Santa Cruz CA (Glenn Hauser, Enid, DX LISTENING DIGEST) See also USA for KKLE, KRVA et al.

** OKLAHOMA. Re the DTV anomaly of KUOK-35 Woodward not decoding while neighbor KOMI-34 does decode, despite megawatt on 35 vs 15 kW on 34: Trip Ericson explains that KUOK is really running only 8 kW, despite FCC listings showing 1000 kW, which is only a CP-modification. That explains it (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** U S A. 3160, WPJK, Orangeburg SC, Oct 26 at 1131 carrier is on, 1133 sign-on announcement, right into Gospel Train, with toot-toot; poor signal in noise on 2 x 1580 (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTNENING DIGEST)

** U S A. Circa sunrise MW DX Oct 26, on DX-398 inside, internal antenna, times strictly UT:

720, Oct 26 at 1239 UT, getting ready for KDWN, I instead hear good signal from WGN Chicago, which usually had faded out by this time; tornado warning for Kankakee!

At 1245, KDWN Las Vegas did cut on day pattern at usual illegal time one hour too early, Heidi Harris with politix, but at 1257, WGN is back over KDWN. At 1309 nothing but WGN audible.

750, at 1211 UT Oct 26, YL speaking rapidly in Ukrainian, seems news, with musical stingers. What in the world? Never heard this on 750 before, certainly nothing from Manitoba. 1216 announces ``reklama``, i.e. commercials to follow, including 1218 ad for a doctor with phone, 1219 losing to QRMusic; 1242 still/back in with medical ad, 1243 Gordon Medical Center pronounced in English, phone, address, list of doctors in it. Googling, there are several GMCs, including one in Wheeling IL, NW suburb of Chicago.

Per NRC AM Log, the only ethnic format on 750 is WNDZ, Portage IN, 15 kW daytimer near Chicago; Ukrainian not mentioned, but this article
http://visitshoremagazine.com/2/?p=14735
says ``Our biggest languages are Spanish, Russian, Ukranian [sic], English`` altho not clear if referring to 750, any or all of the three other stations in the Access Radio Chicago group on 850, 1240, 1470. Its website is totally uninformative as to program schedules:
http://www.accessradiochicago.com/

It turned out that other Chicago stations were in well after sunrise as the area was getting hit by severe storms. See 720, 1200

770, Oct 26 at 1315 UT, KKOB Albuquerque NM cuts to day pattern but only poor signal. Much better at 1355 about local events, 1404 fading.

880, hoping to get an ID for KHAC NM/AZ Navajoland, Oct 26 at 1300; instead it`s KLRG with self-promo as 50,000 watts, largest daytime signal in Arkansas, get your program on starting tomorrow! Just call Downtown Dave. At 1301 over to Scriptures for America Worldwide from the Radio Ranch in Laramie WY, Richard introducing Nancy & Nancy with home health care program. As if 24/7 on WTWW is not enough for PPPP.

1200, Oct 26 at 1304, Spanish weather warnings for Chicago, power outages, i.e. WRTO. WLS 890 was doing the same in English (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** U S A. 1550, here`s a misleading ad for unID hunters: Oct 25 at 1929 UT, for Panhandle Federal Credit Union, so this must be in a panhandle, like TX, OK or even NE? No, it`s in Wellington, Sumner County, south-central Kansas not far from Enid, as the ad went on to make clear; then ID as ESPN Sports Radio 1550, KKLE. [COL: nearby Winfield]

So PFCU must have offices all over adjacent states, right? Wrong, it`s limited to Sumner County, Kansas, ONLY:
http://www.panhandlefcu.com/aboutus.php
This page does not answer the obvious question.

BTW, as an Okie I would like to point out that only Oklahoma`s can legitimately be called a panhandle, as the only state of these three which looks remotely like a pan (or cleaver?). Texas?? More like one of those deadly spiked weapons to be hurled, a ninja star. Nebraska? Like TX, too thick to be a handle, like OK, cleaverish altho blunt without a serrated riveredge. But Kansas??? It never developed any such appendage (Glenn Hauser, Enid OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** U S A. 1600, Oct 25 at 2057 UT on nondirexional caradio, Vietnamese is already dominating, fades out and in a bit; of course, it`s KRVA, the 25 kW Asian outlet for The Metroplex, COL Cockrell Hill TX, already getting out via skywave, tho sunset here will not occur until 2343 UT; at 2105 with 3.5 Hz SAH over our nearest 1600, KUSH in Cushing OK; and no significant het audible yet from the off-frequency one, previously traced to KMDO, Fort Scott KS (Glenn Hauser, Enid OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST) See also OKLAHOMA

UNIDENTIFIED. TP MW carrier search Oct 26: from 1228 UT downward on DX-398 in USB mode: 1242, 1098, 828, 774, 747, 594. Until 1232 upward in LSB mode: 747, 774, 1098. I am beginning to have doubts that `my` 1098 is really a TP carrier such as Marshall Islands, as it`s rather reliable and steady (Glenn Hauser, Enid OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

UNIDENTIFIED. 4430, approx., Oct 26 at 0558 distorted music, must be related to the 1300 UT Oct 25 log of WWCR-7490 programming on 4434 --- but now it does not match any of the four WWCR frequencies, 3215, 4840, 5890 or 5935. Instead, WEWN ID at 0600 in Spanish // 7555! That signal is not super-strong, so not likely to overload. And then I hear the WYFR theme mixing in. There is another peak around 4440, so perhaps the center frequency of this FMy spur could still be considered 4434. BFO on makes the audio worse, another trait of FM. Again, it is heard both on the YB-400 and the FRG-7, even when the latter is fully attenuated. Getting three different US SW stations here, two at once, is really strange, but means the stations themselves are not likely responsible. Perhaps it is a local mixing product around here. If anyone else hears this I would really like to know (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ###