A new verie has been received

I was delighted to receive a verification from KTNN 660 AM, the Voice of the Navajo Nation in Window Rock, Arizona. It was heard broadcasting under CFFR in Calgary, Alberta. The programme featured traditional Navajo hymns.

I logged it while staying with Bryan Clark in Mangawhai, New Zealand. The verie came from Marcia Peshlakai the station's Webmaster/ Promotions Coordinator (webmaster@ktnnonline.com). My report was submitted by using their online form with a link to the sound file in Google Drive being added.

New Veries To Arrive

I was very pleased to come home from New Zealand to find two veries waiting for me.

The first was for a Voice of Mongolia English language broadcast heard on 12035 kHz at 0915 UTC on October 3rd 2016. The signal was quite a good one. This was heard using my AOR 7030+

  

I am very pleased with the second QSL - it is AIR Gangtok on 4835 kHz heard on 7 February 2017 at 1939 UTC. This was just after ABC Northern Territory left the airwaves. The ABC signal tended to block out the AIR one. It still wasn't easy to hear. This one was heard on my WinRadio G313e.

  

 

A new QSL

KTRB 860, heard at Bryan Clark's place in Mangawhai has been verified by email. The email came from Mike Russell, Broadcast Technician (miker@salemsf.com). He is also the Broadcast Technician for KFAX and KDOW.

Stations logged this morning

Reception this morning came courtesy of the NZRDXL SDR in Paihia. Another is available to the general listening public at: http://kiwisdr.northlandradio.nz

Logged were VOA via Botswana on 6080 kHz at 0637 with a program of African music. This was non-stop until 0659. In SINPO reception was 55555 at the beginning and 35252 by the end. Local sunrise was at about this time and by just after 0700 the signal was by and large unreadable. 

The second station was Radio Oromiya in Ethiopia on 6030 kHz. It was a tremendous signal 5s all round. Reception was at 0706 when an id for Radio Oromiya was given. There followed a program of music with the occasional interruption by a man and a woman. 

Next came Radio Free Asia broadcasting in Chinese on 9745 kHz from Kuwait. The Chinese as usual were trying to drown it out with a program of very pleasant Chinese classical music. They were not very successful however, and the programme was perfectly audible. S3 I4 N4 P5 O3.

DXpedition Trail

This is what we heard during my DXpedition to Bryan Clark's. It was a good range and some nice SW catches. I will certainly be reporting some of them.

570	0632	USA, KLAC fair and clear, but with fading. Sports talk. Id given as AM 570 LA sports’ station. 11/4
640	0700	USA, KFI fair with IF. Mixed with a Latin. Progresso possibly. 10/4
660	0702	CANADA and USA – CFFR mixed with KTNN. Traffic info for Calgary and Indian chanting. 10/4
690	0715	USA, KHNR good with announcer talk. 10/4
710	0727	USA, KIRO – ESPN Seattle fair with id and lots of mentions of Seattle. 10/4
780	0733	USA, KKOH fair but mixed. Id given at 0733 as Red Eye Radio on Newstalk 780, KKPH. Rush Limbaugh weekdays at 9 am. 10/4
850	0740	USA, KOA with faming ads and id. Fair. 10/4
860	0855	USA, KTRB fair with some splash from locals and some fading. ID given just before the hour and then news and financial stories. 11/4
1090	0749	USA, KFNQ fair with Seattle Sports Talk. 10/4
1310	0754	USA, KMKY fair with Punjabi mx. (KMKY is R. Punjabi). 10/4
1430	0703	USA, KLO. Fair/ poor – a lot of fading 11/4
1540	0632	USA, KPMC fair with music – Bridge Over Troubled Waters. 9/4
1670	0815	USA, WMGE under KHPY but audible. At 0819 mentioned Fox Sports trending.
4055	0557	GUATEMALA, R Verdad. Poor but readable signal. Id given as R Verdad. Woman may have been speaking in German (sounded a little like it). C/down at 0602 with choir singing. Carrier off at 0607. 11/4
4885	0615	BRAZIL, R Clube do Para – Fair at best with vocals and announcements in PP. Also gave frequencies. 9/4
6015	0445	ZANZIBAR, Fair with lady talking in Swahili. Phone calls being taken. Grey line boost to sig and faded and disappeared by 0500. Id given as ZBC. 11/4
6025	0420	BOLIVIA, Red Patria Neuva. Fair/ poor with nx show. Id at 0431 as ‘Bolivia Informar’. 11/4
6090	2057	ETHIOPIA, R Amhara vg with mx and talk. 2059 Amhara Radio id given and c/ down and anthem. CRI carrier came on and sig audible beneath. 9/4
11825	0359	MADAGASCAR, World Voice Madagascar in EE with African Pathways. Very good signal. 11/4
17530	0410	MADAGASCAR, World Voice Madagascar – good in CC, but not as good as the signal on 11825. 11/4

A DXpedition

I have just spent three days with my good friend Bryan Clark in Mangawhai, DX Paradise, just over an hour north of Auckland in New Zealand. I have known Bryan for 40 years and he is New Zealand's top MW DXer. His home in Mangawhai is set against the backdrop of the estuary. This is only a couple of hundred metres away. He has three EWE antennae - each is approx 5m high and 15m long, pointing east, north east and south east. These are, unsurprisingly, very effective and when conditions are right, they are the equal of anything in New Zealand.

Unfortunately, conditions have not been great and reception hasn't been as good as hoped. Nonetheless, I still managed to hear things I cannot hear in Malaysia. To listen we used Bryan's WinRadio Excalibur SDR (software defined radio). This is a much improved version of my WinRadio SDR, which was quite an early model. I must say I am now sold on them and am working out how I am going to get one without breaking the bank! It is a vast improvement on my one.

Special thanks to Bryan and Sandra for their continuing friendship and hospitality. Maureen and I look forward to repaying it when we move to Mangawhai - hopefully in July of next year.

A DX trail will follow this posting.

A new verie 

Radio Tirana recently contacted me about their shortwave and mediumwave services closing. I took the opportunity to send them an old report from Christmas 2014, when staying in Vienna. They responded positively confirming I had heard a Greek language broadcast on 1458.

The contact was fortuitous, as I had given up on it - it just goes to show - never give up!