Wednesday, December 14, 2022

HB Radio Show #2 in the can


 

I finished Hobby Broadcasting Radio show #2 a few days ago & it's scheduled to be aired on EST Thursday December 15 at 11 PM Eastern/10 PM Central, which is UTC Friday December 16 at 0400 UTC on WBCQ's 5130 kHz transmitter.

This month's show features interviews with CIDX pirate radio columnist Chris Lobdell, who also created the Pirating with Cumbre show that was on via WHRI years ago, and with James Brownyard, who was widely heard on his pirate shortwave station WHYP from 1998 to 2017.

For those who have asked about relaying it: I'm not sure what the proper legal response is to that question. I'm not sure that I can legally request relays . . . and where does the line end? Could any liability be attached to expressing gratitude to a station for relaying the program without a license? I don't really know, so I'm playing it safe and simply putting it out there and if someone relays it without a license, that's beyond my control.

BTW, I have been sending out QSLs to those who send in reports for unlicensed relays, such as the one last month from Mix Radio International.

I do plan to start uploading the shows to some place like You Tube, Rumble, and/or archive.org. We'll see; I haven't quite gotten there yet.

Thanks also to those people who have reached out to me already about providing interviews and recordings. I've been trying to create a schedule for future shows and I've been contacting people as I go. If you haven't heard back from me in the past month or so, it's not because I'm not interested--it's because I've just been trying to finish the last show. 


Wednesday, November 23, 2022

Hobby Broadcasting Radio QSLs

 


The QSLs just arrived from the printer! I think I'm overly enthusiastic to have a few hundred QSLs printed for just a shortwave program, but why not? 😜 

I'm sending out hardcopy QSLs to listeners who send a hardcopy report in. I'll verify reports for whatever radio station aired it, whether WBCQ, pirates, or Part-15 stations. So far, I've sent out eQSLs for e-mailed reports to people who heard HB Radio on WBCQ and Mix Radio International.


Monday, November 14, 2022

Hobby Broadcasting Radio #1 in the can



 

Hobby Broadcasting Radio show #1 done. Whew! It's scheduled to be aired on WBCQ's 5130-kHz transmitter on Thursday November 17 from 11-12 PM EST (November 18 from 0400-0500 UTC).

This show is primarily an interview with Brian Penney (longtime pirate listener and also the pirate radio columnist for NASWA), where we also talk about Halloween stations and manage to squeeze in some clips from stations on that weekend. 

The plan is for HB Radio to be on the air every third Thursday of the month at this time on 5130 kHz. I also hope to get it on to a video platform (not that there's any video), such as YouTube or Rumble. My hope is that those will be good outlets for people to learn about shortwave radio--especially independent shortwave radio.

If you hear show #1, did it sound like something you'd want to listen to each month? If not, is there anything we could do to make it better?


Thursday, October 13, 2022

Hobby Broadcasting Radio

For years, I've mostly avoided airtime. I've been invited to be on the radio a few times, but turned it down. I did a bunch of radio interviews around 1996 for the second edition of Pirate Radio Stations, and more for the third edition of the book around 2001, culminating in an appearance on Art Bell. The biggest reason that I stopped is that I'm not a smooth talker and not the quickest on my feet. I just don't really like to talk that much. So, I stuck to what I've been better at: writing.

But over the course of the past few years, I've seen plenty of people with interests in shortwave and other "mysterious" radio, but they never really connect with the pirates and DXers. They catch mystery transmitters in video games and watch spy numbers station videos on YouTube. The newbies aren't reading about it in books, or magazines that I used to write for, like Popular Electronics, Popular Communications, etc.

Just before the pandemic rolled in, as we were discussing the state of the hobby at the SWL Winterfest, I was thinking that I should create a monthly show to put on YouTube and to get onto the private shortwave stations. That maybe showcasing some audio bites from recently heard stations and radio history would get pique some interest in the hobby and get cause positive discussion.

During the Covid shutdowns, I thought it would be a perfect time, but I had so much going on, both workwise and personally, that I didn't. But I kept thinking it was something that I should pursue. 

I received an e-mail a few weeks ago, offering the opportunity to create a radio show about pirate radio on the 5130-kHz transmitter of WBCQ. Whether this is God giving me a green light or I'm on the precipice of taking on more than I can handle, I don't know, but I said "yes" and I'm starting to brainstorm and assemble things.

The first episode of Hobby Broadcasting Radio will air on the 3rd Thursday of November on 5130 kHz. I've been considering assembling a program 0 to start with, but I'm not sure that I would have it ready in October.

Thanks & have a great evening!

 


 



Tuesday, July 19, 2022

Farmers from Holland

 I've been listening to Bluebird Radio from Netherlands on 1629 kHz via the Twente web receiver this afternoon. I've also been listening to another Dutch pirate on 1618 kHz. The programming is what I'd expect: mostly polkas and schlager tunes and some shoutouts.

About 25 years ago, I heard the pirate Farmers from Holland a few times on shortwave. If I remember correctly, I sent the station a reception report and a cassette recording, but I never received a response. Ah well, that said, the response from my reception reports to Dutch pirates has been far better than that from licensed stations in Peru and Bolivia.

Farmers from Holland had a fun QSL and it would have been nice to have received one, if for no other reason than that I could have used my own QSL to illustrate this blog entry, rather than search around on the Internet to find this image:


I'd read before that most of the Dutch medium-wave pirates are from the rural northeast, toward Germany. If the pirate operators from this region aren't farmers, they must know some. Wonder how many Dutch farmers listen to their friends playing polkas above the MW band while out in the fields?

Lately, I've seen some news reports about Dutch farmers protesting climate restrictions that they say will put as many as 30% of farmers in the country out of business. Some of the news bits that I saw were tractor parades on Dutch highways (reminiscent of the Canadian truckers in the spring), dumping milk, burning hay bales, etc. I believe I read that The Netherlands is the #2 exporter of agricultural products behind the US, so this is potentially a big deal.

I assume it's a polarizing topic in Europe as it is in North America. Here, most corporate media has ignored the Dutch protests, but the independent and right-leaning media has covered them somewhat regularly.

This blog post is to provide some background and to ask one question: Has anyone heard any Dutch pirates with programming that in any way is connected to these protests--even if it's just playing some requests for farmers? I haven't, but I haven't listened as closely as many people do . . . and I also don't understand Dutch!







Monday, April 25, 2022


No, the photo doesn't represent anything in particular. Just nice to see Eastern Redbud in full bloom, swarmed with pollinating bees.

As I was just starting to type this entry, I saw that Elon Musk officially bought Twitter. Crazy times we live in. I had made comments that I thought we were in an era of corporations guided strictly by accountants, who slowly made decisions that would only help the bottom line. Nope. It seems that Elon Musk (Twitter), Jeff Bezos (Washington Post), Mark Zuckerburg, and others are the Tesla, Edison, Sarnoff, Armstrong, etc. of the 21st century. 

Also, it's interesting to see that people are now following Radio Europe closely enough that 5835.2 is now marked as "UKR Radiostatsiya Evropa" on the Twente web receiver. I'm not sure if I've seen any other pirate marked on that site.

Saw that WRLY was relaying WEHM this afternoon, but I missed it. Not sure that I would've heard it anyway because I'm getting a lot of interference here during the daytime now; think it might be the neighbors' solar panels, but I haven't walked around with a portable to see.

The station yesterday (I assume Mix Radio International) on 6875 that moved to 6960 kHz had an incredible signal. Hours of classical and opera music with no IDs. Saw it was logged directly in Bermuda and France, and the signal was perfect here for hours.

Log via Twente Web Receiver

Radio Ukraine: 5835.2, 1630-1935* Bruce Springsteen "Born to Run," "People Get Ready," Beatles "Help!" Eric Clapton "Layla," Johnny Cash "I Walk the Line," Led Zeppelin "Stairway to Heaven," Rolling Stones "Sympathy for the Devil," "River Deep, Mountain High"

Radio Columbia: 1640, 1935-1948* Perfect signal there on 1640 kHz. A number of IDs and talk in both English and Dutch. Lots of Dutch instrumental songs, but now a light rock song about the rain coming down in English.

Radio ?: 1642, *1648-1653* Lots of Dutch instrumental radio production music. Dutch talk, with many mentions of  Radio Columbia. To me, the ID sounded like "Radio Bungamore"


Tuesday, April 5, 2022

A few logs from Europe via Twente

 I listened to a few stations on the computer while I was working (also on the computer) today. I should've checked the radio early because someone was on in North America. Later on, I was working and occasionally checking the HFU board . . . but I forgot to check the Latin America board and Radio Cidades was heard with good signals in New England, Alaska, and France on 10230 kHz around 2300 UTC!

Logs via Twente web receiver

unid: 4625, 1400+ Music being aired on UVB-76's frequency. I assume this is a jammer, but presumably from Western or maybe Central Europe because it had a good signal, but UVB-76 wasn't audible at all. 

Radio Europe: 5835.2, 1815+ "Respect," Beach Boys "Good Vibrations," Chuck Berry "Johnny B. Goode," Beatles "Hey Jude," Nirvana "Smells Like Teen Spirit," Who "My Generation," Clash "London Calling"

Marianna?: 1617, 2025+ Some older Dutch pop. Male announcer with short, tight reverb

1621, 2110+ Polkas & schlager. Male announcer sounded like he mentioned "Marianna" a lot, so I assume he's QSOing with the Marianna op. I couldn't understand his ID

1646, 2125+ Polka-ish song "Little by Little." Levels are varying a lot and sometimes they were really distorted, such as during one annoucement

 


Saturday, April 2, 2022

Mike Radio & Mix Radio International being heard across the Atlantic

 Getting this up quickly in case anyone sees this message & checks it out in time:

Mix Radio International: 15500 kHz USB, 1722+ Mix has a fair signal with smooth jazz on the Twente web receiver



Mike Radio: 5841 (via Twente) and 15080 (on my own receiver), 1645+ Excellent on Twente web receiver with "Angie." Announcement with both frequencies. 15080 is intended for Eastern Europe, but I heard a decent carrier on 15080, and even some occasional audio. First I've heard Mike Radio with my own radio in a few years. I'm recording it from my R8, but casually listening on Twente. Shoutout to me & Kinks "Sunny Afternoon," Mike Radio jingles. Said getting stronger in Australia on 15080. Said should be audible in Kiev on 15080, if anyone has time to listen. My antenna isn't that great on 19m, so I'd bet some other DXers could hear this with a better signal in North America


I guess Mike Radio was audible in Ukraine on 5841 as well as 15080 because soon after it signed off, Radio Europe showed up on 5835.2 kHz.

Radio Europe (Ukraine): 5835.2, 1730+ Bob Dylan "Like a Rolling Stone"


Saturday, March 26, 2022

Some radio crates + loggings

 I wanted to post a number of times this week, but I've been away from the radio a lot. I have listened a bit off and on, but it seems like I never have enough to really justify posting on the blog.

Just got back home after helping relatives move some of their stuff. This morning I was at an auction. Live personal property auctions without lot numbers are such a waste of time because you spend the whole day standing (or sitting) around, just waiting for the thing you want to finally make its way up to the auctioneer. Probably a half dozen or so things that I was interested in weren't chosen to appear before the auctioneer in the three and a half hours that we were standing in the 38-degree temps, so when it started raining (and snow a bit later), we left.

At the auction were a couple of radio crates that I thought were really cool:



Both of these were complete crates. The RCA crate had been refitted with hinges and was probably used for storage in an attic for nearly a century. The Sparton crate was nice and clean--didn't look like it had been repurposed. I guess it was just buried under piles of stuff in someone's attic. I'm always fascinated with stuff like this that shouldn't really survive. BTW, I looked up the Sparton Equasonne Model 79 and it looks like this.

To and from the truck, we were greeted with this friendly (or maybe not so) face:


Could he be guarding the WDOG or KDOG transmitter site? Who knows? He wasn't about to share any secrets.

Here are some loggings. I'm posting dates for these because I'm including a few from earlier in the week. 

Loggings via my own receiver

Mix Radio International: 6880U, 3/26, 2350+ MRI with an ID and opera music. I can honestly say that I've never heard operatic songs on a pirate. Very strong with some flutter

X-FM: 6285, 3/27, 0229+ Listening on an SDR at the moment so that I can listen in stereo. <Later>I guess that was a mistake because I'm hearing it much better on my own receivers. I fired up the R-390A, opened the filter to 16 kHz, & am running it into the guitar amp. Sounds good!

Loggings via Twente

Verona: 1665, 3/16, 1715+ Schlager. Male announcer talking very fast in Dutch. ID per Iann's Chat.

Twentana: 1629, 1824+ Medley of '50s rock songs, into 40+ minutes of schlager & polkas. I thought I heard the announcer say "cortana" or maybe "quintana," so I checked Iann's Chat and see that Twentana is on 1629.

Radio Europe (Ukraine): 5835.2, 3/21, 1929+ RTTY QRM on 5838. Led Zep "Stairway to Heaven," Rolling Stones "Sympathy for the Devil"

Napoleon: 1660, 3/26, 2300+ Very strong with schlager & polka tunes. Male announcer with a number of mentions of "Napoleon." Song in Dutch, but with a chorus of "Oh, Angela." 

Radio Technical Man: 1660, 3/26, 2355+ Left the computer to tune in Mix Radio International on my radio and came back to clear IDs in English, French, and another language for Radio Technical Man, complete with a phone number for requests. Was what I thought was Napoleon actually Radio Technical Man or did Napoleon sign off and be followed by Radio Technical Man? Definitely a different announcer, so I guess these are two different stations. Birthday wishes to David

WFDR: 6900U, 3/27, 0130+ Kind of funny to be listening to a North American station via Twente, but the signal was actually really clear. FDR speeches


 


Friday, March 11, 2022

Mostly logs via Twente

I was busy most of this evening with things like babysitting, so I didn't have much of a chance to listen at home on my radio, but I was catching a few European pirates on the Twente web receiver while working during the day (seems to be a trend as of late for me).

At-home log on the Drake R-8

Earth Station: 6955 kHz, 2350+ UTC good signal with Beatles "Octopus's Garden"

Radio Pushka: 6920 kHz, 0515+ UTC Some goth-sounding music with synthesizers & a lot of reverb on the vocals starting to come through, into EDM


Loggings via Twente, Netherlands, web receiver

Radio Spakenburg: 1638 kHz, 1908+ UTC Very strong with schlager. Announcements & clear ID or two

Radio Spakenburg: 1629 kHz, 2213-2250* UTC Heard 3 clear IDs & announcer said “gud nacht,” I think. Gerry Raferty song skipping badly, so brief dead air & into Black Sabbath “Paranoid,” “River Deep, Mountain High”

Radio Monte Carlo: 1629 kHz, *2250- UTC On after Spakenburg & QSOing with him

1665 kHz, 1920+ UTC Schlager, then CCR “Bad Moon Rising” at 1923. Back to older schlager. Fats Domino “Let's Twist Again”

1665 kHz, 1422 UTC Instrumental surf guitar song with announcer talking, pop, schlager

Radio Europe (Ukraine) 5835.2 kHz, 1840+ UTC Good signal. Announcement mentioned Ukraine, Belarus, Russia, & Putin. Abba “Take a Chance on Me,” etc. Nice to hear another announcement again

1620 kHz, 1952 UTC Yodeling, cowboy-styled polka “Mexicano,” Male announcer, but I couldn’t understand his ID, Buddy Holly “Oh, Boy!” To me, the ID sounded like "Radio Defrayhoho," :o) Jack Jersey “Papa was a Poor Man,” Beatles “Mr. Postman”


Tuesday, March 8, 2022

E-mail from Radio Europe and loggings from home and a far

I'll add loggings to this page shortly, but I wanted to post that I just received an e-mail in Ukrainian from Radio Europe. Here is the Google translated version (with some parts that I thought might be sensitive deleted):

Good afternoon dear friend. Thank you for hosting us. In conditions of war, we do not have the opportunity to answer you with a QSL card. The Russian army attacked Ukraine, bombing Ukrainian cities with 500 kg air bombs and caliber missiles. Also jet artillery and shells. Such are our affairs in the country.


Radio Europe 5835.2 kHz
Amplitude modulation
Antenna triangle
Transmitter power from 300 W to 1.5 kW.
The height of the antenna suspension is 15 meters above the ground.
Height above sea level 900 meters.
We are located ---------.
Our employees of the Radio Station: Operator ------
Technical Director ----
Information Director ----
We also work on other frequencies
From 3900 to 4200 kHz
And on the FM frequency band 98.7mHz
Our youtu.be channel
https://youtube.com/channel/UCZ-L7LJehSpoCUHidPC7qtg
Sincerely, Radio Europe

Logs from home

Mix Radio International: 6880, 3/7, 2119+ Huge, perfect signal with full quieting. Music. I made the mistake of tuning over to a station that hadn't IDed and started recording there instead. By the time I came back to MRI, it was gone.

Unid: 6925U 0010-0038* excellent signal with a folky rock song. Was getting hammered by peskies by the end. At sign off, announcer said "One, two, three, four, what have you been waiting for radio international ha, ha, ha, haaaaa." Chris on HFU said that the announcer sounded like Zeke & I have to agree


Logs via Twente on March 8 UTC

6931 0323 Woman talking, possibly in Ukrainian

6950-6990 OTH RADAR?

4625 0327 Constant buzz running on top of the buzzer. Not sure if this is data from UVB-76 or if it's separate or separate and intentionally jamming?

Columbia: 1630 2015-2030* Sounded like a Bruce Springsteen song, then schlager. While I was getting a shower, I heard a couple of clear “Columbia” IDs from the male announcer. Very strong at Twente with signal tightly clipped at 10-kHz wide

Marianna: 1617 2011+ (ID per Iann's Chat) Schlager with accordian, etc. Male announcer with some tight reverb--sounded like possibly the older mechanical reverb . . . kind of tight and “springy”

Radio Europe: 5835.2, ca. 1920-2000 Johnny Cash songs, then some Ukrainian-lanuage songs I've heard here before. Dead carrier before I checked on the Dutch MW stations



Monday, March 7, 2022

Some loggings via the Twente web receiver

 I've wanted to go into something more in-depth since Friday, but I just haven't had the time. I was working today & listening to the Twente receiver, so I thought I'd pass along a few logs rather than not post anything:

Logs via Twente, Netherlands, web receiver

Radio Europe (Ukraine): 5835.2 kHz, ca. 1400+ Johnny Cash “I Walk the Line,” Led Zeppelin “Stairway to Heaven,” Doors “Light My Fire,” Buffalo Springfield “For What It's Worth,” Beatles “She Loves You,” Cream “Sunshine of Your Love.” Later into Ukrainian music. Didn't hear any IDs

5125 kHz 1744 UTC Russian military data of some sort. Heard it running any time I checked the frequency. No jamming today.

6285 kHz 1745-1756* UTC US-accented political speech talking about nuclear war. Fair/weak signal, sounded like possibly a speech at the UN?

1647 kHz 1758- Perfect signal with full quieting. Eagles “Hotel California,” Neil Young “Heart of Gold,” Dire Straits “Sultans of Swing,” Helen Reddy “You're So Vain.” No IDs. Went to get lunch; came back & it was gone. I checked UK DXer's Shortwave DX blog & the MW Free Radio blog and I see that Radio Turfsteker and Radio DB use 1647, so maybe one of these two?

Capone (?): 1626, 1858-1907* Smokie “Lay Back in the Arms of Someone You Love” The Kalin Twins “When.” Dutch talk over instrumental music at the end. Thought I heard the ID as “Capone,” but I don't have the best track record with IDing Dutch medium-wave stations!

 

Friday, March 4, 2022

Radio Europe with IDs

I've been listening to Radio Europe (shortwave pirate from Ukraine) for hours while working over the past week. Today, I heard talk and an ID on the station for the first time. The station had IDed back in the pre-war days, but, aside from this logging below, I haven't seen any mentions of an ID or any other kind of talk. It makes me wonder if the station was discussing the situation either in Ukraine or in the immediate area of the station. I made a recording of the announcement, so I guess I should either find someone who speaks Ukrainian to translate or put it up on YouTube. 

A couple of loggings via Twente, Netherlands web receiver
Radio Europe: 5835.2  kHz 1703+ UTC New wave + Ukrainian music. Woman announcer at 1707, dead air, then man talking in Ukrainian with distorted audio. Several clear IDs & mentions of Ukraine

Radio Ronalisa: 6275 kHz, 1730+ UTC Techno and male announcer with heavy reverb. Said from Netherlands and talked about Putin & told people to stay safe 

Wednesday, March 2, 2022

A couple of loggings

 I saw that Anarchy One was reported tonight with excellent signals in the Northeast. I haven't heard this station in probably at least 25 years. I assume this was a relay and not a new show, but it's always something when a pirate returns after a decade (or several) of being away from the hobby.

I also missed Clever Name Radio, which seems to have great signals most everywhere in the Western Hemisphere. I was busy splitting & hauling firewood, so I missed all of the fun tonight. 

Last night, I did manage to hear Clever Name Radio, which was playing the "request lines are open" clips. I complied, keyed in my request on HF Underground in the loggings section, and they almost immediately played it. Awesome. I don't know how many regions Clever Name has been heard, but I've seen HFU reports on HFU from Colombia and Guatemala. I heard this on 6919 kHz USB and I think it was around 2200. Despite having an e-mail address, I'm not sure that CNR has ever QSLed anyone.

Over in Europe via the Twente, Netherlands, receiver, I heard:

UVB-76 jammer: 4625 kHz, 1722 UTC Michael Jackson "Smooth Criminal"

Radio Europe: 5835.2 kHz 1830+ UTC With regional (presumably Ukrainian?) music. Some modern rock, some ska, etc. Excellent signal and I was a bit surprised to hear the sudden format switch. Maybe a different person was running the playlist today? I listened for about an hour, but no announcements. I wonder if all of these broadcasts are Radio Europe or if some other stations are popping up on the frequency to offer solidarity? 


 

Tuesday, March 1, 2022

Brief email from ULX2 + logs

Last night I received a brief email from Alex (ULX2). He understandably didn't have a lot to say, but he did write:

    Yes, indeed. Thank you very much once again.

This was in response to my well wishes & being glad to hear that he was OK.

Speaking of OK, I heard Radio Europe again this morning and am listening right now:

Radio Europe: 5835.2, 1517-1525* Via Twente web receiver. Rolling Stones "It's Only Rock'n'Roll," another song & off at 1525 UTC

Radio Europe: 5835.2, 1903+ Via Twente web receiver. Pink Floyd "Another Brick in the Wall" Excellent signal

UVB-76 Jammer: 4625 USB, 1844+ Via Twente web receiver. Metallica "For Whom the Bell Tolls." My guess is that this is via a Ukrainian military transmitter or from a high-powered amateur because this has been reported by a number of listeners in North America

Jammer 5125 USB, 1530+ Via Twente web receiver. Squealing pigs (being slaughtered?) jamming of Russian military channel. Audio sounds to me like it's being played backward, but it's hard to tell. I think squealing pigs would sound fairly similar whether it was played forward or backward. I assume the intention is that they are letting Russians know that their troops are like "pigs heading to the slaughter."

Just 10 kHz up from that jammer is:

Charleston Radio International: 5135, 1850+ Via Twente web receiver. Strong signal with all 1930s programming. Plenty of Big Band music and some bits from old-time radio. This station has been on the air for years now and has nothing to do with the war in Ukraine, but I thought I'd mention it because of its proximity (frequency-wise) to the 5125 jammer. This one really gives you the feel of tuning around the radio during WWII.

Just saw that a bombing run took out the main TV station in Kiev


Monday, February 28, 2022

Pirates, Radio Ukraine International, etc.

 Not a lot going on at about 1230 UTC. 

I listened for Radio Ukraine International via WRMI, but this particular transmission is beamed to Central & South America. I thought I'd still be able to pick up some signal bouncing from somewhere. I did have a little bit rattle into the antenna, but all I had was carrier with a bit of unintelligible talk. It was a significant statement for WRMI to air RUI's programs for free and although I appreciate their efforts, it would be nice if a station would air their shows with a beam to North America.

I checked 4625 kHz to see if anyone was jamming UVB-76, the Russian military data station. UVB-76 is loud & clear at 1255 UTC, but nothing else is being heard on the frequency. I mentioned a few days ago here that someone is streaming UVB-76 on YouTube. What amazes me is that every time I check this feed, there seem to be about 50 to 80 people viewing it when it's just intermittent buzz. 

As far as standard pirate radio goes, I did hear Outhouse Radio last night on 6925 kHz, Ion Radio on 6955 kHz with a fantastic signal. This morning, I had Radio Pushka on 6920 kHz with a signal very similar to that of WRMI this morning: decent carrier but just a bit of audio.

1650 UTC update

I hadn't heard Radio Europe in the past day or so and I didn't see any logs during that time. It's nice that I can report the station again because it means the operators are safe. I'm hearing it right now via a web receiver in Poland on 5835.2 kHz playing Roy Orbison "Pretty Woman." I think it's too early for the signal to be propagating too far to the West, but I could also hear it on the Twente receiver, as well as KIWI SDRs in Germany and Switzerland. 


Radio Europe image from their YouTube channel


Sunday, February 27, 2022

Logs and more

I haven't heard much activity via my own receiver lately. I listened to X-FM on Friday night, but mostly via a web receiver so that I could hear it in stereo. I was away for nearly all of yesterday. And, so far today, I heard a station on 6925 kHz USB around 1330 or so, but I was away from the radio again and need to check for an ID and more information.

Meanwhile, war continues to rage in Ukraine and I've been listening to the radio and checking for information about pirates and/or clandestine stations broadcasting from or to the region. I haven't heard Radio Europe or seen any logs from the station over the past day or so. Hope the operators are safe.

Logs via Twente (Netherlands) web receiver

Radio Monique International: 6325 kHz, 1740-1810* Simon & Garfunkel "Hazy Shade of Winter," Talking Heads "Psycho Killer," "Eve of Destruction," Bob Marley "One Love." Excellent signal. Talk about the war in Ukraine and how everyone needs to protest against Russia because it could mean the safety of the world. At end of show, told Russian soldiers in Belarus to turn around and not participate. Calling Putin "a crazy madman"

UVB-76: 4625 kHz, 1730+ The Russian military station is going strong, but I didn't see any jamming, waterfall images, or broadcasts of the Ukrainian national anthem

1900 UTC Update

A station on 4625 kHz is jamming UVB-76 with what currently sounds like Eastern European disco. The jammer is very strong at the University of Twente site 

Friday, February 25, 2022

More from Ukraine

Saw this morning that Russian forces are closing in on Kiev. Former Ukrainian president Petro Poroshenko was on the street armed with an AK-47. He and his civil defense group are preparing to fight the invading army. Really surreal.

I heard back from ULX2. Last night, he said "Thank you for your support! I'm OK at the moment, but situation is quite anxious in Kyiv: distant explosions were heard now and then. It is due to missile attacks on our military airfields." He has been much more active on his blog than I've been on mine, with updates as recently as three days ago. You can check out his Ukrainian DX Blog here.

At least one Ukrainian shortwave pirate was on the air yesterday. Radio Europe was reported from 1630-2036 UTC on 5835.2 kHz by Ray Lalleu in western France. Ray heard Ukrainian punk and rap, with some talking mentioning Ukraine. If its signal can be heard in France, Radio Europe should be audible across nearly all of Europe if it is able to continue broadcasting. I don't have recent audio of it, but here's a clip from August 2018. It was reported in the video as a Russian station, but it was later determined to be Ukrainian. Here's a video of the transmitter in operation. 

This morning, Radio Mir, a Pirates for Peace station, was running an audio loop with a message in Russian, calling Putin a dictator (comparing him to Hitler) and the song "Russians." This ran from 1040 to 1306 UTC on 6295 kHz. It was reported by about a half-dozen listeners on HFU, including Kostiantyn Pravotorov, also a Ukrainian DXer. It was heard on SDRs from Ireland to Germany, but not in Eastern Europe.

And I can't forget the station that was playing music and sending waterfall messages and images over the Russian military station UVB-76 on 4625 kHz in January. Here's a YouTube video and another. The SWL Channel has a live stream of UVB-76 running on YouTube. It's not too exciting, but more than 70 people were on while I was checking it out. I guess the news of the day has people focused on stations like these because I can't imagine people just sitting around listening to it otherwise.

 Log via SDRs in Germany & Switzerland

Radio Europe (presumed, based on frequency): 5835.2, approx. 1715-1830 UTC VG signal with pop songs from the 1960s that you could hear on American radio, such as Archies "Sugar Sugar," Dixie Cups "Chapel of Love," Chris Montez "Let's Dance." Then went into some live songs by Hendrix.




Thursday, February 24, 2022

War in Ukraine

I woke up this morning to the news of the Russian invasion of the Ukraine, with attacks on at least 16 locations across the country. 

I've tried to stick primarily to radio news on this blog, but I'm not posting right now with news of pirates or clandestines broadcasting from the region. 

I don't think that many of us have connections to Eastern Europe, but many have had personal interactions with our friend Alex, ULX2, in Kiev. For at least a decade, he's been listening to and reporting North American pirates, most notably Wolverine Radio. 

Prayers for Alex, the Ukraine, and the greater situation.



Sunday, February 6, 2022

Cupid Radio on 15075 kHz

 This will probably be too late for anyone to tune in, but Cupid Radio from Holland is coming in with a good signal right now on 15075 kHz. No time to write more!

Saturday, February 5, 2022

A Ghost Ship

I've posted on message-in-a-bottle stories and other somewhat similar situations here before. I (and presumably a few other pirate radio listeners) have a fascination with the mysterious and seemingly untrackable. I mean, in a world where China is developing AI-based software to track and imprison people based on the appearance of their faces and even determine what emotions those people are feeling, I think it's encouraging that a 580'-long 26,500-ton ship can go unreported for the past 13 years. 

It would have been something if someone had installed a shortwave transmitter on the ship with a power source and a high-capacity MP3 player full of programming. Or maybe the Old-Time Radio Unidentified station was actually a ghost ship floating around in one of the Great Lakes for all of its time on the air? 😀

Here's the link for the recently spotted ghost ship that, to the best of my knowledge, does not contain a pirate transmitter:

https://fastnews24.info/a-gigantic-rusty-unmanned-ship-appears-in-the-waters-in-myanmar