747 Netherlands

[radioman148]

Add 1062 Denmark to the list of vanishing MW stations. It was recently announced that 1062 will be replaced by a 50 kw transmitter on 243 khz longwave. I heard the 1062 khz transmitter once from Michigan and it has a very unique interval signal at sign on. At only 50 kw, I doubt I would ever be able to catch the 243 khz outlet from my location.

That's strange that they would bounce a MW for a LW.

 

[cyberdad]

Well, I thought I'd bump this, since it was our unofficial TA DX thread from the past season.

BBC WS on 648 kHz, is no longer with us.

~BG

I was surprised to find it missing when I was in London last month. Mrs. Cyberdad & I had a jam-packed schedule with our daughter (who lives there), so I didn't get to do much listening on this trip. Also our hotel room was on a lower floor, which blocked some signals. Since 648's tx was located some distance from the city, they weren't a killer signal by any means (in the city itself). The local BBC radio 4 with 1kw on 720 is much better in central London.

Anyway, I was thinking perhaps I was in a dead zone caused by my hotel room location. I guess I was in a dead zone caused by BBC budget cuts!

 

[Tincap]

As for 747 kHz itself, it is currently carrying Radio 1, as there was a fire and subsequent collapse of one of the main FM towers carrying Radio 1 programming. Since much of the northern areas of the Netherlands are still without Radio 1's FM coverage, Radio 1 replaces the Radio 5 programming normally heard on 747. No word on how long this situation will continue, however, as we start edging towards DX season, it's something to note if monitoring this frequency.

~BG

 

[Tincap]

Also the AFN's German 150 kW power house on 873 kHz is closed down? I'm getting mixed messages on this one.

~BG

 

[stormy01]

That's strange that they would bounce a MW for a LW.

It is strange, except there are many LW radios used in Europe in homes and vehicles and 50kW will cover all of Denmark quite nicely. Plus, there is still quite a bit of station interference on the Medium-Wave band, far less on LW (except for electrical noise) I thought 243kHz was testing with DRM (with lower power), at least according to what I've read. Does anyone know if that 50kW will be DRM or analog? (I suppose it will be DRM)

 

[cyberdad]

Also the AFN's German 150 kW power house on 873 kHz is closed down? I'm getting mixed messages on this one.

~BG

Wow! If that's true, no more listening to live pro and college sports broadcasts while in the UK. Over the years, I've listened to NFL and NHL playoff games as well as major league baseball, NBA, and "March Madness" college hoops.

Of course what used to be the North America sports network is now an ESPN-branded TV channel, but the coverage of live events is more "hit or miss" than what AFN had been offering on radio.

 

[Tincap]

Also the AFN's German 150 kW power house on 873 kHz is closed down? I'm getting mixed messages on this one.

~BG

Wow! If that's true, no more listening to live pro and college sports broadcasts while in the UK. Over the years, I've listened to NFL and NHL playoff games as well as major league baseball, NBA, and "March Madness" college hoops.

Of course what used to be the North America sports network is now an ESPN-branded TV channel, but the coverage of live events is more "hit or miss" than what AFN had been offering on radio.

Yes, while living in the Netherlands, I certainly had 873 included in my radio presets.

I think the closure may actually be (have been?) temporary, something about an event on or near the site. Apparently, there was a safety issue, involving the grandstands, if the site was transmitting during the event.

~BG

 

[stormy01]

re: 747 Netherlands +873 Frankfurt

I think the closure may actually be (have been?) temporary, something about an event on or near the site. Apparently, there was a safety issue, involving the grandstands, if the site was transmitting during the event.
~BG

Yes, temporary according to this article: http://radioenthusiasts.blogspot.com/2011/05/arc-newsflash-afn-873-am-off-air-in.html

 

[cyberdad]

Thanks for clearing that up. 873 was definitely on in May when I was in London. The article references the sister station, 1143 in Weisbaden. For the past several years I've attended a trade show in Stuttgart during November. There's a local 300kw blowtorch on 576 there, but AFN on 1143 is the second or third best MW signal in town.

 

[Tincap]

Thanks for clearing that up. 873 was definitely on in May when I was in London. The article references the sister station, 1143 in Weisbaden. For the past several years I've attended a trade show in Stuttgart during November. There's a local 300kw blowtorch on 576 there, but AFN on 1143 is the second or third best MW signal in town.

Alas, according to emwg.info, that 100kW blowtorch on 576 kHz "will be switched off at the end of 2011", along with (100kW) 666 kHz, (10kW) 828 kHz, (100kW) 1017 kHz, (1kW) 1413 kHz, all of which carry SWR's 'Content.radio' format.

These, along with the closing of Germany's 700kW 'Evangeliums Rundfunk' on 1539 kHz and Denmark's 250kW DR P5 1062 kHz frequencies along with others, means fewer targets for us TA DX hunters.

~BG

 

[asugeorge1]

Re: re: 747 Netherlands +873 Frankfurt

I think the closure may actually be (have been?) temporary, something about an event on or near the site. Apparently, there was a safety issue, involving the grandstands, if the site was transmitting during the event.
~BG

Yes, temporary according to this article: http://radioenthusiasts.blogspot.com/2011/05/arc-newsflash-afn-873-am-off-air-in.html

According to the article, 873 was suppose to come back on the air on July 1st. Is the station back on the air yet?

 

[stormy01]

Re: re: 747 Netherlands +873 Frankfurt

I think the closure may actually be (have been?) temporary, something about an event on or near the site. Apparently, there was a safety issue, involving the grandstands, if the site was transmitting during the event.
~BG

Yes, temporary according to this article: http://radioenthusiasts.blogspot.com/2011/05/arc-newsflash-afn-873-am-off-air-in.html

According to the article, 873 was suppose to come back on the air on July 1st. Is the station back on the air yet?

I was going to suggest http://www.globaltuners.com/ or hoping that a European DXer was reading this board...

 

[cyberdad]

Alas, according to emwg.info, that 100kW blowtorch on 576 kHz "will be switched off at the end of 2011.

I thought I had read somewhere that the 576 in Stuttgart was 300kw, but 100kw seems more plausible. Thanks for the correction. In any event, it's always sad (to me anyway) when stations disappear.

I'm pretty sure I've also heard the Stuttgart 576 in London, but I haven't been able to positively ID it. Splatter from Spectrum Radio with a nearby stick on 558 doesn't exactly help matters. I know I've heard several London stations in Stuttgart (Capital Gold on 1548 with 97kw aimed to the southeast blasts in like a local most nights)!

 

[kilokat7]

Re: re: 747 Netherlands +873 Frankfurt

I think the closure may actually be (have been?) temporary, something about an event on or near the site. Apparently, there was a safety issue, involving the grandstands, if the site was transmitting during the event.
~BG

Yes, temporary according to this article: http://radioenthusiasts.blogspot.com/2011/05/arc-newsflash-afn-873-am-off-air-in.html

According to the article, 873 was suppose to come back on the air on July 1st. Is the station back on the air yet?

I was going to suggest http://www.globaltuners.com/ or hoping that a European DXer was reading this board...

It's back - I'm listening to it right now via the Perseus SDR network coming from a German server, currently running ESPN Sports with a middle eastern station audible in the background with chanting and sometimes rising up to an even level with AFN on 873. I sure would like to catch this AFN station from Michigan

 

[radioman148]

Re: re: 747 Netherlands +873 Frankfurt

I think the closure may actually be (have been?) temporary, something about an event on or near the site. Apparently, there was a safety issue, involving the grandstands, if the site was transmitting during the event.
~BG

Yes, temporary according to this article: http://radioenthusiasts.blogspot.com/2011/05/arc-newsflash-afn-873-am-off-air-in.html

According to the article, 873 was suppose to come back on the air on July 1st. Is the station back on the air yet?

I was going to suggest http://www.globaltuners.com/ or hoping that a European DXer was reading this board...

It's back - I'm listening to it right now via the Perseus SDR network coming from a German server, currently running ESPN Sports with a middle eastern station audible in the background with chanting and sometimes rising up to an even level with AFN on 873. I sure would like to catch this AFN station from Michigan

The AM skip season is right around the corner.

 

[asugeorge1]

Re: re: 747 Netherlands +873 Frankfurt

I think the closure may actually be (have been?) temporary, something about an event on or near the site. Apparently, there was a safety issue, involving the grandstands, if the site was transmitting during the event.
~BG

Yes, temporary according to this article: http://radioenthusiasts.blogspot.com/2011/05/arc-newsflash-afn-873-am-off-air-in.html

According to the article, 873 was suppose to come back on the air on July 1st. Is the station back on the air yet?

I was going to suggest http://www.globaltuners.com/ or hoping that a European DXer was reading this board...

It's back - I'm listening to it right now via the Perseus SDR network coming from a German server, currently running ESPN Sports with a middle eastern station audible in the background with chanting and sometimes rising up to an even level with AFN on 873. I sure would like to catch this AFN station from Michigan

The AM skip season is right around the corner.

It might very well be possible. In Michigan, you'll have to deal with the splatter from WCBS, but you may get lucky sometime.

If you ever travel through Europe, having AFN on 873 MW is very nice. You get news from back home, live sporting events and music. I've heard the station from Scotland to Croatia to Lithuania and all points in between. 873 is definitely a great service for U.S. travelers in Europe, but, more importantly, for our troops stationed in Europe.

 

[radioman148]

Re: re: 747 Netherlands +873 Frankfurt

I think the closure may actually be (have been?) temporary, something about an event on or near the site. Apparently, there was a safety issue, involving the grandstands, if the site was transmitting during the event.
~BG

Yes, temporary according to this article: http://radioenthusiasts.blogspot.com/2011/05/arc-newsflash-afn-873-am-off-air-in.html

According to the article, 873 was suppose to come back on the air on July 1st. Is the station back on the air yet?

I was going to suggest http://www.globaltuners.com/ or hoping that a European DXer was reading this board...

It's back - I'm listening to it right now via the Perseus SDR network coming from a German server, currently running ESPN Sports with a middle eastern station audible in the background with chanting and sometimes rising up to an even level with AFN on 873. I sure would like to catch this AFN station from Michigan

The AM skip season is right around the corner.

It might very well be possible. In Michigan, you'll have to deal with the splatter from WCBS, but you may get lucky sometime.

If you ever travel through Europe, having AFN on 873 MW is very nice. You get news from back home, live sporting events and music. I've heard the station from Scotland to Croatia to Lithuania and all points in between. 873 is definitely a great service for U.S. travelers in Europe, but, more importantly, for our troops stationed in Europe.

It comes in very well in the Western UK.

 

[Tincap]

Re: re: 747 Netherlands +873 Frankfurt

It's back - I'm listening to it right now via the Perseus SDR network coming from a German server, currently running ESPN Sports with a middle eastern station audible in the background with chanting and sometimes rising up to an even level with AFN on 873. I sure would like to catch this AFN station from Michigan

I've yet to snag it, from here in eastern Ontario, but you've gone all fancy on me, while I'm still running my old faithful DX-440 barefoot, so you may bag it before me. ;D

And yes, Cyber, regarding 567, I'm just going by the info on emwg.info, although there certainly are discrepancies between various data bases. 300kW should make that puppy easier to catch from here, but in either case, the clock appears to be ticking down for that blowtorch to get snuffed out.

Speaking of snuffed out, on the FM side of things, after a nearly 30 year presence, BFBS Belize 99.1 will be shutting down after tomorrow's broadcast day. I don't know if anyone here has ever DXed it, or caught it locally, but it's closure will probably leave a pretty big hole on the dial, down there.

~BG

 

[Tincap]

Just a heads up for those of us trying to snag The Netherlands on 747 kHz (again). Radio 5 is now back on 747, replacing Radio 1, which had been broadcasting on that frequency since a fire brought down the main FM tower for Radio 1, sometime back in June.

Another bit of info is, that you'll have to try to snag 747 either before 0000 UTC or after 0500 UTC, as the 400 kW output of the transmitter drops to 60 kW, during the intervening hours.

~BG

 

[stormy01]

Just a heads up for those of us trying to snag The Netherlands on 747 kHz (again). Radio 5 is now back on 747, replacing Radio 1, which had been broadcasting on that frequency since a fire brought down the main FM tower for Radio 1, sometime back in June.

Another bit of info is, that you'll have to try to snag 747 either before 0000 UTC or after 0500 UTC, as the 400 kW output of the transmitter drops to 60 kW, during the intervening hours.

~BG

Maybe that explains why I haven't heard a heterodyne from 747 recently. Is the power reduction in the overnight something new for them?

By the way, has anyone heard the heterodyne on 1152 kHz the last couple of evenings? I'm presuming it's Romania, since the 1152 in London is directional going south into that metropolis, and just under 100KW transmitter power (no idea of the effective radiated power though), so that's somewhat unlikely to be heard in the U.S., but the Romanian station at least at one time was listed as 1 MW, and many observers are thinking it's running half, or less power. The 1152 signal does start going away right around the sunrise in Romania. Odd thing is, I haven't been hearing the other heterodynes like I have heard in the past, such as 693, 747, 783, 837, 873, 891, 963, 1017, 1116, 1269, 1377 or 1557...just 1152 all by itself.