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Long Wave DX - anyone here do it?

markwooldridge

markwooldridge

Call me clueless if you will, but I'm considering getting into DXing again (I did shortwave back in UK on a Grundig but that's as far as it got). However this time I want to try out longwave (i.e the AM band from 153khz to 279 khz) and wondered if people have any luck doing this here and if so what equipment did they use.

Thanks!
 
Every once in a while, I will "slum around" down in the longwave spectrum looking for beacons, etc. It is a very difficult band to DX due to atmospheric noise and the need for a VERY LONG antenna. Here in Central KY, I have not heard any of the British LW broadcast band stations, but do hear beacons up to 1000 miles away, sometimes farther, with some regularity at night. My set-up includes an Icom IC-746 transceiver (a ham rig that receives from 30 khz up). I live on a "city lot" and am lucky to have a 50 ft tower from which I have hung an Alpha-Delta DX-A antenna (twin sloper design). The DX-A is designed for the 40, 80 and 160 meter ham bands but will hear (somewhat inefficiently, I should add!) down into the LW frequencies. I understand that beverage antennas (very long wires run just above ground level) work quite well at these low frequencies, but they are very directional and only receive well off the end of the antenna. For more info on beverage antennas, I am sure Google will have lots of info.

There is a good website that lists Long Wave Beacons which are easy to identify by their very slow morse code letters which are constantly repeated. That site can be found at:

http://www.dxinfocentre.com/ndb.htm
 
Anyone know how much power these stations run?
[/quote]

Anywhere from 250 to 2000kW. That's right, up to 2,000,000 watts! Here is one list, one of several that can be found on your search engine of choice:

Euro-African Medium Wave Guide Online edition - Longwave latest update: 15 January 2009 http://www.hermanboel.be/emwg/online-lw.htm

As far as receiving these stations, there are a few DXers that have stateside, check out the "LW Message Center" at www.lwca.org, usually under a topic such as "LWBC",
there is one DXer in Michigan and another in the Twin Cities, Minnesota that are hearing the European and North African LW stations from time to time (mostly in the
fall, winter and spring), between our local sunset and European/North African local sunrise.

Best I have have ever heard from Europe was on Medium Wave 1134 from Croatia and 1314 from Norway in 2006 (unfortunately the Norway station has
since been decommissioned, that is, taken off the air). Have never heard LW Broadcast stations from Europe or North Africa - yet.

I heard both of the MW stations above on a Sony ICF-SW7600GR with no external antenna! One of the Michigan 'posters' on lwca.org says he receives LW from Europe
with a Zenith Transoceanic with only the built-in ferrite bar antenna! Some LW DXers setups include what is called an "Active Antenna" or they use a Box Loop, but I
don't recall any of these DXers using a "Beverage Antenna" for Long Wave, rather a Beverage is used by MW DXers trying to hear stations on other continents (!) And
usually in remote areas far, far away from high powered stations!
 
Regarding Zenith trans oceanics, I have one that needs a new band switch.
Anyone know where I can get it repaired in the Chicago area?
 
radioman148 said:
Are there any strong LW stations still broadcasting from Europe? If so, what frequencies?
Click to expand...

In central London, about a half dozen of them are audible to one degree or another. Most are from outside the UK. Like a.m. radio in many parts of the world, the numbers are dwindling. One of the more interesting ones used to be 252 (as in khz), a rock station from Irleand that threw in the towel a few years ago. They had a pretty decent signal, 24/7 although very prone to noise. I also used to have no particular problem picking them up...albeit with a weaker signal...in France and in northwestern Germany.

I've tried DXing LW here at home with absolutely zero success.
 
cyberdad said:
radioman148 said:
Are there any strong LW stations still broadcasting from Europe? If so, what frequencies?
Click to expand...

In central London, about a half dozen of them are audible to one degree or another. Most are from outside the UK. Like a.m. radio in many parts of the world, the numbers are dwindling. One of the more interesting ones used to be 252 (as in khz), a rock station from Irleand that threw in the towel a few years ago. They had a pretty decent signal, 24/7 although very prone to noise. I also used to have no particular problem picking them up...albeit with a weaker signal...in France and in northwestern Germany.

I've tried DXing LW here at home with absolutely zero success.
Click to expand...

When I was in London a long time ago, Capital Radio was broadcasting their signal on LW as well as MW, & FM.
I'm sure they discontinued their LW signal a long time ago.
I have not had any success DXing LW here either. The only thing I ever hear is harmonics from local stations.
 
Capital's LW is gone. On MW they're running "Capital Gold" on 1548khz (with 97kw directional!), as well as on various (much) lower powered signals elsewhere in the UK. A couple of these are audible in London. Format is basically 80s-based classic rock. A smattering of 60s and 70s. A little like WDRV in Chicago, but overall generally harder.

All of this appears to be just an adjunct to a much higher profile operation on FM. Between my daughter who lives there, and my two reps based a half hour away, I'm generally in London a couple of times a year mixing business and pubs...I mean pleasure. ;D
 
cyberdad said:
Capital's LW is gone. On MW they're running "Capital Gold" on 1548khz (with 97kw directional!), as well as on various (much) lower powered signals elsewhere in the UK. A couple of these are audible in London. Format is basically 80s-based classic rock. A smattering of 60s and 70s. A little like WDRV in Chicago, but overall generally harder.

All of this appears to be just an adjunct to a much higher profile operation on FM. Between my daughter who lives there, and my two reps based a half hour away, I'm generally in London a couple of times a year mixing business and pubs...I mean pleasure. ;D
Click to expand...

I think until the 80s Capital's AM & FM operations were simulcast often. The Capital AM became "Capital Gold" and Capital FM continued with it's current hit format. I had a friend in London send me some tapes of Capital Gold in the late 80s and their signal was very noisy most of the time. Lots of interference on the AM 1548.
 
I can't pick up any LW, but in the daytime beacons up to 190 mi away (from Kelowna, BC) come in on my Grundig G5.

-crainbebo
 
elchupacabras said:
No such luck in central Mexico either. When I lived in Utah, I could get a few beacons, but here, nada!
Click to expand...

You moved all the way to Mexico, from Utah??!!
Boy! The things you gotta do to get a decent margarita in this place..... ;D

What kind of location did you have here? I'm in an apartment, across from a shopping center, so not much DX'ing from my QTH. ::)
 
kenglish said:
elchupacabras said:
No such luck in central Mexico either. When I lived in Utah, I could get a few beacons, but here, nada!
Click to expand...

You moved all the way to Mexico, from Utah??!!
Boy! The things you gotta do to get a decent margarita in this place..... ;D

What kind of location did you have here? I'm in an apartment, across from a shopping center, so not much DX'ing from my QTH. ::)
Click to expand...

I actually moved most recently from Idaho to Mexico, but was referring to picking up LW years ago when I lived in Utah. I lived in Logan, West Valley and Provo. My best DX was done in the west desert towards Toole and also south of Provo near Silver City.
 
Not from my home, but up in Maine in like 98-99 when it was freezing out, I trid to DX europe and found a very faint station playing Dance music out of all things on 252.. They IDed as Atlantic 252, I think it was in Dublin Ireland.... Ive never heard it again, I think the station has since went off air, and the mast taken down around 2002-2004?????????/
 
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