Spanish speaking station heard on 640 in Hawaii last night

[gar hi]

This was definitely a first for me since I've been here. Never have I heard anything else but KFI on that frequency.

I hadn't listened to AM at night for a while and I couldn't sleep, so I figured it was the perfect opportunity to tune around the band. It was 1 am.

All the usual strong west coast stations were barely audible at best and on 640, there was a Spanish station and no trace at all of KFI in the background!

This lasted for less than five minutes and the station faded away as KFI slowly returned but not to it's usual strength. After that, I could hear the Spanish station way in the background but that was it.

So I don't know what I was hearing. Was it 640 from Cuba? They weren't playing music, though.

Are there any Mexican stations strong enough to make it out this way?

I also heard WWL stronger than I ever have here. Same with WBAP.

Interesting night.

 

[cyberdad]

My guess is what you were hearing on 640 was R. Progresso. Which I'm sure you remember as being audible 24/7 at your former location in Florida.

There's a station in North Central Mexico (XEHHI) on 640 that's running 25kw non-directional daytime, then supposedly dropping to a killowatt at night. I supposee whomever is in charge of flipping the switch at sunset could have had some sort of memory lapse. You never know.

We do have a new 640 here in the Chicago area that has a nice signal and is currently broadcasting entirely in Spanish. The signal is good even at 1600 watts nighttime, but there' a major null directed right at Los Angeles, as you might expect.

 

[davideduardo]

My guess is what you were hearing on 640 was R. Progresso. Which I'm sure you remember as being audible 24/7 at your former location in Florida.

There's a station in North Central Mexico (XEHHI) on 640 that's running 25kw non-directional daytime, then supposedly dropping to a killowatt at night. I supposee whomever is in charge of flipping the switch at sunset could have had some sort of memory lapse. You never know.

We do have a new 640 here in the Chicago area that has a nice signal and is currently broadcasting entirely in Spanish. The signal is good even at 1600 watts nighttime, but there' a major null directed right at Los Angeles, as you might expect.

Consider directional 50/25 XENQ outside CDMX, and 20 kw TIALY in Costa Rica or even 50 kw Radio Ciudadana (Formerly Radio Nacional) in Quito. I'd go for any of those before thinking Cuba.

 

[wildthangjim]

Consider directional 50/25 XENQ outside CDMX, and 20 kw TIALY in Costa Rica or even 50 kw Radio Ciudadana (Formerly Radio Nacional) in Quito. I'd go for any of those before thinking Cuba.

This is an interesting one. Conditions here have been favoring the south for a few days now. Seems to me that this could be Cuba or any of those David mentioned, depending on a few variables.

Mexico is closest to you and Quito is farthest, ~600 miles further than Havana.
Havana and Quito are the strongest (if Mexico isn't on day power), but per David Mexico is directional, maybe your way?
All of the possibilities are still in the dark at 1am Hawaii time. 1am would be 6am in Havana and Quito, 5am in Mexico and Costa Rica. Mexico, Cuba, and CR are still an hour+ before sunrise, but just a few minutes before Quito sunrise, so sunrise enhancement could play a part.

There is also a 50kw station listed in Puerto la Cruz,Venezuela, right on the Caribbean coast about the same distance to Hawaii as Quito. Sunrise in PLC today was 20 minutes before 1am Hawaii time.

 

[gar hi]

David has a point in that Mexico would be a more likely possibility because of distance.

But does anyone know the transmitting power of Radio Progresso? I've Googled and can't find any definite answer.

If they are at least 50 kw and non directional, that would at least make it a station I could put on my future catch wish list.

 

[wildthangjim]

Mwlist shows 2 Progresos, one 50kw and one 10kw. Not sure how accurate the Cuban listings are.

 

[davideduardo]

Mwlist shows 2 Progresos, one 50kw and one 10kw. Not sure how accurate the Cuban listings are.

No Cuban list since 1959 has been totally accurate. The government lists are generally outdated, or contain proposed operations that are nowhere close to reality.

 

[cyberdad]

Mwlist shows 2 Progresos, one 50kw and one 10kw. Not sure how accurate the Cuban listings are.

My unscientific rule of thumb is that whatever is audible daytime in Pensacola versus whatever is audible daytime in the Tampa Bay area is how to "separate the men from the boys" when it comes to Cuban AM radio. 640 is one of the Cubans that's easily audible 24/7 on the Pensacola area beaches. During the daytime, R. Progreso on 640 mixes with what's left of KTIB from Louisiana....which is easily nulled.

The R. Proggreso signal at Pensacola seems to be about the same strength of R. Enciclopedia on 530, but not as strong as R. Rebelde on 670. Last I heard, 530 was supposedly running 30KW. That may be a stretch, but whether or not it's accurate, R. Progresso may be similarly powered. If memory serves, it used to be stronger.

 

[gar hi]

I've been listening for Radio Enciclopedia on 530 since I've been here and so far nothing, not even fluttering static to suggest a signal on the frequency.

But I made an area out in my yard, a little chair and table, away from any electronic interference where I can now go to listen to AM provided it's not raining, of course.

There was a similar spot I used a couple times before on the property but that's no longer available.

I've heard Radio Enciclopedia many times and with quite a good signal a while back on the Global Tuners radio in the California desert and that's why I'm surprised I can't get it here.

Not yet anyway.

In Tampa, I think 640 was probably the strongest Cuban station at night or at least it tied with the one on 890 in signal strength which was one reason WLS was a rare catch, unlike when I first came there in the 80's when it was the strongest of all the northern 50 kw stations.

 

[kf4rca]

I can hear Spanish on that frequency as well. Usually as a 50/50 mix with local WGST. Doesn't sound like a domestic. I'm pretty sure its Cuba. I can usually null it out with a portable radio since WGST is west of here and Cuba is south of here. But you can't do that with a car radio.

 

[cyberdad]

I've been listening for Radio Enciclopedia on 530 since I've been here and so far nothing, not even fluttering static to suggest a signal on the frequency.

But I made an area out in my yard, a little chair and table, away from any electronic interference where I can now go to listen to AM provided it's not raining, of course.

There was a similar spot I used a couple times before on the property but that's no longer available.

I've heard Radio Enciclopedia many times and with quite a good signal a while back on the Global Tuners radio in the California desert and that's why I'm surprised I can't get it here.

Not yet anyway.

In Tampa, I think 640 was probably the strongest Cuban station at night or at least it tied with the one on 890 in signal strength which was one reason WLS was a rare catch, unlike when I first came there in the 80's when it was the strongest of all the northern 50 kw stations.

I perhaps in my last post should have pointed out that the Cuban 640 at night is pretty much the equal of the Cuban 670. But 670 is the stronger of the two during the daytime.

As for R. Enciclopedia.... I posted a few years ago about catching it barefoot on my Sony SRF-37 Walkman at my brother-in-law's house in the Southern California desert.

I'm pretty sure they've been logged in Hawaii. But the more that I think about it, I wonder if they may have reduced power to some degree. The last few times I've checked 530 here at home, CIAO has been on top of the channel. Although I can hear Enciclopedia in the mix as well. Perhaps it's just conditions. I'm going to be spending a month on the beach near Pensacola beginning late this month, and I'll definitely be checking 530....and 640....on a frequent basis day and night.

 

[formula72]

Same, I hear a Spanish station under KFI when there is not modulation as well. I have always wondered were in the heck is it coming from. If its coming from Cuba, its got to be one hell'va an output!!!

 

[davideduardo]

Same, I hear a Spanish station under KFI when there is not modulation as well. I have always wondered were in the heck is it coming from. If its coming from Cuba, its got to be one hell'va an output!!!

Depending on the source, it is either 30 kw or 100 kw. Medium power.

A lot has to do with a relatively clear frequency with a station, KFI, that has enough pauses in talk to allow another station to creep through.

High power is not needed for long distance reception; my first New Zealand logging from Cleveland, OH, years back was a 10 kw station from northern New Zealand. 100% readable. 1000 kHz then was clear in North America on Monday after 3 AM EST.