What's on 530khz?

[radioman148]

The disadvantage of Short Wave for reaching Cuba is that the govenment has controlled the import of radios for 49 years, and pretty much prevented the use of radios that could open up the world to Cubans.

That's an interesting detail that I hope our government has considered. If almost no one has a shortwave radio, then what good does it do to broadcast to Cuba via shortwave? Definitely a problem.

I've heard that radios in North Korea are limited to transistor models which can only tune into a single frequency - the government station.

If you travel to either place, I wonder if they'd confiscate your shortwave portable at the airport. I definitely think so in the case of North Korea, but would it happen in Cuba too?

I wouldn't be surprised.

 

[cyberdad]

I finally fired up the trusty Eaton E-10 this morning to try for the Cuban 530 here in Northern Illinois. About 3:00 a.m. with CIAO nulled. There it was....weak, but steady and unmistakable. Made me want to run out and buy Percy Faith's greatest hits.) ("Song from the Moulon Rouge" anyone? Given that I have an old DX-75 and a nearly as old Yacht Boy PE-400 that are both better rigs for DX-ing than the E-10, I'll have to assume that while this one is not a bad catch, its also not exactly a tough one around here, either.

 

[radioman148]

I finally fired up the trusty Eaton E-10 this morning to try for the Cuban 530 here in Northern Illinois. About 3:00 a.m. with CIAO nulled. There it was....weak, but steady and unmistakable. Made me want to run out and buy Percy Faith's greatest hits.) ("Song from the Moulon Rouge" anyone? Given that I have an old DX-75 and a nearly as old Yacht Boy PE-400 that are both better rigs for DX-ing than the E-10, I'll have to assume that while this one is not a bad catch, its also not exactly a tough one around here, either.

I'll have to try harder to null out CIAO because as of yet I haven't heard the Cuban.

 

[gar hi]

As far as where the Spanish station on 530 that plays the old sounding elevator music comes from, at least I can now say with certainty it's from somewhere in Cuba. I have a good friend who is Puerto Rican and familiar with the different Spanish cultures. We were in her car late this morning and it hit me that maybe I could have her listen to the station to get a better clue as to where it's from. I tuned to 530 and after a couple minutes a woman's voice came on. No sooner did she start speaking than my friend said "She's definitely Cuban. I can easily spot that accent." She also said it would make sense they play that kind of older music in Cuba because that's what would still appeal to many of their people.

 

[radioman148]

As far as where the Spanish station on 530 that plays the old sounding elevator music comes from, at least I can now say with certainty it's from somewhere in Cuba. I have a good friend who is Puerto Rican and familiar with the different Spanish cultures. We were in her car late this morning and it hit me that maybe I could have her listen to the station to get a better clue as to where it's from. I tuned to 530 and after a couple minutes a woman's voice came on. No sooner did she start speaking than my friend said "She's definitely Cuban. I can easily spot that accent." She also said it would make sense they play that kind of older music in Cuba because that's what would still appeal to many of their people.

I'll keep trying but so far for me at least all I can get on that frequency in the Chicago area is CIAO.

 

[gar hi]

I was driving today just after noon and nothing was on AM at the moment but commercials on all the stations so I tuned to 530 and heard something I've never heard before. Until now in the middle of the day, 530 comes in with a steady signal, no fading, and it's so far been the only station I've heard on that frequency. Well today, the Cuban station was very slowly fluttering and there was also an English speaking station in the background. It was too weak to get any ID. By the time I got home only a few minutes later, the English station was gone and the Cuban was steady as usual again.

 

[radioman148]

I was driving today just after noon and nothing was on AM at the moment but commercials on all the stations so I tuned to 530 and heard something I've never heard before. Until now in the middle of the day, 530 comes in with a steady signal, no fading, and it's so far been the only station I've heard on that frequency. Well today, the Cuban station was very slowly fluttering and there was also an English speaking station in the background. It was too weak to get any ID. By the time I got home only a few minutes later, the English station was gone and the Cuban was steady as usual again.

I wonder if that could have been a TIS station?

 

[gr8oldies]

I haven't heard "enciclopedia" yet, but I've heard wshat I bleieve is the T&C station, but at least when i heard them they had lots of mentions of "Nueva York' with even an address in NYC. Maybe they target the US at night?

 

[stormy01]

I'll have to try harder to null out CIAO because as of yet I haven't heard the Cuban.

Radio Enciclopedia's signal really does come in best around 2-4 a.m. CST (at least in the Chicago area)...that's about the time that CIAO's signal is faltering overnights (due to propagation)

I haven't heard "enciclopedia" yet, but I've heard wshat I believe is the T&C station, but at least when i heard them they had lots of mentions of "Nueva York' with even an address in NYC. Maybe they target the US at night?

That would be good to hear RVC from T&C - been a while...about what time did you hear RVC and where about are you located?

 

[radioman148]

I'll have to try harder to null out CIAO because as of yet I haven't heard the Cuban.

Radio Enciclopedia's signal really does come in best around 2-4 a.m. CST (at least in the Chicago area)...that's about the time that CIAO's signal is faltering overnights (due to propagation)

I haven't heard "enciclopedia" yet, but I've heard wshat I believe is the T&C station, but at least when i heard them they had lots of mentions of "Nueva York' with even an address in NYC. Maybe they target the US at night?

That would be good to hear RVC from T&C - been a while...about what time did you hear RVC and where about are you located?

I'll try to give it a shot one night if I'm up at that hour.

 

[BRNout]

I haven't heard "enciclopedia" yet, but I've heard wshat I bleieve is the T&C station, but at least when i heard them they had lots of mentions of "Nueva York' with even an address in NYC. Maybe they target the US at night?

Isn't the T&C station on 535 kHz? Or am I confusing it with something else? I've heard that one (it's a religious format) from as far north as the New York area.

 

[gar hi]

I wonder if that could have been a TIS station?

Well, I looked that up and found a list of Florida TIS stations. Nothing near me on 530, though.


http://home.earthlink.net/~tocobagadx/flortis.html

The mystery continues.

 

[stormy01]

Isn't the T&C station on 535 kHz? Or am I confusing it with something else? I've heard that one (it's a religious format) from as far north as the New York area.

Did a little checking around...there was a station on 535 kHz in Grenada (at least as of 2003) http://www.nrcdxas.org/idxd/idxd7015.pdf
The 2009 World Radio TV Handbook is showing Grenada on 540 kHz now. Using 10kW, Grenada would be quite a catch with WFLF, CBEF, etc. on the air at the
same time.

 

[Icangelp]

I haven't heard "enciclopedia" yet, but I've heard wshat I bleieve is the T&C station, but at least when i heard them they had lots of mentions of "Nueva York' with even an address in NYC. Maybe they target the US at night?

I think I read somewhere that they simulcast a New Jersey or New York station. Though, that was several years ago.

 

[BRNout]

I did a little research and it appears that Radio Vision Cristiana (RVC) is the station which formerly broadcast at 535 kHz from the Turks and Caicos. However, they apparently changed frequencies a year or two ago to the more sensible 530 kHz. I know that I heard them from northern NJ about 2 years ago and they were definitely at 535 at that time and were coming in quite well during an early winter evening.

Here's some more information on this station (from their website, http://www.radiovision.net/):

[EDIT]



• WWRV 1330 AM, NY
• WVIP 1310 AM, Mount Kisco NY
• 530 AM, Caribe e Islas Caicos
• 1330 AM, Sto. Domingo RD
• 660 AM, Santiago RD
• 1330 AM, Cuenca Ecuador
• 1330 AM, Quito Ecuador.

[EDIT]



[EDIT-English language only, please]

 

[stormy01]

We should try to get RVC to switch back to 535 - so we can hear/log it! They probably had to switch to 530 because the majority of radios that have
a digital display tune in 10kHz steps and have no means of "fine tuning" or tuning in 1 or 5 kHz steps. (Unless you have something like a Sony ICF-SW7600GR or a CCRadio)

It appears that RVC switched to 530 from 535 sometime between May and June of 2000 according to this: http://www.schoechi.de/ac-tca.html

 

[gar hi]

We should try to get RVC to switch back to 535 - so we can hear/log it! They probably had to switch to 530 because the majority of radios that have
a digital display tune in 10kHz steps and have no means of "fine tuning" or tuning in 1 or 5 kHz steps. (Unless you have something like a Sony ICF-SW7600GR or a CCRadio)

It appears that RVC switched to 530 from 535 sometime between May and June of 2000 according to this: http://www.schoechi.de/ac-tca.html

I'm a little confused here. Are you referring to a different station on 530 other than the one I hear day and night from Tampa? The one with the old fashioned music format? The direction it comes in from here is pretty much due south, right in the direction of Cuba.

 

[stormy01]

I'm a little confused here. Are you referring to a different station on 530 other than the one I hear day and night from Tampa? The one with the old fashioned music format? The direction it comes in from here is pretty much due south, right in the direction of Cuba.

Yes, it's a different station. Many of us in the Chicago area are hearing Radio Enciclopedia from Cuba (the station that you are hearing day and night from Tampa), CIAO from Brampton (Toronto) and various TIS stations, but it seems that the Radio Vision Cristiana station in the Turks & Caicos Islands seems to be eluding many of us here. There had been reports that Hurricane Hanna last year passed nearby and strong winds knocked down their tower(s) and they may have lost their transmitter as well due to flooding. There also were reports that RVC is operating at substantially less power than before, which helps to explain why we don't hear RVC on a regular basis any longer.

 

[BRNout]

Yes, it's confusing. I could get RVC very well at night near New York and Boston, yet never got it well enough to listen to from my former QTH west of Philly. It has an odd signal pattern. And no, there's not a peep of it here in the Chicago area.

Also, I swear that I locked it in on 535 kHz in November 2006. It wasn't 530. My E5 would never lie to me that way!

 

[stormy01]

Also, I swear that I locked it in on 535 kHz in November 2006. It wasn't 530. My E5 would never lie to me that way!

Maybe the RVC TX had a hiccup for a while, or they may have temporarily moved back to 535 for a period of time. We may never know for sure.