BULLETIN: AM DX NewsFlash 8-21-97
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BULLETIN: AM DX NewsFlash 8-21-97
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WELCOME TO IRCA's AM-DX NEWSFLASH - August 21 1997
Vol 3 No 21
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PLEASE, PLEASE include your location with your reports...
Deadline for next issue = Thursday, August 28 1997 @ 1930 UTC (1230 PDT)
Send all contributions to Phil Bytheway @ Philip_Bytheway@xxxxxxx
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Subject: NRC convention
Location: RAMADA INN, Route 13 and I-295, New Castle, DE
Phone: 302-658-8511
Registration: $40 (cost of banquet, beverages, equipment rentals, etc.)
members
$25 if not attending banquet or ONLY ATTENDING BANQUET (Sat.)
$10 additional persons (wife attending banquet, etc.)
Sign up starts on Friday afternoon August 29th, continues Saturday August
30th with John & Linda Bowker and myself.......
Rooms: $62 + 8% sales tax PER ROOM........each room contains two beds......
All reservations must be made directly with the Ramada Inn,
mention the National Radio Club as this is a discounted rate.
The banquet and meeting is scheduled for Saturday at 7:30PM with a
buffet style dinner (cash bar available), with speacial guest ALLEN LUDELL,
who recently got national recognition for being involved the the first major
market station to dump Rush Limbaugh! ALLEN is operations manager of
WILM-Wilmington and an active DXer.
Auction will follow. Sunday will be the DX QUIZ day, and John Bowker
will do his DX AUDIO SERVICE thingies. We're also hoping to line up TONY
FITZHERBERT to do his slide show presentation during the convention. There
is lots of open/free time for all to enjoy the area, visit stations,
sightsee, even gamble (Delaware now has slot machines), there is lots to see
within an hour drive of the convention site.
Questions can be answered via P O BOX 11502, WILMINGTON, DE 19850. DO
NOT SEND ME ANYTHING TO DO WITH YOUR ROOM RESERVATIONS, the Ramada Inn will
handle them direct. If you are coming via train, Amtrak has excellent
service to Wilmington, we can pick you up if you'll let us know when you'll
be arriving. If you are flying into Philadelphia, its about a half hour
away, we would advise making arrangements for transportation to Wilmington
(Airport Shuttle service is available from the airport to Wilmington).
Keep your eye on DX NEWS or your favorite radio publication for more
news as the date draws near....>>
Paul Ormandy - paulorm@xxxxxxxx
Convention '98 Updater.
Interest in next year's Convention has brought intentions of attendance
from>Scotland, England, Finland, Hawaii as well as Australia and New
Zealand.
Just to remind everyone, here is a tentative schedule of what is planned
so far:
The Convention is being held at Camp Iona, which is located near the
township of Herbert, about 20km South of Oamaru on SH 1. It is being held
over Waitangi Weekend so Friday the 6th is a public holiday. Camp Iona
consists of a large hall where we will have our meals and auction,
workshops, discussions etc. A large "Lodge" fully self-contained and
reserved for our older members, several accomodation blocks, similar to
motor-camp cabin standards and several ablutions areas as well as ample
ground for aerials and an obstacle course.
Thursday 5th February:
3:00pm Convention officially begins. Welcome, afternoon tea and a
general chat and get to know each other session.
Friday 6th February
To be advised
Saturday 7th February
7:00am - 12:00 pm to be advised
12:00pm Meet at Boulders Park Restaurant for 50th Anniversary
Commemorative meal & speeches, then back to Camp Iona for afternoon
tea and reminiscences
Rest of day to be advised
Sunday 8th February
7:00am onwards
9:00am Official Convention close
12:00pm Premises vacated
We have a few items lined up to "fill in the blanks" including an
auction, a night-time visit to Oamaru's Little Blue penguin colony, scenic
trips to Shag Point, Moeraki, Trotter's Gorge, Puketapu, a quiz night, game
of cricket, trip to top of Mt Stalker for FM enthusiasts, Church Service
etc. We are also organising guest speakers on topics like "DXing and the
Internet", a visit from the guys at Mainland Radio, etc.
The Convention registration fee has yet to be set, it will be around
NZ$75 per person and will cover all meals at Camp Iona and the Commemorative
Lunch as well as accomodation. You will need to bring your own sleeping bag,
pillows, blankets etc. NB: You will need to bring your headphones - you MUST
use these when listening to avoid disturbing others!
Please let us know if:
- you only want to attend on certain days or for certain events, e.g. the
Commemorative Dinner, your fee will be charged accordingly.
- you would like arrangements to be collected of dropped off in Oamaru on
arrival/departure via bus, train etc
- you would rather opt for a little more comfort and stay at a nearby motel
(we can send you details of these).
A full registration form will be published shortly. If you have any
further enquiries, please write to Convention '98...
c/o Paul Ormandy, 33 Greta Street, Oamaru 8901, New Zealand
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HOT STUFF
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Joe Wosik - Chico California - joewo@xxxxxxxxxx
am1060 KPAY is finally dark. am1290 has taken its place complete with KPAY
as the identifier... I don't know if the callsign change has been made.
This station going dark is clearing the way for AM1050 in San Francisco.
AM1060KPAY did minimal forward promotion in changing frequencies...this
despite it being hte #2 station 12+ in the Chico market.
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Alan Merriman - merriman@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: WVNS-670
Per info from Dave Schmidt, WVNS-670 Claremont, VA has received the go ahead
from the FCC to start Program Tests and may be on the air as early as this
afternoon, August 18. Good luck!
Finally! This hit the air sometime this afternoon (8/19) - they were not on
this morning. All News programming and lots of spots already so they have
had the sales people working. About S7 here on Chincoteague Island. Go
get'em.
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Larry Russell - Flushing MI - ak473@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
560 Detroit has gone religion! (groan) They are announcing a new call:
WMUZ? But the legal id is still WLLZ Monroe-Detroit 8/21 (Larry
Russell, Flushing MI)
1610 TIS ?WNEC 540? MN, mentions of Minnesota, Iron Trail, Minnesota
Historical Mine, Old Fashioned Steam Carosel. Gave local phone #
(Sony 6800W in USB mode, 70' wire. Aug. 20 Larry Russell-MI)
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Bob Wien - San Jose CA - rjwmail@xxxxxxxxx
Per new M street, KOTK-620 Portland is now KEWS.
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1997 M STREET RADIO DIRECTORY
The IRCA Bookstore is proud to announce that the 'M Street Corporation' has
agreed to offer a discount on their 1997 'M Street Radio Directory' to
NewsFlash members ordering through the IRCA Bookstore. The Directory
contains a complete listing of over 15,000 radio stations (AM/FM, US/Canada)
including the following information: facilities, ownership, formats, LMAs,
station personnel, phone numbers (and FAX), addresses, ratings, as well as
information on almost 400 radio markets in the US and Canada. Stations are
listed by location (complete info), frequency (frequency, call, location,
power and pattern) and call (call, frequency, location) and market
(frequency, call, location, rating, format). It also includes a former call
reference (old call, location and current call). Major network information
(addresses/phone numbers/etc) and several interesting radio articles are
included as well.
The price to US and Canadian NewsFlash members ordering through the IRCA
Bookstore is $44.95 post paid (UPS address required). The book is expected
to be out by the end of May (usual disclaimer on date 'cause we can't be
sure!). Retail will be 55.95. NOW DUE OUT IN THE FALL, perhaps!!!
Europe - add $5.00 for surface, $19.20 for airmail delivery.
Australia/New Zealand - add $5.00 for surface, $27.25 for airmail delivery.
IRCA Bookstore, 9705 Mary NW, Seattle WA 98117-2334
Please make checks payable to: Phil Bytheway.
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INDIVIDUAL LOGGINGS
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Mark Connelly - wa1ion@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
I got a bit of listening done last weekend from the Cape Cod area. After
reading the Iceland-189 reports, I figured I should look for it. On
Saturday night (16 AUG local; 17 AUG UTC), I received a signal on 189 with
non-stop mellow pop music. It was one of the stronger longwave
Trans-Atlantics, along with France-162, UK-198, Luxembourg-234, and
Ireland-252. There were thunderstorms in New Jersey and Long Island (about
300 km / 180 miles to the southwest), so static levels on longwave were
fairly high. Has anyone received positive ID material from the new 189 kHz
station yet ?
The following is a chronological summary of some recent logs. A full details
report including these and subsequent loggings will be issued in 1 to 2
weeks.
16 AUG 1997: East Harwich, MA
(* 0315-0359 UTC *) Grenada-535, Bahamas(ZLS)-526, Dominican Republic
(PPA)-450, Turks & Caicos-530, Cuba-670, Cuba-710, Venezuela-750, Spain-774,
Spain-936, Spain-1017, local WKPE-1170 (should be daytime only !)
(* 0400-0459 UTC *) Vatican-1611, "WCTD" (WPKN270) RI TIS-1620, Sao
Tome-1530, France-1206, France-1071, Spain-1044, Spain-1026
(* 1003 UTC *) Mexico-540
16 AUG 1997: Plymouth, MA (Robbins Road)
(* 2315-2359 UTC *) Mauritania-1349, Algeria-1544, Kuwait-1548, Spain-1296,
Libya-1251 (local-like!), Croatia o/u Spain-1134, unID weak het-1126.2,
jumble-1125, Spain-1071, Morocco o/u Spain-1044, Spain-1026, Canaries o/
Spain-1008, Spain-999, Algeria-981 (huge!), Portugal-963
17 AUG 1997: Plymouth, MA (Robbins Road)
(* 0000-0059 UTC *) Spain o/apparent Middle East music-954, Spain-936, UK
o/others-909, Gambia-907.8 het only, Algeria-891, UK o/Canaries-882,
Spain-873, Egypt o/u unID C&W style folk vocal-864, Spain-855, Italy-846
(loud!), Canaries-Spain-837, Azores-836, Egypt o/Spain/ Morocco-819,
Germany-873, Spain o/Jordan-801, Egypt-774 (huge, burying Spain!),
Syria/others-783, Switzerland-765, Spain o/u Germany-756,
Canaries-Spain-747, Spain-738, Spain-729, W. Sahara/3 others-711, UK
o/Azores/Spain-693, Spain-684, Spain-639, Canaries-Spain-621, Egypt-621,
Ireland/others-612, Spain-585, Algeria-549, Iceland(?)-189,
(* 0100-0114 UTC *) Netherlands(PCH)-1619.5, unID-1458, Germany-1422, N.
Ireland/unID (SS?)-1341, Norway-1314 o/Spain, UK-1215, UK-1089,
Albania-1089, Spain-1080, UK-1053
Equipment used at Harwich was the Drake R8A fed by the MFJ-1026 phasing unit
with a Quantum Loop as the "main" antenna and the built-in whip as the
"auxiliary" antenna
The usual mobile cardioid-pattern set-up (R8A / RL-1 loop / RW-1 whip /
DCP-2 controller-phaser) was used at the Plymouth site.
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Shawn Axelrod - saxelrod@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
BROADCAST BAND LOGS FROM
SHAWN M. AXELROD VE4DX1SMA
30 BECONTREE BAY WINNIPEG MB R2N 2X9 CANADA
TELEPHONE NUMBER: 204-253-8644
E-MAIL: saxelrod@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
DX'ING FROM
RECEIVER: ICOM ICR-70 & DRAKE R8
ANTENNA: 4 FOOT BOX UNAMPLIFIED LOOP / QUANTUM LOOP
145 FOOT LONG WIRE / 100 FOOT INDOOR WIRE
1520 KOLM MN Rochester 08/19 0120 fair signals mixing with KOMA. they
were on with oldies music so it looks like the 800 watt night
power AP/CP is now on. Heard again 08/21 again with Good Time
Oldies program. (Axelrod-MB)
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MISC ITEMS
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Frank Aden - Boise ID - WVLL23A@xxxxxxxxxxx
We are planning a beverage DXpedition on Oct. 3-5, south of Boise. If anyone
is interested please contact me at: WVLL23A@xxxxxxxxxxx or write: Frank
Aden, Jr., 4096 Marcia Place, Boise ID 83704
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Shawn Axelrod - saxelrod@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: News relaease from the CBC
First from the CBC radio site from H Redekopp VP of English Radio;
This is an historic year for CBC Radio: a year of tremendous change,
balanced by underlying continuity; a year in which challenges are
transformed into opportunities; a year we face with excitement and pride. In
recent focus groups, our listeners said they trust us to maintain the core
values of Canadian public broadcasting. We value that trust, and we intend
to continue to earn it.
One of the most noticeable changes this year is a name change. CBC Radio
and Stereo have become CBC Radio One and CBC Radio Two. Terms such as
'Radio' and 'Stereo' are increasingly confusing and irrelevant -- especially
as our CBC Radio One service moves more and more toward a mix of AM and FM
stations. We have added clear, simple positioning statements for each
network (CBC Radio One: News. And More. CBC Radio Two: Classics. And
Beyond.). They clearly identify the distinctive personalities of the two
services, while building on the enormous brand loyalty of CBC Radio.
The new CBC Radio One and CBC Radio Two schedules maintain their
historic orientation towards information and performance programming
respectively, but with many new programs and hosts. We and our listeners
have had the difficult task of saying goodbye to a number of familiar
friends, such as Peter Gzowski, Vicki Gabereau, Clyde Gilmour, the Royal
Canadian Air Farce, Double Exposure and others. But we are delighted to
welcome other well-known CBC Radio personalities back in new and expanded
roles: Michael Enright, Bill Richardson, Mary Lou Finlay and Bruce Dowbiggin
on CBC Radio One; Shelagh Rogers and Jurgen Gothe on CBC Radio Two; and Eric
Friesen and Stuart McLean on both networks.
This country is changing, and to reflect it, CBC Radio must change, too.
We are reaching out to recruit to our airwaves new voices who represent the
diverse nature of contemporary Canada. Avril Benoit - a young, bilingual
journalist - joins Michael Enright to host THIS MORNING. That program also
boasts an impressive roster of contributing editors, and will regularly
commission documentaries and freelance contributions. During the course of
the year, we will introduce other new programs designed specifically to
showcase new voices and new ideas, the better to reflect Francophone reality
to English Canadians, and to make CBC Radio more accessible and accountable
to the public.
Many popular programs will be back. Specialized shows such as TAPESTRY
(on spirituality) and THE INSIDE TRACK (on sports) remain in the CBC Radio
One schedule. Coverage of the literary arts will be expanded on WRITERS AND
COMPANY, BETWEEN THE COVERS, and a new program called INDEX. Rick Phillips's
SOUND ADVICE record review show will now be heard on both CBC Radio One and
CBC Radio Two. Listeners to both networks will also be entertained by the
humour of THE GREAT EASTERN (from Newfoundland), MADLY OFF IN ALL DIRECTIONS
(from everywhere but Toronto!) and the musical whimsy of THE VINYL CAFE.
This scheduling strategy, along with RICHARDSON'S ROUNDUP and THIS MORNING
TONIGHT on CBC Radio One each weekday afternoon and evening, is designed to
give busy listeners more than one opportunity to hear some of the best
programming that CBC Radio has to offer.
This past year, CBC Radio won over three dozen major national and
international awards, many of them for high-profile special presentations.
You'll hear many more memorable specials in the coming year: in-depth
explorations of important issues with provocative thinkers like David Suzuki
and Hugh Kenner, a series on Canada's national game of hockey, a celebration
of the Mendelssohn anniversary year, engaging dramas and documentaries, and
wonderful concerts from stages around the world and across Canada --
including our own Glenn Gould Studio -- on CBC Radio Two programs such as
RADIO TWO IN PERFORMANCE and ONSTAGE. CBC Radio Two's musical format
continues to emphasize classical music, enriched with an eclectic mix of
jazz and world music, and with special emphasis on alternative pop music for
younger listeners on weekend evenings.
I am particularly proud that we have maintained and even enhanced the
level of regional reflection on both networks. On CBC Radio One, all of our
local and regional time periods continue, and weekday noon and afternoon
shows have been revitalized. We continue to originate programming from 34
communities across the country, and plan to introduce local service in
Victoria, B.C. and London, Ontario within the year. Our network programming
is highly decentralized, produced in and reflecting all parts of Canada.
The new schedules integrate more local information in national time
periods through more frequent update breaks, and more national information
in local and regional time periods through an expanded syndication service.
On CBC Radio Two, local arts information is now heard regularly throughout
the day, and for the first time a half-hour daily national arts magazine
will be broadcast on both CBC Radio One and CBC Radio Two. This expanded
arts coverage is provided by dedicated arts journalists in all major
centres. Also on both networks, blended hourly newscasts incorporate local,
regional and national stories in a single package, and additional major
newscasts have been added at 9 a.m. and noon. Our goal is to provide all the
information you need, when you need it.
With CRTC approval, we will move this year to rectify long-standing AM
reception problems by moving CBC Radio One to FM in Toronto and Montreal. We
will also begin regular Digital Radio transmission in Toronto, Montreal and
Vancouver. Digital Radio is the future of radio: near CD-quality sound and
perfect reception, plus value-added services delivered to smart receivers.
Over the next decade or so, it will gradually replace conventional AM and FM
broadcasting. CBC Radio is in the forefront of this new technology. We are
also expanding our presence on the World Wide Web. CBC Radio One and Two are
already on-line 24 hours a day, and we recently launched our children's
Internet site, cbc4kids. The coming year will add new features to our CBC
Radio web site, including more on-demand audio from our archives.
We have been able to achieve all these improvements in a climate of
financial restraint thanks to the introduction of new technologies, new work
methods, new organizational structures and new partnerships that allow us to
produce, distribute and manage radio programming more efficiently. Our staff
have risen magnificently to the challenge of doing more with less, and have
turned a climate of uncertainty into one of creativity.
Statistics Canada reports that more than half of all Canadians use CBC
Radio on a regular basis. The past year has seen an unprecedented outpouring
of support for the national public radio service. As we move toward the
millennium, that service is positioned strongly for the future: a future in
which CBC Radio is more relevant, more distinctive and more valued than
ever.
For a schedule of CBC ONE programming see:
http://www.cbc.ca/RadioLaunch/OneSchedule.html
For a scedule of CBC TWO programming see:
http://www.cbc.ca/RadioLaunch/TwoSchedule.html
These are very big changes to CBC programming and we will see how we
Canucks react to them.
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Mark Connelly - wa1ion@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
A recently-released product has been getting quite a bit of attention in
radio-related E-mails, Internet bulletin boards, Web pages, magazines, and
personal correspondence. The device is the MFJ-1026, described as a "Deluxe
Noise Cancelling Signal Enhancer" by its manufacturer MFJ Enterprises, Inc.
(see company address information at the end of the article). DXers will
recognize the MFJ-1026 as a "phasing unit". The list price is US $ 139.95;
outlets such as R & L Electronics of Ohio are selling it at prices as low as
$ 115. It offers the ability to null interference, whether from electrical
noise sources or actual transmitters. This is accomplished by creating a 180
degree phase shift between two antennas that are presenting equal-amplitude
"pest" signals that cover desired DX. There is a similar model, MFJ-1025,
which does not have the built-in whip / preamplifier option. The '1025
sells for about $ 20 less.
A little bit of phasing unit history is in order here. Phasing units
have been around for a long time, but most of these have been homebrew
models built by a few dedicated DXers. In the 1960's, I built some
hit-or-miss L-C-R tuners / combiners to use at my Menotomy Rocks Park
antenna farm and by the early '70s I had one of Gordon Nelson's boxes up and
running ahead of my R-390A. Master Trans-Atlantic DXer Bill Bailey was also
using a Nelson- built box at the time. 160-m hams such as Victor Misek were
also experimenting with phasing circuits for steerable nulls. Producing a
null in the opposite direction of a peak turned out to be a big advantage
over loops, especially in hearing European stations here in the Boston area
with the New York City (and other) "pests" off the back of the beam. In the
early '80s, moving onward from the L-C-R units, Gerry Thomas took a bold
step into broadband phasing with his delay-line-based Phase One. His
research led to my DL-1, DL-2, and DCP-2 models. In the U.K., Graham
Maynard became well known for the units he built. As the 1990's opened,
there was still very little in the way of commercially-available hardware
despite the fact that many of the serious international DXers were using the
homebrew units both at home and on Beverage DXpeditions to hear exotic
stations that could not have been logged any other way. A device called the
S.E.M. QRM Eliminator had minimal promotion and little market penetration.
It used a tapped delay-line in a circuit similar to Gerry Thomas's Phase
One. By 1993 (I think), the JPS ANC-4 model came onto the scene. In a trend
that has followed all of the commercial units, advertising pointed out that
elimination of local electrical noise was the primary use. One channel of
the ANC-4, therefore, was a very-high- gain stage driven by a short "noise
gathering" whip. This arrangement didn't seem particularly well suited to
the DXer's more common objective of using two similar fairly-low-noise
good-gain outdoor antennas to phase in order to remove co-channel (or
adjacent channel) interfering STATIONS rather than NOISE. Noise was often
easily discarded by using noise-reducing balun transformers with "quiet
grounds". This idea - promoted by Dallas Lankford, Nick Hall-Patch, and
others - can get electrical noise out of the equation even ahead of the
phaser, leaving it with the considerably more interesting job of removing
dominant stations. A few DXers got ANC-4's, but the unit was prone to
overload on its so-called "noise" channel and nulls seemed to be hit-or-miss
because of sometimes-inadequate level- balancing and phase-adjusting range.
Demand for homebrew units continued unabated as Al Merriman and I can
testify.
In 1997, the MFJ-1026 has made a big "splash" because it is likely the
first widely-available commercially-produced antenna phasing unit that can
be made to work for medium-wave DXers. I say "can be made to work" because
some modifications must be made to the stock version unit available at the
time of this writing.
The "long and the short of it" is that the brochure advertising the unit
claims performance "down to VLF", customarily taken to be 10 kHz or so, when
several E-mail communications with MFJ personnel indicated that the unit
comes equipped with high-pass input filtering designed to attenuate
frequencies below the 160-m ham band. Indeed the lower one goes below 1.8
MHz with the stock unit, the worse the insertion loss gets. Measurements
taken here indicate losses of 8 dB at 1600 kHz, 16 dB at 1000 kHz, and 27 dB
at 530 kHz. By the time you get down to the 153 - 279 kHz European longwave
broadcast band, the thing has so much loss (over 35 dB) that it might as
well be a dummy load.
Aside from the insertion loss, inadequate phase shifting range on lower
frequencies was encountered in some situations. Oscilloscope testing showed
approximate phase shift ranges as follow: 200 kHz = 65 deg., 400 kHz = 94
deg., 600 kHz = 113 deg., 800 kHz = 125 deg., 1100 kHz = 150 deg., 1500 kHz
= 156 deg., and 2000 kHz = 169 deg. With the SW3 Phase Normal / Invert
switch of the MFJ-1026, dependable nulls could be produced if the R16 phase
range control gave 180 degrees of adjustment. It turns out that if you can
easily swap the two inputs, a phase shift adjustment range of as little as
90 degrees will produce nulls.
Fortunately the modifications that have to be made to give the MFJ-1026
competent performance from 300 to 1800 kHz are quite simple. The MFJ-1026
schematic is shown on page 12 of the instruction manual supplied with the
unit. The circuit board is well marked with the component designators.
Modification 1 will increase sensitivity below 2 MHz:
* Remove L3, L4, R26 (main input channel); L5, L6, R27 (auxiliary input
channel)
* Change C8 and C16 from 680 pF to .01 uF
Modification 2 (swap switch) will ensure adequate phase shifting range
above 300 kHz (these instructions may differ from prior E-mail postings):
* A double-pole / double-throw (DPDT) "swap switch" (Radio Shack 275-614, or
equivalent) is added in available space near the upper right hand corner
of front panel.
* Separate the middle pin (wiper arm) of each antenna gain pot from the
circuit board: these are R20 (Auxiliary Antenna Gain) and R9 (Main Antenna
Gain).
* Install a wire from the R20 middle pin to swap switch section #1 arm.
* Install a wire from the R9 middle pin to swap switch section #2 arm.
* Install a short wire from swap switch section #1 "normal" contact to swap
switch section #2 "swapped" contact.
* Install a short wire from swap switch section #2 "normal" contact to swap
switch section #1 "swapped" contact.
* Locate the Q5 and Q8 transistors. Each of these transistors has one side
having two leads (these are the drain and source leads). The other side of
each transistor has a single lead (the gate lead). Solder pads are located
on plated-through holes immediately adjacent to the Q5 and Q8 gate leads.
These pads will be wired to the swap switch in the next two steps.
* Install a short wire from swap switch section #1 "normal" contact to the
plated-through hole solder pad that connects through the circuit trace to
the Q8 gate lead. Alternately, instead of going to that point, you could
wire to the circuit board pad which had previously been wired to the
now-cut R20 arm pin.
* Install a short wire from swap switch section #2 "normal" contact to the
plated-through hole solder pad that connects through the circuit trace to
the Q5 gate lead. Alternately, instead of going to that point, you could
wire to the circuit board pad which had previously been wired to the
now-cut R9 arm pin.
With the DPDT switch set to "normal", the switch completes the
previously-wired paths: R20 arm to Q8 gate; R9 arm to Q5 gate. In its
"swapped" position, the R20 arm gets connected to the Q5 gate and the R9 arm
gets connected to the Q8 gate.
A couple of minutes spent studying the schematic and board layout should
make it obvious how to install these modifications. An additional
modification suggested by Al Merriman is to remove the existing two Antenna
Gain knobs and the one Phase Control knob and substitute larger knobs, such
as Radio Shack part number 274-416 (diameter = 1" = 2.54 cm).
So now you've got the modifications installed and it's time to put the
unit into use. If you're using two relatively short antennas, these should
be run out at a right angle to each other to prevent collateral nulling of
both desired DX stations and "pests". With two wires at a right angle, the
best null / peak axis will be along the bisector (the line that divides the
angle in half). Longer antennas (over 150 m / 500 ft.) can be run closer to
parallel and still produce good nulls, especially if there is some
separation (1/8 wavelength or so) between them or if they are of somewhat
different lengths or if one is terminated and the other is not. E-mail
correspondence with Tom Rauch (W8JI) brought up another interesting
possibility. If two similar small active broadband antennas (e.g. MFJ-1024
whips) are separated by 1/16 to 1/4 wavelength, good nulling performance can
be expected. The line drawn between the two antennas would describe the best
peak / null axis of cardioid patterns to be produced. One-sixteenth
wavelength at 500 kHz (or 1/4 wavelength at 2000 kHz) turns out to be 600/16
= 37.5 m = 123 ft. Using two broadband active whips (with coaxial feedlines
of about 19 m each) wouldn't be a difficult experiment to try. The Robbins
Road DXpedition site in Plymouth, MA would be ideal because the road has no
power lines along it and its orientation is on an approximate 70 deg. / 250
deg. bearing axis (degrees clockwise from due north). One whip 19 m along
the road ahead of the car could be phased against the other one 19 m behind
it. This should be quite effective for nulling out NY/NJ/PA/OH domestics
(at about 250 deg.) to clean up Europeans coming in on bearings of about 70
deg. Tom Rauch also mentioned using broadband loops instead of broadband
whips, but I haven't had much experience with untuned loops that have both
high sensitivity (low noise floor) and good strong-signal handling
characteristics (minimal intermodulation products). Two broadband loops
could be spaced 1/16 to 1/4 wavelength and oriented the same way, or they
could be located closer to each other and pointed at a right angle to each
other as in the old "goniometers". Also, a co-located active whip /
broadband loop could be used for loop- sense cardioid array (LSCA) operation
(a la Ron Schatz).
The MFJ-1026 can be operated with a ham transceiver as it has built-in
transmit / receive (T/R) switching on its main antenna input. I suspect
that the reviews of the unit in amateur magazines such as QST and CQ will
cover this aspect of operation.
The auxiliary channel input can be from the built-in whip antenna (that
goes through an internal preamplifier) if the front panel Pre-Amp switch is
set to ON. Otherwise, whatever antenna you've connected to the rear panel
auxiliary antenna jack will be fed to the Auxiliary Antenna Gain pot. I
have phased the whip against Main antenna inputs ranging from tuned loops to
untuned random wires. The internal whip on a modified MFJ-1026 has
reasonably good sensitivity, especially above 800 kHz. Even at 530 kHz, the
internal whip was able to discern Turks & Caicos at threshold level (about
S2 to S3) on groundwave from a receiving site in Harwich, MA on Cape Cod.
This is on par with the sensitivity of the Quantum and Kiwa loops. For
comparison, an outdoor sloper to the top of a 20 m pitch pine tree at the
Harwich site gives a Drake R8A S-meter reading of about S6 on Turks & Caicos
- 530 groundwave.
There are four potentiometers (pots) on the front panel of the MFJ-1026
and there are four switches (five when you consider the user-added Swap
Switch). The potentiometers are T/R delay (R3), Auxiliary Antenna Gain
(R20), Phase (R16), and Main Antenna Gain (R19). Switches (besides the
Swap Switch) are Power On / Off (SW1), Pre-Amp On / Off (SW4), Freq. High /
Low (SW2), and Phase Normal / Invert (SW3).
The T/R Delay control is only of concern if you will be transmitting as
well as receiving. The Power On / Off switch sends the Main antenna
straight through to the receiver if set to OFF. The Freq. High / Low switch
is usually set LOW for frequencies from 300 kHz to 7 MHz, either LOW or HIGH
for 7 to 12 MHz, and HIGH for 12 to 30 MHz.
The instructions in the MFJ-1026 manual are clear and will get the
first-time user into the nulling "game" without much trouble. This is an
easy-to-use unit compared to the L-C-R and delay-line phasers which
preceeded it. I would summarize operation as follows:
* Set the (SW2) Frequency switch to LOW for medium-wave use. Set the
Auxiliary Gain (R20) fully clockwise and the Main Gain (R9) fully
counterclockwise (anticlockwise) and take note of the strength of the
station to be nulled.
* Then set the Auxiliary Gain fully counterclockwise and the Main Gain fully
clockwise and take note of the strength of the station to be nulled.
* If the reading was lower with Main Gain fully clockwise, temporarily set
it counterclockwise and set Auxiliary Gain to get the reading that you had
with maximum Main Gain. Then put Main Gain back to fully clockwise.
* On the other hand, if the S-meter reading had been lower with Auxiliary
Gain fully clockwise (rather than with Main Gain that way), set Auxiliary
Gain fully counterclockwise and set the Main Gain to get the reading you
had with maximum Auxiliary Gain. Then put the Auxiliary Gain back to
fully clockwise.
* Rotate the Phase control (R16) to look for a null. If the null isn't
obvious, or if it tends to be at either end of the Phase control's range,
try the opposite position of the Phase Normal / Invert switch (SW3) and
rotate the Phase control again to search for a null.
* If a satisfactory null still hasn't been achieved, try the opposite
position of the added Swap Switch and repeat the previous step.
* Once the correct combination of Phase control, Normal / Invert, and Swap
Switch position has been arrived-at, make small interactive adjustments of
the non-fully-clockwise Gain control and the Phase control until the
deepest possible null has been acquired. Subdominant signals, if present,
should be evident.
If the active circuits in the MFJ-1026 get overloaded by strong local
stations, use moderate-Q tuned inputs such as loops or L-C tuned whips/wires
- or, in cases of untuned wire inputs, just use less gain (as selected by
the two 250-ohm Gain pots).
"Real life DXing" MFJ-1026 field tests were done on Saturday, 26 JUL
(local) from the Robbins Road - Holmes Field beach-DXpedition site located
off Route 3A in Plymouth, MA (approx. GC= 70.68 W / 41.98 N). I used the
Drake R8A receiver. Both the R8A and the MFJ-1026 were powered from the car
battery. Two 90 ft. / 27 m wires lying on the ground were used. This
(admittedly less-than- ideal) set-up had been used with delay-line and other
phasing unit designs previously, so I had a feel for what to expect. The
"main" antenna for the MFJ-1026 ran on a slight downslope along the side of
Robbins Road straight towards the sea at a bearing of about 70 degrees. The
"auxiliary" wire ran out at a right angle into an open field of grass at an
approximate 160 degree bearing. I was on site at about 7 p.m. local / 2300
UTC. This is about an hour before sunset. I felt that one of the big
challenges would be to null WPLM-1390, located less than 2 miles / 3 km from
the site. Luckily, its very large signal did less overloading damage than
WRKO-680 does back at home near the Shawsheen River marsh. Nulling WPLM a
good 50 dB was easy ! It wasn't too long before evidence of co-channel skip
stations from ME, NY, and VT started bubbling in behind the nulled WPLM
audio. Better yet was rather good audio from Netherlands on 1395 heard
somewhat later ! The stations that the MFJ-1026 had the most trouble
nulling were those with high-angle skip, especially if some groundwave was
blended in. The stations on the top end of the dial, such as WNRB-1510, were
particularly troublesome in this regard. Null control settings required
constant adjustment, especially in the period from an hour before sunset to
an hour after. The best sustained null depth I could manage on stations
such as WNRB, WDCD, and WQEW was about 15 dB (although momentarily-deeper
nulls popped in and out). Shortwave DXers will probably experience similarly
"jumpy" results above 2 MHz. Pure "groundwavers" like WPLM and longer-skip
/ lower- frequency stations such as WLW-700 nulled more deeply and for
greater time intervals between required control re-adjustments. These
results are consistent with those found for any previous-used phasing
scheme, whether delay-line, tuned L-C, or other.
As the evening progressed, the MFJ-1026 / phased wires set-up proved its
value as numerous Trans-Atlantic stations were logged. Some of these came in
fine on the 70-degree "Euro-wire" without the need for phasing, but, in a
number of instances, phasing the two wires made the difference between a
slop-plagued DX signal and crystal clarity. The two Croatia stations (1125
and 1134) come to mind. WBBR-1130 New York has a VERY strong signal at
night here in eastern Massachusetts. Indeed, outside the immediate
groundwave zones of locals, it's one of the five strongest stations night
after night. When I was tuned to 1134, Croatia was running a good S9+20,
but it was still trashed by WBBR slop at times - even on the "Euro-wire".
With a few quick twists of the controls on the MFJ-1026, WBBR was reduced by
better than 20 dB and Croatia-1134 roared in with absolutely beautiful
audio. On peaks, it was stronger than what was left of WBBR. Not only did
the phasing accomplish a nice clean-up on 1134, but also the much-weaker
Croatian on 1125 was brought into the clear with just a bit of co-channel
flak from Spain. Prior to phasing, it didn't have a ghost of a chance
against the barrage of WBBR slop.
Earlier on 26 JUL, I had done a few daytime DX tests of the MFJ-1026
from Harwich, MA on Cape Cod. The first battery of tests involved feeding a
Quantum Loop into the MFJ-1026 "main" input and using the 1026's built-in
broadband active whip as the "auxiliary". With the loop at normal (i.e.
high) Q, audio null depths only reached about 20 dB (versus better than 40
dB for carrier). This is consistent with previous nulling scenarios where a
high-Q tuned source is phased against a broadband one. You get what sounds
like a double-sideband suppressed carrier signal. If the desired DX is more
than 20 dB below the dominant, you probably won't hear it even during stable
midday conditions. Q-spoiling the Quantum Loop (15K resistor shunting the
L-C tank) increases nullability of "pests" maybe to 30 dB, but the loop's
usable sensitivity is compromised. At night, this is probably a non-issue
(except in aurora), but during the day you need every bit of signal you can
squeeze out of the small loop.
A second battery of tests at Harwich used two wires at a right angle
(similar to the set-up employed at Plymouth). Daytime nulls were smooth
("like butter" some would say). WGAN-560 was easily dumped to reveal WHYN,
near-equal WPRO and CFCY on 630 could each be brought up alone, much the
same on 740 with WJIB and WGSM, WJTO on 730 was nulled a good 30 dB to pull
out WACE over CKAC, strong WCLZ-900 was phased under the co-channel
CKDH/WMVU mix, WZNN-930 easily surrendered to CFBC, and so forth. Nulling
with two wires was decidedly better than any loop-versus-whip or loop-
versus-wire scheme.
Once the MFJ-1026 is modified, it makes a very competent phasing unit
that will undoubtedly bring the technology into the hands of many DXers who
have not previously experienced its value in bringing new stations out of
"the mud".
Miscellaneous information:
Power requirements: 12 volts DC at 150 mA
Size: about 21 cm wide X 6.5 cm high X 15 cm deep
Appendix: MFJ Ordering Information
Webpage: http://www.mfjenterprises.com/mfj/order.html
TECHNICAL INFORMATION: (601) 323-0549 or "jshurden@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx"
MAIL ORDERS: MFJ Enterprises, Inc.
P.O.Box 494
Mississippi State, MS 39762, USA
TOLL-FREE (DOMESTIC): 1-800-647-1800
SHIPPING INFORMATION: MFJ Enterprises, Inc.
300 Industrial Park Rd.
Starkville, MS 39759 USA
CREDIT CARDS: Visa, MasterCard, American Express, or Discover
FOREIGN ORDERS: U.S. funds only
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IRCA Mexican Log, 4th Edition
The IRCA MEXICAN LOG log lists all AM stations in Mexico by frequency,
including call letters, state, city, day/night power, slogans, schedule in
UTC/GMT, formats, networks and notes. In addition, stations that have
changed frequency since 1990 are cross-referenced on the old frequency. The
call letter index gives call, frequency, city and state. The city index
(listed by state, then city) includes frequency, call and day/night power.
The log has been completely updated from the 1994 edition and carefully
cross-checked by IRCA members in Mexico and the US. This is an
indispensable reference for anyone who hears Mexican radio stations. Size
is 8 1/2" x 11" and three hole punched for easy binding (optional).
Prices: IRCA/NRC members - $6.50 (US/Canada/Mexico/seamail), $7.50 (rest of
the Americas airmail), $8.00 (Europe/Asia airmail), $8.50 (Australia/New
Zealand airmail). Non-members: add $2.00 to the above prices. Make checks
out to: Phil Bytheway.
Order TODAY from: IRCA Bookstore, 9705 Mary NW, Seattle WA 98117-2334
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The National Radio Club NRC AM Radio Log for the 1996-1997 DX Season.
This is the Seventeenth edition and has been updated through September 1996.
This annual edition contains 312 pages, 8 1/2" x 11" size, 3-hole punched,
loose leaf format with over 5,500 A.M. Radio station listings from the
United States and Canada. Each station listing consists of its location,
frequency, call, format, network affiliation, station address, station
slogan, day and night transmitter powers. There are cross references by
city and by call letter.
The nonmember prices of the AM Radio Log are as follows:
NRC & IRCA Members see your magazines for the member prices!
U.S. & Canada US $22.95
Latin America US $23.50
Europe US $24.00
All Others US $28.00
Orders may be placed now. The 1997 Seventeenth edition of the NRC AM RADIO
LOG ready and being shipped at this time.
Please mail all orders to: National Radio Club
Publications Center
P.O. Box 164
Mannsville, NY 13661-0164
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phil bytheway - Seattle WA - Philip_Bytheway@xxxxxxx
Tabulated from WWV at ~0518 GMT nightly
Geomagnetic Summary August 15 1997 through August 21 1997
GEO - Geomagnetic activity pca - polar cap absorption
maf - major flare SA - Solar Activity
mas - major storm spe - satellite proton event
mis - minor storm ss - severe storm
Date FLUX A K SA GEO OTHER
8/15 78 9 2 very low quiet-unsettled -
16 78 4 2 very low quiet -
17 76 6 2 very low quiet -
18 76 7 2 very low quiet-unsettled -
19 74 4 2 very low quiet -
20 75 5 4 very low quiet-active -
8/21 75 9 2 very low quiet-active -
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If you note any AM changes (call, format, slogan, etc), please send them to
the NRC Log coordinator (Wayne Heinen) @ nrclog@xxxxxxx
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END of August 21 1997 IRCA's "AM DX NewsFlash" - Philip_Bytheway@xxxxxxx