3 from The Official SWL Channel

These 3 will help get you started with that new shortwave that hopefully Santa is bringing . . .

And of course you can always <<<CLICK HERE>>> and go to the YouTube channel and do some binge watching there . . .

Shortwave radio 101 beginner series : Why use multiple bandwidths and what they do

Shortwave 101 beginners series : How to Identify what you are listening to tips and tricks

Shortwave 101 beginners series : How do I find unusual signals tips and tricks

the fun part of SDR radios is you can see in the waterfall the various signal types

Picked up an SDRPLAY RSPdx-R2 from Ham Radio Outlet – Oh My! – ( had what turned out to be a minor but frustrating issue – software related – and the folks at HRO were very helpful in resolving it ) I have been an aficionado of Airspy and the SDR# software for sometime now – the SDRPLAY seems to be at the very least a moderately better radio – the software – SDRUNO – is a step or three above any of the software I have used to date – quite a “suite” of software – the best part – there is no screwing around with USB drivers to install it!

Have Fun! – Run the Gun! – and remember – Fish Heads are Cheap!!

Everything You Should Know About Secret Numbers Stations & How To Listen

When the government says that you shouldn’t be interested in listening to something then that’s when you 100% should be listening to whatever it is – just saying . . .

If you want to head down the rabbit hole – here are three sites to start with HERE – HERE – or HERE . . . I am not responsible for any of you folks losing sleep – forgetting to eat etc. – just saying . . .

Chasing numbers stations can become quite addictive. And then you can start chasing pirate stations in your spare time – or navigation beacons – or . . . LOL!

Have Fun! – Run the Gun! – and remember – Fish Heads are Cheap!!

Furusato No Kaze / Japan

Caught this at approximately 14:50 UTC – 16 November @ 9.560mhz – best results were on the random wire.

And a short clip – audio was almost sketchy – they are running 300KW and for this time of day and conditions they are doing a decent job with it – I will figure this video stuff out eventually – really I will . . .

I had read about this issue in the past – here’s a shot of Paul Simmonds page – Link HERE . . .

Folks – if anybody says “there’s nothing on shortwave” – chances are they bought a $30 dollar pocket radio on amazonia and don’t really have a clue what they are doing . . . there is site after site – on the utube as well as static pages on how do do “this” – it’s really no magic or mystery to it – like anything else – there is a right way and a wrong way – you will tend to have more success at SWL by doing it as right as you can . . .

Slowly working through the bird’s nest of wiring on the bench – think really BAD cast with a bait caster – that will get you in the ball park – LOL! Going to be stupid busy this next week – we are doing Thanksgiving dinner here – next Sunday – Yippee Skippy and all that stuff – will try to get you folks something up for tonight and Sunday – but time is becoming a rare commodity at this point . . .

Have Fun! – Run the Gun! – and remember – Fish Heads are Cheap!!

SKY KING – SKY KING / DO NOT ANSWER . . .

I do so want a discone antenna – and THIS is quite a discone antenna . . .

Maybe I can talk my CFO aka Blushing Bride into one of these – I’m not holding out hope for a Collins built 70 footer – LOL!

Been working on the radio room and just about have it in it’s final iteration – what an ongoing mess – but it will be pretty cool once it is done – just about down to cable management to finish it up . . .

Left to right – Pi5 – Pi4 – windows box – windows box – going to grab a second Airspy HF+ Discovery for the Pi4 – the Airspy out performs “dongles” to such an extent that there it makes zero sense to me to try to use them -the Pi4 running the Pi4 OS & SDR++ build from HERE and it runs well. I’m going to install DragonOS from HERE on the Pi5 and then I will have to agonize over which SDR to purchase for hunting in the gigahertz range and which discone antenna to get for it as it will be used primarily for uhf and up listening. And looking at the projected weather forecasts I don’t believe anymore antennas are going up before spring.

Cable management? You have got to be kidding – picked up a pair of usb switches as there simply is NOT enough room on the bench – 4 keyboards / 4 mice / a number pad – what a mess! And add power cables – coax – speaker wires – antenna switches – really got out of hand in a hurry!

I keep telling myself SWL ( here, have ONE of my daily reads ) is only a hobby – it’s only a hobby – it’s only a hobby . . . And if you really want to go down a rabbit hole? HERE or HERE will will also help you on your journey . . .

A final twisted thought for this post : Think of your antenna ( system ) as a transmitter – it captures electromagnetic energy and transmits said energy to your radio(s) – think of it as a transmission system going to your radio – think of it as a whole “system” that needs to play nice together – antenna / coax / grounding / radio . . . I listen to “stuff” every day that most people don’t even have a clue is out there . . .

it’s only a hobby – it’s only a hobby – it’s only a hobby – it’s only a hobby

Have Fun! – Run the Gun! – and remember – Fish Heads are Cheap!!