** CUBA. 5025, Feb 16 at 1408 playing song in English, ``Sultans of Swing`` by Dire Straits, momentarily making me imagine I was hearing VL8K in a rare coincidence of day-frequency-at-night and Cuba off --- but signal was too good and 1412 outro in Spanish. R. Rebelde does it again; baseball overrides politix (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** KOREA NORTH [non]. 5985, Shiokaze is back here on alternate frequency ex-several weeks on 5910, for its daily 1400-1430 broadcast via JSR, JAPAN, in Korean, Japanese, Chinese, English, or occasionally French. First noted Feb 15 by Ron Howard and Hiroshi/S. Hasegawa, a day I did not look for it, but Feb 16 at 1404 talk in Japanese at first with non-piano march music background I wondered might be QRM, but then unimpeded talk. No jamming or co-channel from Myanmar audible here (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** MOROCCO. Signal levels are generally degraded this morning, and local noise level is high, so while munching my raisin bran around 1500 Feb 16, with BFO on and tuned 1 kHz away, I amuse myself by monitoring how long it takes RTM to QSY 4 kHz from 15341 to 15345: 15341 goes off at 1500:45*, and 15345 comes on at *1504:22.
This is carrier, not paying attention to whether there be a further delay in modulating. That totals 3 minutes and 37 seconds = 217 seconds, or approximately 54 seconds/kHz. Now we know. The change is for no particular reason, and really ought to be after 1530 in the opposite direxion to avoid colliding with HCJB Australia and later, RAE Argentina (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** SWAZILAND [non]. 11640, at 0609 Feb 16, African-accented preacher in English, S9+18 signal, but quite undermodulated. This is via SENTECH, SOUTH AFRICA, 0600-0645, 500 kW, 320 degrees favoring NAm tho intended only for Nigeria, and often audible here.
It`s incredible how many SW transmitters in the world are running with inadequate modulation. Don`t stations understand the necessity for good modulation as well as carrier power? Apparently not. As tubes are failing, they back off modulation as a precaution or out of necessity, and try to keep them on the air, meanwhile no doubt charging full price for fraxional service (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** U S A [non]. 7575, VOA with talk (editorial?) on George Washington setting excellent precedents for how the US government should operate, Feb 16 at 1356 but cut off abruptly incomplete just after 1358*. Until that, reception was VG. This was via TINIAN. Because of such pervasive lack of coördination between programming and transmission, VOA is its own worst enemy. This is NOT ``good enough for government work`` (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** U S A. 15550-USB, WJHR at 1931 Feb 15, peaking S9+8 with what else? Overconfident preacher. Can`t say signal has improved significantly after a month off in January for antenna work. Nothing there at 2116 recheck, so apparently still on limited test schedule (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENNG DIGEST)
** U S A. 4050, Feb 16 at 0624 check, country music, no-strain level at peaks, no doubt presumed KWMO Washington MO, 3 x 1350 as usual (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** U S A. Altho WINB was on the 13570 air in Spanish before 1600 on Thursday Feb 11, and with English between 14 and 16 Friday Feb 12, missing Saturday Feb 13, still vacant on Monday Feb 15 at 1523 check. Maybe Spanish was on again today, but no recheck until 1603 when it bore a distorted Tony Alamo singing, 1605 mailbag with sidekick Sharon reading a letter allegedly from a Kolkata admirer. Very wobbly carrier, obvious with BFO on (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
[item in last report with corrected references to previous logs]
UNIDENTIFIED. 6074, 8GAL check Feb 16 at 1400: V/CQ marker started slightly before the Russian 6075 timesignal ended, and 8GAL was just barely audible. Could not really copy the ID this time, but presumed, altho on at least one rare occasion in the past, a different tactical CW ID came thru (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ###
** KOREA NORTH [non]. 5985, Shiokaze is back here on alternate frequency ex-several weeks on 5910, for its daily 1400-1430 broadcast via JSR, JAPAN, in Korean, Japanese, Chinese, English, or occasionally French. First noted Feb 15 by Ron Howard and Hiroshi/S. Hasegawa, a day I did not look for it, but Feb 16 at 1404 talk in Japanese at first with non-piano march music background I wondered might be QRM, but then unimpeded talk. No jamming or co-channel from Myanmar audible here (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** MOROCCO. Signal levels are generally degraded this morning, and local noise level is high, so while munching my raisin bran around 1500 Feb 16, with BFO on and tuned 1 kHz away, I amuse myself by monitoring how long it takes RTM to QSY 4 kHz from 15341 to 15345: 15341 goes off at 1500:45*, and 15345 comes on at *1504:22.
This is carrier, not paying attention to whether there be a further delay in modulating. That totals 3 minutes and 37 seconds = 217 seconds, or approximately 54 seconds/kHz. Now we know. The change is for no particular reason, and really ought to be after 1530 in the opposite direxion to avoid colliding with HCJB Australia and later, RAE Argentina (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** SWAZILAND [non]. 11640, at 0609 Feb 16, African-accented preacher in English, S9+18 signal, but quite undermodulated. This is via SENTECH, SOUTH AFRICA, 0600-0645, 500 kW, 320 degrees favoring NAm tho intended only for Nigeria, and often audible here.
It`s incredible how many SW transmitters in the world are running with inadequate modulation. Don`t stations understand the necessity for good modulation as well as carrier power? Apparently not. As tubes are failing, they back off modulation as a precaution or out of necessity, and try to keep them on the air, meanwhile no doubt charging full price for fraxional service (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** U S A [non]. 7575, VOA with talk (editorial?) on George Washington setting excellent precedents for how the US government should operate, Feb 16 at 1356 but cut off abruptly incomplete just after 1358*. Until that, reception was VG. This was via TINIAN. Because of such pervasive lack of coördination between programming and transmission, VOA is its own worst enemy. This is NOT ``good enough for government work`` (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** U S A. 15550-USB, WJHR at 1931 Feb 15, peaking S9+8 with what else? Overconfident preacher. Can`t say signal has improved significantly after a month off in January for antenna work. Nothing there at 2116 recheck, so apparently still on limited test schedule (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENNG DIGEST)
** U S A. 4050, Feb 16 at 0624 check, country music, no-strain level at peaks, no doubt presumed KWMO Washington MO, 3 x 1350 as usual (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** U S A. Altho WINB was on the 13570 air in Spanish before 1600 on Thursday Feb 11, and with English between 14 and 16 Friday Feb 12, missing Saturday Feb 13, still vacant on Monday Feb 15 at 1523 check. Maybe Spanish was on again today, but no recheck until 1603 when it bore a distorted Tony Alamo singing, 1605 mailbag with sidekick Sharon reading a letter allegedly from a Kolkata admirer. Very wobbly carrier, obvious with BFO on (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
[item in last report with corrected references to previous logs]
UNIDENTIFIED. 6074, 8GAL check Feb 16 at 1400: V/CQ marker started slightly before the Russian 6075 timesignal ended, and 8GAL was just barely audible. Could not really copy the ID this time, but presumed, altho on at least one rare occasion in the past, a different tactical CW ID came thru (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ###
