** ALBANIA. 7425, R. Tirana English at 0154 UT Sunday May 2, S9+25 but somewhat undermodulated, and some splash from WBCQ 7415, q.v. (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** ARGENTINA. 15345.2, fair signal and nothing to het against from typically off-frequency General Pacheco, UT Sunday May 2 at 0102 with promo for something on ``Nacional, la Radio``, time check for just after 22 hours local, more promos, and 0105 ``Radio Nacional Argentina presenta: Noche tras noche``. If this were a weeknight, same transmitter would be on 11710.7v instead with the RAE Japanese hour (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** CHILE. I have been complaining for months about the dirty mushy spurs the CVC transmitter on 11920 put out varying plus/minus 20 kHz during the HCJB Kulina and Portuguese relay at 2245-2445. A few weeks ago, asked CVC HQ in England how much longer would it take them to fix it? No reply, but they finally have! May 1 at 2316 I find the usual good signal on 11920 in Portuguese, but no sign of any spur around 11900, which had been heard again on 11897.6 only a few days ago, April 24 as in DXLD 10-17. Nor around 11940, tho at this hour, it could have been masked by the DentroCuban Jamming Command against Martí still running centered on 11930 but with jampulses as far as 11940; more about that under CUBA. That`s the good news.
Now the bad news: a different spur problem from CVC Chile: UT May 2 at 0142 between 11795 and 11825 I am hearing extremely distorted and loud music spur spixe centered maybe on 11810, hard to tell; could be 11815. A transmitter on one of those frequencies drastically malfunxioning? As always with such spurs, tune around the band on another receiver looking for a match in the modulation. And I find it: 11665, with the heavily modulated gospel rock CVC plays incessantly.
Yes, that`s where it is coming from, so is there another spur equidistant below 11665? Yes! Can make out same circa 11510, but this is competing with another spur, WEWN`s 10-kHz one from English on 11520. Catholix vs Christian Visionaries! These CVC spurs may be nothing new as I seldom bandscan during this timeperiod. But if old, why have I not seen any reports of them; does no one else care? But then hardly anyone else reported the 11920 spurs. All three were gone at 0227 check as 11665 closes at 0200. Probably always happening at 23-02 (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** CUBA [and non]. RHC anomalies May 1-2: at 2305, I notice that 5040 is missing, altho 5025 Rebelde is audible. 5040 is supposedly the only frequency for the 23-24 UT English broadcast, o no! I continued bandscanning from top down, noting the other usual RHC frequencies, none of them with English. Finally at 2332 I come across 6060, and there it is, RHC English while 5040 is still absent. Not very strong on 6060 and has some ACI splash from REE in French on 6055. At 2337 start DXers Unlimited, with Item #1, DTV makes Es TVDX less productive. At 0003 check, 6060 is now in RHC French, which would also have been on 5040 which is still silent.
But now on 6060 there is something underneath. Could be Argentina or Brasil, but at 0013 I hear the RHC news sounder, // 6110. So not one, but two RHC transmissions are on 6060 by mistake, or not? Audio mix on one transmitter? 6060 supposedly does not start until 0500 in English per current schedule.
Meanwhile, at 2331 I noticed that 5970 was also missing. This one is not supposed to start until 0100, but has really been running as early as 2300, colliding with RNW Bonaire 2300-2330 in Dutch, and which just caused them to move to 6140 (which is an ex-RHC frequency).
Unfortunately I tuned in a bit too late to confirm whether RNW had yet made the switch, which tonight would have been unnecessary anyway! 5970 was however on by my next check at 0003, in Spanish, // 6000, 6110, 6120.
5040 had finally come on sometime before 0228 when I find it in Spanish. Suspect it was another case of slopperation at site, no one noticing they had the wrong frequency running, eventually rectified. OR, one transmitter down, so another substituted on another frequency?
Now observations of the DentroCuban Jamming Command, May 1-UT May 2: at 2317 after looking for CVC spur around 11920, I notice that the two jammed frequencies 11930 Martí and 11970 VOA make for a mesh of jamspurs all the way between them. The only signal which can compete, but not completely override the pulsing is 11955 in Spanish, but it dumps off the air at 2318-2319; carrier returns first and modulation resumes a few sex later, about art in Romanian monasteries; hmmm, I`ll bet it`s RRI as scheduled this hour via Tiganeshti.
At 0049 there is still heavy jamming on VOA frequencies 5890, 9885 and 11970, the DCJC too stupid to pick up on the fact that the VOA Spanish service stops at 0000 UT on weekends. Countless kW are wasted instead of feeding starving Cubans.
9780 also with heavy jamming at 0215 May 2, perhaps a trace of R. República audio underneath (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** CYPRUS. 9920-9945, OTH radar pulses, presumed from here, May 1 at 2327; main victim is 9935 in Spanish which is YFR via GUF, so who cares? (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** EGYPT. 11590, R. Cairo, at 2313 May 1 at S9+20 signal but just barely modulated with ME music. I daringly turn the volume all the way up, and that makes it sound about normal level, but risky vs fades, noise, interference, and occasional spixe in the modulation itself to higher level, but nowhere near normal. This is the so-called Western North American service in English at 2300-2430, followed by four hours of Arabic (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** NORTH AMERICA. 6940-USB, May 2 at 0040 just as I tuned in a bit of music, heard ID from WEAK, and weak @ gmail.com Nothing further, so apparently signed off. Was not too weak (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** OKLAHOMA. 1580, KOKB Blackwell once again transmitting for hours and hours with no modulation, Saturday May 1 checked at 2000, 2147, 2226 UT. Also May 2 at 0020 as skywave was starting to income, something underneath the carrier producing SAH. I have an idea: why not turn off the transmitter too, so maybe I can hear in daytime the next closest 1580 stations, Van Buren AR, El Dorado Springs MO or Gainesville TX? (Glenn Hauser, Enid, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** ROMANIA. 11955 in Spanish vs jamspurs: see CUBA [and non]
** RUSSIA [non]. 9810 VOR Spanish via GUIANA FRENCH, May 2 at 0107 with La Voz de Rusia ID, no Cuban jamming for a change. No VOR Spanish at this time on 9735. GUF earlier in A-season was running both during this hour, but apparently 9735 now does not start until 0200, a May 1 mod? At 0215 check it`s the other way round, on 9735, off 9810 (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** U S A. WBCQ anomalies May 1-UT May 2: As in previous report, 9330 has started carrying the Good Friends Radio Network, supposedly at 13-01 UT daily. At 2323, confirmed it`s on CUSB as usual (``compatible`` i.e. reduced-carrier upper sideband), speaker about to expose something about the Catholic Church, but suddenly cut to another topic, net ID and mentioning time of 6 am Central = 12 GMT. Not now; is this an old recording from standard time? Maybe it was a poorly-produced program promo. Next tuneby at 2349 finds dead air, then modulation cutting in and out. At one point, GFRN mentions WBCQ, leading me to believe WBCQ is its only outlet. Supposed to end at 0100, but still on with preacher, VG signal at 0203, ditto 0229.
That`s not all. 7415 had been off the air Saturday evenings, but now it`s back, at 0155 UT Sunday May 2 with rock music. But as quoted in my last report from the schedule update page of the WBCQ website, Brother Scare is supposed to be on 7415 until 0300 every night including UT Sunday, and this is not TOM! Just in case checked WWRB 3145 where BS is really talking not //.
At 0159 ``Chain Gang``, 0201 no ID and segué to a country rock song. Is it // 5110 Area 51 by any chance? No. 0204 ``Jailhouse Rock`` by Elvis. 0206 guess who, it`s a show hosted by Ted Randall; missed the title, but asks for e-mail and soon starts interviewing Rev. Dennis, aimed at prisoners? Website prayforme.us and inviting prayer partners. 0215 back to music. There is nothing about this on the WBCQ website, nor at http://www.tedrandall.com
Possibly the extension of 9330 and the unscheduled programming on 7415 are just ad-hoc, the operator on duty deciding to keep the transmitters running a bit later with whatever he can lay his hands on (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** U S A. 4840, WWCR-3 amid DX Block at 0229 UT Sunday May 2, canned announcement claimed it was on 4775 at 0300 Saturday, i.e. old winter schedule, except it was also UT Sunday then. Then WORLD OF RADIO 1510 started only a few sex late and hope it didn`t go into looping this time, as I missed rechecking a few mins before end (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** U S A. 1660, checking for KXTR Kansas City which supposedly has a classical format, as heard last night at unlogged time, but now UT Sunday May 2 at 0027 I am hearing an interview from Richmond VA with the Lt. Governor, in connexion with NASCAR, the Heath-Calhoun 400, which may be of great interest to most classical fans, but not this one. Axually, ENTERCOM just dumps on this frequency whatever it can`t place on any of its other stations in the market, classical being the lowest priority and the first to be pre-empted.
Recheck a few mins later at 0034, it`s much weaker. Was it just a fade, or did KXTR switch from 10 kW day power to 1 kW night power at 0030 UT? When is LSS officially in KC KS? FCC entry for this station at http://www.fcc.gov/fcc-bin/srsstime?dlat=39&mlat=2&slat=17.00&dlon=94&mlon=36&slon=56.00&tzone=B
says 7:30 pm CST, so it`s still an hour away, unless on the first day of the new month at a new time, KXTR mistakenly cut at 7:30 pm CDT. FCC SR/SS info stays on standard time, clearly specified as such, but I am sure it still confuses lots of stations about when they should really make antenna/power changes, and such errors are most likely to happen on the first day of any month (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
UNIDENTIFIED. 5954.2, noticed a non-standard het against Harold Camping WYFR on 5950.0, i.e. less than 5 kHz, so sought out and measured as best I could this weak carrier, May 2 at 0046, which of course brings to mind the ELCOR transmitter-test frequency from Costa Rica which may or may not have been involved at some time with Radio República (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ###
** ARGENTINA. 15345.2, fair signal and nothing to het against from typically off-frequency General Pacheco, UT Sunday May 2 at 0102 with promo for something on ``Nacional, la Radio``, time check for just after 22 hours local, more promos, and 0105 ``Radio Nacional Argentina presenta: Noche tras noche``. If this were a weeknight, same transmitter would be on 11710.7v instead with the RAE Japanese hour (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** CHILE. I have been complaining for months about the dirty mushy spurs the CVC transmitter on 11920 put out varying plus/minus 20 kHz during the HCJB Kulina and Portuguese relay at 2245-2445. A few weeks ago, asked CVC HQ in England how much longer would it take them to fix it? No reply, but they finally have! May 1 at 2316 I find the usual good signal on 11920 in Portuguese, but no sign of any spur around 11900, which had been heard again on 11897.6 only a few days ago, April 24 as in DXLD 10-17. Nor around 11940, tho at this hour, it could have been masked by the DentroCuban Jamming Command against Martí still running centered on 11930 but with jampulses as far as 11940; more about that under CUBA. That`s the good news.
Now the bad news: a different spur problem from CVC Chile: UT May 2 at 0142 between 11795 and 11825 I am hearing extremely distorted and loud music spur spixe centered maybe on 11810, hard to tell; could be 11815. A transmitter on one of those frequencies drastically malfunxioning? As always with such spurs, tune around the band on another receiver looking for a match in the modulation. And I find it: 11665, with the heavily modulated gospel rock CVC plays incessantly.
Yes, that`s where it is coming from, so is there another spur equidistant below 11665? Yes! Can make out same circa 11510, but this is competing with another spur, WEWN`s 10-kHz one from English on 11520. Catholix vs Christian Visionaries! These CVC spurs may be nothing new as I seldom bandscan during this timeperiod. But if old, why have I not seen any reports of them; does no one else care? But then hardly anyone else reported the 11920 spurs. All three were gone at 0227 check as 11665 closes at 0200. Probably always happening at 23-02 (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** CUBA [and non]. RHC anomalies May 1-2: at 2305, I notice that 5040 is missing, altho 5025 Rebelde is audible. 5040 is supposedly the only frequency for the 23-24 UT English broadcast, o no! I continued bandscanning from top down, noting the other usual RHC frequencies, none of them with English. Finally at 2332 I come across 6060, and there it is, RHC English while 5040 is still absent. Not very strong on 6060 and has some ACI splash from REE in French on 6055. At 2337 start DXers Unlimited, with Item #1, DTV makes Es TVDX less productive. At 0003 check, 6060 is now in RHC French, which would also have been on 5040 which is still silent.
But now on 6060 there is something underneath. Could be Argentina or Brasil, but at 0013 I hear the RHC news sounder, // 6110. So not one, but two RHC transmissions are on 6060 by mistake, or not? Audio mix on one transmitter? 6060 supposedly does not start until 0500 in English per current schedule.
Meanwhile, at 2331 I noticed that 5970 was also missing. This one is not supposed to start until 0100, but has really been running as early as 2300, colliding with RNW Bonaire 2300-2330 in Dutch, and which just caused them to move to 6140 (which is an ex-RHC frequency).
Unfortunately I tuned in a bit too late to confirm whether RNW had yet made the switch, which tonight would have been unnecessary anyway! 5970 was however on by my next check at 0003, in Spanish, // 6000, 6110, 6120.
5040 had finally come on sometime before 0228 when I find it in Spanish. Suspect it was another case of slopperation at site, no one noticing they had the wrong frequency running, eventually rectified. OR, one transmitter down, so another substituted on another frequency?
Now observations of the DentroCuban Jamming Command, May 1-UT May 2: at 2317 after looking for CVC spur around 11920, I notice that the two jammed frequencies 11930 Martí and 11970 VOA make for a mesh of jamspurs all the way between them. The only signal which can compete, but not completely override the pulsing is 11955 in Spanish, but it dumps off the air at 2318-2319; carrier returns first and modulation resumes a few sex later, about art in Romanian monasteries; hmmm, I`ll bet it`s RRI as scheduled this hour via Tiganeshti.
At 0049 there is still heavy jamming on VOA frequencies 5890, 9885 and 11970, the DCJC too stupid to pick up on the fact that the VOA Spanish service stops at 0000 UT on weekends. Countless kW are wasted instead of feeding starving Cubans.
9780 also with heavy jamming at 0215 May 2, perhaps a trace of R. República audio underneath (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** CYPRUS. 9920-9945, OTH radar pulses, presumed from here, May 1 at 2327; main victim is 9935 in Spanish which is YFR via GUF, so who cares? (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** EGYPT. 11590, R. Cairo, at 2313 May 1 at S9+20 signal but just barely modulated with ME music. I daringly turn the volume all the way up, and that makes it sound about normal level, but risky vs fades, noise, interference, and occasional spixe in the modulation itself to higher level, but nowhere near normal. This is the so-called Western North American service in English at 2300-2430, followed by four hours of Arabic (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** NORTH AMERICA. 6940-USB, May 2 at 0040 just as I tuned in a bit of music, heard ID from WEAK, and weak @ gmail.com Nothing further, so apparently signed off. Was not too weak (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** OKLAHOMA. 1580, KOKB Blackwell once again transmitting for hours and hours with no modulation, Saturday May 1 checked at 2000, 2147, 2226 UT. Also May 2 at 0020 as skywave was starting to income, something underneath the carrier producing SAH. I have an idea: why not turn off the transmitter too, so maybe I can hear in daytime the next closest 1580 stations, Van Buren AR, El Dorado Springs MO or Gainesville TX? (Glenn Hauser, Enid, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** ROMANIA. 11955 in Spanish vs jamspurs: see CUBA [and non]
** RUSSIA [non]. 9810 VOR Spanish via GUIANA FRENCH, May 2 at 0107 with La Voz de Rusia ID, no Cuban jamming for a change. No VOR Spanish at this time on 9735. GUF earlier in A-season was running both during this hour, but apparently 9735 now does not start until 0200, a May 1 mod? At 0215 check it`s the other way round, on 9735, off 9810 (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** U S A. WBCQ anomalies May 1-UT May 2: As in previous report, 9330 has started carrying the Good Friends Radio Network, supposedly at 13-01 UT daily. At 2323, confirmed it`s on CUSB as usual (``compatible`` i.e. reduced-carrier upper sideband), speaker about to expose something about the Catholic Church, but suddenly cut to another topic, net ID and mentioning time of 6 am Central = 12 GMT. Not now; is this an old recording from standard time? Maybe it was a poorly-produced program promo. Next tuneby at 2349 finds dead air, then modulation cutting in and out. At one point, GFRN mentions WBCQ, leading me to believe WBCQ is its only outlet. Supposed to end at 0100, but still on with preacher, VG signal at 0203, ditto 0229.
That`s not all. 7415 had been off the air Saturday evenings, but now it`s back, at 0155 UT Sunday May 2 with rock music. But as quoted in my last report from the schedule update page of the WBCQ website, Brother Scare is supposed to be on 7415 until 0300 every night including UT Sunday, and this is not TOM! Just in case checked WWRB 3145 where BS is really talking not //.
At 0159 ``Chain Gang``, 0201 no ID and segué to a country rock song. Is it // 5110 Area 51 by any chance? No. 0204 ``Jailhouse Rock`` by Elvis. 0206 guess who, it`s a show hosted by Ted Randall; missed the title, but asks for e-mail and soon starts interviewing Rev. Dennis, aimed at prisoners? Website prayforme.us and inviting prayer partners. 0215 back to music. There is nothing about this on the WBCQ website, nor at http://www.tedrandall.com
Possibly the extension of 9330 and the unscheduled programming on 7415 are just ad-hoc, the operator on duty deciding to keep the transmitters running a bit later with whatever he can lay his hands on (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** U S A. 4840, WWCR-3 amid DX Block at 0229 UT Sunday May 2, canned announcement claimed it was on 4775 at 0300 Saturday, i.e. old winter schedule, except it was also UT Sunday then. Then WORLD OF RADIO 1510 started only a few sex late and hope it didn`t go into looping this time, as I missed rechecking a few mins before end (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** U S A. 1660, checking for KXTR Kansas City which supposedly has a classical format, as heard last night at unlogged time, but now UT Sunday May 2 at 0027 I am hearing an interview from Richmond VA with the Lt. Governor, in connexion with NASCAR, the Heath-Calhoun 400, which may be of great interest to most classical fans, but not this one. Axually, ENTERCOM just dumps on this frequency whatever it can`t place on any of its other stations in the market, classical being the lowest priority and the first to be pre-empted.
Recheck a few mins later at 0034, it`s much weaker. Was it just a fade, or did KXTR switch from 10 kW day power to 1 kW night power at 0030 UT? When is LSS officially in KC KS? FCC entry for this station at http://www.fcc.gov/fcc-bin/srsstime?dlat=39&mlat=2&slat=17.00&dlon=94&mlon=36&slon=56.00&tzone=B
says 7:30 pm CST, so it`s still an hour away, unless on the first day of the new month at a new time, KXTR mistakenly cut at 7:30 pm CDT. FCC SR/SS info stays on standard time, clearly specified as such, but I am sure it still confuses lots of stations about when they should really make antenna/power changes, and such errors are most likely to happen on the first day of any month (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
UNIDENTIFIED. 5954.2, noticed a non-standard het against Harold Camping WYFR on 5950.0, i.e. less than 5 kHz, so sought out and measured as best I could this weak carrier, May 2 at 0046, which of course brings to mind the ELCOR transmitter-test frequency from Costa Rica which may or may not have been involved at some time with Radio República (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ###