UK Vintage Radio Repair and Restoration Powered By Google Custom Search Vintage Radio and TV Service Data

Go Back   UK Vintage Radio Repair and Restoration Discussion Forum > General Vintage Technology > General Vintage Technology Discussions

Notices

General Vintage Technology Discussions For general discussions about vintage radio and other vintage electronics etc.

Closed Thread
 
Thread Tools
Old 1st Jan 2022, 8:52 pm   #141
Graham G3ZVT
Dekatron
 
Graham G3ZVT's Avatar
 
Join Date: May 2010
Location: Greater Manchester, UK.
Posts: 18,675
Default Re: Radio Caroline Power Increase

Just for fun I tried the cheap Chinese radio on 648kHz that was the subject of this thread:

https://www.vintage-radio.net/forum/...d.php?t=184986

I can just about hear Caroline here, 3 miles North of Manchester, the limiting factor seems to be the co-channel interference. the most dominant interfering station is producing a 2Hz beat with Caroline. I would have thought that's quite a lot, given the easy access to GPS frequency reference these days.
__________________
--
Graham.
G3ZVT
Graham G3ZVT is offline  
Old 5th Jan 2022, 5:15 pm   #142
Pfraser
Pentode
 
Join Date: Sep 2018
Location: Devon, UK.
Posts: 151
Default Re: Radio Caroline Power Increase

Out in the countryside this morning, I tuned my Sony ICF-SW11 to 648kHz. An identifiable but not really listenable signal on the ferrite rod aerial, but...extending the telescopic aerial brought solid reception and the tuning indicator steadily lit!

I find this quite impressive. It's a 'secret' feature of this Sony model, in that the user manual makes no reference to boosting MW reception in this way. There's just the standard advice to rotate the receiver for best reception. I discovered it by accident.

I heard Caroline at 10:50 UTC. Panjab Radio on 558kHz were also quite strong; slightly weaker than Caroline. They emit 2.5kW from Crystal Palace.

Reception was boosted with the telescopic aerial vertical. There was still some benefit from orienting the ferrite rod aerial.

Two (at least) of the Russian Vega Selena models offered this feature: the B210 and B212.

I wonder how many other sets have it? Furthermore, could some sort of external coupling arrangement work on receivers without this feature? A wire croc-clipped to the telescopic aerial, then wound round the set several times, perhaps.
Pfraser is offline  
Old 5th Jan 2022, 5:28 pm   #143
stevehertz
Dekatron
 
stevehertz's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2011
Location: Rugeley, Staffordshire, UK.
Posts: 8,809
Default Re: Radio Caroline Power Increase

Can't seem to get it in the West Midlands.
__________________
A digital radio is the latest thing, but a vintage wireless is forever..
stevehertz is offline  
Old 5th Jan 2022, 6:40 pm   #144
Jolly 7
Octode
 
Join Date: Feb 2018
Location: Southampton, Hampshire, UK.
Posts: 1,049
Default Re: Radio Caroline Power Increase

Radio Caroline's coming in with fair to good signals at present in the Southampton area. It's just after 5 30 PM. There is some occasional deep fading resulting in becoming almost inaudible, but it's mostly listenable without any co channel interference. I am listening to it on a home-built TRF MW receiver.
Jolly 7 is offline  
Old 6th Jan 2022, 12:24 pm   #145
eddie_ce
Hexode
 
eddie_ce's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2010
Location: nr. Hannover, Germany
Posts: 372
Default Re: Radio Caroline Power Increase

After dark, here in northern Germany I can usually hear Caroline with considerable fading and some CCI on my Tecsun 330 using only the inbuilt ferrite rod.
__________________
Eddie
BVWS Member.
Friend of the BVWTM
eddie_ce is offline  
Old 7th Jan 2022, 12:53 pm   #146
Gulliver
Hexode
 
Join Date: Aug 2011
Location: Luton, Bedfordshire, UK.
Posts: 469
Default Re: Radio Caroline Power Increase

Reasonable signal on an 80's Aiwa boombox from my place of work in NW2. Listenable for sure, but with some interference.

Will try in Luton (home) this evening if I remember.
Gulliver is offline  
Old 9th Jan 2022, 5:15 pm   #147
stevehertz
Dekatron
 
stevehertz's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2011
Location: Rugeley, Staffordshire, UK.
Posts: 8,809
Default Re: Radio Caroline Power Increase

Further to my post 43 above, using a Tecsun PL-606* pocket trannie I can receive Caroline in Rugeley, Staffs. I say 'receive', it's debatable if you'd want to listen to it for long due to the background noise level, and I don't mean inside the house, it's just a weak signal. I can just about, with the volume up full and loads of background noise, receive it on my 193os Cossor 364, but it's for sure not listenable.

Now, if they could eke a few more watts of power...

*The Tecsun PL-606 is quite a 'powerful' little radio.
__________________
A digital radio is the latest thing, but a vintage wireless is forever..
stevehertz is offline  
Old 15th Apr 2022, 4:45 pm   #148
stevehertz
Dekatron
 
stevehertz's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2011
Location: Rugeley, Staffordshire, UK.
Posts: 8,809
Default Re: Radio Caroline Power Increase

I just picked it up at a decent, listenable quality on a 1930s Ekco AC74 in Rugeley, Staffs. Good performance for a 30s set I reckon.
__________________
A digital radio is the latest thing, but a vintage wireless is forever..
stevehertz is offline  
Old 15th Apr 2022, 8:06 pm   #149
Pilot Mariner
Hexode
 
Pilot Mariner's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2003
Location: Burntwood, Staffordshire, UK or Kabaty in Warsaw Poland.
Posts: 438
Default Re: Radio Caroline Power Increase

I get a reasonable signal on my car radio Steve, not far away. I sometimes have it on during my journey to work.
Pilot Mariner is offline  
Old 15th Apr 2022, 8:59 pm   #150
Junk Box Nick
Octode
 
Junk Box Nick's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2011
Location: West Midlands, UK.
Posts: 1,571
Default Re: Radio Caroline Power Increase

Caroline North on 648 and Manx 1368 Friday to Sunday (finishes 9pm Sunday).

Lots of oldies from all eras so a bit different from the regular 648 service.
Junk Box Nick is offline  
Old 9th May 2022, 10:05 am   #151
cmjones01
Nonode
 
Join Date: Oct 2008
Location: Warsaw, Poland and Cambridge, UK
Posts: 2,669
Default Re: Radio Caroline Power Increase

At the weekend I tried an experiment. I was driving from Cambridge to Warsaw, crossing the channel Dover-Dunkirk and then going east in roughly a straight line. I left the car radio tuned to 648kHz as long as possible. The signal from Caroline was loud and clear in the UK, and stayed perfectly good enough to listen to for entertainment in the car all the way through France, Belgium and the Netherlands to Düsseldorf in Germany, a distance of about 300 miles from Orford Ness as the crow flies. This was during daylight hours. That's pretty impressive coverage for a 4kW transmitter!

The signal faded out as I crossed the range of hills to the east of the Rhine, reappearing briefly on high ground the other side of Wuppertal. As dusk fell and I stopped for the night near Hanover, Caroline reappeared but with heavy, rapid fading.

The following morning nothing was audible on 648kHz but I switched to Radio 4 on 198kHz and that remained listenable until well past the former West/East German border at Marienborn. The only other signals I found on AM (long and medium wave) from that point were Danish Radio on 243kHz and, gradually becoming clearly audible towards Berlin, Polish Radio on 225kHz. Nothing on medium wave at all.

Chris

Chris
__________________
What's going on in the workshop? http://martin-jones.com/
cmjones01 is offline  
Old 9th May 2022, 10:57 am   #152
paulsherwin
Moderator
 
paulsherwin's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2003
Location: Oxford, UK
Posts: 27,786
Default Re: Radio Caroline Power Increase

There is of course a sea path between Orford and the near Continent, one of the reasons it was chosen for the original WS Europe service. I agree the signal is travelling surprisingly well for 4kW though.
paulsherwin is online now  
Old 9th May 2022, 1:52 pm   #153
Sideband
Dekatron
 
Sideband's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2003
Location: Croydon, Surrey, UK.
Posts: 7,548
Default Re: Radio Caroline Power Increase

Quote:
Originally Posted by cmjones01 View Post
That's pretty impressive coverage for a 4kW transmitter!
Maybe you should contact them via their website. They have (or had) a section for reception reports. I'm sure their technical team would be interested.
__________________
There are lots of brilliant keyboard players and then there is Rick Wakeman.....
Sideband is offline  
Old 11th May 2022, 10:58 am   #154
Junk Box Nick
Octode
 
Junk Box Nick's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2011
Location: West Midlands, UK.
Posts: 1,571
Default Re: Radio Caroline Power Increase

Caroline are still taking reception reports via https://www.radiocaroline.co.uk/#648_am.html
Junk Box Nick is offline  
Old 11th May 2022, 1:44 pm   #155
cmjones01
Nonode
 
Join Date: Oct 2008
Location: Warsaw, Poland and Cambridge, UK
Posts: 2,669
Default Re: Radio Caroline Power Increase

Thank you for the link. I've submitted a report, and I hope it's helpful to them. They've clearly put a lot of effort in to getting a good signal out.
__________________
What's going on in the workshop? http://martin-jones.com/
cmjones01 is offline  
Closed Thread

Thread Tools



All times are GMT +1. The time now is 5:50 pm.


All information and advice on this forum is subject to the WARNING AND DISCLAIMER located at https://www.vintage-radio.net/rules.html.
Failure to heed this warning may result in death or serious injury to yourself and/or others.


Powered by vBulletin®
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.
Copyright ©2002 - 2023, Paul Stenning.