The Radio World

Hawke's Bay Tribune, Volume XVIII, Issue 201, 8 August 1928, Page 9

The Radio World

NEWS FOR LISTENERS

Reception on long waves has been quite good lately. Amongst the stations heard during the week were KPO and KFI. The latter came across quite well. He appeared to be enjoying himself with a midnight frtlic, as he called it. Amongst the other DX station heard lately were two Japs. JOGK and JOAK. The latter in close on 2BL’s wave; about 2 degrees below it. TOGK is about two de greez below 4QG. As was mentioned last week the short survey of S.W. stations and also a list of abbreviations which will help the listener to follow the amateur talks will be Inserted. 58W. England, comes in at about R 4. He is about 60 per cent readable. RFM, Russia is quite good at about 10 p.m. Strength about R 7. Although the listener may get tired of his talks his musical items are well worth wait ing for. The following SW abbreviations may be of use to the listener:— 08, means old boy; YL, young lady; 73’s. good luck best wishes, etc.; es. and; 88’s love and kisses; QSK, is the last radiogram cancelled! QST. general call to all stations; very much like eg; ORM, denotes interference; QRN. static, QSS, fading; QSSS, swinging; QRH, wave length. The Aussies simply roar across now. The order of merit in the writer’s opinion, is 2BL, 2FC, 4QG 3LU 2GB 3AR. 2UE, 2KY, with 2UE and 2KY about equal. 4QG has quite overcome the buzzing noiee we complained of a few months back. By the way, some people will not know what the series of dots heard from 4 and 8 arc. They are time signals. Those who have thought of buying a short-wave receiving set need not worry about the length of their aeiials. The aerial used for receiving the ordinary broadcast transmission serves admirably for short-wave re ception, Without any shortening or other alteration. A 20-kilowatt wireless station is to be erected at Bangkok by the Tele funken Company of Berlin. The service will be controlled by the Siamese Government. It is expected that the station will be in operation in about six months. Of unusual interest are the antenna masts, which are approximately 190 ft high" A broadcast receiver cannot be used for short-waves reception unless a special dapter is used. This udap-

ter is plugged into the dector socket of the set, thus using audio stages only. If the reciver has one or more radio frequency stages, these valves must be removed.

Twenty times as many sets as are now being used would be needed to satisfy fully the potential world radio market, according to the etlmate of the United States Department of Com merce. The 18,000,000 receiving sets now in use throughout the world serve about 90,000,000 of the earth’s inhabitants, or approximately 9 per cent of the population of existing zones of constant radio reception. If the zones of broadcast service were extended to include the whole world, 350 ■ 000,000 sets would be required. So the bugbear of radio “saturation” is still a good many decades in the future No less an authority than Sir Oliver Lodge has recently given his consider ed opinion that, for really efficient television, mechanical contrivances are likely' to fall, for the reason that they are already about at the end of their tether from the point of view of rapidity and accuracy of movement and that for real success still more is necessary of them. Sir Oliver Lodgegoes on to mention cathode rays or moving electrons as “the only thinglikely to be sufficiently docile and eon trollable to be used as the agents for television. No material things nre likely to be able to move quickly enough, but electrons respond so instantaneously that if devices can be invented -for utilising them, the theoretical difficulties with the required rapidity of motion would begin to dis appear both from the sender and the receiver, especially as photo-electric response is almost infinitely rapid.”

Amateurs who use resistance-coupl-ed amplifiers and have experienced difficulty in obtaining accurately calibrated resistance will be interested in a new resistance which is being pro dueed In the United States. The method of construction is quite new, and permits a degree of accuracy in construction, which, it is stated, is far greater than has been possible before. . The resistance is constructed on a short rod of non-conducting m itorial such as fibre or bakelite. On to this rod is precipitated by a special process a coating of material with a fairly high electrical resistance. To ensure positive contact between the resistance terminals and this resisting material the ends of the rod are then

plated with copper. Tn this form the resistance of the rod, though fairly high, is far too low for ordinary use on wireless receivers. It is therefore placed in a device which cuts a special groove through the resistance material bn its surface. A long, thin, spiral strip of the resisting m<*' terial, of which the resistance is very high, therefore remains. While the cutting is proceeding a current is pass ed constantly through the rod. This current operates suitable recording machinery, which shows the gradual increase in the rosistence of the rod as this indicator shows that the precise resistance desired has been reached the cutting of the groove is stopped and the surface of the resistance is then suitably treated to protect it from mosture. A big round-up of radio pirates was made in Sydney lately, when 1176 persons were fined a total sum of £2lBO with costs totalling £742. There are probably more unlicensed listeners in New South Wales than in any other State. The convictions in each State up to April last were: —New South Wales, 557 (fines £1186); Victoria, 290 (£529); Queensland, 44 (£64.); South Australia, 230 (£304); West Australia, 42 (£68); Tasmania, 13 «27).

PROGRAMMES FOR TO-NIGHT

IYA, AUCKLAND. — 6 p.m. t Children’s session. Uncle Tom. 7.15: Talk by “Gargoyle,” “Air Cleansers and Tractor Operation.” 7.30: News and reports. 8 p.m.: Relay of Municipal Band concert, under the conductorship of Mr. C. Smith, military band selections, assisted by the Hazell-Sutheriand Duo, who will perform the following items from the Studio: Contralto solos, Miss P. Hazell, (a) “Yonder,” Olliver, (b) “The Blind Ploughman,” Clarke; baritone solos, Mr. F. Sutherland, (a) “Meggie’s Weddin’,” Sanderson, (b) “Floral Dance,” Moss ; vocal duets, Hazell-Sutherland Duo, (a) “Just a-Wearying For You?’ Jacobs-Bond, (b) “Flower Duet,” from “Lilac Time,” Schubert, arranged Clutsam. 2YA, WELLINGTON.—SiIent day. 3YA, CHRISTCHURCH.—6 p.m.: Children’s hour, Uncle Peter and Mother Hubbard. 7.15 p.m.: Addington stock market reports. 8 p.m.: Overture, relay from Strand Picture Theatre Orchestra and assisting artists.

4YA, DUNEDIN.-8 p.m.: Relay of orchestral music from the Octagon Theatre Orchestra, under the direction of Monsieur Henri de Rose and assisting artists.

2FC, SYDNEY. — 8 p.m.: Tonight’s anniversary, Captain Fred Aarons, “First meeting of N.S.W. Representatives Legislative Council, 1843” ; the New South Wales Broadcasting Company’s Orchestra; Vladi mir Elin, Russian baritone; Margaret James, soprano ; from the Conservatoriuin Hall, Sydney, part two of the -programme by the Sydney Madrigal Society, including vocal and instrumental items; from the Studio, the String Trio, instrumentalists; late weather forecast; dance music.

2 BL, SYDNEY.—B p.m.: Items by the Sydney Madrigal Society, broadcast from the Conservatorium; the Rose Bay W’inter Garden Theatre Symphony Orchestra, under the direction of Mr. L. Hart, broadcast from the Rose Bay Theatre; Mr. Claude Corbett, the sporting editor of the “Sun,” will talk on general sporting; “Wild FloW'ers,” a cycle of quartets, solos and duets, words by Christina Rossetti, Robert Louis Stevenson. Sidne.y Dolbe’l and Shelley, the music by Arthur Someiville; soloists, Bertha Waters (soprano), Lance Jeffree (tenor), Amy Ostinga (contralto), Peter Sutherland (bass; the second half of this programme will be broadcast by 2FC. 3LO. MELBOURNE,—7.I3 p.m.: Talks by Crowe, P. W. Pearce, Char les Nuttall. Vocal and instrumental items by Guy Moore, Joe Brennati and Ida Newton, “Floradorg,” the Station Orchestra. 3AR, MELBOURNE. — 7 p.m.: Studio items; 8 pm. • Stock reports and news session. 8.30 p.m. Studio concert. 4QG, BRISBANE.—B p.m.: An entertainment arranged by Messrs. Olsen and Goodchap, and organised by Mr. Jack Ellis, followed by a description of the ring events and fireworks display at the Royal National Show.