BITS ABOUT BROADCASTS.

Manawatu Standard, Volume LVIII, Issue 227, 24 August 1938, Page 6

BITS ABOUT BROADCASTS.

MOTALA AT iMIDDAY. TRANSMISSIONS FROM SWEDEN. (By “Microphone.”) Europe speaks with a multitude of voices daily; were a microphone to have been installed in the Tower of Babel the effect could have been hardly more striking. While in the breakfast hour there is no dearth of entertainment from this and United States sources, it is apparent to listeners who realise the opportunities at hand that at noon the 25-metre band is becoming increasingly interesting. A familiarity with the usual Central European, and London transmissions is apt to encourage their relegation from the front rank of unusual entertainment, but when a representative of the Northern Kingdoms—outpost of peaceful nations on the Continent —makes its appearance a novel touch is lent. Sweden is being heard in the city at present at quite satisfactory speaker strength, signing off at 1.30 p.m. The station is SBP Motala, Stockholm, and its wave (as announced) is 25.63 metres, or frequency 11,705 kilocycles. According to announcements it would appear that the present schedule embraces only two days a week —Thursday and Saturday—and concludes at 1.30 p.m., corresponding to 1 a.mi

E G.M.T. and 2 a.m. Swedish Mea Time. Reports are invited on the: • transmissions to bo sent merely 1 ! SBP Motala, Stockholm. Orchestr: items are featured and the dosing ai nouncement in Swedish is followed b the English version, the station lea l ing the air with the National Anthen Transmissions are remarkably stead and only a'point or so weaker tha Rome. It is stated that the statio does not verify with a card, but wit a “Thank you” type of letter. It appears that marked progress ha been made in the matter of short-wav installations in Sweden in recon months, transmissions from which ar made during tho morning hours (Ney Zealand time). SMSSX is listed a operating on 15,155 k.c., 19.79 met res, till 9.30 a.m. daily. SBO is on 606; k.c., 49.46 metres, a noisy situation till the same hour. Both of thes; stations also transmit in the very earl; hours of tho morning. Sweden' ii among the most distant points fron which programmes are heard in th< Dominion, and at a period when cir cumstances are particularly helpfu listeners who enjoy an unusual fea ture are advised to note these schedules. However, SBP is likely tc prove the most satisfactory. ROME’S MIDDAY HOUR. Attention has recently been drawn to the excellence of the midday session from Rome during the “American Hour,” when news in English is broadcast and musical items—principally operatic excerpts—are announced in English. Good volume is being maintained on these schedules, which ire announced sometjmes by a woman with an American accent. The principal frequency is that used by 2RO on 11,810 k.c., 25.4 metres, but on occasions in the past week it has been noticed the programme has been simultaneously transmitted on a higher frequency. This is IQA which operates on 11,900 k.c., although it is stated (o announce as 11,700 k.c. Strength is, if anything, superior to 2RO.' Simultaneous transmissions are also made on IRF—another of the new transmitters—on 9830 k.c., 30.52 metres.

ULTRA-SHORT-WAVE UNIT. While special examinations are not so far required, it is incumbent upon amateurs in the United States to obtain a special license to operate on ultra-short-waves—below 10 metres. Nevertheless, it would appear that there is considerable activity pn this band; in Australia and this Dominion not a great deal of use has yet been made of these frequencies, apart from a few pioneer amateurs, notably VK2NO Sydney, whose signals have been picked up in England. News from Canada, however, brings interesting information of the adaptation of this band for the use of recording sound pictures of life in the senior Dominion. During the present summer a specially built mobile studio unit has been on tour of Western Canada, recording sounds in the national parks for later rebroadcast as quarter-hour features. The scheme follows successful experiments in this direction in England. The mobile studio is equipped with the latest in transmitters and receivers and two complete recording machines. In case the trailer gets off tlm beaten track _ into areas where there are no electric power lines, the trunk compartment of the automobile has a powerful gasoline driven generator which can supply enough power to run the unit. The transmitters operate on ultra-high-frequencies, while the unit operates as VE9AZ on 37,000 kilocycles (8.108 metres). The pack transmitters have a range for recording reception from three-quarters of a mile with a 2-watt transmitter to 20 miles for the 40-watt transmitter. The unit is also equipped to connect transmissions picked up by tho pack transmitters to telephone lines for network

ill broadcasting. It contains accommodate tion for four men and sleeping room :o for two men. It has a sliding, roof il opening so that a commentator can i- work right from the roof of the trails’. er. , " r- * i. RADIO IN LATIN AMERICA. y n An indication of the enthusiastic n manner in which the Latin American h countries have, devoted themselves to radio is easily derived by spinning s the sliort-wavo dials during the weeke end, when on-almost every hand thero t is a multitude of stations, though the g 31-metre channel appears to be most v generally favoured. Cuba is in the fores front of this development and there is ■ an abundance of characteristic music 51 from this source. In not a few inj stances States in Central and South 3 America themselves operate stations 7 for propaganda purposes, though not 5 in the manner of the European coun--3 tries—rather merely to ensure them a j voice and identity among tho many j 1 other small States. It is significant that, according to the latest informa- | tion ; there are 160 licensed short-wave ) stations in Latin-American countries as compared with only 17 in the United States. A recent survey indicated that these serve more than two and aquarter million owners of receivers in addition to the millions who listen in as members of families. It is estimated that at least a million and a-lialf sets of the total arc capable of sliort-’.vave reception. In the smaller towns the receiver is made a community instrument—as in many Indian villages—and most of the inhabitants are accustomed to gather each evening for entertainment. Germany, in particular, has not been slow in recognising the big field available in this' direction, and programmes directed to South , America are familiar to all listeners. . Britain, by the inauguration of Spanish j and Portuguese sessions from London, t has sought to offset any prejudicial - propaganda, while the commencement j of specially-directed programmes from j Schenectady U.S., is significant. At J present high _ power high-frequency ] tubes are being developed with other j equipment to make these stations j among the most powerful in the world. ( THROUGH THE MICROPHONE. 1 WBXAL Cincinnati provides late re- j ception from America as the short- s wave voice of WLW, “The Nation’s t Station.” Operating at good strength, y despite the noisy channel, it is heard y till 3.30 (2 a.m. local time) on 49.5 s metres, 6060 k.c. a To-morrow night VK9MI, the fam- c ous transmitter of the Australian t coastal ship Kanimbla, will transmit c another of the programmes for subse- g quent rebroadcast. Between 11.30 p.m. s and midnight it will send ito 2GF d Grafton a programme on 6010 k.c., d 49.917 metres. / f

London is splendid on Transmission I on the 25-metre band, but on 19 metres is noticeably inferior to Berlin, which appears to have concentrated on this channel, or to have more satisfactory facilities. London, however, is excellent on the mid-dial position, while Berlin is capable of affording very acceptable entertainment on 19 and 16 metres into the late evening, featuring worthwhile musical programmes. _ WIXAL Boston is well worth attention on' Sunday mornings about 9 o’clock, during its educational sessions. These ,are being heard now at very fine strength, on 25.45 metres, 11,790 k.c., on Sundays from 5.159.15 a.m. and again from 10 till 10.30 a.m. At about 9 a.m volume Is excellent

American broadcast band stations are at good strength on most evenings. XELO Tijuana, Mexico, on about 710 k.c., is among the more prominent.