RADIO TOPICS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXII, Issue 19195, 8 December 1925, Page 6

RADIO TOPICS.

BY THERMION.

A CHRISTMAS NOVELTY. A special Christmas broadcast is to be given from the Auckland private broadcasting station, IYB, on Wednesday, December 23. Last Christmas, Mr. C. H. Pearson, manager of IYB, made arrangements for Santa Claus to visit- that station and speak a few words to each of the children listening-in. This laudable scheme met with such marked approval by the child listeners that arrangements are now being made for a similar broadcast on December 23. The general idea is that the parents write to the station giving the names of their children who will be listening and details of the presents they are to receive, and an appeal has been made to listeners to invite to their homes children, especially of the poorer class, who are not so fortunate as to be able to listen-in in their own homes. Further, the co-operation is sought of Hsteners-in who would be prepared to take their receiving sets to orphanages and various institutions housing children around Auckland, so that they, too, may have the pleasure of receiving individual messages from Santa Claus. Only those who have had the opportunity of seeing children being personally addressed by radio can realise the appeal made to their imaginations and the pleasure they derive. For this reason the writer has taken over the organsisation of this special broadcast, and offers of assistance and letters relating to the children who will be listening should be addressed to Mr. G. Mcß. Salt, care IYB, 157, Karangahape Road, Auckland. THE EXHIBITION STATION. According to Southern reports additions are being made to the station. A small announcer's room is being built on the end of the main studio, so that the announcer will be able to talk to listeners away from the sounds of apparatus. He will also be able to listen-in and report on the quality of the programmes that are going on the air. .During the last few days various changes have been made and several experiments conducted, but so far ihe results have not been satisfactory. This broadcasting station has now been transmitting for thre§ weeks, but the services are most unsatisfactory. There seems no doubt that the Exhibition Wireless Committee has imposed very stringent restrictions on the Broadcasting company, and in some quarters it is suggested the restrictions are unduly harsh. One can understand that the Wireless Committee would expect satisfactory guarantees of good broadcasting from a newly-formed broadcasting company, bnt there should be no need for unfair restrictions. Whatever the nature of the agreement between the Wireless Committee and the company it will not account for the technical imperfections of the broadcasts. The company has proclaimed its ability to give a perfect service from the -exhibition, and it has so far completely failed to substantiate its claims. What is needed is the importation of a trained radio engineer to supervise the technical activities of the company, and until this is done listeners cannot expect perfect transmissions. Even if the transmitting set is perfected there must always be some doubt as to whether excellent volume -will be obtained outside Dunedin. As the writer recalls the Logan Park site of the exhibition, it is closely bounded to the north by hills, which may badly screen the broadcasting station. Probably the company would have been well advised to have" kept its station in the -position of 4YA and relayed to it from the exhibition by land-line. With information available the writer sympathises with the broadcasting company in its difficulties in arranging programmes from YLDN, but sees no satisfactory explanation for the technical inefficiency of the station. CHRISTCHURCH STATION. Now that Radio—SAC is the official broadcasting station in C'hristchurch, superseding 3YA, the schedule of transmissions has been altered to suit the new conditions. Station 3AC is now transmitting as follows:—Sundays, 8 to 10 p.m., items: Tuesdays, 6.45 to' 7.-15 p.m., bedtime stories; 8 to 10, items; Wednesdays, 8 to 10, items; Fridays, 6.45 to 7.15, bedtime stories; 8 p.m. onwards, experimental transmissions; Saturdays, 8 to ,10 p.m., items. The official wave length of 3AC is 240 metres, and the power 50 watts. It- is hoped t-o publish in Radio Topics at an early date a complete list, together with transmitting details, of all the broadcasting stations at present operating in New Zealand. SHORT-WAVE BROADCASTING. Experiments in higher power and medium wave lengths are being conducted at present in England by the British Broadcasting Company under the authority of the British Post Office. The tests are expected to go a long way toward solving the question whether or not fewer stations and higher power shall be the policy of broadcasting in the future. Further experiments will follow with short waves. Some engineers say that the best method of broadcasting is that which has been used up to now : but with practically all the nations of Europe broadcasting, the ideal must- give way to the practical, and subsidiary short waves may possibly be used for linking up distant countries. It is not certain that short waves will provide perfect linking; it may be that these elusive short waves will have to be abandoned and new methods adopted. Although the short waves get through very well in continuous working, the trouble of night distortion seems to set up an insuperable barrier. At certain times of the year, at undefined periods of the. night, in unknown electrical conditions of the atmosphere, KDKA can be picked up with the utmost ease in England and the signals rebroadoast intelligibly. On the other hand, at times when an attempt is made to pick np KDKA under apparently the same conditions, tisß British Broadcasting Company can only succeed in broadcasting a succession atmospherics with a possible travesty 0t the original thrown in. It should shortly be known whether, say, 25 kilowatts with long wave is better than 25 kilowatts with short wave.

NOTES AND HINTS. Mr. L. W. White, A.M.1.E.E., has been appointed branch manager for Auckland of the Radio Broadcasting Company of New Zealand, Ltd. A special broadcast will be given from IYB to-morrow evening, commencing at 6.45 p.m.. with bed-time stories and a special message for the children by "Uncle Peter." There has been a vast improvement in the quality of the transmissions from IYB, the volume and modulation now being all that could be desired. Church services are broadcast from the station on the first three Sundays of the. month and next Sunday the service from the Beresford Street Congregational Church will be followed by an organ recital. Last week, reference was made to 'the Atlas Investment Company's Chicago broadcast station, WBBM. This station is going to transmit a special programme for New Zealand on Monday evening, December 14, commencing at seven o'clock, New Zealand time. WBBM transmits on a wave length of 226 metres, power 1500 watts, and is easily recognisable by the frequent "cuckoo" calls of the announcer.