THE WIRELESS WORLD

Otago Daily Times, Issue 21531, 31 December 1931, Page 2

THE WIRELESS WORLD

NEWS AND NOTES By Magna Vox. Items of local interest are invited by "Magna Vox” for publication in this column It is necessary that such matter should reach this office by Tuesday of each week for insertion on the following Friday. 2BL, Sydney.—Bss K.C., 855 metres. 2KC, Sydney.—66s K.C., 422 metres. 3AR, Melbourne. —620 • K.C., 484 metres. 3LO, Melbourne. —880 K.C., 871 metres. SCL,, Adelaide.*—7Bo K.C., 305 metres, 4QG Brisbane,—76o K.C., 885 metres. IV'A, Auckland. —870 K.C., 883 metres Every day except Monday. 2YA Wellington.—72o K.C., 420 metre* Every day except Wednesday. BYA, Christchurch. —08u K.C., 806 metre* Every day except Tuesday. 4 YA, Dunedin.—6so K.C.. 468 metres Every day except Thursday. 4ZM, Dunedin—loßo K.C.. 277.8 metres Tuesdays and .Saturdays. * 4ZO, Dunedin.—loßo K.U.. 277.8 metres Monday and Friday. 4ZB. Dunedin.—loßo K.C., 277.8 metres Wednesday, Thursday, and Sunday morning ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS. “ Battery,” Hampden.— y {l) The natural voltage of the charger will prevent the How of any reverse current. When one is used on a single cell only, there will be danger of overloading it unless it has adequate devices for limiting its output. (2) Add a little sulphuric acid to the water and the negative will produce bubbles freely; or you can jamb both into a piece of potato and milky bubbles will appear at the negative, and if the wile is copper, there will be a greenish tinge at the positive. G. F. D., Dunedin. — (1) The only effect would be to cut part of the secondary battery out of the circuit. It could not harm the valves or transformers. See that the bias is properly applied to the last valve, as excesaive > plate current would cause heating, while a short circuit would cause the battery to warm up. (2) Theoretically, the accumulator, if in first-class, condition, should last 300 hours, which means that you should be able to use it for about 200 hours before re-charging. Dry batteri' I’. 1 ’. should last, five months if the bias is adequate. A RECORD OF SERVICE. EARLY HISTORY OF 4YA. To-day, listeners will hear the last programmes transmitted ' under the direction of the New. Zealand Radio Broadcasting Company, and at midnight, the Advisory Board appointed by the Government will take over control of tnjp YA stations. In scanning the personnel, of the new board, one is impressed by the fact that the members have obviously not been chosen for their knowledge of the technical side' of wireless, and it appears' that this will, be left entirely to the officers of the P. and T, .Department. Until the board has, as it were, found its feet, there'wijl_ be no changes in the present staffs, and in,any case, the benefit of any radical alteration in this direction would appear to be distinctly, problematical. Listeners have found much to criticise on the Broadcasting Company’s policy and organisation, nut there can be no question that it has in its employ a ■ highly competent band of officials, each one of whom knows his or her duty thoroughly, and unless the board can appoint in their places others who can give improved service, it would certainly not be doing any service to the listeners by making a general change ot staff. ' . I-' With the change over; to Government control, oUr local station, 4YA, although it is by no means the; most powerful in, the company’s; network, can .look back on nearly' six years’ yeoman service tendered to its listeners —service given, especially in its earlier yeargj under a considerable handicap. ■ ; . „ Radio broadcasting in Otago officially commenced late in 1925, when the Goi* eminent requested the newly-formed Radio Broadcasting Company to erect and operate a station at the New Zealand and South Seas Exhibition. _ Before then, transmissions had. been carried out by Hr Jack, and later by Mr F. J. O Neill, Mr N. Arundel, ; and the Otago Radio Association. The station operated ■ by Mr O’Neill, the',’.Original 4YA, .waa the first to undertake regular transmissions, which continued until November,. 1925. To those interested in VLDN, the Exhibition station, it was a matter of regret that the Broadcasting Company was given only two weeks to construct and erect the station before the Exhibition that short time, a 500-wait transmitter had been constructed in Christchurch, and been sent down. After much feverish haste upon the part of the Post and Telegraph Department the big 100 feet high aerial was erected, the small lean-to building at the rear of the Festival Half was built to house the transmitter, the apparatus was ■ erected, and everything was in readiness on the afternoon of November 17, when the big Exhibition was duly opened. Just before the_ official ceremony began, VLDN went officially on the air 'for the first time, and the transmission of the proceedings on that memorable afternoon was an outstanding success. Listeners all over New Zealand heard the first high-powered station .in the Dominion for the first time, and the volume and clarity were wonderful, even far into the North Island, as the large number of congratulatory telegrams testified. It has often been the order of things in radioland that when haste and rough connections are used, the results are excellent. Such was. surely the ca&e at VLDN. In the rush of the two weeks jjnor to the opening of the Exhibition the transmitter had been wired up in a temporary maimer, and neatness was not in evidence, yet as has been mentioned, a wonderful transmission was the result. When the first afternoon session closed, the engineers decided to breathe freely for the first time in weeks, but there were many alterations necessary to make the transmitter presentable for public inspection, and so a start was made to tidy up. Same hours later the apparatus and the small transmitting room were spick and'span. When the staff returned from indulging in .a high-priced tea, everything about the station was very orderly, many of the connections had been permanently secured, and hopes were high, for the first evening transmission was looked forward to eagerly. As 8 p.m. sounded, the announcer at the microphone told the world that it was “VLDN, Dunedin, operating from the New Zealand and South Seas Exhibition, Dunedin, and that the Band of the 2nd Regiment Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders wofild play in the Grand Court.” The band certainly did play, but reports received soon showed that all was not well with the broadcasting; in fact, the world at large, particularly in Dunedin, was getting more carrier hum than music. Then followed weeks of alterations and testing, and disappointment was expressed on all sides Gradually, however, due to the skill of Mr F. S. North, who took over the operating, the transmission improved until VLDN set up a standard of broadcasting in New Zealand which has never been surpassed. It become plain to everyone interested that had time been allowed for testing before the Exhibition Commenced there would have been little room for complaints. During the last three months of the big show the transmissions were magnificent; listeners all over New Zealand and Australia heard nightly the feast of music offered and the other attractions. When it is considered that receivers of those clays were not as efficient as they are today, it. was always most gratifying for the station manager to receive reports occasionally from California and frequently from Suva and Fanning Island, a lonely cable station 2500 miles away. Romance there was in plenty in those early days (only four years ago), and many an event at VLDN. that gave a thrill to those in charge is now regarded as commonplace. Some folk ask why Dunedin has been left so long in the matter of possessing fin up-to-date station. It may be that the broadcasting company has not forgotten that while VLDN was operating with its splendid programmes the increases in licenses were noticeable everywhere in New Zealand — except Dunedin. A glorious succession of programmes came to an end on the night the Exhibition closed, and VLDN was for evermore silent. The Exhibition directors were well aware that the little station behind the. Festival Hall had. dona much to make the attractions of the Exhibition widely known, not only in the Dominion, but overseas. When VLDN was dismantled, it was decided to remove the transmitter to the site of old 4YA in Moray place, and in June, 1926* the old aerial which had served Mr O’Neill for some years once more radiated music afar; The. station’s

call sign was changed, back to 4YA. It now became a different matter to secure programmes, for the Exhibition attractions were no longer available. Mr vvebp remained in Dunedin and made a deliberate start to provide acceptable concerts, but those were the days before the Broadcasting Company could pay the artists. It was not long before satisfactory talent in Dunedin was secured to'-entertain the ' listeners, and many relay lines were installed at the station for broadcasting remote concerts. For many months a high standard was maintained at 4YA without a penny of financial assistance, and it was not until September. 1927, that the artists and organisations began to seek payment, with the result that in the early part of 1928 the Broadcasting Company, consented to employ, paid artists. In November, 1928, the interior of the building at Moray place was completely remodelled. 4YA had had the honour of instituting many features which have later been adopted at the other stations It. was the first station to relay regularly churen services, and the -first to commence the news session; also it was 4YA that had the first children’s session, when every Tuesday and Friday evening Aunt Diana amused and instructed the Cull* dren. The gramophone recitals of operas, which is now so popular, were regular features of the programme nearly three years :ago. In stunt: transmissions 4xA has generally led the way. The HeenejTunny fight, rebroadcast from America, was the first instance. The broadcast Ot the Southern Cross 1 flight was an outstanding success, as were ,tne rebrpadcaste of the- Armistice service from London in the early hours of the morning, and the early morning departure of the Bvrd expedition for the Antarctic. - 'Since its removal into the up-to-date studios in Stuart street, 4YA has.continued to increase the scope, of Urn activities, until now there is bardly an event of public importance that is not put on the air. .