THE WIRELESS WORLD

Otago Daily Times, Issue 22545, 12 April 1935, 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., 353 metres. 2FC, Sydney.—66s K.C., 422 metres. 3AR, Melbourne.—62o K.C.. 492 metres SLO, Melbourne.—B3o K.C., 371 metres. SCL, Adelaide.—73o K.C., 395 metres. 4QG, Brisbane.—76o K.C., 385 metres. IYA, Auckland.—6so K.C., 461.3 metres. 2YA, Wellington.—s7o K.C., 626 metres. 3YA, Christchurch.—72o K.C., 416.4 metres. 4YA Dunedin.—79o K.C.. 379.5 metres. 4YO. Dunedin.—ll4o K.C., 261 metres.

ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS. “Pita Pat,” Kurow.— Provision is made in the regulations for prevention of interference, but I am not sure that they cover your case. Write to the Radio Inspector, Telegraph Office, Dunedin, and put your case before him. “Radioke,” Roslyn.— (l) Try a new screen-grid valve in place of the suspected one. To prove if this valve is faulty connect the aerial lead to the top of the screen-grid valve. If the volume increases considerably the valve is no good. This does not apply, however, to the intermediate frequency valves of a superhet. (2) Yes. it may be paid halfyearly if you desire. (3) Any money order office. (4) No, he will have to procure one also, unless you care to hand yours over to him. J. M. D., St. Clair —(1) High background noise can often be traced to breaking down or just noisy grid leaks and anode resistances. If you have no spares to test by substitution, apply the milliameter test. The trouble is caused sometimes by passing too much anode current through resistances. Have you recently installed a new valve? (2) If the whistle is high pitched and does not vary in pitch or intensity when the tuning is altered, the high-frequency stage may have become unstable. “Short-wave,” Kurow.— (1) The tuning of short-wave stations is much more critical than the tuning of an ordinary broadcast station. A short-wave station may occupy only a fraction of a degree on the dial, and you will require to exercise the utmost care or you may pass it over again and again. The most important thing on short-wave is to listen in the right place on the dial at the right time of the day. As a rough guide I should suggest going over the 25 and 31 bands very carefully between say, 4.30 p.m. and 7 p.m., and II p.m. and 1 a.m. (2) VE9GW, Bomanville. THE KING’S JUBILEE. Arrangements are being made by the 8.8. C. to broadcast through the Empire service the national thanksgiving service from St. Paul’s Cathedral, London, on May 6, the twenty-fifth anniversary of the accession to the Throne of his Majesty King George V. In the evening there will be a special programme of greetings from every State of the Empire, at the conclusion of which his Majesty will speak. The Empire network wall be the largest yet arranged. AN INTERESTING TRANSMISSION. Listeners -who seek overseas or foreign reception will find that on Wednesday and Sunday evenings, at IT o’clock, the Moscow station is well to the fore with dissertations on Soviet affairs and world topics, given by an announcer who speaks English very fluently. Paris can be heard daily. The broadcast is all in French, but the wonderful jazz music in which that country specialises is an acceptable feature. INCREASED POWER FOR 3YA. In a few weeks the aerial power of 3YA, Christchurch, at present kilowatts, will be permanently increased to 10 kilowatts, equal to IYA and twice that of 2YA. The present extensions to the transmitter, in addition to increasing the output fourfold, aim at thoroughly modernising the equipment so that it may in all respects reach the same standard of excellence as the Auckland plant, 2SM’S EQUIPMENT. In a few weeks 2SM, Sydney, will be using new transmitting equipment. The new station will be located at Pennant Hills, and will make use of a 450 ft mast, which will act as radiator, in a manner similar to that of .stations in Europe and the United States. The idea is to concentrate a greater proportion of the radiated energy horizontally rather than at high angles, thus avoiding to some extent the troubles of fading. The transmitter in all other respects will be of modern type, including series modulation and elaborate frequency control apparatus. The studio equipment, which will make use of the velocity type of microphone, is also being redesigned and constructed in accordance with thoroughly modern practice. A STRIKE OF LISTENERS. A listeners’ strike is threatened in Norway against the tendency to use the literary language rather than the “ landsmaalet,” or country vernacular, for broadcasting. Twenty-five thousand listeners have refused to pay their license fees when these become due in April. 8.8. C. TESTS. The 8.8. C. is energetically pursuing its efforts to provide an Empire-wide coverage during the evening hours of the listener. With the improvements recently effected Western Canada remains the only portion of ’ the Empire not served, and experimental transmissions are now in progress with a view to exploring the possibility of providing evening programmes for this extensive tract of country. The tests are being conducted on Sundays, Mondays Wednesdays, and Fridays at 2.30 to 3.30 p.m., New Zealand time, on two frequencies— GSL, 49.1 metres, and GSC. 31.32 metres. It is intended to amend the frequencies and alter the hours in the light of reports from listeners. TELEVISION TECHNIQUE. At first, of course, television will play only a very small part in the broadcasting picture. Transmission will be of short duration and probably films will supply much of the material of the broadcasts. But if, and when, public interest demands a fuller television programme, it might eventually accompany nearly all broadcasting (says the Wireless World). If this happens, will the present highly developed technique of broadcasting have to make way for the new order of things, just asjiappened with the advent of the talkies ? There is, however, this big difference. When the talkies arrived the change-over was fairly sudden and complete. The silent film died so quickly that it w*as very soon forgotten. There was no interval of overlapping. From the nature of things television development will be gradual, and may very likely never displace normal broadcasting with its special technique. One of the charms of broadcasting to-day lies in the fact that aural concentration only is necessary on the part of listeners. The idea of having to concentrate on a picture at the same time in order to follow a performance will not be welcomed unanimously. THE ETERNAL WRANGLE. In the eternal wrangle between the classicists and the jazzmad each section of extremists seems to overlook the fact that their combined forces would not represent 25 per cent, of the total number of licenses. So far as the jazz fiends are concerned, it is probable that they are mostly listeners and not really licensees at ail. There is also considerable confusion of thought concerning the definition of classical music and jazz. Some pedants lump all “dauce” tunes together as jazz, and condemn the lot. By doing so they miss a world of melody. Some of the stuff that is strummed out by weird “ orchestras,” with a “ vocal ” accompaniment by a nasal or furry-throated crooner, is debasing, but there are hundreds of attractive numbers with a tuneful rhythm ■which give pleasure to the great majority of listeners. On the other hand (states the Timaru Herald) there is an unlimited supply of rich music which, while it may he semi-classical, is just the reverse of heavy, and which probably makes the widest appeal of all. If programme arrangers would keep away from the two extremes, or cater for the extremists only at definite hours, they would be on side with the bulk of the listeners.

BROADCASTING IN GERMANY. In Germany the Reichsseudekiter. Herr Hadamovsky, is responsible tor the political programmes of all German stations. For all other matters t-ie Intendanten are given freedom of action unknown in pre-Nazi Germany. German broadcasting is thus one of the most valuable instruments of direct political propaganda for the German Government. Programmes are now normally well balanced. The broadcasters have learnt the amount of pure propaganda which the listener will stand. Highbrow programmes have become less frequent owing to the lack of funds and the fear pf a negative reaction to too much heavy fare. Since the advent of National Socialism the salaries of the broadcasting staff and the artists fees have been substantially reduced. The number of listeners, and therefore the license revenue, has increased, but the broadcasters have not benefited by this in full measure, since part of the fees are retained by the Ministry of Propaganda, which acts as intermedi ary between the Post Office and the Reichs-Rundfunk-Gesellschaft. German listeners pay one of the highest fees in Europe—two marks a month, or 24 marks a year. At par this is about one and a-half times as much as a British listener pays, or four times as much as the nresent rate of exchange. The Post Office retains half of the total license revenue for the erection and operation of transmitters, but the sum which the R.R.G. obtains from the Ministry of Propaganda has not been disclosed. On January 1, 1935, the number of licenses issued in Germany totalled 0,142,921, an increase of 1,090,314, or 21 per cent, over the figures for January 1, 1934. In pre-Nazi days the greatest annual increase ever recorded was 633,278 in 1927. These figures show that German listeners are satisfied with the new programme policy. Taking them as a basis of calculation and deducting the 427,464 licenses which are issued free to unemployed and Schwerkriegsbeschadigte (disabled ex-servicemen), the total income from fees was 11,430,914 marks for January, 1935. Assuming this to be the monthly average for 1935 (it will be surpassed if the increase continues), German listeners will this year pay the enormous sum (compared with British license revenue of some 138,000,000 marks (about £6,900,000 at par). The use of German broadcasting for political purposes has caused misgivings in those countries which possess large Germanspeaking minorities. Czechoslovakia has attempted to counteract it by prohibiting public reception of political programmes from the German stations. The owner of a wireless set, for instance, must not invite friends to listen to such programmes. But apart from direct propaganda such as was issued by Munich tor Austria and by Stuttgart and Frankfurt for the Saar, German stations indulge in another type of propaganda broadcasting. Concert programmes broadcast late at night are directly addressed to foreign listeners, the announcements being made in French, English, Spanish, and Italian. News items of a cultural nature, such as the forthcoming celebration of Handel’s birthday or the fact that the crocuses are out in Baden-Baden, are broadcast in the intervals. Internationally speaking, this type of broadcasting is of the '■ positive ” kind, as it endeavours to bring nations closer together, and many countries indulge in it. Italy, Poland, and many other countries address foreigners in their own language, telling them of the beauty of their countryside.