Listen In!

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume LXXXIII, Issue 19842, 17 May 1927, Page 11

Listen In!

■W NOTES AND PROGRAMMES V

(By

“Detector.”)

A queer feature of the atmospheric conditions prevailing last week was the tremendous amount of static in the daylight hours. On Sunday morning the crashes of static were equal to those of their kind which disturb our reception during the hours of darkness. These mischief makers should form a trade union then perhaps they would confine their operations to daylight and leave us to enjoy the programmes in peace at 'night.

3YA, Christchurch, was very weak on Sunday evening. Tried several times to bring it in on the loud-speaker but could get no more than a whisper. 4YA, Dunedin was troubles the same way—in fact to a worse extent —nothing at all was heard. While demonstrating a set the other evening a local dealer picked up a ‘‘howler.” On being asked what the 1 whistle was he promptly replied; “Oh, that’s the Canary Islands.” Interference from a leaky electric light transformer or something of that nature was again in evidence early on Sunday evening. Too much “juice” going to waste altogether! SCL, Adelaide, showed great improvement during the week-end. Volume fairly good; faded slightly at intervals. Listeners who have the pleasure to own multi-valve receivers had no difficulty in logging 3AK, Melbourne on Saturday evening. This station provides some excellent programmes.

As mentioned before in these notes the present is probably the most suitable time of the year for the purchase of a receiver, as we are now approaching the best season of the year for reception of distant stations. The general type of receiving set sold in New Zealand to-day has five valves. These sots will give good loud-speaker re-: production' of New Zealand and Aus- : rralian broadcasting stations in summer, as well as winter. The majority of re- j eeivers on the New Zealand market will I be found to operate very satisfactorily, j Different sets, however, will give different qualities of the reproduced music; and as the determination of what is • good quality varies with different hu- i man ears it is a wise policy for the prospective buyer to endeavour to hear! a receiver in actual operation before j committing himself to the choice of; any one set. A listener in Victoria (South Aus- ; tralia) reports that he has to date logged 63 stations, among which were two New Zealand ones. 2AW and 2VK. These he classes as “A” class stations. Wonderful imagination is one of the things created by wireless. KGO, and KDKA, two powerful American stations were heard fairly well on Sunday afternoon. Don’t ask your dealer for the cheapest goods he has. Request him to show you the best you can afford, with due regard to the demands of efficiency. Tell him you want something reliable, but not unnecessarily expensive. 2FC, Sydney, was, on Saturday evening, the pick of the Australians. Excellent programme, plenty of volume, and beautifully clear. Station 2BL has arranged for the broadcasting of the most important features of the Illawarra District Eisteddfod, to be held at Wollongong on June 1,2, 3,4, 5 and ’6. 2XAF, the General Electric Co., one of America’s short wave stations, was heard fairly well on Sunday afternoon. This station is situated at Schnectady, New York, and operates on 32 metres. 2XAF signed off at 3.30 p.m., which is 11 p.m. the previous night in New York.

Wireless has come to stay! Why deprive yourself of a concert in your own home every evening? Why go out these cold nights when you can hear what the world is doing by your own fireside? See Whitehead and Stone, radio dealers, Dublin Street and at Aramoho, to whom you will be under no obligation for a demonstration.*

It is high time listeners took steps to have the “howler” nuisance eliminated. It is more than likely they are v the possessors of regenerative sets and listeners whose enjoyment is being spoiled should endeavour to obtain the repeal of the regulation that permits regenerative sets being operated in New Zealand. This is drastic, but it is the only way to stop or diminish 4‘howling.” Station OGG, at Godhaven, the capital of North Greenland, has been often heard in the States lately. This station, which entertains the Greenlanders during their long night, rebroadcasts from high-power stations in the United States and Canada; and is also conducting research work on the aurora. It transmits on 575 metres at 3 p.m., Eastern standard time. The time is near at hand, we prophesy, when we shall pick up our morning paper with the specific purpose of learning whether or not radio conditions will be favourable enough to ask Smith in to listen to our radio set pulling in the distant Australian stations. Just as of yore glanced at the weather prophet’s prognostications for the day with the object of making a decision regarding the advisability of taking an umbrella to the office, we shall now glance at the radio conditions paragraph to learn whether fading or bad static is going to spoil reception from that elusive station. Pick up your paper and we shall read something like the following: —“Radio forecast: Good volume and distance to the east Monday night; poor distance and probable fading south; probably poor distance west and south-west.” 7ZL, Hobart has been picked up at fair loud-speaker strength during the past week. The proposed increase of power from this station has not been put on as yet.

lYA’s programme on Saturday evening was quite up to standard. Good volume and tone. Sunday evening’s reception was a bit mushy early but cleared as the night advanced.

For many years dozens of amateurs have used the targets twin-wire aerial they could afford, and similarly the merchant service used them on board ship. For the past two years, however, the fashion has changed. Most ships now carry only a single-wire aerial, and similarly many two-wire amateur enthusiasts have dropped the extra wire and have resorted to the simple straight single wire. This aerial has a distinct advantage over the double wire in that it is less directional, as well as being less prone to atmospherics, and only those desirable to receive their local station, and no other, should use the double wire. For short wave work also, the single wire is far superior to the other, as it has less capacity, and there is therefore a considerable difference in signal strength, as well as in tuning.

What more variety could listeners wish for than that broadcast from the various stations during the week-end. Just a few: 3LO, Melbourne: Wrestling match between Edwards and Yokel,! sketches, band items, studio concert and i dance music; 4QG, Brisbane: Motor 1 cycle races, band music, studio concert, one-act plays, and dance music; 2BL, Sydney: Motor races, relay of concert, news and sports items, dance music; 2FC, Sydney: Hawaiian troupe, two comedy sketches, vocal and instrumental items, dance music, etc. All stations: Church services, followed by concerts. The newcomer to radio has ono important fact to realise. He should not expect to get the best out of his set after only one or two night’s working. So many are inclined to expect this, that they do the extension of radio more harm than good. Wireless re- ; eeivers are like babies—they have their i peculiarities, and require humouring. No two sets of the same make will function exactly alike, and though the fact, is there it is hard to find any ostensible reason for it. Novices in the radio world are inclined to be impatient, and j because their realisations do not reach their expectations they condemn their sets, instead of seeking for some of the fault at least in their own manipulation. It is recognised by those with long experience that if the set is in good order the big factor is the operator. 2BL, relayed a fine concert programme from Anthony Horderns on Saturday. Some very good talent.

Most listeners have on hand a supply of worn-out gramophone records. These can be turned to good, account for wireless purposes, since the material is an excellent insulator. Some of the suggested uses for it are as spacers for indoor cage aerials and panels for fancy-shaped sets.

Within two hours of installing I heard 23 stations (including seven American) on the loud-speakc-r. Heard two-j way conversation’ between stations in • Alaska and California. The writer; was using a Gilfillan Receiver. The i Gilfillan Receivers are the standard of quality throughout the world, and due to their extreme efficiency, combined with great simplicity of operation and attractive appearance, are undoubtedly the best known and most popular receiver on the New Zealand market. I The Gilfillan sets are properly con- , structed and adjusted so that under; no circumstances can they act as a transmitter, and howl and squeal. In addition, the Gilfillan Receiver possesses a higher degree of selectivity than other types. It is extremely sensitive. Emmett’s, Selwyn Buildings, the Avenue, will be pleased to demonstrate.*

A good story is going the rounds of Sydney radio circles. One evening recently “Uncle George” had a sore throat. A listener-in has cause to rej member it; “for,” he writes to 2BL, [“When my small son heard the hoarse, strained voice, he promptly went to ! Uncle George’s rescue, and poured a : bottle of cough mixture down the loud- [ speaker.” When you make up your mind to j build a set, ask for an estimate for a j complete or partial kit. Look over it, I “stew” it, and accept it if you think it reasonable. A contemporary publishes the following list, which may be of interest under an article entitled “Popular Delusions about Radio”: — 1. That long-distance reception is possible only at night. 2. That the greater the static is the less the. signal strength, and viceversa. 3. That the colder the night is the better the reception. i 4. That a regenerative receiver can “re-broadcast” a programme. 5. That a receiver with six or eight valves must necessarily get better results than a set with four or five valves. 6. That a long or high antenna is more efficient than a short or low one. 7. That better reception is attained by the burning of filaments of valves to the limit. 8. That distant programmes are better than local programmes.

I Tastes differ considerably among lis|toners to the big broadcasting stations. : A couple of weeks ago the Sydney sta- ! tion, 2FC, received a furious letter from a man in Hobart demanding that jazz music be cut out of the programme. ; Now station 2BL has a letter from a : lady resident at Wahroongah in the • following terms: — ■ “I write to complain of the perpe- : tual broadcasting by your station of sport. The greater part of evenings and : afternoons are now largely taken up •by sporting news—of no interest to • families or home-loving people —and the i few items of music, etc., are quite disproportionate to the racing, speedway, ; and boxing news that are entirely un- ! interesting to the great bulk of listen- • ers. If your station does not alter its programmes, I, in common with many others I will be compelled to dismantle my aerial and give up listening j in. 2FC is bad enough, but of late 2BL . has very little to give listeners but i race and Stadium results. Trusting my • complaint will receive some considera- [ tion as, m the long run, I feel sure iyour firm will be losesrs by this policy.” i The manager of 2BL does not pro'pose to accede to this listener’s ultimatum. He has long since come to the • conclusion that it is impossible to please everyone, and is not going to try. The i policy of 2BL is to give as wide a; range of items as possible—sport for i those who like it, church services for j church people who are unable to go to i church, fashion talks, talks on cooking, : household hints and health for women, j weather notes and information about i market prices for the man on the land, “highbrow” music for those who like! it, and popular songs and dance tunes ’ ; for others. A bit of everything to suit' everybody is the idea, and when something comes over the air which you don’t like you can tune in to one of ' the three other Sydney stations—or if | you have a set good enough you can j listen to Melbourne, Adelaide or Bris- i bane.—“ Listener In.” What a fortune awaits the lucky discoverer of a real static eliminator. How about experimenting? Anyone may stumble on the cure for ’this bugbear of good reception. An exceptionally good programme was broadcast by 2BL on Sunday evening after the English church service. Among the newcomers to 3LO are Taylor and Summers, a clever comedy duo, who, with song, story and original patter, will keep listeners highly amused, and the Carty Brothers, well-known English comedians, who come to us with a world-wide reputation as fun makers, will add considerably to the j enjoyment of the lighter and brighter side of the programme. Several of Shakespeare’s works contain phrases that intelligently anticipate the coming of wireless. For cx- | ample:— “ ’Tis no matter how it be in tunc, so it make noise enough.”—As You Like It. “His lecture will be done ere you have tuned.”—Taming of the Shrew. “Keep not too long in ono tune, but a snip and away.”—Love’s Labour Lost. “And those musicians that shall play to you hang in the air a thousand leagues from hence.” —Henry V.

TO-DAY’S PROGRAMMES IYA, Auckland. 3 p.m. to 4.30 p.m. Afternoon concert. 6.30 p.m. to 7 p.m. Children’s session—Aunt Betty. 7.15 p.m. to 7.45 p.m. News and reports, etc. 7.15 p.m. Talk by Mr. Mahoney on “Wireless.” 7.30 p.m. News and information. 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. Chimes; relay of orchestral selections from Majestic Theatre Orchestra under the direction of Mr. Fred Mumford; soprano solos (a) “Break o’ Day,” (b) “The Lilac Tree,” Miss Agnes Dixon; pianoforte duet, “First Regimental March,” Mrs and Miss H. Walmsley; baritone solos (a) “Indianapolis,” (b) selected, Mr. P. Franchi; sketches, Miss L. Murphy; pianoforte solo, “Trinity Chimes” (Decker), Mrs. P. Franchi; baritone solos (a) “The Deathless Army,” (b) “Good Company,’’ Mr. Phil. Lewis; weather report and interval; relay from Majestic Theatre; vocal solos, Misses Walmsley and Lett; mezzo soprano solos (a) “Three Green Bonnets,” (b) “I Love You, Ma Cherie,” Mrs. P. Franchi; pianoforte duet, “Valse en re,” Mrs. Franchi and Miss Walmsley; vocal duets (a) “Quarrelling” from “Our Miss Gibbs,’’ (b) “Charming Weather” from “The Arcadians,” Mr. and Mrs. Franchi; humorous recital, “I Might,” Mr. P. Lewis; soprano solo, Miss A. Dixon: baritone solos (a) “Blow Winds, Blow,” (b) “Sergeant of the Line,” Mr. P. Franchi; soubrette solos, Miss Linda Murphy; pianoforte solo, “Adagio Molto” from Sonata in C Minor, Mrs. Franchi. 3YA, Christchurch.

Silent Day. 4YA, Dunedin. 3 to 4.30 p.m. afternoon chimes; His Master’s Voice recital; address by Miss M. Peuchegud “Interior Decoration;” studio items; book talk by Mr. H. Greenwood, Librarian Dunedin Athenaeum; His Master’s Voice recital. 7 p.m. to 7.30 p.m. Children’s session —Aunt Diana. 7.30 p.m. to 7.45 p.m. News and reports, etc. Bp.m. to 10 p.m. Chimes; pianoforte solos, Miss Ethel Frye; vocal solos (a) “Thou Brilliant Bird,” (b) “One Fino Day” (Puccini), Madame New- [ combe Hall, accompanist Miss Mary f Kane; violin solos (a) “Une Larme (Moussorgsky), (b) “Lullaby” (Cyril Scott), —Mr. 8. de Clive-Lowe; vocal solo, “Songster’s Awakening” (Fletcher), Miss Lilian Macdonald; reading from Shakespeare, ‘ ‘ Northampton,’ ’ from “King John,” Mr. J. W. WinsJoc; vocal solos (a) “She is Far From the Land” (Lambert), (b) “Oft in the Stilly Night” (Moore). Mr. Dan Fogarty; pianoforte solos, Miss Ethel Frye; vocal solos (a) “Roberto tu che Adoro” (Meyerbeer), (b) “Home, Sweet Home” (Bishop), Madame Newcombe Hall; violin solo, “Tempo di Minuetto” (Kreisler), Mr. S. de CliveLowe; vocal solos (a) “Shipmates O’ Mine” (Sanderson), (b) “Company Sergeant Major,’’ Mr. Avery Dale, accompanist—Mr. J. Dalmors McDonald; pianoforte solo. Miss Ethel Frye; vocal solo, Miss Lilian McDonald; vocal solos (a) “If I Might Only Come to You,” (b) selected, Mr. Avery Dale. 2YK, Wellington. Silent Day.