AMATEUR WIRELESS.

Waikato Times, Volume 100, Issue 16815, 5 June 1926, Page 10

AMATEUR WIRELESS.

THE WEEK’S BROADCASTINQ.

(By “Vernier.”)

During lasi, week interference with listening to distant broadcasting stations from sL'itic was not so pronounced as in Hie previous week, but some vagaries of atmospheric conditions have been evident in the continuance of fading of the Australian stations, which accordingly have not been heard with, (ho usual ease. The Brisbane station (i 0(T) and Dial at Adelaide (SCL) have been the exceptions. It would seent that Hie Adelaide broadcasting station is now using a higher power Ilian formerly, since, if can be heard quite loudly in Auckland. 'Hie wave length of the station is .105 moires. The Melbourne station, 3AR, transmits on iSO metres and can be heard fairly regularly. This sialion will be increased in power early, the intention being to bring it to the standard of a class “A” station by the lime for revision of I lie Australian broadcasting regulations in July. The class “A” stations receive the greater portion of the revenue from license fees. 3LO, Melbourne, which lias been heard a number of times in California, is at present rather unreliable as a source of entertainment for Mew Zealand listeners. 4YA, Dunedin. Tlie new home of Ihe Broadcasters (Lid.), of Dunedin, is Moray Place, practically on the site of the old it,A station. It is from lliere Unit the programmes now being arranged are transmitted, and if will be the permanent Dunedin branch of the transmit ting group that wll control Mew Zealand radio. The transmitting set is the one that lias been in use at the Exhibition, a fiOO-walt set that has latterly given excellent results under the unsuitable conditions that were unavoidably present at Logan Park. This set is expected io give even belter results fromits new location, and, allowing for certain faults associated with Ihe reconstruction, the test transmissions.

| according to all reports received, have proved very good indeed. • Mr ,1. \Y. Webb will remain in I charge of Ihe station, and will anI nounce; Mr F. .T. North will continue i as the operator, and Ihe station will jbe henceforth known a; 4YA. This is more satisfactory than YLDN. for YA is. as every amateur knows, the well- ; known call of the New Zealand sla- ; lions, and ‘Dunedin is the fourth ’ group. Otago broadcasting district. | The stations will work on. the cvcni mgs of’ Sunday, Monday, Wednesday and Friday. | Every effort is being made to tap ! effectively Dunedin for entertainment | and instructional features of all kinds. ;At present ground line microphones lari' connected tu Burns Hall, Empire , Pictures, Octagon Central Mission, ; First, Church, Knox Church, and the ! Savoy. IYA Auckland. j The sections for ihe masts of the I new broadcasting sialion are now in I Auckland, and their erection will j shortly commence. The studio in j France Street is also well on the way, | so that everything should l>o ready in ■ good lime for the installation of the equipment next month-. The Auckland station 1 A'A has re- | la.vcd and broadcasted various cnler--1 lainmenls during last week. They j have not all been successful, and last Wednesday’s broadcast in particular was decidedly poor. The* delayed Icc- | lure on Oliver Cromwell was quite unsuitable for broadcasting owing to the extreme of modulation of the speakers’ voice, ranging from inaudibility to the stage where receiving loud speakers rattled. The same effect characterises Ihe church services from IYA detracting considerably from the interest in Sunday broadcasts. Reception from Oakland. In the previous notes it was anticipated that, with the abnormal weather conditions then existing, the special broadcast from KTAB-, Oakland California, would not be picked up locally. Leading Auckland enthusiasts in many cases reported “nothing doing," but, since then two ac- , counts of recognition of the programme have come io hand. Mr Keith Kernel], Manurcwa, writes that lie heard the call of the station given, caught Ihe word “appreciated” during Ihe succeeding speech, and recognised a voice and piano accompaniment as the following item. Mr P. Bathurst, of Patmnaohoe, sends an account of iiis reception that hears out these particulars, for though lie could not recognise a word of the opening speech, bo identified the subsequent soprano solo, but atmospherics were so bad that lie then transferred his attention to 2BL.

Tokyo’s broadcasting station has now over 150,000 licensed listeners, though it lias been in operation little more than a year. The call sign from this Japanese station is JOAK; lliere is no “A” in front of those four Idlers. The Wireless Instilulo of Australia is organising Irans-Pucii'ic lesls from May 2'J lo June. 12 with a view lo discovering Ihe longest, period of day for reliable communication between America and Australia anil providing continuous schedules of 2! hours, in order lo establish the relative effectiveness of various wave lengths day and niglil. The institute proposes furliirr experiments on 20, 10 and 5 meters. Local amateur transmitters will .join in congratulating Mr It. While on bis becoming Ihn first honorary correspondent by radio to a Mow York paper. 11 is certainly a unique occurrence that we should hear by cable from the United Slates the kind of weather Hint we are experiencing in our own town.

In a recent article published in the Star Mr Fisk, of Amlagamated Wireless. indulged in a forecast of wireless possibilities. Doubtless many of his predictions will yet become achievements, hut lliere is one point that has been overlooked. Mr Fisk forgets lo mention Dial, general reception of Ihe world's happenings by word and by television will seriously interfere with the ordinary routine of tiie day, lo say nothing of its interruptions lo our hours of slumber. We shall need a special “wireless alarm” lo arouse us when some world celebrity desires lo “speak a piece," or some phenomenal happening rn Ihn oilier side of the globe is appearing on our radio screen. The long-awaited announcement of Hie installation of an ItiW set at. YLI) has now come from Ministerial lips, though no mention is made of the transference of the aerials from the post oilier lo a site across the harbour. Humour lias had it for some time that ttiis step is contemplated.