Old Andrew Oldham's Orchestra LP title well pictures the reception situation at my QTH. I'm now pretty persuaded I've a better window on Asia, but sometimes US signals can reach quite an intensity. It's what happened on the night of last 15th August, while I was cruising 15 MHz (which lately counts among my favorite bands, as it offers a really wide bouquet of catches!). For each entry, QTH is Aosta, in north-western Italy, receiver is the SDR "Pappradio" (I'm, day after day, amazed at its performance), and aerial is a Discone.

15230 kHz – 23.10 UTC – Radio Australia – Programme in English – 15th June 2011. Shepparton, Australia, transmitting site, beam to west Oceania.

15560 kHz – 23.20 UTC – Radio Australia – Programme in English – 15th June 2011. Shepparton, Australia, transmitting site, beam to south Oceania (note the strenght different with previous entry!).

15585 kHz – 23.22 UTC – Radio Free Asia – Programme in Mandarin – 15th June 2011. Tinian, Marianas Islands, transmitting site.

15600 kHz – 23.32 UTC – FEBC – Programme in Burmese – 15th June 2011. Bocause, Philippines, transmitting site.

15610 kHz – 23.27 UTC – WEWN – Programme in English – 15th June 2011. Vandiver, Alabama, US, transmitting site.

Believe it, or not, I still have to QSL Radio Australia. This will be the time.

73,
Chris

Sometimes, usually when she sees me handling huge stacks of reception report envelopes ready to be mailed, my wife asks: "you've heard a station that identified, what's worth to have a piece of paper saying you did it?". I answer her – and myself – that I do it because it matters to the people on the other side of the radio (host, authors, engineers, and so on). Sadly, the fact many important broadcasters (like BBC, or REE) did stop to answer listeners reports, seems to give some reasons to my wife. Luckily, sometimes the opposite happens. As many of you will probably know, since last January 5910 kHz doesn't carry anymore Marfil Estereo, but  Alcaravan Radio, always from Colombia (tx in Lomalinda, to be precise). During the night, the signal is pretty good, and the channel in Europe is free from interference. So, I did a recording and fired it, along with the report, to the e-mail address I found for the station on the WRTH 2010. A couple days after, the nice e-qsl you can see above was in my mailbox. I did discover not only that at Alcaravan they do care a lot for their listeners, but also that their QSL manager, Mr. Rafael Rodrigues, is a DXer himself. You can find his radio blog ("DX desde Colombia") linked on the column on the left. Give it a visit. It's worth!

73,
Chris 

How much China can you find on 6 MHz at night? More than you would expect. See the below log from last 15th June. Two different PBS (on five frequencies, with varying signals: it’s interesting, as I always thought they had the same irradiation pattern, given they provide a regional service), and what I’m led to log as Taiwan (that channel is sometimes jammed with CNR1, and being both in Mandarin, if someone could confirm, I’d be grateful). For all the entries, receiver is SDR “Pappradio”, with a “Discone” as antenna. QTH, as always, Aosta in north-western Italy.

PBS Xizang (Lhasa transmitting site)

• 6025 kHz – YL talk in Tibetan and music – 21.48 UTC – 15^th June 2011
• 6050 kHz – Music programme, and short OM talk in Mandarin – 21.58 UTC – 15^th June 2011
• 6110 kHz – OM and YL talk in English, music – 22.33 UTC – 15^th June 2011
• 6130 kHz – YL and OM talk in English – 22.38 UTC – 15^th June 2011

PBS Sichuan (Xichang transmitting site)

• 6060 kHz – Music, then YL talk – 22.12 UTC – 15^th June 2011

Radio Taiwan International (Tentative)

• 6150 kHz – OM talk in Mandarin – 22.44 UTC – 15^th June 2011

Next challenge, after reception, will be QSLing the PBS. Tibet should be easier, Sichuan looks like a harder one. But if you don't try…

73, Chris

The wonderful thing about shortwaves is that they work as the sky of the Valley where I live. You can watch it as many times as you want, but you won't ever recognize the same cloud, or color. Check out what I experienced last monday, 20th June, on 9705 kHz. At 5.00 UTC, through my R71 and "Mini Whip" antenna, "La Voix du Sahel", the State run station from Niger, was identifying in French, after the traditional flutes signal. Less than twenty hours after, and  – on the "Pappradio" SDR with Discone antenna – Ethiopia, in local language (I can't say if it was  Amharic, Oromic or Tigray) signed off with the national anthem. In a word, exciting! And who said that, out of tropical bands season, African DX are out of question?!
 

73,
Chris

I can agree on HCJB Australia not being the rarest catch possible from Europe. However, if shortwaves are made to go far, you can't hide its signal travels more than 12.000 kilometers to get here. This never stop to amazes me, even if I should be used to it, after some years of spectrum exploration. Add the fact the above E-qsl came, thanks to the very kind Margaret, of the English section, the day after I sent my report (concerning receptions, last January and June, on two 15 MHz channels), and you'll realize how much I'm pleased today. Simple things never tired anyone, to put it as my grandma always said. She wasn't an SWL, but she should have tried to. The phylosophy was right!

73,
Chris

In ham jargon, the "magic band" means 6 meters. In the place where I live, surrounded by Europe's highest roofs, that magic is very little, as it's limited to openings more sporadic than the E layer causing them (I have experienced TEP in 10 meters, for the first time in five years last april-may, and am still waiting for it to happen on 50 Mhz). So, for yours truly, the real magic band is medium wave. The slow fading classic of its propagation characteristics can reveal lots of gems, like pearls in water when tide retires. I know it's not MW season, but last week at late night I did gave the band a try, and some magic happened. Hear for yourself how, on 1530 kHz at 22.51 UTC, the Voice of America (from the transmitting station in Sao Tome) did struggle with Radio Romania Actualitati. Africa vs. Europe. At first, VOA was dominating (it's a female speaker, for a classy music programme), then RRA grew up, with equally interesting tunes. At top of the hour, the romanian id is very clear, but you can hear anyways the VOA announcement. All this with my R71, and the PA0RDT "Mini-whip" antenna, in a band intended for local coverage. Yes, they call it magic…
 

73,
Chris