Super Saturday

As I write this at around 0130 local time on Sunday morning I'm listening to 1625 kHz and to Zwarte Panter from Oldenzaal in the very east of the Netherlands - he's playing a mix of tracks from the 80s together with some Dutch sounds and has just announced a transmitter power of 300 watts. He's the only Dutch pirate left on air after a busy evening during which I heard 18 different stations. 

Propagation conditions might have been strange on shortwave during Saturday evening, but it was a different story on MW with signals arriving really well from the other side of the North Sea. There were some low-power stations audible and even a new station for me.

I made a few recordings as I was listening and, if you take a listen, you will hear Akai, Turftrekker, Wipkikker, Hooiberg, Uniek, Casablanca and Romax:

And here's the list of stations I heard tonight:

Saturday, September 19, 2015

1655          1850         Hooiberg 44444 music programme

1636          1851         Keizer en Keizerin 43443 music programme

1629          1851         Wipkikker 45444-55544 music programme

1648          1857         Moby Dick 45444-55555 music programme    

1620          1856         Akai 35333-45444 qsoing

1615          1858         Poema 35333 music programme

1640          1933         Batavier 33433-44444 music programme

1615          1933         Turftrekker 35333-45444 qsoing

1611          1958         Tamboer junior 44444 music programme

1615          2003         Blauwe Koe 24222 qsoing

1631          2043         Uniek 34333-44444 music programme

1635          2309         Digitaal 44444 qsoing

1620          2319         Monte Carlo 44444 qsoing

1620          2324         Spakenburg 45444 qsoing

1620          2331         Zwarte Panter (Oldenzaal) 22322-33333 qsoing

1647          2333         Casablanca 54444 qsoing

1636          2339         Romax 45444 testing

1621          2342         Jeneverstoker 33333 qsoing

1625          2355         Zwarte Panter (Oldenzaal) 35333 qsoing and music programme

Thursday, September 17, 2015

1617          2025         Turftrekker 34333-54444 music programme

1620          2036         Rebel weak signal music programme

1656          2038         Turfsteker 35333 music programme

1636          2056         Pandora 55444 music programme

Observations

• Blauwe Koe (Blue Cow) is a relatively new station. I heard him for the first time in July when he was using 1620 kHz. This evening he was qsoing on 1615 with Turftrekker and Korak. The signal was not particularly strong, but I understand he was using only 30 watts, so all in all he was doing pretty well
• I was thinking recently that I hadn't heard Radio Uniek for some time. And a look at the logs reveals it was January 30 when his signal last found its way to my antenna. That changed tonight and he was coming in loud and clear for several hours with a music programme followed by a qso. Previously I have always heard him between 1645 and 1652 kHz, but tonight he was operating around 1631 (he started out on 1632 but ended up a bit lower). He usually runs in the region of only 100 watts and always does very well, sounding as though it is somewhat more

• Wipkikker is a new one for me. Broadcasting from Friesland he was very strong during his broadcast in which he announced an email address of wipkikker@live.nl. I understand he has been active for many years, and I recently saw a reception report that he was on air on a Saturday morning at the end of August. Perhaps he usually broadcasts during the daytime when propagation is against me. I am usually able to receive the Dutch MW pirates here only once the sun has gone down, although during the winter it can be possible to hear the high-power pirates a little earlier
• Good to hear Romax on air late in the evening. I met him a few years back and it's always interesting to hear people on air when you can picture exactly where they are broadcasting from