Updating the logs

Greetings from a wet and windy UK. I read this evening that Hungarian shortwave pirate Chaos AM was today closed down by the authorities after a month of regular broadcasts on 6335 kHz. Bad news indeed, and I send best wishes to all involved in the station. 

The pirate scene in the Netherlands continues to tick along nicely, and here are some logs from the past week: 

Freq       Time       Station SINPO

Friday, November 9, 2018

1620       1825       De Klap 25332-35343 music programme
1620       1844       Admiraal 35333 report for De Klap
1629       1903       Dolfijn 34333 report for Admiraal
1655       1904       Batavier 35443 music programme
1619       1905       Wegpiraat 34443 asking for report
1653       2315       Monte Carlo 55444 music programme
1638       2315       Morgenster 24222-34333 music programme
1615       2315       Gedrocht van Twente 24422 music programme
1629       2322       Noordzee 34333-45444 report for Montecarlo
1635       2345       Electron 35333 report for Montecarlo

Observations

• De Klap was back on the band this evening with a programme on 1620 kHz. His signal was peaking to something similar to reception a few days ago, and was very listenable. When he closed down, it was good to hear Admiraal pop up with a reception report, and nice to hear him send greetings to me and mention how I was at his place a couple of years ago - I visited him with my old pal Radio Soerabaya en route to the Summer Meeting on what I remember was a very hot day! Anyway, Admiraal was coming in well today and I made a short recording:
  
  
• Another station to come up with a report for De Klap was Dolfijn, who was coming in pretty well. I thought I'd text him a report, so I duly found 'Dolfijn' on my phone and sent him a quick message. What I got back was confusion. It turns out I had actually sent a message to the SW pirate Dolfijn rather than the MW station! Anyway, we had a nice chat and then I sent a message to the correct pirate

Sunday, November 4, 2018

1629       0704       Interpol 35333 music programme
1620       0725       Marconist weak signal music programme
1620       0754       Bootsman weak signal report for Marconist

Observations

• I managed a little early morning listening today, actually raising myself from bed early on a Sunday! I was rewarded with a programme from Interpol and a fair signal on 1629 kHz, but the band was unusually quiet for a Sunday morning. I heard Marconist and Bootsman qsoing just as propagation was making it difficult to receive the Dutch stations, but otherwise there was little activity

Saturday, November 3, 2018

1620       0708       Rietvink 33433 report for Marconist
1616       1615       Drukstroomjager 35543 music programme          
1655       1635       Concorde weak signal qsoing
1646       1638       Zwarte Bizon 25332 qsoing
1620       1652       Eldorado 25332-35333 testing
1656       1653       Nachtzwerver 25442 qsoing
1647       1705       Keizer en Keizerin 33333 music programme
1629       1707       Edelkampioen 55444 music programme
1615       1741       Gedrocht van Twente weak signal report for Eldorado
1637       2344       Montecarlo 45444 qsoing
1661       2344       Viking en Tante Foek 44444 music programme
1648       2346       Moby Dick 44444 music programme
1636       2347       Spakenburg 45444 qsoing
1653       2349       Nachtzwerver 44444 qsoing
1625       2354       Snowman 25322 music programme
1620       2359       De Klap 34433 qsoing

Observations

• Plenty of activity today, with signals arriving first thing in the morning and then from mid-afternoon as the sun was going down. King of the band in terms of signal and modulation was Edelkampioen, who was booming in over here with very fine audio - a real depth, making it a pleasure to listen to. I visited him at his studio a couple of years back, accompanied by Barones and Poema, so it's always great to hear him on air, sitting in the studio where I sat!
• Concorde is a name I've seen in various logs, but today was the first time I heard this station, reportedly broadcasting from the Acterhoek. With the sun still to fully go down when I heard him, the signal was only weak - I'm sure it will be considerably better with propagation at the optimum
• There was another new name for me today as well with De Klap. Reportedly running somewhere in the region of 200 watts, the station was qsoing with Spakenburg and Nachtzwerver and coming in with a pretty good signal. Hopefully I'll be hearing this one again soon as well

Friday, November 2, 2018

1609       1821       Mustang 44433-54444 testing
1635       1821       Havana 55555 qsoing
1629       1823       Pandora (Friesland) 25222 music programme
1640       1823       Turfsteker 35333 testing
1620       1825       Blauwe Panda 25332-45444 music programme
1655       1849       Batavier 44444 music programme
1662       1851       Digitaal 54444 testing
1611       1916       Unidentified 24222 music programme
1620       1930       Batavia 35333 music programme
1610       1945       Arizona weak signal report for the station  on 1611
1671       2256       Odynn 34433-44444 music programme
1656       2300       Rebel (Drenthe) 35333 music programme

Observations

• Plenty to listen to this evening, with Mustang catching the attention on an usual frequency of 1609 kHz. It's often tricky listening when pirates are broadcasting near to the legal stations on 1602 and, although Mustang was fading down sometimes, he was generally doing very well, with his punchy audio powering through. He was testing a new modulation system, which he then tried out on shortwave, using 4010 kHz, where his signal was even better - more stable and free from interference
• A few days ago we logged Ome Wil on 1629 kHz, noting that he uses the name Pandora sometimes - not to be confused with the Pandora who uses 1625 often very late at night. Tonight, he was identifying quite clearly as Pandora, although once again his modulation was low and I couldn't quite make out the telephone number that was being announced. Turn it up please!

• Some time ago Odynn told me he had plans to upgrade his transmitter to something in the region of 250 watts. Well, he has done it and the new rig was on 1671 kHz and putting a nice signal into the UK:
  
  
• Arizona is a station I don't catch very often, so it was a pleasure to hear him on 1610 kHz in qso with a station who had been on 1611 with a music programme, although I couldn't quite catch that one's name

Late-night listening

I made a trip to Wales with the family on Thursday, so there wasn't a great deal of time for radio listening. However, I had a quick tune around late in the evening and found some activity at the top of the MW band. Here's what I heard:

Freq       Time       Station SINPO

Thursday, November 1, 2018

1615       2310       Gedrocht van Twente 25222-35333 music programme
1638       2315       Morgenster 45444 qsoing
1625       2317       Noordzee 45444 qsoing
1625       2321       Montecarlo 45444 qsoing
1638       2345       Bluebird 55444 qsoing

Observations

• Gedrocht van Twente was on 1615 kHz once again tonight. That's the fourth day in a row I've heard them, but what is interesting is that I've heard very little talking on the microphone - it would be good to hear some voices every now and again, although I have a suspicion the team might be a little too busy with the beers to give much thought to the programming output! From what I understand Gedrocht is also active on the air during the daytime, signing on early and closing down late - usually at around 0100 UTC. This is quite rare for a MW pirate as transmissions are usually sporadic and for a few hours at the most.
• Nice to catch Morgenster on 1638 kHz. He was putting in a fine signal during his qso with Noordzee and Montecarlo. Bluebird was sending over his usual powerhouse signal when he popped up with a report and a few records.

Revved up for the autumn

Welcome back to this MW pirate radio blog, which has been very quiet during an extended summer break that continued into early autumn. August through to the end of October are always very busy for me with work, and this year was no different, which is why I've been so quiet with the hobby. However, I now have more time again, coinciding very well with the clocks going back an hour and giving us shorter days, which is ideal for listening to Dutch pirates. 

As my location is inland and not near the coast, I am reliant on propagation to bring the signals to me, which is largely possible only during the hours of darkness, so autumn and winter are the peak listening times for me and I'm ready to roll once again.

The Wellbrook ALA1530LN loop antenna is working well in conjunction with the MFJ-1026 noise canceller (which is an essential to keep the local noise right down), and the various receivers here are primed for the next few months of pirate tuning. 

I tend to use the Lowe HF-225 most of the time, or sometimes I switch to the Kenwood R5000 for a change. These receivers, along with plenty of others, are located in my radio room, but I sometimes listen elsewhere in the house using the little Lowe HF-150 which I connect to the Wellbrook loop.

For those of you new to this blog, I keep a record of Dutch MW pirates I've heard, report news about the many stations operating in the Netherlands, and show videos I have made, and include recordings of some of the stations. You can see a whole host of videos on the YouTube channel, and here's one to give you an idea of what this is all about:

Some very sad news I missed a few months ago that I have caught up with only today is that Henk, the operator of Radio Toekomst passed away in April this year. When I first became interested in the Dutch pirates back in the early 1990s, his voice was one that came through my speakers regularly. Henk had a very distinctive tone - and always an almighty signal. I'm sure he proved something of an inspiration to the younger pirates in Friesland and beyond - he certainly made an impression on me during those early listening years. Thanks for the memories, Henk.

Now to look at some of the stations I've been listening to during the last few days:

Freq       Time       Station SINPO

Wednesday, October 31, 2018
1644       1738       Skywire 25442 testing
1657       1740       Digitaal 55444 testing
1620       1740       Mike 44444-55555 testing 
1615       1740       Gedrocht van Twente 24222-35333 music programme
1655       1758       Batavier 35333-45444 testing 
1629       1800       Paradiso weak signal qsoing with Digitaal
1645       1801       Digitaal 55444-55555 qsoing with Paradiso
1645       1814       Casablanca (Twente) 35333 music programme
1620       1819       Batavia 35333 music programme
1629       1837       Zwarte Boer 35333 testing
1611       1855       Alice 34333-44444 testing
1630       2035       Test Zender (Toulouse) 45444 asking for report
1640       2039       Rebel (Drenthe) 34333-44444 music programme
1629       2235       Spakenburg 45444 testing

Observations

• Today seemed to be the day for testing! The evening started when I heard Skywire testing a coil antenna on 1644 kHz, and within a couple of minutes I heard Digitaal and Mike Radio testing. That pair were putting very fine signals into the UK, with the punchy modulation of Mike really standing out. The second I heard instrumental music on 1620 kHz I thought it was him. That frequency got even busier a few minutes later when Batavia signed on for a music programme which lasted some hours. When two stations are broadcasting on exactly the same channel you get a mix of the two riding the waves, often taking turns to peak - that can certainly be a challenge when trying to identity stations!
• It was interesting to catch Paradiso on 1629 kHz this evening. Whenever I've logged him previously it has always been around 1665, and I have usually been able to detect only a carrier. Tonight, however, although the signal was weak, there was clear audio to be heard on this lower frequency.
• On 1655 kHz today was Batavier - not to be confused with Batavia - and he was testing as well! He was trying out a new transmitter, which he was kind enough to send me a picture of:

• Rebel was busy on 1640 kHz. He usually runs around 50 watts, and his signal shows clearly that conditions were pretty good today:

Tuesday, October 30, 2018
1620       0610       Marconist 35333 music programme
1625       1936       Marianne 45444 music programme
1615       1937       Gedrocht van Twente 24222 music programme
1657       1952       Digitaal 45444 music programme
1625       2331       Pandora 55444 music programme

Observations

• Marconist kicked the day off with an early morning programme on 1620 kHz. I wasn't listening live and set the computer to record the signal from my radio rather than using an SDR. Luckily, I left the radio tuned to 1620 kHz, but I think I might have to upgrade the technology at this side in the coming months which means I would be able to monitor the whole pirate spectrum at a given time rather than picking one frequency and hoping there is a station on air.
• If it's Tuesday and there's a strong signal around 1625 kHz, then it is almost certainly Marianne, and today was no exception. He was booming across the North Sea for several hours and coming in very well here.
• Gedrocht van Twente was back on air tonight, but joined by De Vier Ineen (The Four Together). Just the same as last night they were broadcasting all evening but the signal here was not so strong.

Monday, October 29, 2018
1645       1850       Oldtimer 44444 music programme
1643       1855       Vrijevogel 22442 music programme
1629       1857       Ome Wil (Pandora 2) 35333 music programme
1615       1902       Gedrocht van Twente 25222-35333 music programme
1690       1912       Bogusman 55555 testing
1638       2015       Bluebird 55555 music programme
1638       2100       Igloo 45444 music programme
1649       2324       Monte Carlo 34333 music programme

Observations

• There were various interesting signals around this evening. Let's start with the one on 1690 kHz which was a test transmission from the UK featuring non-stop music and later a programme from the Bogusman, who listeners on shortwave might well be familiar with. The output power at the start of the transmission was 15 watts, which was later increased to around 50 watts. We can expect more testing in the weeks ahead as changes to the antenna system are made and the earthing gradually improved. The 15 watts was crossing the North Sea tonight and reaching the Netherlands, so that bodes well for the future, when as well as an improved antenna system, there are plans for considerably higher power.
• Bluebird was busy for most of the evening on 1638 kHz, but he also took some time out for a relay of Radio Igloo with an international programme of oldies. Hopefully this is something we will hear again. A special qsl card was issued for the broadcast, which has been distributed already - this is the one sent to my good friend Terry, which I hope he doesn't mind me reproducing here. He runs an excellent blog which he updates with station logs every day. Take a look here.

• There were a couple of new names for me tonight, kicking off with the station on 1629 kHz. Unfortunately the modulation was quite low, but the identification (with a little help from my friend Zeewolf) seemed to be Ome Wil, although I am told he also uses the name Pandora 2. He was giving out a telephone number and was on air for some hours. Hopefully it will be a little louder next time!
• The signal on 1615 all evening was Gedrocht van Twente en de Lachende Vagebond - another new one for me, which translates to the Monster from Twente and the Smiling Tramp. What great names. As you might imagine, the signal in Twente was solid all night, although here in England it was a little more variable but with some good peaks. This station migrated from FM a couple of months ago apparently.
• Although not listed above, there was some testing also happening on the unusual frequency of 1607 kHz. At around 2020 UTC there were some bursts of music which sounded loud and punchy. This frequency is not great given its proximity to the legal transmissions on 1602 kHz, yet the signal on 1607 was arriving here very well. I have no idea who it was though!

World Cup fever

Good evening from a very hot UK. It seems to have been 30 degrees here for weeks now, and we're set for more good weather. I can't complain after the winter we had, but the soaring temperatures, perhaps coupled with the World Cup, have seen the pirate bands a bit on the quiet side.

Take tonight, for example, I switched the radios on at about 2100 UTC and could find only two pirate stations on MW. A look back at the logs from corresponding Monday in 2016 show that I heard seven pirates between 2100 and 2200 UTC. 

Who can blame pirates for enjoying the weather and watching the football with a beer - I've been doing similar. But, on the up side, when the World Cup is over and the temperatures begin to drop, I'd say the bands will light up again with activity.

Here's a look at the stations I've heard recently:

Freq       Time       Station SINPO

Monday, July 2, 2018
1635       2150       Bluebird 55444 music programme
1665       2150       Rebel 25222 music programme

Observations

• Nice to hear Bluebird playing some English music on his show tonight. His signal was very strong as usual on the peaks, although there was plenty of static to contend with at times
• Rebel was doing well on 1665. He has 50 watts of power and was breaking through very nicely at times, although he too was suffering from static, which is very much a sympton of the very dry weather we're experiencing

Tuesday, June 25, 2018

1625       2035       Marianne 55444 music programme

1645       2035       Oldtimer 45444 music programme

Thursday, June 21, 2018

1625       2022       Pandora 35433 music programme

1629       2023       Turftrekker 44444 music programme

1620       2208       Anton 45444 music programme

1611       2208       Polkaman 33222-33333 music programme

1635       2223       Monte Carlo 45333-45444 report for Anton

1635       2232       Vonkenboer 25222 qsoing 

Sunday, June 17, 2018

1655       2155       Snowman 35343 music programme

1611       2246       Polkaman 32322-34343 music programme 

Observations

• Interesting to hear Polkaman trying out a new frequency tonight. He's been using 1665 kHz for as long as I can remember!

Dusting down the radios

Greetings from the UK. It's been a quiet few months for me on the radio front. I often listen a little less during the spring as conditions are far from optimum for tuning the MW band with much longer days and so a smaller window for tuning about. However, the longest day of the year is approaching, which can mean only one thing - the days will be getting shorter again very soon!

On Friday evening I dusted the radios and had a tune around to see what I could hear. And there were quite a few stations and some great signals. The powerhouse stations - Barones, Bluebird and Vrolijke Mijnwerker - were typically very strong and it was really good to hear all the voices I know so well for the first time in a while. Here's a rundown of the pirates I listened to as the weekend kicked off:

Freq    Time    Station SINPO

Friday, June 15, 2018

1635    1855    Bluebird 34443, later 55555 music programme

1642    1904    Kaaiman 24442 music programme

1620    2218    Barones 45444 music programme

1656    2219    Driland 33343-44444 music programme

1646    2220    Vrolijke Mijnwerker 55544 music programme

1630    2224    Monte Carlo 33343 qsoing

1656    2235    Alabama 44444 report for Driland

1645    2241    Monte Carlo 34333-44444 report for Mijnwerker

1665    2247    Polkaman 24322-34333 music programme

1649    2322    Jeneverstoker 24322 qsoing

You can see reception for yourself on this short film I made:

It was good to hear Radio Driland on Friday night - it's often only at Christmas and new year that I seem to hear him. He was suffering splatter from Mijnwerker for some of his transmission, but when his signal was alone it was peaking very nicely, as you can hear on this recording:

Great conditions on the band

We're only just into February but already the days are becoming a little longer and, although that is not ideal for listening to Dutch pirates from our post in the UK, there have been great propagation conditions on the band tonight, making for some good listening. 

So, it's time to update the logbook. As usual the antenna here is the Wellbrook ALA1530LN+ together with the Lowe HF225.

Freq       Time     Station SINPO

Monday, February 12, 2018

1620       0600       Nordster 54544 music programme

1640       2014       Veronica 34333-444444 music programme

1645       2015       Oldtimer 45444 music programme

1629       2015       Moscou 25222-35333 music programme

1655       2018       Melkbus 23222-34443 music programme

1625       2024       Lokaal weak signal music programme

1715       2029       Digitaal 45444 music programme

1663       2119       Vrolijke Mijnwerker 55444 qsoing
1645       2210       Ether Snuiver 45444 qsoing
1640       2235       Monte Carlo 45444 report for Veronica

1660       2255       Vrolijke Mijnwerker 55444 qsoing
1638       2306       Alabama 55444 qsoing

Observations

• I set the computer to record my radio on 1620 kHz this morning and I was rewarded with my first catch of Nordster. The voice was very well known to me, but the first time I've heard this ID. Take a listen to the recording and see if you recognise the man behind the mic!

• Good to catch Melkbus on 1655 this evening, with a signal that was peaking up really well at times. In fact, this was possibly the best I've heard him, helped significantly by the good conditions
• The station on 1629 tonight took some identifying. I listened for a while and made some recordings, and after listening back I managed to hear the ID of Moscou Twente
• It's rare to catch a Dutch pirate as high as 1715 kHz, but if there is anything above 1675 then it will often be Digitaal on the frequency, and so it was tonight. Free from any other stations and without noise, the signal was coming through particularly well
• Vrolijke Mijnwerker often enjoys a chat with his pirate counterparts in the Balkans, and tonight he was on air chatting with Romeo and Kalibar in Serbia. I'm not sure how much each person understood from the other given the language barrier, but these qsos are always fun to listen to
• Alabama was interesting to hear at just after 2300 local time here in the UK. This station had been popping up with reports last year, transmitting speech and no music, presumably to keep any local interference at a minimum. However, there was music this evening and a very strong signal

Sunday, February 11, 2018

1629       0640       Polkaexpress 35443 music programme

1620       1848       Weduwe 55444 music programme

1637       1848       Dikke Betta 55544 music programme

1647       1849       Armada 45444 music programme

1655       1856       Relmus 45444 qsoing

1655       1901       Batavier 45444 qsoing

1638       2200       Bluebird 55444 music programme

1645       2208       Witte Raaf 45444 music programme

Observations

• I made extra effort this morning to get up nice and early and have a good tune around on MW before the sun came up. So, out of bed at 0615, cup of tea in hand, I headed to the radio room to hear . . . silence! The band was empty, and a check of the SDR at Twente revealed the same at the Enschede listening post. Usually on a Sunday there is plenty of activity, but today, the opposite. After a little while there was some non-stop music on 1629, which turned out to be Polkaexpress, but nothing like the activity levels I was hoping for. I shall try again next week!

Thursday, February 8, 2018

1655       1825       Batavier 34333 qsoing

1647       1829       Friese Piraat 24222-35333 qsoing

1636       1835       Marskramer (Friesland) 25222-35443 qsoing

1645       1841       Oldtimer 45444 qsoing

1630       1930       Columbia 35333-45444 testing

1638       2208       Bluebird 55544-55555 music programme

1622       2211       Meteoor 45444 qsoing

1625       2216       Vonkenboer 25342-35443

Monday, February 5, 2018

1647       2227       Armada 45434

1638       2228       Bluebird 55444 music programme

1625       2229       Vonkenboer 25222 report for Armada

Saturday, February 3, 2018

1637       0731       Dikke Betta 45444 qsoing

1625       0732       Bonanza 45434 qsoing

Friday, February 2, 2018

1629       0600       Blauwe Panda 33443 music programme

1629       0655       Marconist 33443-44444 music programme 

1623       1856       Pandora 55544 music programme

1658       1858       Relmus 33333-44444 music programme

1654       1908       Vrije Vogel weak signal music programme

Observations

• I've seen a few logs for Marconist but never heard the station - until today. Broadcasting from the Veluwe, his signal was arriving here quite well this morning

Thursday, February 1, 2018

1625       0600       Bootsman 24222-44444 music programme

1640       1820       Telefunken weak signal

1645       1821       Batavier 35443 music programme

1611       2003       Zwarte Boer 33333 music programme

1638       2004       Nachtzwerver 33433 qsoing

1665       2005       Meteoor 45434 music programme

1638       2006       Bluebird 55444-55555 music programme

1623       2015       Zwarte Panter (North NL) 22222-34333 music programme

Wednesday, January 31, 2018

1636       1816       Derdeman 35333-45444 music programme

1620       1816       Verona 23322-35443 music programme

1629       1825       Blauwe Panda 34333-45444 music programme

1645       1834       Batavier 35444-45554 music programme

1665       1834       Zwarte Panter (North NL) 35443 music programme

1636       1900       Torpedojager (Twente) 45333-45444 music programme

1636       2145       Noordzee 35333-45444 music programme

1625       2218       Pandora 55444 music programme

1625       2229       Monte Carlo 45444 report for Pandora

Tuesday, January 30, 2018

1625       1834       Bonanza 55544-55555 qsoing

1629       1838       Moonbreaker 35333-45444 qsoing. 

1620       1842       Rebel (Drenthe) 34443-22422 qsoing 

1645       1847       Nachtrijder 25322 qsoing

1620       1858       Zwarte Arabier 45434-55444 music programme

1630       1925       Malibu 24322-34333 music programme

1625       1937       Marianne 54444 music programme

1655       1957       Batavier 24222-35333

1665       1959       Digitaal 45434 music programme

1640       2005       Vader en Zoon Combinatie 35333

1634       2213       Noordzee 35333-45444 report for Marianne 

1629       2213       Monte Carlo 35333-45444 report for Marianne

Observations

• There was a super signal from Moonbreaker this evening on 1629 kHz, the best I have ever heard him. It seems he has made some changes to his earth part of the antenna. Take a listen to the reception:

• The Vader en Zoon Combinatie were back on air again tonight, but this station remains a bit of a mystery. Interesting that while they were broadcasting there was another father and son active on the band - Malibu on 1630 and his dad Zwarte Arabier just a few kilohertz down on 1620!