Innehållsförteckning för February 2022 från Radio User

News What’s new in the world of radio Runbo P5 4-Watt Rugged VHF/UHF Tablet Access Brandmeister, DMR+ and TGIF networks, easily from this 4W rugged VHF/UHF Tablet. Running Android, you can install all the available Play Store apps. This means that you can install Zello, Team Speak, EchoLink and many others and use the built-in PTT button to key the transmission on such apps. Can you imagine that? If you don’t reach an EchoLink node, just use 3G, 4G or even Wi-Fi, and you are connected. Never miss a QSO again just because there isn’t a nearby repeater. Compatible with most worldwide smartphone providers, including Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile, Google FI, and so on. https://tinyurl.com/bdaspzs8 https://tinyurl.com/4u5n9bj8 https://tinyurl.com/bdfm838e…

Feature Minority Language Radio in Europe [Pt I] RICHARD NOSWORTHY MAKES A WELCOME RETURN TO RADIOUSER, WITH A TWO-PART FEATURE ON THE ROLE OF RADIO IN THE CONTEXT OF THE SUPPORT FOR MINORITY LANGUAGES, LANGUAGE-LEARNING AND PRESERVATION, AND ORAL CULTURES. Richard Nosworthy helo@richardnosworthy.cymru Tune through the AM bands in Europe and you will hear many languages coming through the ether. For example, from my home in Cardiff, the daytime reception of mainly English stations is joined at night by continental broadcasts in French and Spanish. Of course, these are not the only languages spoken in Europe. There are many lesserused tongues in use across the continent, more often found on FM or Internet radio. These languages have immense value. They are not only a means of communication but also part…

Maritime Matters Chinese AIS, NDB News, and a New ICOM Transceiver Robert Connolly reports on Chinese legislation that makes ships ‘disappear’ offers the very latest updates on Non-Directional Beacons previews the new ICOM IC-M804 Transceiver and finds a concrete-reinforced ship. Robert Connolly gi7ivx@btinternet.com MARINETRAFFIC.COM Our editor recently sent me a news item entitled AIS Beacons: Hit by new Law. Many of you will be aware of the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) and its relevant communications requirements: https://www.imo.org According to those rules, all passenger vessels and cargo vessels over 300 GRT (Gross Registered Tonnage) are legally required to constantly transmit their vessel details including name, size, course, speed, and so on, via two dedicated marine VHF channels (AIS 1 on 161.975MHz and AIS 2 on 162.025MHz). The purpose of AIS is to…

What’s new in the world of radio News What’s New Have you got something new to tell our readers about? If so, then drop a line to wiessala@hotmail.com AIS-Receive Version of the Icom IC-M510 VHF/DSC Marine Radio Ian at Icom UK reports as follows: “The latest addition to our line-up of marine products is the AIS RX version of the IC-M510, our stylish VHF/DSC with a large easy to read full-colour display also offering secondary control using our Smartphone App. The IC-M510 fixed-mount marine transceiver is suitable for both leisure and commercial vessels with its elegant yet rugged, waterproof Icom build quality. Packed with great features, our new model now offers the ability to receive AIS signals (AIS version only) so users can see surrounding vessel traffic in real-time and…

Book Review Action Bands and Short Wave Radio David Harris is impressed by the listings and articles in the latest edition of the Global Radio Guide (GRG), one of the primary publications for global DXers and short wave radio enthusiasts. David Harris mydogisfinn@gmail.com I am always astonished by the quality of articles and information and the sheer volume of this bi-annual publication, which is only available as a downloadable eBook. Since 2014, Gayle (a long-standing columnist for the former Monitoring Times radio magazine) has been producing, twice a year, this listening guide and encyclopaedia of all things short wave. For a little under £7, one gets a 177-page radio book, plus a 342-page listener guide. Gayle kicks the book off with a very perceptive 20-page essay on China, its radios…

Airband News Present Airspace Changes and Future Air and Space Ops David Smith throws a spotlight on major UK airspace changes, Luton Airport traffic handling, and plans for future air and space operations. He also introduces a comms profile of RAF Lossiemouth ATC. David Smith dj.daviator@btinternet.com On 2 December 2021, NATS accomplished the biggest ever geographical airspace change in the UK, removing long-established air routes over Scotland and freeing aircraft to choose their most direct flight path. With up to 2,000 flights using this crucial part of UK airspace every day and supporting 80% of transatlantic traffic, this introduction will save CO2 every year equivalent to the power used by some 3,500 family homes (12,000 tonnes CO2/year). It will also save 500,000 nautical miles of flying per year – the…

Feature The UK’s Coast Station Network – a Brief History Author and RadioUser contributor Larry Bennett G4HLN provides an overview of the UK MF/VHF Coast Station Network, on the occasion of the publication of his much-anticipated new book. Larry Bennett lawrence.bennett@btinternet.com For nearly 100 years, a network of Coast Radio Stations provided wireless communications to vessels navigating the coastal waters (and sometimes beyond) of the United Kingdom. Some stations were originally owned and operated by Lloyd’s of London (many former lookout, semaphore or flag stations) or The Marconi Company, and an uneasy agreement between the companies allowed a degree of co-operation. However, after the Post Office opened their first Coast Radio Station at Bolt Head (Devon) in 1908, the former Lloyd’s and Marconi stations were taken under the umbrella of…

News Radio News JAZZ FM AND SCALA RADIO TO SHARE NEW JAZZ MEETS CLASSICAL SERIES: Jazz FM and Scala Radio are coming together with a brand-new series that will be heard across both networks on the same evening over six weeks. Scala Radio’s Jack Pepper and Jazz FM’s China Moses will explore the link between the two musical genres, introducing each other to the music they love, exploring the grey areas, crossovers and curious links. Special guests will include Maria Schneider and Nigel Kennedy with each episode finishing with a piece of live music, recorded especially for the series by the Jazz Meets Classical House Band, which is led by pianist Robert Mitchell, alongside a group of players from the National Youth Jazz Orchestra. The recordings will cover everything from…

Feature Actors, not Invisibles: Indigenous Radio in Brazil Martín Butera is returning to RadioUser on a more regular basis throughout 2022. In his first exclusive article, he investigates the significance of free radio for Indigenous Communities in the Northeast of Brazil. Martín Butera martin_butera@yahoo.com.ar In this article, I would like to look at the importance of free radios established and operated by indigenous organizations and peoples in Brazil (Fig. 1). To that end, I shall concentrate on the situation for Indigenous Free Radios in the state of Bahia, in northeast Brazil. In the 21st Century, it seems that the vast majority of Brazilians ignore the immense diversity of indigenous peoples living in this country. It is estimated that, at the time of the ‘discovery’ of Brazil, more than 1,000 peoples,…

Push to Talk From CB at 40 to VoIP Radio Apps This month Tim Kirby reflects on 40 years of legal CB radio and revisits some previous review equipment. He then offers an update on the Senhaix 8600 and 8800, the RFinder B-1 plus, and some great VoIP Radio apps. Tim Kirby tim@livingland.wales On 2nd November 2021, legal CB radio in the UK was forty years old! Of course, CB Radio had been around in the UK for a long while before November 1981, and it had taken a huge amount of lobbying and discussion before the Government would agree to a legal CB service. Before legalisation, CBers, ‘breakers’ as they were known, used CB sets, generally imported from the USA, which used the Amplitude Modulation (AM) system. The sets…

What’s new in the world of radio News Xiegu X6100 QRP SDR Portable Nevada Radio is delighted to be appointed a UK dealer for the new XIEGU X6100 QRP SDR Portable transceiver from China. with built-in Bluetooth function. The X6100 has a high-resolution colour screen for easy reading, built-in Bluetooth function and will transmit on both the HF and 6m Amateur bands. The Receiver coverage is from 0.5MHz to 30MHz, plus from 50 - 54MHz. The transceiver produces 10W RF output from an external supply or 5W from a battery supply whilst also boasting a built-in automatic antenna tuner. The radio is supplied with a 3,000 mAh Lithium battery and a range of accessories including a hand microphone, connecting lead and charger. The XIEGU X6100 has both FCC and CE…

New Media and Internet Radio Storms, Sands and Communities In times of rough weather and other emergencies, Chrissy Brand looks at the strengths and weaknesses of community radio and peruses the Egyptian radio and podcast scene. Chrissy Brand chrissyLB@hotmail.co.uk During Storm Arwen, in late November 2021, I was reminded of how powerless we can be – pun intended. The weather caused me a delayed journey home after a city centre gig, followed by a long walk from a distant station, being battered by sleet. That was bearable, but what was worrying occurred a few hours later, around dawn, when much of the Calder Valley in which I live, was affected by a power cut. Good communications from Northern Powergrid had alerted most people by text of the outage, and the…

Aerials 101 Basic Aerial Technology: Ground, Dipoles and BALUNS Keith Rawlings continues his ‘aerials for beginners’ theme by looking at how the ground influences signal reception, expanding on dipole aerials and explaining the workings of BALUNs. Keith Rawlings Keith.g4miu@gmail.com ALL PICTURES: KEITH RAWLINGS In last month’s column (RadioUser, January 2022: 38-40), I included diagrams of the radiation patterns of an HF dipole – both in free space and above a realistic ground. This was to demonstrate how the patterns could differ due to the ground reflecting the wave. Exactly how these waves are reflected depends on the ground beneath the aerial. It has long been known that seawater makes an excellent ground. Many amateurs, including those on ‘DXpeditions’, operating from exotic islands, have found that simple aerials by a seashore…

Digital Radio Green Footprints: Radio, Energy and the Environment Kevin Ryan considers how radio affects the wider environment and how COP-26 will impact digital services, before critically evaluating the reported energy and carbon effects of various types of radio consumption. Kevin Ryan kevin@radio-digital.co.uk Last month (RadioUser. January 2022: 44-47) I highlighted many of the recommendations listed in the UK’s Digital Radio and Audio Review (DRAR). This document aims to predict a likely path for radio up to 2035. By then, it is thought that around 52% of listening will be on DAB+, 36% via streaming to smart speakers using the Internet Protocol (IP), analogue a mere 9% and digital TV (DTV) 3%. The prediction considered many possible changes in the coming decade on how we might listen to the radio.…

In the Editor’s Shack SI4732 Radio Version 2.0: The ATS-25 Radio with Touchscreen Having looked at the ATS20 SI4732 Radio recently, the editor turns his attention to its more recent successor, the ATS25 receiver. This radio comes with some useful functions and features, including a touchscreen. Georg Wiessala wiessala@hotmail.com In the December 2021 issue of this magazine (RadioUser, December 2021: 40-41), I took a look at the simple ATS-20 SI4732 radio, named after the chip upon which it is based. Well, Father Christmas has been kind and sent me the successor model too. The radio is constructed around the Silicon Labs Si4732 M/FMSW/LW/RDS receiver IC, like its predecessor (Table 1, Figs. 1 and 2). Upon switch-on, the first (blue) screen on my review radio showed the following message – presumably…