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Re: Oregon Coast DXpedition

pianoplayer88key
 

What do you mean "rather basic" equipment? ;) It's WAY better than what I have. :( In your PVC loop article, you write: "These monster loop antennas have the capability of taking fringe AM signals completely inaudible on stock Ultralight radios and boosting the signal gain to the point that the same Ultralight radios start to overload!" Does that mean it takes a signal from sounding like this (starting at 1:47): http://cid-6bdd1917662288cb.office.live.com/self.aspx/AM%20radio%20files/PL-380%20March%202010%20%5E52%5E6/0970%20AM%20compare%20%5E5KNWZ%5E6.mp3
to sounding like this (after 0:22 in the recording)?: http://cid-6bdd1917662288cb.office.live.com/self.aspx/AM%20radio%20files/1170%20KCBQ%20-%202010-04-16/KCBQ%201170%20-%20PL-380%20-%20overload%20demo%20-%202nd%20half%20SAT%20@%20PowerPole.mp3

All I have is the lowly Select-A-Tenna, plus the PL-380's stock loop. Yes, I can make 1170 KCBQ, from 9 miles away, overload my PL-380 by coupling the SAT plus a power line (via the ground wire on the power pole) to it (which is what you heard in the recording, and I should mention that the two above recordings were of different stations), but the powerline noise makes it worthless for weak signal DX work. In fact, if you listen to this recording...
http://cid-6bdd1917662288cb.office.live.com/self.aspx/AM%20radio%20files/2010-07-20/1490%20KSPE%20Santa%20Barbara%5EJ%20CA.mp3
you can clearly hear the powerline noise, even though my PL-380 and SAT was 60 meters away from the lines. That is 1490 KSPE, 195 miles away, recorded at about 4pm. (Yes, it was mostly over a salt water path.)

So, I went in the other room to be away from the computer, and tried the frequencies you listed on my PL-380. I won't post a recording as I didn't make one, but this is what I heard/saw when tuned to those frequencies:

531 - 20,00 - static, possibly heard slight hint of something but I suspect a TIS on 530, was too weak to ID and there's too many stations on the frequency to guess based on a FCC database search
585 - 41,00 - IBOC from 600 KOGO, 7.7 miles away
603 - 33-51dBu - splatter from KOGO (was using 1kHz mode)
639 - 36,00 - 640 KFI Los Angeles, CA
657 - 27,00 - splatter from 660 KTNN Window Rock, AZ
666 - 29,00 - KTNN splatter. thought I heard something but it was too weak to ID, and SAT only served to increase KTNN (and 670 KIRN Simi Valley) splatter and raise the RSSI over 40dBu. I also don't have a SSB spotting receiver - the PL-380, in spite of the fact that it's sorely lacking compared to what I want it to do (mostly due to the hangar-door-wide front-end selectivity compared to my Panasonic RQ-SW20, which is as selective overall as a Sony SRF-M37W), is currently the best radio I have. :(
684 - 30,00 - splatter from 690 XEWW Rosarito, BCN (just missed the TOH ID btw)
738 - 35,00 - splatter from 740 KCBS San Francisco, CA, although it almost sounded clean
891 - 35,00 - 890 KDXU St. George, UT.

While you're still there, would it be possible for you to try some daytime DX? I wonder if any of the San Francisco stations might make it up the coast? I was able to faintly hear 680 KNBR and 810 KGO a few months ago here in El Cajon, CA, using my PL-380 and Select-A-Tenna...
KNBR: http://cid-6bdd1917662288cb.office.live.com/self.aspx/AM%20radio%20files/PL-380%20March%202010%20%5E51%5E6/680%20KNBR%20-%20PL-380%20-%202010-03-17%203pm.mp3
KGO: http://cid-6bdd1917662288cb.office.live.com/self.aspx/AM%20radio%20files/PL-380%20March%202010%20%5E51%5E6/810%20KGO%20-%20PL-380%20-%202010-03-17%203pm.mp3

I also think 740 KCBS might be possible for you, although it's not for me due to having a fairly strong (~48dBu) semi-local on the same frequency in the same direction, KBRT Avalon, whose 10kW (off at night) transmitter is on Catalina Island. Also do you get any trace of 860 KTRB (50kW DA, impossible for me due to a ~54dBu barefoot local on the same frequency) or 1100 KFAX (50kW DA aimed more toward you than toward me)?
So far my farthest daytime catch with the Select-A-Tenna is 700 KALL North Salt Lake City, a distance of 626 miles...
http://cid-6bdd1917662288cb.office.live.com/self.aspx/AM%20radio%20files/PL-380%20March%202010%20%5E51%5E6/maybe%20700%20KALL%20-%20PL-380%20-%202010-03-08%203pm.mp3
You're only about 45 miles farther away, and there's a signal on 700 that is about 57° off axis, but I would be surprised if you couldn't detect a signal with your much better antenna than mine.

Also, did you see my post a few days ago in reply to the one you posted saying you were going on vacation? :)

--- In ultralightdx@..., D1028Gary@... wrote:


Hello All,
I'm sending this initial report at the Liberty Inn Motel in Lincoln City, OR, so please forgive any bizarre email transformations. Ruth, Danny and I left Puyallup on Saturday for a 7-day family vacation, and although I was unsuccessful in persuading them to stay at the Grayland Motel, it was possible to arrange lodging in Oregon within walking distance of TP-enhanced ocean beaches.
My equipment is rather basic, with a newly-designed 7.5" plug-in loopstick Tecsun PL-380 ULR (both LW and MW 7.5" plug-in loopsticks) and a 3' portable PVC tuned passive loop, which is designed to easily fit in a crammed compact car trunk (and be assembled, in the dark,within a couple of minutes).
South Pacific DX has been excellent for the first 3 days, with 18 DU's (South Pacific DX) stations heard from Australia, New Zeakand, Fiji (639), Tahiti (738). and a French-speaking station on 666 kHz that I've never heard at Grayland. Multiple DU's have been fighting it out on several frequencies such as 531, 639, 657, 738, 891 and a few others. This morning I had the thrilling experience of making an MP3 of two stations on 738 kHz (Tahiti and ABC Grafton, Australia) fighting it out with both at 9+ levels, maxing out the PL-380's digital S/N indicator with a 25 reading (with RSSI of 55). THe barefoot Sony SRF-T615 also easily received both stations, a very rare event for a stock Ultralight radio. New DU's on 585, 603, 666 and 684 kHz have also been received, but several of these will require assistance from DU-DX experts for definite identification. MP3's have been made, of course, for such future detective work
Because of dissatisfaction with our Seaside, OR motel (which had a very crowded, smoky beach with serious RF hash from adjacent motels and walkway lights), we decided to move to this Linclon City, OR location, which seems like a dream come true for DXers. There is a cliff adjacent to the nearby ocean beach, with an ideal picnic table for radio and PVC loop setup. The cliff seems to add at least 5 dB to DU signals, making Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific Islands boom in on the modest equipment.
We have four more days to go in this DXers' paradise, and like John Bryant used to say, even if you've already had a blast with DXing fun, it's never too late to be greedy for more! After returning to Puyallup, I should upload the various MP3's, and a full DXpedition report. Thanks again to Walt for his recent Masset DU logs, which have been extremely useful. Have fun, guys!
73, Gary DeBock (N7EKX), in Lincoln City, OR
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