[R-390] LW reception on R390A

[blw]

> Yup.. but listening to just 455 kc may be boring.
> 
> A Hollow State News article that may relate to this topic is:
> 
> Issue No 2, page 3. "Longwave Conversion"  This may be the article I
> remember, or perhaps there was an Electric Radio article.
> 
> ...   It's not a modification, its just a trick. I can't remember the details
>> but you simply hook your antenna to one of the test points in the RF deck
> 
> Roy



Yes and no to listening below 500 kc. It is interesting to see how many
beacons you can DX in different directions. You may be surprised at how far
propagation carries. It is interesting if you are into building antennas
until you get them right as this is a real challenge due to weak signals and
the right propagation. It is somewhat interesting to park somewhere and wait
for propagation to roll in. I've logged many strong stations just to hear
them fade to nothing in a matter of seconds for the rest of the evening. It
is also a surprise to hear how many stations are on just one frequency if
you listen long enough.

I don't know if DXing below 500 is something that you would want to do every
night as with HF, but it is interesting and different. You can get European
LF broadcast stations down around the 180-200kc range if you get things
right. Lots of LF time stations on the other side of the world. WOLF and
other slow CW modes are interesting if you want to use the computer to get
dig out  the signals. I haven't tried that yet, but I read where LOWFERS are
reaching incredible ranges using these digital modes.

Don't expect to really hear all that is reasonably attainable unless you
have a preamp (I don't at the moment) and good filters if you are going to
try and log some beacons. You need to really slice down on the CW. I have a
JPS NIR-12 that I now use only for LF . It is the difference between hearing
1 or 2 stations or hearing a few dozen as I can adjust the filters way down.
A rotator is pretty much necessary for LF. I had a homebrew Octaloop set in
PVC pipe on the chimney for a while. I had lines so that I could rotate it
from the ground by hand. It was an interesting experiment.


the other other Barry