Hi there, wonderful to copy a signal from Tennant Creek on ABC's lowest shortwave band frequency - and one for which the use of SYNC and SSB was appropriate, as a test of those functions and to maximise discernibility. The audio quality on SYNC doesn't seem as clear on the Eton as it does on the Sony ICF-2001D, but it does work, as does SSB. Having said that, a data set of one reception video using SYNC isn't statistically significant, so definitely more to come before my mind is made up.
It's worth remembering that simply hearing ABC Northern Territories on 120 metres with this little Eton is amazing, given it's (unfair) reputation, thus I certainly wasn't expecting such great things from it!
Recorded at the woods in Oxford UK on 22/01/17 at 18:56 hrs UTC using a 50 metre longwire. Thanks for watching.
Hi there, here is a comparison of the longwire and Boni whip on medium wave. Watch how the signal from CFRB Newstalk 1010 Toronto 1010 kHz is buried under noise with both, until it miraculously appears at the end of the video when the Wellbrook is connected. What can you say? In a QRM-laden environment, neither a longwire or Boni whip is going to deliver serious DX. The H field Wellbrook, however, does the business. One more video in this series to come, with an example on LW, where the situation is a little different, then on to a comparison in the field between the whip and barbed wire fence...also interesting results! Thanks for watching.
According to online sources, this station broadcasts with a TX power of 10 kW, however, according to the WRTH 2017, the TX power is 20 kW, which I might be more inclined to believe. Either way, a nice catch on these portables. The performances of the Sonys are similar again, not sure which I prefer. The Tecsun struggles until the two narrowest filters are selected and then produces audio that fades in and out. Not bad at all for a sub £40 radio! Recorded in Oxford UK on 29/12/16 at 20:53 hrs UTC using an Wellbrook ALA1530 active loop antenna. Thanks for watching.
Hi there, my best reception of Radio Aparecida to-date on the ICF-SW77, although I didn't realise at the time! The ICF-SW55 also performs very well, particularly on the narrow audio bandwidth filter, however, the Tecsun (understandably) struggles with this weak signal, but I think brief audio is heard once the narrowest filter has been selected. Recorded in Oxford UK on 29/12/16 at 20:29 hrs UTC using a Wellbrook ALA1530 active loop antenna. Thanks for watching.
Hi there, following my one-on-one tests of the Bonito Boni whip and Wellbrook ALA1530, it became very apparent quite quickly and perhaps not unexpectedly that the Bonito E field antenna couldn't get near the performance of the Wellbrook. That led me to plan another set of tests out at the 'DX' woods and check the performance delta in a very quiet environment. In the meantime, a number of friends and fellows expressed an interest in compariing the Boni whip to a cheap piece of wire, so here is the first of a series of reception videos doing just that, with a final check of the signal at the end using the Wellbrook. The signal is Radio Nacional Brazilia 6180 kHz and I think you'll agree there's no difference to the audio obtained with the longwire or whip, only the Wellbrook produces something half reasonable on what was a night of very poor reception conditions. Hope you enjoy it.
Hi there, here is the next MW band comparison test for these two antennas - a signal from WMEX Boston Talk Radio on 1510 kHz. Sometimes this station can almost boom in over the Atlantic to my QTH in Oxford, UK. However, two nights ago, their signal could, at best, be described as quite weak, but with some discernible audio using the Elad FDM DUO and Wellbrook ALA1530. However, when switching over to the Boni whip, the signal was completely buried under amplified local noise, thus another disapointing result.
I still believe the delta in performance of these two antennas will be significantly less in a quiet location and to this end, I will be conducting another test at the woods in Oxfordshire. I want the Boni whip to succeed because a) I've spent over £100 on it and b) it would be great to have a very compact antenna that peformed as well as, or even nearly as well as the Wellbrook to use on DXpeditions. Three more test videos to come, all of which target shortwave signals.
Hi there, here is a signal from Medi 1 on LW 171 kHz with nice audio on the Wellbrook ALA1530. Watch as the Wellbrook is unplugged from the Elad FDM DUO and the Boni whip connected (using the supplied radiating element). The noise floor jumps by around 20 decibels and the resulting audio is severely compromised. I read that the Boni whip is often very ineffective in buildings, so I put both antennas in the garden to give it the best chance of success. The problem is however, that my garden is often noisier that inside the house because our neighbours surround us quite closely on three sides. Anyway, test number 1 is a disaster for the Boni whip. Let's see what happens next. Thanks for watching.
