19 Tips for beginning (AM/FM DXing)
Description
This article is from the Shortwave radio FAQ, by Ralph Brandi rbrandi@lucent.com with numerous contributions by others.
19 Tips for beginning (AM/FM DXing)
The most important element for beginning DXers is to get to know the
dial. Spend a few hours scanning up and down the dial both during the
day and at night. At night, many of the clear-channel 50kw stations,
particularly the non-directional ones, should be easy to hear. Learn
all the local stations. Find out which ones sign off at sunset, which
ones go off late at night, and which stay on all night. This will affect
which distant stations can be received. If you have a local station on
all night, you shouldn't expect to hear another station on that
frequency without some tedious nulling. Experiment with radio placement.
As you slowly turn the radio, observe its directional characteristics.
The Superadio III will receive signals coming from the front and back of
the set the best, and attenuate the signals coming in `off the side' of
the set. You can use this to your advantage and log several stations on
a single frequency.
By all means, keep a log of all new stations you hear; someday you'll be
glad you did! Better yet, keep it on the computer; that way you can
share it with others on the net. After a few months of listening; you
should have a list of 200-300 stations you've heard. Most of these will
be your `regulars', audible almost daily. Beyond that, you can hunt for
the rarer stuff. Try for all 50 US states (very, very difficult), or 20
countries (fairly easy in most locations). Within a few years, you'll
likely have heard a thousand or so stations and have a very interesting
logbook. Here's a `beginner's target list' of widely heard clear channel
AM stations to start you out; from most locations in North America you
should be able to hear all but four or five of these fairly easily.
540 CBK Canada SA Watrous 840 WHAS USA KY Louisville 540 XEWA Mexico SL Rio Verde 850 KOA USA CO Denver 640 KFI USA CA Los Angeles 860 CJBC Canada ON Toronto 650 WSM USA TN Nashville 870 WWL USA LA New Orleans 660 WFAN USA NY New York 880 WCBS USA NY New York 670 WMAQ USA IL Chicago 890 WLS USA IL Chicago 680 KNBR USA CA San Francisco 900 XEW Mexico DF Mexico City 700 WLW USA OH Cincinnati 990 CBW Canada MB Winnipeg 720 WGN USA IL Chicago 1020 KDKA USA PA Pittsburgh 730 XEX Mexico DF Mexico City 1030 WBZ USA MA Boston 740 CBL Canada ON Toronto 1040 WHO USA IA Des Moines 750 WSB USA GA Atlanta 1070 CBA Canada NB Moncton 760 WJR USA MI Detroit 1070 KNX USA CA Los Angeles 770 WABC USA NY New York 1100 WWWE USA OH Cleveland 780 WBBM USA IL Chicago 1120 KMOX USA MO Saint Louis 800 PJB Neth Ant. Bonaire 1160 KSL USA UT Salt Lake City 800 XEROK Mexico CH Juarez 1180 WHAM USA NY Rochester 810 WGY USA NY Schenectady 1200 WOAI USA TX San Antonio 820 WBAP USA TX Fort Worth 1210 WOGL USA PA Philadelphia 830 WCCO USA MN Minneapolis
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