BETTER RECEPTION

New Zealand Listener, Volume 31, Issue 788, 27 August 1954, Page 5

BETTER RECEPTION

Sir,-Your two correspondents, F. J. Ford, of Collingwood, and Derrick G. Sofio, of Whangarei, have raised questions of great interest to all listeners, even though their remarks have referred more particularly to transmitting and receiving conditions only in the Wellington and Auckland areas. To appreciate these problems fully it appears necessary to examine carefully the conditions of- broadcasting in each instance, and to render the position more clear I have prépared the following table showing the frequencies and powers of the stations referred to, as well as the corresponding data for the interfering Australian stations:

The very obvious fact that immediately emerges is the great disparity in the power dissipated in the Wellington and Auckland transmitting aerials, for while the 2YA and 2YC transmitters operate at a power of 60 kilowatts the corresponding stations in Auckland are radiating at only one-sixth of this power rating. It is' accordingly pertinent to ask why it is that Auckland, with a city population more than twice that of Wellington and with a larger provincial area also to cover and serye, should possess transmitters of such lower power ratings. Surely the very clear answer to the questions raised by your two correspondents is that the remedy for the interferences experienced in and around Auckland is to increase substantially the powers of the Auckland transmitters. This is indeed the only effective answer to the problem, for it is obviously a complete waste of time attempting to secure more "clear channels" than the present frequency allocations will allow. As to the reception of 2YX when Parliament is on the air, I must say that here in Thames I have no difficulty in bringing it in with a good reception strength, despite the fact that it appears to be radiating with only 0.750 kw. in its aerial, and since the sets I am using were both designed and built throughout by their owner I would accordingly prefer to regard this problem of better reception rather as one of better transmission than of improved set desion.

W. F.

CHUBB

(Thames).

coverage over mos the country, The stations in Auckland, Christchurch and Dunedin are intended to function as regional stations, and as such give a generally satisfactory coverage throughout their expected service area. Field s th decreases rapidly with distance and beyond this service area it gets so weak in places that Australian stations operating on the same frequencies are also audible at night time and spoil reception. It is not economically justifiable to give the Auckland stations much higher power, at considerable cost, to enable them to be heard clearly at all times in the South Island.--Ed.)