Service Section

New Zealand Listener, Volume 31, Issue 794, 8 October 1954, Page 22

Service Section

Readers with special problems in the care and maintenance of redio receiving sets are invited to send inquiries to the Editor of "The _ Listener."

Names and addresses are required. Wherever possible, replies will be given, either in "The Listener’ or by letter.

SEVERAL questions have been asked | by A.S.H. (Green Island), for whom i following answers are supplied: (1) When a new radio is being chosen it should, if possible, be tried out in the living room, where its quality of tone and suitability of appearance may be judged to the best advantage. (2) A radio set may be kept in service as long as the necessary spares-such as valves -are procurable, or until the need is felt for something more modern. (3) A 10-inch or 12-inch speaker is likely to have better bass response than an 8-inch. (4) More power is available from two tubes in push-pull with a minimum of distortion. (5) The number of L.F. stages is sometimes increased to provide greater selectivity, particularly in some of the more expensive communication receivers. (6) A battery set is no better

for DX work than a 230-v. A.C. set, but may give greater freedom from local electrical interference, which is sometimes brought in by the power mains. (7) The ingress of moisture could be the cause of the tuned circuits of a receiver becoming misaligned. However, some of the older types of receivers cannot be aligned properly. (8) At present there would be no advantage in replacing the valves of a valve-type receiver with transistors, The lower power consumption and smallness of transistors has been taken advantage of in certain types of radio equipment, but they are not generally interchangeable with valves.

The following advice on locating stations is for Mrs. Dorothy Oliver, of Christchurch: Refer to The Listener for the station’s frequency in kilocycles (ke.). This information precedes each daily programme schedule. To tune in to the station, turn the indicator or pointer to the number on the dial corresponding to the frequency given in The Listener. For example, to tune in to 3YA move the indicator to a position opposite 960 kc. on the dial. A further small adjustment of the indicator may be necessary to ensure that the station is correctly tuned in. Most modern receivers are also marked on the dial with the call signs of New Zealand stations. For some older receivers new dial scales are obtainable, showing present-day wavelengths.