Our Mail Bag

Radio Record, Volume I, Issue 9, 16 September 1927, Page 12

Our Mail Bag

What's Remarkable. . Sir,-I wish to congratulate Mr. MeKay and Mr. Hutton on their fine lists -particularly the latter, as only four valves were used. Tjists such as this show what a good set and locality can do. My list is only 69 (latest addition CMRYV, 500 watts, B.C., which seems to be on old wave 291, and closed-at 6,36 p.m on September 7) Given the time there is no kuowing where the limit is. Re the statement by "‘Reflex"-"‘I would like to ask where anything remarkable comes ii’"’-my reply is, it’s uot remarkable. The only remarkable thing is that more and better lists have not been forwarded. Sixty-two stations from Dunedin ott 4 valyes wouldn’t make "nearly 80" or a Counterphase 8 remarkable, would it? Replying to Mr. Key’s questions, Between 2Bl, and 380 is 7BY. (2) ‘The one on 318 metres is a bit hard no doubt. No 8 just above KFOWN at 5 a.m. this morning was 8L0 on low power. Wishing you and your: readers as happy radiv liours as T have.

~-I am, etc.,

C. P.

GREY

te. The Other Side. "J.W.C.": Some people are never satisfied. YI notice by this week’s Record" a letter signed "G.C.H.,"", and another by "G.P.P.," wanting the Broadcasting Company to give ‘us a little more for our money. ‘Ye gods!" for thirty-seven-and-sixpence per annum

we get a daily service and a paper (second to none). Now, these people want the quarter of an hour between 7.45 to 8 p.m. and Sunday afternoon respectively. Surely the announcer ‘wants, and is entitled to, that fifteen minutes, and fully deserves the Sunday afternoons. JYA and 8YA have been fading badly this last week, and 4YA ‘has disappeared off the air. 2YA has been splendid, and I think puts on a Metter prograimme than anv of the

others.-

J.W.

C.

Masterton.

Alterations Wanted. A Listener: I wonld like to suggest that when Mr. Ball las finished his daily ‘‘news reports," any known alteratious to the programme conld be broadcest to the listener. It is very unsatisfactory to" be waiting for an item to be broadcast and without any apology or explanation that item does not. come through, and as I consider mysclf a customer of the Radio Broadrasting Co. I think 1 should get as much yalue as possible for the money { spend This is a hint that is worth consideration, aud in fairness to the Jistener-in who has paid his listener’s fee he should be informed of changes from fhe set programme. Report on Reception. R. W. Johnstone (Opoutawa): Speaking from what we find here, fading occurs more at night than during the afternoon-that is as regards 2YA,. 1YA fades more than atty other station in New Zealand with ine here; 2YA fades, but no€ as much as LYA; SYA is the most cé1isfisteit station in New Zealand as far as 1 am concerned, hardly fading at all. £ haye always put the Auckland fading down to the fact Bessels report that there is a 30-mile strip just north of the East Cape, where it is almost impossible to get New Zealand ‘generally, having to get Samoa or Viji to transmit to New Zealand. @YA comes better some nights than others, irrespective of winds prevailing. Vor instance, ‘Thursday, August 25, fading very badly, wind strong $.W.; lriday, August 26, hardly any fading, wind strong S.W. Only reason I can give is the change from a warm northerly wind on ‘{hursday morning to a cold S.W. wind might affect the aerial wire here, aud also your aerial, the change from warm to cold affecting both’ wires through the natural tautening of same. The Vriday’s atmosphere would naturally have nothing like the same effect, as the wires would be tautened and remain so for hours before the Friday broadcast. On Saturday evening, found all stations very noisy aud fading badly. Strong S.W. wind blowing up till 8.80 p.m. Changed these to strong N.I. wind, and at 9 p.m. noise and fading had practically ended, all stations coming through well for the rest of the evenitig. Presume the relaxing of the wires with the change of wind caused, or at least helped to cause, noise and fading. 2YA usually very powerful, but sometimes get SYA louder than 2YA, especially with strong southerly gales blowing. Perliaps a howling gale through the straits might affect YYA, causing 4 deflection of current to a certain extent to the West Coast. Perhaps some listener-in on the West Coast may have taken notes during various gales or may do so and report.

Tuesday, 30th, 8YA bad, 2YA horrible, 1YA bad until 8.30 p.m., and then very fair. Wind strong, gale, Suaday Services. T. (Cambridge): I would suggest if possible that’ a Church of Ingland service be broadcast from one of the following stations each Sunday evening :-LYA, 2YA,.or 8YA, so that any-

oue wishing to have that service could do so. Dunedin is rarely available. We have three Sundays without a Church of England service at either of those stations. We greatly appreciate the ‘improvement in the Sunday -afternoon ‘programme at 1YA, and hope it may still improve by the addition of the Municipal Band. May I also suggest a little-alteration in the entertainments after church service. Some of them are not in keeping with the church service. I think. tlie principle of keeping Sunday and Sunday programmes sacred will set a good example, as well as having a good influence with the large namber of listenets, aud would do a great deal of good. , |

; Crystal Reception. . Amateur: Is it possible to pick up the New Zealand stations, LYA, 8YA, and 4YA, ou a crystal set, if you have a large coil?-Our long distance crystal reception competition will show the distances workable by well equipped crystals, We expect some interesting results. . _ Comparative Reception. A Cromwell Reader: Just a line to congratulate you on the excellence of your publication. It deserves every success ‘The afternoon sessions from 1, 2, and 38YA come in here with lots of kick-a bit to spare on 6 tubes and often quite loud enough on four. 2BL -and 2FC have beeti speaker strength all day during the past few months, but at present are only ‘phone strength after midday till about 4.80. Hint for Crystal Users. "A. D. &X. Ham" writes: Here is an item of interest to your readers who use crystal sets, and which is not very widely known. I give it fur what it is worth, While buildiug a crystal set recently I recalied an old dodge which I used to employ in 1922. As the more advaneed readers known, a crystal passes 20 to 40 times more curreit im one ditection than it does in the other, therefore a certain amount of current ceceived in the aerial is rejected and so wasted. This rejected current can be used by another crystal being added Letween the earth end of the tuning coil and one side of the telephone receivers. It must be noted that the same type of crystal must be used in each detector, as the resistance of different crystals varies, ‘Ihe resistance of each c.ystal must be about equal. For obvious reasons, the carborundum-steel type of detector with applied voltage is Lest, as the cat-whisker type is rather sensitive to adjust. The best way to get this circuit to work efficiently is to adjust oue crystal at a time. .Short the second crystal with a piece of wire and adjust flie first detector to the best results. ‘Then short the first detector, without upsetting the adjustment, reinove the shorting wire from the second detector, and then find the best results on the second crystal, Remove the piece of shorting wire from the first detector, and it will be noticed that there is a decided increase in signal strength. It is a recognised thing that wire- less is sent ont in a series of waves, and whereas a valve will utilise "the whole of this wave’ (full-wave rectification), the crystal only uses either the top or the bottom half of this wave. Theabove circuit does not give the fullwaye rectification, but only uses the rejected portion of energy from the first crystal detector. Iull-wave rectification can be accomplished by means of four separate detectors (the circnit of which lias slipped my memory), but the slight increase of signal strength given | hy this means was offset by the amount of trouble-in keeping the four detectors working efliciently. Wor readers who only get weak reception, I can fully recommend this two-crystal circuit. An Interesting Letter. A.R. (Tuatapere, Southland): I deem it may be of interest to your company and also readers of ‘Radio Record,’’ ta know how 2YA is received in this district, which is about the most distant in New Zealand from that station. When conditious are favourable it simply roars 11 On a four-valve Roberts. The other evening I got 2YA on the loudspeaker at good strongth with the acrial dis-

connected and 15ft. of wite hung across, the room. I then removed this wire and still got faint signals. ‘Lhis goes to show that the station gets there under favourable conditions, but there is auother side to the picture, when -conditions are not favourable and fading takes place, and I am pleased to.see that this matter is being taken up and a test is to be made. We seldom get through a night without the sfation fading out a time or two. One evening, a fortnight ‘ago, I conld*not get 3YA or °YA, but LYA was‘ coming in at good Strength at times, This goes to-show that a moderate powered station will reach cut under favourable conditions, and that a powerful station is not much good at a distance, whien. conditiotis are had. At times New Zealand stations are coming itt weak and yet the Sydney stations are strong, and then again the opposite occurs. Itis a very interesting problem, this fading, Mr. Bditor, and I often try round and take..the streneth of the different stations. : I had a tather curious experience the. other evening. I tuned in 2BL, Syduey, very weak, and then tried 2FC in Sydney: It was weak also. J: then swunr. on: to

2GB Theosophical Broadcasting ‘Station, Svdney. This came in at fair loudspeaker strength. 1 immediately swung back on to the other two stations, but. they were still weak. Now at ordinary times, 2GB i is a weak station and here it comes in over the’ two powerful ones, and by the same pathway throngh the ether. Does this mean that. utider:"cer= tain conditions a station with a certain wavelength will get through while others of different wavelengtlis ‘will be blotted ont? I think the fading ‘tests to be of any use should be oatried ont over att extended period. I am. sure the ‘‘listeners-in" would be otily’ too pleased to assist by filling in cards, which could be sent’in at stated intervals. Divide the country into’ districts

and have one or two checking for fading at certain’ times; and when filing the catds don’t forget to file a copy of the weather reports and barometric pressures in the differcut districts. Mv wife .can tell what the weather is like up ‘north or in the Tasman Sea by what stations are fading ont. | T consider that the object to be aimed at, no matter how long it takes, is to inake it possible for every "‘listener-in"’ in New Zealand possessing a five-valve set to be at least certain of getting ccnsistent reception from one broadcast ‘Station. I have just been listening to the announcer of 2YA giving the numof "listeners-in’’ in the different provinces, atid Otago comes a had last. The Scotch are a canny folk, Mr. Kditor, and want something for their money. Their palate wants to be tickled with something hetter than 4YA’ (the programmes are all right, the little T ever hear of them): but could von tot arrange to have 4YA_ transferred to Rotorua to act as a relay station, as I see suggested in the last ‘Radin Record," and give Otago a worth-while station. Tam dving to "listen-in" in the daytime With a reasonable amount of success Tit concluding I would like to say I think the company are working on right lines, and are getting broadcasting on to a solid foundation at last, and that given time thev will have everybody satisfied or at least tiearly everybody almost satisfied. Wishing the company and your journal the best of luck. Sunday Services. "In looking over the various Sunday programmes, I notice that the afters Service sacred programmes have given place to a more general programme, This to my mind is a pity, for I know some who have iustalled sets chiefly with the object of hearing the Sunday, services and the after-service concert. I am afraid that if some people had their way we should be treated (?) to Jazz and snch like stuff nearly all the time. ‘rusting that the Broadcasting Company will reconsider its apparent new move and pxt on the Sunday sacred

colicert When possible

~l am. ete,

Crystal Clear