Our Mail Bag

Radio Record, Volume I, Issue 13, 14 October 1927, Page 13

Our Mail Bag

| (0 OO Rec | Sunday Services. Pelorus Jack writes: "One of the bright spots in broadcasting up till last Sunday has been the Sunday afternoon concerts from Auckland, and I, and I know many others, are looking forward to the time when Wellington will 2 on the air on Sunday afternoons secular mitisic. "Several letters hdve appeared in ‘your columns recently protesting against the broadcasting of anything but sacred matter on Sundays; I would like to put ‘the case for the other side, which is largely represented by the farming community, to whom the Broadcasting Company must look in the future for most of their new business. _ "Radio to the farmer is very little use through the week except for the | | uews and market reports; his wife, of course, can enjoy the afternoon concerts, which are excellent, but the average working farmer is not in the house in the afternoon, except on Sunday and an odd wet day, and further can’t sit up all hours of the, night listeningin and be up at daylight next morning to milk the cows. Speaking generally, the farmers’ only chance of hearing an afternoon concert is on Sunday afternoons, and if these are to be given over, as on Sunday last at 1YA, to the broadcasting of Sunday School meetings, it is time to register a protest. | "As probably not ten per cent. of the farmers of New Zealand are members of any ch»re'. the Broadcasting Company can be fairly certain that any extension of the time already allotted to broadcasts of a religious nature will not be appreciated. "No reasonable minded listener would object to the broadcasting of evening services as at present for the benefit of those who enjoy this class of item, but it is equally unreasonable for correspondents such as ‘Miramar’ and ‘Crystal Set’ to ask that Sundays should be wholly devoted to broadcasts of a sacred nature. "While there are no doubt a few listeners who want more items of a sacred ‘nature on Sundays, I feel certuén that they constitute a small percentage of the whole." Football Broadcast Appreciated. W. KB. (Cashmere): "I cannot let ‘your very successful broadcast of the big football match in Wellington last Saturday go by without a word of praise and thanks to you; praise for the very successful efforts of your sporting operator, and thanks for the great pleasure and profit I derived from listening-in. I am sure many hundreds of others mee as I‘do." | The Dunedin Station. | Southernite: I wish to express my‘self in favour of the suggestion ad--yanced by ‘"Backblocks’ (Westport): ‘about a 10,000-watt station in Dun--edin; but, after reading Mr. Harris’s rather unfavourable report regarding 4¥A, I doubt if the Broadcasting Company will spend a large sum on 1mprovements to this station. IWiowever, the suggestion advanced by ‘"Backblocks" is worth considering. I have listened-in to fourtcen Australian and New Zealand stations, and I do not hesitate fo say that

the 4YA annonncer is undoubtedly the best, and he certainly deserves a firstclase high-power, station, from. which to send for 1is fine tadio voice, "Station 4YA, Dunedin." es Backing for Dunedin, G. Robertson (Rahotn): Sir, in your last issue I see what I think is quite a good idea put forward by a West Coast correspondent. That is, that listeners should get behind the company to the extent of £1 each by way of a loan to make of the Dunedin station one as powerful as 2YA, or even better. I am not overstocked with £ s. d., but would willingly put a few pounds in the pool, and, even if interest was small, consider I had made a good investment by getting a second choice in programmes, as QYA is about the only consistently good New Zealand station we have. Just another suggestion. I notice am Editor’s note in answer to another correspondent explains that humorous items are not very easily procur-ed-of the gight kind, anyhow. ‘That seems a pity, as there is no doubt about their popularity with almost every class of listener, What about a few good gramophone records of 3 humorous selection? Might I say that many good musical monologues are spoilt by a too loud piano accompaniment, and that the same applies to most of the comic songs where the singer plays his own accompaniment. The above is not a growl. Indeed, T think you are "doing "brawly." "Carry on.’ Dunedin's Wave-length. W. A. Roberts (Seatoun): I gather the New Zealand Broadcasting Company are at present putting the Dunedin station, 4YA, on higher power, and generally bringing the station up to date, for which the company are to be commended; but will this benefit the listeners in Wellington? I have a good seven-valve receiving sect, but still cannot tune in Dunedin on its present wave-length whiist Wellington is in operation, and I have yet to learn of anybody who can, with or without a wave-trap, Could not something be done now to alter the Dunedin wave-length to, sav, 300 metres, which would give six points of difference between Dunedin an Christchurch, or on 820 metres, which would give ample clearance between Christchurch and Auckland, ond where, TY have no donbt, the majority of sets would be able to tune Dunedin in. Now that the Summer-time Bill will soon be in operation, and all New Zealand programmes will be completed before the Australian programme proper starts, no objection can arise on the score of overlapping Australia. Should. there be slight interference, with a good set this might be overcome, but as things are at present-well, the) Dunedin station may as well be counted out, so far as Wellington is concerned. Some solace may have been received had Dunedin been in_operation on a Wednesday; that is the day Wellington is silent, but both stations being silent the same day, that opportunity of reeciving Dunedin is lost All the New Zealand — stations are jn operation for the benefit of all New Zealand listeners, therefore give all New Zealand listeners the Lenefit of all the New Zealand stations, [Wave lengths are allotted by the

Postal authorities, who, it is understood, work in harniony with Australia, As the Australian Royal Commission’s recent teport recommends some teallotment of wave-lengths, possibly some betterment may be: ed. It is certainly desirable that all stations should be available to all Hs teners, and we will advocate any pos. sible change to that end.-Kd.} Thanks to Correspondents. F.J.R. (Taumarunui).-I would liked to thank you for inserting my letter in the "Record," also the two corres pondents who so kindly supplied the information. The set I am using is a King five-valve, and, as far as I am aware, the circuit is in conformity with the New Zealand Postal regula» tions. I experience little fading with 2YA. Some nights it is worse than others, but on the whole the station and its transmission is nothing to worry about. S3YA is quite good, only fading is a bit more pronounced, whilst IVA fading is bad. 4YA I do not pick up at all well; in fact, I can get Hobart with equal strength, also 2BL, Sydney. With reference to my pre vious letter re close proximity of stations, I have no interference from stations close together, and can cut out IYA from 8YA, or 2BL,. Sydney, from 3YA, and these two stations ar¢é almost on top of one another on my dials. You will, perhaps think I am a bit of a pest troubling you, but your paper is of real service 7% amateurs who take up wireless as 9 hobby, and do not get the opportnm ity of going into it as deeply as one would like to, _I hope later on to try, a short-wave adapter on my set. 30 Stations on Three Valves. A. W Jones (St. Kilda, Dunedin) s I have read many lists in the "Record" that have been sent in by different listeners. I have only been going for about nine months, and I am using @ three-valve R.S.I,. receiver. My aeria? is 45 feet high, and of the four-wité type. The following is a list of stations I have heard:-New Zealand: IVA, 1ZB, 2YK (old station), 2YA, SYA, 4VA, 4AT, 4AK, 4ZB. Australia: 2B, QFC, 2GB, 2KY, 2UT, 2UW, 3LG, 3AR, 3BY, 40G, 5CL, 5KA, 5DN, SDB, 7271, American: KFON, KGO, KFWB, KOA, KFI. Japanese: JOAK. ‘That makes 30 on broadcast wave alone. This list Goes not include the morse code stations I have heard. JI should like to know if anyone can beat this with a three-valve set, but, of course, Dunedin is slightly further away than the north. ern towns,