DX WORLD'S CHAMPION

Radio Record, Volume I, Issue 41, 27 April 1928, Page 14

DX WORLD'S CHAMPION

HAS HEARD 746 STATIONS

Mr. G. B, Van Buren, of 125 Ronada Avenue, Piedmont, U.S.A., has logged 746 broadcast stations, and he is now recognised as the world’s champion broadcast listener. Mr. Van Buren writes:-‘John buys a radio set and he wants distance. Jt makes little difference about tone quality or volume. What he demands is the satisfaction of listening to the announcer on a distant station’s programme. Tom demands a set with the avowed understanding that he is no DX hound (long-distance listener). He wants quality on locals; even.ually he becomes an ardent worshipper of that great god DX, whose most devoted slave he will have the honour of being. This lias resulted in a demand for the high-class receivers which we have on the market to-day-a radio that gives distance, tone quality, volume and s¢lectivity. Radio brings so much entertainment, education, amusement and enjoyment into the home, the camp, the speeding auto and train and everywhere man goes, it does not seem possible that anyone should be without a radio. Not. only has radio brought us all of these things, but it is keeping the public posted on civic and international affairs throngliout the world every hour. | Receives Many Inquiries, | I have been the recipient of hundreds of telephone calls and a mass of mail from all parts of the country-some from our foreign cousins as far west as Hawaii, all of whom requested me to tell more abort my DX reception and further details about the equipment I utilise. The fact that I have become the accepted world’s DX champion is due, in large part, to the fact I am a crank on antenua systems. I am satisfied only with the best aerial aud the best ground obtainable. ‘Too | many fans overlook this great importance. The proper grounding of the radiv set is so important that you cannot afford to overlook it; in fact, it is inore indispensable than the atrial, Perfect Earth Necessary. "Tf vou wish to get results from your radio receiver you niust haye a perfect radio receiver you must have a PRRFECT ground. Outside of the radio receiver itself, ihe ground is the most’ important, yet it is sadly neglected by. countless fans. Local as well as distant reception depends upon an eifi-| cient pick-up svstem. The power that reaches the aerisl from the broadcast- ing stations is so simall that a little resistance prevents the station from coming in on the londspeaker. "The water-pipe ground, the gas-pipe and the steam-pipe, are merely hitching posts for electrical devices such as the electric light and telephone. The gas-pipe should never be used. Pipe grounds are knoyn to run many feet before coming to earth contact, and they therefore do not make a true earth contact. Pipe grounds will average a resistance of from 1000 to 3000 ohinus and even higher. Even when a ground clamp is attached at a disfance above the ground, the imtetvening length of the pipe acts as a tesister. The steam radiator and its connecting pipes are not grounds for. radio receivers by virtue of the fact that rubber gaskets are used to prevent the escape of steam. A good ground inust have a positive earth contact, and be of Jow resistance. The grounds which I have just mentioned are of extremcly high resistance. Poor Earths. "Interred Ford radiators, wash-boil-ers, dead B batteries, and other metals, are resistances, detrimental to good reception. They should not be usedthey cause a loss of radio frequency | rurrents, and these RI currents are very small at their best. What we do get we wish to conserve in every way possible and avoid losses, therefore get‘ing away from resistance prevents loss. In other words, you MUST have a ground of the least possible resistance, making a true earth contact, and the lead-in being as short as possible. "For a ground connection I am using what is known as the permanent. radio ground. This is a _ clemical ground, and it gets me away from the out-of-date pipe grounds which are, as I have said, no more than hitchingposts for telephones, electric lights, and other electrical contrivances. This most marvellous invention was developed by C. H. Preston after many years of experience, and he has devoted his life work to lines of communication in a period of over twenty-five years of

Wireless, railroad, and commerciat telegruphy. ‘lias ground has been instalied yery recently on station KNX, and other installations are to be made very soon on KLE WB, and a broadcasting station, which is soon to be under construction in Oakland. I think I have dwelt enough on the subject of grounds, and I hope this information will prove of vaiue to all a. you, as it has been my good iortune at one time to experience and personally wage a fight agaist counterpoise, even goig so tar as to mention the history ot this "‘artificial ground,’’ where and how it has been used in commercial radio work. "Zheretore I am greatly interested in a ground which gives true earth contact, which was sadly needed. Describes His Eartia, "I shall give a brief outline of this earth, ‘he earth is a copper cylinder coutaining eight different chemicals, which, when buried in the earth, permeate the adjacent ground, muakiug positive contect and rendering higi conductivity. ‘ihat the chemicals contained within the instrument cause « Sspougy mass of copper growth within and without the container and collecting its own moisture, clearing up the radio frequency waves and thus permitting a clean, clear signal to be inter. cepted, is due to the chemical formula Which neutralises the action of the sulPhate upon the copper container, dnd rather than eat away tlic copper, as is the natural tendency .of blue vitriol, if preserves the copper in its original state, which is, indeed, an accomplishment, This ground increases its efficiency with age. The Aerial System. "Now comes iy aerial system. A dirty, 1usty and corroded antenna, improperly insulated and erected, 1s a feature which should not be overlooked. The resistance in the aerial is a factor which must also be very low. To get down to low resistance, experts have developed a new wire, which may be used in single strand or in a cagetype aerial, This copper wire embodies a silver plate surface, as silver itself is the Lest known conductor to radio frequency signals. A gold-plated surface over the silver prevents corrosion, as it was found that silver-plated wire, when exposed to certain weather conditions, corroded, thus reducing the loss of signal strength. The name of {he new wire, Gosilco, was coined by using the first syllable of the name of each of the metals employed-gold, silver, copper.