Howling Valve Nuisance

Radio Record, Volume III, Issue 26, 10 January 1930, Page 12

Howling Valve Nuisance

DX 'Listeners Blamed

MEMBER of the Wellington Radio’ Society, at their recent meeting, condemned the practice of certain papers in encouraging D.X. work. He affirmed that this was only stimulating the "howling valve" nuisance, He said that this caused the air to be filled with the shrieks of oscillating valves, and‘ one could not listen in peace to even one of the "ouiside’ YA stations without being inflicted with a continual "procession of prowling howlers" passing by in quest of long-distance stations." Another member expressed the opinion that it was not the "prowlers" who were so obnoxious, but it was the "howler" who settled on one station and howled there continuously. Coming from a meniber of a society of more or less enlightened listeners we consider the statement very much out of place. In the first place what constitutes D.X. work? According to the speaker it is listening to the outside YA and’ Australian stations where, through the careless manipulation of their- sets they cause annoyance, D.X. work is almost entirely confined to the small Australian and ‘the big Americans to whom not one listener in 10,000 listens to for musical entertainment. Those interested in D.X. work do not remain on the larger stations, consequently they must be exonerated from the blame of causing a menace to the listening public. D.X. indicates "long-distance". and this means a fairly large receiver. which can get the main stations without any difficulty. ‘The howling valve nuisance is ereated by the owners of one, two and three-valve receivers, particularly the one-valvers. Sets which cannot get Christchurch without constantly oscillating must be very small and as such cannot participate in D.X. work.