Notes of the Week

Radio Record, Volume III, Issue 32, 21 February 1930, Unnumbered Page

Notes of the Week

(By

Switch

eC --t "QWITCH" listened with interest to , £..., the tecent experiments in con"iection with the re-broadcasting of ' 2YA, Wellington, by the short-wave station 2ME, Sydney, for rebroadcasting by W2XAF, Schenectady, New York. Without a doubt 2MH, Sydney. spdzis the 1250 miles to Wellington in fine style. Despite fierce static every Word spoken by Mr. Farmer, at 2ME, was loudly audible in Wellington, and wWaS evidently well received by W2XAF, Schenectady. The direct distance between Wellington and Schenectady is 8000 miles, and the distance between Sydney and Schenectady is also aboui, 8000 miles. By the way, some folk appear to think that Schenectady is a stiburb of New York City; as a matter . fast, it is 142 miles distant. zenectady, however; is in the State of New York. IHBUTENANT F. H. SCHNELL, who visited Wellington a few years ago with the American fieet as a wireless operator, and who is the designer of the famous "Schnell" short-wave reeéiving circuit, is now an instructor and chief of the Radio and Television Institute, Chicago. The Institute trains mén at their homes for technical ability in radio, television anid talking picture work. Schnell has had twétty years of radio experience, and wads the first to establish two-way amateur communication between America and Burope. He was also formetly traffic manager of the American Radio Rely League. While in Wellingtou Schnell made many friends. | THE average listener will agree that an annouiiecér who possesses 4 baritone voice has a natural advantage over one who has a tenor voice. The baritone voice carries better than others. There are, of course, other valuable attributes which an announcer should possess, and a gool tenor announcer is incomparably bettér than a baritone who has faulty diction, or mumbles his words. Tae National Broadcasting Company of America eniploys 22 male announcers of whom nine are baritone vocalists. Ts a certain New Zealand hospital in which broadcast receiving equipment is installed a certain male patient had his own independent aerial and a multi-wave receiving set with which he was able to tune in broadcasting from distant lands. He had a switch which enabled him to pass op the music to the headphones throughout the hosital itistallation. In the still hours ~ Se the night many a patient enjoyed music from the Australian stations and from foreign short-wave — stations. \vhen the said radio patient recovered sufficiently to leave the hospital he was sorély missed by several of the others. MANY fuyourable comments have been heard by "Switch" regard: ing the lecturette from 2YA, Welling: ton. by Mr. Walter F. Dudson, on "Stomach Disorders"? Mr. Dudson handled his subject with ability and made clear to listeners many facts 4 whieh ave invaluable when known ta ‘the layvian. His reference to the causé of appendicitis and precaution: ary icasyres which should be adopt: éd proved a_ revélation to many.

"Switch" compliments Mr, Dudson on his mastérly lecturette. HE late re-broadeast of the opening of the Naval Conference in London, which was so creditably accomplished by 2YA, Wellington, wis not paralleled in Australia. On the other hand, the attempt in Australia is described by the Press as a fiasco. The Melbourne "Listener-In" says :- "To provide the necessary sigual strength above the noise level at great distance, a short-wave station must be operated with plenty of power, and the comparatively low power used by GSSW-the station of the B.B.C.coupled with the wavelength of 25.53 metres on that particular night, was totally inefficient. It is surely the duty of the British Broadcasting Corporation to provide an efficient service for such important events, just as much as it is the duty of all national proadeasting services to relay the ceremony." ALTER WHYTE, who toured New Zealand a number of times in the good old days of the stage as leading tehor in operatic productions, and who subsequently appeared in yaudeyille, is frequently heard from 8LO, Meibourne, as a_ studio vocalist. Mr. Whyte is also a pianist of outstanding ability. N Thursday night, February 138, "Wizard" Smith, the record-break-ing motorist, was interviewed before the microphone in the studio of 2FC, Sydney, concerning his record-breaking performances on the Ninety-mile beach north of Auckland. "Switch" received the interview without missing a word. The "Wizard" described the sensation of motoring at a speed of over 240 miles an hour. He mentioned the danger of hitting the numerous seagulls which were on the beach. On his second attempt on the mile record a shower fell, and the raindrops struck lim with the force of small stones. He is having a 2000 horse-power car built with which he expects to travel at 300 miles an hour, and will again go to the Ninety-mile beach for the attempt. HE latest innovation by 2YA, Wellington, the broadcasting of time signals at 4 p.m., 41 p.m., 4.2 p.m., 7 pm., 7.1 p.m. and 7.2 p.m. is an up-to-date move which should be appreciated by thousands of listeners who desire exact accuracy of time. The system of sending out time signals has been in operation for some time at seme of the Australian broadcast stations, including 8L0, Melbourne, and 4QG, Brisbane. The latter station sends out the time signals every evening with a chirping note. AN American station igs planning to instal a short-wave broadcasting transmitter in a trailer behind a motor lorry which will tour New York to pick up events of interest occurring during the day or night. These will be broadcast by short waves té the niain station for rebroadcasting.

A MOVEMENT is afoot to establish another "B" class station in Sydney. The Council of Churches, a body comprising most of the larger Protestant churches, sent a deputation to Mr. Lyons, Commonwealth PostmasterGeneral, asking for the necessary license to erect the station. Mr. Lyons replied that a sub-committee of the Federal Ministry was dealing with wireless broadcasting, and he would place the proposal before this body. The intention is to use a 5000-watt-sta-tion, which would be operated by Amalgamated Wireless, Ltd. There are two "A" class and four "B" class broadcasting stations already in Sydney. HOSH listeners who sat up late on Wednesday night, February 12, to hear 2FC, Sydney, were treated to a rare musical treat in the form of a grand orchestral concert in the Sydney Town Hall by the N.S.W. Professional Musicians’ Union. A spéaker announced that every member of the large orchestra (60 players), excepting one, --

CO was out of work. The programme corte prised selections from grand opera, intermezzos, and overtures. The performance by the orchestra was simply superb, and a large audience greeted each item with a storm of applause. The takings were for the benefit of thé workless musicians, ECENTLY Mr. Wilfred Blacket, K.C., gave a short address on "Verses and Parodies" from 2BL, Sydney. He included the New Zealand masterpiece, "Not Understood," with some verses from a parody on it which were of a nature calculated to make Thomas Bracken’s ghost haunt the miscreant who wrote them. ERTAIN areas of Wellington continue to be subject to serious elettrical leakages which interfere with broadcast reception of "outside" stations. News from America states that listeners in the Ninth and Tenth Streets of the city of Antioch complained to the Great Western Power Company that the latter’s high-power lines were interfering with broadcast receftion. In a letter to the City Céuncil the company stated that immediate steps would be taken to clear up the interference. Prompt action along similar lines is badly needed in Wellington. — -_-4