Copyright (c) 2011 - 2023 World of Radio Ltd,
Registered in England and Wales # 8503418.
All Rights Reserved.
Reproduction strictly prohibited.
No need to drag a heavy recorder around with you as your Smartphone can do the job even better. All you need is the iRig app, which instantly turns your smartphone into a great quality digital recorder. You can edit on screen and transmit the finished recording back to base in seconds by email.
Radio stations now announce a wide variety of platforms on which their programmes can be received. They cover all the different bands in use for broadcasting throughout the last 100 years since broadcasting began.
- Long Wave
- Medium Wave
- Short Wave
- FM (VHF)
- DAB
- Television
- Satelite
- WWW - The Internet
In the near future, 5G will be rolled out, making all the many services available over a much wider area, thanks to its vastly improved speeds over current and previous internet transmission. Speeds of 3Gbps have recently been achieved, a huge advance from the 1 or 2 Mbps 'service' that is still endured by many UK residents.
SDR - an often heard term, is an acronym for a Software Defined radio. All the components of a radio receiver, usually found as hardware 9and collectiveley known as a 'set' (being a set of components) are combined into one or two chips with a few interconnections.
While they can be vbery small indeed (a few cms across). most SDR are now encapsulated into a thumb drive (often called a USB drive). They can simply be then plugged straight into a computer, which takes care of the controls and audio output. The RF signal is introduced into the SDR via a coax connector at the opposite end. The SDR takes is modest power needs via the USB connector from the computer.
SDR installations often dont have anyone at the computer end, and the kit is driven remotely "down the line'. Listeners (there can be many, simultaneously) will send tuning commands to the computer and into the SDR, down the line over the internet - perhaps from the far side of the world.
Most SDRs cost around £100 or so, although the basic ones can be found for about £25.
Here are a few links to some SDRs that can be used to monitor broadcasting, and how signals are being received in a particular area.
Basic Digital Communications
Software Defined Radios are revolutionizing wireless communications, but getting started can be a challenge. Much of the available SDR training veers either towards highly mathematical engineering classes or radio cookbooks with little explanation for the steps taken.
This 300 page book will lead you through the subject, step-by-step, and enable you to choose an SDR that meets YOUR needs.
The book is crammed full of all the information you need to become an SDR expert. Best 73s!
The smart speaker Sonos One Gen 2 provides an incredible sound, meaty bass and crystal clarity.
The class-D amplifiers have been developed to provide high-quality room filling sound. An LED indicator gives you extra convenience, so that you will always know when the microphone is on or off. Touch controls let you tap fast to change volume and even skip paths. Sonos connects to the most popular streaming services available, including Apple Music, Spotify, YouTube Music, Deezer, and Tidal, and many more. With the SONOS built-in Alexa its easy to switch to other tasks, like requesting that timers and alarms be set. Read our independent product review here.
This device is a turnkey receiver antenna set. It can be tuned from 100 kHz to 1.7 GHz and support AM, FM(NFM, WFM), CW, DSB, LSB, USB demodulation. It is suitable for listening to HF SSB communication, FM radio, walkie-talkie call, aviation band, etc.
Less than £30, this kit has all you need to set up a professional sounding SDR station, capable of listening to stations across the spectrum - broadcast, communications . . . right up into the Gigahertz bands. Many modes are resolved - AM, SSB, FM, etc, etc.