Posts Tagged ‘CLE’

Hunting NDBs In CLE 263

 

It's CLE time again!

'CLE's are 'Co-ordinated  Listening Events, and NDB DXers around the  world focus their listening time on one small slice of  the NDB spectrum.

 
This time it's VERY different and the hunting ground is everywhere! CLE 263 will require some pre-planning ... this is all explained below by Brian Keyte.

Propagation on MF has been excellent this past month and hopefully will continue to be good.


When tuning for NDBs, put your receiver in the CW mode and listen for the NDB's CW identifier, repeated every few seconds. Listen for U.S. NDB identifiers approximately 1 kHz higher or lower than the published transmitted frequency since these beacons are modulated with a 1020 Hz tone approximately.

For example, 'AA' near Fargo, ND, transmits on 365 kHz and its upper sideband CW identifier is tuned at 366.025 kHz while its lower sideband CW ident can be tuned at 363.946 kHz. Its USB tone is actually 1025 Hz while its LSB tone is 1054 Hz.

Often, one sideband will be much stronger than the other so if you don't hear the first one, try listening on the other sideband.

Canadian NDBs normally have an USB tone only, usually very close to 400 Hz. They also have a long dash (keydown) following the CW identifier.

All NDBs heard in North America will be listed in the RNA database (updated daily) while those heard in Europe may be found in the REU database. Beacons heard outside of these regions will be found in the RWW database. These databases have recently been re-vamped and are slicker than ever before!

From CLE coordinator Brian Keyte (G3SIA), comes the following CLE info:


Hello All

 

It is time to confirm the details of our special Holiday Listening Event for you.  

 

Between local midday on 25th December and local midday on 3rd January you are invited to ‘make a flight of your choice’ by logging NDBs along the way (as many pilots would have done in the old days!).

The main challenge is that you will be using your own receiver, probably from your home, for ALL your loggings.  (Or you could use one Remote receiver if you prefer that).

 

Your log format can look just the same as usual for normal CLEs, but, very important, you must log your chosen NDBs in the correct time sequence for your journey.  Your time between making two consecutive NDB loggings for your log could be minutes, hours - or even days!   However, you won’t be able to go back and fill in a missed NDB earlier in your flight unless you re-log the NDBs from that one.   It means that a bit of pre-planning will be very useful - and fun.

At the end of this email we have added a HELP SECTION of ‘Extras’  which include advice on how you can use the RWW database for your planning, with the help of its maps that show all of the known NDBs Worldwide.

 

You could choose a flight to your favourite holiday destination, or make a ‘round trip’ with interesting places along the way, or go a   L O N G  way, finishing far away, as NDB reception allows.   You could choose to start – and/or to finish – at ANY active NDB that you can log.   There is plenty of scope for you to choose something unusual and we hope that a lot of interesting and varied flights will be made.

 

In the Extras Section below there is also the log of an imaginary ‘flight’ using the real, active NDBs on a round trip between Rio de Janeiro and Buenos Aires in South America - and the flight map that was made from it. 

In the CLE Combined Results we hope to include all of the separate flight maps, each of them made from our CLE flight logs.  Each reporter’s map will probably sit nicely in a separate Excel Sheet of the results.  (E.g. in Europe’s results, ‘CZE my’ in extra Sheet1, ‘DEU hw’ in extra Sheet2..  .  and in Rest of the World’s results, ‘AUS SA rw’ in extra Sheet1, etc. .. )

 

Here are a few things to think about:

 

You could choose to start your flight from any NDB of your choice

- or from your local NDB.

- or from your ‘Home’ (your usual QTH) – just add the word HOME on the line immediately above your first NDB logging.  

- or from your chosen Remote receiver - just add the word REMOTE on the line immediately above your first NDB logging.  That remote receiver is your temporary ‘home’ for this CLE and ALL your loggings must be made using it.

 

The same NDB must NOT be logged more than once because your map would no longer be able to show your route – we would have to delete any same-NDB loggings after the first one.

However if you choose to start and end your flight at the same NDB (e.g. your nearest) that WILL be OK.

In normal CLEs we sometimes get the same log time for consecutive loggings.   If this happens in your flight log PLEASE show the first one as 1 minute earlier (or the second one 1 minute later).   If you don’t do that your flight map may go to the wrong NDB first and so have a strange zig-zag there.

PSKOV users - this applies to you too, after you have found your actual logging times (please see the Extras Section 3 below)

 

We don’t want to set a limit to anyone’s total count of NDBs (= loggings = flight ‘legs’).  However, please bear in mind that the further away you go and/or the more NDBs you visit, your map will quickly become complex and hard to appreciate.   Flights with a lot of zig-zagging and very long legs between loggings should also be avoided if you can.   

 

Our thanks to those who have contacted us since the ‘Extra Early Advice’.  There are already some good ideas and ‘themes’ for flights.  We could mention what their ideas are, but that would ‘Steal their Thunder’!

 

Please look out for our Final Details about the Event on about 22nd December.   It will have a little more quite important advice on log making, etc.      

 

Good planning!

  Brian and Joachim

 

 

 

HELP SECTION ‘EXTRAS’

 

-----------------------------------------------------

 

1.  USING  RWW  TO PLAN YOUR FLIGHT:

 

You will find the amazing (Worldwide) database RWW very helpful. 

 

Go to   https://rxx.classaxe.com/rww/signals

 

Select   New (top right)   then  Signals (left)  and  √NDB  (in the lower box).

  

Then select your chosen RWW Focus (Region) and, if needed, States, Countries or Grid Squares. 

Finally choose   Status: Active    and, in the bottom line,  Map                                                                

 

And – you’re away!

 

---------------------------------------------

 

2.  A SAMPLE ‘FLIGHT’:

 

Here is our ‘dummy run’ – an inland flight from Rio de Janeiro in Brazil, via Paraguay and Uruguay, to Buenos Aires in Argentina and back along the Atlantic coast.  That would be practicable if you live in the south of Brazil or if you could find a good Remote receiver there  (It would be a near miracle for any of us listening in Europe - and maybe from North America as well!)

The flight started and ended at NDB  330 YLA in Rio.

 

Test Log for a CLE263 ‘Flight’:

(any of the usual log formats will be OK)

 

Dec.

dd           UTC       kHz        Ident      Location                 Cou.  

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

26           2205      330        YLA        ILHA (RJ)                 BRA   

26           2236      285        BBC        Barbacena (MG)   BRA   

26           2341      325        VGH       Varginha (MG)      BRA   

27           0013      310        PSN        Piracununga(SP)   BRA   

27           0255      380        BRU       Bauru (SP)              BRA                  

28           2317      320        MRN      Maringa (PR)         BRA                  

29           0024      200        CDE        Cascavel                 BRA                  

29           0259      307        P             Posdas                    ARG                  

29           1947      275        URG       Uruguaiana            BRA                  

29           2020      260        TBO       Tacuarembo           URG                  

29           2129      280        P             PALMERO B.Aires ARG   

31           1915      239        LS           Capitan Corbeta    URG   

31           1945      312        UI           Chui (RS)                 BRA   

31           1951      290        RG          Canal                       BRA   

31           2048      300        FB           Tramandai (RS)     BRA   

31           2209      280        JGN        Jaguaruna              BRA   

31           2211      235        NVG       Naveagantes(SC)  BRA   

31           2219      320        NX          Domel (PR)            BRA   

31           2307      330        PP           Metro (SP)             BRA   

31           2323      430        TBE        Taubate (SP)          BRA    

31           2344      330        YLA        ILHA (RJ)                 BRA   

                                                                                                        

Flight Map, made from the above log:

 



(We may choose a different program to make the flight maps)

 

---------------------------------------------------------------

 

3.  GUIDANCE FOR PSKOV USERS:  

 

It seems that the rules for this CLE (log-times in sequence with NDB stop-overs, no two logs having the same minute) collide with the way the PSKOV Log Feature works.

PSKOV always automatically uses the start-time of a particular recording as the time logged for reception of the beacons on the recording. 

However, PSKOV users will know that the log-time issue can be solved by either using short recordings in Skimmer mode or, for longer recordings, finding the exact time of reception in Viewing Mode.   

 

The users have told us that the use of short recordings for this CLE is highly recommended.

Once a beacon has been found using Skimmer mode, it can be logged with the built-in Log Feature, then transferred by copy/paste to a CLE master log (e.g. in EXCEL or text editor) and changed to show the actual time of reception.

 

------------------------------------------------------

 

  If you are interested in some remote listening - maybe
  due to local difficulties - you could use any one remote
  receiver for your loggings, stating its location and with
  the owner's permission if required.
   ( e.g. see  kiwisdr.com )
  A remote listener may NOT also use another receiver,
  local or remote, to make more loggings for the same CLE.



These listening events serve several purposes. They

• determine, worldwide, which beacons are actually in service and on-the-air so the newly-re-vamped Rxx online database can be kept up-to-date

• determine, worldwide, which beacons are out-of-service or have gone silent since the last CLE covering this range


• will indicate the state of propagation conditions at the various participant locations


• will give you an indication of how well your LF/MF receiving system is working


• give participants a fun yet challenging activity to keep their listening skills honed


Final details can be found at the NDB List website, and worldwide results, for every participant, will be posted there a few days after the event.


The NDB List Group is a great place to learn more about the 'Art of NDB DXing' or to meet other DXers in your region. There is a lot of good information available there and new members are always very welcome. As well, you can follow the results of other CLE participants from night to night as propagation is always an active topic of discussion.

You need not be an NDB List member to participate in the CLEs and all reports, no matter how small, are of much value to the organizers.

Remember - 'First-time' logs are always VERY welcome!

Reports may be sent to the NDB List Group or e-mailed to CLE co-ordinator, Brian Keyte (G3SIA), whose address appears above. If you are a member of the group, all final results will also be e-mailed and posted there.

Please ... give the CLE a try ... then let us know what NDB's can be heard from your location! Your report can then be added to the worldwide database to help keep it up-to-date.

Have fun and good hunting!

 

Hunting For NDBs in CLE261

AP-378 Mayne Island, BC

 

 

It's CLE time again!'CLE's are 'Co-ordinated Listening Events, and NDB DXers around the world focus their listening time on one small slice of the NDB spectrum.

This time the hunting ground is from 190.0 - 1740.0 kHz!

 
The challenge this time is to log just one (1) beacon from as many 'radio countries' as you can. In North America and other regions, an individual state or province counts as a radio 'country', so there are plenty of opportunities to fill your logbook.

 

 

Propagation on MF has been excellent this past week and hopefully will continue to be good.

A challenge target for listeners in North America is AP - 378kHz on Mayne Island, BC which is about 1/2 mile from me just down the beach! But 'AP' is a challenging target since, from what I can tell, has virtually no ground system. Although it has been heard as far south as Texas, it has never been heard further east than Nebraska. Listen for AP's upper sideband on 378.411kHz with your receiver in the CW mode.

When tuning for NDBs, put your receiver in the CW mode and listen for the NDB's CW identifier, repeated every few seconds. Listen for U.S. NDB identifiers approximately 1 kHz higher or lower than the published transmitted frequency since these beacons are modulated with a 1020 Hz tone approximately.

For example, 'AA' near Fargo, ND, transmits on 365 kHz and its upper sideband CW identifier is tuned at 366.025 kHz while its lower sideband CW ident can be tuned at 363.946 kHz. Its USB tone is actually 1025 Hz while its LSB tone is 1054 Hz.

Often, one sideband will be much stronger than the other so if you don't hear the first one, try listening on the other sideband.

Canadian NDBs normally have an USB tone only, usually very close to 400 Hz. They also have a long dash (keydown) following the CW identifier.

All NDBs heard in North America will be listed in the RNA database (updated daily) while those heard in Europe may be found in the REU database. Beacons heard outside of these regions will be found in the RWW database. These databases have recently been re-vamped and are slicker than ever before!

From CLE coordinator Brian Keyte (G3SIA), comes the following CLE info:

Hello all

Our October Coordinated Listening Event is less than a week away.
Something very straightforward, but it is a first-time idea and it should be
good for everyone - including first time listeners.
It is a ‘One per Radio Country’ CLE!

    Days:    Friday 23 Oct. - Monday 26 Oct.
    Times:   Start and end at midday, local time at the receiver
    Target:  ONE NDB from each radio country
      QRG:    190.0  - 1740.0 kHz

Yes, please log JUST ONE NDB from each radio country (not DGPS, NAVTEX,
Amateur or UNID).
All our radio countries are listed in the NDB List Website
(http://www.ndblist.info/ndbinfo/countrylist.pdf) There are 373 of them!
However most of the countries will be out of range for you and several are
without any active NDBs at all:

Region            Radio
                    Countries
--------------     -------
N. America       66
C. America        35
S. America        20
Europe              63
Africa                68
Asia                   60
Oceania            49
Antarctica          5
Int. Waters        7
                       -------
                        373
(UNIDs               8)

Even listening from the best location possible you will do very well if you
log 50 countries.  Reaching 100 will be magnificent!
(If you would like one or more of our attractive listening awards, this
would be an ideal CLE -
   Please see http://www.ndblist.info/ndbinfo/NDBAwardsList3.5.pdf)

Please look out for extra information in the Final Details in a few Days,
with advice on log-making, etc.

73
   Brian
---------------------------------------------------------------------
From:      Brian Keyte G3SIA          ndbcle’at’gmail.com
Location:  Surrey,  SE England         (CLE coordinator)
--------------------------------------------------------------------- 


If you are interested in some remote listening - maybe due to local difficulties - you could use any one remote receiver for your loggings,stating its location and with the owner’s permission if required.

A remote listener may NOT also use another receiver, local or remote, to make further loggings for the same CLE.

 

These listening events serve several purposes. They

• determine, worldwide, which beacons are actually in service and on-the-air so the newly-re-vamped Rxx online database can be kept up-to-date

• determine, worldwide, which beacons are out-of-service or have gone silent since the last CLE covering this range


• will indicate the state of propagation conditions at the various participant locations


• will give you an indication of how well your LF/MF receiving system is working


• give participants a fun yet challenging activity to keep their listening skills honed


Final details can be found at the NDB List website, and worldwide results, for every participant, will be posted there a few days after the event.


The NDB List Group is a great place to learn more about the 'Art of NDB DXing' or to meet other DXers in your region. There is a lot of good information available there and new members are always very welcome. As well, you can follow the results of other CLE participants from night to night as propagation is always an active topic of discussion.

You need not be an NDB List member to participate in the CLEs and all reports, no matter how small, are of much value to the organizers.

Remember - 'First-time' logs are always VERY welcome!

Reports may be sent to the NDB List Group or e-mailed to CLE co-ordinator, Brian Keyte (G3SIA), whose address appears above. If you are a member of the group, all final results will also be e-mailed and posted there.

Please ... give the CLE a try ... then let us know what NDB's can be heard from your location! Your report can then be added to the worldwide database to help keep it up-to-date.

Have fun and good hunting!

Hunting For NDBs In CLE260

ZQT-263 Thunder Bay, ON (ve3gop)




It's CLE time again!


'CLE's are 'Co-ordinated Listening Events, and NDB DXers around the world focus their listening time on one small slice of the NDB spectrum.


This time the hunting ground is the slice from 260.0 - 269.9 kHz and 440 - 1740kHz.
 

 

 

Propagation on MF has been excellent this past week and hopefully will continue to be good.

A worthy target for listeners in North America is ZQT - 263kHz in Thunder Bay, southern Ontario, on the western shores of Lake Superior. ZQT has been logged from coast-to-coast but it's a challenging target. Listen for ZQT's upper sideband on 263.392kHz with your receiver in the CW mode.

When tuning for NDBs, put your receiver in the CW mode and listen for the NDB's CW identifier, repeated every few seconds. Listen for U.S. NDB identifiers approximately 1 kHz higher or lower than the published transmitted frequency since these beacons are modulated with a 1020 Hz tone approximately.

For example, 'AA' near Fargo, ND, transmits on 365 kHz and its upper sideband CW identifier is tuned at 366.025 kHz while its lower sideband CW ident can be tuned at 363.946 kHz. Its USB tone is actually 1025 Hz while its LSB tone is 1054 Hz.

Often, one sideband will be much stronger than the other so if you don't hear the first one, try listening on the other sideband.

Canadian NDBs normally have an USB tone only, usually very close to 400 Hz. They also have a long dash (keydown) following the CW identifier.

All NDBs heard in North America will be listed in the RNA database (updated daily) while those heard in Europe may be found in the REU database. Beacons heard outside of these regions will be found in the RWW database. These databases have recently been re-vamped and are slicker than ever before!

From CLE coordinator Brian Keyte (G3SIA), comes the following CLE info:

Hello all,

Here’s our chance to forget all the current problems for a while – and get close and personal with OUR HEADPHONES! (?)

These are the final details for this weekend's Coordinated Listening Event which uses some challenging frequencies.

Any first-time CLE logs will also be very welcome, however modest.

 Days:    Friday 25 Sept. - Monday 28 Sept.

 Times:   Start and end at midday, your local time

 Target:  Normal NDBs  (not NAVTEX or amateur beacons)

      QRG:   260.0  -   269.9 kHz

      plus:    440.0  - 1740.0 kHz

Please log the NDBs you can identify that are listed in those ranges plus any UNIDs that you come across there.

North America has a modest number of active NDBs in both ranges.

For Europe listeners there are LOTS of targets in the hf range, but they are mostly well to the east, many of them also competing with strong Broadcasting Stations.

Australia has a few NDBs in both ranges.

You can find details of the beacons in these ranges, lists and maps, if you go to  http://www.ndblist.info/cle.htm  and click on the 'CLE SEEKLIST' link.

If you are disappointed by having very few likely targets, you could maybe listen instead via a remote receiver located nearer to the action?

See  kiwisdr.com  (previously available via sdr.hu) and please also see the important footnote below.

Send your final CLE log to the List, preferably as a plain text email, not in an attachment, with CLE260 and FINAL at the start of its title.

 Please show on EVERY LINE of your log:

  #   The full Date (or Day no.)  e.g. ‘2020-09-25’ (or just ‘25’) and UTC (the day changes at 00:00         UTC)

  #   kHz (the beacon's nominal published frequency if you know it)

  #   The Call Ident.

Other optional details - Location, Distance, etc. - go LATER in the same line (or in footnotes) Any extra details about new UNIDs, especially strong ones that may be near to you (maybe their approximate direction, etc.) will help us to discover more about them. 

Please make your log useful to old and new members alike by ALWAYS including your own location and brief details of the equipment and aerial(s) that you were using.

We will send an 'Any More Logs?' email at about 19:00 UTC on Tuesday evening so you can check that your log has been found OK.

To be included in the combined results your log must arrive at the very latest by 08:00 UTC on Wednesday 30 Sept.

We hope to complete making the Combined Results within a day or two.

Good listening

Brian and Joachim

---------------------------------------------------------------------

From:      Brian Keyte G3SIA       ndbcle'at'gmail.com

Location:  Surrey,  SE England    (CLE coordinator)

---------------------------------------------------------------------

 

If you are interested in some remote listening - maybe due to local difficulties - you could use any one remote receiver for your loggings,stating its location and with the owner’s permission if required.

A remote listener may NOT also use another receiver, local or remote, to make further loggings for the same CLE.

 

These listening events serve several purposes. They

• determine, worldwide, which beacons are actually in service and on-the-air so the newly-re-vamped Rxx online database can be kept up-to-date

• determine, worldwide, which beacons are out-of-service or have gone silent since the last CLE covering this range


• will indicate the state of propagation conditions at the various participant locations


• will give you an indication of how well your LF/MF receiving system is working


• give participants a fun yet challenging activity to keep their listening skills honed


Final details can be found at the NDB List website, and worldwide results, for every participant, will be posted there a few days after the event.


The NDB List Group is a great place to learn more about the 'Art of NDB DXing' or to meet other DXers in your region. There is a lot of good information available there and new members are always very welcome. As well, you can follow the results of other CLE participants from night to night as propagation is always an active topic of discussion.

You need not be an NDB List member to participate in the CLEs and all reports, no matter how small, are of much value to the organizers.

Remember - 'First-time' logs are always VERY welcome!

Reports may be sent to the NDB List Group or e-mailed to CLE co-ordinator, Brian Keyte (G3SIA), whose address appears above. If you are a member of the group, all final results will also be e-mailed and posted there.

Please ... give the CLE a try ... then let us know what NDB's can be heard from your location! Your report can then be added to the worldwide database to help keep it up-to-date.

Have fun and good hunting!

 


Hunting For NDBs in CLE259

YPM-274 Pikangikum, ON (ve3gop)



It's CLE time again!


'CLE's are 'Co-ordinated Listening Events, and NDB DXers around the world focus their listening time on one small slice of the NDB spectrum.




This time the hunting ground is the 50kHz slice from 270.0 - 319.9 kHz. kHz

A worthy target for listeners in North America is YPM (274Hz) in Pikangikum, in western Ontario. YPM has been logged from coast-to-coast and out to Hawaii. Listen for YPM's upper sideband on 274.361kHz with your receiver in the CW mode.

When tuning for NDBs, put your receiver in the CW mode and listen for the NDB's CW identifier, repeated every few seconds. Listen for U.S. NDB identifiers approximately 1 kHz higher or lower than the published transmitted frequency since these beacons are modulated with a 1020 Hz tone approximately.

For example, 'AA' near Fargo, ND, transmits on 365 kHz and its upper sideband CW identifier is tuned at 366.025 kHz while its lower sideband CW ident can be tuned at 363.946 kHz. Its USB tone is actually 1025 Hz while its LSB tone is 1054 Hz.

Often, one sideband will be much stronger than the other so if you don't hear the first one, try listening on the other sideband.

Canadian NDBs normally have an USB tone only, usually very close to 400 Hz. They also have a long dash (keydown) following the CW identifier.

All NDBs heard in North America will be listed in the RNA database (updated daily) while those heard in Europe may be found in the REU database. Beacons heard outside of these regions will be found in the RWW database. These databases have recently been re-vamped and are slicker than ever before!



From CLE coordinator Brian Keyte (G3SIA), comes the following CLE info:


Hello all

Here are brief details for our 259th co-ordinated listening event next weekend.

It spans a 50 kHz frequency range - about three times wider than usual.

In that range, the Rxx database is showing about 200 active NDBs located in

Europe, 135 in North America, 35 in Oceania and about 250 more, scattered

in other parts of the World.

Days: Friday 28 August – Monday 31 August

Times: Start and end at midday, your LOCAL time

Range: 270.0 - 319.9 kHz (NDB signals only)

Part of the frequency range also has DGPS signals among the NDBs.

We last listened on these frequencies in CLE243 in April 2019.

Any first-time CLE logs will be very welcome, as always.

Please look out for our Final Details on the NDB List website, with full advice on log making, etc.,

in a few days.


Brian and Joachim

-----------------------------------------------------------------
From: Brian Keyte G3SIA ndbcle'at'gmail.com
Location: Surrey, SE England (CLE coordinator)
-----------------------------------------------------------------


These listening events serve several purposes. They:

• determine, worldwide, which beacons are actually in service and on-the-air so the newly-re-vamped  Rxx online database can be kept up-to-date

• determine, worldwide, which beacons are out-of-service or have gone silent since the last CLE covering this range


• will indicate the state of propagation conditions at the various participant locations


• will give you an indication of how well your LF/MF receiving system is working


• give participants a fun yet challenging activity to keep their listening skills honed


Final details can be found at the NDB List website, and worldwide results, for every participant, will be posted there a few days after the event.


The NDB List Group is a great place to learn more about the 'Art of NDB DXing' or to meet other DXers in your region. There is a lot of good information available there and new members are always very welcome. As well, you can follow the results of other CLE participants from night to night as propagation is always an active topic of discussion.

You need not be an NDB List member to participate in the CLEs and all reports, no matter how small, are of much value to the organizers.

Remember - 'First-time' logs are always VERY welcome!

Reports may be sent to the NDB List Group or e-mailed to CLE co-ordinator, Brian Keyte (G3SIA), whose address appears above. If you are a member of the group, all final results will also be e-mailed and posted there.

Please ... give the CLE a try ... then let us know what NDB's can be heard from your location! Your report can then be added to the worldwide database to help keep it up-to-date.

Have fun and good hunting!

Hunting For NDBs In CLE258 – Pick Five!






Next weekend's CLE is something a little different. Listeners are asked to pick five frequencies only, to listen on, and then find as many beacons as they can!








During these stressful times, CLE258 might provide some much needed distraction for you.

I'm sure most listeners will find their own strategy for picking their five frequencies. Will it be the five that have given you the most loggings? The five that have provided the most loggings in North America or Europe? Will it be the five that are not being bothered by your stronger pest signals? Choose wisely and enjoy the challenge.

'CLE's are 'Co-ordinated Listening Events, and NDB DXers around the world focus their listening time on one small slice of the NDB spectrum.

From CLE coordinator Brian Keyte (G3SIA), comes the following CLE info:

Hello all
 
Here are the final details for this weekend’s unusual Coordinated Listening Event. 
We are each invited to choose, for our own listening, FIVE PRECISE FREQUENCY SETTINGS in the NDB range.  
 
     Days:    Friday 24 July - Monday 27 July
     Times:   Start and End at midday, your LOCAL time
     Target:   NDBs (including any UNIDs) heard using your choice of any FIVE frequency settings at least 10 kHz apart in the range 190–1740 kHz
                   
For each of your chosen frequencies, use of a wide filter, or no filtering, will allow you to hear the NDBs within a few kHz on either side.  The signals will depend on the time of day and the aerial(s) that you are using, etc.   You could choose a frequency setting like 345.6 kHz if you wanted (i.e. you are not limited to whole kHz).
 
What frequencies would be good ones for hearing several NDBs in your own situation? 
 
Many of us away from Europe will find this more of a challenge, though if you are in the Southern Hemisphere your mid-winter conditions should help.
 
It will add extra interest for everyone if, before the CLE, you could say in an email to the List the five frequencies that you hope to use.  (In the Results we shall probably flag where listeners were using pre-selected frequencies).  Of course your choice of a frequency will not stop any other listeners from using it too!  Each of your five frequency settings should remain exactly the same throughout the Event.
 
Please send your final CLE log (before Wednesday) to the List, if possible as a plain text email and not in an attachment, showing 'CLE258' and 'FINAL' in its title.
 
Please include with every one of your loggings:
 
    #  The date (or just the day 'dd') and UTC (days change at 00:00 UTC).
    #  kHz - the beacon's nominal frequency.
    #  The Call Ident.
 
It is important to show those main items FIRST - any other optional details such as Location, Distance, etc. go LATER in the same line.
You could show the loggings in frequency order, with the receiver’s frequency setting on a separate line before each of the five groups of loggings. 
 
Don't forget to give your OWN location and details of your receiver and aerial(s), etc.
 
If you have a very basic receiver such as a ‘1AD’ and probably home made, you will know that its wide bandwidth often receives several signals at the same time.  That might be a good candidate to use for listening on one or more of your frequencies.  However, be aware that aerial changes and adjustments can alter its tuning very significantly.  To correct for that, try to use a reference NDB, ‘mid-distance from you’ so that it is audible all the time and keep it tuned to a low audio note so that the actual central receiving frequency doesn’t alter (or use an external signal generator set to the chosen frequency). 
 
Please make sure that any waterfall facility on the receiver is not being displayed.
 
If you have advanced recording facilities you COULD of course record everything during the CLE and do no live listening. However, please bear in mind that we should each stick to the five frequencies that we’ve selected in advance. While playing back recordings, the receiver’s frequency should always be set to one of your five pre-selected frequencies and not be changed to enhance a possibly difficult-to-hear signal.

 
Good listening!
  Brian and Joachim
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
From:          Brian Keyte G3SIA        ndbcle'at'gmail.com
Location:     Surrey,  SE England       (CLE coordinator)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

 

If you wish you could use any one remote receiver for your loggings,
stating the location and owner - and with their permission if required.

A remote listener may NOT also use another receiver, local or remote,
to make further loggings for the same CLE.

 

-----------------------------------------------------------------------
These listening events serve several purposes. They:
  • determine, worldwide, which beacons are actually in service and on-the-air so the online database can be kept up-to-date
  • determine, worldwide, which beacons are out-of-service or have gone silent since the last CLE covering this range
  • will indicate the state of propagation conditions at the various participant locations
  • will give you an indication of how well your LF/MF receiving system is working
  • give participants a fun yet challenging activity to keep their listening skills honed
Final details can be found at the NDB List website, and worldwide results, for every participant, will be posted there a few days after the event.


The NDB List Group is a great place to learn more about the 'Art of NDB DXing' or to meet other listeners in your region. There is a lot of good information available there and new members are always very welcome. As well, you can follow the results of other CLE participants from night to night as propagation is always an active topic of discussion.

You need not be an NDB List member to participate in the CLEs and all reports, no matter how small, are of much value to the organizers. 

Remember - 'First-time' logs are always VERY welcome!

Reports may be sent to the NDB List Group or e-mailed to CLE co-ordinator, Brian Keyte (G3SIA), whose address appears above. If you are a member of the group, all final results will also be e-mailed and posted there.

Please ... give the CLE a try ... then let us know what NDB's can be heard from your location! Your report can then be added to the worldwide database to help keep it up-to-date.

Have fun and good hunting!

Hunting For NDBs In CLE257





It's another CLE weekend!


During these stressful times, the CLE might provide some pleasant distraction for you.





'CLE's are 'Co-ordinated Listening Events, and NDB DXers around the world focus their listening time on one small slice of the NDB spectrum.

This time the hunting ground is the 50kHz slice from 190 - 239.9 kHz as well as any beacons on 'half-way' frequencies (see below for more info).

A good target for this one is 'YZA' (236kHz) in Ashcroft, BC, shown above. YZA's gets out well as its 500W has been logged from Hawaii to Nova Scotia.

Listen for YZA's upper sideband on 236.403 kHz with your receiver in the CW mode.

From CLE coordinator Brian Keyte (G3SIA), comes the following CLE info:

Hello all,

 

Do try not to miss our 257th co-ordinated listening event - it starts this Friday at midday.  This should be an ideal CLE to try out for the first time, but everyone is welcome of course.

 

    Days:  Fri. 26th - Mon. 29th June, Midday-Midday, your local time

    Frequencies:   NDBs from 190 - 239.9 kHz

    PLUS:  Normal NDBs with carriers on 'half-way' frequencies nnn.5 kHz

                           from 190.5 - 999.5 kHz (some ‘gentle’ listening!)

 

So for all of us it is a CLE in two parts - the first part is hunting for the NDBs whose published frequencies are lower than 240 kHz.

 

The second part is hunting for the NDBs whose carrier frequencies are 'half-way'.  E.g. 267.5 OPW, 333.5 VOG, 370.5 LB, 377.5 MO (in OCE), 381.5 SJX (in Ml), 390.5 ITR and 433.5 HEN 'Normal' NDBs - no DGPS, please.

 

  (Most Europe listeners will hear few or none from part 1, while

   listeners away from Europe will hear few or none from part 2)

 

The seeklists from REU/RNA/RWW will help you - you will find them from the CLE SEEKLIST link on the CLE page http://www.ndblist.info/cle.htm

 

Please send your final CLE log to the List, if possible as a plain text email and not in an attachment, showing 'CLE257' and 'FINAL' in its title.

(Loggings from both parts can be shown in the same list)

Please include on EVERY line of your log:

 

  #  The date (or just the day 'dd') and UTC (days change at 00:00 UTC).

  #  kHz - the beacon's nominal frequency.

  #  The Call Ident.

 

It is important to show those main items FIRST - any other optional details such as Location, Distance, etc. go LATER in the same line.

 

Don't forget to give your OWN location and details of your receiver and aerial(s), etc. Others will be interested to know, especially new members - and old ones with failing memories like mine!

 

Listening on the 'half-way' frequencies means we might also catch some interesting non-CLE beacons - please tell us about those too, but in a separate list.  If any of them are UNIDs whose carriers seem to be on 'half-way' frequencies include them in your main list of course.

 

Joachim and I will be processing the incoming logs as usual - please look out for our 'Any More Logs?' email at about 19:00 UTC on Tuesday evening, with a list to let you check that your own log has been found OK.

 

Do make sure that your log has arrived on the NDB List at the very latest by 08:00 UTC on Wednesday 1 July.

 

Good listening

   Brian

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

From:     Brian Keyte G3SIA             ndbcle'at'gmail.com

Location: Surrey, SE England           (CLE Coordinator)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

(If you wish you could use any one remote receiver for your loggings,

stating the location and owner - and with their permission if required.

A remote listener may NOT also use another receiver, local or remote,

to make further loggings for the same CLE)

 

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

These listening events serve several purposes. They:
  • determine, worldwide, which beacons are actually in service and on-the-air so the online database can be kept up-to-date
  • determine, worldwide, which beacons are out-of-service or have gone silent since the last CLE covering this range
  • will indicate the state of propagation conditions at the various participant locations
  • will give you an indication of how well your LF/MF receiving system is working
  • give participants a fun yet challenging activity to keep their listening skills honed
Final details can be found at the NDB List website, and worldwide results, for every participant, will be posted there a few days after the event.


The NDB List Group is a great place to learn more about the 'Art of NDB DXing' or to meet other listeners in your region. There is a lot of good information available there and new members are always very welcome. As well, you can follow the results of other CLE participants from night to night as propagation is always an active topic of discussion.

You need not be an NDB List member to participate in the CLEs and all reports, no matter how small, are of much value to the organizers. 

Remember - 'First-time' logs are always VERY welcome!

Reports may be sent to the NDB List Group or e-mailed to CLE co-ordinator, Brian Keyte (G3SIA), whose address appears above. If you are a member of the group, all final results will also be e-mailed and posted there.

Please ... give the CLE a try ... then let us know what NDB's can be heard from your location! Your report can then be added to the worldwide database to help keep it up-to-date.

Have fun and good hunting!

Hunting For NDBs In CLE255



It's another CLE weekend!

During these stressful times, the CLE might hopefully provide some peaceful relief for you.




'CLE's are 'Co-ordinated Listening Events, and NDB DXers around the world focus their listening time on one small slice of the NDB spectrum.

This time the hunting ground is the 15kHz slice from 385.0 - 399.9 kHz. kHz

A good target for this one is little 'OO' (391kHz) in Oshawa, Ontario, shown above. 'OO-391' has a measured output of just over 7 watts yet is heard consistently all over North America including the west coast as well as in Europe! Hearing 'OO' is a very good test for your receiving system!

Listen for 'OO's' upper sideband on 391.402kHz with your receiver in the CW mode.

From CLE coordinator Brian Keyte (G3SIA), comes the following CLE info:

Hello all,

Have you tried one of our Co-ordinated Listening Events yet?
Whether short logs or long ones, making them is enjoyed by
beginners and experts alike - and reading them is enjoyed by all.

Our 255th Coordinated Listening Event starts this Friday.  We
should have plenty of NDBs to find in this 15 kHz frequency range.
Even the Pacific region (Oceania) is quite well supplied this time.

     Days:    Friday 24 April - Monday 27 April 2020
     Times:   Start and end at midday your LOCAL time
     Range:   385 - 399.9 kHz

Please log all the NDBs that you can identify with nominal (listed)
frequencies in the range - it includes 385 kHz, but not 400 kHz
 - plus any UNIDs that you come across there.

Send your final log to the List (no attachments please and ideally
in a plain text email) with 'FINAL CLE255' in its title (important).

Show on each line:
    #   The Date (e.g.  '2020-04-24', etc.,  or just '24' )
    #   The Time in UTC (the day changes at 00:00 UTC).
    #   kHz  - the nominal published frequency, if known.
    #   The Call Ident.

Please show those main items FIRST.  Other optional details
such as Location and Distance go LATER in the same line.
As always, of course, tell us your own location and give brief
details of the equipment that you were using during the Event.

We will send the usual 'Any More Logs?' email at about
19:00 UTC on Tuesday so you can check that your log has
been found OK.
Do make sure that your log has arrived on the List by
08:00 UTC on Wednesday 29 April at the very latest.
We hope to complete making the combined results within
a day or two.

You can find full details about current and past CLEs from the
CLE page http://www.ndblist.info/cle.htm   It includes access
to the CLE255 seeklists for your part of the World, prepared
from all the previous loggings in Rxx.

Good listening
- enjoy the CLE and take care.
      Brian and Joachim
------------------------------------------------------------------
From:      Brian Keyte G3SIA      ndbcle'at'gmail.com
Location:  Surrey,  SE England     (CLE coordinator)
------------------------------------------------------------------

  (If you would like to listen remotely you could use any one remote
  receiver for your loggings, stating its location and owner and with
  their permission if required.  A remote listener may NOT also use
  another receiver, local or remote, to make further loggings for the
  same CLE)


These listening events serve several purposes. They:
  • determine, worldwide, which beacons are actually in service and on-the-air so the online database can be kept up-to-date
  • determine, worldwide, which beacons are out-of-service or have gone silent since the last CLE covering this range
  • will indicate the state of propagation conditions at the various participant locations
  • will give you an indication of how well your LF/MF receiving system is working
  • give participants a fun yet challenging activity to keep their listening skills honed
Final details can be found at the NDB List website, and worldwide results, for every participant, will be posted there a few days after the event.


The NDB List Group is a great place to learn more about the 'Art of NDB DXing' or to meet other listeners in your region. There is a lot of good information available there and new members are always very welcome. As well, you can follow the results of other CLE participants from night to night as propagation is always an active topic of discussion.

You need not be an NDB List member to participate in the CLEs and all reports, no matter how small, are of much value to the organizers. 

Remember - 'First-time' logs are always VERY welcome!

Reports may be sent to the NDB List Group or e-mailed to CLE co-ordinator, Brian Keyte (G3SIA), whose address appears above. If you are a member of the group, all final results will also be e-mailed and posted there.

Please ... give the CLE a try ... then let us know what NDB's can be heard from your location! Your report can then be added to the worldwide database to help keep it up-to-date.

Have fun and good hunting!

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