Please share this with anyone who may be interested. Also, please note David's request for an SASE if you would like to receive a QSL card for the DX Test. From David:
In late January, 2012 KRPI, AM 1550, was contacted by Jim Pogue from the IRCA/NRC Broadcast Test Committee asking if the station would consider conducting a DX test. My immediate reaction was YES! The management had no objections so the date was set. Our live broadcasting ends at midnight when we switch to pre-recorded programming, so it was easy to set up for the test. I made a recording of a brief announcement identifying the station and alerting listeners that a test was in progress until 1:30 AM PST and that normal programming would resume at that time. A microcontroller was programmed to send Morse code at about 10 WPM. The message was VVV VVV VVV de KRPI KRPI KRPI at 1000 Hz followed by the same sequence at 1500 Hz. Finally, an iPod was loaded with old time fiddle tunes. About 5 minutes before the test was scheduled we switched to day power and pattern (50kW). At 1:00 AM the voice recording was played, followed by the Morse code segment, followed by a musical selection. That pattern was repeated every five minutes or so for the next half hour. At least once the musical selection was East Indian instead of a fiddle tune. In the middle of things I received a call from a listener in California - I would have loved to chat, but I had to be a bit abrupt since I had my hands full. After the test ended I received another call from a listener in Nashville and had a nice conversation. So far I have heard directly from listeners in Alabama, Arizona, California, Colorado, Michigan, Nebraska, New Jersey, Oklahoma, Oregon, Tennessee, Manitoba, Ontario, and Japan. We often receive reports from the AM DX enthusiasts on vacation in Lapland with their extraordinary long wire antennas and NRD receivers but we rarely hear from domestic DXers. This has been an exciting experience for me and it has been my pleasure to participate in this DX test. All verified reports accompanied by a SASE will receive our QSL card which will fit into an ordinary business envelope. Best regards to all, David Harris AC7OB, ex K2RRH _______________________________________________ IRCA mailing list IRCA@hard-core-dx.com http://montreal.kotalampi.com/mailman/listinfo/irca Opinions expressed in messages on this mailing list are those of the original contributors and do not necessarily reflect the opinion of the IRCA, its editors, publishing staff, or officers For more information: http://www.ircaonline.org To Post a message: irca@hard-core-dx.com