Radio is wonderful window to the world of knowledge and enjoyment. Unlike the Television (TV), radio provides the freedom of choosing any station from thousands of various programmes. Like other hobbies, radio listening becomes a fascination hobby for collection QSL cards, stickers & gift items etc. Only very few people know about the hobby of International Radio Listening. Radio DXing is a scientific and technical hobby in this technical age without having technical qualification. Once you get involved in DXing and addicted to this you would not escape from it. By tuning the Short wave band you will get a chance for a world tour without bothering Passport, Visa and Air ticket. By DXing the world is on your fingertips.

Every nation had two radio services. Primary one is Internal Service or Domestic Service and the other one is External Service or Foreign Service. Internal service used Medium Wave (MW) and Frequency Modulation (FM) transmitters for broadcasting programmes within the country and External or Foreign Service uses Short Wave (SW) transmitters to cover long distance. This service now use satellites and relay stations and their aim is to project one nation's ideas and opinions to the foreign people & listeners.

Listening to short wave radio is a little different from listening to a local MW or FM station. Short wave frequencies on the Kilohertz scale are higher than MW but lower than FM frequencies. Usually, the stations you listen to on MW or FM are less than 100 KMs. Away. Short wave radio stations, on the other hand, reach longer distances of thousands of kilometers.

The atmospheric layer located 70-500 KMs. Above the earth is called the Ionosphere. FM and TV-VHF waves penetrate the Ionosphere, while MW gets absorbed. Short waves, on the other hand, are deflected by the Ionosphere. Therefore, by bouncing repeatedly between the earth surface and the Ionosphere, these waves can travel long distances to the other side of the globe.

Short wave band is crowded with thousands of radio stations such as British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), Voice of America (VOA), Radio Netherlands (RN), Radio Deutsche Welle (DW), Australia Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) and All India Radio (AIR) etc. International radio listening is different from local radio listening. They are friendly towards their listeners by sending Stamps, Stickers, Calendars, Booklets and valuable gifts like Digital Radios and CDs. The regular radio listeners are technically call "Radio DXers". Where "D" stands for "Distance" and "X" stands for "Unknown Station". A radio DXer is eagerly hunting for new station and new programmes in the radio horizon.

Short Wave broadcast band

Short wave broadcast bands extend from 3 MHz to 30 MHz. The lowest band, starting from 2.3 MHz to 2.5 MHz, is called 120 metre band. The nearby bands of 90 metre, 75 metre, and 60 metre, alongwith 120 metre band, are called tropical bands, as these are mostly used in tropical zone countries.

International broadcasting takes place on frequencies just above 60 metre band. The 41 metre and 49 metre bands are rarely used for international broadcasting due to their limited coverage in daytime.

The 31 metre band runs from 9500 KHz to 9775 KHz and is popularly used for long-distance communications during night and short-distance communications during day.

The 25 metre band is used for broadcasting upto 5000 KMs. In daytime and early evening and for longer distances in local evening and night hours.

The 19 metre band runs from 15100 KHz to 15800 KHz is used during daytime. It is the most suitable for broadcasts beyond 15,000 KMs.

The 16 metre band runs from 17480 KHz to 17900 KHz and is largely used for distance transmission during daytime and early evening of reception area.

The 13 metre band runs from 21450 KHz to 21850 KHz and is less crowded than the 16 metre band. The frequencies can be propagate over very long distances and excellent daytime reception is possible.

Depending on the season, there are changes in the transmission of radio waves. In summer higher frequencies (above 13 MHz) are transmitted better, while in winter, lower frequencies (6 MHz, 7 MHz & 9 MHz) are transmitted better. Therefore broadcasting stations, in accordance with international agreements, periodically changes frequencies two times annually at the end of October and March. Also revisions are carried out whenever interference occurs.

A multi band Short wave radio with an external Long Wire Antenna is enough for DXing. It is better to have a Digital Radio Receiver alongwith Digitally Frequency Display to know the exact frequency and to avoid interferences. Most radio stations welcome Reception Reports from their regular listeners to know the technical quality of their transmission. And they acknowledge it with a beautiful card, called QSL card, which can collect & keep just like stamps. Keeping a records of what is heard is vital for DXers or even more casual listeners. This will enable one to recall detailed information for reception reports, research on particular stations and reception conditions over a period or times. The listening log should include date, time, station location, signal and information codes and name of the programme heard.

Radio Japan, Radio Austria and FEBC Radio provide printed Reception Report Forms on request to them. Reception reports can be sent to the concerned radio stations through e-mail or surface mail. Radio Netherlands issue a free booklet called "How to write useful Reception Report" which will give you a good idea about the writing of a good Reception Report. In Reception Report time must be in Universal Time Co-ordinate (UTC) same as the Greenwich Mean Time (GMT). A listener can also specify whether there is any interference, fading etc. Most of the stations have regional offices in respective countries and sending the feedback received from the listeners.

1. Name and Address of the Listeners.
2. Date and Time in UTC / GMT.
3. Frequency in KHz or Meter band.
4. A few details of the programme heard.
5. Type of receiver and antenna.
6. Programming comments & suggestions.
7. Reception quality condition in Signal-Interference-Noise-Propagation Condition-Overall Merit (SINPO) code or Signal-Interference-Overall Merit (SIO) code.

Signal Strength: For an exact measurement of signal strength, a so-called S-meter needs to be installed in the receiver. However, S-meter reading is usually dependent on the setting of RF gain control in the receiver set, so use your ears to judge signal strength.

Interference: Interference is a disturbance caused by other radio stations operation on the same of a nearby frequency. It sounds like a series of loud whistling noises. If possible, include the following data in your reception report (1) Whether the interference was caused by another station (2) Name of the interfering station (3) Frequency used by the interfering station (4) Whether the interference was caused by commercial services.

Noise: The noise level not only comprises static or crackling noise caused by electrical discharges in the atmosphere but also disturbances of local origin caused by electrical equipments and machines. It included all sorts of cracking noises as well as regular rhythmic clicks. The influence of such disturbances on the transmission quality is judged similar to the interference value.

Overall Merit: It represents a summary of the groups mentioned above. The more the disturbances occur, the worse the overall merit. Since the overall merit is the average of four preceding variables, its value would be "5" only when all the preceding variables are "5". Usually, the overall merit cannot be higher than the rating given to interference. The SINFO code, through accepted and endorsed by international broadcasters and technicians, but should not be used when reporting to small, ill-equipped local stations designed to serve local audience only.

To learn more about short wave radio, you may listen to DX programmes by various broadcasters, subscribe to radio publications, visit web pages of DX clubs, join a DX club or meet with some Dxers. If you are interested to meet with some Dxers, I can give you some contact details of Dxers. The Voice of America's Communications World, Adventist World Radio's Wave Scan, HCJB Radio's DX Party Line, Glenn Hausers' World of Radio and World Harvest Radio's DXing with Cambre are some very popular DX programmes.

Broadcast schedules and other information about programmes are available at all short wave stations. You may write directly to the stations and request such materials. If requested, the station that you regularly tune in to, will keep you posted of any schedule changes. In most cases information is provided free of cost. You may also obtain broadcast information at the Diplomatic Offices of concerned countries.

• The receiver should comprise all short wave bands.
• World band receivers should be equipped with a connection for an outdoor antenna.
• If you choose and analogue receiver, ensure that each short wave band is spread over one scale, i.e. the entire short wave range can be turned over the length's different scales.
• Most receivers having digital frequency readout make an exact tuning of the desired frequency.
• High-quality short wave receivers have one or two RF pre-selector stages in their input range, resulting in a higher input sensitivity, better image frequency stability as well as better signal-to-noise ratio.
• The receiver should have a signal strength indicator or readout (if possible, in "S" meter), memory preset facility, and Beat Frequency Oscillator (BFO) to resolve Single Side Band (SSB) signals.