KEN'S DX DIARY AND LOGS - WEDNESDAY 28th DECEMBER 2014

MW - WORST SEASON IN YEARS, BUT A HAPPY NEW YEAR ANYWAY:

Well I have to wish everyone a belated happy new year, and best wishes for 2015. This update has been a little late, but I thought I at least should have some kind of an entry for January!! There has been no MW dx heard here worth noting...Sure I have weak signals from 1501, 930, 1390 and other common channels, but such has been the case this season, it has not even been worthy of overnight recording this season. Many nights I have been switching off.... and making no overnight wideband recordings. The band has just been too dire.

I have even been across inspecting the antenna a number of times, and found nothing wrong. I know that other dxers report virtually the same, so I am not alone in abandoning this season almost as a sead loss.

 

PERSEUS REPAIRED:

Better news on the receiver front. I finally had the Perseus repaired after a screw up by myself when I gave Perseus number 2 a shot of 12v in a panic to reconnect the FM+ and Perseus. This was after having them disconnected during local thunderstorms. The panic to reconnect was due to sporadic e coming through on band 2!!

I was in touch with Ceasar over at Microtelecom in Italy to arrange repair, and I mailed it across, registered post. My UK Post Office tracking number was still showing up as package arrived in Milan Italy ready for delivery, when an email arrived to say job done, Perseus repaired...!!!!

Now how is that for a fast service.

Ceasare received my package from the mail on the Thursday, repaired within the hour, and returned and received on the Monday. The original UPS delivery note suggested delivery on the Friday, which was probably held up over the weekend due to the snow we had.

This is a massive step forward from the delays experienced by dxers a few years back, so again, well done Microtelecom for the speedy service.

Flat rate of 100 Euros inclusive of UPS delivery. Which makes a repair particularly attractive.

(Of course the guys know it is silly charging more than the item is worth for a repair..lol. But prices for screens for some of the large flat panel televisions for example can easily exceed the replacement value, which is particularly silly)

 

25th JANUARY - CELEBRATIONS:

No not celebrations of Rabbie the famous Scottish poet, but celebrations of another kind.

I am thinking back to January 2009, 6 years ago, when we had a superb opening to SK and the mid west, as well as West Coast. And again to the dates around the 10th-13th January 2013.

Ah, if only.