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Long Wave Radio Question

Hugh JboobsHugh Jboobs Posts: 15,316
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in Radio and Podcasts #1
Hi all. Hope this is the right place to put this. Toyed with putting it in Advice, but thought here was better.

As people may know, The Ashes have started and I want to listen to it on the radio at work. At the moment, I'm listening via my digital radio to BBC Radio 5Live Extra. However, for some reason, digital radio doesn't work all that brilliantly in my workplace and there is often crackling, interference and loss of the broadcast. (Digital radio has always been like this where I work. I don't really know why. FM isn't brilliant either to be honest).

Anyway, I note that the cricket is broadcast on BBC Radio 4 LW as well. So I popped over to the nearest Asda, assuming I could pick up some form of reasonably priced radio which I could tune in to Long Wave. However, none of the radios they sold had a Long Wave facility. I just assumed all radios would?!

A quick Google search reveals you can get radios which have LW, so I'll order one. But I wondered if people could advise me as to whether it would likely work for me or not? Given what I've said about Digital and FM being crap in my particular workplace, would LW follow suit and be useless as well? Or is the signal somehow "stronger" and likely to be OK?

Forgive me if this is schoolboy stuff! :o I'm not too hot on this sort of thing!

Thanks in advance! :)
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    wavy-davywavy-davy Posts: 7,122
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    #2
    Whereabouts in the country are you?
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    Hugh JboobsHugh Jboobs Posts: 15,316
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    #3
    wavy-davy wrote: »
    Whereabouts in the country are you?

    North-west.

    Same as you I see!
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    wavy-davywavy-davy Posts: 7,122
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    #4
    It should be possible. If you've got any windows reception should be better with the radio sat on the window ledge. South facing if possible (the transmitter is near Birmingham) and a battery powered radio will pick up less interference from the mains.
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    chrisjrchrisjr Posts: 33,282
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    #5
    If you work in a steel framed building that can act as a partial Faraday Cage and block radio transmissions getting in. The higher the frequency the more the building's structure tends to block the signals. Bet you don't get great mobile phone reception either (unless the mast is right outside :) )

    LW should get in better than FM or DAB though.
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    gomezzgomezz Posts: 44,625
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    #6
    If you can get mobile reception or wi-fi then another option is to listen using your phone.
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    keicarkeicar Posts: 2,082
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    #7
    Does such a thing as a personal LW radio exist? I too struggle with a personal dab radio signal.
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    macspinnermacspinner Posts: 23
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    #8
    Tesco RAD113B AM/FM/LW Portable Radio. Mains or Battery power... £8.99.
    Bargain. Bought one a couple of weeks ago. Gets the cricket fine!
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    N.DeanN.Dean Posts: 1,693
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    #9
    You could try tuning to 603kHz MW ( trasnsmitter in Newcastle-upon-Tyne ) or 720kHz MW ( trasnsmitter in Northern Ireland ). I know that the 603kHz transmitter reaches beyond its intended north east coverage area.
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    [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 4,398
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    #10
    keicar wrote: »
    Does such a thing as a personal LW radio exist? I too struggle with a personal dab radio signal.

    http://www.amazon.co.uk/Roberts-Radios-Sports-925-Portable/dp/B0048LC78K/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1373632215&sr=8-4&keywords=personal+radio
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    omnidirectionalomnidirectional Posts: 18,822
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    #11
    I got a little Sony radio with Long Wave in ASDA just last week for an elderly relative who likes listening to RTE! Not a bad radio.

    As someone above suggested, try 720AM too. This is pretty clear in the North West especially towards the coast.
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    JamesArnistonJamesArniston Posts: 279
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    #12
    This is an interesting question by the OP.

    Very few radios have long wave anymore.

    I always thought that if there was a national emergency and all radio stations had or were forced to close down, the service for information would be down to the BBC and would be broadcast on 198 LW since it has the widest and most reliaible coverage.

    I might be a bit out of date with this but I wonder just how many people in the UK actually have a radio that has Long Wave anymore???
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    CRTHDCRTHD Posts: 7,602
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    #13
    I'm lead to believe that some radios labelled as am/fm can actually receive LW on the am band (down the "far end")?
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    keicarkeicar Posts: 2,082
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    #14
    Indeed it is a good question, the only one I have is a 1974 Benkson that I had as a kid and still use it just for the cricket. Its just a little too big to stick in my pocket, hence my question re a personal LW radio.

    I have a personal DAB radio but it's for ever dropping signal as the OP has experienced.
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    wavy-davywavy-davy Posts: 7,122
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    #15
    CRTHD wrote: »
    I'm lead to believe that some radios labelled as am/fm can actually receive LW on the am band (down the "far end")?

    Some car radios can, yes.
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    chrisjrchrisjr Posts: 33,282
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    #16
    JamesArniston wrote: »
    This is an interesting question by the OP.

    Very few radios have long wave anymore.

    I always thought that if there was a national emergency and all radio stations had or were forced to close down, the service for information would be down to the BBC and would be broadcast on 198 LW since it has the widest and most reliaible coverage.

    I might be a bit out of date with this but I wonder just how many people in the UK actually have a radio that has Long Wave anymore???
    There is no national emergency broadcast system in the UK like there is in the US.

    See this story..

    http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-23240430
    UK testing

    In the UK, no such emergency broadcast system is in place.

    "We don't have an alerting system similar to that in this country at the moment," a Cabinet Office spokeswoman told the BBC.
    Though chances are that the BBC would be the broadcaster to provide such a service, if only because it is the only broadcaster with a fully national infrastructure on both TV and Radio.
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    wavy-davywavy-davy Posts: 7,122
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    #17
    They'd probably use the Heart network as everyone worth saving listens to that anyway.
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    Tony RichardsTony Richards Posts: 5,745
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    #18
    You've got to be kidding! :D
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    wavy-davywavy-davy Posts: 7,122
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    #19
    Tony Richards wrote: »
    You've got to be kidding! :D
    Besides which, anyone not actually listening to Heart themselves is certain to be within earshot of someone else who is so it's a fail safe way of getting an important message across.
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    SteveBentleySteveBentley Posts: 2,003
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    #20
    CRTHD wrote: »
    I'm lead to believe that some radios labelled as am/fm can actually receive LW on the am band (down the "far end")?

    AM is a perfectly legitimate description of the Long Wave band - both MW and LW use amplitude modulation.
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    wilson500wilson500 Posts: 1,096
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    #21
    Depends on your work place, but I'd borrow a radio before buying one. Offices can be bad places for LW & MW reception. Lots of computers, florescent lighting and the structure of the building can leave no usable signal.
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    EnnerjeeEnnerjee Posts: 5,131
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    #22
    I have a couple of transistor radios with LW on (a Sony and a Roberts) as I listen to French radio (France Inter, Europe 1 and RTL). My alarm clock radio is also set on LW which is also a Sony.

    All of them have excellent reception here in Islington in Central/North London.
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    Hugh JboobsHugh Jboobs Posts: 15,316
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    #23
    Sorry for the delayed response. Thanks for the replies everyone. Think I'll take a punt and get a LW radio and hope it works! The ones I saw were around a tenner, so not too bad.

    Thanks again. :)
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    hanssolohanssolo Posts: 22,672
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    #24
    Hope it works if not and mobiles work try 3g streaming?
    wavy-davy wrote: »
    Besides which, anyone not actually listening to Heart themselves is certain to be within earshot of someone else who is so it's a fail safe way of getting an important message across.
    From the Government emergency advice you are right
    There is an agreement with radio and TV companies that if there is a major emergency they will interrupt programming to give public safety advice and information about the incident, so that when you TUNE IN locally or nationally anywhere in the UK you’ll get the advice you need.
    Long wave is rapidly becoming unimportant and Germany have said their last long wave station will close in 2014 whenDAB fully rolls out.
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    BMRBMR Posts: 4,351
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    #25
    hanssolo wrote: »
    Long wave is rapidly becoming unimportant and Germany have said their last long wave station will close in 2014 whenDAB fully rolls out.

    Will they continue broadcasting Europe 1?
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    gomezzgomezz Posts: 44,625
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    #26
    hanssolo wrote: »
    Long wave is rapidly becoming unimportant
    Unless and until they fill in the whopping holes in DAB coverage round here it is still of major importance to me for following the cricket while out and about.
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