KTWR will be airing DRM From January 2021 onwards. The frequencies and times are listed below and all broadcasts will be in English.
Frequency Time Day Designated Coverage Area Language
9910kHz 1130-1200UTC Saturday Japan English
9910kHz 1058-1129UTC Saturday China English
13800kHz 1026-1056UTC Sunday India English
Suggestions when receiving DRM broadcasts.
Since many listeners use Software Defined Radio's (SDR) We thought it would be helpful to share a few links to tools that may assist you in receiving and decoding DRM.
Once an SDR has been chosen there are several free or donation type Windows PC software that can be used to receive the RF signals carrying the DRM encoded program.
A few popular RF reception software programs are:
If you agree with us that these software packages work well for you, we highly recommend supporting the developers.
When Run from a PC the SSB (10khz wide for DRM30) received audio will need to be routed to a DRM decoder. This can be accomplished by using physical cables or a virtual audio cable software.
The most popular DRM decoding software is Open Source DREAM.
There are various builds of DREAM that have been contributed over the years. Each version uses some unique methods for dealing with data broadcasts, some implement the ability to view slide shows or web data services. For instance the Version 2.1.1 decodes Web very well, but does not decode slide show's well. Details of DREAM can be found on the DREAM Wiki page.
An all in one RF reception and decoding application for windows PC's that is very impressive and currently works very well with SDR Play (RSP1) devices is the Algorkorea DRM4WIN software. This software is very reliable and comes with scheduling capability for viewing / recording audio or full DRM presentations at a very reasonable price. We have been told by the developer that the software will also support RTL type SDR's in the near future.
The companion DRMTX4WIN is a great tool for experimenting with DRM and can be used to create DRM presentations that can be delivered to an audio device or saved and then played back and decoded with DRM4WIN
At only $5 for both programs - these tools add a great benefit to your DRM reception endeavors.
For more information contact ssjarng1@gmail.com ~ Algorkorea Co. Ltd. 2020
If you use Android and want to experiment with DRM, the Android versions of the Algorkorea decoders will work with a headphone audio input or SDR direct. The SDRPlay type receiver is DRM+Msi and RTL Device users can try DRM+SDR Android Device drivers (SDRPlaydriver, RTLdriver) will be needed as well as an On the Go cable (OTG) to power the SDR from the Android device.
Lastly - The key to a good DRM reception experience is your Antenna. Locating the Antenna away from your computing device is important. Shielding and grounding is also important. Many types of Antennas can be found online and the designs can be adjusted to your unique location. One of the best performing DRM antenna that we have used is a noise canceling mobius loop.
These antennas can be purchased with many models available on shopping networks or can be home made. The benefit of a loop antenna is its ability to cancel out noise by its driven element and also by rotating the antenna away from the noise source.
Your Friends at KTWR wish you well in your DRM reception adventures and would love to hear if your receive our broadcast and how your equipment works!
May you have a Joyous Christmas and a Happy and Safe New Year!
KTWR will be airing special Christmas broadcasts in DRM later this month. The frequencies and times will be the same as we use for the current DRM broadcasts. All broadcasts will be in English. (We hope to do this in more languages next year.)
Frequency Time Date Designated Coverage Area
7500kHz 1246-1315UTC 20-23 December Japan
9910kHz 1057-1130UTC 19, 20-26 December China
13800kHz 1026-1056UTC 20-25 December India
Merry Christmas from KTWR
It seems that there is quite a bit of support for moving our Japanese DRM broadcast to Saturdays on 9910kHz at 1130-1200UTC. Not only did we receive only positive feedback from listeners about the proposed move, we had to move this block due to a scheduling conflict.
Now that the sun has ramped up activity, propagation for the new time should be very good. We also believe that there will be less interference than we currently have on 7500kHz. We hope you will have an easier time listening to the broadcasts after the move.
73 de KTWR
This program is designed to make it easy for listeners to contribute to the advancement of the DX hobby. You may send log entries and other discussion contributions to dxersdiary@gmail.com.
73 from KTWR
