Receiving DRM broadcasts

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:

Console from SDR-Radio.com 

SDR Sharp

HD SDR

SDR Uno

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 Christmas DRM Broadcasts

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

Japanese DRM Move

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

Good News

After some hick-ups were resolved, it turns out that KTWR will be able to air the DXers Diary program. The first air date will be 3 January. This will be a weekly 5-minute program inserted in our English DRM broadcast on 13800kHz on Sundays at 1026-1056UTC. While this broadcast is beamed toward  India, many listeners are picking this up in Southeast Asia, southern China, Europe, and beyond.

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

Possible Move for Japanese DRM Block

Hi again. We have heard from a couple of Japanese DRM listeners that the current 1245-1315UTC block we air on Sunday is a bit late. We could move it to 1130-1200UTC on Saturday. This would put it immediately after our Chinese DRM block on 9910kHz. We have already gotten reports that the Chinese block is easier to receive in Japan than our Sunday Japanese broadcast. If we move it to Saturday at 1130UTC, we would use 9910kHz with a beam heading of 350 degrees. Due to the better propagation, more direct heading, and higher antenna gain, we would reduce the power output to 50kW. That should still provide a very strong signal to most of Japan. (There will some months when Hokkaido gets a weak signal, but that is also true with the current broadcast.)

Before we make this move, we would like to get more feedback from our Japanese audience. Please let us know whether you prefer the current time on Sunday or the earlier time on Saturday. You may contact us at by commenting to this post or via email at ktwrdrm@twr.org. Thanks for your help.

73 and may the Lord be with you.

Bad News

We are sorry to report that KTWR will not be able to broadcast "DXers' Diary". After fine-tuning the program to make it broadcast-ready, we found out that TWR cannot air it for non-technical reasons. The team at KTWR was really looking forward to having this on the air. We hope to find a good home for this program on another broadcaster.

New DRM Schedule for B20

It's hard to believe that the B20 broadcast season starts this Sunday! It truns out that there will only be a slight change to KTWR's DRM broadcasts. The B20 DRM schedule is shown below:

Day               Time (UTC)    Frequency    Region        Language

Sunday         1026-1056    13800 kHz       India         English
Sunday         1245-1315    7500 kHz        Japan        Japanese

Saturday       1057-1130    9910 kHz        China        Mandarin/Cantonese

73 de NH2MS