Been on everyday since. Also heard over in the east today, so wide coverage.
Often playing the same repetitive Aussie 70’s - 80’s music. Never any announcements. Is mono, unlike 91.8 which is stereo.
I am at Killcare Heights at the southern end of the Central Coast right now and my car radio has picked this up on auto seek tuning.
Must be putting out a fair signal for a pirate.
I can just hear it under the static at my location. Sounds like they are playing some kind of dance music.
What parts of Sydney does it come in the strongest???
Same where I am, I can get 87.5 it down to Bankstown and it plays just 70s - 80s music without processing.
It seems that 87.5 has moved to 88.8 with about the same signal strength with a revamped 70s-90s playlist, it also sounds a bit better with a little processing.
Playing BLOODY ABBA is not revamped to me!
I wonder why they didn’t move to 89.5 MHz where there isn’t a station +100 kHz to its centre frequency.
Recording from the 88.8 MHz frequency:
Possibly because it’d be easier for ACMA to detect them…
88.8 is a silly choice; it gets hammered on both sides. 108.0 would be better (outside of TCBL times).
Yes & maybe, depending on where they’re transmitting from & intended
coverage area in respect to existing broadcasters on 88.7x2 & 2RSR in city.
Anyone have any clues to the whereabouts of this ‘mystery’ broadcaster?
Listening to 88.8 now, seems strongest out to sea? Using my 6 element yagi here in Sutherland (Southern Sydney). Currently playing Queen.
Well, what’s the point? Sounds like a WS clone. They could at least skew their playlist towards the '50s and '60s for a point of difference!
Interesting. I’d eliminated some regions of Sydney.
Checking 88.8 tonight & it’s now gone. Was there this morning.
Maybe your post made someone nervous?
A pirate broadcaster out at sea? Surely not a Radio Caroline imitator?
I think one of our other members SDR showed a strong signal in southern suburbs.
Welcome Sara(h); nice to see someone with a Yagi in the southern suburbs of Sydney…now that I’ve left the area!
Perhaps 88.8 is using vertical pol and is located to the north of Sutherland; this seems likely. The signal would peak 90 degrees off in that case when using a horizontally polarised Yagi.
A pirate in the steamy autumn brine off Sydney would be romantic but that’s a fanciful notion.
Good point regarding the direction, didn’t think of that. But picking up a mystery transmission from the Love Boat or a tropical island would have been cool.
We actually have picked up mystery all-music transmissions via E-skip that may have been from cruise ships. They have been received on their own and often just before/after Norfolk Island or New Caledonia FM. But I haven’t received anything like that for a while.
Such signals from cruise ships would exhibit very slow fading and slight choppiness. But of course this is masked by the inherent fading (‘QSB’) of E-skip.
Saw a sticker today promoting a pirate station on 99.9 in Melbourne, indeed calling it out as a pirate station on the sticker. Wonder how many people seeing it would understand what’s meant by ‘pirate’ in the radio sense?
Playing a hip hop format - didn’t hear a station id in the time I listened. Not sure how long it has been broadcasting but seems to be a fairly powerful signal.
Do you have a photo of the sticker?
Wow, where about are you receiving it? I’m in the northern suburbs, Ill see if I can hear anything.
Edit: there is definitely something weak on 99.9 on my SDR, its a tiny spike though.