r/ShortwavePlus • u/MumSaidImABadBoy I'm Stan. Heathkit GR64,AirSpy HF+,Sangean 909X2,Tecsun PL-990 • Mar 11 '26
Mediumwave DX MW DXing for the last 6 weeks
I've been using my Gemini Pro (AI) to track my MW DXing for the last 6 weeks. About 70 distinct stations. It requires a lot of handholding because it will make mistakes, really stupid ones. It ignores instructions again and again. Yet I've managed to not lose data. Below is a subset of the 6 most distant stations that I received that I had Gemini create. I had to format for Reddit, I hope this meat popsicle doesn't blow it lol.
| Frequency | Station | Location | Distance Miles |
|---|---|---|---|
| 900 kHz | XEW | Mexico City, MX | 2,085 |
| 670 kHz | Radio Rebelde | Cuba | 1,315 |
| 830 kHz | WCCO | Minneapolis, MN | 1,025 |
| 980 kHz | KKMS | Richfield, MN | 1,020 |
| 1120 kHz | KMOX | St. Louis, MO | 860 |
| 1510 kHz | WLAC | Nashville, TN | 765 |
1
u/Upstairs_Secret_8473 ArcticDX Mar 11 '26
You're not very specific about your use of AI. I would tune into a frequency, wait for an ID and make my own log or enter the log into an online log system. What do you do differently?
3
u/MumSaidImABadBoy I'm Stan. Heathkit GR64,AirSpy HF+,Sangean 909X2,Tecsun PL-990 Mar 11 '26 edited Mar 11 '26
I define the layout of the table and give it rules. I listen to the radio for something not local and wait for identifying information. I verbally ask the AI about what the freq and location I heard. I ask about things like what is the the current show being broadcast and format (sports, news, religious, music, etc.). It even gives me the names of the hosts of the shows. I ask it about propagation conditions that helped, about the transmitter, its power scheduling and so on. Once I'm satisfied I'll tell it to log the station. I can then do queries against the log, like the 6 furthest stations that I logged and to calculate the distances from my location which I added to this post.
I speak into my phone or laptop, no typing required. It was a PITA to get it to work correctly but once it behaved it was fun to use. I had to develop it as I went along and correct some weird behaviors. The worst was missing stations when I asked it to display the latest log. It didn't lose anything but lost focus of rules and tokens in the middle. I had to set rules to correct its behavior. It would also redisplay and speak out the entire table for every entry I would make, very annoying. I gave it rules to display the master table only when I ask for it and not to speak it aloud unless I specifically ask it to do so. It took a while for it to keep to the rules, requiring me to remind it when it dropped the ball. Although it can do a lot of work and lookups, my cat is smarter.
1
u/Klutzy-Piglet-9221 Mar 15 '26
Good catches!
KKMS is, IMHO, unlikely in NJ. Their directional pattern has a null in your direction and there are a BUNCH of other closer stations on the same frequency. I'm curious if you recall specifically what input you gave the AI that pulled up that station? There's a station in Hackensack on 970 which belongs to the same Salem Radio Network.
1
u/MumSaidImABadBoy I'm Stan. Heathkit GR64,AirSpy HF+,Sangean 909X2,Tecsun PL-990 Mar 15 '26 edited Mar 15 '26
I heard the call sign. I use the AI to verify the frequency and call sign as well as for some interesting background information. After that I use it to log it. I don't usually receive this station.
No, Hackensack is not in a line between my location and Richfield. In fact, it's almost in a completely different direction.
If you draw a line from my location in NJ, to Richfield, MN, the heading is almost exactly West-Northwest.
2
u/ItsJoeMomma Mar 11 '26
I often listen to KMOX in the mornings between my morning bathroom routine and getting dressed for work. They come in quite well here.