Evening Star Newspaper, January 31, 1926, Page 37

—_— RADID EQUIPMENT OF NAVY OBSOLETE Deplorable Condition of Ap- paratus Is Revealed in House Hearings. BY CARL H. BUTMAN. The deplorable conditions of the naval radio equipment, both afloat and ashore, and the necessary use of ob- solete radio equipment, in violation of the agreement with the National Radio Conference, were revealed recently to the House naval apropriations com- mittee by Rear Admiral Halllgan, chief of the Bureau of Engineering Considerable old equipment, particu- larly spark sets, has become useless aboard ships, but no relfable contin- uous-wave transmitter has been pro- vided for replucing them. The Navy is the last large organization to relin- quish the use of this antiquated ap- paratus, he testified; but it plan: to do so a3 soon as funds are provided. Lack of suitable modern equipment was said to have handicapped the operations and maneuvers of the fleet, according to reports from flag officers, duoted by the chief of the bureau to the committee. Needs Modernization. In this connection, the commander of the Battle Fleet reported present radio equipment the g v for baitle.” Indors , the commander-in- equally true with other ubdivisions of the United States The chief of operations is quoted as follows: “The radio equip- t should he modernized the ships of the Navy on a war basis shows that a sum of $15.000,000 is necessary to replace worn-out, deficient equipment and provide an efficient sys- tem of radio communication.” The sum of $7,887,000 is required to pro- vide efficlent radio apparatus for he #hips in actual commission. Although the sum of $729,637 was allocated to radio for the fiscal year 1926, it is reported essential that an itional amount be provided for wsuing vears, if the proposed pro- gram is to be completed before the radio equipment now being provided is worn out in use. In December, $300,- 000, origit allocated for radio re. Placements, was diverted for use in aving for urgent repairs to propell- ing machinery, thereby p(-llponin[ radio replacements already under w: Service Draws Prejudice. Explaining the present radio situa- iton in the Navy, Admiral Halligan pointed out that, whereas originally the naval radio service had the ether practically to itself, nowadays the use of radio by the amateurs and broadcast stations made it neces- sary for the Navy to release many channels in order to prevent severe interference De- partment is \ complaints because its shore stations are causing embarrassment to people trying to listen to broadcasting sta- tions, which condition was cited as huilding up prejudice against the naval service. To avoid this, the naval radio service is installing, when available, sharp-tuned instru- s, which cause less interference, acing some of the heavy spark which create interference to isteners and marine stations. But adequate funds are lacking Due to the necesary mmp)e\u) of ommunications. developing in the o lreuity with including wirele: ues, it is necessary today for a flagship to be able to communicate imultaneously by radio on six or wuve lengths, while on a regu ship operation on four sep- arate channels is required. The mes- sages on these different chanels must, of course, not interfere with each other, which requires sharper tuned receiving and transmitting apparatus than was ever used before. Handicaps Clearly Shown. Many of the Navy's handicaps in radlo “quipment were reported fol lowing the maneuvers in the Pacific, 1y the commander-in-chief of the fleet, who stauted that the present rate of modernization of radio equipment was not satisfactory. If the maneuvers had been un actual series of engage- ments, the indicated efficiency would to have fallen off due from the enemy sef d a lack of sufficiently strong apparatus on the ships. Transmitters could not have bean adjusted exactly due to lack of measuring instruments, and some of the flagships could not have operated in_duplex; that is, carried on simul- taneous transmission and reception. No flagship had a transmitter ca- pable of communicating with a shore ation during the ma without rupting 1t other There were not sufficient interfermce clreuits wailable for actual battle operations nnd many other deficiencies, which, it was pointed out, had been reported repeatedly in the past. During the hearings Capt. McNeely of the Radio Division of Engineering urged the equipment of warships with he latest radio dev and cquip- ment to replace apparatus ins nany vears ago and now obsolel rhirty or forty destroyel will prob- ibly but the old high-powered seis on batileships. in stalled (wo vears ugo at a cost of §15,- 000 each, will be used until much vlder transmitters are placed, he said. $1,000,000 Fund 0.K. Estimated expenditures O.K.'d by the Budget Bureau for naval radio during the fiscal year 1 approxi- mate $1.000,000, of which $175,000 is for replacemcnt of untiquated sets afloat and the balance for the im provement and maintenance of shore radio stations ment allocation ver the inu tion of new cating with alr Out of the sk about $100, cture und of the money vide suitable apparitus v hro for equipment cas pointed out budget for the I and is not incl ‘mount asked for ruddi by the Bure § vear alr iround § airpl ciuted in the in_ the and ap neering anount tota This radio s stemn dur £ 00 over ordinary transmiting cost Pays to Get Out of Jail. An unauthors Lo \l. ter i England was tu n to a ice court § recently und tined 10 \\hrn he re fused to pay the ju had him put in jail until he did The prisoner { was locked up only a half hour be fore he changed his mind and pald the fine. Radio Bxports BJnmmg Radio Stat Umted expor due to n Deceni r, nevertheless approaches mililons of dellars, indicating a very healthy and growing forelgn trade in amcrican radio apparatus. ~h"hl Falliie. off of expurts | cations work last Summer are adding led | st bands, | nes, it | Aeronautics | i "~ GAS, INDIGESTION | £ ; Chew a few Pleasant Tablets, 11! tabie after eatin and is willing that is fellow fans evening experiences. No. 50—Tune In and Tune Up. When a family scatters for the eve- ning, despite the fact that there is a first-class recelving set in the living room and a notable program floating through the air, it is a sure sign something {s wrong. In Smith’s case it happened to be Smith. There he was trying to tune up the set by a sort of hit or miss method, foregoing the pleasure of a real radio (reat and getting nothing in return for his experimenting. He wasn't even sure when he had made an improve- ment in the set! I watched him a few minutes in order to get a line on his aystem before sugkestng an idea of my own. i*frst he switched the tubes from one socket to another and then tuned in WFAR. Reception was not satis- factory, so he ripped off the detector connection to the battery and zave the plate of the detector more voltage. Then instead of tuning in for WFAR again, and making a com. parison, he tuned for NEAR. Of course it appeared as though he had made a great improvement. NEAR came in with a roar. atistied that he had made an im- nt his next step was to tune : statfon from which the big liv event of the evening wus being But he found reception rt of expectations There was fading, but he suspected this had something to do with the excessive detector plate voltage. A moment later he was trying u “soft’ tube in place of the hard tube detac- tor and changing the detector’s plate voltage accordingly. He was bacom- ing more confused every minute. ow I'm ready to make a sugges- ," I voluntered at length. ““'hy on’t you tune in and then tune up?" Proves His Theory. “That's exactly what I'm doing,” he retorted. “You're wrong about that,” I an- swered him. “Looks to me as if you're tuning up and then tuning in. And what's more, you tune in for a different station every time you make a test. How can you expect to know when you have made an improve- ment?” | Smith stepped aside and invited me prove my theory. It was not going be a simple matter, but 1 felt that I could give him some idea how it should be done. My first move was to tune in for a station that ordinarily came in satis- factorily. Obviously this was a fair- ly powerful station not too far away. vet not too near. The trouble with testing with stations too near is that they will come in even if the set is not_ working at its best. This makes comparisons extremely difficult. ‘The trouble with distant stations is the skill, and often the luck, in tuning. The tubes, the current and the me- chanical details of the set are not al- ways to blame if & distant station varies widely in reception. Just a shade difference in the position of a condenser dial may mark the differ- ence between good reception and bad. FANS DEMONSTRATE SPEED IN RELAYING Message Sent From Manila to New York in 18 Hours and . 9 Minutes. 1 Special Dispated to The. Star. NEW YORK, January 30.—Radio amateurs who are out this Winter to better the record made by the fraternity during the polar communi. to their laurels with D! or dis- | tance work, and in many notable in- | stances are glving demonstrations of | speed that might engender pride in 1 purely commercial venture where speed meant financial profits. Per. {haps the outstanding pair of event | were staged with the joint as ance of the Orient and Occident. The first relay was started from the station of Lieut H. P. Roberts at Fort McKinley, Rizal, P. I. This station, PI-1HR, turned the relay over to station 6BUC, the Radio Club of Hawall station at Honolulu. The Hawallans in turn passed the mes. sage to station 5LI, owned and op- erated by Max Patton, Jr., of Green- ville, Tex. The message completed its travels when the Texan established communication with John Mulvihill, >wner of amateur station 2BN. The entire transaction was completed in 18 hours and 9 minutes from Manila to New York. Another of the successful relays originated in station FI.8LBT, Salgon, | French Indo-China. It was relayed | from there to Lieut. Roberts at sta. | tion PI-1HR, Rizal, P. 1. The next | jump, the longest in the relay, car- {ried the message to station G-2L2 wned and operated by Mr. While the mes destined for Brazll, the Eng {tion wus not in touch with America. Instead of sending the mes. sage directly, Mr. Mayer relayed it to J. S. Streeter, owner and operator of | {station A4Z.'of Cape Town, South | Africa, who In turn passed the mes- | {sage on to R. Oxenham, also of Cape | Town. This latter South African was able Ito give the message to station BZ- 1AF, owned and operated by C. Almeida of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, who acted as the dellvering ugent. The message was consigned to stu- tion BZZ-GAB, a station that had been putting its signals into French Indo- Thina with perfect regularity, accord- ing to the Saigon umateur. = = STOMACH"QUEER'" Instant Stomach Relief! | ck or uncomfor- here is harmless “Pape's Diapepsin” If you feel full, stomach _relief. settles the stomach and corrects d.-’ gestion the moment ltel;‘llch. it reaches the anteed stomach correc- cents at any handy! John Smith and His Radio BY FREDERICK C. RUSSELL COar owners throughout the world have followed John Smith in his daily motoring—and have benefited theredy. Now he has taken up radio, Amith has o faculty for “finding out things,” so it vill pay radio devotees to follow in The Sunday-Star cach week. ° THE SUNDAY STAR, WASHINGTON, D. ©, JANUARY 31, 1926—PART 1. should be amused and profit by his In addition, there i{s the weather to consider and other conditlons beyond the ability of the rudio operator to correct. My reason for selecting a falrly high-powered station was to be as. sured of constant reception. No satis- factory test can be made with a sta- tion whose radio waves fade. “Now,” I announced when we had & sultable station coming in, “I want you to pull out the plug while I make ¢hanges in the set and then plug in when I signal. You have a good idea of the volume und the clenrness of the set tuned for this station. All right, then. I'm going to leave the dials and the rheostuts exuctly where they are, but I am going to clean off the contact tips ut the buse of the tubes, Smith plugged out while I remoyed each tube in turn and performed the Job that might result in better recep ton through better contacts. When the plug to the loudspeaker went in_again, however, there was no im provement in the reception But reception Las not been spoil ed,” 1 reminded him Phat's im- portant. The way you were doinz the Job you couldn’t tell what improved or spoiled reception even if you did mnk« K Eain \\hxlp T tried exc ) fre. quency tube for un Nhifts the Tubes. nudic “Why don't vou shift uil the tubes around while you're at it?" e usked when I told him to plug in “Because," | explained, “if we shift them all around and hit on an im provement in reception we'll never know what particular change did the trick.” A wide variety of changes, how sver, made no material improvement And after each change Smith plugged in 8o that we could measure results with the same yardstick. Finally I looked at the “A" hat tery connections and found that there was an accumulation of corrosion on one of the posts. This looked lke the answer. We cleaned off the post thoroughly and then plugged in. But still no difference. *Perhaps reception is s whrm £00d as we can expect on u rainy night like this,”” he suggested - ou're talking s 1 said. ““Mal a note of the exact position of the diais and rheostuts, Tune in for this statlon tomorrow and make comparison with tonight's results, That will solve your blem Next Week, No, 51: Avoiding Distortion. (Copyright by the IMlman Feature Ser have | | | Ia featured FIFTEEN MINUTES O BY JOSEPH C. F RADIO EACH DAY ALCATERRA Noted Authority on Radio. All Rights Reserved. Reproduction Prohibited. Vauum Tubes, Old and New. Part VI The really new tubes for receiving purposes are the UX 120, UX 112; UX 210 and the corresponding Cun- ningham tubes, CX 220, CX 112 and CX 310. All of these tubes are equip- ped with the new standard UX and CX bases, the two bases UX and CX being identical. The difference in the code letters is due to the fact that they are merchandised by two sepa- rate organizations. The UX 120 and CX 220 are de- signed for use with UX 198 and CX 208 tubes and are, therefore, equip- ped with the small standardized UX . while the UX 112; UX and CX 310 are designed use with the UX 30la type tubes are cquipped with the large 3 for and standardized base You will iy the tubes are not the while gener- numbers of 100 points higher. such is se with the ©X 112, in which case the number is the same as tha of the Radio Corporation. Do not ask for * 212" when what you really want e CX N2 Same Voltage Used. The UX 120 and CX 220 tubes! te at the e fl]xmmn termt! notice that Cunningham is volt i CX draw naturall As against the use of ative grid bias in the negative grid bius provided SR battery, The tube is desizned to be used only in the last stage of an audlo fre- quency amplitier although it can be used in other positions. The UX 112 and CX 112 does for the storage battery set what the UxX and CX 220 do for the dry bat- set. It is equipped with the large standardized base. It is de- signed for the last audio amplifier stage of u storage battery set. It op- erates with a filament voltage of 5 volts, but 50 uses twice the fila- nt of the UV 201A or C . drawing 05 ampere. A required. It can r with a plate rimarily ey ampli bhe oper- 1gh us voltage by a small is required. tery ment curr 3 4 negative grid of & volts should | bhe used: with 11 volts the negative bias should volts. With 135 ) volts it she s 9 volts grid bias and with 1567.5 volts the negative grid blas should be 10.5 volts. Super-Power Tubes. The UX 210 and CX 310 are super- | pa! power amplifier tubes designed for exceptionally great volume without distortion and are particularly adapt- ed for use with amplifiers operated from rectified alternating current. They require a,fllament terminal voltage of 7.5 volts draw 1.25 amperes, can be used with plate voltages as high as 425 volts, and require a grid bias at this high plate voltage of 35 volts negative. The base used is the standardized large sixe base. ‘The UX 120 and UX 112 and the corresponding CX 220 and CX 112 will no doubt be the most popular and most generally used to increase eff- clency. Remember, however, that you cannot just substitute them In your present set without making the required changes in the ecircuft to take cure of the Increased plate volt. ages and grid blas that they require. Remember, also, that while there is a long list of new UX base tubes, the only ones that are really new wre the UX 120, UX 112, UX 210 and the corresponding CX 220, CX 112 and CX 310. Substituting a UX 201A for a UV 201A or a CX 301A for a C 301A will not improve the set unless the «ube you take out is pretty well gone and requires replacement. * GIVES ENGLI.SH LESSONS. ‘Tokm Station Charges Listeners-In for Instruction. The Tokio radio broadcasting sta- tion JOAK 1s carrying a three-month cour in ‘English, according to ad- vices reaching the Department of Commerce. A lesson goes on the air each evening, subscribers paying 1.60 yen extra for the instruction. Stu- dents of the course are aided by the use of printed lessons sent out in advance. The Toklo Amateur Dramatic Club composed, mostly of British citizens, recently broadcast a play in English. By the installation of loud speakers in several public places a large num- ber of listeners were permitted to hear the production as transmitted by Japan's 1000 watter. {Ouiners of ather makes! i tradequicklyfor Studebaker ‘Puwefliqah ity Finish Bass viol to Piccolo THE certified tonal range of Stromberg-Carlson 6-tube receivers is one of the numerous reasons why so many people are buying them. . Whether or not your hearing is sufficiently sensitive to detect the accuracy of sound vibrations from as low as 32 per second to as high as 4096 per second, you always can be sure that your Stromberg-Carlson is capable of delivering them. No receiver which cannot deliver this extreme range of sound with fidelity ever can pass the scientific laboratory tests of Stromberg-Carlson acoustic engineers. Sophisticated radio users now are seeking apparatus with such laboratory-attested tone—trustworthy tone. This trustworthiness of tone is in large measure due to “Rejectivity”—a Stromberg-Carlson feature which is made possible by the total shielding of the radio fre- quency amplification stages and the detector stage. Stromberg-Carlson Telephone Mfg. Co. Rochester, N. Y. Z V% Y 2% Stromberg-Carlson Headquarters ~-We have always maintained a complete stock and Receiving Set— [__SERVICE | | TERMS | [ SATISFACTION | Home of Perfect Diamonds “this Wounderful The Buy Now, John ORIGINAL Stromberg- enjoy the Concerts from Odenwald Afar, last 12 No. 601 hl'"h'"' u PR <d: dual control; oper- ‘or cone type Loud Speaker; Equip- ped with voltmeter: Solid Mahogany. $210 without accessories. 3123 M St. Georgetown Carlson Dealer in Washington and Vicinity But not least, “Pay While You Play.” 09 H Street N.W. RADIO SALES $450,000,000 Total retall sales of radio equip- ment and accessories in 1925 amounted $450,000,000, according to estimates of Radio Retailing. Out of this great sum, $180,000.000 went for the pur- chase of 7,000,000 sets, $200,000.000 poid for replacements and accessorles, including_20,000,000 tubes, while the balance, $50,000,000, was expended for oo entiniatan confinaed ourly. pre: dictions as to the total radio public, at about 20,000,000 who listen in on 5, 000,000 recelving sets. British by U. 8. Radio. The sale of American radio parts in England is reported increasing, while dealers are &ald to be interested in handling equipment made in the United States. 120,000 Fans in Sweden. Sweden reports a profitable radio year, admitting at the same time that a large number of high-grade Ameri can receivers were sold and about 100,000 sets of phones. Fans now licensed number about 120,000, accord- ing to a report from Commercial At tache Klath. FRENCH RADIOS TAXED. Receiving Sets Levied Upon—Un- authorized Listeners Fined. New radio regulations adopted in France require the payment of an annual tax of 60 francs on tube re ceiving sets the first year and 50 francs per year thereafter, while erystal recelvers are taxed 20 francs the first year and 15 francs each ad ditional year. Unauthorized listeners are fined an amount equal to ten times the annual tax they should have pald for a regu lar licens New York BY RADIO CDI.POM‘HON OF AMERICA Just plug in on the house current Eight-tube Super-Heterodyne ‘with powerloudspeaker—and no batteries! It is the new RCA power lou the batteries and operates the set—as well as its own With Radiola 28 and this new loudspeaker, you can get clear, undistorted reception at any volume. You can get a whale orchestra exactly as it is being played—full volume— full richness—every Radiola 28, for all its eight-tube performance, is oper- ated with but a single control speaker—plug in on the house current—tune in your station with a single finger—and turn it up as loud as you want it It will always be clear and real—and you will always have still more power in reserve if you want it. Moh 28, operates baneries —or ith mo batteries when combined with Loudspeaker 104. With eight Radio- $260 RCA Loudspeaker, Model 104—oper- ot A& Com- San Frandisce A-Radiola * THE * MAKERS - OF - J. FRED HUBER dspeaker that eliminates house current. instrument clear and true. ! Just jack in the loud- RADIOTRONS Authorized Radio Dealer and Service Station W hen Others Fail, Try Me Only Radio Men of Long Experienc: 12: 2 G St. N.W. Will Serve You Franklin 5580 Everything That Is Good in Radm 1| POS DISTRIBUTORS Radi @Corsg_xg_fion DOUBLEDAY-HILL ELECTRIC CO. 715 12th Street N.W. RADIO QUALITY Radio Satisfaction And Our Unusually Low Terms Satisty RCA 708 7th Street NORTHWEST DIAMOND & GRID BATTERIES Radio A and B Socket Powers, for Uperating Radio Outfits Direct from House Lighting Current RCA-Radiotron RCA-Radiola Wholesale Distributors NATIONAL ELECTRICAL SuppLY Co 1328-1330 N. Y. Ave. Washington, D. C. 816 F St. N.W.. OPEN EVENINGS Look for the o Home of vartz i erfe fock. e "4— Diamonds Phone Main 6800 Main 4680 3123 M Street GEORGETOWN Radiolas in Stock RADIO