CADX Visits Sudwestfunk

By Mike Nikolich
This article first appeared in the September, 1981 issue of the DX Probe, predecessor to DX Chicago.

As far Europe goes, few countries offer as many DX possibilities as West Germany. Not counting Deutsche Welle and the VOA relay in Munich, there are six different West German stations to hear. Some are more difficult than others, but all carry a distinctive, slick sound that is easy and fun to listen to.

While vacationing in the southern part of West Germany last summer, I had the opportunity to visit one of my favorite radio stations, Sudwestfunk. There, I talked with Walter Niemann and Wolfgang Weinlein, Sudwestfunk’s technical experts for shortwave. Here is the text of what we discussed.

Q: when was Sudwestfunk established? How long has it been on shortwave?

Niemann: "Sudwestfunk began broadcasting in March, 1948, when it was established as one of several regional radio stations in West Germany. Others include RIAS in Munich and Berlin, SFB, Radio Bremmen, etc. Shortwave broadcasts began in 1965, with an original transmitter power of one kilowatt. Our frequency then and still is, 7265 kHz. Today, the power is 20 kilowatts."

Q: Most of the West German regionals broadcast in the 49 meterband. Why did SWF select a frequency in the 41 meterband?

Weinlein: "Actually, we wanted to choose a 49 meter frequency, but there was no suitable frequency available. We got the 41 meter frequency of 7265 kHz after extensive negotiations with the French government."

Q: Could you describe what typical programming from your station sounds like?

Neimann: "First, let me say that SWF does not program anything special for shortwave. Instead, the SW program is simply a relay of the first FM program. On FM, we offer three distinct programs. The first FM program consists primarily of popular music, news and information. The second program fuses classical, jazz, pop, folk and traditional music with news and information. Our third program is somewhat unique, in that it is exclusively programmed for reception in automobiles. We have a special signal that automatically turns on car radios for traffic broadcasts. We also throw in a bit of pop music for these transmissions. The third channel is also the only one in which advertising is featured. Most of our revenues come from public taxation, but we still derive a significant portion from radio advertising."

Q: Do stations like Radio Luxembourg serve as competition as far as listnership is concerned?

Neimann: "Not at all. People in West Germany must pay a 30 mark per month fee for the privilege of owning a radio. Since, in effect, they are paying for our radio transmissions, doesn’t it make sense that they would, indeed listen to us? Besides, we are the only radio station in the Rheinland region that programs transmissions exclusively for its audience. We are the only local source of news, music and entertainment."

Q: Who are your shortwave broadcasts geared to?

Weinlein: "Our programs are geared to Germans living or vacationing abroad. And, judging from the number of letters we regularly receive from listeners, our signal is widely heard."

Neimann: "We get many letters from Scandinavia, some from Australia, also occasionally some from the United States. We also got several recently from ships harbored in the Egyptian Sea, near the Suez Canal. We appreciate receiving reception reports from our listeners because they reassure us that our signal is indeed being heard."

Q: Particularly in Europe, the number of pirate broadcasters has been on the rise. Do pirates capture a significant portion of your audience? Do they pose any significant problems?

Neimann: "Pirate broadcasters do not so much cause a problem to us programming-wise, as they do from an interference standpoint. In the northern part of Italy, several pirates broadcast from high in the mountains, with transmitters that have from 3 to 10 kilowatts of power. Most of these stations are on mediumwave, and they affect some of our mediumwave repeater transmitters in the area around Stuttgart. In lieu of the fact that these transmissions originate from Italy, however, there is not much we can do about them."

Q: Cable radio and TV broadcasts seem to becoming more and more popular in the U.S. Is cable sweeping much of Europe, and will cable have a significant affect on SWF’s shortwave broadcasts in the future?

Weinlan: "I agree that cable will become more and more important throughout the world. We are presently negotiating for the use of satellite channels, but I do not see any affect on our shortwave broadcasts, no matter how extensive our involvement in cable."

2002 note by Christos Rigas: Sudwestfunk is still active on the shortwave frequency of 7265 kHz with 10 kW of power. Their transmitting antenna is located in Rohrdorf in Germany. They are on the air 24 hours a day. The station has been heard on many occasions in the Chicago ares in the past.

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