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 Notes from the Editor
By Oliver P. Ferrell
Citizens Band
Activity will reach the saturation point in the urban areas by September/October
.... The 5-watt input level will not be raised to 10 or 25 watts .... At least
two manufacturers will offer a single -sideband transceiver claiming that SSB can
double the number of available CB channels .... Crystals for "Receive" channels
will be eliminated and replaced by push- button tuning .... CB transceivers will
incorporate "spotting" switches which use the transmitter crystal to set tunable
receiver dial calibration.
Stereo and High Fidelity
Three-speaker stereo (derived from two channels) will gain widespread acceptance
among those "in the know" ....Reverberation techniques will be improved, but will
still remain in the gimmick category .... More FM tuners and receivers will be
sold in 1961 than in any other year in the history of FM .... At least one manufacturer
will offer a "flexible" speaker enclosure for the home owner who wants to build
a system into the walls of his home .... Another manufacturer will stress multiple
small speakers for good bass response as opposed to one big speaker.
Experimenters and Hobbyists
Tunnel diodes will drop in price and find their way into many home-built projects
.... Infrared will attract a lot of interest and will be found in fire and burglar
alarms .... There will be a spurt of interest in R/C model control supported by
new transistorized circuits, higher transmitter power and better antennas. Long
dormant, model control looks like a hot subject in 1961/62 .... G.E.'s "Compactrons,"
off to a shaky start, will prove that vacuum tubes are not on their way out.
Ham Radio
There will be a quarter of a million hams by December .... Sunspots will decline
and cause a mass exodus from the 10-meter band .... The interest in SSB will continue
unabated .... Six meters will become increasingly popular as a "mobile" band, and
greater use will be made of the top end of the band .... More manufacturers will
follow the trend toward decreasing the cost of ham equipment by offering it in partially
assembled kits.
Short-Wave Listening
DX on the 25 -, 31- and 41 -meter bands will be dominant during the late fall
and early winter .... The British plan not to report stations operated by the Communists
will gain favor -- especially stations in those countries that operate jamming transmitters
.... In the fall of 1961 one manufacturer will offer SWL's receivers with a special
bandspread dial calibrated for the 16 -, 19 -, 25 -, 31- and 49 -meter bands. All-in-all,
we think 1961 is going to be pretty interesting.
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FCC Report - CB License Problems
By Robert E. Tall, Washington Correspondent
The FCC is upset about statements that have appeared in reputable magazines
concerning the supposed "legal" use of unlicensed radio equipment (under Part 15
of the Rules) with CB units. Such statements can cause trouble for people who do
not understand the CB Rules and who try to persuade other people to use "unlicensed"
equipment for improper purposes.
To set the record straight, if you are licensed in the Class D citizens radio
service, do not communicate with any station which is not licensed for Class D service.
If you are licensed and you do communicate with such stations, the penalties accrue
to you and not to the man with the unlicensed equipment.
Some Part 15 equipment can be operated on either a licensed or unlicensed basis.
But your Part 15 transceiver must be licensed if you want to communicate with stations
that are licensed under Part 19 of the Class D rules. If you have a 100-milliwatt
Part 15 transceiver, be sure it meets the minimum CB equipment specifications given
in Section 19.51 of the FCC Rules and Regulations.
For the first time since the CB service became a "formality," the FCC has formally
expressed its policy on club licensing, and says that it presents a "distinct problem."
The agency has indicated that it realizes CB clubs are "capable of playing an
important and useful part in the self - regulation of the service, when they function
to promote equitable solution of mutual interference problems." But the FCC feels
it is "difficult to visualize" the need for a radio club to hold a station license.
Presumably, the agency says, each club member holds a CB license in his own name
and, if the Rules are complied with, "any proper substantive messages could be transmitted
over individually owned and licensed stations of the club members."
The FCC has further stated that it will not countenance the use of a club station
as a subterfuge to avoid the five - minute limitation contained in its Rules on
intercommunications between units of different stations. With the unexpected volume
of citizens radio business that the FCC has on its hands, it's not difficult to
appreciate the agency's attitude.
Citizens Band clubs, the Commission says, "often appear to be very loosely held
together with little or no control or supervision of the related activities of their
individual members." And "serious questions may be raised as to whether adequate
control and supervision of the individual radio units can be maintained at all times
by the licensee, as required by Section 19.92 of the Rules." Such control, the agency
cautions, "must be sufficient to prevent the use of the radio station as a hobby
in itself," and must insure that all communications transmitted are in compliance
with Section 19.61 of the Rules.
Many private groups organized for emergency or civil defense purposes are also
applying for CB licenses. When such groups are actual auxiliaries of civil defense
or law enforcement agencies, the governmental agency involved has to indicate its
sponsorship and approval of the group if the station license is to be granted. If
the group is not officially sponsored and approved, it will be considered as simply
another type of club.
The FCC wants club members and officers to "note particularly the provisions
of Section 19.12 of the Rules, which specify that not more than one person shall
be eligible as a licensee of the same transmitting equipment." Since by definition
most organizations are "legal persons," the Commission feels that "individually
owned and licensed equipment may not be also operated under a club or other organization
license without actual transfer of ownership and control of the equipment in each
case."
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