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Pirate Radio Central

Free Radio stations are unlicensed broadcasters. They operate in defiance of FCC rules, which often seem to be more concerned with protecting the big broadcasting interests.

I'd appreciate hearing about any other Free Radio Web pages. I'll be happy to add a link to them.

Spread the word about this site to other Free Radio Enthusiasts!

Click here to take a look at our iPhone / iPad / iPod Touch radio apps!

Be sure to visit the HFunderground Message Board - Loggings of pirate stations, discussions about stations, shortwave radio, antennas, equipment, and more.

Also visit the HFunderground Wiki - Shortwave pirates, numbers stations, utility stations, and more.

Pirate Radio chat on IRC (Internet Relay Chat) Many pirate and other radio enthusiasts hang out on the #PirateRadio IRC (Internet Relay Chat) channel. This is a place where you can chat with fellow listeners, as well as share monitoring catches in real time.

Joining the chat is fairly easy. You can use the online chat below until you get an IRC client. The Java chat requires a browser with Java enabled.

In addition to #PirateRadio you may also want to visit #WUNClub for discussions related to utility station monitoring on shortwave.

Click here to be taken to the #PirateRadio chat There are many free and low cost IRC clients out there.

For windows, here are some IRC clients:

For the Macintosh, Snak is popular.

Next, you'll need to tell your client to connect to the Zirc network, which is where the #pirateradio channel is hosted. Some clients will already have the addresses for the Zirc servers built in. If so, select one of them. If not, you'll need to add one or more.

irc.starchat.net is a good default server to use.

Next, have your client connect to the #pirateradio channel. Once you're there, feel free to introduce yourself if you're new to the channel.

There are usually a few dozen people connected to the channel at one time, but not everyone may be around, lots of folks keep connected to the channel 24 hours a day, and maybe away from the computer (or sleeping!). The bulk of the users are from Europe and the USA, but there are users from other parts of the world as well

There has been some concern that when you're on IRC, others can see where you are from, based on your domain name. There is an easy way around it, however. Simply request a virtual host feature of ZIRC. You can make up your own host name. So, for example, someone could appear to be WBNY@RodentRevolution.com You need a registered nick to do this so, while connected to #PirateRadio (or another channel on ZIRC) type: 

/msg nickserv register
Where is the password for your nick you wish to use (to prevent others from using it) and is your email address. You'll get a confirmation email from ZIRC you will need to reply to. Use: 
/msg nickserv help commands
to see what else you can do with nickserv Once your nick is registered, you can then request a vhost (virtual host). Send this message to the ZIRCServ bot: 
/msg ZiRCServ vhost request
where is your requested domain name. Someone at ZIRC will need to manually approve it, which may take a few hours or even a day. Once they do, you should be all set. You will now appear to be coming from that host, and your ISP will be completely hidden from other users. Note that *you* will still see your normal IP address / domain name, but other users will not.

Looking for a way to connect your computer to your Icom rig? Take a look at the Black Cat Systems USB Icom CI-V Interface

We've just created the Online Pirate Radio Logbook Database where pirate enthusiasts can enter, view, and search loggings of shortwave pirate stations. This is based on the highly sucessful Spy Numbers Database which in 7 years has collected around 50,000 loggings! The Pirate Radio Database is new, so be sure to stop by and enter your logs.

Visit the Pirate Radio Central Directory for addresses and other information about free radio stations.

Also be sure to check out Spy Centre for information about Shortwave Radio's mysterious Numbers Stations.



Information Links

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Own a Macintosh? Interested in decoding CW, RTTY, FAX, and more? Then you'll want to check out MultiMode!

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info@blackcatsystems.com Chris Smolinski

Updated March 21, 2013