I live very close to the BBC regional broadcast transmitters (100KW apiece) and since boyhood I've made loads of crystal sets as well. A few feet of wire often

I live very close to the BBC regional broadcast transmitters (100KW apiece) and since boyhood I've made loads of crystal sets as well. A few feet of wire often being quite sufficient as an antenna and the radiator pipe as an earth connection. A good earth connection is very important to the effectiveness of a crystal set. I made a single transistor regenerative set next and because the local BBC signal was so powerful I literally didn't even need an antenna at all! Another single transistor was all that was required to drive a speaker loud and clear.