SDR (software defined radio) coming of age?

[stoutblock]

This new computer based radio has always intrigued me. Granted you can stream most any station and public radio services on your computer these days but that is not the same as effectively tuning a radio using your computer. The current price point is amazingly low for what you get and I just picked up a couple of these.

https://www.amazon.com/RTL-SDR-Blog...e=UTF8&qid=1511109514&sr=8-3&keywords=rtl-sdr

With CDRsharp software (free) it is an amazing little device. Visual tuning ability on a computer has to be seen to be appreciated. I am amazed! Granted the included antenna is not stellar but the performance on strong channels is very impressive. The tuning capability will put any DX'er totally in awe. Functionality is equivalent or better than modern receivers costing thousands of dollars.

I love my analog tuners (Yamaha T-2 and HHScott 350A) but this little guy picks up local FM stereo with very impressive performance. Of course, it is also fun to scan SW/UHF/VHF if you have the right antennas.

I bought two and am trying to set up a trunking system which is mostly mandatory if you want to listen to the local police and emergency systems.

I am so impressed with this that I am stepping up to one of these (just released last week):

https://www.sdrplay.com/rsp1a/

Should be here tomorrow

It is said to be a game changer! I bet the traditional world wide receiver manufactures are quite concerned these days?

There is lots of information on the internet about these products. It seems to be exploding? Youtube has several very useful setup guides that are indispensable.

 

[KentTeffeteller]

These SDR tuners, are mainly aimed at HF Amateur Radio communications, and SW Listening. And other communications use. And not so much HiFi use. Big issues you'll have with some P25 digital trunked radio systems used in public safety is encryption. More and more law enforcement and public safety is encrypted, and there's several different kinds as well as the quirky trunking systems.

 

[stoutblock]

These SDR tuners, are mainly aimed at HF Amateur Radio communications, and SW Listening. And other communications use. And not so much HiFi use. Big issues you'll have with some P25 digital trunked radio systems used in public safety is encryption. More and more law enforcement and public safety is encrypted, and there's several different kinds as well as the quirky trunking systems.

Absolutely, it is mostly about Amateur Radio reception but I was greatly impressed with the quality of local FM reception. The ability to custom tune and to pick up DX FM stations is impressive. DHL surprised me and delivered the SDRplay box this morning and I'm even more impressed with it.

Very powerful little items!

 

[gtv2000]

It's Software Defined Radio, I believe.

 

[gslikker]

Maybe it will make, or already made, all well-regarded high end tuners obsolete dinosaurs.
The ham guys will know.
Google "Rohde & Schwarz SDR" there is some nice information to read there.

 

[BruceRPA]

WOW! Maybe, just maybe, we have arrived at the threshold of the pocket sized version Starship Enterprise communications. I have to get one of those! Thanks for posting the info.

Of course, I don’t think it will have the magic that staying up into the wee hours of the morning on a snowy winters night will have listening to one of these old radios.



(my first shortwave receiver)

 

[gslikker]

And it is eye candy, too

 

[for_p1]

This new computer based radio has always intrigued me. Granted you can stream most any station and public radio services on your computer these days but that is not the same as effectively tuning a radio using your computer. The current price point is amazingly low for what you get and I just picked up a couple of these.

https://www.amazon.com/RTL-SDR-Blog...e=UTF8&qid=1511109514&sr=8-3&keywords=rtl-sdr

With CDRsharp software (free) it is an amazing little device. Visual tuning ability on a computer has to be seen to be appreciated. I am amazed! Granted the included antenna is not stellar but the performance on strong channels is very impressive. The tuning capability will put any DX'er totally in awe. Functionality is equivalent or better than modern receivers costing thousands of dollars.

I love my analog tuners (Yamaha T-2 and HHScott 350A) but this little guy picks up local FM stereo with very impressive performance. Of course, it is also fun to scan SW/UHF/VHF if you have the right antennas.

I bought two and am trying to set up a trunking system which is mostly mandatory if you want to listen to the local police and emergency systems.

I am so impressed with this that I am stepping up to one of these (just released last week):

https://www.sdrplay.com/rsp1a/

Should be here tomorrow

It is said to be a game changer! I bet the traditional world wide receiver manufactures are quite concerned these days?

There is lots of information on the internet about these products. It seems to be exploding? Youtube has several very useful setup guides that are indispensable.

Any tuner that supports HD Radio is SDR. Most processing boards used for SDR ate more expensive than HD capable tuner board and you will need computer to run SDR software.

 

[stoutblock]

WOW! Maybe, just maybe, we have arrived at the threshold of the pocket sized version Starship Enterprise communications. I have to get one of those! Thanks for posting the info.

Of course, I don’t think it will have the magic that staying up into the wee hours of the morning on a snowy winters night will have listening to one of these old radios.

View attachment 1049770

(my first shortwave receiver)

I know the feeling! I have an older Sony ICF-SW55 portable that I’ve spent many an hour surfing the radio waves. When ever my power goes out, I light a fire, throw some batteries in the Sony and listen to world’s remaining few world band stations.

 

[jlovda]

I know the feeling! I have an older Sony ICF-SW55 portable that I’ve spent many an hour surfing the radio waves. When ever my power goes out, I light a fire, throw some batteries in the Sony and listen to world’s remaining few world band stations.

I spent MANY hours listening to my Zenith Royal 3000 when I was in high school in the mid-60's. This was the first FM model so I had the best of both worlds. I still have it and refurbished it a few years ago. I was amazing depressed at how shortwave collapsed. There are now only three kinds of stations; Spanish language, religious and Spanish language religious.

 

[satkinsn]

I am so impressed with this that I am stepping up to one of these (just released last week):

https://www.sdrplay.com/rsp1a/

Should be here tomorrow

Ok, I'm all ears. I've been playing with SDR for the last year or so, but my real interest is in something the cheap dongles don't offer - sound equivalent to FM. This appears to - from what I've read, FM has a bit depth of about 12 bits (https://sound.stackexchange.com/que...quivalent-samplerate-and-bitdepth-of-fm-radio) - meet the FM standard at a price point $100 less than what's been available up until now.

(I know there are some radio pros here, so if my "bit depth" reference above is wrong or foolish, correct me.)

So how's it sound?

Also, good reads on SDR. Some mad engineering type has written a series of books on SDR. I've worked my way part way through the first one; the guy can really write, explain concepts. The three volumes are published under the group name "Field Expedient SDR."

s.

 

[mars_volta]

https://www.rtl-sdr.com/

Id say its still for the modern tinkerer ham or gadget maker types.

Hardware: RTL-SDR.COM V3 dongle / Spyverter HF upconverter or Ham it up HF upconverter. Flightaware ADS-B dongle for planespotting. Appropriate antenna for each.

Software: SDR# or GQRX. I run Flightaware on a Rpi Zero/Raspbian.

Don't bother with 'Outernet' yet...

Lots of cool stuff to tune into these days. Just different than the old school shortwave many of us think of. WWV is still there.

 

[stoutblock]

Ok, I'm all ears. I've been playing with SDR for the last year or so, but my real interest is in something the cheap dongles don't offer - sound equivalent to FM. This appears to - from what I've read, FM has a bit depth of about 12 bits (https://sound.stackexchange.com/que...quivalent-samplerate-and-bitdepth-of-fm-radio) - meet the FM standard at a price point $100 less than what's been available up until now.

(I know there are some radio pros here, so if my "bit depth" reference above is wrong or foolish, correct me.)

So how's it sound?

Also, good reads on SDR. Some mad engineering type has written a series of books on SDR. I've worked my way part way through the first one; the guy can really write, explain concepts. The three volumes are published under the group name "Field Expedient SDR."

s.

Well the RTL-SDR dongles combined with the SDRsharp is easy to set-up, easy to use and sounds really good. It is also only $25 which has to be the deal of the century?

The SDRplay combined with the SDRuno clearly takes it to the next level but it is hard to get FM reception to sound as clear as the lower spec RTL-SDR. It is simply more sensitive and the software is more targeted for guys that know what they are doing. I am not one of those! It is also 4x the cost.

The SDRplay demands a better antenna to allow it to even come close to realizing its performance. On a strong FM signal, stereo reception sounds really dynamic but I have to narrow the bandwidth just a little to avoid noise on the edges. I clearly need a better antenna but I can tell the performance potential is there compared to the more forgiving RTL-SDR (especially in the right hands).

 

[KentTeffeteller]

FM goes beyond 12 bits when done right. Give me a Software Defined Radio which DX'es like a good McIntosh MR 78 on super narrow and sounds like a Marantz 10B and you'd be talking. For pure DX and communications grade use, I like the SDR setups.

 

[stoutblock]

Tonight I'm listening to KNKX jazz on several radios. My well performing HHScott 350(A), my excellent Yamaha T-2 and with the SDRplay with SDRuno. Both the analog tuners are totally up to specification and aligned by a pro. They have never sounded better than they do tonight.

I also listened to this same station's streaming service but really no comparison...

All tuners used the same FM dipole mounted on an exterior wall. I am lucky tonight as this station's signal is coming in as strong as ever.

My typical evening radio listening utilizes a set of Audeze LCD-2.2 headphones driven by a Decware Taboo III amp. A really nice setup by the way

The SDRplay's digital signal is converted by an Audio-gd Reference 5.32 DAC with Amanero combo382 USB board. A great sounding DAC by the way

The T-2 is the finest and most musical tuner I have ever heard and it is sounding exceptionally sweet tonight. The Scott always puts a smile on my face when I listen to classic Jazz. It just seems to know how to play those notes like they were meant to be played. A little more drift than the T-2 but works rather well for an old girl.

The clearest sound, the most detail and the most dynamic response is coming from the SDRplay tonight. It sounds like a CD but with just a hint of more compression surely added by the station itself? As good as the T-2 is at picking up this station, it is not as solid or as quiet as the SDR. I really don't know how any tuner could have better SNR? Basically nothing I can hear and this just with a di-pole on the wall!

Of course the extreme ability to fine tune with SDRuno is not possible with the analog tuners.

I am impressed!

Maybe with a better antenna the analog tuners could compare better? The SDR's sound may improve even further with the same better antenna?

I know this SDR is not targeted to listeners of the FM audio bands, but at the price for this 14bit tuner, if all you did was listen to FM stereo, it would be money well spent.

Hmm, I wounder what the police are up to tonight...

 

[mars_volta]

The railyards are fun to listen to. I've heard some interesting things.

 

[satkinsn]

The clearest sound, the most detail and the most dynamic response is coming from the SDRplay tonight. It sounds like a CD but with just a hint of more compression surely added by the station itself? As good as the T-2 is at picking up this station, it is not as solid or as quiet as the SDR. I really don't know how any tuner could have better SNR? Basically nothing I can hear and this just with a di-pole on the wall!

Of course the extreme ability to fine tune with SDRuno is not possible with the analog tuners.

How is SDRuno compared to SDRsharp? I've been using SDRsharp for most of what I do.

s.

 

[satkinsn]

FM goes beyond 12 bits when done right. Give me a Software Defined Radio which DX'es like a good McIntosh MR 78 on super narrow and sounds like a Marantz 10B and you'd be talking. For pure DX and communications grade use, I like the SDR setups.

Do 12 bits - or the 14 mooted by the SDRplay - get into FM quality territory? I know there are other factors in play, but it would seem to me like you're in the neighborhood of FM quality.

s.

 

[KentTeffeteller]

Not the best FM. The best FM is higher quality than that. DX is one thing. Good enough for the best music is another. Left of the dial has the best quality unless religious dreck. I love the SDR for what it can do. But for music it is no McIntosh MR 74 or no HH Scott 312D.

 

[stoutblock]

How is SDRuno compared to SDRsharp? I've been using SDRsharp for most of what I do.

s.

I’m certainly not the best to ask. I know enough to be dangerous at best. I find the SDRsharp the easiest to use and most forgiving to the beginner. The SDRuno probably has the most turning capability but is targeted to those that know how to use it. I really screwed up the settings on the SDRuno several times without even trying. As far as sound quality I don’t know because they are not cross compatible with the two different SDRs I own.