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Amateur Radio Projects and Software Defined Radio

Flex Radio 6400M Video Quicklook

March 23, 2018

In the spring of 2017 Flex Radio announced an upgraded version of their 6000 line of SDR based transceivers. These models were labeled the 6400,6600,6400M, and the 6600M. In a nutshell, the 6400 series is an upgrade of the dual slice receiver 6300 and the 6600 is an upgrade of the four slice receiver 6500. The M series adds an 8 inch color touch screen display plus knobs and buttons for “no computer needed” operation. The chassis has gotten larger on the new 6000 series also. With exception of the size change and the builtin displays most of the changes are internal such as better filtering. The new 6000 series also come with the latest version SmartSDR which features an improved remote over internet component called SmartLink. Flex also managed to keep prices down on the new 6000 series. The 6400 starts at $1999 without the optional built in antenna tuner. This makes the 6400 very competitive with most midlevel 100 watt legacy transceivers currently on the market. This makes the 6400 a good solid choice for those who would like to upgrade their equipment to the higher performance of SDR technology on a budget. The 6400M for $2999 adds …

SDRPlay RSP1A Overview and Listening Tests Video

November 15, 2017

RSP1A Overview and listening tests. Listening tests were conducted in real-time. Each radio was connected to the same antenna with a splitter. There is probably some amount of insertion loss, so your results may vary.…

SDRplay RSP1A First Look

November 15, 2017

Inroduction
SDRplay’s RSP1 has long been a great value in an entry level SDR platform for radio hobbyist looking to get involved in Software Defined Radio. The RSP1 has also been a favorite for adding spectrum displays to non-SDR radios or experimenting with SDR applications. The other advantage of the SDRPlay series is strong software support. SDRplay offers their own SDR program SDRUno which is a highly powerful and well polished SDR client that leverages all the features and capabilities of the SDRplay series. The SDRplay SDRs are also compatible with several popular 3rd party SSDR programs such as HDSDR, SDR-Console, and CubicSDR. Several PC platforms are also supported including Windows, Linux, Mac, Android and Raspberry Pi 3. SDRplay offers excellent support via their website and Facebook Page. In short, the SDRplay series offer a great value for an entry level SDR. The nice thing about SDRplay is the Jon Hudson and SDRplay Team are always looking for ways to improve the SDRplay platform, either through improvements in software or hardware. The SDRUno software is updated on a regular basis with new features and improvements. The RSP2 was added last year and offered hardware improvements and new features. Frankly, …

New Software Support for SDRPlay RSP2

January 10, 2017

If you are the owner of the fantastic new RSP2, you now have a few more options as to what SDR software you can use it with. Besides the SDRUno software that was developed for direct support of the SDRPlay RSP series, SDR Console Version 3 developed by Simon Brown will now support the RSP2. SDR. SDR Console is very nice SDR program with a clean user interface and loaded with features. Also HDSDR now supports the RSP2. HDSDR has been around a long time and offers a simpler approach to using SDR radios. The user interface is very straightforward and friendly to beginners as well as experienced users who appreciate a fast and easy interface to a SDR radio. If you download the HDSDR software from SDRPlay’s website, it comes with the EXTIO files you need in the installer. So it’s pretty much plug and play. With a great choice of SDR packages the SDRPlay RSP series of SDR radios continue to be one of the most flexible SDR radios available today. Not to mention a great value.…

Rumlog 7300 Scope Feature Demo

December 19, 2016

If you have an Apple Mac and an Icom IC-7300, you may want to take a look at DL2RUM’s Rumlog NG software. Aside from being a very nice logging software package it offers a resize-able spectrum / waterfall scope that can fill your entire PC screen if you wish. This is a nice improvement over Icom’s RSBA-1 software that limits the display of the spectrum / waterfall when connected to an Icom IC-7300 to a fairly small area. The scope drawing performance is pretty similar to RSBA-1 due to the rather slow serial communication rate of 115200 baud. To get this working, you must download and install the Scilab VCP driver on your Mac and under Rumlog’s preference use the following settings for TX1:

Rumlog Settings

 

 

 

 

 

 

On the Icom IC-7300 got to Menu/Set/Connectors/CI-V/CI-V USB Port/ and set Unlink from [Remote]. While there set the CI-V Baud Rate to 115200. On Rumlog’s IC7300 control screen you should see a Show Scope button. If everything is working ok, you should have a the IC-7300 scope shown on your Mac’s screen.  There are several tweaks you can experiment with relating to the scope on the scope screen …

SDRPlay RSP2 First Look Video

November 22, 2016

First Look Video of the new SDRPlay RSP2. Featuring a quick overview of the new features. The RSP1 and RSP2 signal comparison was done in realtime using the same antenna attached to the RSP1 and RSP2. This means that there is some amount of small signal loss due to the splitter. The RSP2 antenna was connected to the Port A connector on the RSP2 to make the comparison as even as possible. According to SDRPlay, the RSP2 Hi Z port can perform a bit better on AM broadcast and HF bands. To make things as even as possible both the RSP1 and RSP2 were used with the default settings for each radio. Of course both the RSP1 or RSP2 can perform a bit differently depending on the tweaks you make within SDRuno. Also performance of the RSP2 may change as SDRuno is updated to better leverage the new features of the RSP2.
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SDRPlay RSP2 Review

November 22, 2016

Introduction

If you have read our past articles on the SDRPlay RSP, you probably noticed that it has been a highly regarded SDR receiver here at HRS. It was named as the best SDR radio available in its price category. The SDRPlay RSP is even good enough to hold its own against far more expensive SDR products. Not to mention that it comes with excellent support from SDRPlay team. Over the past year, the SDRPlay got even better when SDRPlay acquired the excellent Studio One SDR software and adapted for use with the SDRPlay RSP. The new version of Studio One for the SDRPlay was renamed to SDRuno. The addition of SDRuno to the SDRPlay makes the RSP even a better value by adding a very powerful SDR program with a very attractive and professional user interface. Unlike some SDR programs that look pretty dated in comparison. The SDRPlay team continues to add new features and improvements to SDRuno on a very frequent basis. Not to mention that the price of the SDRPlay RSP has been lowered to $129 and is easily available in the US from Ham Radio Outlet. With the SDRPlay RSP’s low price, continous coverage from …

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