Category: Reviews

Introduction
As you know, SDR radio basically consists of two components, the radio hardware and the software used to process the signal. As SDR radio hobbyists we typically spend a lot of time looking into the specs of the hardware, but we don’t but as much consideration into the software side of things. The software can be just as important as the hardware we choose to get good performance from a SDR radio system. We often turn to some of the free software offerings to get started in SDR hobby. While there is absolutely nothing wrong with that and we greatly appreciate the work these authors has put into their efforts. However, you have to keep in mind that some of these programs use DSP (Digital Signal Processing) engines developed for SDR use that have been handed down for many years and have only been improved slightly over their original incarnations.  With that in mind, the developers at  SDR Applications set out to create a new high performance DSP engine for better SDR performance from your SDR hardware. That product is now called Studio1 and is distributed by Woodbox Radio. Studio1 is not a free application. However, this is …

Introduction
How would you like to have a very good HF SDR receiver with a wide spectrum display covering 2MHz or more for about $75? Well, you can when you combine the Ham it Up HF Up-converter with a RTL2832U stick. NooElec is selling an HF Up-Converter board based on an open hardware design in conjunction with Opendous Inc. for about $50 plus shipping. The Up-converter board basically converts HF signals to the FM band (specifically 100.5 MHz to 150 MHz) allowing your RTL2832U to tune in the HF signals. When used in conduction with SDR Sharp or HDSDR you are able to receive HF signals in AM, USB, LSB, CW, and other modes. HDSDR gives you roughly the same functions found on most better HF receivers like noise blanking, automatic gain control, variable filters widths, etc. These inexpensive HF up-converters are nothing new. There have been many designs floating around in either DIY form or completed boards. However, the Ham It UP converter looks like the first product produced in quantity and is available  directly from NooElec in the US. I purchased the Ham it Up HF converter for testing from NooElec and it arrived very quickly.…

Since the introduction of the $25 to $35 Raspberry Pi mini pc was introduced earlier this year, there has a flurry of small inexpensive pcs that have followed. One of the most popular mini pcs has been the Mk802 pc on a stick. While the Raspberry Pi can still be hard to get ahold off, the MK802s are readily available from US vendors. The MK802 ships with Android 4.0 installed. The prices for the MK802 pc runs around $60 – $70 dollars shipped. Even though the MK802 seems to cost about twice as much as the Pi, you are getting a little more for your money. The MK802 comes with a case, built in wifi, power supply, HDMI adapter cable, usb adapter, and a mini usb cable. So in the end they are pretty equally priced considering shipping for Pi and adding the cost of the power supply and other cables. Plus running Android, the MK802 is pretty much ready to go out of the box. The MK802 also has more built in memory and a slightly more powerful processor. Like the Pi the MK802. the MK802 can run several Linux distributions using that can be installed on a micro …