SDR-1
Software Defined Receiver
HF Shortwave
SDR-1
The SDR-1 Receiver from Electronics Is Fun and Henchmen Labs brings the world of HF Shortwave radio reception to HAM radio operators, hobbyists, and tinkerers. State of the art
hardware and an advanced user interface, enables users to quickly tune in and listen to a variety of broadcasts from all over the world.
Reception
The SDR-1 is capable of receiving broadcasts over the HF band from 530KHz to 30MHz. It is capable of demodulating AM, CW, narrow band FM, and SSB. Both, upper and lower sideband modes are supported. PSK 31 and RTTY decoding is also possible through the use of VAC (Virtual Audio Cable) and Third party decoder software .
Technology
Reception is possible through the use of a modified Tayloe I-Q detector circuit. This new technology significantly reduces the complexity of the radio front end circuitry and allows for a higher degree of flexibility over standard superheterodyne radio designs. The I-Q demodulated signal is processed using advanced digital signal processing algorithms to filter and lock onto the received signal.
Product Features
The application software is based on the open source version of PowerSDR. It provides all the controls for the digital signal processing required for filtering and reception. A 16 character by 2 line display on the receiver shows the user the current VFO setting, selected filter bank, and front end attenuator settings. The SDR-1 micro-controller allows simplified control of all the internal features of the receiver.
SDR Controller
This on-board controller receives commands from the host system and is capable of setting the requested frequency, selecting a filter bank and control of the front end attenuation. The SDR Controller is also the home of a high performance DDS (Direct Digital Synthesizer) that is capable of generating the 1060KHz-60MHz clock required by the SDR receiver.
SDR Receiver
This is where the magic happens. One of 5 available filter banks can be selected to allow a specific band of frequencies to pass into the Tayloe detector. The detector generates the I (in-phase) and Q (quadrature) signals that will be sent to the PC sound card for further processing. A 20db attenuator can also be selected for receiving strong signals.
Connectivity
Four connectors are provided on the rear of the SDR-1 receiver.
•A standard USB port for communication and control of the receiver.
•A 3.5mm stereo jack for connection to the PC sound card. •An SMA connector for antenna input. •A DC input to power the unit.
Radio Features
✦HF Band reception 530KHz-30MHz
✦Programmable Arduino micro-controller
✦16 character by 2 line LCD display
✦Direct Digital Synthesizer with 1Hz resolution.
✦Five Filter Banks
✦30db attenuator ✦Stereo output
Application software
Based on PowerSDR with full control of the SDR-1. Developed under GPL so users with Visual C# knowledge can enhance and add features.
✦Display bandwidth of 88.2KHz, 96KHz, 192KHz (96KHz, and 192KHz depend upon the sound card used)
✦AM, SSB, CW, full digital modes, narrow band FM.
Firmware
The micro-controller firmware is based on the Arduino ADE (Application Development Environment). Users can build and rebuild the controller firmware to add or remove features.
Filter Banks
Based on the current VFO setting, on of five filters will be selected automatically.
✦Bank 1: 100KHz-2.5MHz
✦Bank 2: 2MHz-6MHz
✦Bank 3: 5MHz-12MHz
✦Bank 4: 10MHz-21Mhz
✦Bank 5: 20MHz-30MHz
Package includes
SDR-1 Receiver or SDR-1 Receiver Kit.
Application Software disc with manual (source to application and micro-controller firmware included).
USB cable, Stereo cable, Power Adapter.
The SDR-1 is being offered as a kit or fully assembled unit. The kit will consist of two fully assembled and tested boards, an enclosure, cables, and hardware. User software will be supplied in executable and source form*. Arduino source code for the controller will also be provided in the package*.
*Visual Studio 2008 (or Visual Studio Express 2008) is required for modification of the application (not included).
*The Arduino Development Environment is freely available from http://arduino.cc
