The current focal point for the softrock series is the softrock40 yahoo group this is where you can find out more about the softrock, how to buy one, etc. This is a pretty simple modification that converts a softrock ensemble rxtx sdr rf interface board from commonif rx and tx share the same antenna port to splitif rx and tx have separate ports. The sdrwidget noticed the mobo upon boot and that was it. Setting it up as a suitable wspr transmitter seemed quite difficult, until came across some settings. Your source for softrock radio kits softrock rxtx ensemble transceiver kit the softrock rxtx ensemble transceiver kit provides a 1 watt sdr transceiver that can be built for one of the following five band groups. Feb 03, 2015 the design of the ensemble rx is very similar to the receiver design of its sibling ensemble rxtx.
This kit is a transceiver with 1 watt output, definitely qrp. Powersdr with pi sdr for softrockensemble software setup. For testing i am not attempting to run qtradio on the pandaboard, instead i am connecting from several machines on our network as well as my android powered phone pretty cool. Posts about softrock ensemble rxtx written by 2e0dfu. Combined sr lite ii rx ensemble rxtx ensemble rx ii ensemble rx ii vhf softrock40r new mars sdr buildathon notes on powersdriq v1. I ordered two softrock ensemble rxtx kits and completely assembled the first one. In the end it was turned out to be a great project, complex but the build instructions are very good so it worked on power up, well not that easy because numerous sound card issues and software experience had to be overcome. In actuality, i manufactured the rig with all jumpers straight then made a cable with the channels crossed.
On the computer side i am using widgetserver dspserver qtradio from ghpsdr3alex. Softrock ensemble rxtx with dsp radio on macos x ive enjoyed the ensemble rxtx kit build but im having a devil of a time with audio under windows xp. The rxtx ensemble is a sdr transceiver with a 1 w pep max in ssb. Splitif is the standard for highperformance transverters on the 50, 70, 144, 222, and 432mhz amateur bands. Fldigi also provides psk31, dominoex and other digital modes. Configuring usb driver, config softrock tool and high definition software defined radio revised 27september2015 the ideal time to install the softrock drivers and software on your windows 7, 8 or 10 pc is now prior to connecting your softrock radio to your computer for the first time. My interest in sdr was very much started off by the softrock receiver.
Connection speed has to be at least 100mbps 100basetx. Introducing softrock ensemble a software defined radio. That includes both tuning and processing of received signals. However, the open source nature of this software has led to the support of other radios such as the softrock40 receiver. I already have a case and some ideas for what i want to do with the ensemble, so expect to hear about it more in the future. Configuring usb driver, config softrock tool and high. Sep 27, 20 softrock ensemble rxtx calibration and rx test. Silabs did create a new version of the si570 chip that can be ordered with a 7ppm temperature stability. This was a small and inexpensive kit initially being sold through the amqrp organisation from kits provided by tony, kb9yig. In summary, the hardware provides the signal, leaving the computer software to do the heavy lifting. Softrock rxtx ensemble hardware and building illruminations.
Tx on my softrock ensemble with hdsdr the linux ham. Especially mentioned here is the sr40 yahoogroup see link below. Setting up powersdr for digital modes with the softrock. The support for this radio as of today is limited to a receiver use only. This is for digital modes psk, jt65hf, wspr, rtty only. Much of the software is available as a free download, and full details to be found in the products section of the site. After i got mine built, i had trouble finding software applications to use it. Although the assembly manual states that the filter is made up t5, l4 and c39 i claim these components make up a poor nonsymmetrical bandpass filter and a design i was.
I later progressed to use the sdrradio server software to allow users on the internet to access my tuner. I strung up a wire dipole at a friends place and under good conditions i could maybe see wwv and a few other strong stations. Trying to use the cat feature from wsjtx setup as ts2000 for cat and it will rxtx and even use split set to fake it but it always transmits on the lo freq, not the tune freq. Powersdr with pi sdr for softrock ensemble software setup software installation is performed with a provided unified installer containing both the powersdr v2.
Softrock, ensemble, rxtx, softrock,lite ii,sdr, softrock, 6m, 4m, 2m, rx, ensemble, softrock, ensemble, ensemble rx ii,sdr 20m, 30m, 40m, 80m, ensemble, rxtx, sdr. Two years ago, i built the tony parks softrock ensemble ii software defined radio. Ive been recently given an sdr rxtx kit by david w2lnx, so i will be using this project page to document how im putting it together. Seems like the softrock receiver is working, but where are all the ham radio operators making contacts on the amateur bands.
Theres not a lot of ham radio software for macos but there is an sdr program called dsp radio from sebastian mrozek, who has been very helpful in getting me past some problems i ran into. Components are included for all five options and can be assembled at the builders choice. There are more useful links at the end of this presentation. Describe your experience with the softrock qrp kit radio and tell us why you give it the rating you did required. This firmware is the official supplied firmware in the softrock sdr kits of tony parks that are using a si570 chip from silicon laboratories silabs. So the kit isnt compatible with the mobo addon series, which depend upon the rxtx v6. Aug 29, 2010 in my last post, i described how i ended up finally starting with sdr. I am currently building the softrock ensemble rxtx sdr transceiver kits from tony parks kb9yig. I recently finished building the softrock ensemble rxtx and got it working with the cfgsr and rockie 3. Using the flex powersdr software for the sdr along with the software by sv1eia for homemade rigs and by adjusting the sound card voltage, the rig puts out a solid 2 watts. Setting up powersdr for digital modes with the softrock ensemble rxtx this is how i set up powersdr psdr with the softrock ensemble rxtx using a single sound card. This unit provides all of the hardware necessary to have a software defined radio sdr transceiver that uses a computer soundcard for adc and dac. Soft rock ensemble rxtxpowersdrsdr software wsjtx ptt method between powersdr and wsjtx is vsp.
The goal of kc6f sdr is to provide a software defined radio package, intended for radio amateurs hams, that is crossplatform, easy to use, readily customizable and supports a wide range of modulationdemodulation modes. To use softrock hardware, choose setup and select as radio model the soft rock 40. Softrock ensemble rxtx 2e0dfu playing with amateur radio. Back in the summer i built a softrock ensemble rxtx from a kit, choosing 10, 12 and 15 metres for transmit. Mic inputs are usually mono, older laptops may only have mono inputs. You will be asked to update your flex1500,3000, and 5000 firmware the first time you launch powersdr. Softrock ensemble rxtx kit built for 403020 meters the first testng done with the unit after building and configuring the software was with wspr weak signal propagation reporter if youre looking for a kit that will help you learn about sdr software defibed radio and possibly up for a challenge with smt components and ics, winding. Jan 18, 2015 the brief of my project is to build a software defined radio sdr based around a purpose built pc with a high end soundcard and a softrock ensemble rxtx. The only issue is the rxtx outputs up to 1watt30dbm and the amp only needs 15mw07dbm drive. Im looking to drive it with my softrock ensemble rxtx. The softrock lite ii is a simple to build sdr receiver kit with a fixed center frequency to be used with a sound card that can sample at 96 khz, providing band coverage from 48 khz below the center frequency to 48 khz above the center frequency. My first installation was on a windows xp system using the hdsdr software.
Dds are not pertinent to softrock with usbtoi2c interface so they are not used and can be ignored. Other useful information would include your experience with similar products, infomation on a product that you would purchase instead of this one, and so on. When i bring up hdsdr it also brings up the cfgsr but it appears nothing is being received. Setting up rxtx ensemble rxtx softrock attachment size.
With the continuing saga of the softrock still not playing ball it crossed my mind that getting the softrock itself to generate the cw signal, rather than from within software, might not be a bad idea. Newer laptops often do have stereo inputs a list started further down. Other interest are photography, computer programming, and design of electronic equipment. Softrock ensemble ii rxtx soundcard maudio delta 44 and powersdr vs kenwood. The softrock rxtx ensemble transceiver kit provides a 1 watt sdr transceiver that can be built for one of the following five band groups. Hopefully these notes can help the next person trying to do this. I wanted to change to linux software and decided that. It is tested on the softrock v9 with and without the bpf and softrock rxtx 6. Also, connect the usb cable, power, and the antenna. Software i have operated the modified rxtx on 630 mtrs using powersdr with wsjtx in wspr2 and jt9 modes and with fldigi, multipsk and n1mm software in keyboard andor macro cw. The powersdr for pi sdr unified installer is installing powersdr v2. I have been running rocky under winxp for several years. It was only about 5 miles, scheduled with another local ham, but it was a contact nonetheless. Welcome to the main soft rock software website, where you will find a variety of software mainly for computers running risc os, such as webchange, waituntil, quicksand, and more.
Sdr softrock ensemble rxtx remote using sdrradio via ipad. Free download bho 7db2d5a072414e79b68d6309f01c5231 c program files mcafee virusscan scriptsn. Softrock ensemble rx tx vs alinco djx11 ham radio science. So the simple solution is just to build a simple resistor attenuator for something like 20db and then fine adjust power in software.
They are kitted in batches of 20100 every few weeks and usually sell out within 2448 hours. Powersdr with pi sdr for softrock ensemble setup overall schematic connections for pi sdr iqiq plus for softrock ensemble radios as the connection schematic indicates, we have to connect the win10 pc that executes powersdr to the local ethernet network. Softrock ensemble rxtx calibration and rx test youtube. On the rxtx ensemble page, it is said that the ensemble kit basically is a rxtx v6. This site has information concerning the softrock software defined radios created and kitted by tony parks kb9yig. Introducing softrock ensemble a software defined radio software defined radio sdr is a radio communication system in which the hardware components, such as mixer, amplifiers, and filters are implemented using a computer. Naturally a softrock rx fits the bill, and it is also how many suggest beginning the mobo project. Softrock rxtx modification for 2200, 630 and 160 metre.
There is an amazing bit of pythonc software called quisk that can be used to control the ensemble. Softrock rx ensemble ii sdr kit build post by fruitloop. Ok so in the last 2 days i built a rxtx kit i purchased 4 years ago, and i have it working, in just hdsdr with a microphone. The brief of my project is to build a software defined radio sdr based around a purpose built pc with a high end soundcard and a softrock ensemble rxtx. The last weeks i have followed ab4ugs progress building his own rxtx. Currently supports softrock si570 radios, including the rxtx.
The kit, therefore, is not compatible with the mobo series of addons, since they depend upon the plug and socket arrangements of the rxtx v6. Softrock rxtx transmit on lo, not tune for hdsdr, wsjtx. Choosing a backup generator plus 3 legal house connection options transfer switch and more duration. The softrock began as a winter project, ive built a number of rigs both from scratch and kit with good results. It features a usb interface which allows setting the frequency and keying the radio for ssb and psk31 transmissions. With this setup, i found that you should have the ensemble rxtxs input jumpers straight, and the transmit jumpers crossed.
This application has included the fully automagic image rejection on rx, no controls needed. Trying to get hdsdr to work with softrock ensemble rxtx. After taking a look at what was currently for sale at kb9yigs website, i got hooked and now there is a softrock rxtx ensemble on its way to compliment the mobo project. Extensive construction details are available from the various softrock user sites and yahoo reflector. Dec 08, 2012 back in the summer i built a softrock ensemble rxtx from a kit, choosing 10, 12 and 15 metres for transmit. This page was created to document my project to build and operate a softrock rxtx version 6. After finishing up the receiver part of my softrock ensemble rxtx sdr transceiver with great success, i got really motivated to get the transmitter going. Softrock rx ensemble ii sdr kit build transmission1.
Ensemble rxtx project home bill of materials power supply usb power supply local oscillator dividers rf io and switching rx mixer qsd rx opamps and output tx opamps tx mixer qse driverpa external connections comments acronyms inventory revisions as of 12011 components by stage wb5rvz main website. A few photographs of my latest tinkeringa softrock ensemble rxtx. Introduction powersdr is a software defined radio application that is originally developed to work with flexradio systems sdr transceiver. Id be really happy to have something like flexradios powersdr available for linux. I just entered these settings and yes, now it works.
A previous post explored the steps involved in building a simple softrock receiver for the 40m amateur radio band 77. Here it is receiving a station from kuwait im in sydney by the way. I built mine for 40m, 30m, and 20m but it works very well on both 80 and 60 meters with a little less output. Building the softrock ensemble rxtx sdr radio ham radio. The spec of the radio pc is as follows intel i54440 3. My previous two posts are about the softrock rxtx ensemble board, and getting it built.
I had high expectations for this little board and it delivers fairly well. X 2 board representing the culmination of a long line of softrock sdr receivers from tony parks, kb9yig. This post takes a look at some of the software that can be used with the softrock sdr hardware that is designed for amateur radio use. The beginners guide to software defined radio rtlsdr duration. Applications are out there, its just that i couldnt find them. My name is cecil bayona, my main hobby is ham radio. Software defined radio sdr software written in matlab. For use with the softrock rxtx you will need to disable the abpf settings. The major difference is the greater band coverage of the ensemble rx kit roughly 4 superbands on the rx vs.
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