I'm thinking of acquiring an SDR unit for the station for downloading sat telemetry etc. I'm new to the SDR world but learning. I'm currently using a Yaseu 736R which has served me well.
Not sure how you configure SDR for Doppler tracking etc. so looking for links to info I can educate myself on what all I need etc.
Are there any particular SDR radios that lend themselves best for satellite work more than others? The SDR Play boxes look solid, are they recommended?
Regards,
Mike N7ASZ
Hey Mike!
Yes, the SDRPlay products are great. The original SDRPlay RSP-1 is still my main Windows SDR for both telemetry and as my RX radio for voice sats.
Here is a page that you may find useful; a very handy overview:
https://www.pe0sat.vgnet.nl/decoding/block-diagram/
... and you'll quickly notice that there are actually a good number of educational pages on that same site.
Perhaps one of the most important things to remember, especially when getting started, is that you're dealing with a number of individual components that work separately but link together. This is nothing new to you or anybody else in the hobby, but really becomes a major part of what you'll be doing if you enjoy decoding telemetry since there are a lot of different tools used at any given time depending on what the needs are.
And I know it's obvious, but RECORD EVERYTHING. If you don't have your doppler tracking, audio connection, or decoding software just right on the 'live' pass, with an I/Q recording you can play it back and try again.
-Scott, K4KDR
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On Wed, Feb 12, 2020 at 11:44 PM Mike Lucas via AMSAT-BB amsat-bb@amsat.org wrote:
I'm thinking of acquiring an SDR unit for the station for downloading sat telemetry etc. I'm new to the SDR world but learning. I'm currently using a Yaseu 736R which has served me well.
Not sure how you configure SDR for Doppler tracking etc. so looking for links to info I can educate myself on what all I need etc.
Are there any particular SDR radios that lend themselves best for satellite work more than others? The SDR Play boxes look solid, are they recommended?
Regards,
Mike N7ASZ
Hi Mike,
What operating system are you running? SDRplay units have great specs, but support on other than Windows is non-existent to dangerous. I tried getting one to work on my Linux system, and ended up breaking the system's support for the RTL-SDR dongles and now neither work. The RSP2 sitting on the bench, unused, and the RTL-SDR is in a Raspberry Pi, accessed over the home network.
Which brings me to the RTL-SDR dongles. Really cheap, easy to use, and great support pretty much everywhere. A good learning platform. But their receivers aren't the best for anything weak due to a high noise figure, and not good in a high RF environment due to limited filtering. So overall not the greatest for doing satellite work, but they can work.
Doppler tracking will depend on what software you are using, but they often support the SDR devices. I was using Gpredict + Gqrx with mine.
Greg KO6TH
Mike Lucas via AMSAT-BB wrote:
I'm thinking of acquiring an SDR unit for the station for downloading sat telemetry etc. I'm new to the SDR world but learning. I'm currently using a Yaseu 736R which has served me well.
Not sure how you configure SDR for Doppler tracking etc. so looking for links to info I can educate myself on what all I need etc.
Are there any particular SDR radios that lend themselves best for satellite work more than others? The SDR Play boxes look solid, are they recommended?
Regards,
Mike N7ASZ
Sent via AMSAT-BB@amsat.org. AMSAT-NA makes this open forum available to all interested persons worldwide without requiring membership. Opinions expressed are solely those of the author, and do not reflect the official views of AMSAT-NA. Not an AMSAT-NA member? Join now to support the amateur satellite program! Subscription settings: https://www.amsat.org/mailman/listinfo/amsat-bb
Using Windows 10 here on all PC's so sounds safe...LOL. I've got Doppler working well on the 736R but would like to expand my horizons out to the SDR world for some new challenges. Thanks for the great input! Mike N7ASZ
-----Original Message----- From: Greg D ko6th.greg@gmail.com Sent: Wednesday, February 12, 2020 9:17 PM To: Mike Lucas documike@comcast.net; amsat-bb@amsat.org Subject: Re: [amsat-bb] SDR Recommendations
Hi Mike,
What operating system are you running? SDRplay units have great specs, but support on other than Windows is non-existent to dangerous. I tried getting one to work on my Linux system, and ended up breaking the system's support for the RTL-SDR dongles and now neither work. The RSP2 sitting on the bench, unused, and the RTL-SDR is in a Raspberry Pi, accessed over the home network.
Which brings me to the RTL-SDR dongles. Really cheap, easy to use, and great support pretty much everywhere. A good learning platform. But their receivers aren't the best for anything weak due to a high noise figure, and not good in a high RF environment due to limited filtering. So overall not the greatest for doing satellite work, but they can work.
Doppler tracking will depend on what software you are using, but they often support the SDR devices. I was using Gpredict + Gqrx with mine.
Greg KO6TH
Mike Lucas via AMSAT-BB wrote:
I'm thinking of acquiring an SDR unit for the station for downloading sat telemetry etc. I'm new to the SDR world but learning. I'm currently using a Yaseu 736R which has served me well.
Not sure how you configure SDR for Doppler tracking etc. so looking for links to info I can educate myself on what all I need etc.
Are there any particular SDR radios that lend themselves best for satellite work more than others? The SDR Play boxes look solid, are they recommended?
Regards,
Mike N7ASZ
Sent via AMSAT-BB@amsat.org. AMSAT-NA makes this open forum available to all interested persons worldwide without requiring membership. Opinions expressed are solely those of the author, and do not reflect the official views of AMSAT-NA. Not an AMSAT-NA member? Join now to support the amateur satellite program! Subscription settings: https://www.amsat.org/mailman/listinfo/amsat-bb
participants (3)
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Greg D -
Mike Lucas -
Scott