[hpsdr] New User Questions

Sat Apr 22 01:29:31 PDT 2017

Hi Benno,

I'm sure, skilled voluntary software developers are always highly welcome in
the OpenHPSDR community. I'm no one, I'm an old hardware fossil, but
enthusiastic SDR fan, hi. As you are obviously living in the area like our
'Spiritus Rector' Phil Harman, VK6PH, I would suggest to try a possible
meeting. Phil is the authentic source of information.

When you look at the repository https://github.com/TAPR/ you will find all
the necessary firmware or operation software for the ANAN boards, labeled
OpenHPSDR. It is correct that Apache Labs holds the copyright on their
layout of PCBs, but circuitry, selected components etc. are derived in the
final analysis from Mercury, Penelope, Metis and other OpenHPSDR boards.
E.g. we have currently one additional supplier of the HERMES board providing
same circuitry, components, size and location of the interfaces, but using
his own layout design.

I further believe that Apache Lab will get bad experience if they would try
to leave the open source idea. Flex Radio seems also not happy with that
strategy.

BTW you can operate all that hardware also other software like CuSDR or Zeus
Radio 2.9. The successor of PowerSDR is already as Beta-Version in
preparation. UI modification seem then easier. But don't forget the
efficiency of the algorithms in the 'background' determine the performance
of the radio.

So welcome again.

73, Helmut, DC6NY

-----Ursprüngliche Nachricht-----
Von: Hpsdr [mailto:hpsdr-bounces at lists.openhpsdr.org] Im Auftrag von Onno
Benschop
Gesendet: Samstag, 22. April 2017 06:23
An: hpsdr at lists.openhpsdr.org
Betreff: Re: [hpsdr] New User Questions

***** High Performance Software Defined Radio Discussion List *****

Thank you all for your list of answers and the kind words about my WIA
broadcast talks - they continue weekly as "Foundations of Amateur
Radio", just not on VK1WIA -http://podcasts.itmaze.com.au/

So far I've learned from one person that:

ANAN-10:  Hermes transceiver board (single, 16-bit ADC, 14-bit Tx DAC,
Altera Cyclone III FPGA) + 10W PA

ANAN-100: Hermes as above but with a 100W PA

ANAN-10E: Hermes10E transceiver board (single 14-bit ADC, 14-bit Tx DAC)

ANAN-100B: Hermes 10E transceiver board as above but with a 100W PA

ANAN-100D: Angelia transceiver board (dual 16-bit ADCs, 14-bit Tx DAC,
Altera Cyclone IV-E FPGA)  + 100W PA

ANAN-200D: Orion transceiver board (dual 16-bit ADCs, 14-bit Tx DAC,
Altera Cyclone IV-GX FPGA) + 100W PA

ANAN-8000DLE: Orion MkII transceiver board (dual 16-bit ADCs, 16-bit
Tx DAC, Altera IV-GX FPGA) + 200W PA

I was also told by several people that there are no OpenHPSDR boards
in the ANAN hardware.

There are at least two Linux applications that support TX, but it's
unclear if they directly work with the ANAN 200D or not:

ghpsdr3-alex
gnuradio + gr-hpsdr

Did I miss anything?

By way of background, I have the loan of an ANAN 200D. I am an
experienced software developer, though I've never looked at radio
software in any way. I have been using Linux as my primary desktop for
over 15 years and I'm wondering how I might contribute to OpenHPSDR.

The applications that I've seen thus far in the SDR field by enlarge
attempt to re-create a traditional radio user interface and sometimes
go to extraordinary lengths to achieve that. For example, PowerSDR
appears to provide CAT interfaces to speak to existing software,
virtual audio cables, to link up with CW skimmers, or JT65 decoders,
etc.

That's not to say that there are no user interface innovations. The
diversity / noise blanker in PowerSDR, a circle where the distance
from the centre determines the gain and the angle on the circle
determines the phase is something of beauty. It encapsulates precisely
the functionality it needs, uses modern UI concepts and can be
operated with a mouse or a touch screen and is a vast improvement on
two or three knobs that you turn to make the same effect happen in
physical hardware.

Please understand I'm using PowerSDR only as an example here.

I've been working in my day job with Docker. It's a container
technology that allows you to package independent tools in such a way
that they don't affect each other. If you've ever had to compile
something, or if you've attempted to install two applications at the
same time that require different versions of the same library, Docker
is a tool to solve this. If you're familiar with Virtual Machines,
Docker is an extremely lightweight version of that - think
microseconds launch, rather than minutes.

I started wondering if I could contribute to the OpenHPSDR community
by figuring out a way to containerise the various attributes of SDR.
For example, an AM decoder could be one container, an FM decoder could
be another. A JT65 decoder could be another. A waterfall display, or a
noise-blanker, or a CW skimmer, or any number of different parts of
the "cloud of SDR", could each be built as a separate container.

They are independent, speak to each other with TCP/IP, (or UDP), can
be using vastly different software internally, etc. etc. It runs under
every OS and there is an active community of people using this. It
also allows for standardisation of application deployment across
Linux, MacOS, Windows.

My new user questions were about discovering what the landscape looks
like. I have looked at several packages and thus far none of them
speak to me. The closest, and only from distant observation - I've not
looked at the code-base, nor could I get it to actually work - was GNU
Radio.

I also don't know how the community feels about my ideas.

If what I've written insults existing efforts, please forgive me. I am
dipping my toes into this area. I have skills that I think can help
and my ignorance at present is bliss.

So, brick-bats or clue-bats welcome.

Fair warning. I'm self-employed, have an absurd to-do list and earning
income has to unfortunately come first.

DE Onno VK6FLAB

On 16 April 2017 at 15:34, Onno Benschop <onno at itmaze.com.au> wrote:
> Forgive me, I've been unable to locate suitable answers and my Google-Fu
> appears to be broken.
>
> Is there a document anywhere that describes which particular OpenHPSDR
> boards are inside a standard off-the-shelf ANAN 200D (and for that matter
> any of the ANAN products)?
> Is there a Linux application that supports transmitting on the ANAN 200D?

-- 
Onno Benschop

()/)/)()        ..ASCII for Onno..
|>>?            ..EBCDIC for Onno..
--- -. -. ---   ..Morse for Onno..

If you need to know: "What computer should I buy?" http://goo.gl/spsb66

ITmaze   -   ABN: 56 178 057 063   -  ph: 04 1219 8888   -
onno at itmaze.com.au
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