SDRPlay RSP1A

[BOBRR]

Hello,

Anxious to get back into hobby, as I haven't played
with SDR receivers for many years now.

Anxious also to try our HDSDR.

Lots of options apparently now re what Dongle or receiver to buy.

I saw the SDRPlay RSP1A for about $110 on their site and also on the
Ham Radio Outlet site.

Questions, please:

Any general opinions, caveats, etc. for this receiver ?
Opinions on ? Negatives ?

Anything "better" for this price range ?

Besides the vhf/uhf frequencies, I am also very interested
in the HF "stuff," below 30 MHz.

Any thoughts on would be most appreciated.

BTW Ham Radio outlet up in Salem, N.H. a good place to purchase it ? Or,...?
They seem to be a bit more expensive than what the SDRPlay lists it as from them
directly in US Dollars.

Thanks,
Bob

 

[wd9ewk]

Hello,

Anxious to get back into hobby, as I haven't played
with SDR receivers for many years now.

Anxious also to try our HDSDR.

Lots of options apparently now re what Dongle or receiver to buy.

I saw the SDRPlay RSP1A for about $110 on their site and also on the
Ham Radio Outlet site.

Questions, please:

Any general opinions, caveats, etc. for this receiver ?
Opinions on ? Negatives ?

Anything "better" for this price range ?

Besides the vhf/uhf frequencies, I am also very interested
in the HF "stuff," below 30 MHz.

Any thoughts on would be most appreciated.

BTW Ham Radio outlet up in Salem, N.H. a good place to purchase it ? Or,...?
They seem to be a bit more expensive than what the SDRPlay lists it as from them
directly in US Dollars.

Thanks,
Bob

The RSP1A is a very good receiver. It will cover HF as well as VHF and UHF. I have used mine to listen to the ham HF bands, shortwave broadcasts, and as the downlink receiver for amateur satellites (in FM, SSB, CW, and digital modes). For the price (a little over US$ 100), it is a good value.

Ham Radio Outlet is the official US distributor for SDRplay in the USA. Otherwise, you'll order the radio from an overseas vendor, or directly from SDRplay in the UK. THe pricing on the SDRplay web site is in US dollars, but they are converting from British pounds. You can get the receiver for a lower price, but you will have to pay for shipping across the Atlantic. A purchase at HRO means you can return it to HRO if there are any problems with it, rather than shipping it back to the UK.

Good luck!

 

[n9mxq]

+1 for the 1a.. Own one and love it. I would however add, use SDRConsole instead of the SDRPlay software. I've tried both, and prefer the SDRConsole system much more than the other.

 

[BOBRR]

Hi,

Much thanks for reply.
Will feel a lot better purchasing it now.
Seems like it covers just about anything and everything I could possibly be interested in.

Question please:

I see on this unit they provide only a single antenna input.
A bit surprising.

So, does one have to "physically" switch antennas ? e.g., a long wire for below 30 MHz, and then some kind of a vhf/uhf antenna ?

Or, is there available these days some kind of a "splitter" (not sure of the correct terminology) or filter where you can simply have both types plugged in all of the time, without the need of switching ?
If so, might you recommend a model and brand ?

Guess this is pretty subjective, but which software is the most enjoyable and practical to use ?
The package they supply (Rando is it ?), HDSDR, or...?

Again, thanks so much for your help.
Appreciate it very much,

Bob

 

[n9mxq]

I bought an SMA-SO-239 pigtail.. Hooked to one of my end fed antennas it receives remarkably well.. Even up in the 1090 (ADS-B) area bringing in planes hundreds of miles away.

The pigtail makes it easier to switch antennas if I desire, and keeps stress off the SMA connector.

 

[woodpecker]

The RSP1A is very good, I'm not a fan of the sdruno software and still use it with an older version of sdrsharp, I don't think you'll find much better for the money.

 

[wd9ewk]

I see on this unit they provide only a single antenna input.
A bit surprising.

So, does one have to "physically" switch antennas ? e.g., a long wire for below 30 MHz, and then some kind of a vhf/uhf antenna ?

Yes, the RSP1A has a single antenna port. Depending on what you want to hear, there are coax switches, splitters, and diplexers/triplexers that can allow you to have multiple antennas on the RSP1A's single coax connection. Other SDRplay receivers have more antenna ports.

Guess this is pretty subjective, but which software is the most enjoyable and practical to use ?

The package they supply (Rando is it ?), HDSDR, or...?

SDRplay's software is SDRuno, a free download from their web site. SDRplay also makes available HDSDR and SDR Console for Windows PCs, CubicSDR for Mac computers, and drivers so the SDRplay receivers can be used with other programs on these and other operating systems.