How much computing power is really needed to run an Airspy/SDRplay?

[JSteel]

Hi all,

I'm looking to get my feet wet in the world of SDR. I have an older PC (running an AMD A8-7600 Radeon R7 processor, 8GB RAM) that I'd like to use, but I'm not sure if it has enough horsepower to handle running a SDR like an Airspy or SDRplay to its full capabilities. From what I can tell, it looks like the AMD processor is the equivalent of a 3rd generation Intel Core i5, so it's likely clipping the low end of the minimum specs...

Thoughts?

Thanks!

 

[KevinC]

@Airspy-US ???

 

[scanbc780]

FYI, if you are planning on an Airspy, the Airspy US site is doing their sale this week, so now would be the time to snag it while they have them.

 

[belvdr]

I ran an SDRplay RSPdx fine on a Dell Optiplex 7040 (i7-6700, 16GB RAM), released about the same time as yours.

For further reference, I now have an i7-12700 and 32GB of RAM and with SDR++ running, I see little issue:

%Cpu(s):  1.5 us,  0.5 sy,  0.0 ni, 97.9 id,  0.0 wa,  0.1 hi,  0.1 si,  0.0 st
MiB Mem :  31792.1 total,    859.1 free,   1962.4 used,  28970.6 buff/cache
MiB Swap:   4096.0 total,   4082.7 free,     13.2 used.  28860.5 avail Mem

I don't think you'll have an issue; it's a semi-educated guess.

 

[MikeTheListener]

I'm running a Lenovo ThinkCenter M92p SFF with an Intel i5 3470 (3rd Gen). 4x 3.2GHz and 4GB Ram.
My AirSpy mini with the current SDR# version runs on the system without any problems. Other software
(e.g. Sorcerer, YaDD, YaND, MultiPSK) also runs without any problems.
I still use Windows 7 as the operating system.

73 MIke

 

[K5MPH]

Running mine on Dell i5 16gb of ram and have had no problems......

 

[Whiskey3JMC]

I run several versions of SDRPlay (albeit not at the same time) fine on a 1st gen Surface Pro upgraded to Win 10 with only 4GB RAM when I'm out and about. Takes up about 60-70% of my system resources if I'm not running anything else

 

[JSteel]

I ran an SDRplay RSPdx fine on a Dell Optiplex 7040 (i7-6700, 16GB RAM), released about the same time as yours.

Thank you! That’s encouraging.

 

[JSteel]

I'm running a Lenovo ThinkCenter M92p SFF with an Intel i5 3470 (3rd Gen). 4x 3.2GHz and 4GB Ram.
My AirSpy mini with the current SDR# version runs on the system without any problems. Other software
(e.g. Sorcerer, YaDD, YaND, MultiPSK) also runs without any problems.
I still use Windows 7 as the operating system.

73 MIke

Thanks! I should be okay then, I would think.

 

[JSteel]

Running mine on Dell i5 16gb of ram and have had no problems......

Thanks!

 

[JSteel]

I run several versions of SDRPlay (albeit not at the same time) fine on a 1st gen Surface Pro upgraded to Win 10 with only 4GB RAM when I'm out and about. Takes up about 60-70% of my system resources if I'm not running anything else

Thank you!

 

[maus92]

Just don't try SDRTrunk as Java makes it a hardware intensive application. Also, running an Airspy at its lowest usable bandwidth setting helps to conserve resources.