New SDR CommRadio CR-1

[corbintechboy]

So the CR-1 is performing ALMOST as good as a receiver originally designed around 15 years ago? Hopefully the product will mature and surpass it. It is good to see that many of the "gotcha's" have been and are being addressed. I can think of many needs this receiver will fill once it has matured.

Well the R75 is a hard one to beat no matter the age. The R75 is a real workhorse.

I don't think the CR-1 has a chance toe to toe. I don't think any amount of upgrades via firmware can get it to that point. The twin PBTs on the R75 are just that good and can actually even act as filters within the current bandwidth. This makes the R75 very versatile.

Now, I don't think the CR-1 aims to compete with any radio on the market. The CR-1 marches to the beat of its own drum which is a nice change. We never needed yet another HF radio to fill a void that is not there. What we got is a fine radio with the ability to do things that any radio in the price class cannot claim to do, in the form of coverage of course. Not to mention the ability to upgrade radio features. Real win for the consumer. As you have said the R75 has not been updated in years and what you buy is what you get.

There is just an excitement that comes in owning the CR-1. You have no idea what this radio may become and the portability is a nice added bonus that no other radio in this price class can tout. We could pit this against the Palstar of course but the Palstar does not have the extra frequency coverage, win to the CR-1.

If the bugs get worked out and we see IQ over usb in some update this little radio will skyrocket to new heights. It is great as is of course but having a radio you can take to the field and have it completely independent of any power source is great, now bring that same radio home and get the bonus of unlimited computer DSP power and WOW... This radio just reached heights that are not in the current realm of possibility.

CR-1 FTW

 

[WB2KTG]

Now Available on CR-1 Dropbox Site

For all CR-1 owners who may not have gotten the word, DSP version 1665 is now available from the CR-1 Dropbox site. This change is a totally new and improved AGC / Audio package. Much improved over the old version, IMHO.

Bob

 

[n0ypd]

I would say well done this time.Very good audio coming from my CR-1 now.

 

[Turbo68]

The receiver will work all right with a decent hf antenna other wise the only thing youre goimg to hear is hiss..

Regards Lino..

 

[SCPD]

Little chameleon

I'm still following this thread with interest.
It seems the updates to the original firmware are done well.
This RX seems a little chameleon

I've also seen the "Fenu" pictures, showing how well it is built.
The inside shows a very clean RF layout.

Are there any plans for:
-AM sync
-Noise blanker
-Rotating through memories with auto-select
-user settable RF charactaristics (total gain, agc parameters, continuous bandwidth,etc)
?

73
Paul
PD0PSB

 

[n0ypd]

The receiver will work all right with a decent hf antenna other wise the only thing youre goimg to hear is hiss..

Regards Lino..

It is working fairly well with my AOR LA400 Loop antenna

 

[corbintechboy]

I'm still following this thread with interest.
It seems the updates to the original firmware are done well.
This RX seems a little chameleon

I've also seen the "Fenu" pictures, showing how well it is built.
The inside shows a very clean RF layout.

Are there any plans for:
-AM sync
-Noise blanker
-Rotating through memories with auto-select
-user settable RF charactaristics (total gain, agc parameters, continuous bandwidth,etc)
?

73
Paul
PD0PSB

When you have such a small radio with limited controls, you have to choose wisely what gets put into the front end for user control.

AM sync is not really needed as this radio is rock solid stable. Simple ECSS works great with this rig. Noise blanker only effects engine/motor type noise. Who would use this in that sort of environment?
Memory improvements are always nice so I have no opinion here.
The AGC on this radio is very well chosen. I would find it hard to tweak the settings to make it any better. Well chosen indeed.

This radio is really nice and from a performance standpoint it is pretty much right where it needs to be to make it worth the purchase. Now add in it will improve and this radio is a real winner.

 

[SCPD]

When you have such a small radio with limited controls, you have to choose wisely what gets put into the front end for user control.

AM sync is not really needed as this radio is rock solid stable. Simple ECSS works great with this rig. Noise blanker only effects engine/motor type noise. Who would use this in that sort of environment?
Memory improvements are always nice so I have no opinion here.
The AGC on this radio is very well chosen. I would find it hard to tweak the settings to make it any better. Well chosen indeed.

This radio is really nice and from a performance standpoint it is pretty much right where it needs to be to make it worth the purchase. Now add in it will improve and this radio is a real winner.

-AM sync: selective fading yet full AM fidelity
-Noise Blanker: *badly* needed against PLC/Homeplug in most parts of the world

73
Paul
PD0PSB

 

[corbintechboy]

-AM sync: selective fading yet full AM fidelity
-Noise Blanker: *badly* needed against PLC/Homeplug in most parts of the world

73
Paul
PD0PSB

AM sync, I would vote for DSSB. Fidelity would still be great while fixing fading. Don't know if that would be a limit of the DSP chip though.

We don't have that problem in the USA YET...

 

[majoco]

The receiver will work all right with a decent hf antenna other wise the only thing youre goimg to hear is hiss..

Correction

Any receiver will work all right with a decent hf antenna other wise the only thing youre goimg to hear is hiss..

 

[johnmblack]

I got my CR1 back yesterday after bricking it. I think Don and Co. must have fixed it and given it back to the UPS man while he waited, because it was a quick turnaround. Don kept in touch the whole time and even sent me a check for return postage. Can't argue with the customer service!
So it was with trembling hands that I connected the USB cable to the radio and installed the latest updates, but it worked fine this time.
Here's what I see:
The radio is much improved. Audio is generally louder, and I like the fact that the volume control is more responsive. The audio on VHF is clear as a bell, and I am receiving at least two more NOAA weather channels than I did before. It is not quite as sensitive as my old DJX2000, but not bad. The squelch now works on VHF air, and it seems to work well.
HF reception continues to improve as well, although the S meter still goes to +10 or better within 100khz of any major shortwave band and stays there, which makes the weak stations much lower in volume than the strong ones. My test station, CFRX on 6070khz, is intelligible, but very low in volume compared to the flame throwers on either side. On other radios, the AGC brings CFRX up to nearly the same volume, but the CR1 is swamped. SSB on the ham bands seems quite good, with good audio.
Things I still would like to see:
More low end audio! Program listening with the CR1's internal speaker is crisp, but lacking in any bass. That's okay for the size, but connecting it to a larger speaker or using headphones shows it isn't the speaker, it's the radio's output that's lacking. I know bass response is liable to increase power consumption a bit, but I'd gladly be willing to pay that price. As it is, I don't think program listening is pleasant on the CR1. When we get WFM, I sure hope it sounds better.
Squelch for HF, and scanning with a stop on squelch. Just whizzing through the memories without stopping isn't useful to me. Having the radio squelched and whizzing through the memories, then stopping on an active one is very useful. Can we do that?
I still don't see the need for separate bandplans for amateur and swl listening.

I think if those things got done, I'd have to stop whining altogether and just enjoy it!

One final note; I had the radio in memory mode and was tuning the radio manually (that's kinda cool to have the memories displayed but there's still a tiny tunable display in the upper right), when it locked up, just like the previous lockup problem. Power cycling fixes it, but it does it every time.

John

 

[corbintechboy]

Things I still would like to see:
More low end audio! Program listening with the CR1's internal speaker is crisp, but lacking in any bass. That's okay for the size, but connecting it to a larger speaker or using headphones shows it isn't the speaker, it's the radio's output that's lacking. I know bass response is liable to increase power consumption a bit, but I'd gladly be willing to pay that price. As it is, I don't think program listening is pleasant on the CR1. When we get WFM, I sure hope it sounds better.
John

I think that's a matter of taste.

I like audio with a bit more highs then lows. I think that this helps under DX conditions and can make the difference between a copy and a possible QSL.

I had a Drake R8 and the audio had more bass then any radio I had ever had. Pleasant for program listening it may had been, in DX situations I think it was horrible. I like the sound of the CR-1 and would not change a thing about it. Is it good for program listening? I think so. If I was picky it could be ran through the computer and have some bass added, but I don't see me doing that,

 

[WB2KTG]

For a receiver designed as a piece of COMMS equipment vice a piece of high fidelity gear, the CR-1 does a good job. Considering it's small size and ~ 1 W power draw, it does a Great job. Communications is all about data transfer. For CW and Voice communications, anything outside the passband of the filters for the specific modes can be considered 'noise'. The data is all contained within the passband. True for analog as well as digital modes. Having said that, I'd add that I have listened to some SW music and talk / entertainment stations as well. My personal opinion is that I'm much more bothered by atmospheric effects and in-band noise than I am by the frequency response of the receiver / speaker system.

 

[SCPD]

Audio response

As audio response is indeed a very personal matter, it would be wisest to make it adjustable.
The same thing for agc threshold and speed.
The good thing about sdr is its flexibilty.

I've seen endless discussions about the K3's audio and agc response.
Comm guys vs. Fidelity guys vs. CW guys vs. ESSB guys, etc,etc...
Most of these discussions stopped when the user was given choices in the settings.

Just my 2 cts.

73
Paul
PD0PSB

 

[johnmblack]

RE: audio response. I'm all for adjustability. Communications is about data transfer, but Broadcasting is about listening. If they give me a 7.5khz filter, I want flat response from one end to the other. Not hard to do with an SDR.

 

[johnmblack]

Notice a big difference in audio,but the receiver seems to be going in like a sleep mode or quiet mode if you turn the volume down after a while.Then a few turns of the VFO knob wakes it back up to full volume.It is strange,anyone else notice this?

About the quieting effect if you leave the radio tuned to a frequency for a while; I am noticing that, too. I've been leaving the CR1 on 8918 USB, and after a while it gets very quiet. It is still receiving. A jog up or down on the tuning knob brings it back up. It's hard to observe because after a while, the sound dies down and you forget you have your radio on! Interesting phenomenon.

 

[NRD-505]

How is everyone enjoying the radio? At a quiet location in South Georgia reception has been very nice. Picking up Euro stations I haven't received in years. Aside from the lop-sided filter (5kc,7.5kc...) on AM Mode audio is nice.

The S-Meter readout lags behind the turning of the tuning knob. A pause is necessary to allow the S-Meter to catch up. Looking forward to an update!

 

[WB2KTG]

South Georgia Island? ;-)

I have a good feeling that your patience may be rewarded shortly with another software upgrade. I spent about four hours over the past week listening to CW and SSB on the amateur bands with a 25 ft chunk of wire out the window. Enjoyable! No issues of note, just mostly good solid copy.

 

[NRD-505]

South Central Georgia-near I-75.

 

[n0ypd]

It really is an enjoyable listening receiver.