Using SDR for DATV
Posted: Wed Jan 06, 2016 10:05 am
After reading the absolutely outstanding issue #250 yesterday I am enthused to get started using DTV. I've been using the cheap RTL-T2 dongles for general reception and specifically for decoding the APT weather satellites on 137 MHz. Last summer someone wrote a QPSK demodulator 'plug-in' for SDR# for the digitally encoded Russian M2 satellite. With this being a growth market (SDR receivers) I purchased a SDRplay unit and the difference is absolutely amazing. This is a serious piece of kit with a 100KHz to 2 GHz receive capability - no gaps and up to 8 MHz bandwidth.
I am but a user of other peoples software but I can see the possibility of a unit like this being capable of direct DATV straight from the aerial. It was, after all, what the cheap DVTB dongles were originally built for. What it needs is software to decode the lower symbol rates that amateurs are using.
I'll post something like this on the SDRplay forum too, they are UK based and very helpful.
Then is just the TX I need to sort out .......
Thoughts welcome.....
I am but a user of other peoples software but I can see the possibility of a unit like this being capable of direct DATV straight from the aerial. It was, after all, what the cheap DVTB dongles were originally built for. What it needs is software to decode the lower symbol rates that amateurs are using.
I'll post something like this on the SDRplay forum too, they are UK based and very helpful.
Then is just the TX I need to sort out .......
Thoughts welcome.....