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- Subject: Elad FDM-S2 initial testing
- From: Mark Connelly <markwa1ion@xxxxxxx>
- Date: Sat, 4 Mar 2017 13:12:23 -0500
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At the end of 2016 I purchased an Elad FDM-S2 which was selling for a (discounted $80) price of $495 plus $19.82 shipping from IL.
A few weeks back I did some initial testing of it with both its "native" software (FDM-SW2) and with more familiar / generic HDSDR.
Comments below are probably "kindergarten level" for experienced FDM-S2 users. Obviously any suggestions that may come forth as a result of my observations are welcomed.
First I "live" created a capture file with the FDM-SW2 software. It wasn't immediately obvious to me how to schedule captures with that software so I then went ahead and created a few captures with HDSDR. The HDSDR scheduling set-up is familiar to me from using it in the Perseus version.
When you use HDSDR with Elad, you have to select which external I/O DLL file to use.
See: http://www.qsl.net/wa1ion/pictures1/hdsdr_select_extio.jpg
I put up two screen shots of HDSDR running the receiver:
http://www.qsl.net/wa1ion/pictures1/hdsdr_elad_20170220_0400z.jpg
http://www.qsl.net/wa1ion/pictures1/hdsdr_elad_20170220_0500z.jpg
The first one shows the entire received spectrum, about 400-1800 kHz, on the spectrum and waterfall plots.
The second one has the spectrum zoomed in on a small range around the received frequency (Algeria 549).
What I found interesting is that with HDSDR, I could play back captures made either with the FDM-SW2 program or HDSDR.
FDM-SW2 plays its own captures OK (I'd send it back if it didn't) but if I tried to use it to play the files I'd created with HDSDR, I got a "crab message" = File Not Reproducible.
See: http://www.qsl.net/wa1ion/pictures1/elad_crab_message1.jpg
Here are some audio clips from captures made from the FDM-S2 receiver using the HDSDR scheduler.
Spain 1044 (17 FEB @ 2300 UTC)
http://www.qsl.net/wa1ion/audio1/spain-1044_20170217_2300z.mp3
Algeria 549 (20 FEB @ 0400 UTC)
http://www.qsl.net/wa1ion/audio1/algeria-549_20170220_0400z.mp3
Algeria 549 (20 FEB @ 0500 UTC) with "tubby anthem"
http://www.qsl.net/wa1ion/audio1/algeria-549_20170220_0500z_tubby_anthem.mp3
Mauritania 783 (20 FEB @ 0500 UTC) Koranic wailing
http://www.qsl.net/wa1ion/audio1/mauritania-783_20170220_0500z.mp3
UK 1089 (20 FEB @ 0501 UTC)
http://www.qsl.net/wa1ion/audio1/uk-1089_20170220_0501z.mp3
I also have an SDRplay RSP1 acquired in late 2016. I've tuned around the FM band with it some but I have not done file capture or AM DX with it yet.
Mark Connelly, WA1ION
South Yarmouth, MA
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