3.1 Release

Simon Brown • July 26, 2021

Release Date

Version 3.1 is the cumulation of 6 1/2 years of programming, SDR Console can now be considered a mature program. This kit will be released on August 2nd, 2021.


The main updates are much improved performance (reduced CPU and GPU load) and the addition of a voice keyer. For a full list of fixes and changes look at the release notes. Download this release here.


After the release some weeks will be spent updating the website.

Performance

As a result of a complaint that SDR Console was slowing down after many hours of use, I looked at the user interface (Direct2D) and noticed that every time a window (render target) is updated all the resources owned by the window are validated, even if it's not necessary.


As a result I've been working on reducing the number of Direct2D resources created in each window which has had a very big effect on CPU when refreshing / updating a window. This is very important in the Spectrum and Waterfall windows which are regularly refreshed.


As a result this kit runs very well on a 32-bit W7 laptop which uses a Core2DUO 2GHz T5870 CPU from 2008. In fact, it runs so well that I've completely removed the automatic low power settings, these are now an option in the Ribbon bar, Tools, Settings panel.


The screenshot below shows an Airspy HF+ running on an i5-7260U laptop (2 cores, 4 threads), CPU load is an amazing 0.6%.


Conclusion

If the program uses any fewer resources it'll start running backward (joke).


Voice Keyer

Finally added a voice keyer, located in the Transmit panel.

Click the ••• button to configure the voice keyer. The configuration options support recording, selection of recordings and other options.


Format

Recordings are saved as WAV files, the default format is 48kHz single channel (mono) 16-bit samples. These files can be edited with most popular audio editing software, just make sure the sample rate is 48kHz and the sample size 16 bits (signed short integers).


Record

Here you create a recording. The input is the current microphone selection in the transmit panel. Save the recording as a 48kHz, mono wave (WAV) file.


Select

Select the WAV file(s) assigned to the [1], [2], [3] buttons in the voice keyer window.


Options

A roger beep recording followed by a silence tail.


  • Slide title

    Select

    Button

  • Slide title

    Record

    Button

  • Slide title

    Options

    Button

SDR Console, Beta Nov 1st 2025

By Simon Brown • November 1, 2025
November 1st, 2025 Analyser Analyser tag window change, as suggested by Jim. Analyser tags now saved and restored correctly. Analyser font size now supports small, medium and large. Analyser loads saved projects faster. Saving project now much faster and uses less memory. More display lines available if you have enough RAM: Less than 16GB then 50,000 lines. 16GB to 32GB then 100,000 lines. 32GB or more then 250,000 lines. Fixed minor font issue with definition window. Fixed issue scrolling when more than 32768 lines in display. Data File Playback Selecting a playback folder now creates the list of files much faster. Emulation Added a diagnostic check for the use of emulators. This code only works on W10 and above, so I dynamically load IsWow64Process2 from kernel32 which avoids issues on older versions of Windows. In the logfile you see something like this: 05:23:48.185: Vendor ....: GenuineIntel 05:23:48.185: Brand .....: Intel(R) Core(TM) Ultra 7 265K 05:23:48.185: - 05:23:48.185: x86 Emulation: 05:23:48.185: Process .......: 0x0000, "Not emulated" 05:23:48.185: Architecture ..: 0x8664, "AMD64" 05:23:48.185: - Favourites Updated the default 60m bandwidth. Changed Broadcast :: VHF CCIR title to Band II. Groups now have user-selectable files. Default definitions renames to main. Changed the ribbon bar, Selection entry to Options (see image below). The dropdown options have been replaced with a single window, allowing more room for text. Locked Receivers If the program is stopped or a favourite created when a receiver is locked, this caused problems with the receiver being locked but no indication. With this kit receiver lock state is not applied in a favourite definition. Logfile Automatically save the logfile when closing, really added so I can check program responding correctly to Shutdown and Restart. Old logfiles are purged after the program has been running for one minute. Logging Added logbook FA option as below, FA is the command to read/write RX1. Narrow FM Added 150Hz CTCSS squelch tone. De-emphasis is now optional, selected from: Ribbon bar, Receive, Mode..., Narrow FM. Persistent Display Got a crash inside the persistent display logic, my sanity checks weren't good enough so have improved this. Remote Server After connecting to a remote server, the input fields can now be edited to change connection parameters. Ribbon Bar View panel tidied up. Signal Meter (SMeter) Added more presets for the Signal meter, Ribbon bar, View, Spectrum, Signal Meter. Spectran ECO Changed SPECTRAN path order to pick up DLLs from the SDK folder rather than the main folder. Status Bar GPU, Audio entries on status bar now optional, selected from Program Options, Performance, CPU Memory. System Shutdown / Restart If SDR Console is running when the system shuts down or restarts then SDR Console closes gracefully. What happens - five seconds after SDR Console receives the SHUTDOWN message a timer calls the OnClose() processing, so you have five seconds to about the shutdown / restart. Text Size Fonts now scale correctly when a non-default Accessibility > Text Size is selected (see image).

SDR Television v1.0.1 (Bugfix)

By Simon Brown • October 29, 2025
SDR Television v1.0.1 October 29th, 2025: Fixed a fatal bug in the receive AGC if the output soundcard sample rate is 96kHz or 192kHz. Downloads are at the bottom of this page.

Simon's World Map 1.5.2

By Simon Brown • October 25, 2025
Previous: Version 1.5.2 This release fixes a bug, improves the user interface and adds a new calendar. Download link is at the bottom of this page.

AMSAT UK 2025 Award

By Simon Brown • October 12, 2025
And the award goes to...

Simon's World Map 1.5.1

By Simon Brown • October 9, 2025
Version 1.5.1 This is a mainly cosmetic update to version 1.5, nevertheless well worth installing.

SDR Television v1 (Release)

By Simon Brown • September 13, 2025
SDR Television This release is actually beta 6 with a few small updates, so I've left the beta 6 text here. I hope to start working on this in November 2025, adding the Gardner timing error detection which should improve the decoding with low SNR. Downloads are at the bottom of this page.

SDR Console, Beta Sept. 9th 2025

By Simon Brown • September 9, 2025
Hello Again I'm now back to 90% SDR Console support, so here's the first beta for at least eight months. Scroll to the bottom for a link to the beta kit. The source is fully archived, so crash dumps can be analysed.

SDR Television Beta #6

By Simon Brown • August 28, 2025
SDR Television Improved phase detection at the start of each frame (SOF, PLS) which in turn improves sensitivity. Added 2,000 ksps receive, confirmed as working with GB3NQ. Sensitivity still not as good as a Serit 4334 NIM as used in the MiniTioune receiver, what's missing is synchronisation timing, I will be using Gardner timing error detection (TED). This will be added in Q1, 2026 when this project is extended for terrestrial use. Downloads are at the bottom of this page.

SDR Television Beta #5

By Simon Brown • July 18, 2025
SDR Television Found and fixed an unused massive memory allocation (up to 10GB), may have caused systems to freeze. Fixed fatal bug in matched filter array allocation. Changed the default transmit bandpass shaping filter roll-off to 0.20 in transmit and receive. Please look at the images below and apply the change. SDR Pluto Now show the AGC gain and RSSI. Added Default link to select the recommended gain - Fast Attack, 0dB visual. Known Problems Add support for tracking transmissions with (?) non-standard PCR data, example is G8GKQ. Using Pluto & variants, sensitivity is not as good as a NIM (hardware tuner). Will compare with SPECTRAN ECO in a week or so.