I own the TinySA Ultra but have recently come across what may be an alternative.
SDRplay
Anyone have BOTH devices and can compare/contrast? I mean, beyond the screen; that is, using either device with another device with screen (laptop, etc).?
Thx!

On Wed, Apr 12, 2023 at 12:25 PM, <hans13@...> wrote:

I own the TinySA Ultra but have recently come across what may be an alternative.
SDRplay
Anyone have BOTH devices and can compare/contrast? I mean, beyond the screen; that is, using either device with another device with screen (laptop, etc).?
Thx!

Completely different things.? SDRplay sells SDR receivers that work from VLF to 2 GHz.? You can use them as a spectrum analyzer (SA) using their program SDRuno or with a 3rd party SA application but the features are very limited.? There is no signal generator capability in SDRplay products.

Roger

it's silly to compare sdr-ply with tinysa

Thanks for your reply.

I don't need / use the SG features of the Tiny. But it is nice to have just in case.

Because I work with mostly audio (hi-fi), I think I'm more interested in low frequencies, so that's what attracted my attention to the SDRplay.?
Yes, I am aware that Tiny Ultra can analyze well below 100k. But it may not do so reliably, accurately or with good fidelity.?
So, I suppose what I'm after is a SA that can better perform from , say,? 1k - 100k. And that would be the SDRplay, correct?

On Wed, Apr 12, 2023 at 02:13 PM, <hans13@...> wrote:

Thanks for your reply.

I don't need / use the SG features of the Tiny. But it is nice to have just in case.

Because I work with mostly audio (hi-fi), I think I'm more interested in low frequencies, so that's what attracted my attention to the SDRplay.?
Yes, I am aware that Tiny Ultra can analyze well below 100k. But it may not do so reliably, accurately or with good fidelity.?
So, I suppose what I'm after is a SA that can better perform from , say,? 1k - 100k. And that would be the SDRplay, correct?

No - the SDRplay is a RF radio receiver.? It is not for audio signal analysis.? You want an audio spectrum analyzer.? Buy a decent 96 KHz. sampling sound card and use one of the free FFT audio programs.

Roger

Hans13,

I own both models of the TinySA, 3 models of SDRPlay, An RFExplorer, and an Antunio.? They were perched to do transmitter purity analysis.? The TinySA is the best at this, in my opinion.? There is still one test that the SDRPlay is better, though it does take manual calculation.? That is measuring IMD.

If you want a general receiver AND a spectrum analyzer, then the SDRPlay can work.? The weakness is in measuring harmonics.? I found that accuracy over larger frequency spans can be an issue for the SDRPlay with the Spectrum-Analyzer program.? ?The close-in analysis is best in the SDRPlay (RSP1a with 14-bit DAC).? The TinySA Ultra is needed to do two-tone audio measurements of RF power amplifiers.

The TinySA ultra is about the same price as the SDRPlay RSP1a, so it comes down to what you want to do with the device.? ?If you want the SDR software capability, the RSP1a might be the best choice.? Consider that your harmonic measurements may be 4db or so off when trying to check 20 meters or higher in frequency.? The measurement process will be slower as you must verify levels and set things manually.? There are automated features in even the basic TinySA to do that analysis.

The TinySA rev 1 is 1/2 the price of the ultra and performs very well for most analyses.

The above are my experiences.? Others may have different experiences and different conclusions.
73
Evan
AC9TU

On Wed, Apr 12, 2023 at 02:13 PM, <hans13@...> wrote:

Because I work with mostly audio (hi-fi)

If you work with audio, especially high fidelity audio, neither the tinySA Ultra nor any of the SDRplay devices will be of any interest to you.? High fidelity audio is generally considered to include frequencies down to 20 Hz, and neither the? tinySA Ultra nor the SDRplay devices go anywhere near that.? The tinySA Ultra is rated to 100 kHz, although it will work somewhat below that.? The SDRplay devices are rated to 1 kHz.? To adequately reproduce human speech, response to 300 Hz or lower is required.? The lowest note on a guitar in standard tuning is 82.4 Hz.? The lowest note on a standard grand piano is 27.5 Hz.? So devices rated to 100 kHz or even 1 kHz don't even begin to approach hi-fi.? Additionally, the dynamic range may not be adequate for high fidelity audio devices.? A good quality PC audio interface (sound card) will have up to 24 bits resolution, unfortunately, the highest sampling rate you're likely to find is 192 kHz, which will only give you an audio frequency response of 96 kHz.? If you really need to do spectrum analysis to 100 kHz, that won't quite get you there.

Maybe you could give us a better idea of what it is you are trying to do, and we could give you a better idea of how to do it.

I need an analyzer to do much of what the APx555?https://www.ap.com/analyzers-accessories/apx555/ does but at a lower cost.
Yes, I already own several high-quality sound cards and some software.
Hi-fi audio (CD players, for example) does require some high BWs and freqs if you're dealing with clocks and oscillator crystals.

开云体育

I have a TinySA Ultra, an RSPDX (from SDRplay), plus a Thurlby Thandar PSA1301T (hand held analyser) and a Rigol DSA815-TG bench analyser with tracking generator.

The RSPDX makes a good general coverage receiver, but is a poor spectrum analyser. Maybe with better software it might be OK as the hardware is similar to an SA. It is obviously tied to a computer, be it a laptop or a desktop, it is still not "hand held", which is where the TinySA (and Thurlby Thandar units) come into their own.

Looking at transmitter harmonics, all three of my analysers work the same. The main differences are in the user interface, the TinySA Ultra is nowhere near as user friendly as the PSA1301T, which has a tilt stand and very easy screen touch buttons + physical buttons... However the current versions from Thurby Thandar cost significantly more than a TinySA Ultra, their web site is

In addition to using a hand held analyser as a means of searching out interference, such as "wall wart" swtiched mode power supplies, you can also use them for EMF measurements, which is basically measuring the radiated field strength of a transmitter. Those with really deep pockets can buy an R&S analyser and suitable antennas:


For 2m and 70cm, it is fairly easy to make a dipole and use it on a short length of wooden dowel to measure EMF levels from a horizontal transmitting antenna. The spreadsheet to convert dBm levels to Volts/metre is in the files section of this forum. My measurements seem about right for my 2m amateur radio station.

Dave G4AON

Take a look at the Digilent Analog Discovery. It’s a comprehensive DC-30 MHz laboratory that fits in the palm of your hand. The software is astounding in its capabilities. It’s the best solution I’ve found for gain, phase, and impedance analysis at audio frequencies other than an HP boat anchor.

Gary NA6O

Yeah, I've been aware of that for a while. But I've already got a fairly recent Siglent MDO. And? the Digilent is $400.?

On Thu, Apr 13, 2023 at 12:38 AM, G4AON wrote:

The RSPDX makes a good general coverage receiver, but is a poor spectrum analyser. Maybe with better software it might be OK as the hardware is similar to an SA.

Dave,

There is a 3rd party Spectrum analyzer program written for the SDRplay RSP devices.? Some folks like it a lot.. Can be downloaded here >>

The SDR play spectrum analyser software is OK, but not fantastic. It is mainly limited by the performance of the actual receiver. The minimum available bandwidth and resolution at audio frequencies is likely to be a problem if you are trying to use a TinySA Ultra for that purpose.

A sound card with a high sample rate is much better for audio applications.

If you have an iPad or similar even the free audio spectrum analyser apps will let you see frequencies up to 24kHz, and I have observed bird song and other ultrasonic animal noises using one.

Regards,

Martin

On Thu, Apr 13, 2023 at 12:34 AM, Kurt Poulsen wrote:

No to hijack the thread

Far from hijacking the thread, Kurt, you've offered the best solution I've seen here for what Hans wants to do.