The DX-Patrol is a Software Defined Radio (SDR) receiver with a very wide receiving frequency range. In contrast to the usual cheap USB DVB-T sticks this receiver has an additional converter for shortwave. This is the reason for the wide frequency range from 100 kHz to 2000MHz. For operation with the HF converter additional bandfilters are provided, resulting in a much better dynamic range and good strong signal handling performance.
For operation on HF, a frequency shift of -40MHz must be set.
Another feature is that the entire frequency range is provided without gaps. With two independent antenna connectors (SMA) you can always use the best suited antennas without reconnecting them when changing the bands. A small switch on the side of the receiver controls a low-noise pin diode switch when changing from HF to VHF or vice versa. The current state (HF/VHF) is shown with a multi coloured LED. The maximum sampling rate supported by the hardware is 3.2MS/s, but this is usually limited by the software. The result is a sampled spectrum range of 96 kHz up to approx. 1 MHz, depending on software.
Operation of the DX Patrol SDR receiver is possible with any software which supports the RTL2832 based DVB-T stick. Possible programs are (among others):
- SDR# (Windows)
- HDSDR (Windows)
- sdr-radio.com (Windows)
- SDR Touch (Android)
- Gnu Radio (Linux)
and more
Special purpose programs like rtl1090 or dump1090 can be used to receive the ADS/B beacons sent from airplanes. With this receiver, suitable software and a suitable antenna plus cable a display of the current air situation at the receiving position is easily possible. Further you can participate in networks which provide live flight data to website like fleightradar24.com. Other software allows the reception of low orbit NOAA weather satellites on 137MHz – the possibilities of the Dx Patro lSDR receiver are endless!
Installation of the SDR receiver DX patrol is simple. It is recommended not to use the windows USB drivers but those provided through the ‘Zadig’ installer. The most programs mentioned above are free software products, you will find installation instructions on the various websites of the program authors. own software or drivers are not provided with the receiver. The connection to the computer is done with USB, a cable from USB-A conector to USB-Mini-B is required. Thsi cable is not included.
The current version MK2 has better performance due to its optimized filter circuit and new RF design.
Price: 89 EUro