A software defined radio (SDR) is needed for digitizing the radio signal to feed into the spectrometer program.
Options:
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The SDR we prefer is the Airspy R2, $169. This operates in a 10 MHz bandwidth and is the SDR that the DSPIRA software is coded for.
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A less expensive option is the Airspy Mini, $99. It operates in a 6 MHz bandwidth. Only a minor adjustment to the software is needed if this SDR is used. For details see the Spectrometer Source Block Settings page here.
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RTL-SDR - will need to make a minor change in the source block in the Gnuradio program. For details see the Spectrometer Source Block Settings page here.
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Lime - This can be used with 2 horns to do interferometry as well as a single horn. It will need to use the Lime source block in the Gnuradio program. For details see the Spectrometer Source Block Settings page here.
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ADALM-PLUTO - uses the PlutoSDR source block that requires some steps for installing on a Linux system. For details see the Spectrometer Source Block Settings page here.
For details on the changes needed in the source block mentioned above, refer to the Spectrometer Source Block Settings page here.
Cable Hardware: A coaxial cable is needed to connect the LNA to the SDR. Typically a 10 ft length is adequate, but any length up to 25 ft should work fine.