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New Pluto SDR receiving poorly
Posted: Fri Apr 09, 2021 7:53 am
by KISA
Hi,
Apologies in advance if this is a noob question.
I recently purchased a Pluto SDR and am trying to test it on a local FM radio station (104.7MHz).
I’ve changed the config of the SDR so it now operates from 70MHz to 6GHz, so it’s in range (set it to a 9361 for my Rev C version).
When I try and view the radio station in SDRAngel or Matlab via a spectrum analyser, I find the received signal strength is barely above the noise floor, compared to an RTL-SDR I have (using the same antenna) which shows the same radio station booming in.
I’m not convinced that the Pluto is at fault, because I’ve hear/read that the initial setup of the Pluto is not that simple (i.e. it doesn’t work straight out of the box).
Can anyone help me in clarifying if my Pluto is faulty or if there are settings I’ve missed doing that will allow me to collect the FM signal I’m expecting.
Thank you,
KISA
Re: New Pluto SDR receiving poorly
Posted: Sat Apr 10, 2021 8:23 am
by jdow
Did you ever adjust the RF gain on the Pluto? If yes is the antenna connected to the Rx antenna port?
{^_^}
Re: New Pluto SDR receiving poorly
Posted: Sat Apr 10, 2021 10:22 am
by Simon G4ELI
KISA wrote: ↑Fri Apr 09, 2021 7:53 am
Hi,
Apologies in advance if this is a noob question.
I recently purchased a Pluto SDR and am trying to test it on a local FM radio station (104.7MHz).
I’ve changed the config of the SDR so it now operates from 70MHz to 6GHz, so it’s in range (set it to a 9361 for my Rev C version).
When I try and view the radio station in SDRAngel or Matlab via a spectrum analyser, I find the received signal strength is barely above the noise floor, compared to an RTL-SDR I have (using the same antenna) which shows the same radio station booming in.
I’m not convinced that the Pluto is at fault, because I’ve hear/read that the initial setup of the Pluto is not that simple (i.e. it doesn’t work straight out of the box).
Can anyone help me in clarifying if my Pluto is faulty or if there are settings I’ve missed doing that will allow me to collect the FM signal I’m expecting.
Thank you,
KISA
Let's see a screenshot, must include the Radio panel where you adjust the settings.
Re: New Pluto SDR receiving poorly
Posted: Tue Nov 09, 2021 4:02 pm
by dg9bfc_sigi
KISA wrote: ↑Fri Apr 09, 2021 7:53 am
Hi,
Apologies in advance if this is a noob question.
I recently purchased a Pluto SDR and am trying to test it on a local FM radio station (104.7MHz).
I’ve changed the config of the SDR so it now operates from 70MHz to 6GHz, so it’s in range (set it to a 9361 for my Rev C version).
When I try and view the radio station in SDRAngel or Matlab via a spectrum analyser, I find the received signal strength is barely above the noise floor, compared to an RTL-SDR I have (using the same antenna) which shows the same radio station booming in.
I’m not convinced that the Pluto is at fault, because I’ve hear/read that the initial setup of the Pluto is not that simple (i.e. it doesn’t work straight out of the box).
Can anyone help me in clarifying if my Pluto is faulty or if there are settings I’ve missed doing that will allow me to collect the FM signal I’m expecting.
Thank you,
KISA
there are some plutos out in the market that are "deaf" (15 to 20 db lower sensitivity) ... still functional .. but deaf
lets hope that you do not have such a faulty unit
Re: New Pluto SDR receiving poorly
Posted: Thu Nov 11, 2021 8:12 am
by jdow
Opening up the wider bandwidth handling does not guarantee it will work. Consider why the part might not be sold as fully specification compliant for the wider bandwidth. On the offhand (did you plug your computer in, is it turned on) level have you played with the gain control settings? How does it perform on 450 MHz?
{^_^}
Re: New Pluto SDR receiving poorly
Posted: Thu Nov 11, 2021 10:37 am
by Simon G4ELI
A screenshot will help
