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RADIXON WiNRADIO A RTEM IS WR- G69DDC User Manual

Software-defined communications receiver
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WiNRADiO
®
by RADIXON
®
WR- G69DDC
A RTEM IS
TM
Software-Defined Communications Receiver
User's Guide
Ver. 1.12

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Summary of Contents for RADIXON WiNRADIO A RTEM IS WR- G69DDC

  • Page 1 WiNRADiO ® by RADIXON ® WR- G69DDC A RTEM IS Software-Defined Communications Receiver User’s Guide Ver. 1.12...
  • Page 2 Radixon Group Pty. Ltd. 45 - 47 Islington Street, Collingwood, Victoria 3066 Australia © 2019 Radixon, Melbourne, Australia All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means without the written permission of the publisher.
  • Page 3 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide FCC Notice This equipment has been tested and found to comply with the limits for a Class B digital device, pursuant to Part 15 of the FCC Rules. These limits are designed to provide reasonable protection against harmful interference in a residential installation.

  • Page 4: Table Of Contents

    WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Table of Contents Table of Contents ..................4 Introduction....................6 The Hardware ....................7 Installation..................... 8 Recommended System Requirements ............8 Software and Hardware Installation ............9 Setting up the Sound Card ............... 10 Connecting the Antenna ................11 Grounding ....................
  • Page 5 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Pause ......................64 Spectrum Scopes ..................65 Zoom Spectrum ..................67 Save and Print Spectrum ................67 Resolution Bandwidth ................68 Spectrum Averaging ................. 68 Waterfall Spectrum ................... 69 Spectrum Markers ..................71 Information Buttons .................. 72 Baseline Level ..................

  • Page 6: Introduction

    WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Introduction Welcome to the WiNRADiO G69DDC receiver, the Artemis. This receiver is an advanced frequency extended successor to the award- winning WR-G39DDC receiver, the Excelsior. Like many WiNRADiO receivers in the past, this advanced software-defined receiver breaks many new grounds. Some of its features are hard to beat, such as the real-time 80/34 MHz-wide spectrum analyzer, two independent frequency ranges (bottom range in direct sampling mode) with dedicated inputs, the capability to record up to a 32 MHz...

  • Page 7: The Hardware

    WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide The Hardware The WiNRADiO G69DDC receiver is presented as an external USB-interfaced design which provides portability and flexibility of use. The WR-G69DDC hardware is contained in a small metal box, encapsulated with transparent plastic. The front of the enclosure contains an indicator LED. The LED also serves for diagnostic purposes and installation trouble-shooting (see Appendix C –...

  • Page 8: Installation

    WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Installation The complete WiNRADiO G69DDC receiver package contains the following items: • WiNRADiO G69DDC receiver • Application software, User’s and Installation Guide on a CD ROM • Installation Guide in printed form • Warranty information • AC/DC adapter with power cord •...

  • Page 9: Software And Hardware Installation

    WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Software and Hardware Installation 1. Leave the receiver disconnected from the PC and insert the installation CD ROM. The installer should start automatically. If the installation program does not start automatically, choose the Run command from the Windows Start menu and type D:\INSTALL (if the CD ROM is the D: drive on your PC).

  • Page 10: Setting Up The Sound Card

    WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Setting up the Sound Card As the digitally down-converted signal from the receiver is transferred to the PC over the USB interface, no external connection to the PC sound card input is necessary. The sound card is only used for the demodulated audio output. On Windows 10, the audio volume can be adjusted using the WR-G69DDC volume slider inside the Applications section and the master volume inside the Device section.

  • Page 11: Connecting The Antenna

    WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Connecting the Antenna As the old saying goes, “a good antenna is the best amplifier”. No matter how good a radio receiver is, the performance limit of a radio receiving system is always determined by the first element of the receiving chain – the antenna. To make the most out of your WiNRADiO receiver, you should install a good antenna, preferably located outdoors, as far away as possible from interference sources.
  • Page 12 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide A "good" ground for a receiver is one that provides a low impedance path to ground for radio signals in the frequency range of interest. A metal cold water pipe located in close proximity to a possible ground connection point could provide good results.

  • Page 13: Getting Started

    WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Getting Started The following quick-start introduction is intended to make it possible for you to enjoy your new receiver as quickly as possible. Detailed operation is described in the subsequent chapters. We do hope you will return to these chapters as the WiNRADiO Artemis receiver has many unique and innovative features the usage of which may not be immediately obvious and which would be a shame to miss.
  • Page 14 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide When you start the receiver the first time, the AM mode is selected by default. Otherwise you can set the demodulation mode by clicking on the appropriate mode selection button at the top-right: When tuned, you should be able to see the station peak in both real-time spectrum scopes in the upper section of the application window: The spectrum scope on the left shows the output of the primary Digital Down-Converter (DDC1) and the one on the right is that of the secondary DDC (DDC2), which...
  • Page 15 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide If you place your cursor onto the bottom half of the tuning knob, the direction of the rotation will reverse. (You don’t need to move the cursor up or down to change the rotation of the knob, simply press either the left or right mouse button.) The rotation increment of the tuning knob is 1 kHz.

  • Page 16: Achieving Best Selectivity

    WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Achieving Best Selectivity In any software-defined receiver, the maximum achievable selectivity is a function of the processing power of the host computer: The greater the CPU power, the “longer” and therefore the sharper its digital filters can be made. The selectivity of your receiver can be adjusted using the function Filter length under the top bar menu Options.

  • Page 17: Avoiding Front-End Overload

    WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Avoiding Front-End Overload If you are tuned to the HF bands and the S-meter shows the words ADC CLP, the analog-to-digital converter (ADC) is overloaded (i.e. clipping the signal). In such a case, use the Attenuator to reduce the level of the signal entering the ADC.

  • Page 18: Inside The Artemis

    WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Inside the Artemis Let’s have a look at what’s inside this receiver and how it relates to the graphical user interface of the control application. Here is a simplified functional block diagram of the hardware portion of the receiver: The receiver operates in two separate frequency ranges: Range 1 from 8 kHz to 80 MHz and Range 2 from 43 MHz to 8 GHz.
  • Page 19 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide For frequency range 1 the signal chain starts with its dedicated antenna input and its protective and impedance matching circuitry, followed by the Attenuator and the switchable MW filter and the Anti-aliasing low pass filter. The attenuator is adjustable from zero to 21 dB in 3 dB increments and serves to reduce signal levels in the proximity of strong stations.
  • Page 20 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide the frequency mixer and the IF bandpass filter. The last IF filter with centre frequency of 140 MHz acts as an anti-aliasing filter as well. The signals from both frequency ranges meet at signal switch, which selects the appropriate frequency range according to the tuned frequency.
  • Page 21 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide You can select any one of these three receivers using the three tabs above the main frequency display (RX1, RX2, RX3). There are some important tuning ramifications resulting from the fact, that all three receivers must reside within the current DDC spectrum - these will be described in greater detail in a later chapter, Tuning the Artemis.

  • Page 22: Resizing The Application Window

    WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Resizing the Application Window The WiNRADiO Artemis application is fully resizable, which means you can drag its edges, corners and some internal boundaries to maximize the available screen space. The application panel also supports being resized over two or more monitors: You can literally surround yourself with a complete panorama of radio spectrum.

  • Page 23: Drop-Down Menu Controls

    WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Drop-Down Menu Controls The WiNRADiO Artemis receiver employs an innovative type of "drop-down menu controls" that work slightly differently from standard Windows controls. To illustrate this, let’s try, for example, the DEM BW (demodulator filter bandwidth) control located just above the demodulator (DDC2) spectrum: Clicking on the arrow button opens a drop-down menu showing a list of values to select from, as you would expect.

  • Page 24: Tuning The Artemis

    WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Tuning the Artemis Manual Frequency Entry To change frequency, simply type the new frequency into the keyboard. As soon as you press a number or decimal point, the frequency display will activate, waiting for a frequency to be typed. You can also double-click on the display to type in a new frequency in a highlighted field, or after single-clicking on the display, it is possible to use the mouse wheel to increment/decrement a particular digit, depending on the current cursor position.
  • Page 25 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Under the main frequency display there is a Band description window: This window shows the band allocation of the currently tuned frequency. While the displayed band descriptions are specific to the North American standard band allocation, they are based on international treaties and therefore are generally applicable worldwide with minor differences, and can be easily edited by the user.

  • Page 26: Tuning Knob

    WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Tuning Knob The Tuning knob provides adjustment of the frequency in fixed 1 kHz, 100 Hz, 10 Hz or 1 Hz steps. To use the tuning knob, position the mouse cursor over the knob (the cursor will turn into a curved double ended arrow) and click using either the left or right mouse button.

  • Page 27: Multiple Receiver Operation

    WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Multiple Receiver Operation With the WiNRADiO Artemis you can tune to three stations at once, listening to one (or all of them mixed together). Listen to one while recording the others (into separate files). The only condition is that all of these frequencies must fit inside the DDC1 bandwidth.

  • Page 28: Point-And-Click Tuning

    WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide of the currently recorded DDC1 spectrum. Any such attempt will be ignored and the recording button above the DDC spectrum will flash to indicate the reason why this operation failed. You would need to stop the recording first. If tuning to a new frequency causes a receiver to be disabled, this disabled receiver’s audio will be muted, and the tuned frequency shown in the corresponding receiver tab will turn 'red' to indicate that this receiver is...
  • Page 29 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide differences in behavior depending on which particular spectrum window the highlighted passband is being dragged in. Dragging the gray area in the wideband spectrum will relocate the DDC1 passband to a new frequency. However, it is not possible to drag beyond the current spectrum boundaries;...

  • Page 30: If Shift And Passband Tuning

    WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide bandwidth. For USB mode, the opposite applies. The edge that is used for tuning is highlighted for operator convenience. IF Shift and Passband Tuning Dragging the grayed-out demodulator filter passband in the demodulator spectrum will result in tuning the receiver in a manner somewhat similar to the IF Shift function in conventional receivers.

  • Page 31: Frequency Stepping

    WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide To make it possible to move the filter but still remain tuned to the same frequency, there is also an associated Passband tuning function: This is invoked simply by dragging the filter passband with the right mouse button instead of the left one.

  • Page 32: Frequency Display Offset

    WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Frequency Display Offset It is possible to connect the Artemis to a down-converter to receive frequencies which are normally beyond the Artemis’ frequency range. In this scenario, it is convenient to see the actual received frequency rather than having to manually transpose the displayed frequency to the down-converter’s input signal.

  • Page 33: Mode Selection

    WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide If the frequency of one of the other receivers does not fit into the current DDC1 spectrum bandwidth, that receiver becomes disabled and the frequency in the tab turns red to indicate the disabled condition. The position of all virtual receivers (or rather their demodulator DDC2 bandwidths) is shown as dark blue areas inside the DDC1 spectrum scope, with the currently selected receiver highlighted.

  • Page 34: Ams Mode

    WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide User Definable Mode In addition to the standard AM, LSB, USB, CW and FM modes, the Artemis receiver is equipped with several special modes, AMS, ISB, DSB, DRM, FSK and UDM. AMS Mode The AMS mode is used to improve reception quality of amplitude-modulated signals, especially those affected by selective fading which occurs over a large distance.

  • Page 35: Isb And Dsb Modes

    WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Both the Tune capture range and the Sync. lock range values are user- definable, under the Options | AMS capture range menu: When the signal is locked in synchronization, this is indicated using a "lock" symbol located in the top left corner of the frequency display: ISB and DSB Modes ISB (independent sideband) is quite similar to the AMS mode and makes it possible to receive independent information in the two sidebands of an AM-...

  • Page 36: Drm Mode

    WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide In the DSB (dual sideband) mode, both side-bands carry the same information, but the carrier is either entirely or partially suppressed. The controls and operation are similar to the AMS mode. DRM Mode The DRM mode is a new broadcasting system designed to introduce digital broadcasting to medium and short waves, commonly referred to as DRM30.
  • Page 37 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide running “ticker” text which is usually transmitted by the station along with the audio, and which typically contains the station ID and program information associated with the broadcast. At left, there is also a description of “services” that are available. Up to four services are available in a DRM broadcast, and these are selectable by the services selector in the Audio tab: On the right-hand side of the demodulator spectrum (DDC2), a DRM capture...

  • Page 38: Fsk Mode

    WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide FSK Mode The FSK (Frequency Shift Keying) mode performs in a similar manner to the CW mode, in that all of the parameters associated with CW are also available with FSK, but each with its own independent setting. Of particular note is the tone frequency: With CW, or Morse transmission, this is typically set to 800 Hz to provide a comfortable sound for the listener.

  • Page 39: Tuning Tab

    WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Tuning Tab The Tuning tab contains controls for Passband tuning, BW presets, demodulator spectrum Centering, AFC (Automatic Frequency Control), TTP (Tune to Peak) and Stepping controls. For the AMS, ISB and DSB modes, it also contains lower or upper sideband selection, and for the UDM mode there is also a mode selection.
  • Page 40 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide choice of typical values applicable to that mode. These buttons do not appear when DRM is selected because the bandwidth is fixed. To change the demodulator bandwidth continuously, you can use the DEM BW control located above the demodulator spectrum scope: There are two ways you can use this control: Either click on the box and highlight all digits, then type the bandwidth directly into the edit box (you can terminate the entry with h for Hz or k for kHz), or select the required bandwidth...
  • Page 41 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Frequency Stepping Another facility available under the tuning tab is Frequency stepping: The Step control selects the stepping size. The following convenient step sizes are available: 1 Hz, 10 Hz, 100 Hz, 1 kHz, 3.125 kHz, 5 kHz, 6.25 kHz, 10 kHz, 12.5 kHz, 25 kHz, 50 kHz, 100 kHz.
  • Page 42 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide In LSB and USB modes, the success of this facility will depend on the type of modulation signal. It may be useful for certain types of data modulation (fax), but is not usually recommended for voice modulation. Band Selection In the AMS, ISB and DSB modes, the tuning tab also includes Band selection controls:...

  • Page 43: Audio Tab

    WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Audio Tab The Audio tab contains functions specific to the parameters of the output sound, for example volume and audio filtering. Audio Filter The Filter button turns on the Audio filter. The audio filter is a bandpass filter with continuously adjustable lower and upper cut-off frequencies: When the audio filter is enabled, its low and high cut-off frequencies can be adjusted using the Low and High controls.
  • Page 44 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide The filter can be also adjusted graphically, by dragging either edge of the audio filter passband: Clicking the RF button while the audio spectrum is displayed will return the spectrum scope to the default RF spectrum mode. Volume Control The Volume control is also located under the Audio tab.
  • Page 45 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Next to the volume control is the Mute button, which makes it possible to disable the audio output. This is faster and more practical to use than setting the volume to zero, with the added benefit of not changing the set volume level. To use the mute control, simply click on this button.
  • Page 46 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide RX 1 RX 2 RX 3 Currently Resulting audio settings settings settings selected Mix = on Mix = on Mix = off Only RX3 will be heard Left = on Left = off (because it is currently Right = off Right = on selected and not...
  • Page 47 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Virtual Sound Card The Artemis receiver is equipped with an interface to the WiNRADiO Digital Bridge™ Virtual Sound Card. The Virtual Sound Card (VSC) is a software option designed to transfer digitized audio signal streams from WiNRADiO receivers directly to other applications.
  • Page 48 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide To use the VSC for audio output, select the required demodulation mode and engage the VSC Audio button. This will connect the receiver’s demodulator to the VSC stream. The demodulated audio will be affected by all the various settings normally available for the demodulation, such as bandwidth, audio filter, etc.

  • Page 49: Memory Tab

    WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Memory Tab The Memory tab contains functions related to the frequency memory available in the Artemis. This user-defined memory makes it possible to store and recall arbitrary frequencies, and group them together in a tree-like structure. The number of frequencies that can be stored in Artemis memories is limited only by the size of your computer’s hard drive.
  • Page 50 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide At the top of the window is the Callsign edit box. That’s where you would store a callsign or a name of the station whose frequency you are storing. The next line contains a Description where you can type your comments regarding the station.
  • Page 51 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide The same applies to the audio Filter, Attenuator, Preamp and DDC settings. If enabled, their settings will be stored together with the frequency and the specified values will be applied when the memory is recalled. Hotkey For quick tuning to your favorite stations, you can also assign a Hotkey (function keys F2 to F12) to up to eleven different frequencies.
  • Page 52 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide To select a frequency, click on an item in the list on the right, and the frequency will be tuned. Then close the window. Frequencies which have been set for Memory scan lockout are indicated by symbol at the left-hand side.
  • Page 53 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Deleting a Frequency To remove a frequency, first click on the Recall button. Select the frequency you wish to delete, and click on the Delete button at bottom right (alternatively, select Delete from the right-click menu). You will be asked to confirm that you wish to delete this frequency from memory.
  • Page 54 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Inside each subfolder (i.e. group), you can store as many frequencies as you wish, limited only by your hard drive capacity. You can create a new frequency by clicking the New frequency button (in the User memory popup) or you can do this using the Store button under the memory tab (in such case the new frequency will be stored in the currently selected group, as displayed under the memory tab).
  • Page 55 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide When you exit the WiNRADiO Artemis application, all memory changes are automatically saved; there is no need to use the Save command before exit. Note: The default user memory file is called Memory.r7m and resides in the following folder: My Documents\WiNRADiO\G69DDC Opening the User Memory File When the WiNRADiO Artemis receiver application starts up, the most recently...

  • Page 56: Notch

    WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Notch The Notch tab contains controls dedicated to the Notch filter function. There are two notch filters which can be operated simultaneously: The notch filter is a band-stop filter which can be used to minimize the effects of interference falling inside or near a received station’s spectrum.
  • Page 57 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide In the resulting audio, typically there would be a strong buzzing sound. After applying the notch filter, adjusting its center and bandwidth (by dragging the blue area center and edges) to fall exactly over the interfering signal, the situation will look like this: This results in significantly reduced interference and a much more pleasing sound.

  • Page 58: Squelch

    WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Squelch The Squelch tab contains squelch-related controls: The squelch control can be used to automatically mute the receiver when no signal is being received. Without a signal, all you will usually hear is noise, so squelch is provided to cut out the noise until a useful signal is received, making the receiver more comfortable to use.
  • Page 59 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide DCS (Digital Control Squelch, also known as Continuous Digital Controlled Squelch System or CDCSS) specifies a particular DCS code which will open the squelch. The R button serves to indicate a reverse code, to comply with systems which transmit the DCS code in reverse.

  • Page 60: Gain

    WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Gain The Gain tab contains several controls to adjust various gain-related settings of the receiver. The gain is a software parameter, and can be set separately for each of the three virtual receivers. The Automatic Gain Control (AGC) acts upon the digitally down-converted and filtered demodulator passband, in order to keep the signal coming to the demodulator at a constant level.
  • Page 61 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide The attack time is the speed with which the AGC reacts to a rising signal level, while the decay time is the speed with which it reacts to a falling signal level. These settings are recommended only for advanced users. When enabled, the AGC tries to maintain the audio output at a constant level, referred to as the AGC reference level.
  • Page 62 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Manual Gain The Manual gain mode can be enabled using the Manual button, which is mutually exclusive with the AGC button. In this mode, the gain can be adjusted manually to the desired value using the Gain control drop-down: Useful notes about AGC to remember: 1.

  • Page 63: Noise Blanker

    WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Noise Blanker The Noise Blanker can be used for removal of random high-level noise-spikes resulting from atmospheric effects and man-made interference. There are two types of noise blankers available, one using the Short Time DDC Averaging method and another using the ADC Input Threshold method. The Short Time DDC averaging method is based upon comparing the instantaneous signal level at the DDC output (demodulator input) to a short- time exponential average.

  • Page 64: Pause

    WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Pause The Pause facility makes it possible to temporarily stop the audio and resume it at any time – a useful function if one needs to get away from the receiver for a while. While the receiver is pausing, the entire incoming down-converted pre-demodulation signal (DDC2 output) is being stored in a temporary buffer, so that other demodulation-related functions, such as the audio filter or notch, can still be applied on the resumed signal.

  • Page 65: Spectrum Scopes

    WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide The Orig. time display shows the time when the currently played signal was originally received. Data that has already been played back is automatically removed from the buffer to make room for the incoming signal, so that simultaneous buffering and playback can run for an unlimited time, effectively making it possible to listen to the signal with an adjustable delay.
  • Page 66 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide The Wideband spectrum scope displays the RF spectrum contents of the current range which the receiver is tuned to in real time. For the first range this is 80 MHz wide from 0 Hz to 80 MHz, for the second range this is 34 MHz wide from 43 MHz to 8 GHz, tuneable in 2 MHz steps.

  • Page 67: Zoom Spectrum

    WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Zoom Spectrum Each spectrum scope includes Zoom buttons Use the two zoom buttons to zoom in and out of the spectrum – this is a useful feature for observing frequency peaks in close detail, for example where stations are very close to one another.

  • Page 68: Resolution Bandwidth

    WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Resolution Bandwidth The RBW control alters the Resolution bandwidth of the spectrum scopes; in other words it specifies the amount of detail that will be visible in the spectrum. A low RBW value provides a greater detail, a higher value results in a smoother trace.

  • Page 69: Waterfall Spectrum

    WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Waterfall Spectrum The DDC1 and wideband spectrum scopes are both equipped with a Waterfall function. Clicking on the Waterfall button transforms the standard spectrum scope into a waterfall-type display, where the vertical-axis represents time and signal strength is represented by a palette of colors: The palette can be selected using the Palette control (located above the display), from a set of several factory defined color palettes: To invoke the palette menu simply click on the dBm scale on the left.
  • Page 70 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide The palette Top and Bottom parameters can be understood as optical limits, or baselines. They define the highest and lowest signal level values which will correspond to the lightest and darkest palette colors. All signal levels above and below these limit values will be drawn in the lightest or darkest color.

  • Page 71: Spectrum Markers

    WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Spectrum Markers This facility exists in the wideband, DDC1 and audio spectrum scopes, making it possible to mark frequencies of interest, set reference points and calculate differential frequencies. The current cursor frequency is shown above the cursor (vertical red line). This is followed by two associated values in square brackets representing the instantaneous signal strength value at the cursor position, and the frequency difference between the receiver tuned frequency and the current cursor...

  • Page 72: Information Buttons

    WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Cancel marker reference – this will remove the marker’s status as a reference and the differential frequencies will not be displayed for the other markers. Remove marker at xx.xxx MHz – by selecting this function, this marker will be deleted.

  • Page 73: Baseline Level

    WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Baseline Level The wideband spectrum scope provides adjustment for the baseline level using the Min. Level control. This adjusts the minimum displayed signal strength level, and serves to maximize the useful display space in situations where the noise floor would occupy too large a proportion of the displayed spectrum (for example in noisy environments or with large antennas): Peak Hold This feature is only available in the wideband spectrum scope, making it...
  • Page 74 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Markers (when the spectrum is right-clicked) are also available in the Audio Spectrum display mode. When the Audio filter is enabled (using the Filter button under the Audio tab), its passband will be shown as a gray area superimposed over the audio spectrum.

  • Page 75: Sweeper

    WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Sweeper If the Sweeper button is engaged, this changes the wide-band spectrum into a “swept” spectrum scope. Rather than showing the intermediate frequency 80 or 34 MHz wide spectrum in real-time (which happens when the Spectrum button is engaged), the sweeper draws the spectrum by quickly tuning the receiver in 30 MHz chunks, and gluing these 30 MHz chunks of spectra together to produce a continuous spectrum.

  • Page 76: Activity Search

    WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide The sweeper result can be saved in a special proprietary format (extension “.g69ddcswp”) and then loaded back to be viewed by the Artemis application. This is accomplished using the file Save and Load buttons, respectively: Current visible sweeper spectrum can be printed using the Print button.
  • Page 77 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide To prepare for the activity search, you need to first set the Start and End frequencies of the range, and the Step size: The step size and the starting frequency must be determined so that they fall on the actual channel frequencies inside the searched band.
  • Page 78 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide The Hit column will show the percentage of the time (since the start of the search) that the discovered frequencies were on air. Right clicking on a listed frequency will open the context menu with several options: Tune - tune the receiver to the selected frequency.
  • Page 79 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide The activity search results can be saved in a special proprietary format (extension “.g69ddcact”) and then loaded back to be viewed by the Artemis application. The frequency table with hit counts can also be saved to a CSV or XLS file.

  • Page 80: Recording Functions

    WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Recording Functions At the top of the DDC1 and DDC2 spectrum scopes there are Recorder buttons that serve to reveal their respective recording facilities. Pressing the Recorder button (DDC1 or DDC2) will reduce the height of the spectrum scope at the bottom and utilize the extra space for the recorder controls.
  • Page 81 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide The DDC recorder can record files with the extension “.ddc” format or “.rxw” proprietary format. The Audio recorder will record in the standard Windows wave format (extension “.wav”) or in the “.wwv” proprietary format. The actual format can be chosen in the Browse file dialog or just by typing the file extension in the file name edit box.
  • Page 82 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Increment its name - each time the record button is pressed, a “counter” will be inserted in the file name and prefixed with the “$” symbol. If there is no initial number then “001” is automatically used first, and then incremented each time a new file is created.

  • Page 83: Attenuator

    WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide frequency into the file name (with DDC files this will be the current center frequency of the DDC bandwidth). As a result, the file name may for example look like this: rec-12.345678MHz_11-07-04_15’34’57.ddc (for DDC files) or rec-12.345678MHz_11-07-04_15’34’57.wav (for audio files.

  • Page 84: Mw Filter

    WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide The Preamp button engages a low noise preamplifier, which adds approx 10 dB of amplification to the RF front-end, and so increases sensitivity. Please note that the actions of both the attenuator and preamplifier are compensated for by the S-meter. This means that the S-meter always displays the actual signal strength at the antenna input, within the available measurement range (readings are normalised).

  • Page 85: Top Menu Bar

    WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide When the signal strength falls under the squelch level (i.e. the needle falls in the red region and also turns red), the receiver audio will be muted and the word “Squelched” will appear inside the S-meter. The squelch value is always indicated in dBm (even if the signal strength is displayed in S-units or microvolts).

  • Page 86: File

    WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide File The File menu includes functions associated with file operations. User memory files are of a special format with the extension “.r7m”. Scheduler files have the extension “.r7s”. Sweeper data (refer to the Sweeper chapter) have the extension “.g69ddcswp”, Activity monitor data (refer to the Activity search chapter) has the extension “.g69ddcact”.
  • Page 87 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Each line of a CSV file contains the following information, in this particular order: “Folder”, “Callsign”, “Description”, “Frequency”, “Mode”, “Bandwidth”, “Level squelch”, “Noise squelch”, “Voice squelch”, “CTCSS squelch “, ”DCS squelch”, “Audio filter low”, “Audio filter high”, “Audio filter de-emphasis” Folder can also include subfolders (groups), which are separated by slash signs “/”, for example as follows: "Memory/SW stations/Australia"...

  • Page 88: Options

    WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Options The Options menu contains a number of user settings, making it possible to customize the receiver’s look and behavior, adjust its numerous operational parameters, activate various test and measurement displays, calibrate the receiver, as well as restore factory defaults for user-definable parameters.
  • Page 89 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Receiver Network Settings The Receiver Network Settings dialog displays the receiver’s MAC address and provides controls to set its IP address and network mask. This dialog is only available if the receiver is connected via its USB port, to allow you ro configure the parameters to connect via Ethernet.
  • Page 90 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Filter Length This facility makes it possible to adjust the digital filter “length” (which directly translates into selectivity) for three types of filter used in the Excalibur Sigma: The Demodulator filter length has a direct influence upon the overall 'receiver selectivity'.
  • Page 91 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide in demodulation quality. Wider DDC bandwidths affect display and recording, while increasing the CPU load considerably. Front Panel LED This function is only applicable to the WR-G69DDCe (USB/LAN interfaced) model. Normally, its front panel blue LED flashes with various patterns which are useful for installing the receiver and debugging possible interface problems (see Appendix C).
  • Page 92 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Enter the required offset value in the Display offset edit box, click OK, and this value will be added to the displayed frequency. Optionally, you can invert the displayed spectrum using the Invert spectrum checkbox, which may be useful for example if a spectrum-inverting down- converter is used at the RF input.
  • Page 93 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Keyboard Shortcuts Keyboard shortcuts make it possible to use keyboard keys instead of the mouse to select the most common functions. The keyboard shortcuts are also very useful for blind and visually impaired radio operators as a preferred alternative to a graphical user interface.
  • Page 94 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide This function makes it possible to set sampling rates for both the VSC audio and IF outputs independently, to match the requirements of the target application. The VSC audio data is always 16 bit mono, the IF data is 16 bit stereo (each of the "I and Q"...
  • Page 95 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide AMS Capture Range In the AMS mode, there is a certain "capture range", a frequency range within which the receiver will capture the signal and lock to synchronization. If you are tuning to a new signal, this Tune capture range is initially quite wide, within ±1.5 kHz (factory default value) from the actual signal frequency, to enable easy tuning by pointing and clicking near the peak in the DDC spectrum, or by dragging the filter passband area in the demodulator spectrum.
  • Page 96 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Audio Output The audio output function makes it possible to allocate the audio output of the three virtual receivers to different Wave out audio devices available on your computer. This may be handy in special applications where you might wish to use one receiver for audio output only, another one for data decoding (via a virtual sound card), etc.
  • Page 97 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Should, as a result of selecting 10 ms waterfall resolution, your computer becomes sluggish, you might need to either revert to the default 50 ms value or reduce the CPU load by narrowing the DDC1 bandwidth or reducing the Filter length setting under Options.
  • Page 98 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Show Data Rates The Show Data Rates display shows the various internal data rates of the entire G69DDC receiver system. This may be useful especially for debugging of installation problems: Of particular interest to many users will be the CPU load (excessive CPU load may cause sluggish behavior or freezing of the computer), and Audio latency.
  • Page 99 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide with a good receiver such as the Artemis, there is no noticeable difference. Note: When measuring sensitivity using SINAD, it is very important that the Audio Filter is enabled and the cut-off frequencies (and for FM measurements, also the de-emphasis) are set according to the specified test conditions.
  • Page 100 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Calibration Since the Artemis uses an accurate and stable temperature compensated crystal oscillator with 0.1 ppm (parts per million) tuning stability, there is no real need for calibration for most practical purposes. However, for the most demanding user, a calibration facility still remains available: Such calibration can be done either manually, by entering a correction factor for the reference oscillator directly, or using automatic calibration against a...
  • Page 101 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide This feature may be useful if a frequency of interest is found and you wish to record or monitor it, and then tune the Artemis to a frequency outside the currently tuned DDC1 bandwidth. Audio from the WR-G313, or WR-G315 receivers will normally be presented to the stereo mixer system, although with the WR-G313i, or WR-G315i models (internal PCI-card version), it may be more convenient to use a separate speaker connected directly to the receiver’s audio output socket.
  • Page 102 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide...

  • Page 103: Memory

    WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Memory The memory functions are described in full detail in the chapter Memory tab (under Function tabs). Selecting this top bar menu function is equivalent to pressing the Recall button under the memory tab. The top menu bar function Memory contains the following facilities: Show user memory makes it possible to display and edit the entire frequency memory structure.

  • Page 104: Scheduler

    WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Scheduler The Scheduler is used to schedule automatic audio recording of stations at predefined dates and times: When the Scheduler function is selected, the following Task list is shown: You can add new recording tasks by pressing the New button at the bottom- left.
  • Page 105 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide At the top of the window, you can add the task description or name in the Description edit box which will then appear in the task list. The next item to specify is the Frequency for the receiver to be tuned to. The next items are Start time and Start date.
  • Page 106 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide If the task is to be performed only on particular days of week, you can select those days of the week on which the task is to be performed. (By default, initially all days are selected, so you will have to deselect the unwanted days.) Then there are three choices for the type of action for the Scheduler to perform: You can either run a special-purpose plug-in, an external application program, or make a recording.

  • Page 107: Logger

    WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide By default, the recorded audio files are saved in the My Documents\WiNRADiO\G69DDC folder but you can change this using the file browser function when entering the recorded file name. Logger The Artemis receiver is equipped with a simple logging function which makes it possible to log signal strength on up to three frequencies at the same time.

  • Page 108: Plugins

    WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Plugins The last item (except Help) in the top bar menu is Plugins. Like many other WiNRADiO products, the Artemis has the capability to integrate with WiNRADiO’s XRS (Extensible Radio Specification) plug-ins that can extend the receiver’s capability in many respects. These can include various general-purpose enhancements related to particular user-interface functions, as well as additional demodulators and other signal processing facilities.
  • Page 109 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Using the function UTC time under Options top menu bar, you can set the display to be in local time or UTC time. If in the UTC time mode, the clock will show Universal Coordinated Time, formerly called GMT (Greenwich Mean Time), which is the standard time used around the world.

  • Page 110: Appendix A - Sdr And Ddc Primer

    WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Appendix A – SDR and DDC Primer This note is intended to help “traditional” radio enthusiasts understand the technology differences between old style analog receivers and the new generation of Software Defined Radio (SDR), especially with reference to the WiNRADiO Artemis.
  • Page 111 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide in 1995, the award-winning WR-1000i model – a fully-fledged general- coverage receiver on a PC card. A serial-interfaced (RS-232) external model WR-1000e shortly followed suit. These receivers were little more than software controlled (rather than software defined): Their functionality, especially those critical filtering and demodulation functions, was still very much defined by and dependent on hardware.
  • Page 112 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide DSP-based demodulation provides a receiver with great flexibility, where additional modes can be easily added by a simple software change, while the hardware remains the same. Plus of course, there is a benefit of performance consistency: With the same input, a software routine will always produce the same result, not depending in variations and aging of components such as diodes, resistors and capacitors.
  • Page 113 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide The preceding spectrum display is that of the WiNRADiO G313 receiver, a typical representative of this type of SDR receivers, belonging to a class of receivers also referred to as SDR Tier Two or Software-Reconfigurable Radio. In SDR Tier Two radios, software is used to control and redefine a variety of modulation techniques, spectrum bandwidth, and other essential parameters and functionality of a radio receiver.
  • Page 114 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide hardware component known as a field programmable gate array (FPGA). The process of reducing real time data and thus the usable bandwidth is known as decimation, and in the Artemis this first decimation results in a DDC bandwidth of up to 32 MHz.
  • Page 115 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide process the data by digital filtering and demodulation. Using the Artemis software running on a modern PC, it is possible to simultaneously demodulate three signals, providing three virtual receivers. Each virtual receiver can be placed at any frequency within the DDC spectrum, and each controlled, in respect of mode and bandwidth setting, filtering, recording, etc., completely independently.

  • Page 116: Appendix B - Troubleshooting

    WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Appendix B – Troubleshooting Problem Solution Upon installation, WR-G69DDCe (USB/LAN model): the software says Check that receiver is turned on. The blue LED should that the receiver is flash. not found and Compare the LED flashing pattern with the table offers to run in shown in Appendix C.
  • Page 117 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Problem Solution The receiver When you tune to a known station, you should be able application runs to see a peak on the demodulator spectrum scope. If OK, but there is you can’t see any peak, make sure your antenna is no sound coming properly connected.
  • Page 118 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Problem Solution I can hear the Make sure that AGC under the Gain tab is enabled audio and tune the and set to medium speed. Try to adjust the Gain receiver, but the parameter under the Audio tab (excessive audio gain sound is distorted.
  • Page 119 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Problem Solution I can hear the Make sure the Attenuator is disabled and the audio and tune the Preamplifier is engaged. Check that your antenna is receiver, but the properly connected, the connector is not loose and audio is very that the antenna cable is not damaged.

  • Page 120: Appendix C - Usb And Lan Interface Diagnostics

    WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Appendix C – USB and LAN Interface Diagnostics The flashing pattern of the blue LED on the WR-G69DDCe receiver’s front panel has a diagnostics meaning. Normally, when the receiver is powered up and the application running, the blue LED should flash in a dih-dah pattern (i.e. a short flash followed by a long one).

  • Page 121: Appendix D - Dealing With Interference

    WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Appendix D – Dealing with Interference Electromagnetic Interference (EMI) is what prevents us from receiving a clear signal, even when the receiver should be sensitive enough to receive it. There are many types of interference you can experience with radio receivers, emanating from both natural and man-made sources.
  • Page 122 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide your monitor with a ‘quieter’ one, or you can try to relocate your antenna further away from your computer. While the WiNRADiO Artemis receiver has been designed to minimize interference-related problems, switched-mode computer power supplies sometimes still present a challenge. This type of interference would usually enter the receiver as common-mode noise, which means that the noise is in the same phase on both the active and shielding conductors of the antenna lead.

  • Page 123: Appendix E - Waterfall Spectrum Palettes

    WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Appendix E – Waterfall Spectrum Palettes The Waterfall spectrum (wide band and DDC1) use color palettes, selectable using the Palette control: The color palettes reside in ordinary text files with an extension “.pal”, located in the application installation folder, i.e. typically C:\Program files (x86)\WiNRADiO\G69DDC\Defs The existing files are named Blue.pal, Cold.pal, DeepBlue.pal, Gray.pal, Hot.pal, Magenta.pal, Rainbow.pal, Sepia.pal and Yellow.pal.

  • Page 124: Appendix F - Recording File Formats

    WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Appendix F – Recording File Formats The DDC recorder can record the DDC stream in a standard WAV file format, but saves the files with an extension “.ddc” in order to avoid confusion with audio wave files. The proprietary WiNRADiO RXW file format (extension “.rxw”) is often a better choice, because it also contains additional data such as the current DDC center frequency, date, time and internal compensation data, which makes it possible to simulate original conditions during the playback.
  • Page 125 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide DDC Bandwidth DDC Recording (kHz) Sampling Rate (kHz) 2000 2500 2500 3333.3 3200 4000 4000 5000 5000 6250 6000 8333.3 8000 10000 10000 12500 12500 16666.67 16000 20000 20000 25000 25000 33333.33 32000 40000 Note: The Nyquist sampling theorem is satisfied because there are two values (I and Q) for each sample (stored as two stereo channels), so the effective sampling rate is twice of that shown.
  • Page 126 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide If you select Increment its name for the If file exists condition and start recording, this will create a file named for example rec-12.345678MHz- $001.ddc. The file name includes a “counter” prefixed by the “$” sign. With each new created file, this counter will be incremented.

  • Page 127: Appendix G - G69Ddce Connections

    WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Appendix G – G69DDCe Connections All connectors are located on the rear panel of the receiver. Some of the connectors may not be installed depending upon the customer's requirements. 1. Frequency reference output (optional) 2. Frequency reference input (optional) 3.

  • Page 128: Appendix H - Multiple Language Support

    WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Appendix H – Multiple language support The Artemis is ready for multiple language support. It allows use of another language for the buttons, labels, dialogs and messages. Only the English language file (Language-English.lng) is installed by the Artemis installer. It is stored in the program installation directory, i.e.
  • Page 129 WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide...

  • Page 130: Appendix I - Compliance Declarations

    Input: AC100-240V, 50/60Hz 0.6A Output: DC 12V, 2.0 A RADIXON s.r.o.hereby declares that this G6 external wideband receiver up to 8 GHz is in compliance with the essential requirements and other relevant provisions of Directive 2014/53/EU This information has to be presented in such a way that the user can readily understand it. Typically, this will necessitate translation into every local language (required by national consumer laws) of the markets where the equipment is intended to be sold.
  • Page 131 2 years after manufacturing ceases. It is also understood that characteristics of this equipment will require retesting. Please direct all communication regarding this matter to: Compliance Manager Radixon Group Pty.Ltd. 45 - 47 Islington Street Collingwood Victoria 3066...

  • Page 132: Appendix J - Safety Disposal

    WiNRADiO G69DDC User’s Guide Appendix J – Safety Disposal 1. When this crossed-out bin symbol is attached to a product it means that the product is covered by the European Community directive 2002/96/EC. 2. All electrical and electronic products should be disposed of separately from the municipal waste stream via designated collection facilities appointed by the government or by the local authorities.
  • Page 133 WiNRADiO ® C O M M U N I C A T I O N S w w w . w i n r a d i o . c o m...

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