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RADIXON WiNRADiO EXCALIBUR SIGMA WR-G65DDCi User Manual

Software-defined communications receiver
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WiNRADiO
®
by RADIXON
®
WR-G65DDCi
EXCALIBUR SIGMA
TM
Software-Defined Communications Receiver
User's Guide

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Summary of Contents for RADIXON WiNRADiO EXCALIBUR SIGMA WR-G65DDCi

  • Page 1 WiNRADiO ® by RADIXON ® WR-G65DDCi EXCALIBUR SIGMA Software-Defined Communications Receiver User’s Guide...
  • Page 2 Radixon Group Pty. Ltd. 45 - 47 Islington Street, Collingwood, Victoria 3066 Australia © 2018 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 FCC Notice The WiNRADiO WR-G65DDCi receiver 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. This equipment generates, uses and can radiate radio frequency energy and, if not installed and used in accordance with the instructions, may cause harmful interference to radio communications.

  • Page 4: Table Of Contents

    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 Pause ......................61 Spectrum Scopes ..................63 Zoom Spectrum ..................64 Save and Print Spectrum ................65 Resolution Bandwidth ................65 Spectrum Averaging ................. 65 Waterfall Spectrum ................... 66 Spectrum Markers ..................67 Information Buttons .................. 69 Baseline Level ..................69 Peak Hold ....................

  • Page 6: Introduction

    Introduction Welcome to the WiNRADiO G65DDC receiver, the Excalibur Sigma. This receiver is a rather unusual product. One might perhaps wonder, is this a receiver with a spectrum analyzer - or a spectrum analyzer with a receiver? This is the first time that a piece of equipment of such advanced specifications and uniquely and closely integrated combination of features has been offered to the general marketplace.

  • Page 7: The Hardware

    The Hardware The WiNRADiO G65DDC receiver is available in version of the internal PCIe interfaced model. Both antenna inputs are SMA-type connectors with 50 ohm impedance.

  • Page 8: Installation

    Installation The complete WiNRADiO G65DDC receiver package contains the following items: • WiNRADiO G65DDC receiver • Application software, User’s and Installation Guide on a CD ROM • Installation Guide in printed form • Warranty information In order for the WiNRADiO G65DC receiver to be able to provide best performance, your computer should fulfil the system requirements specified below.

  • Page 9: Software And Hardware Installation

    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

    Setting up the Sound Card As the digitally down-converted signal from the receiver is transferred to the PC over the PCIe 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-G65DDCi volume slider inside the Applications section and the master volume inside the Device section.

  • Page 11: Connecting The Antenna

    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 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

    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 Excalibur Sigma 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 Using the keyboard, type in the frequency of one your local AM stations: For example, for 774 kHz, type in 7 7 4, then k for kHz, then press Enter. The typed-in frequency will appear on the digital frequency display. When you start the receiver the first time, the AM mode is selected by default.
  • Page 15 Place the mouse cursor onto the upper half of the tuning knob, at which point you will see the cursor change to a curved double ended arrow. Hold down the right or left mouse buttons to increase or decrease the frequency, and the knob will rotate clockwise or anti-clockwise, respectively.

  • Page 16: Achieving Best Selectivity

    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 sharper) can the digital filters 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

    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 case, use the Attenuator to reduce the level of the signal entering the ADC.
  • Page 18 The signal then passes through a switchable low-noise and low-distortion amplifier which can be enabled or disabled by the user. When enabled, this adds approximately 10 dB of amplification, making it possible to achieve higher sensitivity (at the expense of strong signal handling capability). Following the amplifier is an anti-aliasing filter necessary for the digitization.
  • Page 19 In the WiNRADiO Excalibur Sigma receiver, the chunk of the input spectra that is processed by the DDC can be recorded and played back by the PC, making it possible to “re-receive” signals located anywhere within that chunk. The maximum width of the DDC chunk (called the DDC bandwidth) is 64 MHz. The larger the DDC bandwidth, the more CPU processing power is required by the computer.
  • Page 20 This is equivalent to the IF Shift function of conventional receivers. Clicking on any of the three spectrum scopes will cause the receiver to tune to the corresponding frequency. As the WiNRADiO Excalibur Sigma consists of three receivers in one, this does have some ramifications which will be explained in a greater detail in the following chapters.

  • Page 21: Resizing The Application Window

    Resizing the Application Window The WiNRADiO Excalibur Sigma 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 22: Drop-Down Menu Controls

    Drop-Down Menu Controls The WiNRADiO Excalibur Sigma 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 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 23: Tuning The Excalibur Sigma

    Tuning the Excalibur Sigma 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 click on the display to type in a new frequency in a highlighted field, or after 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 24 Release the Shift key to exit this mode. 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 25: Tuning Knob

    Tuning Knob The Tuning knob makes it possible to adjust 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 26: Multiple Receiver Operation

    Multiple Receiver Operation With the WiNRADiO Excalibur Sigma you can tune to three stations at once, listening to one (or all of them mixed together) and recording the others. The only condition is that these stations frequencies all fit inside the DDC bandwidth.

  • Page 27: Point-And-Click Tuning

    Any such attempt will be ignored and the recording button above the DDC spectrum will flash to indicate the reason why this operation failed. 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 currently non-active.

  • Page 28: If Shift And Passband Tuning

    Dragging the grey 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; you will need to stay within the current frequency range. Internally, the receiver’s hardware operates in two separate ranges: Range 1 from 30MHz to 88 MHz and Range 2 from 118 MHz to 190 MHz;...
  • Page 29 function in conventional receivers. The passband will move inside the displayed spectrum and the tuned frequency will change accordingly. In a DDC-based receiver, “IF Shift” is in fact a misnomer because there is no “intermediate frequency”, but as this is a time-honored and commonly used term for this function, we will still use it here for convenience.

  • Page 30: Frequency Stepping

    When the demodulator passband is being dragged using the right mouse button, a red PBT indicator will appear next to the cursor to indicate you are in the PBT mode, and showing the tuning offset at the same time: To revert to the IF shift mode, simply use the left mouse button again. Frequency Stepping To make the chapter on tuning complete, we need to fast forward a bit: There is one more tuning facility located on the right under the Tuning tab (all the...

  • Page 31: Receiver Selection

    For this purpose, there is an option to add a user-defined offset to the displayed frequency. This option is called Display offset and is located under the Options top menu bar: As usual, you can enter the display offset in Hz, kHz or MHz by terminating the entered value with either h, k or m, respectively, should you need to change the displayed frequency unit.

  • Page 32: Mode Selection

    If a receiver is tuned away from the current DDC1 spectrum bandwidth (and therefore disabled), it will not be shown in the DDC1 spectrum. By clicking on the receiver tabs, you can quickly alternate between receivers in a similar way in which you would use the VFO function in a conventional receiver, but with the additional benefit of being able to change complete receiver settings including demodulation mode, bandwidth, notch filter, audio filter, etc.

  • Page 33: Ams Mode

    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. When the AMS mode is selected, special controls appear under the tuning tab, making it possible to select one (or both) of the signal’s sidebands to achieve optimum reception: In the AMS mode, there is a certain "capture range", a frequency range within which the receiver will "capture"...

  • Page 34: Isb And Dsb Modes

    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- modulated signal with suppressed, or partially suppressed, carrier.

  • Page 35: Drm Mode

    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.
  • Page 36 When a DRM station is successfully received, on top of the DDC2 spectrum, there will be a text display that shows a continuously 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.

  • Page 37: Fsk Mode

    certain threshold, typically 15 dB. Until this threshold is reached, the audio is entirely muted (no noise at all coming from the speaker), as the decoded signal would not render any usable audio. The Excalibur Sigma’s DRM decoder can also decode multimedia content, which is audiovisual information that may be broadcast by some DRM stations.

  • Page 38: Udm Mode

    tone frequency must be different. The FSK tone frequency is traditionally set to 1.9 kHz due to the typical characteristics of modems relying on transmitters operating in a suppressed carrier mode. However, any offset may be used, and the values are automatically saved. UDM Mode The UDM (User Definable Mode) makes it possible to define any set of parameters for a special application.
  • Page 39 Passband tuning The passband tuning control duplicates the function of dragging the demodulator passband using the right mouse button. These two methods are interchangeable. The advantage of this control is that the actual tuning offset is visible and can be precisely adjusted. Passband tuning makes it possible to finely adjust the demodulator filter position in the AMS, LSB, USB and CW modes without a whistle effect due to a misaligned BFO, making it possible to avoid interference and finely tune the...
  • Page 40 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 value using the drop-down list).
  • Page 41 Spectrum Centering The Center button , next to the stepping controls, centers the demodulator passband. Use this button if you have tuned to a station by dragging the filter passband over its spectrum, and you would like to see this station relocated to the center of the demodulator spectrum.

  • Page 42: Audio Tab

    Band Selection In the AMS, ISB and DSB modes, the tuning tab also includes Band selection controls: These make it possible to choose which of the sidebands is to be listened to, either the lower sideband, upper sideband, or both. This is useful in situations where one of the sidebands is damaged by interference.
  • Page 43 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. The De-em control is used to adjust de-emphasis, relating to the filter’s slope from the highest frequency to the lowest, which is particularly important for FM signals (a typical de- emphasis value for narrow-band FM-modulated signals is 6.0 dB/oct).
  • Page 44 Clicking the RF Sp button while the audio spectrum is displayed will switch the spectrum scope to the default RF spectrum mode. Volume Control The Volume control is also located under the Audio tab. The volume can range from 0 (no sound) to 31 (full volume).
  • Page 45 volume to zero, with the added benefit of not changing the set volume level. To use the mute control, simply click on this button. Click again to release. Audio Mixer The WiNRADiO Excalibur Sigma includes an audio mixer, which makes it possible to combine audio outputs from the three virtual receivers in various ways.
  • Page 46 Mix = on Mix = on Mix = off Audio will come out for Left = on Left = off RX1 and RX2 only; RX1 Right = off Right = on from left channel and RX2 from right channel Mix = on Mix = on Mix = on Audio will come out for...
  • Page 47 Engaging the VSC button connects the selected receiver to the virtual sound card. Using the IF button, you can select the entire contents of the demodulator spectrum to the VSC; the Audio button only sends the filtered and demodulated audio. The VSC IF signal is sent in I/Q (in-phase and quadrature) form, 16 bit, stereo.

  • Page 48: Memory Tab

    Memory Tab The Memory tab contains functions related to the frequency memory available in the Excalibur Sigma. 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 Excalibur Sigma memories is limited only by the size of your computer’s hard disk.
  • Page 49 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 50 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 51 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 side. Editing Memory To change the settings for a particular frequency, click on the Edit button, or select Edit from the right-click menu:...
  • Page 52 select Delete from the right-click menu). You will be asked to confirm that you wish to delete this frequency from memory. To delete all frequencies in a particular folder, click on the Delete button at bottom left (under the folders). You will be asked to confirm that you want to clear all the frequencies in the folder.
  • Page 53 Memory Stepping Memory stepping makes it possible to step through frequencies stored in the current user memory file. To step through groups or the individual memory frequencies, use the left or right arrow buttons located under the memory tab next to Group or Item drop- down list controls: When the receiver is tuned to a frequency that is equal to a frequency stored in the memory, the stored callsign will be shown in the band indicator under...

  • Page 54: Notch

    Opening User Memory File When the WiNRADiO Excalibur Sigma receiver application starts up, the most recently used memory file will be opened automatically. To open a different memory file, select Load user memory from the File menu. A dialog box will pop up allowing you to choose a memory file to load. Notch The Notch tab contains controls dedicated to the Notch filter function.

  • Page 55: Squelch

    (the large peak right of center, at the cursor position). 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 56 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 57: Gain

    To adjust the level squelch control, first tune to an unoccupied frequency that produces only noise. Increase the squelch until the receiver is muted. You will see the red-colored segment of the S-meter growing until it gets higher than the current S-meter value. At that moment the receiver will be muted and the word “squelched”...
  • Page 58 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. This is in fact functionally similar to AGC typically implemented in conventional receivers, which also works on the IF signal prior to demodulation.
  • Page 59 The higher the AGC reference level, the stronger will be the signal at the input of the demodulator. If this level is too high and the input signal too strong, distortion may appear. On the other hand, decreasing the AGC reference level will generally result in lower audio levels.

  • Page 60: Noise Blanker

    Useful notes about AGC to remember: 1. In AM, AMS, LSB, USB, ISB, DSB and CW modes, the gain setting affects loudness. If the receiver volume appears too low (and yet the volume control is all the way up), make sure that AGC is enabled 2.

  • Page 61: Pause

    The Short Time DDC Averaging method is preferable and will yield improvement in most cases of atmospheric or man-made interference. It is activated by pressing the Enable DDC Averaging button located under the Noise Blanker tab. If the instantaneous signal level at the input of the demodulator exceeds the short-time average level by a user-adjustable percentage amount, these signal samples will be replaced by zero values.
  • Page 62 the Current delay display will show the increasing amount of saved signal in terms of the time delay, while the Pause time display will show the time when the pausing started. If the paused data length exceeds the Maximum buffer time, then Pause time will show the oldest buffered data that remains available for playback.

  • Page 63: Spectrum Scopes

    Spectrum Scopes We have already touched on the spectrum scopes in some of the preceding paragraphs, but there is much more to the WiNRADiO Excalibur Sigma spectrum scopes than just the ability to “point-and-click” tune or drag the demodulator filter passband. There are three spectrum scopes that can be effectively considered to be subsets of one another.

  • Page 64: Zoom Spectrum

    The grey shaded area in the wideband spectrum represents the DDC bandwidth. The grey shaded areas in both the DDC and demodulator spectrum both represent the currently selected demodulator filter bandwidth. Even though their functionality is different, all these three spectrum scopes utilize some common controls.

  • Page 65: Save And Print Spectrum

    The Spectrum centering button , when used in the DDC1 and DDC2 spectrum scopes, shifts the spectrum so that the demodulated frequency is in the center of the spectrum display (or as close as possible). In the wideband spectrum, this button shifts the spectrum so that the DDC1passband will be as close to the wideband display center as possible.

  • Page 66: Waterfall Spectrum

    This makes the viewing of the spectrum easier on the eyes, reducing the noise floor fluctuations while leaving the useful signal clean and steady. buttons make it possible to reveal minimum and maximum signal values (respectively) received during the averaging period. These buttons are enabled only if the averaging period is non-zero.

  • Page 67: Spectrum Markers

    This makes it possible to shrink or stretch the palette to match the desired signal strength range. The palette Gravity can be used to highlight a given signal level of special interest with enhanced colours. If for example the palette gravity has been selected at -80 dBm then the monitored signal will be shown with additional colors around that signal level, thereby improving the contrast of this section within the overall waterfall display.
  • Page 68 On top of the cursor, the current cursor frequency is shown, followed by two associated values in square brackets: The instantaneous signal strength value at the cursor position, and the frequency difference between the receiver tuned frequency and the current cursor position. (The “frequency delta” display is very convenient for measuring signal bandwidths, distances between transmitted channels or signal sidebands, etc.) Right-clicking on the spectrum reveals a menu with the following functions:...

  • Page 69: Information Buttons

    Remove marker at xx.xxx MHz – this will remove the indicated marker. Remove marker at xx.xxx MHz – by selecting this function, this marker will be deleted. Tune to marker at xx.xxx MHz – this will tune the receiver to the marker frequency.

  • Page 70: Audio Spectrum

    Audio Spectrum Pressing the Audio button above the DDC2 spectrum will reveal the Audio spectrum scope, showing the real-time audio spectrum of the demodulated signal. Markers (right click on spectrum) 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 71: Activity Search

    Finally, clicking the RF button while the audio spectrum is displayed will quite the audio spectrum mode and return to the RF spectrum mode, showing the DDC2 output. Activity Search If the Activity button is engaged, this will put the receiver into the Activity search mode: In this mode, the wide-band display does not show a contiguous spectrum, but rather “hits”...
  • Page 72 The step size and the starting frequency must be determined so that they fall on the actual channel frequencies inside the searched band. Start and End frequencies must be within the currently selected range. The next value to set up is the Threshold: When started, the activity search will look for signals that exceed this threshold value.
  • Page 73 The Hit column will show the percentage of the time (since the start of the search) that the found 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. Store to memory - store the frequency to the default activity memory group.

  • Page 74: Recording Functions

    To activate frequency exclusions in the activity search, press the Enable button. Excluded bands are highlighted in the activity spectrum. Recording Functions At the top of the DDC1 and DDC2 spectrum scopes there are Recorder buttons that serve to reveal their respective recording facilities.
  • Page 75 Pressing this button will reduce the height of the spectrum scope at the bottom and utilize the extra space for the recorder controls. The recording controls of the DDC1 and DDC2 spectrum scopes appear identical. However, their functions differ: The recording controls of the DDC1 spectrum scope relates to the DDC recorder, making it possible to record the entire DDC1 bandwidth (up to 64 MHz wide), while the Audio recorder in the DDC2 panel serves to record the demodulated audio.
  • Page 76 If the “toolbox” button next to the file name is activated, this will reveal a set of useful controls specific to the recorders: The Prebuffer control sets the time for pre-buffering, which means that the recorder will include the specified number of seconds of recording before you press the recording start button.
  • Page 77 The Split button, when engaged, prevents the size of the recorded files from exceeding 2 GB (larger files may be inconvenient to handle). If the file size reaches 2 GB, the file will be automatically closed and named (for example) rec-12.345678MHz-^001.ddc, where the “^”...

  • Page 78: Attenuator

    Attenuator The Attenuator makes it possible to reduce the signal coming to the ADC and therefore the receiver’s sensitivity. This is useful in situations where strong signals cause overload. Overload is indicated by the words “ADC CLP” appearing in the S-meter: The attenuator is variable from zero to 21 dB, in 3 dB steps.

  • Page 79: Rf Filter

    RF Filter The RF filter is a bank of mostly band-pass preselector filters whose cut-off frequencies are user-adjustable. When engaged, and the lower and upper cut-off frequencies are set, the adjacent frequencies will be attenuated, to reduce susceptibility to interference on the adjacent bands.

  • Page 80: Top Menu Bar

    region and turns red also), 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). The Peak and RMS buttons select between displays of peak and RMS values. The AVG button applies a floating average with a one second time interval to smooth the S-meter movement.
  • Page 81 Science describing a new "memory" vacuum tube it had developed, RCA stated: "...the results of countless computations can be kept ‘on file’ and taken out again. Such a ‘file’ now exists in a ‘memory’ tube developed at RCA Laboratories. Electronically it retains figures fed into calculating machines, holds them in storage while it memorizes new ones - speeds intelligent solutions through mazes of mathematics."...
  • Page 82 possible to export frequencies in this commonly used format, as well as import frequencies from third party sources. Each line of 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”...

  • Page 83: Options

    Options The Options menu contains a number of user settings making it possible to customize the receiver’s look and behaviour, adjust its numerous operational parameters, activate various test and measurement displays, calibrate the receiver, as well as restore factory defaults for user-definable parameters. Filter Length This facility makes it possible to adjust the digital filter “length”...
  • Page 84 The Demodulator filter length has a direct influence upon the overall receiver selectivity. Greater length gives better selectivity. The maximum achievable selectivity is limited by the processing power of your computer: The greater the CPU power, the “longer” (and therefore sharper) can the filter be made.
  • Page 85 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 also 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 input.

  • Page 86: Keyboard Shortcuts

    We are open 24/7! With despatch centers located in the US, UK, EU and Australia, no matter what the time of the day is, the WiNRADiO direct online one-stop-shop for receivers, software, antennas and accessories never closes. Check this out at www.winradio.com/shop. Keyboard Shortcuts Keyboard shortcuts make it possible to use keyboard keys instead of the mouse to select most common functions.

  • Page 87: Audio Buffering

    VSC Set-up The Virtual Sound Card (VSC) is a software option designed to transfer digitized audio signal streams from WiNRADiO receivers directly to other applications. For more detailed description please refer to the chapter Virtual Sound Card (under Function Tabs, the Audio tab). 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.
  • Page 88 outs due to other background processes taking place on the PC, which may cause irregular data rate. While the buffering removes drop-outs, on the other hand it introduces a certain delay (latency) to the output audio. The Min. buffer size and Max. buffer size parameters can be adjusted to minimize the latency for a particular computer system.
  • Page 89 Once locked to a signal, the capture range automatically reduces to ± 50 Hz (factory default value) from the signal frequency. The reason for such reduction is to avoid "kidnapping" of the synchronization frequency by a nearby strong signal if the carrier signal fades, as may happen especially with long-distance reception due to ionospheric effects.
  • Page 90 It is also possible to channel the audio output to an ASIO (Audio Stream Input/Output) device, if it is available in your system. This feature makes it possible for an ASIO device to bypass the Windows audio processing layers and access the receiver’s audio output directly, with the lowest possible latency and eliminating any artifacts introduced by the computer’s operating system.
  • Page 91 Should, as a result of selecting 10 ms waterfall resolution, your computer become sluggish, you might need to either revert to the default 50 ms value or reduce the CPU load by narrowing the DDC1 bandwidth or using the Filter length setting under Options.
  • Page 92 Show Data Rates The Show Data Rates display shows the various internal data rates of the entire G65DDC 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 behaviour or freezing of the computer), and Audio latency.
  • Page 93 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. Proper audio filtering makes a substantial difference to the SINAD results.
  • Page 94 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 known reference signal. To calibrate to a peak, simply tune the receiver to a known reference frequency (presuming a reasonably strong and steady signal).

  • Page 95: Memory

    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 model (internal PCI-card version), it may be more convenient to use a separate speaker connected directly to the receiver’s audio output socket. Color scheme The entire color scheme of the Excalibur Sigma can be changed.

  • Page 96: Scheduler

    Memory Search Range allows to adjust an offset from stored frequencies. In this example, only stations that fall within ± 1 kHz of the tuned frequency are shown in the callsign display. 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 bottom left.
  • Page 97 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 98 If the task is to be performed only on particular days of week, you can select those days of 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 99: Logger

    By default, the recorded audio files are saved in the folder My Documents/WiNRADiO/G65DDC, but you can change this using the file browser function when entering the recorded file name. Logger The Excalibur Sigma receiver is equipped with a simple logging function that makes it possible to log signal strength on up to three frequencies at the same time.

  • Page 100: Plugins

    Plugins The last item (except Help) in the top bar menu is Plugins. Like many other WiNRADiO products, the Excalibur Sigma 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 101 their broadcast times in UTC. Both time modes derive their information from the PC clock. The time difference is determined by a setting in your Windows Control Panel (Date and Time setting, Time Zone tab). Did you know? Coordinated Universal Time is abbreviated “UTC”. The International Telecommunication Union wanted Coordinated Universal Time to have a single abbreviation for all languages.

  • Page 102: Appendix A - Sdr And Ddc Primer

    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 Excalibur Sigma. Analog Receivers Prior to the era of computer-interfaced radio receivers, a block diagram of a typical HF receiver would look similar to that below.
  • Page 103 some very interesting results: A software-based user interface can be considerably more powerful than a hardware panel of a conventional receiver, and computer-based audio processing can provide ancillary functions such as audio filtering and recording with ease and at little additional cost. Radio receivers that implement such software control, yet still retain most of their other functionality defined by hardware, are often classified as SDR Tier One, or Software-Controlled Radio.
  • Page 104 receiver. 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 105 needs to be smaller than half of the sampling rate (see www.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nyquist_frequency). Then with 210 MSPS (mega samples per second) of Excalibur Sigma one has the potential to sample almost 105 MHz of spectrum at once. However, one ADC does not yet make an SDR, and more software processes are involved.
  • Page 106 Excalibur Sigma, in particular the ability of processing the entire 64 MHz wide DDC bandwidth. Once the DDC data is efficiently transferred to the PC, it is then possible to process the data by filtering and demodulation. Using the Excalibur Sigma software running on a modern PC, it is possible to simultaneously demodulate three signals, providing three virtual receivers.
  • Page 107 As the ADC is effectively ‘wide open’ to any input frequency, even if a user is tuned to 10 MHz, a strong signal in the Medium Wave band can still overload the receiver. This effect is easily avoided by two methods: Using the Auto setting for the Attenuator, the input level is continuously monitored, and should the level exceed the threshold, an appropriate level of attenuation is automatically inserted.
  • Page 108 MHz the anti-aliasing filter consists of two high quality separate filters – the high pass at 118 MHz and the low pass filter at 190 MHz.

  • Page 109: Appendix B - Troubleshooting

    Appendix B – Troubleshooting Problem Solution...
  • Page 110 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 111 Problem Solution Make sure that AGC under the Gain tab is enabled I can hear the and set to medium speed. Try to adjust the Gain audio and tune the parameter under the Audio tab (excessive audio gain receiver, but the can cause distortion).
  • Page 112 Problem Solution Make sure the Attenuator is disabled and the I can hear the Preamplifier is engaged. Check that your antenna is audio and tune the properly connected, the connector is not loose and receiver, but the that the antenna cable is not damaged. Does the audio is very noise floor drop significantly if you disconnect the noisy.

  • Page 113: Appendix D - Dealing With Interference

    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 114: Appendix E - Waterfall Spectrum Palettes

    your monitor with a ‘quieter’ one, or you can try to relocate your antenna further away from your computer. While the WiNRADiO Excalibur Sigma 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 115 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/G65DDC/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. You can create your own additional palettes quite easily. A palette file consists of 256 lines.

  • Page 116: Appendix F - Recording File Formats

    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 117 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 40000 50000 50000 66666.67 64000 80000 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 118 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. If you engage the Split button and the file size reaches 2 GB, the existing file will be automatically closed and named rec-12.345678MHz-$001-^001.ddc, where the “^”...

  • Page 119: Appendix G - G65Ddce Connections

    Appendix G – G65DDC Connections All connectors are located on the rear panel of the receiver. Some of the connectors may not be installed depending on the customer requirement.

  • Page 120: Appendix H - Compliance Declarations

    Appendix H – Compliance Declarations CE Conformity Radixon Group Pty.Ltd. declares that the WiNRADiO G65DDC Excalibur Sigma receiver complies with the following EC standards: FCC Compliance This device, trade name WiNRADiO Communications Receiver, model number WR-G65DDCi complies with FCC part 15B and ICES-003. Operation...
  • Page 121 Please direct all communication regarding this matter to: Compliance Manager Radixon Group Pty.Ltd. 45 - 47 Islington Street Collingwood Victoria 3066 Australia Tel: +61 3 9417 3417 Fax: +61 3 9417 3556...

  • Page 122: Appendix I - Safety Disposal

    Appendix I – 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 123 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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