SDRplay Community Forum

Friends - looking for help

BLUF: I have no audio with SDRPlay or indication of incoming signal. Please help

Details: received my SDRPlay today, after two long weeks of waiting shipment to my APO address. Installed SDRUno and it worked fine. Shut down computer to do some work. Came back, restarted and now SDRPlay gets no signal and puts out zero audio.

I am completely stumped. I need some help please. I want to make this thing work.

I am not a computer guy at all. I am a former paratrooper, great at breaking stuff. Not so good at fixing things.

Thanks
John

John, did you make changes to your computer, if so what? I would suggest you close SDRUno, plug or replug the SDRPlay (USB), then open SDRUno. I also would suggest you try some other SW, such as SD-Radio. Please let us know what you learn. Enjoy, John.

No changes at all to machine. Simple shutdown and restart.

I tried the unplug and restart SDRUno. No joy. Receiver works poorly with HDSDR Windows version. It will receive an FM broadcast station that's about a mile from our house. It will no resolve VHF air band transmissions from an airfield half a mile away. I can hear those transmissions clearly on a different receiver.

I will give different software a try. New tools are always a challenge:)

Misterj wrote:John, did you make changes to your computer, if so what? I would suggest you close SDRUno, plug or replug the SDRPlay (USB), then open SDRUno. I also would suggest you try some other SW, such as SD-Radio. Please let us know what you learn. Enjoy, John.

John, the only thing I can think of right now is antenna. Please let us know what kind of antenna you are using and make sure the coax and connectors are in good shape. What has changed between the first time it worked and now? Have you tried more than one USB port? If not, please do. Enjoy, John.

Have you seen this http://www.nn4f.com/SDRuno-cookbook.pdf I found it helpful setting up.
Also found setting on Main GR slider at about 1/3rd scale 42db helps a lot with local stations.

Yes it a learning curve but well worth the pain.

Never played with SDR's apart from Winradio G315 & find SDRplay is good once you learn how to drive it.
Have found you do need a well resourced laptop or PC to get the best out of it.

Hope this helps a little.

Keith

Antenna is this one: http://www.hamradio.com/detail.cfm?pid=H0-010108

Purchased with SDRPlay. It is of course a compromise. Should be on in VHF UHF region, not stellar but ok. Coax and connectors are free of oxidation and tight. Don't have a meter here to check cable tho.

I have tried changing USB ports to no effect. Receiver does work with HDSDR software but SDRUno no longer functions.

I will uninstall SDR Uno and reinstall to see if that helps.

Misterj wrote:John, the only thing I can think of right now is antenna. Please let us know what kind of antenna you are using and make sure the coax and connectors are in good shape. What has changed between the first time it worked and now? Have you tried more than one USB port? If not, please do. Enjoy, John.

Keith
Thanks for the link. Those are great instructions!

g8ixn wrote:Have you seen this http://www.nn4f.com/SDRuno-cookbook.pdf I found it helpful setting up.
Also found setting on Main GR slider at about 1/3rd scale 42db helps a lot with local stations.

Yes it a learning curve but well worth the pain.

Never played with SDR's apart from Winradio G315 & find SDRplay is good once you learn how to drive it.
Have found you do need a well resourced laptop or PC to get the best out of it.

Hope this helps a little.

Keith

John, I found this at your antenna web site:

Antenna Ok SMA Horrible

May 6, 2015
Reviewer: Tommy Nelms from Austin, TX United States

The antenna, when new worked pretty good, picking up what I was trying to listen to and the magnets on the base held really well.
Now for the bad. I have 2 of these and both of them have horrible SMA connections to the coax. They will work well for anywhere from a month to 6 months then you suddenly stop receiving. You can see the signal meter move as you move the coax when this happens.

There are more reviews here. I assume you got the one with an SMA connector. Try playing with the SMA connector and consider replacing the connector or RMAing the antenna.
Those are great instructions and I hope they helped. Did they?

EDIT: Please try inserting a wire into the center conductor of the SDRPlay SMA connector. With a few feet (meter or so) you should be able to get some fairly good signal. Enjoy, John.

My SDRuno software quit after a Windows update squashed the driver file,API/Hardware Driver(current release: 1.95 12th July 2016). I had to reinstall this driver to get it working again! Maybe this is your issue?