Steve, KI5ENW, recently retired from SDRplay wrote to tell of his success with a dedicated ADSB antenna at his home in Colorado;

“One advantage of full retirement is that I can delve into radio matters more deeply without the need to tear down a setup constantly and try a different receiver etc.

If you have any stories you’d like to tell, with an SDRplay theme, then email me at jon.hudson@ sdrplay dot com and I’ll try to include them.

A Tribute to Steve Brightman, KI5ENW who has retired from SDRplay

Steve Brightman, my friend since we were at school together aged 14, has been a cornerstone of the SDRplay community for many years, bringing his technical expertise and infectious enthusiasm to the world of SDRs. From our days working on TV and smoke detector chips together at Texas Instruments to his contributions to SDRplay, Steve’s passion for technology and knack for making complex ideas accessible have left an indelible  mark.

Steve, has been SDRplay’s go-to guy for demystifying SDR technology. Whether he was demonstrating the latest products at Ham Radio Outlet or guiding users through the intricacies of SDRconnect at Dayton Hamvention, Steve had a unique ability to turn technical jargon into something even a newbie could grasp. His “How to” videos  proved very popular with SDRplay users, offering practical tips and a dash of humour to keep things lively.

From helping users troubleshoot technical problems  to showcasing the nRSP-ST at Hamcation, Steve’s been the face of SDRplay at countless events. His talks, weren’t just informative—they were a masterclass in making radio technology fun and always resulted in a queue (line up) at the HRO booths afterwards with folks wanting to buy an RSP!  And when Steve went to the hamfests, he really went to town. Rather than try and cope with airline travel with all the delicate kit involved with setting up a booth display and demos, Steve instead would hit the road with his trusty RV loaded with all he needed.  Often the latest demo software was still being tweaked and Steve would end up searching for an internet connection so as to get it downloaded and checked out, while camping en route!

Many people have commented on how much they appreciated Steve’s “down to earth” posts in the various forums – these formed a treasure trove of insights, tips, and the occasional dodgy joke!

Thank You, Steve!

Steve, from our teenage days playing soldiers in the army cadet “signals” section to your time at SDRplay, you’ve been a good friend and a true asset to the SDR community. Your work has helped thousands of radio enthusiasts discover the magic of SDRplay’s hardware and software. Here’s to you, KI5ENW, for making radio fun, accessible, and compelling. Enjoy your next chapter, and don’t be surprised if we’re still bugging you for help and suggestions from time to time!

73, Jon G4ABQ

Steve at HamVention, Dayton, Ohio 2025 (photo courtesy Chris Danby, G0DWV,  RSGB)

Steve in action at Hamcation

Steve giving out a prize at Hamvention

Steve has made his networked radio, the nRSP-ST available for people to try before they buy:

You can have limited access to it on a first come first served basis.

If you download and run the SDRconnect client, you can add a remote device with hostname “amigasteve.dyndns.org” and port 50000

The more limited access from the built-in web server (e.g. for an Android or iOS device) can be found by going to amigasteve.dyndns.org:9001 on your web browser – the web interface takes up to 30 seconds to set-up the graphical user interface so be patient.  Also some older tablets and phones may not work.

For both forms of access, the username is Demo and the password is test   

As already mentioned here , you can check out a real nRSP-ST networked radio,  in action,  here in the UK.    Recent winds have seriosuly damaged the Bedford-based G5RV antenna at my location but the good news is that Jez, Adrian and Justin from UK-based  Moonraker have donated a replacement G5RV and upgraded balun especially for the renovation task.  The task is quite tricky since the centre-mount is a very tall poplar tree which only the craziest of tree surgeons would volumteer to climb! I apologise for the weaker signals until the new antenna is in place.

Colorado-based Steve, KI5ENW to whom we send our very best wishes,  has now retired (special post to follow). However, he has kindly set-up and maintains an nRSP-ST that people can try as well.  We will add his details to the “Try accessing”  article: https://www.sdrplay.com/try-accessing-an-nrsp-st-networked-receiver-today/

You can visit Moonraker at https://moonrakeronline.com/ – they are real experts on antennas and always happy to provide good advice on the choices available.

Mike, KD2KOG  has made an updated YouTube video showing how to receive APRS data using SDRconnect and MultiPSK.

Automatic Packet Reporting System (APRS) is an amateur radio-based system for real time digital communications of information of immediate value in the local area. Data can include object Global Positioning System (GPS) coordinates, non-directional beacon, weather station telemetry, text messages, announcements, queries, and other telemetry.