The operations to be performed are very simple, it is sufficient to obtain from its wiring diagram the information on the points where to take the IF signals.
This radio uses different mixers. In particular, we will have to use the second one of the RX chain because the IF frequency will be the same for all the bands, 10.7 MHz. The following images show the block diagram of the radio.
The following two images show the portions of the schematic diagram of the IF UNIT where we can see the exact points where to sample the IF signal and the power supply.
We now proceed to identify the exact points on the printed circuit board where to take the IF signal to be sent to the IFace. The following images show the sampling point for the IF signal and for the power supply for the buffer interface.
The use of PTT signal is not required, it’s a receiver!
In order to purchase an IFace use the buttons below.
ATTENTION: Though installing the IFace is not difficult, you do this at your own risk. TSP S.r.l. is not responsible for any damage, unwanted side-effects or whatever.
For more information, do not hesitate to write to us using the form below. Have fun!
Would you like to have a radio with a nice 40 “LCD display where you can view spectrograms, waterfalls and much more information? And what would you say to have a modern SDR radio so that you can listen to more signals at the same time? Wouldn’t it be nice to have many digital filters to improve reception during contest or DX activity?
If you answered yes then IFace 2 is the electronic card that allows you to have all of this without having to buy a new radio. How? By inserting it inside your “old” beloved RTX and using a cheap SDR receiver (for example those with a USB port you can connect to your computer).
Don’t you think so? Please watch this video and then keep reading.
The idea behind this product is to continue to use the radio that we have purchased and which has already given us so much satisfaction. Surely we already have the CAT interface with which we control it from the LOG or from other programs and we also have the audio interface for the digital modes. But sometimes we realize that we would need a second receiver (for example to follow the +5 kHz or + 10 kHz of a DX station), band filters with steeper sides to eliminate a disturbance on an adjacent frequency or a notch because our radio does not have it or it is not automatic. All this can be a memory!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1foJdK_cliY
So suppose to send the intermediate frequency signal (IF) of our radio to a dedicated SDR receiver and to start a program such as HDSDR (or SDR #, SDR Console …). On the screen of our computer we would have the spectrum display around the IF of our radio and, not to be neglected, we could also demodulate what it is receiving. But we could do even more, we could also demoulate other signals that are above or below the frequency tuned by our RTX. Not bad, right? The image below shows a screenshot of HDSDR connected to an FT-450D via an RTL-SDR and the IFace.
Reception at the IF frequency of a FT-450D though the IFace and a RTL-SDR.
What needs to be done is very simple. Let’s start by identifying within our radio the point where to take the medium frequency signal. This is between the output of the first mixer and the subsequent bandpass filters as shown in the following image.
After connecting the IFace to the mixer output, we supply it with a voltage between 8 V and 15 V (from inside the radio) and connect it to an external SDR receiver. During the reception the difference is strong, listen here.
In order to not alter the operation of our receiver, we must pick up the signal without charging the mixer, i.e. without taking power. For this reason we have to insert a special card between this and the external receiver: we can not connect it directly. The IF signal pick up card, the IFace, creates a copy of the signal to be sent to the external SDR receiver. This is a wideband and no-tune buffer, i.e. no calibration is needed, it is installed and it is ready to work. The usefulness of this circuit is to allow the medium frequency signal to be replicated without increasing the load seen by the source (the mixer) and therefore without changing its performance.
Once the IF signal has been obtained, it is sufficient to connect the A / D converter (an RTL-SDR is already more than enough) to the USB port and start the software for the reception (ex HDSDR, SDR #, SDR Console etc) and our RTX will now be equipped with a nice panoramic receiver.
There are numerous advantages in picking up the IF signal and not the one coming directly from the antenna: one of these is surely the fact that the amplitude of the signal is controlled through the AGC circuitry of the reception stages. This helps to prevent saturation of the dynamics of RTL-SDR (which is not known to be the most extensive). The point where you take the IF signal is easy to find, just take the schematic diagram of your radio and look for the first mixer: at its output you will find the signal of interest. The image below shows the point where you have to connect the IFace interface in the case of a Kenwood TS-530s, a radio of a few decades ago, which can be easily updated with this interface.
The connection to the chosen point can be made with a thin coaxial cable (type RG178 or RG316) and will terminate at the “Input” pad of the IFace. If the connection is very short, a coaxial cable may not be necessary. The “Output” instead will be connected with another small coaxial cable to the input of the chosen SDR receiver. Obviously the buffer must be powered: it will not be difficult to find inside the radio a point where to draw a voltage of 9 Vdc or 12 Vdc. The following images show how easy it is to install the IFace into the TS-530s.
Sampling point of the IF signalIFace inside a TS-530sIF output connectorPowering the IFace with 12 Vdc from the radio (red wire)Running IFace
After making these simple wiring, you can connect your SDR receiver and start the reception software. The following image shows the SDR# screen during the reception with a Kenwood TS-530s (its intermediate frequency is 8.83 MHz) and an economical RTL-SDR.
Another IFace has been installed in a YAESU FT-450D. As you will see from the photos, the space occupied is very little and the time required to connect the 4 conductors (+13 V, Gnd, Ptt +, IF) is a few minutes. In this case the Ptt signal was used, that is the “TX” signal present in the IF-UNIT of the radio. All this clearly appears in the following images.
IFace Vs IFace 2: because the differences are important!
IFace
power supply: 8-15 Vdc, I <50 mA
bandwidth: > 700 MHz
input impedance: > 500 kOhm
output impedance: 50 Ohm
power-down input ( PTT)
dimensions: 38 x 48 mm, PCB 1.6 mm
IFace 2
power supply: 8-15 Vdc, I <50 mA
bandwidth: > 700 MHz
input impedance: > 1 MOhm
output impedance: 50 Ohm
power-down input ( PTT)
dimensions: 31 x 39 mm, PCB 0.8 mm
In case you do not want to display any signal during transmission it is possible to turn off, by sending it into power down, the buffer of the IFace through a special input pin (PTT) as shown in the following picture. To be more accurate, an active high PTT, i.e. the signal is at a voltage greater than 5 V when transmitting, otherwise 0 V, or an active low PTT, i.e. the signal is at 0 V when the radio is transmitting, otherwise it must be floating, can be used.
The following video shows how the card reacts to the pressure of the PTT, that is when the radio changes from reception to transmission: the red LED indicates that the card is in power-down because the radio is transmitting.
If you were still not convinced of the goodness of this interface look at this other video where you can see how the IFace works when added to an old Kenwood TS-530s.
Do you have any questions? Maybe we already have the answer you’re looking for.
The price of IFace 2 is only € 37.62 excluding VAT (€45,90 for EU customers) + shipments costs for the “IFace + Cables” kit.
If you also want the coaxial connectors, those for the power supply and those for the PTT buy the “IFace 2 + Connectors + Cables” kit.
In this page you can find thelist of the instructions to install the IFace into your radio: it is continuoursly growing. For those radios that are not included yet, send a request so that it can be entered as soon as possible.
Content of the delivery “IFace + Cables”:
one IFace 2 board
a Ø 2.6 mm coaxial cable 50 cm / 20″ long to connect the output of the IFace to the signal output connector
one SMA female panel mount connector to be placed on the back of the radio
four wires to connect the board to the PTT, IF and powering points on the radio (colors of the wires may be subject to change)
Content of the delivery “IFace 2 + Connectors + Cables”:
one IFace 2 board
a Ø 2.6 mm coaxial cable 150 cm / 59″ long to connect the output of the IFace to the signal output connector (SMA female panel mount) and to make an interconnetion cable to the SDR receiver
one SMA female panel mount connector to be placed on the back of the radio
two SMA male connector to be crimped on the coaxial cable to connect the output connector to the SDR receiver
four wires to connect the board to the PTT, IF and powering points on the radio (colors of the wires may be subject to change)
2.54 mm pitch connectors for power and PTT
Order now by clicking on the following buttons and have fun.
ATTENTION: Though installing the IFace 2 is not difficult, you do this at your own risk. TSP S.r.l. is not responsible for any damage, unwanted side effects, or whatever.
If you have any questions, join the Telegram group dedicated to Amateur Radio by clicking here: Telegram Amateur Radio – English.
If you still have questions, use the following form, but don’t expect an immediate response, every day we receive many emails, including spam, so reading them is not a priority.
If you still have doubts about the validity of our CW Stick Paddle, read below the answers to the most frequent questions we have received so far.
Q. What is the difference between the “standard” version and the “Black & Gold Limited Edition” version?
A. The two keys are identical in terms of circuitry, that is, the difference is the finish, the first green, the second black, and the “touch” metallization, the first tin-plated, the second real gold-plated.
Q. Is it a resistive or capacitive key?
A. It is a resistive key, it works by exploiting the surface resistance of the skin. Extremely dry or hardened skins have a very high surface resistance and may not work well: in this case, moisturize it.
Q. How fast can you use it?
A. It depends on your skills, but in general, in the configuration sold, it works well at least up to 30 WPM or more. If you want to go much faster, above 40 WPM, you need to replace two resistors (currently 10 MOhm) with lower values.
D. Does it need for power?
R. No! The power supply is obtained directly from the “dash” and “dot” signals, there are no batteries that discharge.
Q. Does it work with all radios?
A. Yes, but it depends on the voltages on the “dot” and “dash” lines. In general, 5 V or voltages close to this value must be found on the wires and transmission must take place by grounding (GND) one of these lines.
For any other questions, use the form below. Thanks.
If you still have doubts about the validity of our IFace (click here), read below the answers to the most frequent questions we have received so far.
Q. What are the differences between IFace and IFace 2?
A. IFace and IFace 2 are 100% compatible. IFace 2 is an optimized version of IFace and is smaller. IFace 2 replaces the first version (which will no longer be sold).
Q. Can I continue to use the RTX without an SDR receiver connected to the IFace?
A. Obviously yes, the IFace does not influence the functioning of the radio in the least, it only serves to take a copy of the IF signal so that it can be sent to the external SDR receiver.
Q. What bandwidth can I see with the panadapter?
R. It depends, but above all, it does not depend on the IFace. It depends on the external SDR receiver you are going to use. For example, a classic RTL-SDR without decimation can typically reach 1 MHz bandwidth. An RSP1 can reach 10 MHz. If decimation is used, as we recommend, the band typically displayed is around 200 kHz (however more than enough for most applications).
Q. Is PTT necessary?
R. It depends, not always. It depends on the type of radio, in particular how the reception circuit is made. For example, if it uses part of the transmitter circuits then the answer is yes, otherwise if they are clearly separated the answer is no.
Q. What do “PTT Active High” and “PTT Active Low” mean?
A. Digital signals, such as the PTT signal, can be active high or active low. In the case of “active high” the PTT signal goes from 0 V to a higher value, typically 5 V or more. In the case of “active low,” the PTT signal goes from 5 or more volts to 0 V. Generally inside the radios the signal is “active high”. The “active low” signal is typical of an open-collector or open-drain transistor configuration.
Q. My radio does not have the CAT interface: at what frequency should the external SDR receiver be tuned?
A. In this case, if you do not use synchronization between computer and radio via CAT interface, the frequency to be used to receive correctly through the SDR panadapter is that of the IF to which the IFace is connected. Refer to the specific documentation for the installation of our interface.
Q. Can I use the CAT cable to change the frequency regardless of the VFO knob on the RTX or the software and have the same frequency value on both the SDR software and the radio?
A. Obviously yes, that’s what we recommend doing. If you use CAT to synchronize the radio and the SDR software, you will have full control of it directly from the computer screen.
Q. Where do I connect the coaxial cable braid to the IFace?
A. It can be connected to one of the holes on the PCB or, if coaxial connectors are not used, to one of the pads where the external part of the connector should be welded.
Q. I have an RTX that already has an IF output. If I connect my SDR there, would I get the same performance as if I used the IFace?
A. No. Generally, with IFace, the performances are better because we can connect it directly after the first IF mixer and before the roofing filter. This results in a band displayed on the screen that is much wider than that displayed on the radio’s IF output.
Q. What do you need besides your IFace card to have a complete panadapter?
A. In general, you need an A / D converter for RF signals, also called an SDR receiver (ex. RTL-SDR or SDRplay) and a special program for the computer (HDSDR, SDR Console, SDR #, SDRuno etc.). That’s it.
The operations to be performed are very simple, it is sufficient to obtain from its wiring diagram the information on the points where to take the IF signals.
This radio, in fact, uses different mixers. In particular, we will have to use the first of the RX chain. The following images show the block diagram of the radio. For the TS-950S/SD the first IF is at 73.05 MHz.
We now proceed to identify the exact points on the printed circuit board where to take the IF signal to be sent to the IFace. The following images show the sampling point for the IF signal and for the power supply for the buffer interface.
The use of PTT signal is not required.
In order to purchase an IFace use the buttons below.
ATTENTION: Though installing the IFace is not difficult, you do this at your own risk. TSP S.r.l. is not responsible for any damage, unwanted side-effects or whatever.
For more information, do not hesitate to write to us using the form below. Have fun!
The operations to be performed are very simple, it is sufficient to obtain from its wiring diagram the information on the points where to take the IF signals.
This radio, in fact, uses different mixers. In particular, we will have to use the first of the RX chain. The following images show the block diagram of the radio. For the IC-7000 the first IF is at 124.487 MHz.
We now proceed to identify the exact points on the printed circuit board where to take the IF signal to be sent to the IFace. The following images show the sampling point for the IF signal and for the power supply for the buffer interface.
The use of PTT signal is not required.
In order to purchase an IFace use the buttons below.
ATTENTION: Though installing the IFace is not difficult, you do this at your own risk. TSP S.r.l. is not responsible for any damage, unwanted side-effects or whatever.
For more information, do not hesitate to write to us using the form below. Have fun!
The operations to be performed are very simple, it is sufficient to obtain from its wiring diagram the information on the points where to take the IF signals.
This radio, in fact, uses different mixers. In particular, we will have to use the first of the RX chain. The following images show the block diagram of the radio. For the TS-950SDX the first IF is at 73.05 MHz.
We now proceed to identify the exact points on the printed circuit board where to take the IF signal to be sent to the IFace. The following images show the sampling point for the IF signal and for the power supply for the buffer interface.
The use of PTT signal is not required.
In order to purchase an IFace use the buttons below.
ATTENTION: Though installing the IFace is not difficult, you do this at your own risk. TSP S.r.l. is not responsible for any damage, unwanted side-effects or whatever.
For more information, do not hesitate to write to us using the form below. Have fun!
In addition to the instructions below, we also have a great testimonial. It was sent to us by IZ4QAT Nicola, and a warm thanks goes to him. You can find it here: IC-781 SDR by IZ4AQT Nicola.
The operations to be performed are very simple, it is sufficient to obtain from its wiring diagram the information on the points where to take the IF signals.
This radio, in fact, uses different mixers. In particular, we will have to use the first of the RX chain. The following images show the block diagram of the radio. For the IC-781 the first IF is shown in the small table in the following image.
We now proceed to identify the exact points on the printed circuit board where to take the IF signal to be sent to the IFace. The following images show the sampling point for the IF signal and for the power supply for the buffer interface.
In order to purchase an IFace use the button below.
ATTENTION: Though installing the IFace is not difficult, you do this at your own risk. TSP S.r.l. is not responsible for any damage, unwanted side-effects or whatever.
For more information, do not hesitate to write to us using the form below. Have fun!
The operations to be performed are very simple, it is sufficient to obtain from its wiring diagram the information on the points where to take the IF signals.
This radio, in fact, uses different mixers. In particular, we will have to use the first of the RX chain. The following images show the block diagram of the radio. For the FT-891 the first IF is shown in the small table in the following image.
We now proceed to identify the exact points on the printed circuit board where to take the IF signal to be sent to the IFace. The following images show the sampling point for the IF signal and for the power supply for the buffer interface.
In order to purchase an IFace use the button below.
ATTENTION: Though installing the IFace is not difficult, you do this at your own risk. TSP S.r.l. is not responsible for any damage, unwanted side-effects or whatever.
For more information, do not hesitate to write to us using the form below. Have fun!
Our friend Luigi IV3XNF sent us some pictures of the installation of our universal SDR interface IFace inside the great ICOM IC-775DSP. This is a very powerful testimonial and we like to share it to thank Pellegrino. In this way, using an external SDR receiver and its software you can take advantage of all the advanced features of the SDR technology and improve the performance of any radio!
This image shows just how our IFace works: it is used to take the IF signal from the radio and send it, properly processed, to the external receiver: this creates a real SDR panadapter.
The installation is very easy, the instructions can be found here, and from the following images, you can see result of the installation made by IU8JAD.
If you’d like to buy an IFace please use the following button. A shopping cart will appear and you will be able to proceed with the order.
If you want to find out for which other radios the installation instructions are already available, go to this page.
If you do not know which SDR receiver to use and you want an advice, please note that all our tests were carried out using one of the receivers shown in this article: click here.
For more information, videos and other technical notes please visit the product page, click here.
ATTENTION: Though installing the IFace is not difficult, you do this at your own risk. TSP S.r.l. is not responsible for any damage, unwanted side-effects or whatever.
For more information do not hesitate to write us. Have fun!
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NEWS July 18, 2024 A Telegram group is now available through which you can interact to get faster responses from other customers or, if necessary, from TSP Srl.
Sign up for free by clicking here: Telegram TSP Customers.
Please limit the use of contact forms to send generic requests, they have low reading priority because they are often used to send spam.
NOVITA' 18 Luglio 2024
E' da oggi disponibile un gruppo Telegram tramite il quale interagire per avere risposte più veloci da altri clienti o, in caso, da TSP Srl.
Iscrivetevi gratuitamente facendo click qui: Telegram Clienti TSP.
Per favore limitare l'utilizzo dei form di contatto per inviare richieste generiche, hanno bassa priorità di lettura perché spesso usati per inviare spam.
