Etch-A-SDR: Odroid C1, Teensy 3.1 and RTL-SDR | Hacker News Reader

Etch-A-SDR: Odroid C1, Teensy 3.1 and RTL-SDR

github.com

53 pointstlrobinson3 comments

The Teensy boards[0] are the work of a single, dedicated engineer. While their design is proprietary, they are compatible with the Arduino IDE, to which Paul Stoffregen (PJ from PJRC) contributes substantially[1]. Unlike both Arduino entities[2, 3], his track record is clear from ethical shenanigans.

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0. https://www.pjrc.com/teensy/index.html

1. http://www.pjrc.com/teensy/arduino_contrib.html

2. https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=11212021

3. https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9231708

Looks cool, hate to look a gift horse in a mouth. Can I get a part list/build plans for the HW side. This might be what actually gets me into playing with SDR. :)

Hi, I made the Etch-A-SDR. Found this thread after seeing the stars on the Github project jump (Thanks HN!).

The hardware used is:

- Acrylic sheet

- Odroid C1 (There are more powerful Odroids now, either the C2 [0] or XU4 [1])

- RTL-SDR

- GY-521 6DOF

- Teensy 3.1

- Rotary Encoders (adafruit)

- Push buttons (adafruit)

- 10.1" TFT screen with speakers (adafruit)

- Ethernet / USB bulkheads (adafruit)

- MCX to SMA bulkhead (ebay)

- misc parts ( screws, stand-offs, etc from home depot)

- Knobs from a real Etch-a-Sketch

I presented this at the monthly Cyberspectrum SDR Meetup [2] in San Francisco, the slides, which include pictures of inside the Etch-A-SDR, and an overview of the hardware/software can be seen here [3], and a live stream recording here [4].

If you're just getting started with SDR, I would suggest setting it up on regular computer vs starting with running it on an ARM type board, SDR is very resource hungry, and runs better on a normal machine. There is a big community over at the r/rtlsdr [5] subreddit. SDR is a lot of fun, and opens up the huge world of RF, and it is very inexpensive to get started.

[0] - http://ameridroid.com/products/odroid-c2

[1] - http://ameridroid.com/products/odroid-xu4

[2] - http://www.meetup.com/Cyberspectrum/

[3] - https://github.com/devnulling/etch-a-sdr-presentation

[4] - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tG70c3Zadek

[5] - https://www.reddit.com/r/rtlsdr

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