Eric,
The expensive soundcard is not required to use the K3 IF output
effectively. Yes, the better soundcards will allow you to display 192
kHz of the band centered on the K3 frequency, but how often is that
needed? If you can answer "rarely or never", then you can use one of
the lesser capability soundcards to display 80 kHz or so. The
Soundblaster Live card is still available at a reasonable price and has
a 24 bit ADC with a reasonable noise floor, so the dynamic range should
be adequate.
The real answer depends on your wants and needs - if you want to display
the maximum slice of the spectrum, then go with the best available, but
if your budget must be minded, then there are other alternatives.
Actually, any soundcard will work - the question is just how much
dynamic range will you have and how wide a swath of the spectrum will
you be able to display. You may want to look at the Softrock reflector
(a Yahoo group) for additional information - but there are a lot of
advocates there who strive for the best of the best.
73,
Don W3FPR
K7TV wrote:
I have the kits for SoftRock Lite and the isolation amplifier sitting here,
just waiting to be put together, so I will definitely give that a go first. I
too don't much like the idea of getting an outboard soundcard, so if the
soundcard is the weakest link (in desktop and/or laptop) I don't know if I will
take that step or go to something not requiring a soundcard. There is no doubt
that a receiver for the full HF range is worth more than just a panadapter. One
slight count against the Perseus might be that it requires a power connection.
Is it tolerant enough as to voltages to be run from either the typical home
station 13.8V supply, or a car battery being discharged to 11 V or so?
73,
Erik K7TV
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