RTL-SDR v3 and v4 question

[Miguel Ríos Martín]

Hello.

A beginner's question: I'm trying to get the following system working:

Parabolic dish -> SAWbird H1-> RTL-SDR (v4) -> Linux with the general RTL-SDR driver (rtl-sdr-0.6.0).

So far, I haven't detected the hydrogen line, and I've seen online that RTL-SDR v4 requires more up-to-date drivers, at least on Windows.

Has anyone tested if v4 works with version rtl-sdr-0.6.0? Or do I need to update to a more recent version?

What version of v4 do you use on Linux?

I've started testing with the same configuration and driver using RTL-SDR v3 to see if it works better. I'll let you know.

[Robert Meade]

V4 only really makes sense for HF b/c of internal changes. Just get the V3

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[andrew....@googlemail.com]

I use both V3s and V4s without any problems – can’t say I ever really thought about drivers too much – I go onto Zadig and select the one it offers and seems to work – I guess I downloaded them at beginning. I must agree that, in practice, I haven’t noticed any real difference between them.

For anyone who is unaware, there is no V5 RTL-SDR = that is a Nooelec device with similar architecture – it is a good SDR but not necessarily that much different to these – admittedly, some people swear by them.

Andy

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[Robert Meade]

Both will work if another LNA carries the performance of the overall chain. The V4 was just specifically designed for native HF that the V3 did very poorly with direct sampling hack. 

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[Miguel Ríos Martín]

Hello.

Solution and conclusions:

After multiple tests, the conclusions are as follows:

1) In many Linux distributions (mine is Alamalinux 9), the default driver is rtl-sdr-v-0.6. With this driver, RTL-SDR-v3 works perfectly and the H line is detected. However, RTL-SDR v4 does not work. It doesn't throw errors, but it doesn't detect anything, and the graphs don't look right.

2) I uninstalled the default 0.6 driver and installed the latest version from https://github.com/rtlsdrblog/rtl-sdr-blog.git. I compiled and installed it, and now both v3 and v4 work perfectly.

The problem, and the reason for so much time spent on this issue, was that with the standard 0.6 driver, v4 didn't throw errors and seemed to work. Fortunately, the issue is resolved, in case anyone is interested.

[Stephen Arbogast]

I can  only  offer  you  my  experience   but  first  which dish?  What  software  are you  using?   What  version of   Linux?     Linux is  very  good  at  providing  drivers  for  usb         connections....   As in any  trouble  shooting  routine   you  start  at the  source  and trace the  path...

[Miguel Ríos Martín]

Thank you.

To complete the information:

Now that it's working, I'm using the following configuration:

Nooelec parabolic antenna -> SAWbird H1 (Nooelec) -> RTL-SDR (v4) -> Linux (Almalinux v9) and ezCol.py software

I shortened the antenna arm (following the instructions on this forum) because it wasn't positioned at the focus of the parabola.

With the latest  rtl-sdr  driver version downloaded and compiled from https://github.com/rtlsdrblog/rtl-sdr-blog.git, both v3 and v4 of RTL-SDR work.

[Stephen Arbogast]

From my location in  South West  Colorado , USA using Discovery  Dish   ezRA  wih  an  AirSpy R2

So  far you  can see  some  results...

[Stephen Arbogast]

Cool  you  are on your  way!

[Stephen Arbogast]

Just  caught  this   ...    

[Andrew Thornett]

That is very useful information thanks Miguel

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From: sara...@googlegroups.com <sara...@googlegroups.com> on behalf of Miguel Ríos Martín <mrio...@gmail.com>
Sent: Thursday, 02 July 2026 07:33:30
To: Society of Amateur Radio Astronomers <sara...@googlegroups.com>

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