so ive been using an RTL-SDR v3 dongle for about a year now, mostly just poking around HF with the direct sampling mode and running SDR# on windows. its been fine for getting started but i keep reading that the dynamic range is pretty limited and i notice it when theres a strong broadcast station nearby kind of washing out stuff around it.

been looking at either picking up a HackRF One or stepping up to an SDRplay RSPdx. the HackRF is tempting because you get TX capability too and the frequency range is insane, but from what i understand the noise figure on it is pretty bad compared to something like the RSPdx? like 20+ dB noise figure on the HackRF versus something like 4-5 on the RSPdx. for just receiving shortwave and maybe some VHF air band stuff, does the HackRF even make sense or is it basically a transmit-focused device that happens to also receive.

budget isnt unlimited obviously. RSPdx is around $200 which feels like a lot coming from a $30 dongle but if its genuinely that much better for HF i can probably justify it. anyone gone through this same upgrade path and have thoughts

honestly the HackRF is great but yeah its not a receiver first kind of device. if your main thing is listening, especially HF, the noise figure really does matter and the HackRF will dissapoint you compared to even a halfway decent dedicated receiver. i went from an RTL dongle to a HackRF thinking id get a big improvement and was kind of underwhelmed on HF. still useful for a ton of stuff but not what i wanted for shortwave.

the RSPdx though is a proper step up. the 14 bit ADC versus 8 on the RTL dongle makes a real difference in dynamic range, you'll notice a lot less of that intermod garbage from strong stations. ive been running mine with SDRuno and its pretty solid. SDRuno is a bit clunky to learn but once you get the notch filters and the HDR mode dialed in for the band youre on it really does perform well below 2 MHz. if HF listening is your thing i'd go RSPdx without much hesitation

I went through basically the same decision a while back. ended up with the RSPdx and dont regret it. one thing nobody mentioned to me when i was researching is that SDRuno, the software that comes with it, has kind of a steep learning curve compared to SDR# but theres also nothing stopping you from using it with SDR# via the ExtIO plugin or running it in HDSDR which is what i mostly do now. also works fine with CubicSDR if youre on linux.

the other thing worth knowing is the RSPdx has those three antenna inputs — the high-Z port for longwire below 200 MHz is actually really useful if you dont have a 50 ohm antenna setup yet. makes it flexible for just tossing a random wire out the window and still getting decent results on the lower HF bands.