Looking for experiences with HackRF One vs SDRplay RSP1A on VHF/UHF bands (144-450MHz primarily). Just received my HackRF and honestly disappointed with RX performance compared to my RTL-SDR v3. Audio quality on broadcast FM is poor, and weak signals that copy fine on the RTL are barely readable on the HackRF even with gain tweaking.

I bought it for TX capability and wide frequency range, but if RX performance is this poor, wondering if I should have gotten an RSP1A instead. Anyone running both units who can comment on VHF/UHF receiver sensitivity? Using GQRX on Ubuntu 22.04, latest firmware 2021.03.1.

Maybe my expectations were too high, but for $300+ I expected better than a $30 dongle. Running out of antenna connector to try different software combinations.

The HackRF is primarily designed as a hacker/experimenter platform, not an optimized receiver like the RSP1A. You're comparing apples to oranges - the RTL-SDR actually has decent sensitivity on VHF/UHF, while the HackRF trades RX performance for TX capability and wide bandwidth. For VHF/UHF monitoring, stick with the RTL-SDR or get an RSP1A.

I have both units and can confirm the RSP1A absolutely destroys the HackRF on receive sensitivity across VHF/UHF. The HackRF noise figure is pretty terrible without an LNA. If you're not using the TX capability, the RSP1A is a much better choice for monitoring applications.

Check your HackRF gain settings in GQRX - try IF gain around 16-20dB and RF gain around 14dB for VHF. Also make sure you're using the correct input (no DC bias). The HackRF can work decently but needs proper configuration and possibly a good LNA for weak signal work.