so ive been using a cheap RTL-SDR v3 dongle for about a year now, mostly just scanning around VHF/UHF, some APRS decoding, that kind of thing. works fine for what it is. but lately ive been wanting to get into HF more seriously and ive been going back and forth on whether to just keep using the direct sampling mode on the RTL or finally drop the money on an SDRplay RSP1B or maybe even stretch for the RSPdx.

the price jump is pretty significant for me right now - like the RSP1B is what, $130ish? and the RTL-SDR was like $35. i know thats not apples to apples but im wondering if the dynamic range difference actually matters for casual HF listening or if im just gonna notice it on really crowded band conditions. i live in a suburban area so RFI is already a problem and i dont know if a better frontend is gonna help with that or if its just gonna receive the noise better too lol.

ive tried SDR# and SDRuno and i honestly prefer the SDR# interface but i know SDRuno is kind of built around the RSPx line. anyone gone from RTL to SDRplay and noticed a real world difference or is this one of those things where the specs look great on paper and then reality is meh. also would CubicSDR even be worth trying on either of these or is it not really maintained anymore.

the dynamic range thing is real, especially on HF. i had an RTL-SDR v3 in direct sampling mode for a while and yeah it works but you're gonna see a lot of intermod garbage when there's a strong AM broadcast station nearby. switched to an RSP1A (older version, got it used) and the difference was pretty noticeable on 40m during the evening when everyones piling on. that said if your RFI situation is bad at home the better receiver isnt gonna fix that - you'll just see the noise floor more clearly which is kind of depressing honestly.

SDRuno is fine once you get used to it but the UI is a mess, like whoever designed it clearly came from a hardware radio background and just tried to recreate a physical front panel on screen. SDR# with the right plugins is probably more usable day to day. i'd say if you're serious about HF go RSPdx if you can swing it, the notch filters and the broadcast rejection stuff is worth it in a suburban environment, but the RSP1B is still a big step up from the dongle.

CubicSDR is basically abandonware at this point, i wouldnt bother. last meaningful commit was ages ago and there's known bugs that never got fixed. SDR# is still the go-to for Windows if you ask me, or GQRX if youre on Linux.

on the RSPdx vs RSP1B thing - honestly for just listening on HF i think the 1B is fine unless youre near a lot of strong BC stations. the HDR mode on the RSPdx is nice in theory but in practice you have to be pretty deliberate about when you use it. i went RSP1B route last spring and dont really feel like i'm missing anything, though i havent done serious comparisons.