Frequently Asked Questions

Below is a FAQ for the USRP and the ordering process. If you have questions not in the FAQ, please send them to sales@ettus.com

Questions

Answers

Should I buy a USRP1 or USRP2?

There are many factors to consider. If the USRP1 meets all of your needs, it is a less costly alternative to the USRP2. Other factors to consider:

Reasons to buy a USRP2 instead of a USRP1:

You need more than 8 MHz instantaneous of RF bandwidth
You want to do significant computation in the FPGA
You need to locate the radio more than 2 meters from the computer
You need standalone operation or want the radio to be accessible from more than one computer
You need to lock the frequency to an external reference

Reasons to buy a USRP1 instead of a USRP2:

You want to use USB instead of Gigabit Ethernet
You need the lowest cost 2-Way MIMO system available
You wish to work on Windows

Advantages of the USRP2:

Bigger, faster FPGA (Xilinx Spartan 3)
Gigabit Ethernet allows for 3X higher bandwidth
Faster, higher resolution ADCs (14-bits 100 MS/s vs. 12-bits 64 MS/s)
Faster, higher resolution DACs (16-bits 400 MS/s vs. 14-bits 128 MS/s)

Do you have any distributors?

No, we sell and ship directly.

Can you ship to my country? Are there any export restrictions?

We can ship anywhere except Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Sudan, or Syria. No export licenses are required.

What Daughterboards are currently available?

The following boards are in production and can be ordered at any time:

BasicRX, 0.1-300 MHz receive
BasicTX, 0.1-200 MHz transmit
LFRX, DC-30 MHz receive
LFTX, DC-30 MHz transmit
TVRX, 50-860 MHz receive
DBSRX, 800-2400 MHz receive
WBX, 50 MHz to 2.2 GHz Transceiver
RFX400, 400-500 MHz Transceiver
RFX900, 800-1000 MHz Transceiver
RFX1200, 1150-1400 MHz Transceiver
RFX1800, 1500-2100 MHz Transceiver
RFX2400, 2250-2900 MHz Transceiver
XCVR2450, 2.4-2.5 GHz and 4.9 to 5.85 GHz Transceiver

What other daughterboards are planned?

If you are interested in others, please let us know. Custom design services are also available.

Do you have antennas to match your daughterboards?

Yes, we have antennas for every daughterboard which we sell. Please see the ordering page for pictures and specifications.

Do you accept PayPal?

No, we cannot accept PayPal purchases. We can accept payment by VISA, MasterCard, and American Express, as well as wire transfers and checks in US Dollars.

What is the best/prefered way to transfer the money from country X to pay you?

At this time we can accept

AMEX, Visa and Mastercard (preferred)
Personal, Business, Certified, or Cashier's Checks in US Dollars
Bank Wire Transfers (please contact us)

If you have another method you wish to use, please contact us.

What OS does it work with?

The USRP and GNU Radio work with:

Linux (2.6 kernel, any distribution)
Mac OSX (PPC and Intel)
Windows XP/2000
NetBSD and FreeBSD

The USRP2 is currently only supported under Linux.

Primary development is done on Linux.

Are PCB design files available with the boards that may aid in further prototyping?

Yes. All USRP schematics (gEDA and PDF), all daughterboard schematics (gEDA and PDF), all daughterboard PCB design files, and daughterboard electrical and mechanical specs are available. You can find them on the download page.

Are there any license requirement for the transmit or transecive daughterboards?

The USRP is sold as test equipment. If you choose to use your USRP and daughterboards to transmit using an antenna, it is your responsibility to make sure that you are in compliance with all laws for the country, frequency, and power levels in which the device is used. Additionally, some countries regulate reception in certain frequency bands. Again, it is the responsibility of the user to maintain compliance with all local laws and regulations.

Can I do interesting things with just a USRP and BasicTX/BasicRX, but no RF frontend? Do I need a separate RF front end to capture, say, CW or phone transmissions in the amateur bands? Or can the BasicRX fill that role?

The most direct and easy way to create a complete radio system is to use one of our complete RF frontend daughterboards, the TVRX, DBSRX, RFX-series, and XCVR2450.

However, you can use the BasicRX and BasicTX with your own external RF hardware. For reception you would need to add gain and filtering in front of the BasicRX daughterboard. This can be done pretty easily with MiniCircuits parts, or you can use the 10.7 MHz IF output of common scanners and receivers. The BasicRX board will handle signals up to around 300MHz directly. For higher frequencies you'll need to downconvert.

With the BasicTX can I transmit basic FM and AM, without additional hardware?

Yes, the BasicTX will put out about 1mW up to about 50 MHz. A simple connectorized amplifier (ala MiniCircuits) will get you greater range. You may also want to add some low-pass filtering.

Will the power supply work in country X? Is it approved in country X? What are the power requirements?

The USRP power supply provides 6V at 3.5A. The USRP itself needs only 5V at 1.5A, but most daughterboards require 6V. The DC plug is a 2.1mm center conductor, 5.5mm shell standard plug.

The Power supply accepts 90-264Vac at 50 or 60Hz, and so should work for just about every country in the world. You will need a US-type plug adapter.

This is a high quality power supply which has the following approvals:

USA -- UL 60950
Canada -- CSA C22.2 NO.950
Europe -- TUV/VDE-EN60950
Europe -- CE Mark
China -- CCC GB4943-2001