SDR Neewbe - Request explanation of NFM, WFM, AM, DSB, LSB, CW, USB & RAW use by frequency

[KCSDRDiscone]

I am only about a month into having purchased an RTL-SDR dongle and a Tram 1410 Discone Antenna that I have mounted on my old Dish Network mount (minus the disc, the arm now horizonal, and adding a 3' tall antenna mounting pole to the end of the old Dish Network arm).

I have watched many YouTube videos, reviewed internet articles, and RadioReference.com and some of its forums. My initial question is whether there is a chart or frequency band/range list for using the NFM, WFM, AM, DSB, LSB, CW, USB & RAW for my SDR. I do see that RR has charts by county that list the type of modulation or other "Band" that certain frequencies are using (Airports, police, fire, etc.) At present I am only looking to listen to voice transmissions. I have also not added any additional software other than the initial Airspy SDR software that is available free on their website. If you have suggestions for other software add-ons I should download, please advise.

As an example, I ran across a guy on YouTube listening to old U.S. "space satellites" from the 1970s that people in Central and South America hijack to use for communication in the 250 - 270 MHz range. Could someone please respond with which setting (NFM, WFM, AM, DSB, LSB, CW, USB & RAW) I should use for the Airspy software to attempt to listen to this frequency range? I also know that there are many different antennas out there that are specific for certain frequency bands. I purchased the Tram discone antenna because it has a wide frequency band width, but I have read about its limitations. Thanks in advance for responding - Mike

 

[krokus]

I am only about a month into having purchased an RTL-SDR dongle and a Tram 1410 Discone Antenna that I have mounted on my old Dish Network mount (minus the disc, the arm now horizonal, and adding a 3' tall antenna mounting pole to the end of the old Dish Network arm).

I have watched many YouTube videos, reviewed internet articles, and RadioReference.com and some of its forums. My initial question is whether there is a chart or frequency band/range list for using the NFM, WFM, AM, DSB, LSB, CW, USB & RAW for my SDR. I do see that RR has charts by county that list the type of modulation or other "Band" that certain frequencies are using (Airports, police, fire, etc.) At present I am only looking to listen to voice transmissions. I have also not added any additional software other than the initial Airspy SDR software that is available free on their website. If you have suggestions for other software add-ons I should download, please advise.

As an example, I ran across a guy on YouTube listening to old U.S. "space satellites" from the 1970s that people in Central and South America hijack to use for communication in the 250 - 270 MHz range. Could someone please respond with which setting (NFM, WFM, AM, DSB, LSB, CW, USB & RAW) I should use for the Airspy software to attempt to listen to this frequency range? I also know that there are many different antennas out there that are specific for certain frequency bands. I purchased the Tram discone antenna because it has a wide frequency band width, but I have read about its limitations. Thanks in advance for responding - Mike

The pirates using the US military satellites use whatever mode they want, typically WFM. The satellite operates in the "bent pipe" type of repeater, so it sends down everything on the frequency regardless of mode.

 

[Whiskey3JMC]

Welcome to the RR forums. This is a lot of info to unpack & cover on one thread alone. If you search the forums you'll unearth other threads covering these topics. Also SDR related discussion is better suited for the Software Defined Radio forum rather than your state forum which is better for local discussion

My initial question is whether there is a chart or frequency band/range list for using the NFM, WFM, AM, DSB, LSB, CW, USB & RAW for my SDR.

This link here covers single side band usage on the HF bands pretty well