HF Hardware Decoders

Soundcard Interfaces

Often, hams will use a soundcard interface to make the connection between their computer's soundcard and their radios. This offers many advantages, not the least of which is good isolation and suppressing problems such as hum and ground loops.

• MFJ Soundcard Interfaces
• PK-232SC Soundcard Interface
• Rascal Mk IV
• Rascal Mk V
• Rigblaster Products
• Tigertronics Products

Terminal Units/Hardware Plug In

These units require a display of some kind (PC, video terminal) to function. There are some, like the PK232 series, that have been updated to keep up with new capabilities, while others, such as the M-8000 are of limited usefullness since it copies modes that have long since been abandoned.

• HAL Modems
• Kantronics KAM-XL
• MFJ-462B
• SCS Modems
• Tigertronics BP2M Modem
• Timewave DSP599ZX
• Wavecom Products (PDF)

Terminal Unit Support Programs

There are only a few programs available today to interface with the terminal units listed above. This is a rapidly dwindling category as more and more decoding is being done at the software level.

• Airmail2000
• Copycat Pro (DOS)
• M8000 Terminal Software
• Tigertronics BayPac Software Page
• Tigertronics SignaLink Software Page
• TTYTerm

Hardware Links

Websites that have other information on these decoders are presented here

• Care and Feeding of the MFJ1278B for FSK ops
• Universal's chart of decoders (PDF)
• Understanding Soundcard Interfacing

Readers and Discontinued Units

Readers are units that usually have their own display, in the form of a LCD readout. These units are very much out of date. They don't have any upgrade path, so new modes cannot be added. There still are some being sold on the used market, and unless you have a specific need, there are better (software based) solutions.

• AOR TDF-370
• AOR ARD-2
• MFJ-1278B
• Universal M-450
• Universal M-8000

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