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Facing Some Issues with i7 Laptop and FlexRadio Product. Any Advice?

judywatson
judywatson Member ✭
in SmartSDR for Windows
Hi everyone,

I’m having some issues with my i7 laptop [https://www.lenovo.com/in/en/d/i7-laptops] while using a FlexRadio product and was hoping someone here might have some advice.

Here’s what I’m working with:

i7 Laptop: Intel Core i7 processor with standard RAM and storage.
FlexRadio Product: FlexRadio SmartSDR (Version 3.4.9)
The Issues:

Lag During Operation: The SmartSDR software (Version 3.4.9) is experiencing noticeable lag and delays when operating on my i7 laptop, particularly when adjusting settings or switching bands.

Audio Stuttering: There are frequent audio glitches or stuttering during communication, which affects the overall experience.

Connection Drops: The software occasionally loses connection with the FlexRadio device, requiring a restart to regain stability.

Steps Taken So Far:

Ensured that my laptop drivers and Windows updates are current.
Tried optimizing the SmartSDR settings to reduce resource usage.
Tested the software on a different machine and didn’t encounter the same issues.
Has anyone else faced similar problems with FlexRadio SmartSDR (Version 3.4.9) on an i7 laptop? Any tips for resolving these issues or improving performance would be really helpful!

Thanks in advance for any insights!

Answers

  • KD0RC
    KD0RC Member, Super Elmer Moderator

    I would start with an upgrade to 3.7.4. There have been quite a few bug fixes and performance improvements since 3.4.9.

  • Trucker
    Trucker Member ✭✭✭✭

    This sounds like a network problem. If you are accessing your radio over a WiFi connection that may be the problem. Location between your access point and your laptop could be a problem as well. Upgrading to the latest version is always a good idea. But, I don't think that is necessarily the problem.

    James

    WD5GWY

  • WX7Y
    WX7Y Member ✭✭✭✭

    How are you connecting to the Radio, Direct connection or through your Router?

    The first thing I would try is to turn off temporally your Computers Firewall including the Windows Firewall and do a Wired connection to the computer if it has a Ethernet Port.

    If you get it working better then you can turn the firewall back on and try to fix it.

    Once you get things figured out you really should update to 3.7.4 on all your devices BUT NOT until you figure out the connection issues out with the Laptop, you don't want the Firmware update to jack up the Radio's firmware if your having a network problem.

  • David Decoons, wo2x
    David Decoons, wo2x Member, Super Elmer Moderator

    How much RAM? I’d go 16 GB minimum.. win 11 will stake out as much as it can for swap file and video card usage. The video cards in laptops typically use shared system RAM, so 8 GB is starting to push minimum.

    Next make sure Core Memory Isolation is off. That can cause conflicts with DAX, part of SmartSDR.

    Find out what the hardware manufacturer of the wireless hardware in the laptop is (Intel, Realtek, etc) and download drivers for the specific hardware and not laptop model. Laptop model drivers tend to be older than latest available.

    If the laptop is dual band WiFi, depending on distance from router you could get mixed results. 5 GHz is faster but shorter coverage distance. 2.4 while slower does have further range. Try laptop closer to router to rule that out.

    I have seen some stuttering using a 2nd gen iPad Pro when the iPad would periodically scan for new networks. 5 quick pauses in RX that were noticeable. Latest iPad OS or the move to the Netgear Orbi 752 mesh system has eliminated that.

    You’ve got some ideas so you can put you detective hat on and investigate.

  • John KB4DU
    John KB4DU Member ✭✭✭✭

    SmartSDR is a fairly lightweight client, but the data rate can stress the network. As Mike says, getting a network to work is easy, getting it to work well is hard. I have run the software on a win7 laptop. From my experience, I would bypass the network switch and wire the computer directly to the radio and see what happens. Some gig rated switches don’t work well in this role I disabled the WiFi portion of a 100Mb router and used it as a switch. My throughput issues went away Mike has had similar experience.

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