Supporting piHPSDR and the G2 software ecosystem

A dedicated team for our software

The G2 series has always paired serious RF hardware with capable, open software. To strengthen that software side, Apache Labs has established an in-house software development team whose job is to invest engineering time directly into the applications our customers use every day.

We want to be clear and modest about where we are starting. This is the beginning of a long-term commitment, and we are starting focused:

• Our primary focus right now is assisting DL1YCF with piHPSDR — contributing improvements, testing, fixes, and new capabilities to the application that drives the G2.
• In parallel, we are building companion applications that make the G2 easier to live with — the first of these is the G2 Updater, described later in this document.
• We will also work with developers to support legacy hardware — including the ANAN-7000DLE and ANAN-8000DLE series — so that owners of earlier Apache Labs radios benefit from this effort too.
• We will expand gradually. As the team grows and matures, we will broaden the scope of what we work on.
• Down the line, we will begin taking feature requests from users. The G2 community has always been a source of excellent ideas, and we intend to channel them into the software.

Supporting our legacy hardware

Our commitment is not limited to the latest radios. Many Apache Labs operators are still getting excellent service from earlier models, and we want to keep it that way.

The software team will work alongside the developer community to support legacy hardware, including the ANAN-7000DLE and ANAN-8000DLE series. Where improvements to piHPSDR and our companion tools can benefit these radios, we will help bring that support forward — so that the investment our customers made in earlier platforms continues to pay off.

What we have been working on in piHPSDR

The current generation of piHPSDR brings a substantial set of improvements spanning the user interface, digital signal processing, remote operation, and everyday usability. The headline additions are summarised below.

Visual and user interface

• Colour theme system — 15 selectable colour schemes plus Dark/Light switching, applied consistently across the panadapter, waterfall, meters, and VFO display.
• Redesigned meters — an overhauled analog meter and a sharper digital meter, with extended metering shown when screen space allows, and an option for 3 dB per S-unit step.
• VFO bar shortcuts — left and right clicks on the VFO display open the Band, Filter, and Mode menus directly, saving trips into the main menu.
• Faster panadapter adjustment — drag vertically on the panadapter to change the display range on the fly.

Digital signal processing

• New AGC modes — a Custom mode exposing attack, hang, decay, slope, and threshold, plus a Fixed-gain mode for full manual control.
• CW audio peak filter — a choice of four peak filters to make weak CW signals stand out.
• Manual multi-notch filter — place multiple independent notches to knock out several carriers at once.
• Additional DSP window choice — selectable 4-term or 7-term Blackman-Harris window functions.

Remote operation over the internet

• Opus audio compression — dramatically reduces the bandwidth needed for remote audio (selectable quality presets), making remote operation practical over modest internet connections.
• Spectrum data compression — panadapter data is compressed for the remote link, automatically negotiated between both ends.
• Network helpers — built-in DuckDNS dynamic-DNS and UPnP port-forwarding tools, so the radio can be reached from anywhere without manual router configuration.
• Connection quality indicator — round-trip latency shown right in the VFO bar so you always know the health of your remote link.
• Auto-reconnect — the client recovers automatically from short network interruptions.

Logging, spotting, and integration

• Built-in DX cluster — connect to a DX cluster directly from piHPSDR, with spots displayed as clickable markers on the panadapter and a searchable local spot history.
• Greatly expanded TCI server — full bidirectional control so popular logging and contest software can drive the radio and read its state, including audio streaming.
• RX and TX profiles — save and recall receive and transmit settings independently from a dedicated Profiles menu.

Reliability and lifecycle

• Built-in update checking — piHPSDR can check for and apply updates from within the application.
• Automatic dependency handling — the build process installs everything it needs without manual intervention.

This is a living list. As our team continues to assist DL1YCF, further refinements will follow, and we will keep the community informed as they land.

Where we go from here

The software team's work will grow over time. Our roadmap, in broad strokes:

Now

• Assisting DL1YCF with piHPSDR development, testing, and refinement.
• Preparing the G2 Updater suite and the MODERN version of piHPSDR for download.

Next

• Additional companion applications that make the G2 easier to set up, operate, and maintain.
• Working with developers to extend support to legacy hardware, including the ANAN-7000DLE and ANAN-8000DLE series.
• Continued contributions to piHPSDR as priorities emerge.

Later

• Opening a channel for user feature requests, so the community can directly influence what we build.
• Broadening the scope of our software work across the Apache Labs ecosystem.

We are excited to be making this commitment to the software side of the Apache Labs experience, and we look forward to sharing what comes next.