500+ – M0AWS Amateur Radio

piHPSDR-Improved Logo from The Three Amigos Development Team

For some time now Steve (M0XVT), Alan (G1SQB) and I have been working on a version of piHPSDR to use with our Hermes Lite 2, Anan 200D, Adalm Pluto, Pluto+ and LibreSDR transceivers. The biggest problem we’ve had is the constantly changing code on github that often would stop the software from working on one device or more each time we updated and then we’d have to spend hours finding the issue and fixing it.

Eventually we got tired of this and decided to build our own stable version that doesn’t get anything from github and is made up of all the parts necessary to create a version that just works on the devices that we use on a daily basis.

Using piHPSDR on the QO-100 satellite and the HF bands across a number of very different types of hardware is a challenge in itself, especially when the devices use different protocols and only certain library sets work with certain firmware on some devices, the combinations get complicated to say the least.

To differentiate our build of piHPSDR from all the others available on the internet today we decided to call it piHPSDR-Improved.

So what is piHPSDR-Improved?

piHPSDR-Improved is a version of piHPSDR that has the fixes and enhancements in it that we’ve dreamt of having over the last couple of years. Some of the fixes are simple things like being able to detach the toolbar from the main window thus giving more space for the two panadapter/waterfall displays and have all the toolbar buttons on another screen in a floating toolbar. Other enhancements were more involved and addressed some of the most annoying issues like none of the settings for VFOB (RX2) were saved and so, every time you started the program you had to setup the RX2 all over again from scratch. These sound like simple fixes but, believe me, they’re not.

Another thing we wanted to do was make piHPSDR-Improved easy to install. Many Windows users transitioning from Windows to Linux often regret it the moment they have to use the Linux command line to install piHPSDR.

We’ve committed to having GUI installers for all the applications that we develop and release, regardless of how much extra work this entails.

It’s time installing software on Linux desktop PCs was as easy as it has been on Windows PCs for decades.

We’ve taken a modular approach to building piHPSDR-improved. Rather than putting everything into the one application, we’re going to be releasing add on modules that will bring new functionality over time. This way we can build on a structured, stable base keeping everything operational all of the time.

The first module we’re releasing is piSync and we’ve included it in the zip file that you’ll download to install piHPSDR-Improved.

piSync Logo

piSync adds functionality to piHPSDR-Improved that Windows Thetis users have had for a long time, namely the ability to use an online WebSDR along side their own SDR transceiver and have it track the frequency, band and mode automatically. This functionality has proven to be incredibly useful when you are struggling to hear a weak DX or QRP station.

With piSync you can now use an online WebSDR receiver closer to the DX station to aid getting that QSO in the log. It’s like having another receiver in your radio that is located anywhere in the world, for free!

We believe this is a first for the Linux platform and we’re really pleased to be able to share it with the Linux community.

We’ve had great fun with piSync during testing and we think you’re all going to find it extremely useful too.

We’re also planning on adding support for FLRig in the next version of piSync so that you’ll be able to use a WebSDR with any transceiver that is supported by FLRig.

Of course it goes without saying, all of our software is Opensource. When you download and install piHPSDR-Improved or any of the new modules you will get the full source code every time and be free to do whatever you like with it. Every module will also have it’s own GUI installer, no more command line, just double click and go.

Both piHPSDR-Improved and piSync have been tested on RaspberryPi 5/500+, Linuxmint Cinnamon, Kubuntu, Debian 12 (Bookworm) and Debian 13 (Trixie) so, we’re pretty confident it’ll work on most Debian/Ubuntu based Linux distro’s on Intel/AMD PCs and the current versions of the RaspberryPi SBCs.

piHPSDR-Improved, piSync and a WebSDR running on a pi 500+

Inside the zip file you’ll find a file called README.1st, do make sure you read this before installing any of the software as it contains some important information that’ll make installation as easy as possible.

To download both piHPSDR-Improved and piSync in an easy to use zip file, just click the Download button below.

piHPSDR-Improved-v2.42-and-piSync-v0.6 Download

We’ve got lots of ideas for new features, modules and bug fixes (Yes there are still some bugs in there!) which we will be releasing over time. Don’t expect this to happen overnight as Steve still works full time and Alan and I are both enjoying our retirement.

This is just another facet of our hobby and we don’t like to rush things. We do like to use our radios on air, pretty much daily and so we do this software development in between all the other fun things that Amateur Radio has to offer.

To be clear and open we do use Claude Code to help with development. I go through as much of the code as I can without spending days and days just reading code. I am retired after all and have spent enough of my life professionally writing and debugging both my own code and other people’s code. We do a lot of testing on a good number of Linux distros before we even consider releasing the software to the wider world and use it on air as part of the testing process, so we’ve done as much as we can to ensure we’ve not introduced new bugs to the software. Keep in mind we do this as part of our Amateur Radio hobby and so, it needs to be fun and enjoyable.

We hope you enjoy using the software and find it useful. If you’ve got ideas for new things you’d like to see in future versions then please feel free to contact any of us via our contact details on QRZ.

UPDATE: We’ve fixed a little bug in piSync and released an updated version. You can download it from this article.

More soon …

In December 2024 the RaspberryPi 500 was announced with great fanfare in the maker world. Following on from the RaspberryPi 400 series, the 500 model moved the keyboard based 80’s style desktop computer to the new faster CPU and RP1 I/O chip technology that came with the RaspberryPi 5 model.

This was hailed as a big step forward in performance for the 500 series however, for me it was disappointing. The problem with the 500 is that it didn’t come with an M.2 NVME SSD connector and was based around the much slower SD card storage solution.

All of my Pi5 models have been upgraded with the Pimoroni SSD Baseboard and a 250GB M.2 NVME SSD drive making a huge improvement in performance for the little single board computer (SBC).

Along comes the Raspberry Pi 500 and once again it’s hobbled by the fact that it has no SSD support on the motherboard. What was ridiculous was that all the pads and tracks were on the circuit board but, not populated. This annoyed many in the RaspberryPi community, myself included as the new faster machine was once again held back by slow SD card I/O.

What made it even worse was the fact that the 500 didn’t have the facility to add an M.2 NVME SSD via the PCIe interface like on the Pi5, making it even more disappointing.

Needless to say I, along with many others didn’t put my hand in my pocket to purchase a 500 as it would be a huge step backwards from my Pi5’s.

Step forward to September 2025 and RaspberryPi announce the new RaspberryPi 500+, the computer we all hoped for 12 months earlier.

My RaspberryPi 500+ that I'm using to write this article — My RaspberryPi 500+ that I’m using to write this article

I ordered my 500+ from Pimoroni the moment the email saying it was available with its new high spec dropped into my inbox. Being one of the first to splash the cash I got a 20% discount off the price too, which made the purchase even easier.

A few days later the 500+ landed on my doorstep and I hastily unpacked it.

The 500+ comes with 16GB of RAM and a 256GB M.2 NVME SSD drive from the factory, exactly what we all wanted from the original 500. To everyone’s surprise the 500+ also comes with a new Clicky Gateron Blue KS-33 mechanical keyboard. This isn’t something I was expecting but, it was a nice surprise!

Connecting the 500+ to my mouse, ethernet cable, 4K monitor and official PSU it burst into life. The SSD comes preloaded with RaspberryPi OS and boots first time, no messing with loading ISO images to SD cards here!

The first thing I noticed was that the 500+ feels snappier than my Pi5, even though they both have the same SSD drive. Apps start just that bit quicker on the 500+ and copying files around feels quicker too.

Could this be because the SSD is now directly on the motherboard rather than at the end of a ribbon cable like on the Pi5?

The new keyboard is very different to use compared to the old 400/500 and the official RaspberryPi keyboard for the Pi SBC’s. It’s very clicky and slightly wider with more space between the keys. Initially this is annoying as it creates typo hell but, after some time your muscle memory adjusts and your typing gets back to it’s normal typo free experience.

The new keyboard is a nice improvement over the original 500 and makes the hiked price of £178.00 (with 20% discount) worth paying. The new keyboard is also backlit and can be adjusted to a range of colours and effects. I settled on having the keys light up in red once pressed as this is much easier on the eyes.

Since I’d been using a Pi5 with SSD as my desktop PC in the home office for over a year now I wanted to move my custom KDE-Plasma setup over to my new 500+ in place of the rather sparse RaspberryPi OS desktop that comes as standard on the 500+ SSD.

RaspberyPi 500+ open for SSD replacement

RaspberryPi 500+ M.2 NVME SSD Drive — RaspberyPi 500+ open for SSD replacement

Opening the 500+ is relatively easy using the supplied spudger to tease the keyboard top and bottom apart once the screws have been removed.

Upon splitting the top and bottom sections you immediately become aware of the rather fragile looking ribbon cable that connects the keyboard to the motherboard. Access to the SSD drive is very good and it only took a minute to swap the drives over.

Gently clicking the keyboard back to the bottom half of the case and inserting all the screws I reconnected the computer to all my peripherals and switched it on.

In no time at all my favourite KDE-Plasma desktop and all my files and apps were at my fingertips just as they had been for the last year on my Pi5. An easy transition to the new 500+ now means I have a spare Pi5 and 250GB SSD for another project.

I must say that it would had been much nicer if there was a little removable panel on the bottom of the 500+ providing access to the SSD. This would had made it so much simpler to change the SSD drive without having to find the necessary tools to take the unit apart. Maybe an improvement for the 600+ next year!

The other thing I’ve noticed is that the 500+ runs considerably cooler than the Pi5 with the official cooler. My Pi5 would often reach 50 deg C however, the 500+ rarely gets above 30 deg C.

Overall I’m really pleased with my new RaspberryPi 500+, it’s the RaspberryPi I’ve been wanting in my home office for some time and finally it’s arrived.

Was it worth waiting for? Absolutely!
It’s everything the 500 should had been at the outset.

More soon…

Category: 500+

piHPSDR-Improved – Our First Release

RaspberryPi 500+