I have a technical question and am looking for advice to decide which "path" to take:
First, the present "operating conditions":
I am currently using an Elad FDM-S2 sdr. My main interests with the unit is reception below 500khz, but I also enjoy HF. In my many years in this hobby, this Elad is the best rx I've owned. I'm very pleased with its performance. Here are the only listed specs on it I could find:
MDS: -132dBm@14MHz, Clipping level: -8dBm
FDM-S2 is a direct sampling receiver based on 122.88MHz 16bit single channel ADC converter
Ok, now I'll state what I'm looking for. I wish to experiment with diversity reception... mainly for use in noise cancellation. I have an excellent rx location, but it's plagued with severe powerline "buzz". It's not an option to get the utility company to fix it. The blankers in the hdsdr software clean up 95% of it but then cause problems when there are strong signals on a nearby freq. So, I'd like to use noise cancellation to avoid the use of blankers.
I understand that Afedri makes a nice dual input sdr that can be used in dual channel mode to cancel noise. That unit runs approx. $360. Here are the specs I found on it:
Dual 12- bit 76.8 MSPS A/D conversion
Sensitivity - MDS -136 dBm at 500Hz bandwidth
At just a "glance", it would seem that the Elad would be an overall better performer since it's 16 bit compared to the Afedri at 12 bit. Of course, I know that things in the technical realm aren't that simple and that other factors come into play.
Everyone in the hobby tries to "save a buck", and of course, I'm no exception. Here's what I'm getting at:
I could purchase the Afedi and accomplish the noise cancellation goal, but then I may not experience the overall performance that the Elad has. I had an idea. I could also purchase a used Elad just like the one I'm presently using, and if possible "lash up" the two receivers software-wise into the pc to accomplish the noise cancellation goal. I could probably get the used Elad for roughly $250 thus saving roughly $100 over the Afedri purchase. Of course, this path is dependent on the ease or the possibility of actually making the dual Elads accomplish the task.
So that's the two paths ... anyone care to add input on this situation?