NeuralSDR2

Native macOS SDR mission console for RTL-SDR workflows.

NeuralSDR2 is a native Swift/SwiftUI SDR application for macOS that combines live radio tuning, aircraft/weather mapping, satellite pass operations, recording, and internal post-pass decode workflows in one desktop app.

The project started as a traditional receiver UI and has been pushed toward a more operational "universal map + radio console + library" shape. It now includes a shared map workspace for aircraft, weather, and satellites, internal NOAA APT decode artifacts, packet post-pass analysis, and a growing library/replay workflow.

What It Is

NeuralSDR2 is built around five main working modes:

• Radio: live spectrum, waterfall, demodulation, manual tuning, and recording
• Aircraft: shared map workspace for ADS-B traffic and dump978 weather overlay
• Sat Ops: satellite pass planning, Doppler tracking, pass recording, and post-pass workflows
• 3D Earth: orbital context and space situational awareness view
• Library: recordings, decoded NOAA products, packet reports, and replay/decode-again actions

Current Capabilities

SDR Core

• RTL-SDR device detection, open/configure/start/stop, and async IQ streaming
• Demodulation modes: IQ, AM, NFM, WFM, USB, LSB, CW, DMR, P25, DSTAR
• Real-time spectrum and waterfall displays
• AGC, squelch, bandwidth control, and speaker monitor mute
• IQ and audio recording paths

Universal Map

• Shared map surface for aircraft, weather, and satellite operations
• Device/observer location annotation and location-aware observer updates
• dump978 raw feed integration for FIS-B weather overlay
• Decoded NOAA overlay support
• Weather freshness and NOAA quality filtering

Satellite Ops

• TLE-backed satellite tracking and pass prediction
• Live Doppler status and optional retune workflow
• Per-satellite tuning profiles and receive presets
• Pass queueing and auto-record support
• Internal post-pass routing for decode workflows

Internal Decode Workflows

• Internal NOAA APT image generation with decoded artifact metadata
• Channel A / Channel B NOAA outputs
• NOAA quality scoring, library surfacing, and map overlay linking
• Internal packet audio analysis/report workflow
• Library-side Listen and Decode Again actions for saved captures

Library and Review

• Recent recordings and decoded artifact library
• Latest NOAA and packet session panels
• Replay of saved audio captures
• Re-run internal decode from saved recordings

Visual Overview

Branding assets committed in this repository:

• docs/assets/hero.png
• docs/assets/social-preview.png
• docs/assets/app-icon.png

Project Status

NeuralSDR2 is already usable as a real desktop SDR application, but it is still actively evolving.

What is working well now:

• RTL-SDR bring-up and live receive
• Radio console and recording flow
• Universal map shell for aircraft/weather/satellites
• NOAA pass recording and internal decode artifact generation
• Packet post-pass analysis flow

What is still rough or incomplete:

• Spectrum/waterfall presentation still needs continued polish
• Some decoder modes are present but not yet mature end-to-end
• Digital voice/internal decoder depth is still behind the NOAA path
• Packaging/distribution polish is improving but not yet "finished product" level

Build From Source

Requirements

• macOS 13 or newer
• Xcode Command Line Tools
• Homebrew
• librtlsdr

Install the native dependency:

brew install librtlsdr

Build and test:

swift build
swift test

Run the app from SwiftPM:

swift run NeuralSDR2

Build a local .app bundle:

bash ./build_app.sh
open ./releases/NeuralSDR2.app

Repository Layout

.
├── Package.swift
├── Sources/NeuralSDR2App/      # SwiftPM app entrypoint
├── src/
│   ├── App/                    # App state and runtime coordination
│   ├── Audio/                  # Audio engine/output
│   ├── DSP/                    # DSP core, demodulators, analyzers, decoders
│   ├── Hardware/               # RTL-SDR, USB monitor, dump978 integration
│   ├── Recording/              # Recording manager and metadata
│   ├── Satellite/              # Tracking, pass prediction, NOAA decode helpers
│   ├── UI/                     # SwiftUI/AppKit UI, map, displays, library
│   └── Resources/              # App icon and bundled resources
├── tests/                      # Unit and integration tests
├── docs/                       # Specs, guides, and progress docs
├── scripts/                    # Packaging, appcast, signing helpers
└── distribution/               # Release metadata and formulas

Docs

Start here if you want the product and architecture context:

• Project Summary
• Feature Specification
• System Architecture
• UI/UX Specification
• Quickstart
• User Guide

Releases

The repository includes local packaging scripts and a GitHub Actions workflow for build/test/release automation.

• CI workflow: .github/workflows/build.yml
• Local package script: build_app.sh
• Distribution metadata: distribution/

Contributing

Contributions are welcome, especially around:

• DSP correctness and performance
• decoder depth and protocol support
• spectrum/waterfall rendering polish
• map UX and operational workflows
• packaging, signing, and release automation

Please start with CONTRIBUTING.md.

License

NeuralSDR2 is released under the GPLv3.

Acknowledgments

This project is informed by the SDR and radio tooling ecosystem, especially:

• RTL-SDR
• GNU Radio
• SatDump
• dump1090
• dump978

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NeuralSDR2 is aiming to be a native macOS SDR operations console, not just a tuner window.