E320 compatibility mode

USRP E320 is a popular and affordable SDR from National Instruments, which over the years has gained popularity among engineers from all over the world. It is possible to compare the characteristics of the RITM SDR USRP and E320:

Characteristics E320 RITM SDR USRP

Characteristics	E320	RITM SDR USRP
Housing	Passive cooling	Active and passive cooling
Management	Possibility of remote administration	Possibility of remote administration
Operating modes	Standalone (embedded) or host-oriented (streaming over a network)	Standalone (embedded) or host-oriented (streaming over a network)
Frequency range	from 70 MHz to 6 GHz	from 75 MHz to 6 GHz
Instantaneous bandwidth	Up to 56 MHz	Up to 450 MHz on TX and up to 200 MHz on RX (limited to 56 MHz in compatibility mode)
Filtering	Receiving (RX) and transmitting (TX) filter block	Based on embedded IP cores
System on a Chip (SoC)	Xilinx Zynq-7045	Zynq UltraScale+
Processor (CPU)	Dual-core ARM Cortex-A9 800 MHz, 1 GB of DDR3 RAM	4 × ARM-A53 + 2 × ARM-R5, 4 GB DDR4
FPGA (FPGA)	Xilinx 7 series, 2 GB of DDR3 RAM	Zynq UltraScale+ XCZU15EG, 2 GB DDR4
SFP+ interface	1 port (1 GbE, 10 GbE, Aurora)	2× SFP+ (12.5 Gbps per line)
Network interface	1 port `RJ45` (1 GbE)	2× Ethernet 1 Gbit/s
Frequency synchronization	Input of the reference generator (Clock reference)	Input of the reference generator (Clock reference)
Time synchronization	PPS Input	PPS Input (pulse per second)
Built-in module	GPSDO	GPSDO
USB interfaces	1 USB Type A port (host), 1 micro-USB port (console, JTAG)	4 USB 3.0 ports, 2 micro-USB ports (PS, PL UART)
TPM	Trusted Platform Module (TPM) v1.2	Missing
System control	Watchdog timer	Watchdog timer
OS	Open Embedded Linux	GNU Linux with patches from Xilinx + buildroot
Programming Interface (API)	USRP Hardware Driver™ (UHD) version 3.14.0 or higher	USRP Hardware Driver™ (UHD) version 4.8.0
FPGA development environment	RF Network on Chip (RFNoC™)	RF Network on Chip (RFNoC™)
Software for design	Xilinx Vivado 2017.4	Xilinx Vivado 2024.1.2
Software support	GNU Radio, Python UHD, Matlab UHD, LabView	GNU Radio, Python API, Matlab API, LabView, Engee

Housing

Passive cooling

Active and passive cooling

Management

Possibility of remote administration

Operating modes

Standalone (embedded) or host-oriented (streaming over a network)

Frequency range

from 70 MHz to 6 GHz

from 75 MHz to 6 GHz

Instantaneous bandwidth

Up to 56 MHz

Up to 450 MHz on TX and up to 200 MHz on RX (limited to 56 MHz in compatibility mode)

Filtering

Receiving (RX) and transmitting (TX) filter block

Based on embedded IP cores

System on a Chip (SoC)

Xilinx Zynq-7045

Zynq UltraScale+

Processor (CPU)

Dual-core ARM Cortex-A9 800 MHz, 1 GB of DDR3 RAM

4 × ARM-A53 + 2 × ARM-R5, 4 GB DDR4

FPGA (FPGA)

Xilinx 7 series, 2 GB of DDR3 RAM

Zynq UltraScale+ XCZU15EG, 2 GB DDR4

SFP+ interface

1 port (1 GbE, 10 GbE, Aurora)

2× SFP+ (12.5 Gbps per line)

Network interface

1 port RJ45 (1 GbE)

2× Ethernet 1 Gbit/s

Frequency synchronization

Input of the reference generator (Clock reference)

Time synchronization

PPS Input

PPS Input (pulse per second)

Built-in module

GPSDO

USB interfaces

1 USB Type A port (host), 1 micro-USB port (console, JTAG)

4 USB 3.0 ports, 2 micro-USB ports (PS, PL UART)

TPM

Trusted Platform Module (TPM) v1.2

Missing

System control

Watchdog timer

Open Embedded Linux

GNU Linux with patches from Xilinx + buildroot

Programming Interface (API)

USRP Hardware Driver™ (UHD) version 3.14.0 or higher

USRP Hardware Driver™ (UHD) version 4.8.0

FPGA development environment

RF Network on Chip (RFNoC™)

Software for design

Xilinx Vivado 2017.4

Xilinx Vivado 2024.1.2

Software support

GNU Radio, Python UHD, Matlab UHD, LabView

GNU Radio, Python API, Matlab API, LabView, Engee

As can be seen from the comparison table, the RITM SDR USRP surpasses the USRP E320 in FPGA, CPU and peripheral power, but at the same time has the same extensive configuration and control capabilities.

Since the compatibility mode guarantees the ability to work with RITM SDR USRP as with USRP E320, you can use the technical information from the official website Ettus Research. An example of sharing RITM SDR USRP and Engee you can find in the article Getting started with RITM SDR USRP. New and more advanced examples of the application of RITM SDR USRP can be found in community Engee.