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RTL2832U · 2022-12-07, 00:17

Hello,

Can I ask if there's any particular reason that something like this is not on the front page of kodi.tv?

Download: https://github.com/djp952/pvr.rtlradio

The FM PVR addon was originally developed by one of the Team Kodi developers, but was abandoned for several years. Forum user djp952 was kind enough to put a lot of work into resurrecting (and redeveloping) this addon. He completed it earlier this year, but it doesn't seem like it received the love that it should from Team Kodi!

As a way to promote the legitimate uses of Kodi and fight back against "the Piracy Box Sellers and Youtube Promoters that are killing Kodi", why isn't something like this promoted like the TV PVR?

=)

**Dangelus** · 2022-12-07, 00:25

Moved to discussions as this is not a support question.

emveepee · 2022-12-07, 15:52

There isn't really anything called "TV" PVR since PVR already includes Radio (see the wiki). pvr.nextpvr has supported FM radio for many years, and it can work with Analog FM tuners, SDR (Realtek), DVB and Internet Radio source. I think with the exception of DVB radio there are only a handful of users who want traditional FM radio though it isn't really a question of promoting TV over Radio it is just the number of users willing to do the work required. Tuner manufactures no longer support products with analog FM since there is no market. Even finding a used device with /dev/radio support on Linux can be a challenge.

In a way it is similar to how "subscription" IPTV is overtaking traditional h/w based PVR. For radio I expect most Kodi users will simply opt for an Internet Radio addon over PVR.

pvr.rtlradio is a high quality addition to Kodi and deserves a look for sure. However SDR tuners are still definitely for hobbyists, and even the quality of Realtek 2832 tuners varies greatly, so ordering them online is still by change.

Martin

**jjd-uk**

We also don't promote any addons that are not in the official repo, and that one has never been submitted. Also djp952 has quit doing anything Kodi related so the addon will no longer be maintained by him.

RTL2832U · 2022-12-07, 19:43

Hi Martin,

Thank you for the thoughtful reply! =)

Respectfully, NextPVR (and it's supported hardware) seems a lot more complicated (and expensive) than what's required for this. Alternatively, RTL-SDR dongles are cheap and the pvr.rtlradio addon installs as easily as any other Kodi addon (no server setup or additional software required).

"Radio" has been a default item on the Kodi main menu screen for years. It's like it's been sitting there waiting for someone to do something with it - and now someone finally has...

Analog FM is still dominant in North America (and other parts of the world). It was no small task to get it to work in Kodi - and I sincerely appreciate the talents and effort it took for djp952 to breathe new life into this concept (after the original Team Kodi developer apparently lost interest in it). I've been using it regularly throughout most of 2022, and can testify that it's rock solid and works great.

This addon offers better sound quality than radio streamed over the internet and expands the legitimate uses for Kodi (as it continues to fight a piracy image problem). Above and beyond that, I think many people would really enjoy the added functionality it brings to Kodi.

My question is: What would it take for this thing to get a little bit of official recognition here?

=)

J

RTL2832U · 2022-12-07, 19:59

(2022-12-07, 17:53)jjd-uk Wrote: We also don't promote any addons that are not in the official repo, and that one has never been submitted. Also djp952 has quit doing anything Kodi related so the addon will no longer be maintained by him.

Hello jjd-uk.

Thanks for the reply.
Can I ask why this may have happened?

J

**jjd-uk** · 2022-12-07, 20:21

You can ask, but all I know is that he's ceased to work on anything connected to Kodi and he said to the Team that anyone is welcome to take over any of his addons or use his work in any manner they saw fit. Developers can simply move onto other things as their priorities in life change.

RTL2832U · 2022-12-08, 01:49

(2022-12-07, 20:21)jjd-uk Wrote: You can ask, but all I know is that he's ceased to work on anything connected to Kodi and he said to the Team that anyone is welcome to take over any of his addons or use his work in any manner they saw fit. Developers can simply move onto other things as their priorities in life change.

If that's the case, what would it take to get it in the official repo? (I think it really deserves to be in there).

=)

J

emveepee · 2022-12-08, 04:12

(2022-12-07, 19:43)RTL2832U Wrote: Hi Martin,

Thank you for the thoughtful reply! =)

Respectfully, NextPVR (and it's supported hardware) seems a lot more complicated (and expensive) than what's required for this. Alternatively, RTL-SDR dongles are cheap and the pvr.rtlradio addon installs as easily as any other Kodi addon (no server setup or additional software required).

"Radio" has been a default item on the Kodi main menu screen for years. It's like it's been sitting there waiting for someone to do something with it - and now someone finally has...

Analog FM is still dominant in North America (and other parts of the world). It was no small task to get it to work in Kodi - and I sincerely appreciate the talents and effort it took for djp952 to breathe new life into this concept (after the original Team Kodi developer apparently lost interest in it). I've been using it regularly throughout most of 2022, and can testify that it's rock solid and works great.

This addon offers better sound quality than radio streamed over the internet and expands the legitimate uses for Kodi (as it continues to fight a piracy image problem). Above and beyond that, I think many people would really enjoy the added functionality it brings to Kodi.

I agree it was a huge effort to get this built, and djp952's work is appreciated. It will a lot of effort to change to the Kodi build system and more work to keep it going and supported. If I look at your original post here from 2018 there isn't that much interest from users in the original SDR version or the new version, so any developer would need to take it on as a labour of love. You are welcome to try.

For some differences, many of us have had items under Radio for years so it is not new. Also NextPVR is free for non-commercial use and pvr.nextpvr installs with Kodi so definitely not "expensive". While subjective using my experience using rtl_fm for SDR FM s that it quality is good but not great.

Martin

djp952 · 2023-01-19, 06:56

For what it's worth at this point, I am happy to be available to try to explain the seemingly crazy required dependencies from my now abandoned work on Radio and why I made the decisions I made along the way (including why it was the straw that broke this particular "camel's back") with Kodi? There is great potential for simplifying the dependencies by modifying the disparate radio "engines" to use them.

I very sincerely hope that someone new can pick up where I left off and can make RTL-SDR a reality for Kodi "Radio" in a way that supports not only North America (FM/Weather/HD Radio), but also Europe (FM/DAB[+]) any other standard(s)? I have never been in that position, and I did what I felt I could with it. The as-is code will not be deleted, but I do intend to mark any repos specific to Radio as "locked" if I haven't alredy. The current state is, at best, a work in progress for systems I had no access to and decided that it was in my best interest to just give up on the entire thing. It was never "good", it was always a hack job that happened to work in North America pretty well. That's simply not fair to Kodi's worldwide Universe.