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Version: 26.10.1

BNR GPU Noise Removal

Status

Status: Supported · Applies to: All radios · Platforms: Linux, Windows

BNR is AetherSDR's NVIDIA-powered receive noise remover. It runs the NVIDIA Maxine Audio Effects (AFX) denoiser inside AetherSDR, on your local NVIDIA GPU — no Docker, no container, no NGC account and no network service. It is one of the seven client-side noise-reduction methods described in DSP Noise Mitigation.

Upgrading from an older version: earlier releases ran BNR in a Docker/NIM container reached over gRPC. That backend has been removed. You can stop and delete any old Maxine BNR container; it is no longer used.

Requirements​

RequirementDetail
GPUNVIDIA GeForce RTX 40-series or later (Ada or newer)
Operating systemLinux or Windows. BNR is not available on macOS.
DownloadA one-time download of about 1 GB (the NVIDIA runtime and the denoiser model for your GPU)

The Linux and Windows release builds include BNR. On a Mac, or a PC without a supported NVIDIA GPU, use DFNR instead — it runs on any CPU.

If no runtime pack has been published for your GPU's architecture, BNR disables itself and says so ("No BNR pack for your GPU … — use DFNR") instead of showing an error.

Setup​

  1. Open Settings → AetherRX... (or click the AetherRX button on the VFO flag's DSP tab) and go to the AetherNR tab.
  2. Select BNR in the method row. The BNR page shows the NVIDIA AFX panel.
  3. Click Download (~1 GB). AetherSDR detects your GPU's architecture and fetches the matching pack, verifying every file by SHA-256. The Installed components list shows progress, then the installed versions.
  4. The first time you turn BNR on, a one-time NVIDIA Software License dialog appears. Click Accept to use BNR; Decline leaves BNR off.

The download is cached, so later launches start straight away:

  • Linux: ~/.local/share/AetherSDR/AetherSDR/nvidia-afx/current/
  • Windows: %LOCALAPPDATA%\AetherSDR\AetherSDR\nvidia-afx\current\

The doubled AetherSDR folder is expected.

On Linux the CUDA libraries come straight from NVIDIA's own PyPI distribution; the rest of the pack is a small AetherSDR release asset. On Windows the pack is a single self-contained zip.

When a newer pack is available the button reads Update; otherwise it offers Re-download.

Using BNR​

  • One client NR method at a time. Turning BNR on turns off NR2, RN2, NR4, NNR, DFNR or MNR, and vice versa. BNR can be stacked with any radio-side filter (NR, NB, ANF and so on).
  • Voice only. BNR switches itself off in CW, CWL, RTTY and DIGU/DIGL, where it would suppress CW tones or corrupt data.
  • Stereo. BNR denoises the left and right channels independently, so pans and diversity reception keep each antenna in its own ear.
  • The AetherRX launcher on the VFO flag lights up while BNR (or any client NR method) is running.
  • Like every client-side method, BNR only affects audio played through your computer. It does not affect the radio's own headphone or speaker outputs.

Reference​

Controls​

ControlRangeWhat it does
Status—Whether the runtime is installed, downloading, failed, or not available in this build
Intensity0–100Denoising strength. 0 passes audio through untouched; 100 is maximum. Remembered across restarts.
Download / Update / Re-download—Fetches or refreshes the runtime pack

Licensing​

BNR uses NVIDIA software and an NVIDIA denoiser model, governed by the NVIDIA Software License Agreement, the Product-Specific Terms for NVIDIA AI Products and the NVIDIA Community Model License. They are licensed for use on NVIDIA RTX / GeForce RTX GPUs on a single-user PC or workstation. The full license texts are included in the downloaded pack (licenses/).

Troubleshooting​

BNR is greyed out: "BNR requires an NVIDIA RTX 40-series or later GPU"​

Your computer has no NVIDIA GPU, or the GPU is older than the RTX 40-series.

  1. Use DFNR instead; it runs on any CPU.

BNR is greyed out: "No BNR pack for your GPU … yet"​

Your GPU is new enough, but no runtime pack has been published for its architecture.

  1. Use DFNR instead.

No BNR option, or "Not available in this build"​

You are on macOS, or using a build compiled without BNR (-DENABLE_NVIDIA_AFX=OFF).

  1. Use DFNR instead, or use a Linux or Windows release build.

The download fails​

The connection dropped, or there isn't enough free disk space for the pack.

  1. Check your internet connection.
  2. Make sure about 1 GB of disk space is free.
  3. Click the Download button again.

BNR turns off when you change mode​

This is expected. BNR is voice-only and switches off in CW, CWL, RTTY and DIGU/DIGL.

  1. Switch back to a voice mode.

Audio sounds hollow or robotic​

BNR is denoising too hard, or a radio-side NR stacked with it is adding its own artefacts.

  1. Lower Intensity.
  2. Lighten any radio-side NR stacked with BNR.

See also​