PD mode
PD180
Higher-resolution color work where longer transmission time is acceptable.
Supported in appMode sample
BBC-style colour test card and app-generated audio
The image is generated locally for this mode's raster. For supported modes, the audio sample is encoded from that image with the SSTV Signal Desk transmitter code, then published as lossless FLAC for static playback.
FLAC, 48 kHz, 16-bit mono, 189.377 s.

Mode spec
| Short name | PD180 |
|---|---|
| Support status | Supported in app |
| Spec status | Supported in app; public VIS and timing summary are separated from the app raw timing fields. |
| Duration | 187.065 s |
| Frame | 640 x 496 |
| Data lines | 248 |
| Public VIS | VIS 96 (0x60) |
| Standard VIS code | 0x60 (96) |
| Extended/N-VIS | No |
| Color model | YCrCb |
| Component sequence | Y-RY-BY-Y |
| Line rate | 159.09 lpm |
| Public timing profile | Public PD timing: 20.000 ms sync, 2.080 ms porch, odd-line Y, averaged R-Y, averaged B-Y, even-line Y; repeat pairs until the mode-specific line count is complete. |
| App duration | 187.065 s |
| App frame | 640 x 496 |
| App raw VIS | 0x60 (96) |
| App timing profile | App RX line fields: sync 20 ms; front porch 0 ms; back porch 2 ms; separator/blank 0 ms; video tones 1500-2300 Hz around 1900 Hz. |
| App RX sync | 20 ms |
| App RX front porch | 0 ms |
| App RX back porch | 2 ms |
| App RX separator/blank | 0 ms |
| App subcarrier | 1900 Hz |
| App deviation | 400 Hz |
| App tone range | 1500-2300 Hz |
Strengths
- PD180 is a long-form high-detail PD mode: 187.065 s, 640 x 496, YCrCb.
- PD180 uses Y-RY-BY-Y pair-line colour-difference scanning, giving two luma passes around shared chroma samples in the PD family.
- PD180 has explicit app timing fields: 20 ms sync, 0 ms front porch, 2 ms back porch, 0 ms separator/blank, and 1500-2300 Hz around 1900 Hz video tones.
- PD180 has a checked public timing summary plus app timing fields, so the public spec and implementation timing can be compared line by line.
Tradeoffs
- PD180's 187.065 s transfer can carry more picture detail, but it occupies the channel longer and is less forgiving of fades across the 640 x 496 frame.
- PD180 colour-difference coding can preserve useful luminance detail, but chroma edges may look softer than full-rate RGB modes after weak-path reception.
Source notes
Public VIS/timing labels are normalized from checked SSTV references where available. App raw VIS 0x60 and app timing fields are generated from sstv/sstv/sstv/sstvparam.swift during the website build.
- SSTV Signal Desk SSTVTableSSTV Signal Desk - accessed 2026-08-24Authority for app-supported mode names and app timing parameters.
- SSTV Handbook Chapter 5: List of SSTV modesSSTV Handbook - accessed 2026-08-24Reference for analog SSTV mode names, VIS codes, durations, line counts, column counts, and line rates.
- A Technical Description of SSTV ModesN7CXI Dayton paper - accessed 2026-08-24Classic technical timing reference for Robot, Martin, Scottie, Wraase, Pasokon, PD, and FAX480 families.