RIGOL DSG3030 radio-frequency signal source

[Alexei.Polkhanov]

I found this piece of test gear online:  http://www.aliexpress.com/item/DSG3030-radio-frequency-signal-source-RF-generator-9kHz-3GHz/1113108005.html and it looks very attractive to me. Unfortunately I have not owned any RIGOL hardware and not very experienced with RF signal generators as well. It looks too cheap to me for 3GHz. Comparable to USED Agilent with same upper range it is still cheap. I wonder what is the catch?

I see people on forum talk about RIGOL test equipment so I wonder if anyone own one of these?

[ve7xen]

It's probably a decent instrument. Rigol isn't considered to be quite as good quality as the top-tier brands like Tek and Agilent, but they're not too far off and miles ahead of most of the east asian competition. Generally good build quality and user interface; have a look at Dave's video on the DS2000 series scopes for an idea of what their current-gen stuff is like. There are also some good videos around YouTube on their spec-ans, arbs etc. Everything I've seen online appears to have been well designed and well made.

This model looks be fairly new and Chinese-market only (so far) so I'm not sure you'll find any reviews outside of perhaps some of the Chinese test equipment forums (they do seem to love their test equipment over there).

You're still taking a risk and probably won't get warranty support if something goes wrong like you would with something from the big boys for 5x the cost, but chances are it's a solid piece of kit.

[crt]

difference between 3030 and 3060 is 10 times ?
http://www.aliexpress.com/store/product/DSG3060-radio-frequency-signal-source-RF-generator-9kHz-6GHz/506853_1113262661.html

[Alexei.Polkhanov]

difference between 3030 and 3060 is 10 times ?
http://www.aliexpress.com/store/product/DSG3060-radio-frequency-signal-source-RF-generator-9kHz-6GHz/506853_1113262661.html

Yes, I noticed this too. Kind of made me suspicious more than anything else.

[nack]

http://www.rigol.com/prodserv/DSG3000/

[Marc M.]

difference between 3030 and 3060 is 10 times ?
http://www.aliexpress.com/store/product/DSG3060-radio-frequency-signal-source-RF-generator-9kHz-6GHz/506853_1113262661.html

I'm confused .  As best as I can tell, on Rigol's Chinese site the cost of the DSG3030 is 55735 yuan which at current exchange rates is $9077.92 USD.  The DSG3060 is listed at 80083 yuan which is $13043.64 USD.  That would be a reasonable difference between the 2 models.  The $12504.00 listed on Ali Express for the 3060 would be in line with Rigol's pricing structure, whereas $1224.25 for the 3030 is less than 1/7th of Rigol's retail  .  Can't beat that discount so I tried to buy one and got a reply back that they made a mistake on the price.  Actual price: $12,240.25  .  That's roughly 33% over Rigol's retail price .  Guess there's no new Rigol RF gen in my future!

[grego]

difference between 3030 and 3060 is 10 times ?
http://www.aliexpress.com/store/product/DSG3060-radio-frequency-signal-source-RF-generator-9kHz-6GHz/506853_1113262661.html

I'm confused .  As best as I can tell, on Rigol's Chinese site the cost of the DSG3030 is 55735 yuan which at current exchange rates is $9077.92 USD.  The DSG3060 is listed at 80083 yuan which is $13043.64 USD.  That would be a reasonable difference between the 2 models.  The $12504.00 listed on Ali Express for the 3060 would be in line with Rigol's pricing structure, whereas $1224.25 for the 3030 is less than 1/7th of Rigol's retail  .  Can't beat that discount so I tried to buy one and got a reply back that they made a mistake on the price.  Actual price: $12,240.25  .  That's roughly 33% over Rigol's retail price .  Guess there's no new Rigol RF gen in my future!

Price is updated on that now - $12,504.25.  Even higher.

[Alexei.Polkhanov]

Price is updated on that now - $12,504.25.  Even higher.

Yeah it make sense now 

I ended up getting 10 y old HP E4421B. I am wondering if it has CMOS battery due to be replaced (they usually die at around 10 years for me). I wonder how I can do it without wiping out all settings/calibration. It has not arrived yet, so I guess I will have to investigate. User manual say "The save/recall registers are backed-up by a battery when AC power to the signal generator is not connected. The battery may need to be replaced." I hope it is just save/recall so I won't ruin anything if I take it out for few seconds.