Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread

[Brumby]

Arrggg just saw a cheap Tek 485 on ebay this morning, sold as "used" and supposed to be working. I was about to post the link over here but hitted "Buy" instead 

Well done 

I must also add my own...  Well done 


You truly belong in this thread!

[Neper]

A distant memory. 

Try this:

https://www.skylinewebcams.com/de/webcam/argentina/tierra-del-fuego/ushuaia/tren-del-fin-del-mundo.html

[xrunner]

They say to fry an egg you need 158 Deg F ...

[Saskia]

"Lovey... maybe it's time to buy a farm in upstate New York." ~grand-dad

you are aware of the meaning of "buy a farm" ?

Ehhh... I always heard that said "bought the farm", as in past tense, already dead. Though there is some irony in there; like the song goes: "There ain't nothin' but the dead and dyin' back in my little town..." 

Nope. present tense as used in various USAF training videos as for when to eject and making sure you do it early enough to avoid becoming a farmland owner ...

It is my understanding that "bought" or "buy" are both valid - but what is distinctive is the use of the definite article: "the" - not the indefinite article: "a".

I.E. "Buy the farm" or "Bought the farm" are indicative of a fatal outcome.
"Buy a farm" or "Bought a farm" are indicative of a real estate purchase.

At least, that's how I understand it.

this would not correspond to what I heard.

[Specmaster]

Arrggg just saw a cheap Tek 485 on ebay this morning, sold as "used" and supposed to be working. I was about to post the link over here but hitted "Buy" instead 

course you did 

[mnementh]

no, when looking at brussels sprouts Seppuku appears to be a viable alternative.

And Okra. A slimy, hairy vegetable? Not fit for human consumption. Dat's made by the debbil, dat is.

mnem
or maybe Pod People...

[Kosmic]

Arrggg just saw a cheap Tek 485 on ebay this morning, sold as "used" and supposed to be working. I was about to post the link over here but hitted "Buy" instead 

No worries. I already have 2 of them plus a junk unit. I think 4 total would be overkill. 

Edit.....although I do have 3 Type 547's. 

That would be my second one since I still have one in the repair queue. Even if it was sold as used and tested, I suspect the second one will also go in the repair queue. Will see.

[mnementh]

And Now For Something Completely... ON TOPIC!   

Hi-def HP 54621D pr0n: ARCHIVE: HP 54621D Mainboard Pics

I took oodles of pics of the 54621D mainboard while I was trying to reverse-engineer the video.  Instead of shrinking them all to fit in here nice & friendly, I made an archive of the pics one post at a time so I could keep the res as high as possible.

mnem
 

TOP has a bar code label starting 54622-66407-
Some memories and U400 have 54624-
Then the board type ending -66507 is stickered to begin as 54621.   One must wonder how generic those boards really are.

Given the time they were made, I wonder if the main difference was limited availability of the high-speed RAM for the acquisition section. Hence same PCB, but offer a cheaper version populated with different RAM and other support electronics to be able to produce adequate volume. 

mnem
 

[mnementh]

Arrggg just saw a cheap Tek 485 on ebay this morning, sold as "used" and supposed to be working. I was about to post the link over here but hitted "Buy" instead 

Well done 

I must also add my own...  Well done     You truly belong in this thread!

Medium rare or Pittsburgh-Style for me, please. Oh, also

mnem
"wiggly green lines FTW!" ~bd139

[bd139]

Ok just bought a dead Marconi 2022E signal generator from scottrade12. Down the rabbit hole we go 

Almost certainly it's one of several problems:

1. The osc is duff and this runs the synth and CPU -> run off external one and test then replace it.
2. The power supply is duff -> debug and fix
3. Probably several dead OM345's -> MAR6 MMIC + friggery.
4. Attenuator duff -> kill me with fire.

[mnementh]

"Lovey... maybe it's time to buy a farm in upstate New York." ~grand-dad

you are aware of the meaning of "buy a farm" ?

Ehhh... I always heard that said "bought the farm", as in past tense, already dead. Though there is some irony in there; like the song goes: "There ain't nothin' but the dead and dyin' back in my little town..." 

Nope. present tense as used in various USAF training videos as for when to eject and making sure you do it early enough to avoid becoming a farmland owner ...

It is my understanding that "bought" or "buy" are both valid - but what is distinctive is the use of the definite article: "the" - not the indefinite article: "a".

I.E. "Buy the farm" or "Bought the farm" are indicative of a fatal outcome.
"Buy a farm" or "Bought a farm" are indicative of a real estate purchase.

At least, that's how I understand it.

That sounds more likely, now that I think of it.

mnem
My grandparents bought a farm... then they bought another to make it bigger. It took decades, but eventually they both bought the farm on that farm."

[Saskia]

Seppuku is not okra. Seppuku is taking some blade, wrapping it in paper, ramming it into your belly and performing 3 cuts. after which the kaishakunin helps you into the void.
buying a farm seems to be typical expression within the us military of the 50-70s. as can be read in Heinlein novels or listened to in periscope films military training videos. sometimes snuffing it is also referred to as real estate deal in this context.

[med6753]

Like BD here's my stack. Both freshly re-capped so they will spend time getting a good burn-in.



And for now that's everything in the project queue. Except the 3rd Type 547 but that is on hold. The HV transformer has been sent to Germany for repair but I may not get it back until nearly the end of the year. So I'm not going to proceed with any further restoration until I get it back and confirm it's repaired. I guess I'll have to go out on Ebay and buy something. 

[Saskia]

I just went out and bought stuff I don't need. Bluebrixx NCC 1701D and the bird of prey.

[mnementh]

   Ok just bought a dead Marconi 2022E signal generator from scottrade12. Down the rabbit hole we go 

Almost certainly it's one of several problems:

1. The OCXO is duff and this runs the synth and CPU -> run off external one and test then replace it.
2. The power supply is duff -> debug and fix
3. Probably several dead OM345's -> MAR6 MMIC + friggery.
4. Attenuator duff -> kill me with fire.

I'll direct your attention to number 11. 

mnem
"How very TEA."

[xrunner]

Ok just bought a dead Marconi 2022E signal generator from scottrade12. Down the rabbit hole we go 

Almost certainly it's one of several problems:

1. The osc is duff and this runs the synth and CPU -> run off external one and test then replace it.
2. The power supply is duff -> debug and fix
3. Probably several dead OM345's -> MAR6 MMIC + friggery.
4. Attenuator duff -> kill me with fire.

Had a 2022D 7 years ago. It worked OK after some fixes. One of the major things I found were solder joints simply no good anymore. Had to reflow a bunch of them. 

[mnementh]

Seppuku is not okra. Seppuku is taking some blade, wrapping it in paper, ramming it into your belly and performing 3 cuts. after which the kaishakunin helps you into the void.
buying a farm seems to be typical expression within the us military of the 50-70s. as can be read in Heinlein novels or listened to in periscope films military training videos. sometimes snuffing it is also referred to as real estate deal in this context.

Yes, I know what Seppuku is. My meaning was that it evokes a similar response as yours to brussels sprouts.

So yes, If I intended to buy the farm, I would probably buy a farm with fields of okra and brussels sprouts, because I would be dead and I wouldn't care.

mnem
Who wants to live forever?

[bd139]

Ok just bought a dead Marconi 2022E signal generator from scottrade12. Down the rabbit hole we go 

Almost certainly it's one of several problems:

1. The osc is duff and this runs the synth and CPU -> run off external one and test then replace it.
2. The power supply is duff -> debug and fix
3. Probably several dead OM345's -> MAR6 MMIC + friggery.
4. Attenuator duff -> kill me with fire.

Had a 2022D 7 years ago. It worked OK after some fixes. One of the major things I found were solder joints simply no good anymore. Had to reflow a bunch of them. 

Yeah fully expecting some trouble for my money (£100)

Worst case if it’s a lemon I can get money back on parts I reckon.

[mnementh]

Ok just bought a dead Marconi 2022E signal generator from scottrade12. Down the rabbit hole we go 

Almost certainly it's one of several problems:

1. The osc is duff and this runs the synth and CPU -> run off external one and test then replace it.
2. The power supply is duff -> debug and fix
3. Probably several dead OM345's -> MAR6 MMIC + friggery.
4. Attenuator duff -> kill me with fire.

   Had a 2022D 7 years ago. It worked OK after some fixes.

One of the major things I found were solder joints simply no good anymore. Had to reflow a bunch of them. 

Oooooh... wouldja lookit dat V-212. All shiny & bright, like a new penny.

Reminds me I need to design and print a new bezel for my old one... 

mnem
 

[tggzzz]

Arrggg just saw a cheap Tek 485 on ebay this morning, sold as "used" and supposed to be working. I was about to post the link over here but hitted "Buy" instead 

Oooh; you lucky person. Very sensible.

Get rid of the 15V tant caps on the 13V PSU line - the line that isn't shown on the PSU diagram. Start with C911(!); the rest are a pain to find on the schematics.

Two things use when you get it: the cal out signal (which is <1ns risetime) and the real 50ohm inputs (not the 50ohm//15pF travesties found on most scopes).

When you can explain the difference between the cal out signal driving the 1Mohm and 50ohm inputs, you will have been amused and learned something

[tggzzz]

On unrelated news: The -hp- 4952A with some photos (outside only at the moment), more to come...

Firmware written in Smalltalk, IIRC. Hardware engineers (in Tek and HP) rapidly recognised good languages/environments when they saw it

[Cerebus]

Predicted high temp today for here is 36 C. What about UK? Gonna hit 40 C again? I can only think of perhaps 3 times that it got to that temp here.

Back to normal now. 27oC peak 

What, its 33C here.

Says 28 peak around you on met office.

I got a peak of just under 30ºC here today. My thermometer is shaded and insulated from the building so it is out of the sun and any severe reflected thermal radiation, but it isn't in a Stephenson screen or any proper radiation shield like an official Met Office one would be. A higher reading like Graham's, and mine to some extent, is probably down to direct or indirect insolation. However, I have found that the official Met Office numbers often underestimate the extremes in local hot spots when compared to local pukka Stephenson screened thermometers.

[Kosmic]

They say to fry an egg you need 158 Deg F ...

Or a UPS driver ?  We need to keep those guys/girls alive so they continue to deliver TEA to everyone. 

[Zenith]

"Lovey... maybe it's time to buy a farm in upstate New York." ~grand-dad

you are aware of the meaning of "buy a farm" ?

Ehhh... I always heard that said "bought the farm", as in past tense, already dead. Though there is some irony in there; like the song goes: "There ain't nothin' but the dead and dyin' back in my little town..." 

Nope. present tense as used in various USAF training videos as for when to eject and making sure you do it early enough to avoid becoming a farmland owner ...

It is my understanding that "bought" or "buy" are both valid - but what is distinctive is the use of the definite article: "the" - not the indefinite article: "a".

I.E. "Buy the farm" or "Bought the farm" are indicative of a fatal outcome.
"Buy a farm" or "Bought a farm" are indicative of a real estate purchase.

At least, that's how I understand it.

That sounds more likely, now that I think of it.

mnem
My grandparents bought a farm... then they bought another to make it bigger. It took decades, but eventually they both bought the farm on that farm."

To be compared with somewhat dated expressions such as "He's bought it" or "He's copped his packet". We know what they mean in their context, and there's no point over-analysing them.

[Vince]

On unrelated news: The -hp- 4952A with some photos (outside only at the moment), more to come...

Wow, what a surprise ! Didn't think I would see one of these here ! 

That reminds me of course that... I have one too... unloved for now 

Well it's not 100% the same as yours, but looks the same. It's a 4951C

Got it 2 years ago, offered for free (paid only 10 Euros for shipping), by a guy I bought a Tek 2214 scope from.
He showed me this HP protocol analyzer, saying he would never be able to sell it, yet could not resort to throw it away, so he asked me if I wanted to have it.

I didn't have the heart to say no, of course.  I mean it's HP, and it looked so cute I found, in this compact portable form factor with that lovely keyboard and green CRT screen... and floppy drive ! 
Plus it can do RS232, and I like RS232. So I thought well I guess I could find a use for it, try to connect it to some TE's serial port, I don't know... was trying to find excuses to justify rescuing it.

The CRT is badly burned, like yours with horizontal stripes. But somehow once you turn the instrument on and there is stuff displayed on the screen, the brain doesn't notice as much...

Plus, the instrument has a video composite BNC connector at the back for an external monitor, so I was thinking of trying to find a way to hook up a monitor to that. IIRC it's NTSC format so not French friendly.
We don't do NTSC over here... but at the time I searched a bit and found there are cheap video converters out there that can take a range of video connectors and standards, and spit out in a number of formats as well. So I thought worse case, these gizmos could save my bacon.

Believe it or not, turns out I have no pictures of my unit ! Only pics that the seller put on his ad back then.
I did apparently however, take 3 pics of the mini tear down I did of the pod.

Oh, forgot... other than the burned screen, it's also missing the interface cable that lets you connect the pod to the instrument ! 
so... not much use. 

Somehow on mine, just like yours, as you can see, the space bar is heavily yellowed but all the other keys are fine.. strange.