Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread

[bd139]

Not sure TEA is much healthier than smoking. Back injuries, berylliosis and debt it is!

[Specmaster]

Yah, I was right, my T12 is being delivered today, had a text from Royal Mail telling me that they have it and will be delivering it today so the moment of truth is almost upon us. Shame that the handle I searched for to fit a T12 with OLED display will here today but fitted with a 5 pin plug whereas the actual T12 complete assembly is fitted with a 4 pin plug according to photos and a video of it in use 

[rachaelp]

Yah, I was right, my T12 is being delivered today, had a text from Royal Mail telling me that they have it and will be delivering it today so the moment of truth is almost upon us. Shame that the handle I searched for to fit a T12 with OLED display will here today but fitted with a 5 pin plug whereas the actual T12 complete assembly is fitted with a 4 pin plug according to photos and a video of it in use 

Yay for RM delivering your T12! Hopefully you won't have a connector pin count mismatch.... If you do I'm sure you can fix it!

Just one question.... What is a T12? 

[Specmaster]

Oh dear, we're back to the great IOS v Android debate, well it seems I was right about Apple slowing down old phones almost to a point where it becomes almost a brick and according to many people, unusable, here is the evidence http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-42438745. Strange to think then that prior to doing the OS updates when notified, that the older phones were performing perfectly OK and if it is to protect the battery, then why do they insist on sealing the battery inside the phone? Most other makes make it easy for the user / owner to replace the battery and thus mitigate the "problem" of old batteries not coping and shutting down a phone. I smell huge portions of 

[Specmaster]

Yah, I was right, my T12 is being delivered today, had a text from Royal Mail telling me that they have it and will be delivering it today so the moment of truth is almost upon us. Shame that the handle I searched for to fit a T12 with OLED display will here today but fitted with a 5 pin plug whereas the actual T12 complete assembly is fitted with a 4 pin plug according to photos and a video of it in use 

Yay for RM delivering your T12! Hopefully you won't have a connector pin count mismatch.... If you do I'm sure you can fix it!

Just one question.... What is a T12? 

It is a soldering station and technology that promises to be able to deliver a far better soldering experience by removing the ageing effect of the older style of irons like the Hakko 963 etc which you can change the tips on. The T12 you can still change tips, but as the element is hermetically sealed into the tip, you don't get the element "slug" getting oxidised and thus unable to transfer as effectively as it did when it was new. there is a video that explains other advantages like high speed heating, quick boost for those larger heating jobs like soldering onto a large ground plane which wicks away heat etc.

check out this link https://www.aliexpress.com/item/2017-STC-T12-Digital-Soldering-Iron-Station-Temperature-Controller-EU-Plug-Temperature-180-450-Degrees-T12/32803295956.html?spm=a2g0s.9042311.0.0.SPDPSc

[bd139]

Oh dear, we're back to the great IOS v Android debate, well it seems I was right about Apple slowing down old phones almost to a point where it becomes almost a brick and according to many people, unusable, here is the evidence http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-42438745. Strange to think then that prior to doing the OS updates when notified, that the older phones were performing perfectly OK and if it is to protect the battery, then why do they insist on sealing the battery inside the phone? Most other makes make it easy for the user / owner to replace the battery and thus mitigate the "problem" of old batteries not coping and shutting down a phone. I smell huge portions of 

I think it's a fair response although it would be nice to document it. Preserve reliability over performance.

Got to ask though; have you ever replaced a battery in an iPhone? I have. It's really easy, even if it's glued in...

You go in the Apple store and they will do it there and then for free if measured capacity is less than 80%. If they can't do it, they give you a new handset. I literally did this last month on my daughter's iPhone 5s which is 5 years old! They still handle replacements there and it cost me NOTHING because of the 6 years under CRA (you have to tell them that or they will try and charge you). If you're on Apple Care (I am) they will send you a new handset in the post next day and then you put your old one in the box and post it back (free) for any repairs or problems. You have zero downtime. And this works in any Apple Store anywhere in the world, so say I'm in the US - I can get the handset sorted even though it was bought in the UK.

I had a light spot on my screen after a month, walked into the Apple Store and 30 minutes later walked out with a new handset, all data copied over and working. No questions asked.

Android. You can feel it dying because you start getting battery panic when you're off charge for more than a couple of hours. Then the handset dies randomly after 30 minutes of use periodically, if the battery gauge even functions properly. Then you hit Amazon and find that the original battery discontinued or is glued in anyway on most androids now. Go down the market and ask Rashid (my local phone repairer not a generalisation) to replace it. He gives me hooky generic battery which costs me £20 anyway and has dubious capacity. He charges £20 to install it. Then it won't charge properly after a week. (Real life Motorola and Samsung experience there)

Hmm.

[Mr. Scram]

Oh dear, we're back to the great IOS v Android debate, well it seems I was right about Apple slowing down old phones almost to a point where it becomes almost a brick and according to many people, unusable, here is the evidence http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-42438745. Strange to think then that prior to doing the OS updates when notified, that the older phones were performing perfectly OK and if it is to protect the battery, then why do they insist on sealing the battery inside the phone? Most other makes make it easy for the user / owner to replace the battery and thus mitigate the "problem" of old batteries not coping and shutting down a phone. I smell huge portions of 

It's quite obvious why, isn't it? You don't spend time and money to develop a thicker phone for a feature you prefer customers not to use. Glueing stuff together is much easier during assembly and from the manufacter's point of view having a flat sexy phone is more important than them lasting more than 3 years.

[bd139]

Incidentally it's not actually glued in. There is a tear off "release strip" which allows you to unstick it easily. It is stuck in so that it doesn't deform or rattle around and explode, like Samsung phones do

RTFM: https://www.ifixit.com/Guide/iPhone+6s+Battery+Replacement/56607

[Specmaster]

Oh dear, we're back to the great IOS v Android debate, well it seems I was right about Apple slowing down old phones almost to a point where it becomes almost a brick and according to many people, unusable, here is the evidence http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-42438745. Strange to think then that prior to doing the OS updates when notified, that the older phones were performing perfectly OK and if it is to protect the battery, then why do they insist on sealing the battery inside the phone? Most other makes make it easy for the user / owner to replace the battery and thus mitigate the "problem" of old batteries not coping and shutting down a phone. I smell huge portions of 

I think it's a fair response although it would be nice to document it. Preserve reliability over performance.

Got to ask though; have you ever replaced a battery in an iPhone? I have. It's really easy, even if it's glued in...

You go in the Apple store and they will do it there and then for free if measured capacity is less than 80%. If they can't do it, they give you a new handset. I literally did this last month on my daughter's iPhone 5s which is 5 years old! They still handle replacements there and it cost me NOTHING because of the 6 years under CRA (you have to tell them that or they will try and charge you). If you're on Apple Care (I am) they will send you a new handset in the post next day and then you put your old one in the box and post it back (free) for any repairs or problems. You have zero downtime. And this works in any Apple Store anywhere in the world, so say I'm in the US - I can get the handset sorted even though it was bought in the UK.

I had a light spot on my screen after a month, walked into the Apple Store and 30 minutes later walked out with a new handset, all data copied over and working. No questions asked.

Android. You can feel it dying because you start getting battery panic when you're off charge for more than a couple of hours. Then the handset dies randomly after 30 minutes of use periodically, if the battery gauge even functions properly. Then you hit Amazon and find that the original battery discontinued or is glued in anyway on most androids now. Go down the market and ask Rashid (my local phone repairer not a generalisation) to replace it. He gives me hooky generic battery which costs me £20 anyway and has dubious capacity. He charges £20 to install it. Then it won't charge properly after a week. (Real life Motorola and Samsung experience there)

Hmm.

That is simply overcome by not buying the very cheapest handset you can find where the original thoughts in the design stage might have been, make it cheap enough and when people get problems, there'll throw it away and get a new one logic, hardly good for the environment. Buy a decent phone like a Samsung and the back is off in a couple of seconds, battery out, new one in and back snapped back on in less then a minute using nothing more than a finger nail. Original batteries are still available for my back up phone, Galaxy S3 after a good few years since it was launched and still going strong and my main phone is a Samsung Galaxy J5 (2016) a nice slim phone, large screen and replaceable battery.

I'm pleased that your daughters phone was sorted out at a Apple centre but you still had to take it there, and you still had to know the law and quote them about the 6 years under CRA, otherwise they wanted to charge you.

My eldest son is a huge Apple fan boy and when he recently upgraded his phone, it went tech after a few weeks of use and so we made a pilgrimage to the local Apple centre in Lakeside Shopping Centre, and there he went the process of getting a replacement 4 times on the same day without leaving the Apple store in order to get an acceptable working phone!!

No I have never replaced a battery on an Iphone but I have on Ipods in the past and I have all the required sprudgers to carry that out on a phone if required but the boys seem worried about marking their phones and would rather buy a new phone 

[bd139]

Give it 6 months until your J5 is abandoned by Samsung

iPods are crap. I agree there. The last iPod touch was ok but that was built the same way as the phones.

[bd139]

Anyway back on TEA. Woot RS just arrived. Finally got parts for my digital board prototype. Boards arrived this morning as well.

So that's two parts now. This is the first product I've designed and I bit off way more than I can chew really but I'm going to push through. Unfortunately yesterday I realised through actually using my test gear (!) I fucked up the phase discriminator design so I'm going to have to bodge it and do another board run.

I have however hit the limit of my DG1022Z so I am on the market for a proper calibrated output RF generator which spans up to 500MHz or so. I am actually using a tuned frequency multiplier to get 100MHz out of the DG1022Z it which is just shit. Nothing like an excuse to go shopping! 

Tempting: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/112672722793 ... as they are literally down the road from me. Only problem is it's only got the connectors on the back

[Specmaster]

Give it 6 months until your J5 is abandoned by Samsung

iPods are crap. I agree there. The last iPod touch was ok but that was built the same way as the phones.

Why would the J5 be abandoned in 6 months by Samsung, it is already 14 months old and the S3 is 5 years old but still can get batteries for it and they don't rattle around or catch fire  I admit that the Note did have a problem which was not good news for anyone, but it was dealt with. I don't think it hurts any manufacturer to have problems, what matters most is how quickly and effectively you can resolve them. VW is a good example of that, their shares are even higher as a result of their recent problems 

I have in that case replaced batteries in an Iphone because I have had to replace batteries in both an Ipod Classic and the latest Ipod Touch, not a huge problem if you have the tools are they.

I also have an aversion to taking out extended warranty / service plans because if the products weren't designed to last that long, they would not be pushing their extended warranties at you unless there was a really good chance that your never likely to make a claim, so its almost as good as money in the bank to them. 

[Specmaster]

Anyway back on TEA. Woot RS just arrived. Finally got parts for my digital board prototype. Boards arrived this morning as well.

So that's two parts now. This is the first product I've designed and I bit off way more than I can chew really but I'm going to push through. Unfortunately yesterday I realised through actually using my test gear (!) I fucked up the phase discriminator design so I'm going to have to bodge it and do another board run.

I have however hit the limit of my DG1022Z so I am on the market for a proper calibrated output RF generator which spans up to 500MHz or so. I am actually using a tuned frequency multiplier to get 100MHz out of the DG1022Z it which is just shit. Nothing like an excuse to go shopping! 

Tempting: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/112672722793 ... as they are literally down the road from me. Only problem is it's only got the connectors on the back

That really is a nice unit, there is a similar Marconi unit though that has the connectors on the front but they don't come up too often and when they, go for a pretty sum as well.

The problem with them both is the sheer size, they are both boat anchors and as I have neither the space or a boat to anchor are useless to me otherwise I'd be after one of those myself as well, so go for if you have the space but aren't you like me, cramped?

[bd139]

I know the Marconi units well. I owned a 2018 and 2019A. The 2019A blew up big time and I sold the 2018. The 2019A developed a short between IN/OUT on the big ass TO3 5V regulator and proceeded to toast every damn digital IC on the board. No crowbar in the power supply 

Also the attenuator switching array is notoriously dicky.

I only paid £5 for my 2019A! The 2018 was free.

Alas that was years ago now before eBay hyped pricing. I sold the 2018 for £190 and the 2019 for £100 even though it had blown up 

[Specmaster]

The hp 8656b does however have the advantage of the LED display which is better for your dimly light corner I believe, so go on, go for it you know you want to and it has the coverage you require and with it being just down the road, if he has 3, you could pick out the one that want the most?

[bd139]

Indeed. I'm not sure I have anywhere to put it. It may be able to live under the printer

I have asked if he has any with front mounted connectors. I don't fancying piddling around behind it if I'm honest. It has hardline inside it which is difficult to work with and modify so if I wanted to bring an N connector up front I'd have some trouble. Sitting on the fence thinking about it still.

[Specmaster]

Indeed. I'm not sure I have anywhere to put it. It may be able to live under the printer

I have asked if he has any with front mounted connectors. I don't fancying piddling around behind it if I'm honest. It has hardline inside it which is difficult to work with and modify so if I wanted to bring an N connector up front I'd have some trouble. Sitting on the fence thinking about it still.

T12 delivered and just a quick power up to test, it is bloody quick and is very small  control unit, needs feet on as it slips about, first impressions are good, more later when not busy doing chores.

[bd139]

  sounds good.

You're having more luck than me. RS order delivered - one line item missing. CPC consignment 1 - one line item missing. CPC consignment 2 - one empty bag.  Fucks sake...

[Mr. Scram]

sounds good.

You're having more luck than me. RS order delivered - one line item missing. CPC consignment 1 - one line item missing. CPC consignment 2 - one empty bag.  Fucks sake...

At least you made me laugh.

[bd139]

Photo for your enjoyment.

Not only did someone forget to stick the trimmer in the bag and then stash it in the warehouse, but the person who picked it out failed to notice that there was nothing in the bag as well. This is a heat sealed bag which has never had anything in it:

[Specmaster]

Photo for your enjoyment.

Not only did someone forget to stick the trimmer in the bag and then stash it in the warehouse, but the person who picked it out failed to notice that there was nothing in the bag as well. This is a heat sealed bag which has never had anything in it:

I had a load of banana plugs from them all heat sealed less the terminal screws[emoji24]

[bd139]

Just think - someone had a whole bag of those screws instead of the resistors they ordered 

I just persuaded them to mail me out a new trimmer and missing transistors FOC via UPS. I think they were going to do their usual "post it royal mail". No banana!

[Specmaster]

Just think - someone had a whole bag of those screws instead of the resistors they ordered 

I just persuaded them to mail me out a new trimmer and missing transistors FOC via UPS. I think they were going to do their usual "post it royal mail". No banana!

Bah, I had to wait for the normal service, banana or no banana, or in this case banana screws [emoji23]

[HalFET]

Figured out I can still get new display boards for the wayne kerr 6425 component analyser 😆

[bd139]

That's always good. It's amazing when you find a cocked up display on something and no one fancies replacing it but it's an available part. Easy money 

Wayne Kerr always gets a snigger here due to the proximity of the name to "wanker"