Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread

[mnementh]

Okay, you win. 

I'm perfectly happy with my headphones being smarter than I am; but like bd, I'll still leave them unplugged when I'm not using them. Microphone, etc.

mnem
Urrgghhh... I can't believe we put up this many Xmas lights... 

[Specmaster]

Okay, you win. 

I'm perfectly happy with my headphones being smarter than I am; but like bd, I'll still leave them unplugged when I'm not using them. Microphone, etc.

mnem
Urrgghhh... I can't believe we put up this many Xmas lights... 

I must admit that I was a bit worried with the smart speaker always listening but then I thought, sod it, I aint likely to be planning to do anything I shouldn't so I plugged it and used it, I'll take a chance on it 

[URI]

Worried about big brother knowing your thoughts eh? Is your telescreen voice controlled then? 

Hmmm. It might be (and obviously is) very comfortable using smart speakers/gear with voice recognition.
On the other hand it's simply a security threat to your most private areas of your life.
Example:
Amazon reveals private voice data files

And yes, I don't use any voice cloud based recognition service. In fact I even don't use any voice recognition program. I would trust a locally working one when only I had control over it completely.

I hear people say "I don't have anything to hide, so why should I bother?".
Well think of it that way: If this is getting more and more standard and "normal" how would you feel if you don't have the choice to hide or not hide your data because e.g. health insurance is more expensive for you if you don't open your data to the insurance company? And what's then if your data reveals a risk to the insurance company that they won't insure or that will cost extra then?

But this is clearly offtopic, I'll stop here on this issue.

[med6753]

Here's the 190VDC reference completed and ready for work.
      
And this is the most important part. Consensus between 2 DMM's that I have a high level of confidence are accurate and within cal on their 200VDC range.

Congrats, med!   
You've built a very handy and appropriate (..for the class of multimeters) reference!   

I remember you saying you weren't going to heat-sink the regulator; but what if you potted those resistors to it with thermal paste? Do you think it would act as an oven/thermal loop and eventually achieve stoisis? 

mnem

I would appear that the simple matter of putting the cover on the case within 15 minutes it seems to settle down to a an equilibrium and stability that is more than adequate. Unless something goes FUBAR it's a done deal. 

[mnementh]

It would appear my attempt at clever witticism was a bit too clever...  Even though I did leave a clue, evidently it was a little too well hidden.


URBAN DICTIONARY
stoisis
To be stoisis is to be drunk beyond reason and rationale, i.e - horribly drunk
"Boys I was pure stoisis last night. I drank two bottles of buckie and boked all over the dancefloor" - considered an Irish informal word for drunk
#drunk#twisted#wankered#blootered#rat-arsed#intoxicated#wasted#derped

mnem
https://youtu.be/7KPX8-bTOr8
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLB539CD281CE997BE

[Specmaster]

Worried about big brother knowing your thoughts eh? Is your telescreen voice controlled then? 

Hmmm. It might be (and obviously is) very comfortable using smart speakers/gear with voice recognition.
On the other hand it's simply a security threat to your most private areas of your life.
Example:
Amazon reveals private voice data files

And yes, I don't use any voice cloud based recognition service. In fact I even don't use any voice recognition program. I would trust a locally working one when only I had control over it completely.

I hear people say "I don't have anything to hide, so why should I bother?".
Well think of it that way: If this is getting more and more standard and "normal" how would you feel if you don't have the choice to hide or not hide your data because e.g. health insurance is more expensive for you if you don't open your data to the insurance company? And what's then if your data reveals a risk to the insurance company that they won't insure or that will cost extra then?

But this is clearly offtopic, I'll stop here on this issue.

Thanks for the info, I have downloaded it and will read it shortly. Problem is though, just where do you draw the line? Cars these days are already wired for mobile phones with built in microphones, smart speakers, smartphones, Laptops, Tablets etc all come with built in microphones so it seems to be that unless we all go back many years in life style, that there is no way on earth that we can certain that big brother is not compiling information against us, they already have the right to intercept and read emails etc. 

[Specmaster]

It would appear my attempt at clever witticism was a bit too clever...  Even though I did leave a clue, evidently it was a little too well hidden.


URBAN DICTIONARY
stoisis
To be stoisis is to be drunk beyond reason and rationale, i.e - horribly drunk
"Boys I was pure stoisis last night. I drank two bottles of buckie and boked all over the dancefloor" - considered an Irish informal word for drunk
#drunk#twisted#wankered#blootered#rat-arsed#intoxicated#wasted#derped

mnem
https://youtu.be/7KPX8-bTOr8
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLB539CD281CE997BE

Haha already way ahead, like many I suspect, I did not know what the word meant so I googled it and discovered what it meant and then I put 2 and 2 together and got your meaning 

[med6753]

It would appear my attempt at clever witticism was a bit too clever...  Even though I did leave a clue, evidently it was a little too well hidden.


URBAN DICTIONARY
stoisis
To be stoisis is to be drunk beyond reason and rationale, i.e - horribly drunk
"Boys I was pure stoisis last night. I drank two bottles of buckie and boked all over the dancefloor" - considered an Irish informal word for drunk
#drunk#twisted#wankered#blootered#rat-arsed#intoxicated#wasted#derped

mnem
https://youtu.be/7KPX8-bTOr8
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLB539CD281CE997BE

LMAO.... you got me!  Being Irish I should have known what "stoisis" is. I didn't. 

There you go with them big words again. 

[mnementh]

(SNIP)
Problem is though, just where do you draw the line? Cars these days are already wired for mobile phones with built in microphones, smart speakers, smartphones, Laptops, Tablets etc all come with built in microphones so it seems to be that unless we all go back many years in life style, that there is no way on earth that we can certain that big brother is not compiling information against us, they already have the right to intercept and read emails etc. 

The problem is the TOS... you GIVE SOME MACHINE the right to listen to you... every minute of every day. The recordings are subject to subpoena, legally admissible in court. From there, a fuxxoring lawyer can have their way with you. Cuss out your kids, bitch at some POS politician on TV, say "I hate chinese" (food), it's all stored on someone else's server for fuckifyouknowhowlong.

It's bad enough they track you everywhere on the internet. Letting them add a physical location with the ability to eavesdrop at will to that datastream is just foolish, especially when you know just how easy it is for anybody from ICE snoopers to russian hackers to intercept that datastream.

Yes, in principle you have exactly the same thing with any mobile phone... but you can turn that OFF. There are a lot of safeguards being forced on phone manufacturers to make it so you have to opt-in to such services. Once you accept the TOS of a prepackaged surveillance device, you can't undo it. Even if you try, there's a record of you at some point accepting those terms which can always be used against you.

mnem
 

[URI]

...coming back to cheap ADF4351 based signal genarators:

Someone sells a nicer packaged device containing an ADF4351 here: https://rf-consultant.com/

Output is calibrated with decent attenuator as well.

I expect that design to be quiet decent but it lacks a feature that's critical for me:
User interface for standalone usage: pushbuttons, knobs, lights, display...

I wouldn't like spend my money for a device that depends on a suited and working (up and running) computer (e.g. PC or Laptop) and in conjunction with that depends on a software running on a contemporary operating system.
You end up taking care of configuration management to obtain all necessary parts and software to keep it useable in the future.

[Vgkid]

@Med : Can we have a schematic , no matter how crude.

[beanflying]

...coming back to cheap ADF4351 based signal genarators:

I expect that design to be quiet decent but it lacks a feature that's critical for me:
User interface for standalone usage: pushbuttons, knobs, lights, display...

My ADF4350 is in the country so eta later in the week.

EDIT - Found an ADF4351 varient that looks identical to what I am getting  https://www.aliexpress.com/item/OLED-display-ADF4351-35MHZ-4-4GHZ-Signal-generator-frequency-RF-signal-source-module/32919002073.html

[med6753]

@Med : Can we have a schematic , no matter how crude.

Patience My Son. I going to perform some experiments tomorrow as "proof of concept" and if it works I will reveal all. 

[GregDunn]

Yes, in principle you have exactly the same thing with any mobile phone... but you can turn that OFF.
mnem
 

Actually, without removing the battery, you can't turn a phone completely off.  It's in idle mode looking for the power switch at all times, and who knows what else is being monitored/recorded.

[URI]

Looking for a reasonable and reasonable priced siggen I came across this:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/172210964785
That's a 35M-4.4G simple signal generator designed by BG7TPL with a minimalistic user interface with display, push buttons and knob and (!) a 10MHz reference input.
It's based upon a remarkably spec'd Analog Devices ADF4351 wideband synthesizer with Integrated VCO.

Ok, the list of limitations of this little sig gen compared to a "real" sig gen might be longer than the advantages but it's quite a lot bang for buck as long as I also can tell from the possibilities the ADF4351 gives (regarding its datasheet)
...

There are other sig gens based on this chip around for lower prices, even with touchable display and more powerful firmware -but without housing and with some HF/RF pcb- design flaws.   
Since it's marked with BG7TPL and this source has gained some reputation for GPSDOs and also other HF/RF stuff I google'd for this sig gen and found ... nothing. 

Does anyone know anything about it?
I wasn't even able to find photos of the inside.

I hadn't seen this version before. You are correct that many of the so-call eval boards with the AD chip have problems with the PCB layout. I don't know if BG7TPL has made a good one. It'd be interesting to hear what you discover.

I've already done an extensive search around the 'net.
Further discoveries require extra charges ($150) on my side. I think I'll wait a bit after last night..      

Last year, on a whim, I bought one of the cheap 137MHz-4.4GHz generators because the seller appeared to be getting rid of them for a fraction of the current price (just about the cost of the case and display, if nothing else about it was worthwhile). Once I fix the 3+GHz frequency counter in my repair queue, I'll be able to get a first look at how it operates at high frequencies.

My function generators go up to a max of 50 MHz, so I have a bit of a gap in coverage right now.

Mine (HP 3225B) goes up to 20MHz (sinusoidal) as a function generator. My HP 3335A level generator hits 80MHz.

...coming back to cheap ADF4351 based signal genarators:

I expect that design to be quiet decent but it lacks a feature that's critical for me:
User interface for standalone usage: pushbuttons, knobs, lights, display...

My ADF4350 is in the country so eta later in the week.

EDIT - Found an ADF4351 varient that looks identical to what I am getting  https://www.aliexpress.com/item/OLED-display-ADF4351-35MHZ-4-4GHZ-Signal-generator-frequency-RF-signal-source-module/32919002073.html

I have also come across that unit ("OLED display ADF4350 137.5MHZ-4.4GHZ Signal generator frequency RF signal source" on *bay) but didn't consider it for my acquisition list because it has no 10MHz reference input.

And I think bitseeker did get his for less than $93, didn't you bitseeker?   

[Specmaster]

Yes, in principle you have exactly the same thing with any mobile phone... but you can turn that OFF.

mnem
 

Not without removing the battery can you certain that it is not recording you, the same with the microphone in a laptop or even for that matter the microphone on your landline phone, in your car or even on your webcam for instance, to be 100% certain you need to disconnect the microphones from any power source. 

[bd139]

As is done on my laptop. Camera and mic cables are disconnected.

[Ero-Shan]

OK. I haven't been following this thread for a couple of weeks now and this time didn't bother trying to catch up. But I did skim the last couple of pages (default page size, that is). So I noticed that some other guys have the same kind of gear on their shopping list as I have: One item is just not there in my collection. Something I never worked with, something I will probably never have any use for: a spectrum analyzer. They come up on evil bay every now and then, but I always decided that I don't spend that amount of money on these old boat anchors with CRTs.

New ones are, of course, not cheap either. Even Rigol and Siglent cost a fair amount (with Siglent seemingly being favorable of the two).

When I was looking up something in the Internet at work, some ad server decided to present me a R&S advertisement for their SA. Their entry-level model looks rather good to me. It is a bit more expensive than the Chinese lot. Truth be told however, I trust them a whole lot more than I do the far eastern engineers.

I'm talking about this product: https://www.rohde-schwarz.com/de/produkt/fpc-produkt-startseite_63493-542324.html?change_c=true#m/ao12:0:0

SAs often have a lower frequency range of 900 kHz, whereas I really want one that is usable at much lower frequencies (where I'm at home  ), this starts at 5 kHz.

So, what do you think?

[Wolfgang]

OK. I haven't been following this thread for a couple of weeks now and this time didn't bother trying to catch up. But I did skim the last couple of pages (default page size, that is). So I noticed that some other guys have the same kind of gear on their shopping list as I have: One item is just not there in my collection. Something I never worked with, something I will probably never have any use for: a spectrum analyzer. They come up on evil bay every now and then, but I always decided that I don't spend that amount of money on these old boat anchors with CRTs.

New ones are, of course, not cheap either. Even Rigol and Siglent cost a fair amount (with Siglent seemingly being favorable of the two).

When I was looking up something in the Internet at work, some ad server decided to present me a R&S advertisement for their SA. Their entry-level model looks rather good to me. It is a bit more expensive than the Chinese lot. Truth be told however, I trust them a whole lot more than I do the far eastern engineers.

I'm talking about this product: https://www.rohde-schwarz.com/de/produkt/fpc-produkt-startseite_63493-542324.html?change_c=true#m/ao12:0:0

SAs often have a lower frequency range of 900 kHz, whereas I really want one that is usable at much lower frequencies (where I'm at home  ), this starts at 5 kHz.

So, what do you think?

A few kHz is a very normal lower frequency for an SA up to a few GHz ranges (the microwave ones start at 100kHz or even higher). If you want LF coverage, you could either try a soundcard (a few ten Hz). Other options are:
- Hi-Res scope with spectrum analyzer (e.g., 16Bit PicoScope, up to 5MHz)
- Audio spectrum analyzer (expensive)
- spectrum analyzer with DC input (expensive too, easy to kill with unwanted DC, e.g., Keysight MXA or EXA)

[Cubdriver]

HP called their low frequency units 'dynamic signal analyzers'.  3561A, 3562A and 35665A are some of their older, boat-anchor-y ones.

They typically cover frequencies from <1Hz to 100kHz.  If that range covers your interests, they may be something to look in to.

-Pat

[mnementh]

Yes, in principle you have exactly the same thing with any mobile phone... but you can turn that OFF.

mnem
 

Not without removing the battery can you certain that it is not recording you, the same with the microphone in a laptop or even for that matter the microphone on your landline phone, in your car or even on your webcam for instance, to be 100% certain you need to disconnect the microphones from any power source. 

That's not what I meant. I meant that you can turn those "services" off.

...There are a lot of safeguards being forced on phone manufacturers to make it so you have to opt-in to such services. Once you accept the TOS of a prepackaged surveillance device, you can't undo it. Even if you try, there's a record of you at some point accepting those terms which can always be used against you.

There is a lot of anti-big-brother activity on both the PC and smartphone front; lots of folks who know what they're doing have made software that CAN tell you if your device is recording you, and what you can do to turn those "services" off. Yes, in the end you still only have someone else's word for it that you aren't leaking data like a sieve; but if you are, it's a matter of someone else actively engaging in wrongdoing, not you broadcasting the content of a surveillance device across the internet. Don't plug that phone or computer in to charge and take batteries out if you aren't going to use them for a while.

That's a completely different thing from willingly inviting 24/7 surveillance into your home, which no matter what else you call it, that is what a "smart speaker" is: a cleverly marketed surveillance device.

Getting Mr & Mrs Dumbsheep to pay you for the privilege of stealing their privacy is quite the Advertising coup, for sure. 

Bottom line is that in this day and age, you can't function without a phone and a computer. I know for a fact you can get very reliable voice recognition from a local machine; I ran my helpdesk for years with Dragon on a Pentium desktop. There is no need to be doing this over the cloud, period.

mnem
Thank you sir, may I have another?

[beanflying]

Aren't the DSA's more or less an FFT scope?

[Cubdriver]

Aren't the DSA's more or less an FFT scope?

I believe so, but optimized for that purpose, rather than a scope that can do FFTs.

-Pat

[mnementh]

And Speaking of Privacy...   


https://www.engadget.com/2019/01/05/apple-ces-2019-privacy-advertising/

ENGADGET: Apple took out a CES ad to troll its competitors over privacy.
Apple never attends CES, but it's here in spirit. 

I just stumbled across this article while looking for projects to remix on ThingiVerse; in light of recent discussion, I couldn't resist. 

mnem
Dinnertime. word.

[Carl_Smith]

As is done on my laptop. Camera and mic cables are disconnected.

You might want to disconnect the speakers too then.  On some systems with reconfigurable audio jacks it is apparently possible in software to connect headphones and sometimes built in speakers to the microphone input and record audio.

https://arxiv.org/ftp/arxiv/papers/1611/1611.07350.pdf