Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread

[PrecisionAnalytic]

Personally, since they are still lumped components, I don't regard them as magic. I reserve "magic" for designs where you need finite element analysis of EM waves in order to design the PCB Examples:

I'm thinking there is some application that calculates this all out with different configurations and suggestions on improving performance that most don't even realize exist... like me.   You know someone is hording out something to know what the  is going on. 

I've gotten to the point of antenna theory and inductor capacitor acts going on with some still alien technology to me.  Learning more as I read and watch however... plus the special edition SV1AFN ruler helps. 

[tggzzz]

Personally, since they are still lumped components, I don't regard them as magic. I reserve "magic" for designs where you need finite element analysis of EM waves in order to design the PCB

I'm thinking there is some application that calculates this all out with different configurations and suggestions on improving performance that most don't even realize exist... like me.   You know someone is hording out something to know what the  is going on. 

There are several commercial (and a few free) programs that fall into two separate categories:

• design packages, where you work out what you need to build, and have a first cut at creating it. Examples: filter design packages that spit out RLC schematics, receivers and transmitters using model components
• simulation packages, where you take a design and implement it using imperfect components such as tracks on PCBs. The electromagnetic equations are solved for the particular geometry of tracks specified

Those tools tend to cost one years salary, and take a year to learn how to use them

[mnementh]

Personally, since they are still lumped components, I don't regard them as magic. I reserve "magic" for designs where you need finite element analysis of EM waves in order to design the PCB Examples:

   

I'm thinking there is some application that calculates this all out with different configurations and suggestions on improving performance that most don't even realize exist... like me.   You know someone is hording out something to know what the  is going on. 

I've gotten to the point of antenna theory and inductor capacitor acts going on with some still alien technology to me.  Learning more as I read and watch however... plus the special edition SV1AFN ruler helps. 

Yeah... when I was in the trade, optimizing differential pair traces was still a relatively obscure concept. Of course, MLPCB was a rarity too; nobody wanted to foot the bill. I've looked at those several times; really a bargain at US$40 for the pair, given the amount of useful reference literally at your fingertips.

*Adds them to my "next time I have money" list* Again. 

mnem
*coffee time*

[bd139]

You can by hooky versions for $1 or so on aliexpress...

[mnementh]

 

mnem
 

[med6753]

mnem
 

Man of few words today. Must still be on first cup of coffee.   

Ain't I a stinker! 

[mnementh]

 

I've looked at them before on AliEx and on Bang'emGood. They ARE hooky; laid out by someone who obviously has no knowledge whatsoever of what someone designing, or even someone just thinking about designing, really needs handy. Unlike SV1AFN's PCBRuler products.

Plus, I doubt those even come close to his 25mil accuracy; many of them look cheap and skeevy just from pictures on the other side of a computer screen, so I don't expect them to look any better in person. I mean... since you can get the 4 most popular ones all for approx $10 then yeah, I guess they're worth having. But I'd rather have SV1AFN's rulers first; first to benefit from his expertise, and secondly to pay him for it. 

mnem
 

[0culus]

Thanks to a kind member of the HPAK mailing list, I have finally tracked down the type of line cord used by the 431B power meter. That'll be relatively cheap compared to the thermistor mount and cable required to actually use the thing to measure RF power.

[bd139]

Just to note with the HP power meters: the reason they are so cheap is the number of power meters exceeds the number of mounts/sensors left that haven't been blown up by at least 2 orders of magnitude! 

I watched a power meter with three sensors in a nice case go for nearly £1000 here in the UK a few years ago.

[0culus]

Just to note with the HP power meters: the reason they are so cheap is the number of power meters exceeds the number of mounts/sensors left that haven't been blown up by at least 2 orders of magnitude! 

I watched a power meter with three sensors in a nice case go for nearly £1000 here in the UK a few years ago.

Yeah, it's going to involve paying through the nose. But, I understand that the same thermistor mounts and cables also work with the 432 series power meters, so if I end up with one of those too... 

[bd139]

Any excuse is good with me 

Just got outbid on another Heathkit VTVM 

Decided I needed some more tube / valve kit so have been trying to snag some Heathkit bits.

[0culus]

Any excuse is good with me 

Just got outbid on another Heathkit VTVM 

Decided I needed some more tube / valve kit so have been trying to snag some Heathkit bits.

I'm sure you'll find the one with your name on it it...TEA is relentless! 

My only tube stuff is my guitar amps right now. That's not to say I wouldn't love to have a classic Tek 500 series scope though, especially a 555. 

[bd139]

Not sure I can afford to run one of them!

[worsthorse]

I've looked at them before on AliEx and on Bang'emGood. They ARE hooky; laid out by someone who obviously has no knowledge whatsoever of what someone designing, or even someone just thinking about designing, really needs handy. Unlike SV1AFN's PCBRuler products.

Plus, I doubt those even come close to his 25mil accuracy; many of them look cheap and skeevy just from pictures on the other side of a computer screen, so I don't expect them to look any better in person. I mean... since you can get the 4 most popular ones all for approx $10 then yeah, I guess they're worth having. But I'd rather have SV1AFN's rulers first; first to benefit from his expertise, and secondly to pay him for it. 

mnem
 

damn you man.  i didn't know how badly i needed one or two of these until i clicked on that link.

and in other news, i just agreed to keep a 2215 from going to the tip for the cost of shipping, about fifty bucks. and for fifty bucks, who cares what's wrong with it, right?   right? 

[bd139]

LOL enjoy the power supply 

Think it’s the same as my 2236 which cost me about £30 of bits before it came up.

[0culus]

Not sure I can afford to run one of them!

I could afford one with problems, but I'd have no place to put it. They are the very definition of boat anchor!    I'm willing to bide my time till I have room for one.

[bd139]

Yeah I've watched that all the way through. Really would love something like that TBH.

VOLTNUT ALERT! 3456A, Leeds, buyer collects. Too far for me to be arsed unfortunately.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/133002295538

[ghpicard]

Yeah the analogue storage ones were marginally worse than the early digital storage ones. I don’t think DSOs got usable decent until the 54600 and early TDS machines came out either. I have been told the old tek tube based storage ones are nice but I suspect that’s selection bias.

Attempted to sort my transistor stock out this evening and failed miserably resulting in millions of little bags all over everything. Going to bed 

I do have a couple of Tek 464s and they weren't difficult to work with. The gripes they have are common to all Teks of that era: the attenuator switches get worn out with decades of use.
I agree that until the 546xx series, the analog ones had the winning side.

The fun side of those two is that I bought a cosmetically OK but non-working one as a parts mule but when it arrived, it worked kind of fine (just an awful bend on the back chassis done by the Post orcs).
Almost 15 years later, the horizontal logic controller chip (made of unobtanium, as it was to be expected) gave up the smoke on me. I haven't yet lost my faith on it and I'm trying to reverse-engineer the workings of that golden-legged insect.

[Neomys Sapiens]

Here's a question for the Brits in this thread: does Marmite require refrigeration? I got myself a small pot of it at a nice store that, among other things, carries international products. The jar doesn't say anything about putting it in the refrigerator?

No, no, no. The correct designation is INCINERATOR! But please, think of the environment and use one that goes above 1600°C and does have robust exhaust filtering!

[0culus]

Here's a question for the Brits in this thread: does Marmite require refrigeration? I got myself a small pot of it at a nice store that, among other things, carries international products. The jar doesn't say anything about putting it in the refrigerator?

No, no, no. The correct designation is INCINERATOR! But please, think of the environment and use one that goes above 1600°C and does have robust exhaust filtering!

 

I actually like the stuff...but maybe I'm just weird. 

[bd139]

I'm sure you'll find the one with your name on it it...TEA is relentless! 

Well you were right there. Better one, an IM-13U just got listed buy it now for less lol.

Mine!

[Neomys Sapiens]

Smeg... now I have this adorable little picture of a tiny little guy with a tiny little cigarette dangling from his tiny little lip, mowing tiny grass around those tiny little propane tanks and getting himself blown to tiny little people Hell...  

mnem
"tiny wails... tiny cries..."

I can do that LOL. 

Oh crap my mind is spinning ... I am amazed with this thing. I think this is going to change my life. And this is only day one.

If I'm gone for weeks at a time please don't worry, you know what I'm doing. 

The topic of 'build to blow up' was most nicely covered at 'The Whiteboard', but I can't locate it.

[0culus]

I'm sure you'll find the one with your name on it it...TEA is relentless! 

Well you were right there. Better one, an IM-13U just got listed buy it now for less lol.

Mine!

 

That did not take long at all. 

[bd139]

Going well tonight. Just got another hooky looking GDO.

So that’s three tube GDOs and a VTVM in the last week. Plan is to cannibalise at least two of the GDOs to build regen receivers with the remains.

As usual I will no doubt just end up with 4 broken things

[0culus]

Going well tonight. Just got another hooky looking GDO.

So that’s three tube GDOs and a VTVM in the last week. Plan is to cannibalise at least two of the GDOs to build regen receivers with the remains.

As usual I will no doubt just end up with 4 broken things

As long as you have fun doing it, that's what matters!   

On another subject, what's a decent quality LCR meter I can get to aid these test equipment projects I've been accumulating? Ultimately I'd like to get a really nice one like a GenRad, but that's just not in the budget for now. I definitely want one that does ESR.