Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread

[Kosmic]

Trust me they are not alone, even Amazon are doing it on things that are marked as in stock and on same day or next day Prime. They say that they are prioritising urgent essential deliveries.

I'm still getting prime stuff same and next day here 

I'm not sure how they can prioritise such stuff looking at the problem of identifying priority suppliers and items so I suggest they are overloaded or doing a shitty job.

Overloaded TF here with 2-3 day nationwide deliveries taking a week. 
Still my stuff still gets through however some customers wondered  when packages took days to get through the national distribution center but when they did they were delivered in a day or so.
TF for tracking. 

Amazon so slow here that I stopped using them -  the large numbers of decentralised smaller suppliers on eBay beats Amazon hands down during a crisis.

In difficult environments distributed system wins all the time.

Yeah, but when dealing with the postal system you don't merely need fault tolerance, you need Byzantine fault tolerance.

hehe so true 

After 2 months i'm still waiting for my USB connectors. Look like I will have to change my plan for my Jim Williams pulse generator.

If you add packet resending, the mail is eventually reliable.

[tautech]

With my Laser build I have had over 20 orders incoming via Ali Express, local post or on forwarding has taken longer than order processing and getting into Oz. Last time I saw a report locally they were processing parcels above pre Christmas levels 

Same here but now we've exited lockdown there should be less online purchasing and the mountain of parcels should soon diminish so normal programming can return.

Can't say we'll miss the quiet of the last few weeks. Went out with the son for a bit today and the roads were bedlam ! 

Just you wait a few days and there will be a massive 2nd peak of infections and then another lockdown. Governments should not be easing the lockdown until they are certain that the virus is defeated. People before the economy should be the rule, all the countries will be affected in the same way, the world economy will take a global hit.

Dunno about that here, sure we had 1 positive today after a few days of zero and that one came from a known cluster where they'd already returned a weak positive a few weeks ago.
Still, we're in pretty good shape in NZ with the only real risk is Kiwi's still returning from overseas where they get bundled into compulsory 14 day lockup.

Trust me they are not alone, even Amazon are doing it on things that are marked as in stock and on same day or next day Prime. They say that they are prioritising urgent essential deliveries.

I'm still getting prime stuff same and next day here 

I'm not sure how they can prioritise such stuff looking at the problem of identifying priority suppliers and items so I suggest they are overloaded or doing a shitty job.

Overloaded TF here with 2-3 day nationwide deliveries taking a week. 
Still my stuff still gets through however some customers wondered  when packages took days to get through the national distribution center but when they did they were delivered in a day or so.
TF for tracking. 

Amazon so slow here that I stopped using them -  the large numbers of decentralised smaller suppliers on eBay beats Amazon hands down during a crisis.

In difficult environments distributed system wins all the time.

Yeah, but when dealing with the postal system you don't merely need fault tolerance, you need Byzantine fault tolerance.

NZ Post is pretty good despite recent events as over 7 years none of my outgoing stuff has disappeared. 

[Kosmic]

@tggzzz found something for you https://www.ebay.com/itm/202991425679

[tggzzz]

Looks like the computer side of it is working as the controls are illuminated correctly. Probably power supply. Hopefully not one of the ASICs.

I've got a non-A 2445 here at the moment which has original parts in it

Agreed, looks like it booted with no errors and the issue is in the CRT circuits.

Quite possibly, but there can be subtle problems around the DAC.

Check the PSU voltages first, of course.

If you can get it working, don't forget to exorcise the RIFAs, lest they remind you of their (non)existence.

[Specmaster]

Can anyone identify which model  of Avo meter this is please? I another that also has the 3,000V range, has the same switches and controls but internally so many differences, smaller transformer, not encapsulated, 5 trimmer potentiometers, metal film resistors, different meter movement and resistance zeroing pots are very small, 24mm dia, whereas this has ones made Morganite. As you can see it also has a spare fuse and the battery and fuses are accessed via an opening on the top but the other Model 8 MkIV only has the single fuse and the both battery and fuses are accessed from the rear once the instruction plate is removed.

[Ice-Tea]

If you can get it working, don't forget to exorcise the RIFAs, lest they remind you of their (non)existence.

Hmmm?

[tautech]

If you can get it working, don't forget to exorcise the RIFAs, lest they remind you of their (non)existence.

Hmmm?

is it November already ? 

[mansaxel]

Can anyone identify which model  of Avo meter this is please?

RAF / MoD late sixties 8/9 bastard child? I've got one, and it looks just like yours. I think they called it "High sensitivity measurement set" or somesuch. The metal casing is part of the clues.

[med6753]

Looks like the computer side of it is working as the controls are illuminated correctly. Probably power supply. Hopefully not one of the ASICs.

I've got a non-A 2445 here at the moment which has original parts in it

Agreed, looks like it booted with no errors and the issue is in the CRT circuits.

Quite possibly, but there can be subtle problems around the DAC.

Check the PSU voltages first, of course.

If you can get it working, don't forget to exorcise the RIFAs, lest they remind you of their (non)existence.

It makes absolutely no sense to go to the trouble to pull the Inverter/Regulator boards and just excise the RIFA's. Do it all and be done with it.

https://www.eevblog.com/forum/testgear/tektronix-2465b-oscilloscope-teardown/msg1658102/#msg1658102

[tonyalbus]

New toy a LTDZ 35-4400M Spectrum Analyzer with TG
seems to work nice specialy the TG..
to bad its only a small brick..but a very nice one ;-)
My review



Tony

[psykok]

Looks like the computer side of it is working as the controls are illuminated correctly. Probably power supply. Hopefully not one of the ASICs.

I've got a non-A 2445 here at the moment which has original parts in it

Agreed, looks like it booted with no errors and the issue is in the CRT circuits.

Quite possibly, but there can be subtle problems around the DAC.

Check the PSU voltages first, of course.

If you can get it working, don't forget to exorcise the RIFAs, lest they remind you of their (non)existence.

Accessing the PSU boards is a nightmare  in this scope.
Anyway  I found a blown fuse and the rifa caps are not is great condition.

I will replace the fuse and the rifa (if I can find the adequate  replacement parts) and see it the display comes  back.

[BU508A]

Looks like the computer side of it is working as the controls are illuminated correctly. Probably power supply. Hopefully not one of the ASICs.

I've got a non-A 2445 here at the moment which has original parts in it

Agreed, looks like it booted with no errors and the issue is in the CRT circuits.

Quite possibly, but there can be subtle problems around the DAC.

Check the PSU voltages first, of course.

If you can get it working, don't forget to exorcise the RIFAs, lest they remind you of their (non)existence.

Accessing the PSU boards is a nightmare  in this scope.
Anyway  I found a blown fuse and the rifa caps are not is great condition.

I will replace the fuse and the rifa (if I can find the adequate  replacement parts) and see it the display comes  back.

Listen to the advice of Papa Smurf and replace the old electrolytic capacitors as well. It's worth it. 

[Ice-Tea]

If you can get it working, don't forget to exorcise the RIFAs, lest they remind you of their (non)existence.

Hmmm?

is it November already ? 

Eh?

[Specmaster]

Can anyone identify which model  of Avo meter this is please?

RAF / MoD late sixties 8/9 bastard child? I've got one, and it looks just like yours. I think they called it "High sensitivity measurement set" or somesuch. The metal casing is part of the clues.

Thanks, mine has the same inscription on the dial as well. I'm pretty sure it as you say a bastard child of the Model 8 because the Model 9 has the cutout and the meter reverse and resistance zeroing pots all in a row just below the meter movement, the cutout and meter reverse switches have long buttons rather than circular. So it has to be a special version of the Model 8, MkIV, made specifically for the MOD with it being tropicalised for robustness.                                                                       

[Specmaster]

If you can get it working, don't forget to exorcise the RIFAs, lest they remind you of their (non)existence.

Hmmm?

is it November already ? 

Eh?

Fireworks when the RIFA's finally give out. 

[nixiefreqq]

this arrived yesterday.

its acquisition was not an attempt to exercise the second amendment or to achieve parity with the meter freaks.  (but it would be useful in dispatching nixie rapists).

it cleaned up ok outside and a little ipa on the zebra strips took care of some minor lcd ghosting. 

the dc input impedance spec in the manual says "10 Megohms....nominal".  turns out that means 11 Meg on the 3v range, 10.1 on the 30v range, and 10.0 on the 300v range.  it is possible to select the range manually so with a little attention it should be useful with an hv probe.

it does not feel at all like a toy (unlike the fluke 101 that was also considered).   

should probably check with the county sheriff to see if my concealed carry permit covers this thing too.

[BU508A]

If you can get it working, don't forget to exorcise the RIFAs, lest they remind you of their (non)existence.

Hmmm?

is it November already ? 

Eh?

"Remember, remember, the 5th of November"
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gunpowder_Plot

Perhaps he meant this? 

[tautech]

If you can get it working, don't forget to exorcise the RIFAs, lest they remind you of their (non)existence.

Hmmm?

is it November already ? 

Eh?

Rifa Fireworks about to happen. 

[tonyalbus]

Nice....

[AVGresponding]

@tggzzz found something for you https://www.ebay.com/itm/202991425679

Not just for him...   

Added to watch list...   

[Ice-Tea]

If you can get it working, don't forget to exorcise the RIFAs, lest they remind you of their (non)existence.

Hmmm?

is it November already ? 

Eh?

"Remember, remember, the 5th of November"
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gunpowder_Plot

Perhaps he meant this? 

Aaahh!!

Thanks 

[Specmaster]

this arrived yesterday.

its acquisition was not an attempt to exercise the second amendment or to achieve parity with the meter freaks.  (but it would be useful in dispatching nixie rapists).

it cleaned up ok outside and a little ipa on the zebra strips took care of some minor lcd ghosting. 

the dc input impedance spec in the manual says "10 Megohms....nominal".  turns out that means 11 Meg on the 3v range, 10.1 on the 30v range, and 10.0 on the 300v range.  it is possible to select the range manually so with a little attention it should be useful with an hv probe.

it does not feel at all like a toy (unlike the fluke 101 that was also considered).   

should probably check with the county sheriff to see if my concealed carry permit covers this thing too.

Yep, they are good robust meters, I have 2 of them myself, you could use them as hammers as well, or so they feel like you could.

[med6753]

Accessing the PSU boards is a nightmare  in this scope.
Anyway  I found a blown fuse and the rifa caps are not is great condition.

I will replace the fuse and the rifa (if I can find the adequate  replacement parts) and see it the display comes  back.

Accessing the PSU on a no option 2445/2465 is not bad. This, my friend, is the nightmare. I fully optioned 2445/2465 with DMM and Counter/Trigger options.

https://www.eevblog.com/forum/testgear/tektronix-2465b-oscilloscope-teardown/msg1861713/#msg1861713

[psykok]

Looks like the computer side of it is working as the controls are illuminated correctly. Probably power supply. Hopefully not one of the ASICs.

I've got a non-A 2445 here at the moment which has original parts in it

Agreed, looks like it booted with no errors and the issue is in the CRT circuits.

Quite possibly, but there can be subtle problems around the DAC.

Check the PSU voltages first, of course.

If you can get it working, don't forget to exorcise the RIFAs, lest they remind you of their (non)existence.

Accessing the PSU boards is a nightmare  in this scope.
Anyway  I found a blown fuse and the rifa caps are not is great condition.

I will replace the fuse and the rifa (if I can find the adequate  replacement parts) and see it the display comes  back.

Listen to the advice of Papa Smurf and replace the old electrolytic capacitors as well. It's worth it. 

So I replaced the RIFA and the blown fuse and  checked all the electrolytics.
The fuse keep blowing ...

[Wolfgang]

Accessing the PSU boards is a nightmare  in this scope.
Anyway  I found a blown fuse and the rifa caps are not is great condition.

I will replace the fuse and the rifa (if I can find the adequate  replacement parts) and see it the display comes  back.

Accessing the PSU on a no option 2445/2465 is not bad. This, my friend, is the nightmare. I fully optioned 2445/2465 with DMM and Counter/Trigger options.

https://www.eevblog.com/forum/testgear/tektronix-2465b-oscilloscope-teardown/msg1861713/#msg1861713

Someone please enlighten me why the repair of the 2XXX series Tek CRT scopes makes sense at all. They are:

- a nightmare to access parts
- full of dried electrolytics and RIFA time bombs
- built to overheat (at least the faster models), with special unobtainium ICs needed to repair
- in no ways better than any 1K€ 2020 scope with more channels, better frequency response, digital memory, ...

The old 7XXX modular types had some class and were a pleasure to fix in comparison.

So, is TEA related to masochistic practices or occult religions ? Cargo cult ? The church of TEK ?