Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread

[Cerebus]

The video just shows your lack of understanding.

Gee, could you possibly be a little more subtle rather than a swift kick in the nut sack? 

What follows is qualified. I haven't watched the video in question, so I'm not commenting on the case in hand. I'm most definitely NOT commenting on Tony's competence or understanding.

I can understand the bluntness as a possible result of accumulated frustration. Something I've increasingly noticed recently around here (the whole board) is the amount of pontificating done by people who clearly don't know what they're talking about. There are people who act, in their interactions with others, as if they are experts. (Robert replied while I was writing this, I'm quite pleased that I guessed exactly where he was coming from.)

As an example: One frequent, high post count, poster who is always handing out advice about circuit design and component selection recently posted a question about a constructing a kit they'd bought. It was clear that the individual in question could not recognise basics. They couldn't spot particular types of components in the schematic, they were confused as to which of the supplied components belonged where in the circuit and how to identify them from the components that had come in the kit. They didn't even realise that generic part designations weren't an arbitrary manufacturer's part number. Yet, I've seen the poster in question hand out many an expert sounding opinion on how people should do things when clearly they haven't actually acquired the most basic level of electronics expertise.

So, I too am feeling a bit of frustration with the types that let their egos do the talking while not really knowing about that they are talking about. It's not fair to the people who want to learn something to present yourself as an expert but spout a lot of half-baked nonsense. It dilutes the efforts put in by people who do know what they're talking about, because now they have to deal with correcting the idiots (which usually results in an argument) as well as supplying useful information. I've noticed the disappearance of several people who clearly had genuine expert level knowledge and experience in some areas, were genuinely helpful, and put a lot of effort in, once they ran into the  self-appointed 'experts' who seemed in capable of recognising the real thing when they met it, and just continued arguing for their half-baked theories, generating much heat and no light.

One instance of this I saw was a guy who clearly had years of experience producing commercial metrology grade voltage references who got shouted down often enough by the voodoo voltage reference "experts" that he gave up in disgust. The forum lost a fantastically useful resource that day. Similarly, Conrad Hoffman (whose bona fides stretch back as far as solving resistor reliability problems on the Minuteman programme) conspicuously cut back his participation in the face of similar overblown egos.

I guess we are back on the resistor symbol question again?

I'm fascinated as to how you got from there to here.

But as you ask, the only truly correct resistor symbol is a vague squiggle in a line, drawn in 'B' pencil on a beermat that is lightly damped with liquid inspiration. 'HB' is not acceptable, neither is 'F', '2B' might be acceptable on Mondays, but only on Mondays.

[Specmaster]

afaik you have free access to the EU market as part of that brexit deal. Plus you are also in Schengen (due to Gibraltar being in Schengen)

No, the UK is not in Schengen, only Gibraltar, and that is not as perfect as it sounds because the Gibraltarians are not allowed as I understand it,to use the freedom of movement that Schengen should have, it is for the Spanish because they have to go into Gibraltar on a daily basis to work.   

[Cerebus]

Oh, well, time to make dinner. (And get yelled at by children who don't think fish is food unless deep fried in batter. No, they're not from the UK, but they've been there.)

With chips (fried in beef dripping), and mushy peas. And scraps, don't forget the scraps. (Whoops, my internal Northerner is showing.  )

I'm a Northerner, and I've never cared for "scraps", or as we call them "bits". And you can ask at any decent chippy for unbattered fish, makes a nice change sometimes.

When I were a lad my weekly treat was a trip to the chippie for a bag of chips on the way home from Cub Scouts. My Geordie father would pick me up from Cubs in the car, we'd stop off at the chippie. I'd have a bag of chips and he'd get a bag of scraps. This being the south coast, nobody else actually ate scraps, which meant they didn't have a price, which meant they were free, and that warmed the cockles of my father's Geordie wallet. 

[AVGresponding]

I guess we are back on the resistor symbol question again?

I'm fascinated as to how you got from there to here.

But as you ask, the only truly correct resistor symbol is a vague squiggle in a line, drawn in 'B' pencil on a beermat that is lightly damped with liquid inspiration. 'HB' is not acceptable, neither is 'F', '2B' might be acceptable on Mondays, but only on Mondays.

No, no, no, it's a rectangle drawn in such a way as to imply either parallax error is involved, or may be just a badly drawn op-amp, and preferably in biro so there are lots of scribbled out bits instead of holes in the paper from excessive eraser use.

[Robert763]

Cheap Tek 465/DM44 in the uk
www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Tektronix-Oscilloscope-465-With-DM44-Complete-With-Qty-2-Tektronix-Probes/303833561835
£135 BIN

[AVGresponding]

Haha I just saw that and was going to link it, you saved me a job.
There seem to have been a few of those recently.

[Specmaster]

I guess we are back on the resistor symbol question again?

I'm fascinated as to how you got from there to here.

But as you ask, the only truly correct resistor symbol is a vague squiggle in a line, drawn in 'B' pencil on a beermat that is lightly damped with liquid inspiration. 'HB' is not acceptable, neither is 'F', '2B' might be acceptable on Mondays, but only on Mondays.

before this gets out of hand with many versions of "War and Peace" being penned, I'm 

[Saskia]

@specmaster in that case I stand corrected. My apoloh'gies.

[Specmaster]

Cheap Tek 465/DM44 in the uk
www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Tektronix-Oscilloscope-465-With-DM44-Complete-With-Qty-2-Tektronix-Probes/303833561835
£135 BIN

Thats cheap! 

[bd139]

Considering I paid £2 for my last one, nope!

I may be wrong but that is likely one I refurbished a couple of years back. I recognise the broken bits.

[salvagedcircuitry]

In the middle of a digikey order and my folks ask me to wire up their 80's roof antenna to the TV. Anyone seen 3 wire antenna cable before? It's not exactly twin lead wire, the spacing is completely off.
Really hoping I don't have to climb on the roof and rewire the antenna completely in coax 
But then, maybe a good excuse to finally get a proper coax crimping tool 

[Specmaster]

@specmaster in that case I stand corrected. My apoloh'gies.

No need, I may be wrong, but I doubt it as the gammons over here would go stark raving mad if they discovered that freedom of movement had not been removed when it applies to the UK seeing as the main motivator, so it seems for the average voter who voted for Brexit was racism as pumped out by our Mr N.F. by UKIP and then Brexit Party. 

[AVGresponding]

In the middle of a digikey order and my folks ask me to wire up their 80's roof antenna to the TV. Anyone seen 3 wire antenna cable before? It's not exactly twin lead wire, the spacing is completely off.
Really hoping I don't have to climb on the roof and rewire the antenna completely in coax 
But then, maybe a good excuse to finally get a proper coax crimping tool 

Does the antenna have a rotation motor?

[Specmaster]

Considering I paid £2 for my last one, nope!

I may be wrong but that is likely one I refurbished a couple of years back. I recognise the broken bits.

It may well be, its highly unlikely that there would be 2 around with the same issues in the same areas.

[Specmaster]

In the middle of a digikey order and my folks ask me to wire up their 80's roof antenna to the TV. Anyone seen 3 wire antenna cable before? It's not exactly twin lead wire, the spacing is completely off.
Really hoping I don't have to climb on the roof and rewire the antenna completely in coax 
But then, maybe a good excuse to finally get a proper coax crimping tool 

Does the antenna have a rotation motor?

If it did, wouldn't it still use coax for the signal lead, that 3 core cable offers zero interference rejection / protection 

[AVGresponding]

In the middle of a digikey order and my folks ask me to wire up their 80's roof antenna to the TV. Anyone seen 3 wire antenna cable before? It's not exactly twin lead wire, the spacing is completely off.
Really hoping I don't have to climb on the roof and rewire the antenna completely in coax 
But then, maybe a good excuse to finally get a proper coax crimping tool 

Does the antenna have a rotation motor?

If it did, wouldn't it still use coax for the signal lead, that 3 core cable offers zero interference rejection / protection 

Yeah true, RF stuff is not really my bag. It kind of looks like some kind of FM dipoley-type cable thing, idk. Didn't some older US tv channels use VHF rather than UHF?
(I'm shooting in the dark here)

[Robert763]

Cheap Tek 465/DM44 in the uk
www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Tektronix-Oscilloscope-465-With-DM44-Complete-With-Qty-2-Tektronix-Probes/303833561835
£135 BIN

Thats cheap! 

Compared to some of the rubbish on ebay, yes. Absolute bargain, no.

[Cerebus]

If it did, wouldn't it still use coax for the signal lead, that 3 core cable offers zero interference rejection / protection 

Ignoring the centre conductor it looks like a 300/600 balanced feeder, and in that case the differential feed offers interference rejection.

[salvagedcircuitry]

It turns out the antenna was wired traditionally with twin lead, but then someone extended the twin lead cable inside the house with some random 3 wire jobby.
After looking at the condition of the twin lead outside, it looks like someone is going to run some new coax.
Oh hello my lovely carol rg-6 wire, how long have you been waiting for attention? 

[mnementh]

I'm inclined to believe the cable is either rotator motor power and the signal cable has gone on walkabout, or perhaps some oddball amplified antenna which uses the 3rd conductor for power instead of the usual power injector/DC block.

mnem
 

[mnementh]

Huh...? Now why didn't eevBlog popup the usual "a post has been made...  " message...? 

mnem
meh.

[AVGresponding]

Huh...? Now why didn't eevBlog popup the usual "a post has been made...  " message...? 

mnem
meh.

For the purpose of making you look daft   

[med6753]

This is why I wasn't on Discord. Just got back from picking this up.

Sansui "Classique" A-990 Amplifier. Local Craig's List. Was only $50 USD which is why I jumped on it. And it works. Full demo by the seller. I'm going to make some changes to my audio system.



Peek inside. Dusty but otherwise looks untouched by Gorillas. The 6800uF capacitor on the right is bulging on the top. So a re-cap will be scheduled.



Bottom view. Discrete outputs. Goodness. Those hybrid output blocks common on many mid-range amps don't last and are unobtainium although Chinese vendors will gladly sell you defective or counterfeit.



 I figure the output power of this amp is anywhere between 35 and 50 watts. So far Google has drawn a big fat zero on a manual. I've found lots of Sansui sources that list dozen's of amps but not this one. Anybody know of a source? 

[AVGresponding]

I'm intrigued as to what lies under that rather elegant heatsink, since the power output semis seem to be mounted to the bottom rear of the chassis.

[Neomys Sapiens]

It turns out the antenna was wired traditionally with twin lead, but then someone extended the twin lead cable inside the house with some random 3 wire jobby.
After looking at the condition of the twin lead outside, it looks like someone is going to run some new coax.
Oh hello my lovely carol rg-6 wire, how long have you been waiting for attention? 

You might have to gather some information before. If MNEMETH is right, it will not work properly. And even if the antenna offers a connection to coax, that should be 75Ohms.