Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread

[Zucca]

https://www.eevblog.com/forum/testgear/list-your-test-equipment-score-here!/msg4207942/#msg4207942

[cyclin_al]

USA grid in 2022, today

21:28
power out, 7.45 VAC in the power plugs do not know which phase...

21:31
power is back but lights are weak
74.45VAC instead of 110VAC in the plugs

21:35
in the dark again. don't bother to measure....

I disconnected my entire home from the grid now.
1 First check if some lights are back on in the street
2 then measure what the grid is delivering
3 if voltages ok then flip the home back on

according to the web more than 1000 homes are in the dark.

it will be an interesting night without AC.

I simply do not trust this grid... at all.

EDIT: see attached pics... burn baby burn

 

I know how it feels.  My generator ran part-time and has accumulated another 40 hours of use:
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottawa/power-outage-ottawa-duration-storm-1.6471982

[tautech]

https://www.eevblog.com/forum/testgear/list-your-test-equipment-score-here!/msg4207942/#msg4207942

No problem for the wizard TiN !

[Neomys Sapiens]

VOLTAGE REGULATORS

I don't have any low current ones, which I guess makes sense since I have only beefy TO220 and TO3 packages. Since these can put out 1 or 1.5Amp, why would any manufacturer artificially limit them to 500mA ?! So I guess the only 'L' 500mA ones are those supplied in small packages like TO92 or SOT23 surface mount something or other. I don't have these.

OK Murphy !

I have just finished sorting and organizing them all... just need to update my spreadsheet and print labels.... tomorrow. 2AM here I am going to bed.

So out of nearly 100 regulators.... guess what, yes I found ONE that proves me wrong... ONE TO220 package that's low current ! 

But it's not an 'L' , it's an 'M' !

A 78M12 ...so I pulled the datasheet and yeah, it's a 500mA version ! Why... why do these things even exist !   
Makes for a smaller pass transistor inside, makes the regulator half a cent cheaper maybe ? I guess for high volume commercial electronics it can count ?! 

So the 500mA version is an 'M'... so what is an 'L' ? I pulled the datasheet for that one as well. It's also a low current version indeed, but not 500mA, no.... the 'L' is only 100mA ! THESE are indeed the ones that come in the tiny packages, TO92 and surface mount.
Datasheet says these are intended mostly as an improved " Zener + resistor " replacement. I guess why not, makes sense...

Well thanks everyone for your participation, that was quite a refresher on these regulators. Think I now have my basics right...

 

Didn't you find any TO-3 ones with a "K" suffix? The LM323K is 5V 3A, for instance. The LM7812K is rated for 1.5A.

And 78Sxx in TO220 are rated 2A. So you have neither LMx09 nor LMx40 regulators? And neither LMx17, x37, x50 nor LMx38? And an LT1070 should also be at hand when needed! Vince, you really need to round out your collection!
Tsktsktsk

[Neomys Sapiens]

He's mad.

Not at all.

If anything, I wouldn't have expected the kind of stereotyping and bashing I've seen here over the last day or two. That said, I have a real life and better use for my time and energy.

I'm not bashing Ham Radio. I'm simply reporting what I see and hear. The amateur community does the bashing all by themselves. All one has to do is tune the HF bands and a majority heard is plain jackassery and dumbasses.

That's the meat and potatoes of the issue right there, actual lived experience.  It is what it is unless you or I or anyone else are prepared to ignore it.

Mid-morning, one of my friends called from about halfway between his place and mine and it turned out we both had the day off so he drove out here and we jumped into my car since he hadn't been in my new car yet, had lunch at a restaurant nearby and took some pictures down by the lake.  One of the things were were talking about were cars and how even one sufficiently bad experience of the "I bought a Citation and I'll never buy GM again"-type to pick one example can be a lifelong deal breaker for things.  The same can easily be extended to anything, really, including hobbies.

Then again, we already have our share of frustrated old geezers around so we don't need any more on the air. Thanks for deciding to stay away.

I can't say that has changed my opinion for the better.

If I had just bought a Citation, I would also be sure never to buy GM again. Even if it was only an old and shabby I or II!
 

[Neomys Sapiens]

It was an Agilent U1253B

It reminds me this

Ooooh! Maybe it has cheatcodes! HoldHoldRangeRangeHzHzShift turns the surprise Megger function on - and zaps your circuit!
 

[mansaxel]

So you're saying you've actually tried to refrigerate Butthead Bob's corpse (or someone like him ) under the raised floor, and you know it is a fail from personal experience...?

Do tell us more... 

That would give the investigators too much to work with 

More seriously, computer room cooling gear gives 15° C air or so, perhaps down towards 10° if you can turn off machines. Most modern cooling systems around here work with free-flow cool water (like from geothermal), not with compressors, because it's much cheaper. All in all, not a good fridge temp, and obviously not suitable for freezing something or keeping an unbutchered carcass for long.

Morgue fridges typically are closer to 4° C, and you'll still  better embalm people (inject ~3 litres of formaldehyde solution, dyed red, via arteria femoralis) if they're not to float off the stretcher after a week..

[cyclin_al]

Disquieting Vicious rotor winds in the mountains?

An aircraft I'd been in had the main wing strut bend in flight. The passengers quickly exited, and the pilot managed to land safely.

I hope not in this order, though!

Yes, in that order. They weren't foolish enough to hang around.

Passengers or parachutists ? Somone who takes off in an aircraft not intending to be in it when i lands is not a passenger.

People on an aircraft are either passengers or aircrew. Aircrew operate the aircraft in flight. The parachutists took no part in operating the aircraft, apart from (possibly) opening the door.

Not  quite right even for public transport, there are also cabin crew. For aerial work (parachuting is aerial work) there are also mission personnel and parachutists.
Also when I fly for flight testing I am neither flight crew or passenger.

I took the "definition" from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aircrew

No doubt there are other equally valid/invalid definitions depending on which shade of gray you regard as black/white

Well the EASA definition is "Flight crew’ means a licensed flight crew member charged with duties essential to the
operation of an aircraft during a flight duty period."
https://www.easa.europa.eu/sites/default/files/dfu/Annexes%20to%20the%20draft%20Commission%20Regulation%20.pdf

Cabin crew is "“Cabin crew member” means an appropriately qualified crew member, other than a flight crew or technical crew member, who is assigned by an operator to perform duties related to the safety of passengers and flight during operations;"
https://www.easa.europa.eu/faq/19130

Note Flight crew have to be licenced. I am qualified as Flight Crew but for a position that is little used. That said I have flown as a flight crew member on scheduled public transport flight due to a technical failure meaning a additional flight crew member being required and no pilot being available.

TCCA uses the exact same terminology in the CARs.  When something is that consistent, I suspect the source is from ICAO, which makes sense.

I am qualified as Flight Crew but for a position that is little used.

Well that is a first, to actually know of someone who is a FE!

I guess you are more commonly in the role of FTA for FTE?

-- spent the morning meeting with the highest-up FTPs and FTAs...

[capt bullshot]

A small riddle (most probably suitable for the Europeans only): what is the error that I deliberately introduced here:

The order is looking a bit strange.
brown = L1
black = L2
grey = L3

Correct!

[Cubdriver]

Glad you managed to get it working... that now reminds me I have a 453 of my own taking up space under the bench.... bought 9 months ago... started work on it. Never saw a trace on the thing, no HV. As I was working on it I saw the magic smoke escape from the HV transformer.... which is not good a tall, me thought back then ! 
You all gave me good advice and info so maybe I will find the courage to unwind the transformer and see if I can fix the wire that blew. Hopefully I don't have to unwind the transformer 100% to find the scene of the accident... 

Came across this the other day actually which might be helpful




[/quote]

Thanks, BD - I think that will be VERY helpful and inspirational once I get the 547 back up on the bench, though that'll probably not happen until cooler weather returns - summer is more a play-with-solid-state-stuff time, especially with the current cost of angry pixies - cant see using them to run an air conditioner while six feet away simultaneously using still more of them to generate heat in old Tek iron - strikes me as rather counter productive.

-Pat

[capt bullshot]

Half cross-section on N?

The blue lab cable isn't labeled (except MC brand), but I'd guess it has the same 0.75mm² as the colourful ones. Anyway, for this setup I wouldn't mind if it was less cross section than the others - it's not carrying any current worth talking about, the transformer doesn't have the neutral pinned out.

[capt bullshot]

The earth wire coming from the left, is not connected to anything... might as well not be there ?! 

Yes, true - but I wouldn't call this an intentional error in a lab setup.

[Robert763]

Disquieting Vicious rotor winds in the mountains?

An aircraft I'd been in had the main wing strut bend in flight. The passengers quickly exited, and the pilot managed to land safely.

I hope not in this order, though!

Yes, in that order. They weren't foolish enough to hang around.

Passengers or parachutists ? Somone who takes off in an aircraft not intending to be in it when i lands is not a passenger.

People on an aircraft are either passengers or aircrew. Aircrew operate the aircraft in flight. The parachutists took no part in operating the aircraft, apart from (possibly) opening the door.

Not  quite right even for public transport, there are also cabin crew. For aerial work (parachuting is aerial work) there are also mission personnel and parachutists.
Also when I fly for flight testing I am neither flight crew or passenger.

I took the "definition" from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aircrew

No doubt there are other equally valid/invalid definitions depending on which shade of gray you regard as black/white

Well the EASA definition is "Flight crew’ means a licensed flight crew member charged with duties essential to the
operation of an aircraft during a flight duty period."
https://www.easa.europa.eu/sites/default/files/dfu/Annexes%20to%20the%20draft%20Commission%20Regulation%20.pdf

Cabin crew is "“Cabin crew member” means an appropriately qualified crew member, other than a flight crew or technical crew member, who is assigned by an operator to perform duties related to the safety of passengers and flight during operations;"
https://www.easa.europa.eu/faq/19130

Note Flight crew have to be licenced. I am qualified as Flight Crew but for a position that is little used. That said I have flown as a flight crew member on scheduled public transport flight due to a technical failure meaning a additional flight crew member being required and no pilot being available.

TCCA uses the exact same terminology in the CARs.  When something is that consistent, I suspect the source is from ICAO, which makes sense.

I am qualified as Flight Crew but for a position that is little used.

Well that is a first, to actually know of someone who is a FE!

I guess you are more commonly in the role of FTA for FTE?

-- spent the morning meeting with the highest-up FTPs and FTAs...

Nope, not a Flight Engineer, even less used: Radio Operator.  Technically as a Avionics engineer you need one to test the radios on air, even VSWR testing. Most engineers don't bother though. I flew as flight crew when a faulty autopilot required an additional crewmember to reduce workload on the normal crew.

[bd139]

Heads up UK TEA members. It's 70% eBay voucher day. That means the grand exchange of gear is on 

The Black Star 2010 is going, some books and a couple of excess apple input devices I have are going up today here. Objective is to make enough cash this week to grab an AWG 

[Specmaster]

I think you missed my point... to completely repurpose said chill air delivery for keeping Butthead Bob frosty. That said... yes, I know it's silly. That was kinda the whole point.

That won't work, either. BTDTGTTS. (Yes, actually, I've worked in a morgue!)

I'll see your morgue and raise you a crematorium.

[AVGresponding]

VOLTAGE REGULATORS

I don't have any low current ones, which I guess makes sense since I have only beefy TO220 and TO3 packages. Since these can put out 1 or 1.5Amp, why would any manufacturer artificially limit them to 500mA ?! So I guess the only 'L' 500mA ones are those supplied in small packages like TO92 or SOT23 surface mount something or other. I don't have these.

OK Murphy !

I have just finished sorting and organizing them all... just need to update my spreadsheet and print labels.... tomorrow. 2AM here I am going to bed.

So out of nearly 100 regulators.... guess what, yes I found ONE that proves me wrong... ONE TO220 package that's low current ! 

But it's not an 'L' , it's an 'M' !

A 78M12 ...so I pulled the datasheet and yeah, it's a 500mA version ! Why... why do these things even exist !   
Makes for a smaller pass transistor inside, makes the regulator half a cent cheaper maybe ? I guess for high volume commercial electronics it can count ?! 

So the 500mA version is an 'M'... so what is an 'L' ? I pulled the datasheet for that one as well. It's also a low current version indeed, but not 500mA, no.... the 'L' is only 100mA ! THESE are indeed the ones that come in the tiny packages, TO92 and surface mount.
Datasheet says these are intended mostly as an improved " Zener + resistor " replacement. I guess why not, makes sense...

Well thanks everyone for your participation, that was quite a refresher on these regulators. Think I now have my basics right...

 

Didn't you find any TO-3 ones with a "K" suffix? The LM323K is 5V 3A, for instance. The LM7812K is rated for 1.5A.

And 78Sxx in TO220 are rated 2A. So you have neither LMx09 nor LMx40 regulators? And neither LMx17, x37, x50 nor LMx38? And an LT1070 should also be at hand when needed! Vince, you really need to round out your collection!
Tsktsktsk

Thanks for reminding me about the S series. There's at least one still missing from the list however - the L200!

[xrunner]

My project for the morning: M.2 storage for my main PC - one SATA & one PCIe. Accumulating stack of platter drives for posterity.

[TERRA Operative]

Digging into this TDS794D now. I ran the extended self-test from the utility menu and got a useful error.

Code: [Select]

"ERROR: diagnostic test failure, digDataFormatDiag,  ERROR!!BYTE mode, in demux 198 ,i= 20 memBaseAdr 0x730002a=  data = ffffb400, expectedData[i] = 3400"
Looks like my suspected RAM error, I suspect that ffff is what's making the spikes on the display, pegging the data out at maximum for that value. So next step is to try to figure out what chip contains address 0x730002a so I can avoid shotgun replacing these RAM chips..

[Kosmic]

When a seller on Amazon is selling a Rigol DS1054z for $82. And that's in Canadian. Ummm what? Not touching that with a trillion foot barge pole!

https://www.amazon.ca/Rigol-DS1054Z-4-channel-Digital-Oscilloscope/dp/B012938E76/

It has to be a weird product mix up.

I'll let you know I just ordered one   

Hmm got a fedex tracking number. Something is coming 

Well well, look at what Fedex just dropped over here. If i'm not mistaken it's a 65$US Rigol scope 

[TERRA Operative]

Turns out the 'Retro Chip Tester' I recently built as a kit from The 8-Bit Museum will test the 71024 128k x 8 1Mb RAM chips used in the TDS scopes! Yay! 
Turns out I don't have a SOJ-32 to DIP adapter.. Booo. 


Anyone know if a SOJ-32 ZIF socket exists? Otherwise I'll probably have to get something like this one:
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32813703531.html

[YurkshireLad]

When a seller on Amazon is selling a Rigol DS1054z for $82. And that's in Canadian. Ummm what? Not touching that with a trillion foot barge pole!

https://www.amazon.ca/Rigol-DS1054Z-4-channel-Digital-Oscilloscope/dp/B012938E76/

It has to be a weird product mix up.

I'll let you know I just ordered one   

Hmm got a fedex tracking number. Something is coming 

Well well, look at what Fedex just dropped over here. If i'm not mistaken it's a 65$US Rigol scope 

If this thing actually works, I'll be jealous as hell! 

[bd139]

If that works it's a good deal. Fingers crossed for you.

[Kosmic]

Look brand new and had the factory seal. I would be surprise if it's not working. I just regret not ordering everything that was in stock now. Almost got 7 of them at some point but chickened out 

[bd139]

If it's sealed I can't see why it wouldn't work. There's not a lot to go wrong with them in the box.

Epic win if that is the case!

[Kosmic]

It's working fine. I need to unlock all options now