Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread

[Kosmic]

Might be just us, but around here electricity is so cheap it would only make sense to install solar panels if you can't get connected to the grid.

It is just you. Most of us in most of the rest of the world don't have "hydro" as part of the local power company name.

I understand about the rest of the world but was wondering about USA. Probably depend of the state you live in. It's true that we are exporting a lot of electricity so it has to be more expensive over there.

[Cerebus]

Compare to...

Mmm, I've give that a hard "Pass!" if you don't mind.

[Kosmic]

My actual 2022 top most played on Apple Music is embarrassing so I won’t post it here 

All the Best compilation from Engelbert Humperdinck, Barry Manilow and Dean Martin¹?

 


¹ covered by Leo Moracchioli

Worse

https://youtu.be/rRncgJhNf-k

Click on this link at your own risk!

I hear that the Musician's Union have issued a fatwa against you just for posting that link.

Compare to...

German cousin of the Umpa Lumpa ?

[Cerebus]

I find myself in the invidious situation that I want to buy something from Ikea (a zigbee 'smart' socket) for the convenience of having it now, but I don't want to go there. And every minute I put off the decision I know that Ikea is getting busier and busier. So I either bite the bullet and go now, or it reaches the point where waiting for Ikea to calm down again to mid-week levels is no better than ordering online and waiting for it to be delivered.

First world problems, eh?

[Cerebus]

German cousin of the Umpa Lumpa ?

Some sort of Kobold? But then wouldn't the rules of chemistry mean that they were blue?

[bd139]

German cousin of the Umpa Lumpa ?

Some sort of Kobold? But then wouldn't the rules of chemistry mean that they were blue?

It's what happens when you mix up a German, Russian and Romanian.


Random shit show rant. So the eldest just finished her A-level exams today finally after 2 weeks of misery. AQA, the exam and paper provider, have fucked up big time by leaking three papers before the exams. They were changing hands for £2.50 a copy online and thousands of copies were distributed. On top of that it turns out that there is now additional disarray as a lot of stuff on the papers was not in the curriculum at all which has been confirmed independently by hundreds of people. So they are now looking at fixing this by down-grading anyone who does better in certain papers and wiping entire questions out of the total grade. One of the papers being downgraded is organic chemistry which is an order of magnitude easier than the rest of chemistry so you tend to get higher marks anyway. 

She's worried about screwing up maths and chem and having second thoughts about careers as well after being told her starting salary on biochem is probably going to be around £23k with career progression up to £50k if she's lucky.

With no help or influence (I'm being unhelpfully neutral here) she's downloaded Learn Python the Hard Way and is currently trying to work out vim 

Interested to see where this will go

[bd139]

I find myself in the invidious situation that I want to buy something from Ikea (a zigbee 'smart' socket) for the convenience of having it now, but I don't want to go there. And every minute I put off the decision I know that Ikea is getting busier and busier. So I either bite the bullet and go now, or it reaches the point where waiting for Ikea to calm down again to mid-week levels is no better than ordering online and waiting for it to be delivered.

First world problems, eh?

I've come to the following chart when deciding Ikea trips:

1. Do I want it? No - don't go to Ikea.
2. Do I need it? No - don't go to Ikea.
3. Do I really need it? No - don't go to Ikea.
4. Can I get it anywhere else? Yes - don't go to Ikea.
5. Can I bodge something else to do the same thing? Yes - don't go to Ikea.
6. Can I borrow something else to do the same thing? Yes - don't go to Ikea.
7. Put it off for a couple of weeks.
8. Go to Ikea if you haven't forgotten about it.

Incidentally I've got to Ikea critical mass during this house move so will be getting them to deliver stuff instead thus absolving me from all problems 

[BU508A]

I hear that the Musician's Union have issued a fatwa against you just for posting that link.

 

[Kosmic]

I expected that would be the case with a cheap Siglent/Rigol/etc. I don't know whether it would be the same with a more expensive scope where adverts show it doing eye diagrams.

A key test might be whether or not you can change the opacity of a trace, or whether adverts show overlapping traces (which I find usegful sometimes).

Not working on my Lecroy WavePro 960. The traces don't blend in Persistence mode. Channel 1 is always on top of Channel 3.

Thanks. I'm not entirely surprised.

What happens in any of the non-persistence modes? Can you overlay two traces?

Yes you can set the traces transparent and they will blend.

I found a way to make the measurement using histograms. I was feeding 1Vrms from a DG831.



Edit: Wait, something wrong, I think I'm supposed to measure from the center of each histogram and divide by 2 right ?

[Vince]

If anyone might be interested, there is a Nixie DMM that just popped up here, for only 20 Euros.

3 digits made by Schneider, model " DIGITEST 500 ",  and a compact portable unusual form factor, to add to your collection.

Seller says local pickup but it's not worded too strongly so he might be willing to ship if just asked   


https://www.leboncoin.fr/bricolage/2159083354.htm

There is even guy on YT testing it and tearing it down. Sounds German.

[mnementh]

Stupid question for the gang. If a water electro-valve spec is 24VAC, can I use VDC to control it? If yes at what voltage DC current?

Yes I am a little embarrassed to ask....    

IME, it depends on the valve. The sprinkler valves I've experimented with are a strange little device; they have a small coil which actuates a very small valve which in turn actuates a diaphragm with head pressure. Those draw so little current it was easy to figure out the required DC current by trial and error; set the valve up using a 24VAC transformer, measure required current for operation, then work trial and error to see how much current you need to get similarly reliable operation on DCV. Obviously, the test scenario requires that the valve be working under the expected operating fluid pressure.

Q: What is the basic difference construction-wise between AC coil and DC coil? And why?

In DC coils, the current drawn is determined mainly by it's electrical resistance. To achieve this, the winding uses many turns of wire having thin gauge.

In AC coils, the current is determined mainly by the inductive reactance. This is achieved by having relatively fewer turns of a thicker gauge and having a large amount of laminated steel core. Laminated structure reduces eddy current losses.

In addition, shading coils are employed to reduce noise from the magnets. Shading coils split the magnetic flux near the pole faces into two components, having a phase difference between them. This ensures that the flux at the pole faces is non zero at all times and reduces the humming noise.

If the magnet does not close fully, the inductive reactance may not be high enough to limit the current and cause the coil to burn out. This does not happen in DC coils, where the current is not affected by the position of the magnet.

from:  https://www.quora.com/What-is-the-difference-between-AC-and-DC-coil-Can-we-use-one-and-the-same-coil-for-both-the-supply

This discussion is primarily about the differences between AC-actuated Contactors and DC-actuated ones, but the basics are similar. In my experience building jigs with air valves and and solenoid-operated mechanisms, with smaller coils one can usually find a DC current level by trial and error that will reliably close a AC solenoid but not cause it to overheat.

Cheers,

mnem
*puttin' on muh flame-proof jammies*

[Specmaster]

What.. I think you did that, I think that has become the most commonly used phrase by BMW, Volvo and Audi drivers at least here in the UK 

How could any of those three things be caused by driving a BMW? On the other hand I can quite understand how someone might want to throw themselves under a Škoda so that they didn't have to look at it for even a few seconds more, or stop immediately, turn their back and phone for emergency emotional support, or turn around to go and arrest someone for indecent (motor) exposure. 

LMAO... most drivers of those three makes of car seem to think that everyone else is the idiot and those idiots all seem to flock to them, its been a long-standing joke in the petrolhead world. Škoda have had their spot in that light as well, e.g. what do you call a Škoda with a sunroof...A skip. But Škoda left that stage many years ago and are now one of the most popular cars around, as indeed are BMW, Audi and Volvo, but the reason for them being the butt of the idiot's joke is more to do with many of their drivers, many of whom don't give a rats arse about anybody else, and I'm sure that you don't fit into that category, so its nothing personal





EDIT:
Unable to find a Volvo video about UK drivers, there I admit videos about them and also Skoda ones but not for the UK

[mnementh]

Back when I tried to learn to fly gliders & court SWMBO at the same time (one guess which one missed out!), some of the older club members recalled learning from wedgetailed eagles!

Buzzards over here, or in some areas red kites. But not seagulls; they are deceptive buggers that happily flap their wings when they feel the need.

Many people have been saved from landing out by buzzards. It is a nice complement about your skill when they come to join you in a thermal, rather than vice versa.

Never fly directly underneath a bird; when startled they fold their wings and drop a bomb!

FTFY!

mnem

[mnementh]

My actual 2022 top most played on Apple Music is embarrassing so I won’t post it here 

All the Best compilation from Engelbert Humperdinck, Barry Manilow and Dean Martin¹?

 


¹ covered by Leo Moracchioli

Worse

https://youtu.be/rRncgJhNf-k

Click on this link at your own risk!

Ok not that bad. That is NSFW 

Oh.. oh... oh... I know. Zamfir - Pan Flute to Fuck By. 

mnem
*confirmed sick dwagon puppy*

[mnementh]

just did the bloody COVID test. Rats, it's positive and I feel rotten ...

I feel rotten too... stuffy sinuses, throat feels like I gargled razor blades and pounding headache. COVID test negative. So now my nostrils are on fire, I feel like homemade shit and I need to do the test again in 24. Yipppee-ki-yay mutherfucker!!!

mnem

[mnementh]

My actual 2022 top most played on Apple Music is embarrassing so I won’t post it here 

All the Best compilation from Engelbert Humperdinck, Barry Manilow and Dean Martin¹?

 


¹ covered by Leo Moracchioli

Worse

https://youtu.be/rRncgJhNf-k

Click on this link at your own risk!

I hear that the Musician's Union have issued a fatwa against you just for posting that link.

Compare to...

Just goes to show... Vogons don't only commit horrible poetry.   

mnem

[Specmaster]

There is apparently a new strain around and not enough is known about it as yet and Covid will be with us for some time to come yet before we can confidently say we have beaten it, I urge everyone not to let the guard down for a while yet. I still wear my mask when shopping and in crowded places, even outside if there is no way of maintaining social distancing.

[Robert763]

OK made an offer on another DMM with a dodgy display 

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/354125585399

Put an offer in citing "it's not working properly, missing / weak segments"
Offer was accepted at £50. Fixing that display is easy, clean the zebra strips. You can never have too many Fluke 8062A's 
(this will bring my total to 5 )

[mnementh]

Random shit show rant. So the eldest just finished her A-level exams today finally after 2 weeks of misery. AQA, the exam and paper provider, have fucked up big time by leaking three papers before the exams. They were changing hands for £2.50 a copy online and thousands of copies were distributed. On top of that it turns out that there is now additional disarray as a lot of stuff on the papers was not in the curriculum at all which has been confirmed independently by hundreds of people. So they are now looking at fixing this by down-grading anyone who does better in certain papers and wiping entire questions out of the total grade. One of the papers being downgraded is organic chemistry which is an order of magnitude easier than the rest of chemistry so you tend to get higher marks anyway. 

She's worried about screwing up maths and chem and having second thoughts about careers as well after being told her starting salary on biochem is probably going to be around £23k with career progression up to £50k if she's lucky.

With no help or influence (I'm being unhelpfully neutral here) she's downloaded Learn Python the Hard Way and is currently trying to work out vim 

Interested to see where this will go

Sounds like a colossal class-action suit if they don't make a retest available for those who actually studied and have this shit down pat.

As for you being neutral... that's like in "switched-neutral wiring", right? 

mnem

CodeMonkey is coming for you...

[Cubdriver]

If anyone might be interested, there is a Nixie DMM that just popped up here, for only 20 Euros.

3 digits made by Schneider, model " DIGITEST 500 ",  and a compact portable unusual form factor, to add to your collection.

Seller says local pickup but it's not worded too strongly so he might be willing to ship if just asked   


https://www.leboncoin.fr/bricolage/2159083354.htm

There is even guy on YT testing it and tearing it down. Sounds German.

Over here in the US, I believe it was sold as a Honeywell Digitest 500.  I have one lurking about here somewhere, but the last time I checked several years ago a manual was nowhere to be found, (ok, not entirely true - there was one on eBay for a long time, but the guy wanted more than I paid for the meter and wouldn’t accept an offer, so I watched it there for at least a year and it eventually went away) and it’s since been buried in the clutter.

-Pat

Edit to add - will now do some searches for Schneider to see if I can find the manual under that name.

[Cerebus]

I find myself in the invidious situation that I want to buy something from Ikea (a zigbee 'smart' socket) for the convenience of having it now, but I don't want to go there. And every minute I put off the decision I know that Ikea is getting busier and busier. So I either bite the bullet and go now, or it reaches the point where waiting for Ikea to calm down again to mid-week levels is no better than ordering online and waiting for it to be delivered.

First world problems, eh?

I've come to the following chart when deciding Ikea trips:

1. Do I want it? No - don't go to Ikea.
2. Do I need it? No - don't go to Ikea.
3. Do I really need it? No - don't go to Ikea.
4. Can I get it anywhere else? Yes - don't go to Ikea.
5. Can I bodge something else to do the same thing? Yes - don't go to Ikea.
6. Can I borrow something else to do the same thing? Yes - don't go to Ikea.
7. Put it off for a couple of weeks.
8. Go to Ikea if you haven't forgotten about it.

Incidentally I've got to Ikea critical mass during this house move so will be getting them to deliver stuff instead thus absolving me from all problems 

I actually went. Left 15:20, just got back and sat down. Now have excessive quantity of zigbee toys.

Edit : That's to and from the Edmonton one from Stratford around a school and business rush hour A406 North Circular at a very sedate pace, so Ikea was (a) very quiet, (b) quickly navigated.

[tggzzz]

You put a Rifa cap back into the unit!?  I hope you got a late date code on that part............... 

I did that with several in my HP8562 spectrum analyser. As with everything in that mechanical marvel, there's no room for anything else.

But, you can get modern non-Rifa caps that are the same size or smaller than the originals... I used them in my 8160A Pulse Gen (Along with everything else), that was one tight PSU module...

I didn't find any with the same pitch that would fit in the same space. The attached diagram accurately shows how tightly packed they are (red blobs).

[factory]

If anyone might be interested, there is a Nixie DMM that just popped up here, for only 20 Euros.

3 digits made by Schneider, model " DIGITEST 500 ",  and a compact portable unusual form factor, to add to your collection.

Seller says local pickup but it's not worded too strongly so he might be willing to ship if just asked   


https://www.leboncoin.fr/bricolage/2159083354.htm

There is even guy on YT testing it and tearing it down. Sounds German.

I'm getting deja-vu seeing another unobtainium counter IC  , then again it's cheap enough risk buying.


David

[factory]

You put a Rifa cap back into the unit!?  I hope you got a late date code on that part............... 

I did that with several in my HP8562 spectrum analyser. As with everything in that mechanical marvel, there's no room for anything else.

But, you can get modern non-Rifa caps that are the same size or smaller than the originals... I used them in my 8160A Pulse Gen (Along with everything else), that was one tight PSU module...

I didn't find any with the same pitch that would fit in the same space. The attached diagram accurately shows how tightly packed they are (red blobs).

For those I just fit disc class X/Y caps, don't need to worry about lead pitch so much then, I refuse to buy any RIFA/Kemet ones, while they still make paper museum-piece crap. 

David

[mnementh]

...On the other hand I've just been running a 28V DC contactor off a 115V 400Hz supply without any resistors, zenners or voltage regulators.  Any guesses?

Capacitor and/or light blub then rectified as a transformerless power supply...? LED panel indicator if contactor current is low enough?

mnem