Author Topic: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread  (Read 14564068 times)

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Offline neo

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #4900 on: December 14, 2017, 11:05:47 am »
How? It doesn't involve bank robbery or things falling off trucks does it?

Also i seem to be one of the only ones who find nixie tubes as easy to read, if not easier, as LEDs.
No. It takes a bit of time and patience and the willingness to lose more a lot more bids than you win. Obviously, going the bd139 route is viable too.

Unfortunately, it seems as if my ration of patience has run out  :-DD
Good plan really but i can afford neither. I have about 2 grand a year i get to spend on my hobby.

Yeah nixies are not actually that great of a display when it comes to usability, lots of other display technologies are easier to read.

I think 7 segment LED displays are the kings. They make the best readable numbers while being cheap, power efficient and easy to drive. But when it comes to displaying letters too i think VFD is the best.

I know VFDs have a bad rep for burnin but the thing is its not usually that bad and they turn out to be pretty reliable.

Nixie tubes are my favorite, though LED and VFD technology get to fight over second place on that list.
A hopeless addict (and slave) to TEA and a firm believer that high frequency is little more than modern hoodoo.
 

Offline Mr. Scram

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #4901 on: December 14, 2017, 11:14:20 am »
Yeah nixies are not actually that great of a display when it comes to usability, lots of other display technologies are easier to read.

I think 7 segment LED displays are the kings. They make the best readable numbers while being cheap, power efficient and easy to drive. But when it comes to displaying letters too i think VFD is the best.

I know VFDs have a bad rep for burnin but the thing is its not usually that bad and they turn out to be pretty reliable.
I think that's true. I have a stereo set and I only recently found out it's a VFD display. I guess I never really paid attention. That thing has been going for decades, mostly non stop and the display is still good.

I know, mostly non stop isn't non stop at all  ;D
 

Offline Mr. Scram

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #4902 on: December 14, 2017, 11:27:26 am »
Unfortunately, it seems as if my ration of patience has run out  :-DD
Good plan really but i can afford neither. I have about 2 grand a year i get to spend on my hobby.


Nixie tubes are my favorite, though LED and VFD technology get to fight over second place on that list.
Two grand is a lot to work with. I'm setting up a somewhat proper lab at the moment and I don't think I've spend quite that much the past year, yet both new and second hand total value should easily be a couple of times of what I spent. I feel I've accrued quite a nice collection by now and almost all of it is current generation equipment, and last gen if it isn't.

My rule of thumb is that I have to be able to sell it for at least what I paid for it including shipping, and typically I should be able to make a tidy profit without touching anything. If I'd have to buy what I have now for regular second hand prices or what they go for in the shops, I wouldn't come close to being able to afford it. That means that I don't always have what I would buy with an unlimited budget, but I've found that often is for the better.
 

Online tggzzz

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #4903 on: December 14, 2017, 11:35:24 am »
I think 7 segment LED displays are the kings.

Personally I prefer Panaplex displays, e.g. http://=https://www.flickr.com/photos/anachrocomputer/38550282976/in/album-72157689996528645/

I am carefully ignoring your point about cost, power, and driving them!
There are lies, damned lies, statistics - and ADC/DAC specs.
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Offline Specmaster

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #4904 on: December 14, 2017, 11:36:09 am »
Nixies make my eyes go funny. It's the difference in depth between the digits that kills me.

As for falling off the back of a lorry, my formula for buying new kit is: fix something which is FUBAR'ed and BER and laughably broken, then sell it for vast profit, then use that profit to buy new toys. Hence the constant throughput of test gear, plus I get to play with it as it goes through.

If I had the space to keep it, I'd be broke :)
I agree with the Nixies, they can be a bit slow updating as well. Selling for profit, I do a bit of that although perhaps not as much as I should, hence the number of scopes I have.
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Offline Specmaster

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #4905 on: December 14, 2017, 11:41:56 am »
There are some stupid good priced buy it now's occasionally as well. Don't rely on auctions.

I have actually written scraping scripts etc which find things for me ;)
I tend to look for it the BIN or the make an offer type of sales, it can be the quickest route to a new toy and sometimes a real bargain as well. Just wish I had the skill set to write  scripts to the same for me.
Who let Murphy in?

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Offline Mr. Scram

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #4906 on: December 14, 2017, 11:43:42 am »
I tend to look for it the BIN or the make an offer type of sales, it can be the quickest route to a new toy and sometimes a real bargain as well. Just wish I had the skill set to write  scripts to the same for me.
My budget is being stretched enough as it is, I don't need scripts adding to the list of purchases  ::)
 

Offline Berni

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #4907 on: December 14, 2017, 11:54:47 am »
I did write a tool in C# for bidding in auctions on EquipNet.

My wallet disagrees about that being a good idea. Some of it will have to go on ebay as i bought way too much crap... err i mean competitively priced test equipment.
 

Offline Specmaster

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #4908 on: December 14, 2017, 12:09:27 pm »
I have about 2 grand a year i get to spend on my hobby.
I wish I had that amount to spend on it, I only have approx 1/10th of that hence why I have things like LCR meters because I can see how getting the right sort of gear together first can empower me to eventually get to a stage like bd139 has reached. Buy to repair and sell for profit to fund more toys for my personal collection or upgrade what I have for more uptodate ones as space is limited.

If I had the funds and space, I would have brought a few of these TF930's so I could sit on them for a while, and then when there less on the market, sell them for vast profits but retain one for my personal use. Now I have a dilemma on my hands, I have 2 counters, a Velleman with LED's and goes to 1.3GHz and the TF930, 3GHz but with unlit LCD. Do I keep them both or let one go? :-//
Who let Murphy in?

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Offline bd139

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #4909 on: December 14, 2017, 01:34:38 pm »
My yearly budget is £0 if that's any motivation. I have a mortgage to pay and two teenagers and a small child who are like locusts when it comes to cash and food and don't want to work any harder because time is more important than a salary. Careful balance means I have to get creative elsewhere.

I'd buy another TF930, hold on to it until the other ones are gone and stick it up for £120 BIN. Then I'd keep the TF930 and sell the Velleman counter. It has a TXCO, has external ref input, connects to your PC and goes way past 2.4GHz. Then your TF930 was technically free and you have some cash in pocket. Only if you don't incur interest however. The zero interest credit card is, if you are disciplined, a good way to make profit with no capital being available. Just keep it away from SWMBO.

Stalking my courier for the TF930 now...

 

Offline Mr. Scram

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #4910 on: December 14, 2017, 01:45:27 pm »
My problem is that I sometimes intend to sell things on, but often end up not doing that. Even if it's something I'm not necessarily using. That way the selling things to afford other things route quickly becomes very counterproductive.
 

Offline bd139

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #4911 on: December 14, 2017, 01:51:47 pm »
I'm a compulsive obsessive cleaner so clutter does my head in. This helps  :-DD
 

Offline Mr. Scram

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #4912 on: December 14, 2017, 03:02:07 pm »
I'm a compulsive obsessive cleaner so clutter does my head in. This helps  :-DD
The lack of space here means I absolutely cannot afford to be allergic to clutter. It simply won't fly.
 

Offline Specmaster

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #4913 on: December 14, 2017, 03:15:17 pm »
Umm... no. You still apply the LEDs so they face directly against the edge of the LCD; look again at the first photo. They work great, as you can see in the pics below. If you're worried about light spilling, you just wrap with a layer of kapton tape, then AL foil, then kapton tape to make a light channel. Or do the same around the inside edges of the bezel.

mnem
This space For Rent.
Further investigation of the counter looks like it will be very difficult to provide some lighting to the screen, especially using LED tape as you did. I tried it last night by laying a stretch of the tape across the top of the gap between the front plate and the pcb and the LCD screen is very close to this edge, effect on the screen, nil but plenty of light spill to edges of the bezel.

Unlike your RC module, the counter does not have a secondary window, the LCD is stepped so it fits into the bezel and finishes almost flush with the front panel. This leaves the thinnest of open glass edges to capture the light and channel it through the LCD panel itself. Also when I presented the section of LEDs to the screen in the region of the counting section of the PCB, the counter sprung into life and started counting. This shows that area is very sensitive to spurious signals but that might have been because the LEDs were powered from a wall wart, maybe better smoothing would prevent it. Total gap between front plate and the PCB is 4mm so there is not a lot of space to play with either.
« Last Edit: December 14, 2017, 03:19:05 pm by Specmaster »
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Offline bd139

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #4914 on: December 14, 2017, 03:31:08 pm »
Need to add billboard lights to the front of it on sticks!
 

Offline Mr. Scram

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #4915 on: December 14, 2017, 03:32:02 pm »
Need to add billboard lights to the front of it on sticks!
My thoughts exactly!
 

Offline Specmaster

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #4916 on: December 14, 2017, 03:32:26 pm »
My yearly budget is £0 if that's any motivation. I have a mortgage to pay and two teenagers and a small child who are like locusts when it comes to cash and food and don't want to work any harder because time is more important than a salary. Careful balance means I have to get creative elsewhere.

I'd buy another TF930, hold on to it until the other ones are gone and stick it up for £120 BIN. Then I'd keep the TF930 and sell the Velleman counter. It has a TXCO, has external ref input, connects to your PC and goes way past 2.4GHz. Then your TF930 was technically free and you have some cash in pocket. Only if you don't incur interest however. The zero interest credit card is, if you are disciplined, a good way to make profit with no capital being available. Just keep it away from SWMBO.

Stalking my courier for the TF930 now...


Well, that a whole day earlier then you was expecting so thats a bonus. I thought they used 24 hr couriers and this bears that out to be true if the dispatched it yesterday. I wait with baited breath to see what your take on this counter is as no doubt, you will be playing with it as soon as you unbox it.

I wonder if they would do me a similar deal on a second one, like you said it would give me mine free as I do like it a lot.
Who let Murphy in?

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Offline Specmaster

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #4917 on: December 14, 2017, 03:34:27 pm »
Need to add billboard lights to the front of it on sticks!

Hahaha, and sell the space for advertising?  :popcorn:
Who let Murphy in?

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Offline bd139

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #4918 on: December 14, 2017, 03:52:58 pm »
TEA sponsorship. Hmm now there's an idea. Keysight can pay me in gear while I stick their logo on competitor's gear :)

Not sure I'll get to play with this yet this evening. It has not arrived yet, the countdown has disappeared off UKmail's web site and I'm due to go out with SWMBO for dinner shortly. This is a Christmas shopping trip masquerading as dinner out because I suggested going somewhere else and she picked a place in the local major shopping centre and it just happens to be late night shopping tonight. Bear a thought for the misery I am about to face while wondering if my teenage daughter had her earphones out long enough to hear the delivery arrive  :palm: ... I have considered spraining my ankle on the lego all over the living room floor to dodge this bullet.
 

Offline Specmaster

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #4919 on: December 14, 2017, 04:20:16 pm »
Velleman teardown photos, not quite as pretty as the TF930 inside but plenty of screening and a far better case altogether.



The next photos are of the TF930 showing the stepping of the LCD display, the LCD connection pins that need consideration for light travelling passed them. The good thing is there is a clear edge to the screen all the way around it for locating those RS edge LED's but sure how to feed them seeing as the existing power supply is 5v max.



Who let Murphy in?

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Offline bd139

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #4920 on: December 14, 2017, 04:31:14 pm »
I reckon you can use some LEDs of the type you use in the cheap HD44780 LCD displays to sort that out.
 

Offline bd139

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #4921 on: December 14, 2017, 04:35:18 pm »
 

Offline Specmaster

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #4922 on: December 14, 2017, 04:37:14 pm »
I reckon you can use some LEDs of the type you use in the cheap HD44780 LCD displays to sort that out.
Which are what, I have no idea of the display or LEDs you're speaking of here. :-//
Who let Murphy in?

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Offline bd139

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #4923 on: December 14, 2017, 04:39:16 pm »
Cheap alphanumeric LCD modules you get everywhere such as: https://www.bitsbox.co.uk/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=172_182&products_id=3218

They usually come backlit or not backlit and the difference is just an LED on one or both sides.
 

Offline bd139

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #4924 on: December 14, 2017, 05:09:47 pm »
It arrived, it’s in mint condition and it works although the batteries are flat. Will order a DC jack and stuff it on the power supply to charge.   :-+

Now going out :(
 


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