Upgrading Mainboard in Lecroy DDA-3000 (aka WavePro 7300a?)

[nctnico]

But its a good practise to have D: storing user's data. If you crash C, you dont have to think to recover the files, you simply recover using backup utils,

A D: drive only makes sense if it is on a physically seperate drive. What you see is that the hard drive fails physically and you lose both C and D. The reason to put data on a seperate partition is kind of handy if you want to re-install the OS. In theory. In practise you can install Windows over itself or if you wish in a seperate Windows directory. There is no real advantage of having a seperate partition for data.

[sixtimesseven]

Using ATI video card with displayport. Nvidia no, because big current and power supply shutting down from time to time.
Adapt connector to internal use.

Thank you for your detailed post!
Could I ask how you adapted the display port from the Japanese card to the mainboard without gpu? As far as I can see your mainboard does not have a DP option?

[sixtimesseven]

Has anyone ever tested adapting the "6Bit RGB" interface of the original display which seems to be a NL8060BC26-17 to somthing a more modern mobo might have?
Replacing the screen seems like a huge operation to me in particular because one has to mount the new display with a new frame...

[sixtimesseven]

Obviously, as I said, here you cannot replace the fans with others that have less performance (if you replace them, then only with ones that are not inferior to these). LeСroy knowingly uses high-performance fans..


But I suppose that not everything is hopeless if you make use of larger diameter fans.
In this case, I recommend to look in the direction of the fan Noctua NF-A14 iPPC-3000.
This product is not inferior in performance ROTRON GL12B3, but you get 12.3 dB less acoustic noise.

If the data from their datasheets are reliable, then let's compare them:

Noctua has Max Airflow: 158.5 CFM (269.3 m³/h) at 3000 RPM, versus Rotron - 150.00 CFM at 3300 RPM;
Noctua Max Pressure: 0.414 in H₂O (10,52 mm H₂O), Rotron - 0.56 in H₂O (slightly more);
Noctua Acoustical noise 41.3 dB(A), Rotron - 53.6 dB(A);
Noctua Max. input current 0.55 A, Rotron - 1.30 A;
Noctua MTTF> 150,000 h, Rotron - 75,000 h;
Noctua Size 140x140x25 mm, Rotron - 127x127x38 mm

I have put together an adapter to get the 140mm fan on to the 120mm hole of the Rotron. Unfortunatly there is only about 30mm of space available for the air duct cone... Not tested yet so use with care:
https://www.eevblog.com/forum/testgear/replacement-knobs-feet-and-fittings-for-test-equipment/msg2831898/#msg2831898

[sixtimesseven]

I found those Kingston sticks KTH-D530/1G but the bios won't even show up  Burried in the Kingston site it says "system specific", great
Now, what does work and what 1GB memory modules did you use?

[analogRF]

I found those Kingston sticks KTH-D530/1G but the bios won't even show up  Burried in the Kingston site it says "system specific", great
Now, what does work and what 1GB memory modules did you use?

I used both samsung and micron and both worked. there was a list of tested memroies on the intel website for this motherboard, not sure if it still exists. Also winXP will only recognize 3.5GB of it (I put 4GB in)

[sixtimesseven]

I found those Kingston sticks KTH-D530/1G but the bios won't even show up  Burried in the Kingston site it says "system specific", great
Now, what does work and what 1GB memory modules did you use?

I used both samsung and micron and both worked. there was a list of tested memroies on the intel website for this motherboard, not sure if it still exists. Also winXP will only recognize 3.5GB of it (I put 4GB in)

Yes, I'll waste some ram but I want dual channel...

There is a compability list: https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/support/articles/000006686/boards-and-kits/desktop-boards.html

However, all are <=512Mb 

[analogRF]

yes but they give you the memory configuration that 1GB stick must have. Also if you for example look at the 512MB micron MT16VDDT6464AG datasheet you will also see 1GB and 2GB memories of the same family in that datasheet. I chose the 1GB from the same family that its 512MB was compatible.

[nctnico]

I found those Kingston sticks KTH-D530/1G but the bios won't even show up  Burried in the Kingston site it says "system specific", great
Now, what does work and what 1GB memory modules did you use?

You have to update the BIOS to the latest version. With the original BIOS the 1GB modules I used wheren't recognised. BTW: I bought this Kingston module: KVR400X64C3A/1G. There is a more up-to-date compatibility list somewhere.

[sixtimesseven]

I found those Kingston sticks KTH-D530/1G but the bios won't even show up  Burried in the Kingston site it says "system specific", great
Now, what does work and what 1GB memory modules did you use?

You have to update the BIOS to the latest version. With the original BIOS the 1GB modules I used wheren't recognised. BTW: I bought this Kingston module: KVR400X64C3A/1G. There is a more up-to-date compatibility list somewhere.

Well good idea. I updated from P16 to P25, still no luck. As soon as I put one stick in nothing will come up, not even the lecroy logo. Well, time to buy another 1$ ram stick 

[darkstar49]

Has anyone ever tested adapting the "6Bit RGB" interface of the original display which seems to be a NL8060BC26-17 to somthing a more modern mobo might have?
Replacing the screen seems like a huge operation to me in particular because one has to mount the new display with a new frame...

Replacing the LCD, unless for a higher resolution is of little use... and indeed, in any WP7K and WR6K, current LCD's won't fit without some butchery...
(I don't know much about the WP7K, but the AUO from the WR6K had specific mounting holes that were changed for good soon after...)
The problem with very old scopes is that they use a TTL interface LCD, whereas ANY more or less modern mobo will have at best an LVDS port... so unless you manage to find a suitable LVDS to TTL converter, you're stuck. All the ADD- and ADD2 cards also (to my knowledge) output LVDS signals...
Driving the original LCD with a modern mobo sounds like an engineering challenge. ;-)

The problem with the mounting holes is (by far !!) less dramatic as those you may face with the LCD's thickness... (incl. touchscreen !!), so choose a replacement very carefully, in particular as those 3:2 displays become scarce, the choice is often limited, unless reverting to used parts...

[nctnico]

Welll... the LCD screen in the 7000A series is LVDS. Still, converting LVDS to parallel is super easy. All it takes is a single chip from TI on a small circuit board.

[darkstar49]

Welll... the LCD screen in the 7000A series is LVDS. Still, converting LVDS to parallel is super easy. All it takes is a single chip from TI on a small circuit board.

Didn’t know for the 7kA, as said, never got one... I just looked after the specs of the NEC screen mentioned earlier in the thread... and while it’s indeed no rocket science, I’m putting the fact to make a custom LVDS-TTL board into the ‘engineering challenge’ category... at least when the basic idea is to upgrade the mobo...
But agreed, a bit exaggerated ;-)

So if it’s LVDS, many industrial mobos should fit, and avoid the need for an SDVO card.

[sixtimesseven]

The external output works OK. Everything in the scope is standard.

Are you sure that your LCD matrix is working? Or the problem is in the signal cable - over time they sometimes lose connection.
If there are more complex hardware problems, then the idea looks better - to replace with a new motherboard with built-in lvds output (along with the XGA matrix).

I dug a little deeper. It seems the cable from the AGP slot is carrying parallel video data (which is then converted to DVI by the SIL164 chip and then back to parallel by the SIL151 or SIL1151 chip). However, I don't see any video data when I probe the signals. It is like the card in the AGP slot isn't detected as an intel 'ADD' card to enable the parallel video signals. OR it needs a special driver from Intel to enable this feature. What I'm wondering: does a working Wavepro show the Lecroy startup logo? It could be a contact problem as well; it seems my 7200A has contact issues in several places. I want to reseat some chips on the video related boards and try again.

Well, the 7kA might have LVDS but the Wavemaster 8k and DDA5005 have the 18bit ttl interface.

One option would be to use either a HDMI to TTL board: https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32697331666.html Edit: 50pin / 24bit

There seem to be 40pin TTL adapters available like: https://cdn-learn.adafruit.com/downloads/pdf/adafruit-tfp401-hdmi-slash-dvi-decoder-to-40-pin-ttl-display.pdf Edit: Still 24bit so not usable for 18bit TTL (?)

Or LVDS to 40pin TTL ... But I'm a  bit confused, which mobo's have LVDS? I have never seen it so far but I used mostly consumer mobo's...(?)

[darkstar49]

Or LVDS to 40pin TTL ... But I'm a  bit confused, which mobo's have LVDS? I have never seen it so far but I used mostly consumer mobo's...(?)

Many recent industrial mobo's like those from BCM (bcmcom.com), Kontron, Advantech, some Asrock, etc...
Kontron used a lot their 'proprietary' Jili40 connector, while many others use a DF13-40 connector, plus a dedicated backlight connector.
I like Kontron, but putting backlight control and LCD signals on the same connector is BS, knowing that most LCDs have dedicated connectors for both, this makes things unnecessarily complicated for the cables...

[sixtimesseven]

Currently I'm looking at an Asus mATX P8H61: https://www.asus.com/Motherboards/P8H61M_LX/specifications/

I like it because:
- I have a unused i7-2600 and a i5-2400 in storage
- Lots of old DDR3 RAM
- Specs list a RGB LCD interface It's listed in the specs but I do not see it in the manual or on the board, hmm

[darkstar49]

Using a standard mobo will force you to use an SDVO board, either AGP or PCIe, i.e. ADD- or ADD2 (I think all Lecroy SDVO cards were AGP).
And maybe I'm wrong, but the WR6K needs a 'legacy' PCI slot for the interface card, which the mentioned Asus board doesn't have...is this different for the WP7K ??

I've been using BCM boards in WR6K (like the RX67QV) and Kontron (KTGM45), but industrial mobos with legacy PCI are becoming harder and harder to get. :-(
 (just like SDVO cards, when using 'standard' mobos). I've no experience with PCIe to PCI converters (for using the interface card with PCIe-only mobos).

Last but not least, the USB chip (Cypress) on the front panel has serious issues with recent mobos (USB 'incompatibilities') on the WR6K, but I think that is different on the WP7K.

[sixtimesseven]

Using a standard mobo will force you to use an SDVO board, either AGP or PCIe, i.e. ADD- or ADD2 (I think all Lecroy SDVO cards were AGP).
And maybe I'm wrong, but the WR6K needs a 'legacy' PCI slot for the interface card, which the mentioned Asus board doesn't have...is this different for the WP7K ??

I've been using BCM boards in WR6K (like the RX67QV) and Kontron (KTGM45), but industrial mobos with legacy PCI are becoming harder and harder to get. :-(
 (just like SDVO cards, when using 'standard' mobos). I've no experience with PCIe to PCI converters (for using the interface card with PCIe-only mobos).

Last but not least, the USB chip (Cypress) on the front panel has serious issues with recent mobos (USB 'incompatibilities') on the WR6K, but I think that is different on the WP7K.

There are different PCI interfaces? They are not backward compatible like the PCIe 1,2,3 etc? The Asus board does have listed 1xPCI but I have not looked at the specifics. If so, what a pain...  Is there something specific to look out for?

APG is only needed for the graphics as I understand it? So I'll circumfent that with a hdmi-ttl adapter to drive the orig. NEC display... As I understood it, the touchstone APG card will not work with any other bios than the D865glc anyway?

[darkstar49]

There are different PCI interfaces? They are not backward compatible like the PCIe 1,2,3 etc? The Asus board does have listed 1xPCI but I have not looked at the specifics. If so, what a pain...  Is there something specific to look out for?

APG is only needed for the graphics as I understand it? So I'll circumfent that with a hdmi-ttl adapter to drive the orig. NEC display... As I understood it, the touchstone APG card will not work with any other bios than the D865glc anyway?

well, there are different versions of PCI (33mhz, 5V, then 66mhz, 3.3v), but cards had different notches to prevent mixing things up...
But again, the Asus link provided points to a mobo that does NOT have a native PCI slot.

SDVO is a 'standard', but you're right saying that many BIOS's do not support it... having some ADD(2) card alone is only half the way to a solution, hence my preference for industrial boards with an LVDS connector.

[sixtimesseven]

There are different PCI interfaces? They are not backward compatible like the PCIe 1,2,3 etc? The Asus board does have listed 1xPCI but I have not looked at the specifics. If so, what a pain...  Is there something specific to look out for?

APG is only needed for the graphics as I understand it? So I'll circumfent that with a hdmi-ttl adapter to drive the orig. NEC display... As I understood it, the touchstone APG card will not work with any other bios than the D865glc anyway?

well, there are different versions of PCI (33mhz, 5V, then 66mhz, 3.3v), but cards had different notches to prevent mixing things up...
But again, the Asus link provided points to a mobo that does NOT have a native PCI slot.

SDVO is a 'standard', but you're right saying that many BIOS's do not support it... having some ADD(2) card alone is only half the way to a solution, hence my preference for industrial boards with an LVDS connector.

Ok, I see. There seem to be different sub-versions of the mobo and I linked the wrong one, sorry: https://www.asus.com/Motherboards/P8H61M_LE_R20/specifications/

[darkstar49]

Ok, I see. There seem to be different sub-versions of the mobo and I linked the wrong one, sorry: https://www.asus.com/Motherboards/P8H61M_LE_R20/specifications/

looks better   

btw, I think everyone here in the forum would be grateful if you'd post some high-res pics of the mob (the more, the better...)

[sixtimesseven]

Ok, I see. There seem to be different sub-versions of the mobo and I linked the wrong one, sorry: https://www.asus.com/Motherboards/P8H61M_LE_R20/specifications/

looks better   

btw, I think everyone here in the forum would be grateful if you'd post some high-res pics of the mob (the more, the better...)

Yeah well new plan, I found the new asus ones on Ebay a bit expensive for such an old mobo. So I found this Intel one:
https://www.ebay.de/itm/Intel-DESKTOP-BOARD-DQ67SW-Q67-G12527-USB3-DVI-DUAL-PORT-Sockel-1155/362737831103?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649

USB3, SATA 6GB/s, DP, lots of PCIe expansion options and the necessary PCI port for the Aladdin card, support for 2/3gen i3/i5/i7, looks pretty nice.

[sixtimesseven]

Will post my experience with 7300

I get one from Japan Yahoo auction
(Attachment Link)

Get intel dq77cp motherboard with last version that support pci, get i7 3.5GHz processor and 4gb memory, because of x86 cant use more.
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Slim cooler
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Draw and make frames for new display, back motherboard and floppy replace to usb3.0, Gerber files included, but maybe need some corrections
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Back motherboard frame installed
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iPad retina display with frame adaptor. Display get from ali example link:
https://ru.aliexpress.com/item/32415898372.html?spm=a2g0o.productlist.0.0.6f065118C8pk6T&algo_pvid=32f149ec-6e83-4e1b-ab07-f4843e3dbd35&algo_expid=32f149ec-6e83-4e1b-ab07-f4843e3dbd35-6&btsid=90077497-0744-4b4c-903f-f9fbd182eae7&ws_ab_test=searchweb0_0,searchweb201602_3,searchweb201603_52
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Capacitive touch screen ordered on eBay with usb interface
link: https://www.ebay.com/itm/10-4-Capacitive-Touch-Screen-USB-Controller-For-800x600-1024x768-4-3-LCD-Screen/201963612463?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid=p2060353.m2749.l2649
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Display assembled. For displayport i use AbuzeMark minidisplayport adaptor board ordered on japan website.
link: http://abusemark.com/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=3&products_id=47&zenid=3lpf44jedg59mr38l9bri4m647
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Using ATI video card with displayport. Nvidia no, because big current and power supply shutting down from time to time.
Adapt connector to internal use.
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So, all installed now, add new ssd 2.5" with Windows 7 x86 SP1, install last software v8.5.1.1, drivers for touchscreen, calibrate it and replace driver for work correct with hyperthreading cpu.
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And add software options...
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Finished.
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I like this build and will probably do similar. One change is that I want to use a smaller touchscreen (https://www.aliexpress.com/item/33013349786.html?spm=a2g0o.productlist.0.0.de4e713a9YlFrI&algo_pvid=f23a6939-3e47-4d31-9115-11080c9b564f&algo_expid=f23a6939-3e47-4d31-9115-11080c9b564f-8&btsid=daba0ed0-6f18-4bac-b059-261c1a90df60&ws_ab_test=searchweb0_0,searchweb201602_1,searchweb201603_53) which should fit better(?).
I have quickly checked the dimensions of the gerber front plate and it seems ok to me. Has anyone else used it?

I will do them in 1.6mm FR4, JLCPCB wants about 25 USD for 5 which is much cheaper than the laser cutting. Anyone interested in the CH/EU please ask I'll send you one of my spares.

I also installed two Noctua ppc 3000 fans (140mm). Right now it's a hack with the existing fan plate cut to size. However I will get another mounting plate also made from PCB material... Together with some PETG 3D printed airducts it should work fine. As I said I'm testing it right now. I have no way of measuring the airflow but subjectively I would say it's more than with the old fans. Might be because I noticed that the old fans run only at about 0.5A instead of the rated 0.65A (in my DDA5005 are 2x Panaflo FBA12G12U installed).

Noise reduction is there but it's less then I hoped for. I would say maybe 2/3 as loud and 1/2 as annoying to me because the noise is less pulsing and lower in frequency.

[sixtimesseven]

So, I did the mobo upgrade on my DDA-5005 (Wavemaster 8500) and updated to Win 7 Ultimate 32 Bit.

- Intel Mainboard DQ67SW
- i7-2600k which I had laying around, only 2 cores running to reduce TPU
- 4GB 1333MHz DDR3 RAM
- ADATA SU800 256GB SSD

For Testing I installed a HD545 512MB GPU. Intention being that I could tap into the HDMI or DVI port easier than on the MOBO.

One problem I still have is that I get the error "3D Acceleration not enabled, might limit performance..." on XStream startup. However, 3D Acceleration seems to be enabled in the "dxdiag" settings... That is regardless of GPU / internal GPU...

Conversion was really easy. I did a clean install. Then installed all the chipset / mobo drivers. Then to install the xstream drivers I downloaded moded xstream drivers from earlier in the thread and installed them via the legacy driver install option in the task manager. I had to repeat it a couple times. A "PCIe Serial" driver did not install but it does not seem to be a problem. After that get the xstream 8.x from the lecroy site and it worked.

Mobo size & screw holes etc fit perfectly The clearance to the bottom is on the thight side but it just bearly makes it. The only real mod is the "front panel" pinheader which is wired differently as seen in the photos: https://www.flickr.com/photos/154275690@N07/albums/72157712362680997

So far I really like the results. For example the Spectrum Analyzer function is really fast, even with the 3D heat diagram is enabled. The scope really flies now. Also I get gigabit ethernet. Attached is a little demo of a remote desktop session.... I'm not even sure if I stick a screen on the front 
https://youtu.be/xfRqnBKkyDc

The mobo just went out of support so no official driver download on the Intel site. I have collected most of what I found and what worked for me.
https://www.dropbox.com/sh/4q9f9xdvg9odt8r/AADC9-TL7kFSS44BZUUcOLBBa?dl=0

[Jens01]

I've recently acquired a Lecroy WR6030, which failed to start the Waverunner software. Did a clean install (W2000 -> WXP) and the unit since then worked flawless . Big thumb up for all the work already done on the forum, including the working touchscreen-driver

After a bit of playing around i found out this (non-a) 6030 supports 2x 5GS/s in interleaved mode, but the datasheet and the front panel suggest only 4x 2.5GS/s is supported. Only the 6030A should support this conform the datasheet. Did Lecroy upgrade these units by just updating the firmware? The unit is probably 'uphacked' by the previous owner as all the options are available including non-ordeable USB2 and ENET. The status menu does mention the unit is a 'WR6030'.  Firmware is 8.1.2.0, latest available. Did they really gave the doubled sample-speed for free or am i missing something?



The oscilloscope feels a bit slow and the fans sound like they need replacement, so i will upgrade this unit to W7Pro, S775, core2duo E6600 + SSD if i can find the right Motherboard. The combination of right chipset, available PCI-slots, AGP slot and native SATA is quite hard to find.

The unit now only has some cosmetic 'problem', the previous owner lost or broken the original front-panel knobs ( ) and therefore the knobs are replaced by some ugly black-red universal knobs. And not one, but all of them. Does anyone know if Lecroy is willing to sell replacements or if the original knobs (or some universal white knobs) are commercially available? I've tried Farnell, Digikey and AliExpress but the combination of grey/white + D-shaft does not gave a lot of options.