Just a heads up for those who want a few more probe accessories than the limited selection supplied with the RT-ZP03 these scopes come with.
The LeCroy "PKIT3-5MM-101" is completely compatible with the R&S probe (I assume they use the same OEM), and is available very cheaply from RS UK:
(note that the spring hook grabber thing is a slightly different design but is still compatible)
This is a nice little kit, especially for spares of the most vulnerable parts, the BNC adaptor, low inductance ground spring and the RED (not pink) channel marker cable clip!
Seems that the US (i.e. non-RS) price is much higher, but I think they got the better end of the deal with $2k scopes.
More scopes on eBay if anyone is intertested:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Rohde-Schwarz-RTB2004-300MHz-4-16-Channel-Oscilloscope-All-Opt-R-S-RTB2K-COM4-/152536506153?hash=item2383e25f29:g:NawAAOSwX61ZC0bH
http://www.ebay.com/itm/New-Rohde-Schwarz-RTB2004-300MHz-4-16-Channel-MSO-Full-Options-R-S-RTB2K-COM4-/232323512044?hash=item36178f76ec:g:14UAAOSw~y9ZCjUM
More scopes on eBay if anyone is intertested:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Rohde-Schwarz-RTB2004-300MHz-4-16-Channel-Oscilloscope-All-Opt-R-S-RTB2K-COM4-/152536506153?hash=item2383e25f29:g:NawAAOSwX61ZC0bH
http://www.ebay.com/itm/New-Rohde-Schwarz-RTB2004-300MHz-4-16-Channel-MSO-Full-Options-R-S-RTB2K-COM4-/232323512044?hash=item36178f76ec:g:14UAAOSw~y9ZCjUMFirst one already sold...
I've just had a play with the screen protector that Mike linked too - I can confirm that it works well, especially if you make sure everything is extremely clean (especially dust free) and put it on behind the front cover (looks like it is original). That said, I've taken it off again, as I like the crispness of the shiny screen and don't have it in an position where reflections are an issue.
While I had the cover off I also had a look at the encoders, and purchased a similar ALPS EC11J series part to investigate removing the detents, which are still one of the most irritating things about this unit. Unfortunately a stock part is not available without detents, and it also seems that R&S is using a semi-custom model (ALPS don't show the combination of shaft length and style on their product list). Having pulled the similar encoder apart, I'm pretty confident that the detents can be removed from the original R&S parts without destroying them, with the following process:
- buy a spare encoder, remove the outer metal "shell" carefully by un-bending the tabs underneath. Disassemble this one to get an idea of what's inside before working on the real thing (have a go at removing the detent spring too)
- carefully cut the shell of the R&S part on the pcb, as shown in the picture, to separate it into 6 individually soldered down parts (side cutters, possibly a small file could be useful here)
- unsolder each of these parts individually, paying special care to the 2 wide pieces (these have the tabs bent under the black plastic bit)
- pull the top assembly off (black plastic part, switch and contacts remain on the PCB), and disassemble the encoder to remove the detent spring (this is the only part which needs to be forcibly removed, everything else is just keyed to fit together and is held by the metal shell)
- re-assemble, and solder the "shell" from the spare encoder (with the bottom tabs removed) onto the PCB to replace the original one which was cut for easy removal. The removed tabs shouldn't matter as the black part that they retained is still held down by solder.
I'm not going to do this mod to my scope in the near term as I think it'd void the warranty pretty thoroughly, but I really don't like the detents so once I'm confident that the unit is working well I'll be seriously considering it. It's a real shame that R&S didn't ask ALPS to do a small customisation to the encoder to make all this unnecessary, but in their defence, the well-executed trace movements on the touch screen do make up for a lot of the annoyance.
There ought to be a position on the original encoder where both contacts are open ( maybe even the detented position), so holding it that position would allow another to be connected across it to test.
I've got my scope today, and I haven't had much time to play with it, but I'd like to share my first impressions:
1. Detents: much more stiff than I expected, but after an hour of so playing with the scope I don't hate them yet. Maybe they're not as annoying as I expected after reading the thread?
2. Responsiveness: not top notch, but acceptable.
3. "Bang" sensitivity: almost as bad as seen in Dave's video, but I don't think it will be a problem. Light touches with a stick did not result in huge response. Using the touchscreen without banging on it did not produce noticeable response. I just need to be more careful when using at the highest sensitivity.
4. Remote operation: perfect. Although I managed to lock the scope after playing with usb/ethernet options in setup. Also, web server not always starts after the cable is unplugged for a short time. I had to restart the scope to be able to use the remote interface again.
5: Triggering: this is the biggest issue I've seen so far: is it possible to synchronize trigger with sweep of the generator? I haven't seen such option anywhere, and it would add a lot to the functionality.
6. Open ports: quick scan revealed that the scope responds on TCP ports 80, 111, 1024, 1025, and 5025. 80 is HTTP, 5025 SCPI. 111 should be rpcbind. Hm, does it mean that the scope export volumes over NFS?
5: Triggering: this is the biggest issue I've seen so far: is it possible to synchronize trigger with sweep of the generator? I haven't seen such option anywhere, and it would add a lot to the functionality.
There ought to be a position on the original encoder where both contacts are open ( maybe even the detented position), so holding it that position would allow another to be connected across it to test.Yeah that's what I was hoping/planning. Annoyingly I only realised it as I was typing my previously reply, not while the case was off the scope.
ALPS gives some info about the detent positions in the datasheet (snippet attached) - looks like one signal is guaranteed to be stable at the detent stop, but the other is not.
I've just had a play with the screen protector that Mike linked too - I can confirm that it works well, especially if you make sure everything is extremely clean (especially dust free) and put it on behind the front cover (looks like it is original). That said, I've taken it off again, as I like the crispness of the shiny screen and don't have it in an position where reflections are an issue.
While I had the cover off I also had a look at the encoders, and purchased a similar ALPS EC11J series part to investigate removing the detents, which are still one of the most irritating things about this unit. Unfortunately a stock part is not available without detents, and it also seems that R&S is using a semi-custom model (ALPS don't show the combination of shaft length and style on their product list). Having pulled the similar encoder apart, I'm pretty confident that the detents can be removed from the original R&S parts without destroying them, with the following process:
- buy a spare encoder, remove the outer metal "shell" carefully by un-bending the tabs underneath. Disassemble this one to get an idea of what's inside before working on the real thing (have a go at removing the detent spring too)
- carefully cut the shell of the R&S part on the pcb, as shown in the picture, to separate it into 6 individually soldered down parts (side cutters, possibly a small file could be useful here)
- unsolder each of these parts individually, paying special care to the 2 wide pieces (these have the tabs bent under the black plastic bit)
- pull the top assembly off (black plastic part, switch and contacts remain on the PCB), and disassemble the encoder to remove the detent spring (this is the only part which needs to be forcibly removed, everything else is just keyed to fit together and is held by the metal shell)
- re-assemble, and solder the "shell" from the spare encoder (with the bottom tabs removed) onto the PCB to replace the original one which was cut for easy removal. The removed tabs shouldn't matter as the black part that they retained is still held down by solder.
I'm not going to do this mod to my scope in the near term as I think it'd void the warranty pretty thoroughly, but I really don't like the detents so once I'm confident that the unit is working well I'll be seriously considering it. It's a real shame that R&S didn't ask ALPS to do a small customisation to the encoder to make all this unnecessary, but in their defence, the well-executed trace movements on the touch screen do make up for a lot of the annoyance.
Just a heads up for those who want a few more probe accessories than the limited selection supplied with the RT-ZP03 these scopes come with.
The LeCroy "PKIT3-5MM-101" is completely compatible with the R&S probe (I assume they use the same OEM)
I did this on a Hameg Oscilloscope and did a video about the procedure.
It's not perfect, the feel is slightly uneven while turning (I assume because of the contacts moving between riding on plastic/metal), and the velocity sensing is pretty basic so can be a little jerky when running near the velocity threshold, but this is present anyway.
How is the click function running without detents? Any problems when clicking and unwanted rotaion?
I just received my scope from Test Force in Ottawa and it works well.
Has anyone got a wireless mouse to work and if so which brand and model?
It works fine with a wired mouse, but I'd like to go wireless.
Thanks,
Stuart
... it can still display a 1GHz signal...
... it can still display a 1GHz signal...
Very good post! I'm just curious if anyone knows what would cause just the bottom of the 1GHz wave to appear modulated like that. I know this is 3x the rated frequency of the scope, just curious why the degradation wouldn't be symmetric vertically. Shouldn't be aliasing if the wave is purely sinusoildal, given the 2.5Gsps sample rate. The 500MHz wave looks symmetrical vertically.