REVIEW - Rigol DS2072 - First Impressions of the DS2000 series from Rigol

[marmad]

Then, the current does not have these trial options?

Perhaps Rigol is moving towards no trial minutes in upcoming versions, but for the moment, whether they are or not is completely irrelevant. Not only is the firmware currently being hacked by members here, but as we've posted many times already: it's easy to 're-start' the trial - and there is nothing preventing downgrading to earlier FW versions with the trial. So I'm not sure what difference it makes for prospective buyers. A lot of things would need to be changed in order to 'plug' this particular leak.

[Carrington]

Then, the current does not have these trial options?

Perhaps Rigol is moving towards no trial minutes in upcoming versions, but for the moment, whether they are or not is completely irrelevant. Not only is the firmware currently being hacked by members here, but as we've posted many times already: it's easy to 're-start' the trial - and there is nothing preventing downgrading to earlier FW versions with the trial. So I'm not sure what difference it makes for prospective buyers. A lot of things would need to be changed in order to 'plug' this particular leak.

That is reassuring, thanks for your valuable reply marmad.
I do not trust Aidetek. I asked to Aidetek, how much is the DS2072-S, only to see what price get.

[van-c]

Well, my DS-2072 is supposed to ship in two days.  I found out Tuesday from TEquipment that there had been an unusual shipping delay from China, but that finally, the shipment to Rigol NA would arrive very soon (or possibly had already arrived.) TE told me that my order would ship to me directly from Rigol NA instead of going to TE in NJ first.  I hope that information is accurate.

--Van

[jsykes]

Does anyone have inside information about when the next firmware revision may be released? I'm looking forward to bug #13 at the beginning of this thread being resolved. The workaround is a pain.

[marmad]

Does anyone have inside information about when the next firmware revision may be released? I'm looking forward to bug #13 at the beginning of this thread being resolved. The workaround is a pain.

It was supposed to be quickly - unfortunately, I'm afraid the other Rigol thread that started here in the last month may have played a role in delaying it. Hard to know for sure since Rigol has always been tight-lipped about it.

[jsykes]

Does anyone have inside information about when the next firmware revision may be released? I'm looking forward to bug #13 at the beginning of this thread being resolved. The workaround is a pain.

It was supposed to be quickly - unfortunately, I'm afraid the other Rigol thread that started here in the last month may have played a role in delaying it. Hard to know for sure since Rigol has always been tight-lipped about it.

Yes, I follow the other thread and reading it's open content makes me cringe. 

[g2]

Hello everyone

I again bought Rigol DS2072, and has now installed ground
Because I think DS2072 gives really great value.
I got it yesterday. Firmware version is 00.00.01.00.05 and all trial option is there.
I do not know why, but the noise from the fan is about 3-4 dB lower than the first Rigol DS2072 I returned. It's just lovely.
Maybe that's why people have different experiences of fan noise.
I am happy to be in this forum and read about Rigol DS2072. It inspire me.
Thanks to marmad, and everyone else on this thread.

[laavu]

Another DS2072 owner reporting here - or actually the scope is still on its way. I ordered mine from Batronix yesterday and it was shipped the same day, so swift service there.

This is actually my first personal scope ever. Many times I've thought buying one but it wasn't until now when I pulled trigger. In the end I was having two choices: Rigol DS2000 series and Agilent DSOX2000 series. I was close to buying a four channel Agilent, but then it just looked liked that Rigol really is the best bang for the buck. The price wasn't a factor here. I could have spent 2000...3000euros for the Agilent, but eventually spent a little over 800e for the Rigol.

[marmad]

Another DS2072 owner reporting here - or actually the scope is still on its way. I ordered mine from Batronix yesterday and it was shipped the same day, so swift service there.

This is actually my first personal scope ever. Many times I've thought buying one but it wasn't until now when I pulled trigger. In the end I was having two choices: Rigol DS2000 series and Agilent DSOX2000 series. I was close to buying a four channel Agilent, but then it just looked liked that Rigol really is the best bang for the buck. The price wasn't a factor here. I could have spent 2000...3000euros for the Agilent, but eventually spent a little over 800e for the Rigol.

Welcome! Yes, IMO currently the Rigol is the best bang-for-buck for a 2-channel DSO without a doubt. Of course, it's a different story if you want 4-channels, MSO, etc. But I prefer my tools separate (i.e. separate AWG, LA, etc). You won't be disappointed - it's great fun to use!

[borroz]

and another newbie DS2072 owner reporting here .. hi   

[orbiter]

and another newbie DS2072 owner reporting here .. hi   

Welcome to the site/thread, and have fun with your new scope. Tons of advice available here from the guys in the know if you get stuck

[Chet T16]

I may as well check in as I've ordered a DS2072 as an upgrade from my DS1052.

[Wim13]

Comparing Bandwidth of Rigol 2072 and 2202


I have measured the bandwidth of a Rigol DS 2072 ( 70 Mhz ) and a DS 2202 ( 200 Mhz )
with the same setup and same equipment. To see how the graphs looks like...

See attached graph.

First measured with a measuring head on the input of the DSO, and second
just with a 50 ohm terminator on the input. Gives a nice picture of the internal compensation.

Always lot of comment when using Mheads, but is in my opinion the best.
Try for example a 10 ohm terminator and you get totaly other results.

Someone ever decided to use 50 ohm, but why...??

[egonotto]

Hello Wim13,

can you please explain what a measuring head does.
Is it that it measure the signal at the input of scope and  adjust the signal at generator, so that the amplitude of the signal at input from scope is always the same?

Best Regards
egonotto

[Pinkus]

Someone ever decided to use 50 ohm, but why...??

The common wire impedance of 50 Ohm is a compromise between good power handling (30 Ohm) and low cable loss (77 Ohm).
Thats why TV cables have 75 Ohm, they do not need to transport high power.

P.S. Check this link for deeper explanation: http://www.microwaves101.com/encyclopedia/why50ohms.cfm

[Wim13]

Hello Wim13,

can you please explain what a measuring head does.
Is it that it measure the signal at the input of scope and  adjust the signal at generator, so that the amplitude of the signal at input from scope is always the same?

Best Regards
egonotto

Thats correct, the input of the DSO is a complex impedance , so you never know what voltage there is on the
BNC connector of the DSO.  Whit a measuring head you keep the voltage constant on
the BNC input of the DSO. Normally the signal generator keeps it output constant
intermally on it final stage.

[egonotto]

Hello Wim13,

thanks.

Best Regards
egonotto

[Wim13]

Anti Aliasing

A few posts back, there was about aliasing, i had now on hands a nice example where i needed anti aliasing,
and you can clearly see the effects.

In the first picture below you see a 95 Mhz signal with AM modulation of 100 hz 50 %
no problem, but on the second picture, the carrier changed to 100 Mhz, and then it happens.

Because the sample speed is 200 Msa/s and the freq is 100 Mhz, see picture 2 below

Then i switch the persis. time to longer and then you get the wanted picture back. picture 3.
Turning on anti aliasing does not change anything, only the brightness.

[marmad]

Turning on anti aliasing does not change anything, only the brightness.

Yes, my friend. We have decided that the coder who wrote the anti-aliasing FW routine thought his manager meant image anti-aliasing.    But I'd rather not have it at all - then having it ON all the time like it is on the Agilent X DSOs - causing crappy-looking randomly sampled waveforms when zoomed in. 

[jamesb]

Interesting results, Wim13 ... they seem to agree with my casual observation / suspicion that the actual bandwidth (of my 2202) was much greater than the advertised 200MHz. Interesting to see that the -3dB point is around 275MHz

[van-c]

I don't know what's going on with the flow of shipments to the U.S., but it seems to have tricked down to nothing. The supposed ship date of my DS2072 came and went last Friday, so I called TEquipment today to find out if it had shipped yet.  They said that, according to Rigol, it will be another 10 to 12 days before any more ship.  Last week, after waiting three weeks since ordering, I was told that units would be shipping in just a few days directly to customers from Rigol in Ohio.  But, now, apparently that's all off.

So, considering these continual shipping delays, unfixed FW bugs and rumors of possible new anti-hacking measures, I decided to cancel my order and to re-direct my attention to a used analog scope to satisfy near-term needs.  Later, when it's more clear where this product is headed, perhaps I'll try again to get my hands on one.

--Van 

[Corporate666]

I don't know what's going on with the flow of shipments to the U.S., but it seems to have tricked down to nothing. The supposed ship date of my DS2072 came and went last Friday, so I called TEquipment today to find out if it had shipped yet.  They said that, according to Rigol, it will be another 10 to 12 days before any more ship.  Last week, after waiting three weeks since ordering, I was told that units would be shipping in just a few days directly to customers from Rigol in Ohio.  But, now, apparently that's all off.

So, considering these continual shipping delays, unfixed FW bugs and rumors of possible new anti-hacking measures, I decided to cancel my order and to re-direct my attention to a used analog scope to satisfy near-term needs.  Later, when it's more clear where this product is headed, perhaps I'll try again to get my hands on one.

--Van

Well that sucks.  I was one of those in that supposed Rigol shipment as well.  I thought it might arrive tomorrow.

I really cannot understand what is going on over at Rigol - and I don't understand why they wouldn't know last Tuesday when I ordered that there were no DS2072's coming on Friday.  I import tons of stuff from China and I always know what is coming and when.  There seems to be something  strange going on @ Rigol here.  Either they are not communicating with their distributors, or they are inept at handling orders/status/promises, or there is some kind of manufacturing problem we don't know about.

I don't buy the "these are just really popular!" line.  Nobody has stock and everyone I have called all say they have been trying to get them from Rigol but they never come in.

[jonese]

Either manufacturing problem or product hold shipment pending firmware update.

[van-c]

I really cannot understand what is going on over at Rigol - and I don't understand why they wouldn't know last Tuesday when I ordered that there were no DS2072's coming on Friday.  I import tons of stuff from China and I always know what is coming and when.  There seems to be something  strange going on @ Rigol here.  Either they are not communicating with their distributors, or they are inept at handling orders/status/promises, or there is some kind of manufacturing problem we don't know about.

Those were also my concerns.  I mean, I really was sold on the DS2072 as a very advanced and affordable piece of test equipment-- and even fun to use!  But although I can understand backlogs,  I begin to see a red flag when a manufacturer repeatedly fails to meet already-promised distributor commitments within a reasonable time span.  Add to that minimal product update support and serious, unfixed bugs (although some to the advantage of consumers) and we see a very unclear picture of where Rigol is taking this product.

One of my biggest concerns is, as a late adopter, to receive a rapidly re-engineered version that attempted to plug security flaws and fix complex bugs with quick workarounds that lead to even more serious bugs and limitations down the road-- and possibly not even able to revert to a prior FW version.  So, I'll just wait a bit and see how it goes.

--Van

[marmad]

But although I can understand backlogs,  I begin to see a red flag when a manufacturer repeatedly fails to meet already-promised distributor commitments within a reasonable time span.

I think you're being a little paranoid. Everyone knows the -S version is coming out shortly (if not already on sale in China) - so it's quite possible that backlogs/delays are connected to that. BTW, Batronix here in the EU (as well as other companies) seems to continue to have stock so it seems to be an NA problem - not a manufacturing or FW problem.

...and serious, unfixed bugs

What might those be? There are no serious bugs - and just one rather annoying one.

...and we see a very unclear picture of where Rigol is taking this product.

I'm not sure I follow. The DS2000 is very successful - so Rigol is coming out with an enhanced version with built-in AWG (the -S model) to broaden the line.