Author Topic: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread  (Read 14784930 times)

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Offline bd139

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #102975 on: September 23, 2021, 05:49:51 pm »
Totally agree with you. I saw that thread and decided not to comment because quite frankly I have the same arguments at work :-DD

As always we're sharecropping on a public forum which is always an operational risk for any community.

I really must finish that backup script but my love for writing code is being hampered by my employment. On a positive note I've got 23 days accrued holiday to use up before the end of the year so I might get bored after a week off. Actually I could take a month out and do a contract 🤔

It's really strange ... this place is full of very smart software and hardware geeks. They can tear into just about anything, tell you how it was made, re-engineer it, fix it, improve it. Nothing is off-limits! But for some reason the forum software is too hard to fix? I have installed, run, and dealt with these "mods" before. But it was over ten years ago and I'm way out of the loop on SMF now. But I do know, if I ever had one of those "mods" act buggy the first thing I did was get it the Hell off my forum before it caused more problems, no matter how many code inserts it made I went in and deleted them by hand if the uninstall didn't work.

Rant over I'm done, nothing will happen.  :(

Gnif looks after the forum hardware and OS - I shall not proffer an opinion on whether he does that well or not. Dave looks after SMF. If you have seen any of Dave's videos where he has confronted anything that is not strictly "Windows User stuff" you should have formed your own opinion on how Dave would get on with the mess of Linuxy stuff involved in wrestling SMF into submission.

Explained. To be fair most scenarios I've seen small businesses running their own software make me think of this picture :)



Everyone complains about the cloud...
« Last Edit: September 23, 2021, 05:55:16 pm by bd139 »
 
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Offline bd139

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #102976 on: September 23, 2021, 06:04:59 pm »
Their entire team shines with incompetence.  I provided mgmt with a calculation of the cost we incur due to their not doing their job.
Be careful, ultimately the management will not think any more of you for pointing out that certain people are slacking etc. When the time comes in management eyes, to fire your arse, none of the brownie points you have picked up along the way, will count for diddly squat.

In my experience, it is the ones that you are pointing out to management as being incompetent who will more often than not be the ones that get promoted etc, and you get held back because you're just too useful where you are.

Yeah agreed.

Also be careful either way. I got promoted and I do both my old job and the new one.
 
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Online tggzzz

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #102977 on: September 23, 2021, 06:09:43 pm »
Their entire team shines with incompetence.  I provided mgmt with a calculation of the cost we incur due to their not doing their job.
Be careful, ultimately the management will not think any more of you for pointing out that certain people are slacking etc. When the time comes in management eyes, to fire your arse, none of the brownie points you have picked up along the way, will count for diddly squat.

In my experience, it is the ones that you are pointing out to management as being incompetent who will more often than not be the ones that get promoted etc, and you get held back because you're just too useful where you are.

... A.k.a. The Peter Principle
There are lies, damned lies, statistics - and ADC/DAC specs.
Glider pilot's aphorism: "there is no substitute for span". Retort: "There is a substitute: skill+imagination. But you can buy span".
Having fun doing more, with less
 
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Offline Vince

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #102978 on: September 23, 2021, 06:13:17 pm »
BIG TEA moment today... and I mean BIG  as you can see !  :-DD

Another boat anchor... no not a glowing Tek. A glowing Metrix !

A "Wobuloscope"... from what I understand it just means they stuck a little CRT/Scope to vaguely monitor the output of the HF generator. Has modulation capabilitis too.

I alwyas loved thje look of these... wanted one for my futre "vintage" secondary lab/little museum.... that I will arrange in the attic one day, when I get round to turn it into a liveable and presentable space... right now it does not even have a floor, can't even walk up there...

There are several models of such Metrix generators of course, but this one looks like a high end one with its scope addition, and its frequency range... puppy goes up to 800MHz !  :D Right now the fastest signal I can generate it the louxwy 1MHz from my '70s analog  Philips sig gen...

Also, most of these for sale are crusty at best, often void of tubes and/or rusty... yet sellers want hundres for them. 150 at best when yo are lucky... and are willing to do a full restoration on the thing...

So that is to say that so far, I have never found any of these to suit my "value for money" criterion... so to speak.
UNTIL a fewx days ago !

This one popped up, high spec,  looking in good nick from the crappy pics the seller managed to take, guy even sad the CRT /scope was working !
Plus, he was willing to SHIP.. that's also yet another show stopper with these things, people just don't want to ship them.
Best of all... no, it should have cost 500 or more, at todays market price here... but he wanted only 60 Euros for it !!!  :o
AND.. there was a "Buy now " button, so no "I got 20 phone calls, highest bidder gets it " as usually happens... so I rushed to click on the button...
And guy was honest, he DID ship it to me ! Shipping cost me only 6.5 Euros !  :D

I just unpacked it... thze dram continues :for once, the packaging was adaquate, with polystyrene foam all around it, and buble wrap.
At fist I could not even see it because it was covered by.. yes, it came with its original Metrix grey cover ! In good nick too !
So I moved the Tek 575 to the side, so I could put the MEtrix 232 on the bench.... I lifted the cover and.... VOILA !!!  :D

FUCK ME !!! This thing is.... like .... pretty much  NIB !!!!  :scared:     :o

For 65+ Euros delivered !?  :scared:

Just look at this thing !!!  :o

Not a spec of rust, all the bright work looks incredible, only tiny minor pitting when look up close if one is being picky.
Pilot light still looks sparkling. The big / main dial look like new, its clear plastic "arrow"/pointer not broken for a change, and only very slightly opaque, a far cry from the usual heavily yellowed, 100% opaque affair !
Paint on the face plate look like new, no other word for it. Shiny, smooth and clean. Like new.
Power cord : usually these have long been hacked with a power cord hardwired, sticking out the back of the unit. sometimes worse, the original socket is removed... not so here, it's still 100% original, zero hacking. Still has its original power socket, which is a the front on these old Metrix units. PLUS.... the guy STILL HAD the original power cord for it  !  :o
Better : I even get some accessories : came with a viewing hood ! Well kinda, I don't know how you call it..
Didn't take a pic of that though, arf. Depending on public demand...  ;D

Can't believe it... fot 60 Euros I got meself a masterpiece.. my vintage lab is well on it way !  :D 
Imagine a vintage table/bench with this beauty on it, feeding its signal to... a big glowing Tek scope of course !  8)


Offline bd139

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #102979 on: September 23, 2021, 06:15:44 pm »
Nice score  :-+

Your acquisition rate is higher than a Keysight DSOX  :-DD
 
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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #102980 on: September 23, 2021, 06:17:14 pm »
Everyone complains about the cloud...

Not everyone. Only the graybeards that remember the sense of liberation that the IBM PC and Apple 2/Lisa/Mac gave - by liberating data from the TimeSharing bureaux and allowing the data's owners to own it.

Nappy wearers still have to (re)learn that lesson, the hard way.
There are lies, damned lies, statistics - and ADC/DAC specs.
Glider pilot's aphorism: "there is no substitute for span". Retort: "There is a substitute: skill+imagination. But you can buy span".
Having fun doing more, with less
 
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Offline capt bullshot

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #102981 on: September 23, 2021, 06:23:53 pm »
Their entire team shines with incompetence.  I provided mgmt with a calculation of the cost we incur due to their not doing their job.

Don't manoeuvre yourself out of the game

Safety devices hinder evolution
 
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Offline bd139

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #102982 on: September 23, 2021, 06:25:05 pm »
Everyone complains about the cloud...

Not everyone. Only the graybeards that remember the sense of liberation that the IBM PC and Apple 2/Lisa/Mac gave - by liberating data from the TimeSharing bureaux and allowing the data's owners to own it.

Nappy wearers still have to (re)learn that lesson, the hard way.

Liberating that data was both a blessing and a curse in disguise. It put responsibility in the hands of the irresponsible.

We drew a line in the sand of where responsibility lies into three segments which are "business", "operations" and "cloud". Amazon gets cloud. I get operations. Business sit on top of my APIs and abstraction and adheres to my rule. I am the timesharing bureau. We subcontract the stuff we're crap out to Amazon. That pushes all irresponsibility where it belongs :)
 
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Offline AVGresponding

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #102983 on: September 23, 2021, 06:45:11 pm »
Baaaby scope doo dooo do do doo, baby scope doo dooo do do doo

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/373729904728




Mooommy scope doo dooo do do doo, mommy scope doo dooo do do doo

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/353676805718




Daaaddy scope doo dooo do do doo, daddy scope doo dooo do do doo

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/373727036522




Graaandma scope doo dooo do do doo, grandma scope doo dooo do do doo

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/115004202904




Graaandpa scope doo dooo do do doo, grandpa scope doo dooo do do doo

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/403181756455
nuqDaq yuch Dapol?
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Offline xrunner

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #102984 on: September 23, 2021, 06:47:19 pm »
BIG TEA moment today... and I mean BIG  as you can see !  :-DD

Another boat anchor... no not a glowing Tek. A glowing Metrix !

...

Just look at this thing !!!  :o

Good Grief Vince.  :clap:

Boat anchor? Holy Shit that thing could hold the Queen Mary in place!

Congrats!
I told my friends I could teach them to be funny, but they all just laughed at me.
 
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Offline bd139

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #102985 on: September 23, 2021, 06:49:28 pm »
Baaaby scope doo dooo do do doo, baby scope doo dooo do do doo


There goes my watchlist  :-DD
 
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Offline ch_scr

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #102986 on: September 23, 2021, 06:59:02 pm »
Today's "Fun with TE": What is that on the (still messy ::)) desk, hiding in a cardbord box, giving almost 10V?

You might remember the single-sided PCB I posted a few days ago? You won't believe how it looks now!

It materialized and sprouted a few components! Even a few SMD on the bottom!
This 10V ref uses mostly "vintage" GDR parts in the sensitive spots: SZY23 8.4V Zener, KWH 2x10k resistor networks in the instrumentation amplifier. It also has newer parts in less sensitive areas where technological advancement superseded previous technology (TL431 as 2.5V ref to set the current through the zener, "real" 2.5V zeners are so shite, even back then they rather used 2 red LED in series...)
or increased ease of use (or space) significantly (OP07C instead of something metal can ancient, the smd transistor that let's through the 5mA for the zener) or where only "newer" was available (stable metal film resistors, e.g.: current sense for the current through the zener). Let's see if this sinks or swims  8)
Edit: Look inside the zener here: https://www.richis-lab.de/REF18.htm
 
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Offline nixiefreqq

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #102987 on: September 23, 2021, 07:03:58 pm »
someone should recruit this guy.


https://spectrum.ieee.org/the-scandalous-history-of-the-last-rotor-cipher-machine/particle-1


or maybe he is here already?  (but encrypted....we may never know)



free range primate
 
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Offline mansaxel

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #102988 on: September 23, 2021, 07:14:39 pm »

Nope; makes perfect sense. Pittsburgh is exactly the same, only the towns are in the foothills of the Allegheny mountains, so geography can make "going to the next town over" very interesting... Especially with a foot or more of snow on the ground.  :o


I remember that most of the fun in Pittsburgh was in the Strip District, and that was deliberately not in the center.

Offline med6753

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #102989 on: September 23, 2021, 07:30:35 pm »
Apparently my lack of recent "good" sleep caught up with me today. After early this morning's posts I basically crashed and just woke up at 15:00 hours this afternoon. Those 10 years of working nights have permanently screwed up my sleep patterns even 2 years after retiring. So now I'll probably be awake all night.  :palm:   
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Online tggzzz

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #102990 on: September 23, 2021, 07:39:18 pm »
Everyone complains about the cloud...

Not everyone. Only the graybeards that remember the sense of liberation that the IBM PC and Apple 2/Lisa/Mac gave - by liberating data from the TimeSharing bureaux and allowing the data's owners to own it.

Nappy wearers still have to (re)learn that lesson, the hard way.

Liberating that data was both a blessing and a curse in disguise. It put responsibility in the hands of the irresponsible.

1) Of course!
2) I'd use the concept of "accountability": you lose it, we lose you, or similar.


Quote
We drew a line in the sand of where responsibility lies into three segments which are "business", "operations" and "cloud". Amazon gets cloud. I get operations. Business sit on top of my APIs and abstraction and adheres to my rule. I am the timesharing bureau. We subcontract the stuff we're crap out to Amazon. That pushes all irresponsibility where it belongs :)

And where does the "accountability" end up? If on you, then nothing significant has changed in that respect :)
There are lies, damned lies, statistics - and ADC/DAC specs.
Glider pilot's aphorism: "there is no substitute for span". Retort: "There is a substitute: skill+imagination. But you can buy span".
Having fun doing more, with less
 

Offline Robert763

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #102991 on: September 23, 2021, 07:46:56 pm »
Another of monday's TEA haul and mini teardown.
This is a Prema 61/2 digit DMM. I've always wanted a PREMA but they seem pretty rare in the UK.
The one I scored seems pretty rare anywhere. It's a 6030 Integrating / computing DMM. 19" rack mount with an 8 digit LED display. The basic meter is 61/2 digit but computed output can be 71/2 digit. There is very little about it on the web. There is a scan of the manual on the Prema website. My meter came with an original and a colour brochure. There is a hand written note on the brochure " £1390 15/11/85" That  was a lot for a meter in 1985. About £4300 today. Very few photos on the web
The meter has 10G \$\Omega\$ input on ranges up to 10V. It has DC and AC (TRMS) volts, 2 and 4 wire ohms. GPIB on the back.
Power on and all looks OK. Put the Time 1010 calibrator on it and this confims that the Time's 10V range needs a tweak. Other than that it looks fine, condition is like new. Resistance seems spot on both to my DB877 and SR1010-100 \$\Omega\$.
The most noticable thing is the almost complete lack of noise. Both electrical and audible. There is good mains rejection and no fan.
Sorry about the poor internal photos. Refrence is clearly a LM399. I don;t know if it was specially selected. There is a lithium back-up battery in there which will need replacing. I'll take better photos when I open it to replace the battery.
 

Offline Specmaster

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #102992 on: September 23, 2021, 08:24:58 pm »
Gah, fecking internet is on the blink yet, bleeding Virginmedia, their M350 service keep going down ever since I cancelled their M500 service, I have almost nightly outages and I'm getting a bit pissed with them, anyone know of another service that offer 300Mb service or better for around £50?
Who let Murphy in?

Brymen-Fluke-HP-Thurlby-Thander-Tek-Extech-Black Star-GW-Avo-Kyoritsu-Amprobe-ITT-Robin-TTi
 

Offline Saskia

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #102993 on: September 23, 2021, 08:26:12 pm »
Their entire team shines with incompetence.  I provided mgmt with a calculation of the cost we incur due to their not doing their job.

Don't manoeuvre yourself out of the game



thanks everyone for the warnings. I most likely have reached my end position, it is extremely unlikely that I get another promotion.

That being said over here it has some advantages to be handicapped and work in a large corp.


Anyway, taking off overtime tomorrow. About done building my daughter a music streamer; need to grab the last bits and pieces and I should be done.
 

Offline Neper

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #102994 on: September 23, 2021, 08:28:17 pm »
A "Wobuloscope"...

Excursion totale...

In a normal year we'd have left for just that, this coming weekend. Two weeks in our beloved Nord (59). Already the second year where we won't. Merde !  :rant:
If I knew everything I'd be starving because no-one could afford me.
 

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #102995 on: September 23, 2021, 08:39:27 pm »
Gah, fecking internet is on the blink yet, bleeding Virginmedia, their M350 service keep going down ever since I cancelled their M500 service, I have almost nightly outages and I'm getting a bit pissed with them, anyone know of another service that offer 300Mb service or better for around £50?

I'm currently looking to ditch VM/Telewest/Blueyonder, since there is now FTTP outside my house and as far as I can tell they will poke a fibre into my house.

Problem is I also want landline, just because I'm a belt-and-braces pessimist. Previously I had a BT landline and ISDN(!) connection, but the wires have been disconnected from the other pole outside my house.

BT indicates they can give me a much cheaper price than VM. But I'd prefer Andrews and Arnold or Zen.

So investigations continue, but are paying second fiddle to Deeds of Variation and IHT400. If you don't have a clue what those are, consider yourself lucky.
There are lies, damned lies, statistics - and ADC/DAC specs.
Glider pilot's aphorism: "there is no substitute for span". Retort: "There is a substitute: skill+imagination. But you can buy span".
Having fun doing more, with less
 
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Offline Robert763

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #102996 on: September 23, 2021, 08:52:12 pm »
BIG TEA moment today... and I mean BIG  as you can see !  :-DD

Another boat anchor... no not a glowing Tek. A glowing Metrix !

A "Wobuloscope"... from what I understand it just means they stuck a little CRT/Scope to vaguely monitor the output of the HF generator. Has modulation capabilitis too.

I alwyas loved thje look of these... wanted one for my futre "vintage" secondary lab/little museum.... that I will arrange in the attic one day, when I get round to turn it into a liveable and presentable space... right now it does not even have a floor, can't even walk up there...

There are several models of such Metrix generators of course, but this one looks like a high end one with its scope addition, and its frequency range... puppy goes up to 800MHz !  :D Right now the fastest signal I can generate it the louxwy 1MHz from my '70s analog  Philips sig gen...

Also, most of these for sale are crusty at best, often void of tubes and/or rusty... yet sellers want hundres for them. 150 at best when yo are lucky... and are willing to do a full restoration on the thing...

So that is to say that so far, I have never found any of these to suit my "value for money" criterion... so to speak.
UNTIL a fewx days ago !

This one popped up, high spec,  looking in good nick from the crappy pics the seller managed to take, guy even sad the CRT /scope was working !
Plus, he was willing to SHIP.. that's also yet another show stopper with these things, people just don't want to ship them.
Best of all... no, it should have cost 500 or more, at todays market price here... but he wanted only 60 Euros for it !!!  :o
AND.. there was a "Buy now " button, so no "I got 20 phone calls, highest bidder gets it " as usually happens... so I rushed to click on the button...
And guy was honest, he DID ship it to me ! Shipping cost me only 6.5 Euros !  :D

I just unpacked it... thze dram continues :for once, the packaging was adaquate, with polystyrene foam all around it, and buble wrap.
At fist I could not even see it because it was covered by.. yes, it came with its original Metrix grey cover ! In good nick too !
So I moved the Tek 575 to the side, so I could put the MEtrix 232 on the bench.... I lifted the cover and.... VOILA !!!  :D

FUCK ME !!! This thing is.... like .... pretty much  NIB !!!!  :scared:     :o

For 65+ Euros delivered !?  :scared:

Just look at this thing !!!  :o

Not a spec of rust, all the bright work looks incredible, only tiny minor pitting when look up close if one is being picky.
Pilot light still looks sparkling. The big / main dial look like new, its clear plastic "arrow"/pointer not broken for a change, and only very slightly opaque, a far cry from the usual heavily yellowed, 100% opaque affair !
Paint on the face plate look like new, no other word for it. Shiny, smooth and clean. Like new.
Power cord : usually these have long been hacked with a power cord hardwired, sticking out the back of the unit. sometimes worse, the original socket is removed... not so here, it's still 100% original, zero hacking. Still has its original power socket, which is a the front on these old Metrix units. PLUS.... the guy STILL HAD the original power cord for it  !  :o
Better : I even get some accessories : came with a viewing hood ! Well kinda, I don't know how you call it..
Didn't take a pic of that though, arf. Depending on public demand...  ;D

Can't believe it... fot 60 Euros I got meself a masterpiece.. my vintage lab is well on it way !  :D 
Imagine a vintage table/bench with this beauty on it, feeding its signal to... a big glowing Tek scope of course !  8)

A Wobulator is a signal generator that can be swept or "wobbled" over a narrow range. They were used in conjunction with an oscilloscope to aid in adjustment of radio receivers, particuarly the IF section. Effectively it plots the frequency response like a scalar neatwork analyser. It appears your Wobuloscope is an all in one instrument for this. They went out of fashion with fixed IF filters (mechanical, quartz and ceramic) and integrated circuit IFs.
Last time I used something similar was adjusting the multi-stage cavity tuned transmit RF amplifiers in aircraft distance measuring equipment (DME). These were interactive and if you set them for mid band they tended to be out at the band ends. Basically you used the 'scope X output to sweep the VCO (PLL disconnected) across the band. A diode detector on the output fed the Y input. We did so many King KN 65s that we had an old Telequipment scope modified with a variable gain / offset amplifier tapped into the timebase for just that task.
 
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Online factory

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #102997 on: September 23, 2021, 09:02:43 pm »
Arrival today and a little riddle for you:
where does this mainboard coming from?



Edit:
to be more specific: from which device is this mainboard coming from?

@Zucca: Yes, you are right.  :P ;D

Are those five relays on the bottom edge of the board?

From a time when the 4 layer board where too expensive or not invented yet.

It is completely analog, no digital stuff is involved.
Manufactured in the 1970's (smells like that).

Not the item being discussed, but the HP 3310A has traces on four layers and was featured in the June 1969 journal, where it also mentions "economy" a few times. https://www.hpl.hp.com/hpjournal/pdfs/IssuePDFs/1969-06.pdf

Not the best pictures to show the layers, previous owner had buggered up the power supply, I noticed one of the internal traces had been damaged by them, hence the bodge wire.




The main analogue board also has four layers.


David
 
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Offline Vince

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #102998 on: September 23, 2021, 09:12:19 pm »
A "Wobuloscope"...

Excursion totale...

Thanks but that's still just as obscure to me !  ;D  Only difference is, it's French sounding obscure rather than English sounding obscure ! :-DD


Quote from: Neper
In a normal year we'd have left for just that, this coming weekend. Two weeks in our beloved Nord (59). Already the second year where we won't. Merde !  :rant:

Oh boy, in 44 years in this country, you are the very first human being I come across who actually WANTS to go there !  Every body here either refuses to get up there even for a job, and those who are already there because they were born there, dream every night that they will win the lottery and be able escape this land of misery !  :-DD

The people up there really have nothing on their side, it sucks...  :-//

Anyway, could not resist, I powered up the beast then too it apart, pictures below !  ;D
This way you an see the period power cord and I also fitted the little hood/visor on the CRT.

I felt brave, I plugged it in and flicked the power switch without even open it up  ! That's because it looks in such great nick and the seller did say the scoep was working, which means he did power it up recently and the instrument did not blow up...

The scope appears to work in deed just fine !  clean trace, pretty sharp given the modest ambition of the CRT in such an instrument. Brightness, focus, vertical position, everything works !  :D

Failed to get it display a signal though. So I don't know if the sig gen part of the instrument works or not. Can't hook a scope to it as it uses weird connectors. Not BNC not UHF like. Rather as you can see it looks like the same kind of connector that's used for old TV antenna cables. Horrible, brrr....
Might retrofit BNC connectors for practicality...
To be honest the instrument might well be working just fine and its just me being unable to operate it properly ! I mean it's written in French on the face plate, but I don't understand what the words mean in the context of this instrument !  :-//
Plus there are no less than 6 of these HF connectors, and I don't even know which are inputs or outputs, for starters !  :palm:
Also as you can see the instrument is supplied with a short cable to let you connect to of these HF connectors together... so if one has to wire things up to get it to work, then all hope is lost for me right now !  :palm:

Need to find a user manual to know how to operate it... then I can see what works and what does not...

After 30 minutes playing with the thing, I felt something weird as my fingers were accidentally rubbing against metal parts of the instruments, like the power switch or the million screws that hold the guts of the instrument in place inside the cabinet. I could swear it was like some kind electrical shock ! This things was trying to ZAP me !!!!  :scared:

That reminded me of these antique consumer crap cheap radio sets where for some reason they tied the two power leads to teh chassis via caps. Caps of course go south after decades, so you get zapped big time.

I though maybe something something similar was going on, and me "waking up" those caps after decades of sleep, might see them die abruptly within seconds or minutes... ie  I could die any moment ! So I pulled the plug and took it apart to see how things were wired in there.

Clearly this is no cheap consumer grade radio... this thing is Tektronix level. Built like a tank, good craftsmanship, well organized/logical layout, tidy wiring with lacing everywhere. They even used two different colours of lacing, yellow and red. All tubes are held in place using an earthquake-proof , spring loaded apparatus. The tubes are going nowhere no matter how much you could abuse this instrument...

So no obvious crappy cap in sight near the power socket, would have been too easy. So no idea where the mains is leaking... maybe the power switch ITSELF ? Would have to take it apart. Need to investigate where the leak is coming from, anyhow. Can't use this thing as is, too dangerous. Thinking of retrofitting it with a modern 3 prong IEC socket and earth this thing. Being at the back it won't be seen, so no visual impact on the originality/authenticity of the instrument, it's preserved, so that's cool. I would of course internally disconnect the original power socket at the front, for safety...

As for it's construction, it's all well organized and tidy as I said. The left part of the instrument is where modulation is handled. It is mechanically separate from the rest of the instrument. You can pull it out of the cabinet. It's connected the rest usin a couple cables which have enough slack and are easily disconnected. No struggle at all. This unit is itself modular : it consists of a main frame and a removable plugins. Big know on the plug-in has two settings / valid positions, and internally we can see it has two identical sections side by side, each including a Quartz and a vaccum tube.

The main frame receiving this plugin, has 3 tubes. so a total of 5 tubes to handle the modulation side of things.

As for the main/core part of the instrument, the center and right most thirds of it... middle third is for the HF generator itself. I removed the shield so you can see what's in it. Not much electronics ! Looks more like mechanical clock work or something... have no idea how it works ! Some old RF magic I presume !  :scared:

Then the rightmost third of the instrument hots the scope of course, as well as the big ass mains transformer.
Scope section show at least one interesting thing... it's clear that its input is not internally connected to the output of the sig gen. Scope input goes straight to a socket on the front panel. So, that means I must use the provided cable I guess, to externally connect it to the output of the instrument.
But since I don't know how to operate it...
I guess I could just feed this scope input with a signal of mine so that I am in control of things !  ;D  this way at least I could tell if the scope actually work or not...that would be a beginning...

So this is it.. quick look and test ride of this thing... now unless someone wants more details / pics, I will button it back up and store it I do'nt know where because frankly, I have completely run out of space...
Yesterday I cleared the back yard and sprayed fluorescent paint on the grass to mark the position of the foundations for the future garage, where to dig the ground with the excavator. Problem, I just found : there is a shortage of truck and excavator drivers, 20,000 missing nation wide, so it's near impossible to find some company to come dig the trenches...  :palm:
 
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Offline Vince

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Re: Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
« Reply #102999 on: September 23, 2021, 09:13:01 pm »
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