Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread

[dl6lr]

What you really are going to need soon is a nice polished wooden case, with green felt interior lining & underlying the felt, cutouts for all your sensors & other such devices.
Every good RF workshop used to have such cases, but now, although the devices are around in decent quantities, the cases are not.

Sorry for not having green and wooden, but you think of a case as in my photos? Agree!

[RolandK]

The remainders of an audiophil: https://www.ebay.de/itm/284524216689

[beanflying]

The remainders of an audiophil: https://www.ebay.de/itm/284524216689

@med's bits likely just burst again thinking of lifting it

[BU508A]

The remainders of an audiophil: https://www.ebay.de/itm/284524216689

It is this guy, I think:
http://vintagetubeservices.com/

[Vince]

The remainders of an audiophil: https://www.ebay.de/itm/284524216689

Wow... seeing ONE Tek scope being parted for tubes for audiophools is painful enough, but this guy openly shows, brags, that he has a collection of 50 of these scopes for this sole purpose, does not give a crap about all these 50 Tek scopes, only good for tubes ! 

It's like seeing a Nazi gas camp, with people parked waiting for their "shower".... I don't know what feeling is most overwhelming in me right now... the sadness and feeling of waste.. or my lust for murder. I guess it's 50/50.

And 2100 Euros for 50 scopes is 45 per scope which is the base price for a COMPLETE scope (here at least, bar the occasional rip off), not a cadaver.. and it's only the starting price at that, it's an auction !  And he is selling the complete lot of 50 only, not one by one, and no shipping... so you would think it would be even much cheaper than a single scope that would be shipped. But no, he wants it both ways !
So murdering all these scopes was not enough, he is still trying to rip people off as well with the remains ! Money first hey !

I wish this guy a long and painful death..... may he get electrocuted when working on an audio amp that uses tubes from these scopes... may he not die instantly, but rather his heart stop, his wife discovering him in time to call the ambulance... then may he have heart surgery, painful, and die after 6 months after a painful failed recovery.


Some people should not be allowed to live.... 


Oh yes, I know I am a bit extreme, but hey, I just woke up, this is the first thing I see while drinking my hot chocolate milk, so sorry you get what you get ! 

[mansaxel]

It is this guy, I think:
http://vintagetubeservices.com/

There are so many Indicators Of Wrong on that page...

[Brumby]

Some people should not be allowed to live.... 

Oh yes, I know I am a bit extreme,

Yeah, I kinda noticed.

but hey, I just woke up, this is the first thing I see while drinking my hot chocolate milk, so sorry you get what you get ! 

OK ... Now I understand.

[ch_scr]

It is this guy, I think:
http://vintagetubeservices.com/

There are so many Indicators Of Wrong on that page...

Like boasting of the quality of your tube measurement setup by giving the weight of its panel meters and power supplys?
Or by referring that his "instruments are calibrated to the same National Institute of Standards (Test #910675) that the original manufacturers used"
Like, he got the vintage resistor standards and weston cells from way back at GE? 
But I'm no proper audiofool, I can't even find a reference to whatever "National Institute of Standards (Test #910675)" might mean . 

[BU508A]

But I'm no proper audiofool, I can't even find a reference to whatever "National Institute of Standards (Test #910675)" might mean . 

Marketinggeblubber....

[Specmaster]

The remainders of an audiophil: https://www.ebay.de/itm/284524216689

It is this guy, I think:
http://vintagetubeservices.com/

Yes it is him.

[Specmaster]

The remainders of an audiophil: https://www.ebay.de/itm/284524216689

Wow... seeing ONE Tek scope being parted for tubes for audiophools is painful enough, but this guy openly shows, brags, that he has a collection of 50 of these scopes for this sole purpose, does not give a crap about all these 50 Tek scopes, only good for tubes ! 

It's like seeing a Nazi gas camp, with people parked waiting for their "shower".... I don't know what feeling is most overwhelming in me right now... the sadness and feeling of waste.. or my lust for murder. I guess it's 50/50.

And 2100 Euros for 50 scopes is 45 per scope which is the base price for a COMPLETE scope (here at least, bar the occasional rip off), not a cadaver.. and it's only the starting price at that, it's an auction !  And he is selling the complete lot of 50 only, not one by one, and nos shipping... so you would think it would be even much cheaper than a single scope that would be shipped. But no, he wants it both ways !
So murdering all these scopes was not enough, he is still trying to rip people off as well with the remains ! Money first hey !

I wish this guy a long and painful death..... may he get electrocuted when working on an audio amp that uses tubes from these scopes... may he not die instantly, but rather his heart stop, his wife discovering him in time to call the ambulance... then may he have heart surgery, painful, and die after 6 months after a painful failed recovery.


Some people should not be allowed to live.... 


Oh yes, I know I am a bit extreme, but hey, I just woke up, this is the first thing I see while drinking my hot chocolate milk, so sorry you get what you get ! 

Yes, totally agree with you, and the worst bit of it all is that this auction is only the first bit of it, there is more of his collection to come.

[Saskia]

okay, let us build an onager to hurl those scavenged scopes at him so that they can still serve a purpose. Has anybody got a predator uplink that I can use ? Don't need it for long, just single shot ...

[tggzzz]

Use "separates", and eschew "pre-packaged instruments".

All you need are a "decent" voltage source driving a "decent" KVD, plus a nice low-current moving coil meter. If you only want 3digit resolution, use 1m of resistance wire and a 1m steel rule instead of the KVD:)

And how pray am I to do that whenever a decent KVD crops up cheap somewhere you make off with it? Or if not you then I have Robert as a secondary suspect. 

Oh, stop whining and open your wallet 
https://www.ppauctions.com/lot/161450/lot-202

Bastard!

Well, I've put bids on 9 items and been outbid on 7 - but not the KVD. Will someone please save me?

[Specmaster]

Use "separates", and eschew "pre-packaged instruments".

All you need are a "decent" voltage source driving a "decent" KVD, plus a nice low-current moving coil meter. If you only want 3digit resolution, use 1m of resistance wire and a 1m steel rule instead of the KVD:)

And how pray am I to do that whenever a decent KVD crops up cheap somewhere you make off with it? Or if not you then I have Robert as a secondary suspect. 

Oh, stop whining and open your wallet 
https://www.ppauctions.com/lot/161450/lot-202

Bastard!

Well, I've put bids on 9 items and been outbid on 7 - but not the KVD. Will someone please save me?

I'm watching this myself, but like a good buyer, I'm not showing my hand too early, its still got 7 days FFS, keep quiet and keep your powder dry. bidding early just drives the price up for everyone else 

[tggzzz]

I'm watching this myself, but like a good buyer, I'm not showing my hand too early, its still got 7 days FFS, keep quiet and keep your powder dry. bidding early just drives the price up for everyone else 

The bids I've placed have no relationship to the amount I'm willing to pay, so in that sense I'm not showing my hand.

I won't actually know the price I'm willing to pay until during bidding. I have to factor in collection costs, so if I've failed to get early items, then I won't pay as much for one later item. OTOH, if I'm going up anyway, then I will bid more readily on later "might as well have" items to amortise the travel costs.

I don't see any way in which comments at this stage in the process will drive up the selling price. The only way that might happen is if somebody doesn't know about the auction, but that isn't the case here.

[Andrew_Debbie]

I've signed up for PP Auctions.   

I won't be bidding on the KVD.  I'm happy to let it go to another home.   

Many others on my watch list.

200 miles each way.    Hopefully I won't "win" anything.


< AAAARGH >   I wish I'd never seen this.   

[Andrew_Debbie]

The only way that might happen is if somebody doesn't know about the auction, but that isn't the case here.

That would be me.    Distance + time = very high cost of collection.  I'm unlikely to bid anything remotely close to market value.

[tggzzz]

The only way that might happen is if somebody doesn't know about the auction, but that isn't the case here.

That would be me.    Distance + time = very high cost of collection.  I'm unlikely to bid anything remotely close to market value.

I'm "only" 170 miles away, and I don't enjoy driving for its own sake. Hence I factor in the cost of collection at 12p/mile if I really want something, and 25p/mile if I don't, and 44p/mile if I'm trying to persuade myself not to bid at all.

My bids aren't related to market value, but to tgggzzz value. And that's a very fickle variable.

[Specmaster]

I'm watching this myself, but like a good buyer, I'm not showing my hand too early, its still got 7 days FFS, keep quiet and keep your powder dry. bidding early just drives the price up for everyone else 

The bids I've placed have no relationship to the amount I'm willing to pay, so in that sense I'm not showing my hand.

I won't actually know the price I'm willing to pay until during bidding. I have to factor in collection costs, so if I've failed to get early items, then I won't pay as much for one later item. OTOH, if I'm going up anyway, then I will bid more readily on later "might as well have" items to amortise the travel costs.

I don't see any way in which comments at this stage in the process will drive up the selling price. The only way that might happen is if somebody doesn't know about the auction, but that isn't the case here.

Yep, the distance is a real factor, plus of course the buyer's premium and the dreaded VAT, both of which are not an insignificant amount at 15.5% of the final value of the auction then plus 20% VAT on that  total. Those 3 factors alone really concentrate the mind and is why it is so important not to get carried away in the final bidding frenzy, factor them in from an early-stage and then set a maximum bid and sit on your hands for the outcome. These sales are not like eBay where, unless buying outside the UK, the extra to be factored in is the delivery which is normally a known value.

Edit, its a 200 miles round trip for me with a total journey time of approx 5 hours, I've done it before but I'd rather not have to do it again 

[Specmaster]

The only way that might happen is if somebody doesn't know about the auction, but that isn't the case here.

That would be me.    Distance + time = very high cost of collection.  I'm unlikely to bid anything remotely close to market value.

Don't forget the buyers 15.5% fees to P&P plus the VAT (20% on top) so the price needs to be way below market value, plus your time and fuel to collect.

[Saskia]

also add the CBA-factor, your time (your life time is the only hard limited resource), the nuisance factor ...

In other news I received the keys to the new home and I am busy packing up my old life.

[mnementh]

The remainders of an audiophil: https://www.ebay.de/itm/284524216689

Wow... seeing ONE Tek scope being parted for tubes for audiophools is painful enough, but this guy openly shows, brags, that he has a collection of 50 of these scopes for this sole purpose, does not give a crap about all these 50 Tek scopes, only good for tubes ! 

It's like seeing a Nazi gas camp, with people parked waiting for their "shower".... I don't know what feeling is most overwhelming in me right now... the sadness and feeling of waste.. or my lust for murder. I guess it's 50/50.

And 2100 Euros for 50 scopes is 45 per scope which is the base price for a COMPLETE scope (here at least, bar the occasional rip off), not a cadaver.. and it's only the starting price at that, it's an auction !  And he is selling the complete lot of 50 only, not one by one, and no shipping... so you would think it would be even much cheaper than a single scope that would be shipped. But no, he wants it both ways !
So murdering all these scopes was not enough, he is still trying to rip people off as well with the remains ! Money first hey !

I wish this guy a long and painful death..... may he get electrocuted when working on an audio amp that uses tubes from these scopes... may he not die instantly, but rather his heart stop, his wife discovering him in time to call the ambulance... then may he have heart surgery, painful, and die after 6 months after a painful failed recovery.


Some people should not be allowed to live.... 


Oh yes, I know I am a bit extreme, but hey, I just woke up, this is the first thing I see while drinking my hot chocolate milk, so sorry you get what you get ! 

While I do generally try to preach moderation in all things (including moderation  ), in this case I'll suggest that you are being far too generous.

I say 40000 lashes with a weeedeater and dump him in a barrel of chinchilla urine. With life support to prolong the agony as much as possible.

mnem
*currently eating the brown bag breakfast from Quality Inn*

[mnementh]

Some people should not be allowed to live.... 

Oh yes, I know I am a bit extreme,

Yeah, I kinda noticed.

but hey, I just woke up, this is the first thing I see while drinking my hot chocolate milk, so sorry you get what you get ! 

OK ... Now I understand.

Yeah, now we know why.... That hot chocolate milk for breakfast explains soooo much. 

SUGARRRRRRRRR!!!!!   

mnem
*tweaking the Vince's tail just a little bit* 

[mnementh]

Well, I've put bids on 9 items and been outbid on 7 - but not the KVD. Will someone please save me?

No. 

mnem
*agitating-ily*

[BU508A]

also add the CBA-factor, your time (your life time is the only hard limited resource), the nuisance factor ...

In other news I received the keys to the new home and I am busy packing up my old life.

All the best for you, hubby, your daughter and your new home.

Btw, a friend of mine has sent me this a few days ago:

Q: Do you know, why at IKEA there are arrows on the floor?

A: Because it is a "Einrichtungshaus".

  

(sorry for the english folks who didn't get it)