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Why does this Lee resident have 350 oscilloscopes in his house? The electrical engineer just 'couldn’t see them thrown away'Collector of oscilloscopes can't get enough of the early 20th Century technology and the history that comes with itBy Scott Stafford, The Berkshire EagleLEE — Volker Klocke may hold the keys to the universe.He collects oscilloscopes. Old ones. Hundreds of them.See, Klocke is an electrical engineer, so he knows how important the ’scopes are. (Coolness alert: Engineers and physicists and anyone else who uses oscilloscopes regularly simply refer to them as ’scopes.)Oscilloscopes5Volker Klocke is an electrical engineer, so he knows how important oscilloscopes are when it comes to making all kinds of thing work.photos by SCOTT STAFFORD — THE BERKSHIRE EAGLEWhile he has a master’s degree in electrical engineering and another in business administration, he works as a product manager for a paper company. Looking at the quiet residential home he shares with his wife and two dogs, it would be hard to imagine the scads of electrical wizardry contained within.The older ’scopes played the role of technological stepping stones, leading right up to the technologies of today, including radar and telecommunications.They can be found in hospital rooms, they’ve been seen in movie scenes depicting the battle bridge of Navy ships or spaceships in science fiction movies. In fact, the first video games were played on oscilloscopes. Remember Pong?Some folks find value in historical technology. Klocke, 58, is one.He got hooked when his college professor gave him one that was broken.“I was able to fix it, and I found it to be most precious,” Klocke said. “After that, whenever I saw one not needed anymore, I’d buy it.”At the time, ’scope technology had advanced so far that many of them became obsolete, headed for the graveyard.“So many were discarded, I couldn’t help it,” Klocke recalled. “I just couldn’t see them thrown away. I couldn’t stop myself.”Today, when Klocke leads a visitor from his basement into the garage, then up the narrow stairs to the attic, the tour passes 350 ’scopes, lining columns of wooden shelves, along with countless accessories. He knows their history inside out. Some of his pieces are among the earliest oscilloscopes to be put into practical use.With keen attention to detail, Klocke talks of oscilloscope history, eager to share his lifelong passion.The oscilloscope was invented in 1897 by German physicist Karl Ferdinand Braun. By applying an oscillating signal to electrically charged deflector plates at the phosphor-coated base of the cathode ray tube — what looks like an extra-long beaker with a white-ish substance covering the bottom — the signal illuminates the phosphorous covering it lands on.The early ones measured frequency and amplitude, or voltage, by sending the electronic signal through the oscilloscope, which turned it into an image of a wave.Oscilloscopes2The oscilloscope was invented in 1897 by German physicist Karl Ferdinand Braun. SCOTT STAFFORD — THE BERKSHIRE EAGLEKlocke said that at the time, in the early 1900s, electricity was in its infancy, so ’scopes were often a mere curiosity that drew little interest.Then in the 1930s, all kinds of scientific schemes took root.In the early 1930s General Radio in Massachusetts was the first company to start selling ’scopes. And MIT made some important breakthroughs as well, including the invention of radar.In those days, Klocke said, the patents were held by Tektronix, so anyone manufacturing ’scopes had to pay royalties to it. When World War II broke out, the nation needed so many more that the government released the patents to the open market for free. After that it seemed everyone was making and using them.Oscilloscopes3“There are many engineering solutions in oscilloscopes,” Volker Klocke said. Part of the reason he keeps the functioning ‘scopes on hand is if something should happen to the electricity grid, or a technological de-evolution sends technology into a backslide, there will be no need to “reinvent the wheel.”SCOTT STAFFORD — THE BERKSHIRE EAGLEAs time went on, demand grew and they became expensive. Klocke said a ’scope could cost as much as a medium-size sedan in the 1950s, or about $3,500. Sprague Electric Co., once a powerful manufacturer of electric components in North Adams, used ’scopes frequently in its work.And when President John F. Kennedy decided to send a human to the moon in the 1960s, ’scopes took on a whole new essential role, especially regarding long-range communications.Today, ’scopes are used in studying a variety of electrical phenomena to process, display and analyze the waveform and bandwidth of electronic signals. The latest generation of oscilloscopes is used in medicine (for electrocardiograms), engineering, automotive, telecommunications and military technology.They can even be used to tune your piano.“’Scopes are the building block of modern worldwide communications,” Klocke said.Hidden tracks, unknown acts and vinyls found in a cabin in the woods. At the Central Berkshire Record Show, you'll find them allBERKSHIRELANDSCAPESHidden tracks, unknown acts and vinyls found in a cabin in the woods. At the Central Berkshire Record Show, you'll find them allAnyone born after the advent of global-positioning satellites, known as GPS, may not have heard of the heart of an oscilloscope, the cathode ray tube, but for decades starting in the early 1950s, just about every household in America wound up with one. People would sit around for hours staring at it.Oscilloscopes4Volker Klocke often loans out pieces of his oscilloscope collection to be used in movies or TV shows. SCOTT STAFFORD — THE BERKSHIRE EAGLETelevision.TVs were advanced cathode ray tubes. And to repair televisions and radios, the repair shops depended on ’scopes to guide their work.“There are many engineering solutions in oscilloscopes,” Klocke said. Part of the reason he keeps the functioning’scopes on hand is, if something should happen to the electricity grid, or a technological de-evolution sends technology into a backslide, there will be no need to “reinvent the wheel.”Then there is his prop work. Klocke loans out the ’scopes from time to time to movies and TV shows as props, but he doesn’t charge any fees. He doesn’t want the hassle of keeping records or registering as a nonprofit. He just wants to share his passion with the world.His ’scopes have appeared in Stephen Spielberg’s 2022 movie “The Fabelmans,” and in a National Geographic documentary “American Genius: Oppenheimer vs. Heisenberg,” among others.Oscilloscopes6“’Scopes are the building block of modern worldwide communications,” Volker Klocke said, as he gave a tour of his collection.SCOTT STAFFORD — THE BERKSHIRE EAGLESometimes he’ll be asked to identify a certain model of an antique ’scope.Klocke has an online oscilloscope museum, and occasionally people will donate ’scopes to the cause. They’ll find one in an uncle’s attic or their parents’ estate, and have no idea what it is or what to do with it.“A lot of times people just don’t know what they have or what it’s for,” Klocke said. “I like to rescue them.”He loves his collection, and he loves working on it. But his wife, Anna, asks only one thing: He’s not allowed to keep his toys on the main floor of their Lee residence. He gets the basement, the garage and the attic.And he’s fine with that.
He loves his collection, and he loves working on it. But his wife, Anna, asks only one thing: He’s not allowed to keep his toys on the main floor of their Lee residence. He gets the basement, the garage and the attic.And he’s fine with that.
I don't keep that much stock....only hoping for an order that size one day.
Why does this Lee resident have 350 oscilloscopes in his house?
Quote from: tautech on May 21, 2023, 02:37:37 amI don't keep that much stock....only hoping for an order that size one day. It's never too late to start your "Siglent collection". You have some catching up to do... BTW, I hope Volke has previously done some structural analysis on his attic floor...
Mr. Carlson's Lab move, he had this pic which was more way scope porn than I could take lol
Ok noob question, are they all unique ?I see many frames ressemblances ...
I was beginning to think that my dozen or so multimeters (Nerd alert: Engineers and physicists and anyone else who uses multimeters regularly simply refer to them as ’meters) might be excessive.
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