HP Signal Generators on E*bay
D from BC
1) It's mostly HP signal generators on E*bay.
More than other brands.
How come?
Did HP corner the market on signal generators?
Perhaps all the crappy generators didn't last and went in the trash..
:P
2) I've concluded the most popular price paid for HP generators seems
around $300US. And applies to a wide range of models too.
300.00??? Can I take that as a hint that a new signal generator (maybe
other brand) starts at around $600.00.. But what?
3) Is it me or do some HP signal generator models have an ugly front
panel design?
D from BC
British Columbia
Canada.
Tim Shoppa
> I've noticed a few things about HP signal generators on E*bay.
>
> 1) It's mostly HP signal generators on E*bay.
> More than other brands.
> How come?
> Did HP corner the market on signal generators?
HP's first product was the 200A Oscillator. It (and its follow-ons)
Truly Rocks.
> Perhaps all the crappy generators didn't last and went in the trash..
> :P
>
> 2) I've concluded the most popular price paid for HP generators seems
> around $300US. And applies to a wide range of models too.
> 300.00??? Can I take that as a hint that a new signal generator (maybe
> other brand) starts at around $600.00.. But what?
Whoa, you have to stop saying "signal generator" and tell us what
you're talking about. RF, Microwave, Audio, programmable,
modulation ???
Agilent's cheapest new generator is circa $9000.
List price for benchtop and handheld 5 or 10 or 20 MHz function
generators (sine, square, triangle) is circa $200-$300 new from B&K.
Used they'll be lucky to be fetch $10-$20.
HP 200AB, 200CD's etc. (Wien bridge audio oscillators) typically go
for $30-$40. Off-brands even cheaper - and they don't sell at all!
Tim.
D from BC
Ewwww...I botched this post.
(I think I need a vacation..)
Almost as bad as the dude that did that Hakko post. :P
Let me try that again...
I've noticed over several months that ~300US is a popular bidding
price for the HP 3324A HP function generator.
Examples
HP 3325A 20Mhz $301 Item number: 220201270184
HP 3325A " "$375 Item number: 290207698486
" $301 220199053599
" $370 220190335121
Could list more but E*bay only keeps 100 watch items.
The rest is from memory and rough stats.
Let's say the bidding price for a HP3325A compresses around $300. I
suspect that means people know there's something else new not far
away..
I'm wondering what it could be.
You mentioned B&K so I checked out..
http://canada.newark.com/96B4096/test-measurement-equipment/product.us0?sku=B-K-PRECISION-4040A
A 20Mhz B&K signal generator 20Mhz
Newark: $732.00
Not too far away...and is some evidence to my theory why ~300.00 is a
popular bidding price for a HP 3325.
Besides all that...
What I'm really thinking about is: Is it worth it to get an old 20Mhz
function generator?
bill....@ieee.org
> On Tue, 19 Feb 2008 11:40:28 -0800 (PST), Tim Shoppa
>
> <sho...@trailing-edge.com> wrote:
> >On Feb 19, 2:20 pm, D from BC <myrealaddr...@comic.com> wrote:
<snip>
> Besides all that...
> What I'm really thinking about is: Is it worth it to get an old 20Mhz
> function generator?
If you are working in an area where you don't need anything faster
than 20MHz, why not?
Enough people got enough value out of the old gear to buy it and
replace it and if you are doing pretty much what they were doing, you
won't need anything better.
If, on the other hand, you've ever be tempted to put together
something programmable or faster, it might well be worth working out
what you can buy today that you couldn't have bought five or ten years
ago.
Fifteen years ago the software guys needed a programmable Guassian-
shaped test pulse, and I cobbled something for them from a DAC, and
EPROM and a counter - they had to program the EPROM.
We probably should have used an audio card, but nothing we could get
our hands on was all that suitable.
--
Bill Sloman, Nijmegen
D from BC
I get tripped on 'cool factor'.
I mean, do I want an old boat anchor on the bench with needles, red
leds, clunky switches, a bulky box and a noisy cooling fan...
Sad...
Or do I make the bench look sporty with a sleek box that has a colour
LCD display and a modern interface.
Something that says 'This is a kickass work area'.
Not something that says 'Boat anchor recycling bench'.
Sure it costs more, but new equipment is posh.
So...I'm struggling a bit with
saving $$$ on old vs new cool.
Phil Hobbs
Cool. So _YOU're_ the guy who buys all the gold plated new stuff so
that I can corner all the great retro equipment. My hat's off to you,
sir--you're a public benefactor. I have lots of instruments, but the
only two new ones I've bought in the last 4 years are a 7 GHz sampling
scope and (just last week) a new lock-in, because all the old ones I had
were so horribly out of calibration.
Cheers,
Phil Hobbs
Ecnerwal
D from BC <myreal...@comic.com> wrote:
> Something that says 'This is a kickass work area'.
> Not something that says 'Boat anchor recycling bench'.
When the boat anchors kick the butt of the sleek and stylish, it's no
contest. Function over form.
The 9,000 brands from one factory china specials go for $107-270 on
e*bay, brand new, buy it now (no need for auction drama). And I'm pretty
sure that I mentioned this months ago. The cheaper ones top out at 2MHz,
though. But you can get a new, mystery-crap-brand 20MHz generator for
under $300. Feel free, see if it impresses your date.
As for the prices of 3325As, it's what's called "the going price", "what
the market will bear", etc. I got mine a bit cheaper (under $200
delivered) because it had some minor cosmetic issues and really blurry
pictures, or else the mythical cabal of used equipment dealers that
plagues you missed it, or leaves me alone. If the fan noise bugs you,
invest in a new fan.
Fact - the 3325A beats the pants off the China special. The tiny little
box couldn't even hold all the connectors on the 3325A. Despite only
claiming to go to 20mHZ, the 3325A will actually go to 69.99 MHz (but
not into 50 ohms). The opposite end goes to absurd limits of slow.
--
Cats, coffee, chocolate...vices to live by
D from BC
Yup.. I think I see gold on my almost new DSO (2006).
The probe contact pin makes contact to a gold luster ring around the
BNC.
It's beautiful. :)
Tom Bruhns
> (I think I need a vacation..)
> Almost as bad as the dude that did that Hakko post. :P
>
> Let me try that again...
> I've noticed over several months that ~300US is a popular bidding
> price for the HP 3324A HP function generator.
> Examples
> HP 3325A 20Mhz $301 Item number: 220201270184
> HP 3325A " "$375 Item number: 290207698486
> " $301 220199053599
> " $370 220190335121
> Could list more but E*bay only keeps 100 watch items.
> The rest is from memory and rough stats.
>
> Let's say the bidding price for a HP3325A compresses around $300. I
> suspect that means people know there's something else new not far
> away..
> I'm wondering what it could be.
>
> A 20Mhz B&K signal generator 20Mhz
> Newark: $732.00
> Not too far away...and is some evidence to my theory why ~300.00 is a
> popular bidding price for a HP 3325.
>
> Besides all that...
> What I'm really thinking about is: Is it worth it to get an old 20Mhz
> function generator?
>
> D from BC
> British Columbia
> Canada.
Well, the 3325 came out some time in the early '80's, I believe. One
problem with the A version is that you won't be able to get repair
parts for certain items inside. The B version (early 90's I think it
was) will be a bit easier. Reliability is good, though, so that's
probably not really an issue. You'll want to make sure the frac-N
loop is properly calibrated if you get one, else you'll have spurs
(that you may not really care about that much). The 3325 went out of
production quite some time ago now. The "new improved" model is the
33250 and its relatives, much smaller, goes to 80MHz, and is generally
a very nice little generator. I was sad when the one on loan from the
fellow putting together a test system had to go back to him, when he
was ready to put it into the test system, but boss-man didn't have any
trouble getting my group a couple of our own.
The 3325 has no pointers, dials, analog meters or stuff like that--
it's all synthesized, controlled with pushbuttons, and LED readout of
frequency and level. To me, it's a bit of a pain that it DOESN'T have
a knob you can turn to raise and lower the frequency or level. I'm
not sure, but it may have been the first instrument to use the
fractional-N PLL that was patented; it was done (in essence anyway) by
adding a ramp to the phase comparator output. These days you can buy
frac-N PLL chips that do it a different way, but at the time it was
certainly a pretty important patent to HP.
Whether it's worth it or not to you -- is up to you.
Cheers,
Tom
mi...@sushi.com
When the option exists, get a generator that can be hooked up to a
10Mhz reference. I don't know if the Chinese junk can do that. Most HP
gear can do this. [The 8903B is one that comes to mind that doesn't,
though I wouldn't classify it as a function generator.] Second best is
to make sure it is synthesized, even if it won't lock on an external
reference. A lot of HP gear isn't synthesized. Some synthesized
signal generators will at least provide their reference, s you can
sync something else to it. All that comes in handy if you want to
build sampled data systems out of bench components.
It been my experience that Wavetek stuff is poorly made. I won't buy
it used or even new for that matter. Philips gear can be touchy. I
haven't had any issues with their DMMs, but I have a PM5191 that no
longer does anything but TTL. Granted it wasn't expensive ($125, but a
long time ago).
I've used a lot of SRS (Stanford Research) gear and found it to be
good, though often the operation seemed awkward.
D from BC
Yup..On that side too..
I'd say the HP 3325A 20Mhz function generator is best of the boat
anchors for function. It's probably why I've watched it so much on
E*bay and not the china boxes.
I just find it mysterious how the E*bay HP 3325 price seems to level
off around $300.00.
Why not 600 or 700 or 1000?
It suggests there's something better at those prices. What that is,I
dunno yet. Maybe there's nothing..Perhaps it's just a huge price jump
to the latest DDS or arbitrary function generators.
I'll have to shop around.
Funny...you recalled my theory about used equipment dealers gobbling
up HP equipment.. Yah never know :)
Neato...I didn't know the 3325 goes to 69.99Mhz..
Makes it more worth it.
D from BC
wrote:
Interesting... :)
Early 80's!!
That's like 200 years ago in techno time :P
(Consider $60.00 for that Australian 85Mhz DDS USB board on E*bay.)
About the 80Mhz Agilent 33250A...
As on
http://canada.newark.com/27C6564/test-measurement-equipment/product.us0?sku=AGILENT-TECHNOLOGIES-33250A-ABA
Yikes $4963!
Certainly not a boat anchor :P
And it's got a good honking knob too...The way I like it.. :)
Not like the pecker operation on the HP 3325.
D from BC
I think I saw an E*bay Wavetek generator with all membrane pad
control.
Membrane pads can have little tactile feedback to know how hard to
press.
I'll probably be chasing after the Wavetek keypad with each poke that
moves the unit further away. :P
mi...@sushi.com
Yes, those keypads suck, but not for the reason you think. When they
get old, the debounce circuit can't handle the signal The SRS gear is
probably membrane too, but it isn't crappy.
http://www.thinksrs.com/
I don't own any SRS gear, but I never complained about using it at
various labs. The DS345 or old DS340 are kind of cool. I did a
complicated setup using two of them and a DSP analyzer all running off
of one reference. You can vary the phase between generators, though
IIRC it takes a scope to do this. That is, the generators are not
"aware" of each other enough to set up relative phase via GPIB. If you
look at the website, you will notice the low distortion generator
can't be synched (no reference jack). This is really common. The only
low distortion generator I ever saw was a B&K (the Danish company).
I have HP gear so old it uses the old style IEC cords. They really
built them back then. Of course, everything will break your back since
the definition of portable back then was man-movable.
Note much of the HP RF gear is really high distortion. I have the old
8660C series that is much cleaner, plus has 1Hz steps so you can test
crystal filters. These trade on ebay all the time, but I got a broken
"unable to test" unit. I did some deals with the plug ins plus cash to
get it fixed from a local guru. Freakin' heavy is a kind description.
Ecnerwal
D from BC <myreal...@comic.com> wrote:
> Neato...I didn't know the 3325 goes to 69.99Mhz..
> Makes it more worth it.
You can download the manual from Agilent. Stick 3325A into the search
box. Triangle waves and ramps are limited to 10.999999999KHz, square
waves go to 10.999999999MHz, and sine waves to 20.999999999 Mhz (all
will drive 50 ohms). Minimum is 1 uHz for all.
The auxiliary sine output goes from 19.000000001MHz to 60.999999999Mhz
(misremembered by 9Mhz) and does drive 50 Ohms (also misremembered) but
at a fixed amplitude (0 dBm)
The lack of a dial is not a big deal. There are up/down buttons, and you
can select which digit you would like to manipulate to control the
speed/step size of going up/down. The sweep functions are delightful, as
compared to some other sweep generators I've muddled with.
Michael A. Terrell
>
> Early 80's!!
> That's like 200 years ago in techno time :P
> (Consider $60.00 for that Australian 85Mhz DDS USB board on E*bay.)
>
> About the 80Mhz Agilent 33250A...
> As on
> http://canada.newark.com/27C6564/test-measurement-equipment/product.us0?sku=AGILENT-TECHNOLOGIES-33250A-ABA
> Yikes $4963!
> Certainly not a boat anchor :P
> And it's got a good honking knob too...The way I like it.. :)
> Not like the pecker operation on the HP 3325.
I used a 3325A almost daily for two years, and never missed any
knobs. Also, it can be computer controlled for SATE or ATE
applications. the ability to set the output by voltage or dB level is
VERY handy, and the digital DC offset was great for doing precision
measurements on slow AGC systems where the level was integrated up to a
ten second period.
Another place that it was great was doing bandwidth measurements on
video filters where you could read the frequency to the nearest Hz. The
only problems we had were a few failed relays in the output attenuators.
--
Service to my country? Been there, Done that, and I've got my DD214 to
prove it.
Member of DAV #85.
Michael A. Terrell
Central Florida
Michael A. Terrell
>
> When the option exists, get a generator that can be hooked up to a
> 10Mhz reference. I don't know if the Chinese junk can do that. Most HP
> gear can do this. [The 8903B is one that comes to mind that doesn't,
> though I wouldn't classify it as a function generator.] Second best is
> to make sure it is synthesized, even if it won't lock on an external
> reference. A lot of HP gear isn't synthesized. Some synthesized
> signal generators will at least provide their reference, s you can
> sync something else to it. All that comes in handy if you want to
> build sampled data systems out of bench components.
>
> It been my experience that Wavetek stuff is poorly made. I won't buy
> it used or even new for that matter. Philips gear can be touchy. I
> haven't had any issues with their DMMs, but I have a PM5191 that no
> longer does anything but TTL. Granted it wasn't expensive ($125, but a
> long time ago).
There were piles of spare, and dead Wavetek crap in the cal lab. The
function generators were temperamental, the DC offset drifted, and the
pots to set the frequency wore out. They RF sweep generators were even
worse. Spurs, and too often, the end of the band was right where you
needed to work. After Microdyne stopped building C-band equipment, it
was pretty much retired.
> I've used a lot of SRS (Stanford Research) gear and found it to be
> good, though often the operation seemed awkward.
Michael A. Terrell
>
> I think I saw an E*bay Wavetek generator with all membrane pad
> control.
> Membrane pads can have little tactile feedback to know how hard to
> press.
> I'll probably be chasing after the Wavetek keypad with each poke that
> moves the unit further away. :P
Sane yourself the time and put your trashcan behind the bench.
United Video had a bunch of Wavetek crap to align CATV equipment. We
also had a tektronix spectrum analyzer plugin for a scope. I tried the
new wavetek stuff once, and left it sitting on the shelf over the bench
for the next four years I worked there. They had a 12" 'scope' made
with a B&W TV CRT. That, with their sweep generator and a diode detector
was supposed to be usable to align trunk and bridging amplifiers.
John O'Flaherty
<Lawren...@SOuthernVERmont.NyET> wrote:
>In article <er5nr3pufq6uht7hq...@4ax.com>,
> D from BC <myreal...@comic.com> wrote:
>
>> Neato...I didn't know the 3325 goes to 69.99Mhz..
>> Makes it more worth it.
>
>You can download the manual from Agilent. Stick 3325A into the search
>box. Triangle waves and ramps are limited to 10.999999999KHz,
Do you really mean 11 KHz? It just seems way less than the other
forms.
> square
>waves go to 10.999999999MHz, and sine waves to 20.999999999 Mhz (all
>will drive 50 ohms). Minimum is 1 uHz for all.
>
>The auxiliary sine output goes from 19.000000001MHz to 60.999999999Mhz
>(misremembered by 9Mhz) and does drive 50 Ohms (also misremembered) but
>at a fixed amplitude (0 dBm)
>
>The lack of a dial is not a big deal. There are up/down buttons, and you
>can select which digit you would like to manipulate to control the
>speed/step size of going up/down. The sweep functions are delightful, as
>compared to some other sweep generators I've muddled with.
--
John
Ecnerwal
John O'Flaherty <quia...@yeeha.com> wrote:
> Do you really mean 11 KHz? It just seems way less than the other
> forms.
Yes, barring that last microhertz. Labeled for 10 Khz, but actually
works to 1 uHz less than 11 KHz. I presume it's got to do with
generating nice linear ramps being somewhat trickier than sine and
square, at least with the technology of the day.
Nico Coesel
>In article <er5nr3pufq6uht7hq...@4ax.com>,
> D from BC <myreal...@comic.com> wrote:
>
>> Neato...I didn't know the 3325 goes to 69.99Mhz..
>> Makes it more worth it.
>
>You can download the manual from Agilent. Stick 3325A into the search
>box. Triangle waves and ramps are limited to 10.999999999KHz, square
>waves go to 10.999999999MHz, and sine waves to 20.999999999 Mhz (all
>will drive 50 ohms). Minimum is 1 uHz for all.
>
>The auxiliary sine output goes from 19.000000001MHz to 60.999999999Mhz
>(misremembered by 9Mhz) and does drive 50 Ohms (also misremembered) but
>at a fixed amplitude (0 dBm)
>
>The lack of a dial is not a big deal. There are up/down buttons, and you
I think a dial is mandatory for a function generator. There is also a
different type of HP generator namely the HP3314A which is IMHO more
general purpose (read usefull) than the HP3325.
--
Programmeren in Almere?
E-mail naar nico@nctdevpuntnl (punt=.)
Tom Bruhns
> Yikes $4963!
> Certainly not a boat anchor :P
> And it's got a good honking knob too...The way I like it.. :)
> Not like the pecker operation on the HP 3325.
>
> D from BC
> British Columbia
> Canada.
Be aware that the knob on the A33250 is used to increment/decrement
the selected parameter (frequency or amplitude) digitally. You can
select the digit in the display that it modifies, so for example you
can step in 1 MHz steps, 100kHz steps, ... 1Hz steps, ... 0.001Hz
steps... (I think it goes that low...) It's not the same as an old-
fashioned knob controlling a variable capacitor or resistor with
"infinite" resolution. That's not to say it's inferior; it's just
different and takes a bit of getting used to if you haven't used other
equipment that operates similarly. But all my HP/Agilent gear works
about the same in this regard. Note: if you select the amplitude
display in dBm, the knob modifies dBm. If you select the amplitude in
volts, the knob modifies volts. Though the 3325 lacks a knob, it does
let you modify digits. In the "modify" group of four buttons, you can
go up and down by pressing an ^ or v button, and select which digit to
modify by pressing the < or > button. The effect is the similar to
using the knob--sometimes more convenient, sometimes less.
Though the HP3325A is a good generator, it does have some limits. I
recall wanting to use it to in essence divide a frequency down for a
digital application; I could set up two 3325A generators running from
the same reference and select output frequencies in the ratio I
wanted. But I discovered that the jitter or phase noise of the
outputs relative to each other was not terribly good. I have the
impression that the 33250 uses a direct digital synthesis scheme,
which should have much better phase noise.
Cheers,
Tom
D from BC
<mike.t...@earthlink.net> wrote:
>D from BC wrote:
>>
>> I think I saw an E*bay Wavetek generator with all membrane pad
>> control.
>> Membrane pads can have little tactile feedback to know how hard to
>> press.
>> I'll probably be chasing after the Wavetek keypad with each poke that
>> moves the unit further away. :P
>
>
> Sane yourself the time and put your trashcan behind the bench.
>United Video had a bunch of Wavetek crap to align CATV equipment. We
>also had a tektronix spectrum analyzer plugin for a scope. I tried the
>new wavetek stuff once, and left it sitting on the shelf over the bench
>for the next four years I worked there. They had a 12" 'scope' made
>with a B&W TV CRT. That, with their sweep generator and a diode detector
>was supposed to be usable to align trunk and bridging amplifiers.
You certainly make the Wavetek generators sound like boat anchors.
Big.
Heavy..
Worn out...
And gets tossed overboard. :P
Michael A. Terrell
>
> You certainly make the Wavetek generators sound like boat anchors.
> Big.
> Heavy..
> Worn out...
> And gets tossed overboard. :P
Don't forget to add concrete, so no one can drag them back to the
surface. :(
Paul Mathews
>
> - Show quoted text -
I confess to getting a lot of use out of a couple of old Wavetek 145
Pulse/Function generators that I picked up for about $50 each. They
have lots of useful inputs, outputs, and knob controls and lots of
output amplitude and DC offset adjustment, and they take up a lot less
bench space than HP3325s (which I also have). I've cycled a half dozen
145s through my lab. They often have one of the output transistors
shorted, but that's an easy repair job. Just don't expect low
distortion or particularly fast rise and fall times.
Many pieces of older test gear, including HP, will be in need of some
lube and contact cleaning work. Caig Lube seems about the best product
for that.
Paul Mathews
D from BC
<myreal...@comic.com> wrote:
[snip]
>I've noticed over several months that ~300US is a popular bidding
>price for the HP 3325A HP function generator.
>Examples
>HP 3325A 20Mhz $301 Item number: 220201270184
>HP 3325A " "$375 Item number: 290207698486
>" $301 220199053599
>" $370 220190335121
>Could list more but E*bay only keeps 100 watch items.
>The rest is from memory and rough stats.
>
[snip]
I'd like to add that recently
for HP 3325A:
Price E*bay Item number
$407 190198690637
$259 320216764947
Active 200200995997 << Will guess $350.00
The mystery is why $300 to $400 is the 'going price'.
Generally people won't pay more if there's something else better.
I think I know what that could be...
It's the AD DDS evaluation boards and software that go for $250
http://www.analog.com/en/prod/0%2C2877%2CAD9852%2C00.html
At first glance I think an AD9852 eval board can outperform a HP3325A.
But I'm no DDS expert..
Tom2000
<myreal...@comic.com> wrote:
>
>The mystery is why $300 to $400 is the 'going price'.
>Generally people won't pay more if there's something else better.
>
I'm guessing basic supply and demand. I haven't looked at generators,
but I occasionally watch oscilloscopes on the bay.
It seems there's always a preferred "scope du jour" that has been
dumped on the market in large quantities by military or industrial
outlets. If that particular scope meets your needs, you're in luck,
because the flood of them has made them a good value.
Maybe you're seeing the same thing for generators.
Tom
Tom Bruhns
> On Tue, 19 Feb 2008 12:42:27 -0800, D from BC
>
>
> [snip]>I've noticed over several months that ~300US is a popular bidding
> >price for the HP 3325A HP function generator.
> >Examples
> >HP 3325A 20Mhz $301 Item number: 220201270184
> >HP 3325A " "$375 Item number: 290207698486
> >" $301 220199053599
> >" $370 220190335121
> >Could list more but E*bay only keeps 100 watch items.
> >The rest is from memory and rough stats.
>
> [snip]
>
> I'd like to add that recently
> for HP 3325A:
> Price E*bay Item number
> $407 190198690637
> $259 320216764947
> Active 200200995997 << Will guess $350.00
>
> The mystery is why $300 to $400 is the 'going price'.
> Generally people won't pay more if there's something else better.
>
> I think I know what that could be...
> At first glance I think an AD9852 eval board can outperform a HP3325A.
> But I'm no DDS expert..
>
> D from BC
> British Columbia
> Canada.
With a DDS eval board, do you get a stand-along instrument that's
rugged, has full front-panel control of all functions, can output 10V
into 50 ohms, looks like a good clean 50 ohms source, has accurate
output amplitude control done in a way that the signal quality isn't
degraded at low output amplitudes, whose output can include a DC
offset, whose output can float up to 40 volts from ground, can output
sine, square or triangle, outputs a sync pulse with settable phase
relative to the output waveform, can do frequency sweeps without any
additional software, ... Need I go on??
I suspect it's more a supply-vs-demand-vs-perceived-value thing.
Though old, the 3325 is still a decent, reliable generator. Given a
choice between a free HP3325 and a free AD9852 eval board I'd for sure
pick the HP3325, because my vision would be to use it as a general
purpose instrument on my bench. Given a choice between a free HP3325
and a free Agilent PSG, I'd for sure pick the PSG, not just because
it's a lot more expensive instrument, but also because it generates
signals more in line with what I use on a regular basis. Get the
generator that fits your budget AND does the work you want reliably
enough for your application.
Cheers,
Tom
john jardine
"Paul Mathews" <op...@whidbey.com> wrote in message
news:6502e4f7-973f-4d27...@e6g2000prf.googlegroups.com...
I've the 20MHz, 30Vpp 145 and the 164 that'll do 20Vpp to 30MHz. UK wise the
Wavetek stuff seems as hard to come by as rocking horse s*** and although I
paid about $90 each I've found 'em indispensable and worth every penny.
Horses for courses, I'm not wanting frequency and amplitude precision in the
ppm area, or rise times any better than 20nS, or crappy GPIB, or plasma
displays, or networking, or internet connectivity or any of the other 'must
have' fluff that people seem to want to pay lots of money for.
At the moment they're earning their keep simulating frequency dither on a
particular 50Hz site generator. Yep, oodles and oodles of knobs to twiddle
and switches to switch. Took about 10 minutes to set up and tweak. Hate to
think of trying to key that lot into some expensive digital units.
D from BC
D from BC
wrote:
>On Feb 21, 11:49 pm, D from BC <myrealaddr...@comic.com> wrote:
Cool.. :)
Thanks for clarifying the DDS performance.
I might get a AD9852 Eval board someday.