RadioBanter - Advice on Oscilloscopes Sought

RadioBanter (https://www.radiobanter.com/)

- Homebrew (https://www.radiobanter.com/homebrew/)

- - Advice on Oscilloscopes Sought (https://www.radiobanter.com/homebrew/103746-advice-oscilloscopes-sought.html)

Advice on Oscilloscopes Sought

Being relatively new to ham radio, I am considering some form of
oscilloscope. I am intrigued by PC-based systems (eg., BitScope Pocket
Analyzer)

I've read a few NG posts about used HP scopes and a few negative remarks
about PC scopes.

My question:

Given my neophyte status and the likelihood that I would use a scope for
anything more the basic / with learning, moderate/ complexity,
.... is the PC-based scope a good choice for me?
Cost is under $400, not incl. a $40 analog probe.

John
AB8O

PS, apologies for cross-posting to two groups...just trying to get some
good answers!

Advice on Oscilloscopes Sought

jawod wrote:
Being relatively new to ham radio, I am considering some form of
oscilloscope. I am intrigued by PC-based systems (eg., BitScope Pocket
Analyzer)

I've read a few NG posts about used HP scopes and a few negative remarks
about PC scopes.

My question:

Given my neophyte status and the likelihood that I would use a scope for
anything more the basic / with learning, moderate/ complexity,
... is the PC-based scope a good choice for me?
Cost is under $400, not incl. a $40 analog probe.

If you are willing to go the Ebay route, and your budget is in the $400
range, you can pick up a seriously nice analog scope. I have a pair of
Tektronix 2245As in my lab that cost me quite a bit less than that each.
If you really need a DSO then that puts the price up a bit.
If your need is for something small and portable, then some of the newer
stuff is probably the only option, but I doubt you will get the same
level of performance/price.

Welcome to the hobby, BTW! I'm really pleased to see your interest in
getting the test equipment side in motion.
I am QRV on most bands from 160m to 10Gigs, and the majority of my gear
is homebrew. I have been a ham for almost four decades, and over that
time have spent a lot more on test gear than I have on commercial
radios. Having the gear to check out my creations goes a long way to
having the confidence to actually put them on the air and make contacts.

There is an old piece of wisdom that HP can't make a 'scope, and Tek
can't make a spectrum analyser. My experience supports that.

Maybe that doesn't answer your question directly, but I hope that helps
in some way.

GL & 73, Alf NU8I
Scottsdale AZ DM43an
160m 10Gigs

Advice on Oscilloscopes Sought

I have turned away from PC based test equipment because my PC changes
every few years and my applications become "Legacy Applications" that
either die or require an expensive upgrade.

The older test equipment still works as good as it ever did. Pick a
readily available scope (EBAY?) and read the specs. Compare it to the
other candidates.

Chances are that a Tektronix 453 with a bright screen will do
everything you want for less than $100 including shipping.
It just gets better from there.

Considering they are now 40 years old and still useful is mind
boggling!

Pick one, buy it, learn it. If it does not meet your expectations you
can usually get something out of it on Ebay & buy another.

On Thu, 07 Sep 2006 23:03:43 -0400, jawod wrote:

Being relatively new to ham radio, I am considering some form of
oscilloscope. I am intrigued by PC-based systems (eg., BitScope Pocket
Analyzer)

I've read a few NG posts about used HP scopes and a few negative remarks
about PC scopes.

My question:

Given my neophyte status and the likelihood that I would use a scope for
anything more the basic / with learning, moderate/ complexity,
... is the PC-based scope a good choice for me?
Cost is under $400, not incl. a $40 analog probe.

John
AB8O

PS, apologies for cross-posting to two groups...just trying to get some
good answers!
John Ferrell W8CCW

Advice on Oscilloscopes Sought

Hi John,

"John Ferrell" wrote in message
...
I have turned away from PC based test equipment because my PC changes
every few years and my applications become "Legacy Applications" that
either die or require an expensive upgrade.

I agree, although I'd say this is less of a problem these days than, say, a
decade back... if you go with a USB interface there's a good chance the driver
will work over the course of a couple major Windows OSes (e.g., Windows XP is
largely backwards compatible with drivers back to NT); if test equipment
manufacturers started using Ethernet more often, it'd make the equipment more
or less usable over more than a decade of OSes.

The other nice thing in recent years is that laptops are now cheap enough
(~$500 new) that you can often afford to, e.g., dedicate one to some
specialized piece of test equpiment you have indefinitely. Desktops are
ridiculously cheap -- ~$250 new in many cases --, but of course bulkier (and
no integrated LCD).

Chances are that a Tektronix 453 with a bright screen will do
everything you want for less than $100 including shipping.
It just gets better from there.

Any analog scope has rather limited utility for debugging digital logic. It
can certainly be done, but I'd defy you to try to debug, e.g., an I2C or
RS-232 exchange that hangs with one.

Pick one, buy it, learn it. If it does not meet your expectations you
can usually get something out of it on Ebay & buy another.

This is good advice... those old scopes have pretty much depreciated as much
as they're going to, so learning on one is relatively cheap.

---Joel

Advice on Oscilloscopes Sought