[time-nuts] Chinese Scopes (was: Re: LORAN-C at MIT)

[Don Latham]

I just can't help it. I like moving the mouse pointer over the slider
and clicking or moving or just typing in a value. My latest scope
(Bitscope)is from Australia, cost $250 inflated $ and all functions are
done via PC. In addition, there is a dll if I want to roll my own app,
and a suite of apps available on a website. The scope occupies as much
or as little screen area as i like, the body is a huge 2 1/2 x 2 1/2 x
1/2 inches. I/O (yep, a built-in signal source) for the scope and an
8-channel digital analyzer is via .1 in spaced terminals. Needs some
special connectors made for RF, but that is one of the only drawbacks.
I've been a knob twiddler for over 50 years now, and USB or 'net test
equipment is my current choice.
That rant delivered, I admit that I simply do not need test lab or
metrological acccuracy, for which one now has to go to R&S or maybe
Agilent, and pay the price for the additional decimal places.
Don

Hal Murray
>
> jfor at quikus.com said:
>> Going through layer after layer of ever more obtuse menus is just not
>> 'user
>> friendly' to me. Maybe it is to the designers, because they are used
>> to a
>> 10,000+ character alphabet?
>
> How much of that is because you want to use fancy features that didn't
> even
> exist on older scopes?
>
> Here is an example:  The switch from small/fast to big/slow memory is
> buried
> deep in a menu.  That's better than cluttering up the box with another
> button.
>
>
> My Rigol DS1102E has 6 knobs, 17 dedicated push buttons, and 5 menu
> buttons.
>
> One of the knobs is trigger level.  2 are horizontal scale and position.
>  2
> are vertical scale and position.  The 6th knob is for the current menu
> item.
>
> The vertical knobs are shared by both input channels.  If you want to
> adjust
> the other channel you have to poke a button first.  Sure, I'd prefer 2
> more
> knobs.  I can live with this.  It's not obvious how to fit in 2 more
> knobs if
> you did decide that was important.  Making the box an inch wider looks
> like
> the obvious way.
>
> Glancing at my old Tek 465, the thing that I think I would miss most is
> the
> AC/DC coupling switch on the input.  I won't miss the Focus knob. :)
>
> Neither scope has an optional 50 ohm terminator on the inputs.
>
> -----------
>
> I think there are 2 patterns for using a scope.  One is chasing a
> glitch.
> The other is collecting data.
>
> When I'm chasing a glitch, I occasionally have to wander around in the
> menus.
>  Yes, it's annoying.  Part of the problem is that I sometimes don't
> remember
> how to get where I want to go so I make a few false starts.  Overall,
> it's
> not a lot more time than it took me to setup the hardware.  (I remember
> having to find a pair of coax cables with matched length.)
>
> It would be fun to hack the firmware to record all the button/knob
> actions.
>
> Once I have things setup, collecting more data is as simple as watching
> the
> screen or poking Enter on my PC.
>
> ----------
>
> If you want to be critical, I see two weak areas.
>
> One is the documentation and/or firmware for remote control.  It's good
> enough, at least if you are stubborn, but far from good.  (I haven't
> tried
> their software: no Windows boxes here.)
>
>
> The other is the probes.  Good probes are still expensive.  The Rigol
> unit
> came with old big/clunky probes.  Why would anybody want a 1x/10x switch
> on
> their probe?  (I guess it might be interesting if you were working on
> small,
> slow signals, but I haven't done that in a long time.)
>
> For probes, there is a knee in the curve somewhere around 200 MHz.  With
> a
> bit of care, you can get reasonable pictures up through 100 MHz.  Beyond
> that, you have to really pay attention and good/small probes help.  They
> also
> help with modern surface mount parts.
>
>
> --
> These are my opinions, not necessarily my employer's.  I hate spam.
>
>
>
>
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-- 
"Neither the voice of authority nor the weight of reason and argument
are as significant as experiment, for thence comes quiet to the mind."
R. Bacon
"If you don't know what it is, don't poke it."
Ghost in the Shell


Dr. Don Latham AJ7LL
Six Mile Systems LLP
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POB 134
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