Dynamic Signal Analyzer

[Bloomfield]

I've been looking for an oscilloscope for the last while and haven't come up with anything lately. I just saw a Hewlett Packard 35665A on a surplus site for quite a low starting bid. I looked a bit online and it seems that it can do the work of an oscilloscope and a lot more, but maybe it would be overly complicated and perhaps impractical. I don't really see myself using it for anything other than audio, although I might end up dabbling in radio at some point.

Does anyone have experience with these? Worth a bid, or wait for a cheap scope to turn up?

Thanks,

Andy

[g1]

I'd wait. But I don't like buttons as opposed to knobs.

[mozz]

Really not a scope. It only goes to 104khz so kind of forget radio unless you are doing lowfer stuff. I have a HP digital scope 54510a which i have already had to recap because of age. Not fun. This item is just about as old so in the near future it's gonna need a recap.

If you want it for audio work, i would suggest go to a hamfest, went to one today, scopes for cheap. I just sold a B&K 60mhz here for $50 and have a old Textronix 5000 series for sale at the same price. Maybe try a local wanted to buy ad.

[dmeek]

This unit is not really an oscilloscope, It's an audio analyzer with a simple oscilloscope mode.
For many years I raged against digital oscilloscopes but lately I've mellowed out a bit and I now
say that a digital scope is good for digital circuits. That is, circuits that have sequential actions
and you need a memory to capture an event. Not needed in most audio testing.

I use a Tektronix 7000 Series system but an old BK 10MHz single trace would be good enough for 98%
of what I do. I wouldn't bother with a digital scope.

That said the 35665A looks like a fun toy to play with.

[Bloomfield]

I'd wait. But I don't like buttons as opposed to knobs.

That was one of my main thoughts. They're not as bad as touch screens though.

Thanks everyone, I think I'll give it a miss. I've never seen a hamfest here, but I'll keep my eyes open. Scopes do come up on the online ads once in a while, but are usually fairly pricey. If I get to Ontario in the summer there is better selection there. I'll keep looking; analog would definitely be my preference.

Andy

[nevetslab]

That was one of my main thoughts. They're not as bad as touch screens though.

Thanks everyone, I think I'll give it a miss. I've never seen a hamfest here, but I'll keep my eyes open. Scopes do come up on the online ads once in a while, but are usually fairly pricey. If I get to Ontario in the summer there is better selection there. I'll keep looking; analog would definitely be my preference.

Andy

Living up in Nova Scotia kind of limits you to having to deal with shipping costs and tariffs I guess. I haven't had to search for an inexpensive Analog scope for years, but would imagine you could find one among the various used equipment dealers, and perhaps even on Craigs list. Shpg & Tariff's may be more than the cost of the scope, unless you can find one up in Canada. Who's that used test gear house up in Toronto? you might even check with Pearl Hi-Fi...Bill Perkins, if memory serves....he's up in Canada a couple provinces west of you. He's an equipment junkie like I am and others here....who knows...he might have a nice box that's gathering dust that would be in good condition.

While I like Digital scopes, the ones I have need a whole lot more bench space than I have here (LeCroy 7200A, Analogic 6100 with various plug-ins). My daily dirt box is a Tektronix 7633 Storage Scope which I love, been running for decades now.

[Bloomfield]

Thanks Nevetslab, I just had a look and there are actually quite a few radio clubs around the province, and there is at least one ham flea market coming up in the next month, so I will check that out for sure. There are also a lot of universities and military facilities here, so surplus does sometimes come up, but it's generally not what it used to be. If I don't find anything locally I will have a look around if I head west in the summer.

[nosaj]

Thanks Nevetslab, I just had a look and there are actually quite a few radio clubs around the province, and there is at least one ham flea market coming up in the next month, so I will check that out for sure. There are also a lot of universities and military facilities here, so surplus does sometimes come up, but it's generally not what it used to be. If I don't find anything locally I will have a look around if I head west in the summer.

I just picked up an Hp 54602b 4 channel storage scope also does frequency and voltage measurements for a $130. Apparantntly around here there is a guy around here who only deals in oscilloscopes for the schools and colleges and sells them on the bay. They are even calibrated with the sticker.

nosaj

[g1]

an old BK 10MHz single trace would be good enough for 98%
of what I do.

I had to fall back on to one of these (model 1465 15Mhz) about 15yrs ago. You are right about it being good enough in most cases. Every once in a while I wish I had a dual trace, but not enough to actually go look for one. If one presented itself to me at a good price I would not hesitate though.

[glebert]

I use an old Telequipment single trace tube scope for my 98%, works fine for signal tracing and what not. I have a Tek TDS 420a four channel digital scope that I got for $14 from a thrift shop. I would probably use that more if I had more usable probes for it, since all I have is a high frequency probe with very short little ground lead wire. It is really nice when you need to do an accurate time or voltage measurement or capture a glitch.