On Thu, Feb 23, 2023 at 04:08 PM, Rob, W9LOT wrote:
I am a new Ham. Just purchased Ultra. One of the use cases I will use is for RFI finding.
Any one could suggest a small portable attenuator? How many levels would you suggest?
Hi Rob,
If you are standing that close to such a powerful source of RF or interference, you may also have to consider health issues :-)
It's always sensible to play on the safe side and start with an attenuator connected. A small 20dB attenuator, rated at 1 or 1/2 watt with SMA connectors would be a good starting point. At higher power levels attenuators begin to become quite large, but I find that a 20dB attenuator rated at 100 watts to be probably the most useful in the workshop. This brings 100watts down to a more manageable 1 watt, that allows the use of additional smaller 1 watt attenuators as required.
The TinySA already has a reasonable dynamic range, so as long as you don't exceed the recommended input level, and are using it in conjunction with a relatively small antenna, then you should have enough in hand to be able to differentiate between the strongest and weakest signals you are ever likely to encounter, unless of course you are standing right next to a transmit antenna.
Regards,
Martin
