Re: Question on Attenuation Specification below "MF" frequencies .
#specifications
On Fri, Sep 24, 2021 at 07:01 AM, Mark W2OR wrote:
Since "MF" covers freqs down to 300-kHz, it would be good to know if this useful attenuation feature also covers the lower frequencies, from 300-kHz down to 100-kHz .
The MF/HF/VHF, or also called the "Low", input is specified between 100kHz and 350MHz. The term MF/HF/VHF is used to distinguish with the UHF or also called "High" input, not for specification of the range ? --
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For more info on the tinySA go to https://tinysa.org/wiki/
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Question on Attenuation Specification below "MF" frequencies .
#specifications
On the TinySA Home Page it states, Quote:?? "Input Step attenuator from 0dB to 31dB for the MF/HF/VHF input"
Since "MF" covers freqs down to 300-kHz, it would be good to know if this useful attenuation feature also covers the lower frequencies, from 300-kHz down to 100-kHz .
If this question is addressed authoritatively??in the manual, or on the TinySA wiki page, kindly let us know the specific web link.? Thank you.
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Thank you.? Sure looks like Erik’s.
?
Kind Regards,
Dave
Dave Reiser
Phone:
301-216-5394
Mobile:
301-802-1929
Email:?
davereiser2outlook.com
520 Russell Avenue, Gaithersburg, MD 20877
?
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From: [email protected] < [email protected]> On Behalf Of
BenS
Sent: Thursday, September 23, 2021 6:07 PM
To: [email protected]
Subject: Re: [tinysa] Question
?
@Dave:
As I happen to use, just by chance,?a white tip variant of the pen which Erik uses I think I recognise it as a Papermate 0.7 mm Non-Stop Mechanical Pencil.
For you these maybe the easiest and cheapest to buy from the UK store as it looks an "international" variant of the Paper Mate:
The white tip variant is called a Paper Mate Sharpwriter and can be purchased in smaller quantities:
?
So far for the "real stuff", as opposed to the, probably much better, touchy recommendations from Karl Jan
(I myself at least managed to destroy my mechanical pencil during an internal investigation, most likely not by ESD but due to overloading).
?
What actually made me react on the topic is the point that this "Question" in itself shows that Erik is becoming a real star influencer on this forum.
Really hope he and we all benefit from this, because his tinySA is marvelous.
BenS
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Would it not make sense to say what your question is about rather than just "Question"?
larry
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Re: Attenuator Fail - Again
On Thu, Sep 23, 2021 at 03:53 PM, Steven Reed wrote:
I ran the attenuator test and I’m definitely getting the steps, so there’s no doubt that the attenuator has failed.
Steve, The 2dB stage of the attenuator is gone. If you always keep the attenuator on manual and operate it in 4dB steps (including during calibration) you will still get reliable measurements. Otherwise the error is at most 2dB. Replacing a PE4302 using a hot air station works well. Make sure you do not accidentally knock of some other small components when the PCB is hot and keep the heating time limited as to not overheat the display
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For more info on the tinySA go to https://tinysa.org/wiki/
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Re: Attenuator Fail - Again
Yes.? I have a small SMD rework station.? The heat can be focused, the old chip removed, and a new one reinstalled.? It’s like brain surgery, though.? These things are originally built by robots.
?
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On Thu, Sep 23, 2021 at 05:15 PM, Steven Reed wrote:
Thanks!? I saw that Amazon listing but passed because the seller is in China and there were no reviews.? Went with this one instead.? It’s eBay but the seller was in California and had a 100 percent rating:
?Steve,
Sounds good.? Are you going to use a hot air tool to desolder the old part?? I seem to recall it has a solder connection under the chip.? If so you can use Kapton tape to mask off the other parts around the 4302 from the heat.?
Roger
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Re: Attenuator Fail - Again
On Thu, Sep 23, 2021 at 05:15 PM, Steven Reed wrote:
Thanks!? I saw that Amazon listing but passed because the seller is in China and there were no reviews.? Went with this one instead.? It’s eBay but the seller was in California and had a 100 percent rating:
?Steve, Sounds good.? Are you going to use a hot air tool to desolder the old part?? I seem to recall it has a solder connection under the chip.? If so you can use Kapton tape to mask off the other parts around the 4302 from the heat.? Roger
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Re: Attenuator Fail - Again
Thanks!? I saw that Amazon listing but passed because the seller is in China and there were no reviews.? Went with this one instead.? It’s eBay but the seller was in California and had a 100 percent rating:
?
?
Steve, KW4H
?
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On Thu, Sep 23, 2021 at 03:53 PM, Steven Reed wrote:
?
The attenuator chip in my TinySA is a PE4302.? It’s now obsolete; however, the drop-in replacement is a PE4312.? And the PE4312 is out of stock everywhere, with very long lead times.? I guess it’s a victim of
the global chip shortage.? There are sellers on eBay that claim to have the PE4302.? Weighing the options.? I have a well-stocked workbench and a huge lighted magnifying glass on a swing-arm – I might just go ahead and replace it.
?
This Amazon seller has some PE4302.? At least with Amazon if they don't show up or are fakes you easily get your money back.??
Roger
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Re: Attenuator Fail - Again
On Thu, Sep 23, 2021 at 03:53 PM, Steven Reed wrote:
?
The attenuator chip in my TinySA is a PE4302.? It’s now obsolete; however, the drop-in replacement is a PE4312.? And the PE4312 is out of stock everywhere, with very long lead times.? I guess it’s a victim of the global chip shortage.? There are sellers on eBay that claim to have the PE4302.? Weighing the options.? I have a well-stocked workbench and a huge lighted magnifying glass on a swing-arm – I might just go ahead and replace it.
?
This Amazon seller has some PE4302.? At least with Amazon if they don't show up or are fakes you easily get your money back.?? Roger
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Re: Attenuator Fail - Again
While you are at it, you could build your own attenuator with the help
of these links:
Good luck and have fun.
73,
Andrew, W5AWS.
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-----Original Message----- From: Steven Reed <reedsteve59@...> Reply-To: [email protected]To: [email protected] < [email protected]> Subject: Re: [tinysa] Attenuator Fail - Again Date: Thu, 23 Sep 2021 22:53:32 +0000 Roger, Thanks for the tip.? I ran the attenuator test and I’m definitely getting the steps, so there’s no doubt that the attenuator has failed. The attenuator chip in my TinySA is a PE4302.? It’s now obsolete; however, the drop-in replacement is a PE4312.? And the PE4312 is out of stock everywhere, with very long lead times.? I guess it’s a victim of the global chip shortage.? There are sellers on eBay that claim to have the PE4302.? Weighing the options.? I have a well-stocked workbench and a huge lighted magnifying glass on a swing-arm – I might just go ahead and replace it. Steve, KW4H
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Re: Attenuator Fail - Again
Roger,
?
Thanks for the tip.? I ran the attenuator test and I’m definitely getting the steps, so there’s no doubt that the attenuator has failed.
?
The attenuator chip in my TinySA is a PE4302.? It’s now obsolete; however, the drop-in replacement is a PE4312.? And the PE4312 is out of stock everywhere, with very long lead times.? I guess it’s a victim of the global chip shortage.?
There are sellers on eBay that claim to have the PE4302.? Weighing the options.? I have a well-stocked workbench and a huge lighted magnifying glass on a swing-arm – I might just go ahead and replace it.
?
Steve, KW4H
?
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On Wed, Sep 22, 2021 at 02:36 PM, Steven Reed wrote:
I’ve had my TinySA for a few weeks.? Today I ran the self-test and I’m getting the “Test 12: Attenuator Fail” when running the self-test.? All the other tests are passing.? This is the second TinySA I’ve had with
this failure popping up (the last one was returned for exchange) – is this a critical issue or can I ignore it?
?
You can check the attenuator for damage by running an extensive attenuator test.? You should get a flat green line.? If it has steps in it one or more sections of the attenuator have failed.? If you are handy with a hot air gun you can
replace the attenuator.
Roger
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@Dave:
As I happen to use, just by chance,?a white tip variant of the pen which Erik uses I think I recognise it as a Papermate 0.7 mm Non-Stop Mechanical Pencil.
For you these maybe the easiest and cheapest to buy from the UK store as it looks an "international" variant of the Paper Mate:
The white tip variant is called a Paper Mate Sharpwriter and can be purchased in smaller quantities:
?
So far for the "real stuff", as opposed to the, probably much better, touchy recommendations from Karl Jan
(I myself at least managed to destroy my mechanical pencil during an internal investigation, most likely not by ESD but due to overloading).
?
What actually made me react on the topic is the point that this "Question" in itself shows that Erik is becoming a real star influencer on this forum.
Really hope he and we all benefit from this, because his tinySA is marvelous.
BenS
|
Re: Attenuator Fail - Again
On Wed, Sep 22, 2021 at 02:36 PM, Steven Reed wrote:
I’ve had my TinySA for a few weeks.? Today I ran the self-test and I’m getting the “Test 12: Attenuator Fail” when running the self-test.? All the other tests are passing.? This is the second TinySA I’ve had with this failure popping up (the last one was returned for exchange) – is this a critical issue or can I ignore it?
?
You can check the attenuator for damage by running an extensive attenuator test.? You should get a flat green line.? If it has steps in it one or more sections of the attenuator have failed.? If you are handy with a hot air gun you can replace the attenuator. Roger
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Re: Attenuator Fail - Again
Well, I didn’t plug the TinySA into anything directly (it never touched a live circuit or an RF output) – however, the only thing I can surmise is that the signal coming from the receiver’s RF oscillator and through the external whip antenna
might have been too much for the TinySA.? It’s not a situation where I would have thought an attenuator would have been necessary, but nevertheless I have to admit fault where fault is due – an attenuator was not used.? I’ve ordered another TinySA, and will
use the current one as a signal generator.? Eventually, I wanted two of these, anyway.?
?
So, a question for you Erik.? Other than failing the attenuator self-test, the TinySA is calibrating, receiving signals, and otherwise seems to be working.? With the “Attenuator Fail” happening, what operations with the TinySA will no longer
function correctly going forward?? It looks like I can still use it for some things.
?
Steve, KW4H
?
Any external attenuator (even only 10dB) will help protect the tinySA
Many SA users (small and big SA's) always keep an external attenuator attached.
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For more info on the tinySA go to https://tinysa.org/wiki/
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Re: WARNING: Mirfield sold clones after they promised not to do so.
Kudos to Martin.
I emailed Martin at Mirfield Electronics on Monday about a problem I was having with the TinySA I had bought back in February. Less than an hour later he replied saying to send it to him for replacement. Posted it Monday and new unit arrived today, Thursday. I don't know if the first one was a clone but the new one came with hardware version V0.3.1_E and Serial number SA-21070275. Passed all self tests. Updated software to tinySA_v1.3-317-g9d82970 and again all self tests passed.?
Excellent service from Martin and I'll continue to purchase my amateur radio gear from him.
Colin
MM5AGM
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Erik,
I like the pen you use in your videos to touch the screen.? Where can I buy one like it?
?
Kind Regards,
Dave
Dave Reiser
Phone:
301-216-5394
Mobile:
301-802-1929
Email:?
davereiser2outlook.com
520 Russell Avenue, Gaithersburg, MD 20877
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Re: Attenuator Fail - Again
Here's a 20dB Pi attenuator I made in a hurry for the front end
It's super ugly but it works very well and very accurate?
Made from an E24 1% 0805 resistor kit, bit of stripboard, and 2 SMA connectors.
My next one will be much prettier!
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Re: Attenuator Fail - Again
Full marks Erik...the TSA should always have an attenuated attached. ALIEXPRESS have good wide band attenuators available at around 5 or 6 USD.
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-------- Original message -------- From: Erik Kaashoek <erik@...> Date: 23/09/21 17:39 (GMT+12:00) Subject: Re: [tinysa] Attenuator Fail - Again
Any external attenuator (even only 10dB) will help protect the tinySA Many SA users (small and big SA's) always keep an external attenuator attached.
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For more info on the tinySA go to https://tinysa.org/wiki/
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DAVE REISER WA3TRS
Roger Need
Colin Campbell
