Re: TinySA ULTRA 4" - No longer works
Hi.
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> if you have a look to the copper pattern of the ribbon cable you can see that it is not centered
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Yes, it caught my eye right away.
I enlarged the picture I took earlier.
 
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Re: TinySA ULTRA 4" - No longer works
Hi.
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Erik, thanks for the reply.
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For a few hours tinySA ULTRA was turned off and when I restarted it, this information appeared on the screen (Pictures attached to the letter).
The only way to get out of this state was to do a "hard restart" // push the jog button to the side (NOT down) WHILE RESTARTING the device //.
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Is this a pure software problem and not indicative of a hardware defect ?
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At that moment TinySA ULTRA has on it that software: "tinySA4_v1.4-109-g5cfd570"
I installed the latest software on the device "tinySA4_v1.4-199-gde12ba2" and will see if this type of anomaly occurs again.
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Sincerely,
g
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Re: TinySA ULTRA 4" - No longer works
(sorry for my reply in bold letters)
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Re: TinySA ULTRA 4" - No longer works
if you have a look to the copper pattern of the ribbon cable you can see that it is not centered - you can also see that the size of the isolation area at the edges is different -? and also on the imprints of the connector.. a bad fabricated ribbon cable..
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Lithium Ion batteries have almost zero self discharge. So providing there is no current draw they should remain charged anlmost indefinitely.
Having said that, it’s kinder to the battery to not store it fully charged. For long term storage around 50% SOC is much kinder to the longevity of the battery. Peter.
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Hooray for the tinyVA battery.? I had not used my unit in over a year, turned it on, and the battery was at almost full charge.? To me, that is an outstanding shelf life from a quality rechargeable battery.? Thank you.
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Re: Measuring resonant coil outputs
Hi Dave,
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Lots of useful info there. Thanks. I will also write separately to you.
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Julian
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Re: TinySA ULTRA 4" - No longer works
On Fri, Apr 4, 2025 at 04:32 PM, Gerd wrote:
Erik, did you design the printed circuit board ?
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Yes
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Before I started to disassemble the device, I decided to check if the signal generator was working. A picture of this menu is attached to the letter, the problem also affected this part of the control circuit. When I selected LOW OUTPUT - ON from the menu, a signal appeared at the RF tinySAoutput, but the frequency barely ran 50MHz. From that frequency onwards, the device could no longer hold the signal carrier. I have not tested the signal generator of this device before, so I have no comparison of how it should work.
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You have to switch the signal generator LOW OUTPUT to ON to get the correct output signal
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I opened the tinySA ULTRA at Erik's suggestion and a visual test did not detect any poor connections.
Since I have had problems with similar cable connections in other devices before, I cleaned the cable terminals just in case (even though there was no visible problem).
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After reconnecting the ribbon cable, almost all problems disappeared. Self Test was successful.
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Happy to hear
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Even after a successful Self Test, the signal generator is unable to transmit a signal in normal mode, I have to activate LOW OUTPUT - ON in the menu. Is this a normal approach or is there another problem here?
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This is normal behavior
I also took a picture of the last measurement.
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Erik, based on the information you provided, could you tell me which terminal in the ribbon cable had a poor connection? I'll look at it later with a powerful microscope. (It seems that some types of connectors are not worth the money.)
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Don't know, sometimes we see this problem, hence the suggestion to reseat the cable.
--
Designer of the tinySA
For more info go to
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Re: TinySA ULTRA 4" - No longer works
Could it be alingment or some solid particle? I had issues like those with expensive connectors.
Hi.
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> Can you open the case and try to reseat the LCD cable ? Maybe that will solve the problem.
Erik, did you design the printed circuit board ?
?
Before I started to disassemble the device, I decided to check if the signal generator was working. A picture of this menu is attached to the letter, the problem also affected this part of the control circuit. When I selected LOW OUTPUT - ON from the menu, a signal appeared at the RF tinySAoutput, but the frequency barely ran 50MHz. From that frequency onwards, the device could no longer hold the signal carrier. I have not tested the signal generator of this device before, so I have no comparison of how it should work.
?
I opened the tinySA ULTRA at Erik's suggestion and a visual test did not detect any poor connections.
Since I have had problems with similar cable connections in other devices before, I cleaned the cable terminals just in case (even though there was no visible problem).
?
After reconnecting the ribbon cable, almost all problems disappeared. Self Test was successful.
?
Even after a successful Self Test, the signal generator is unable to transmit a signal in normal mode, I have to activate LOW OUTPUT - ON in the menu. Is this a normal approach or is there another problem here? I also took a picture of the last measurement.
?
Erik, based on the information you provided, could you tell me which terminal in the ribbon cable had a poor connection? I'll look at it later with a powerful microscope. (It seems that some types of connectors are not worth the money.)
?
Sincerely,
g
?
?
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Re: TinySA ULTRA 4" - No longer works
Hi.
?
> Can you open the case and try to reseat the LCD cable ? Maybe that will solve the problem.
Erik, did you design the printed circuit board ?
?
Before I started to disassemble the device, I decided to check if the signal generator was working. A picture of this menu is attached to the letter, the problem also affected this part of the control circuit. When I selected LOW OUTPUT - ON from the menu, a signal appeared at the RF tinySAoutput, but the frequency barely ran 50MHz. From that frequency onwards, the device could no longer hold the signal carrier. I have not tested the signal generator of this device before, so I have no comparison of how it should work.
?
I opened the tinySA ULTRA at Erik's suggestion and a visual test did not detect any poor connections.
Since I have had problems with similar cable connections in other devices before, I cleaned the cable terminals just in case (even though there was no visible problem).
?
After reconnecting the ribbon cable, almost all problems disappeared. Self Test was successful.
?
Even after a successful Self Test, the signal generator is unable to transmit a signal in normal mode, I have to activate LOW OUTPUT - ON in the menu. Is this a normal approach or is there another problem here? I also took a picture of the last measurement.
?
Erik, based on the information you provided, could you tell me which terminal in the ribbon cable had a poor connection? I'll look at it later with a powerful microscope. (It seems that some types of connectors are not worth the money.)
?
Sincerely,
g
?
?
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Re: Measuring resonant coil outputs
1)? For those who didn't bother to look at the diagram, it shows specifically 35 kHz.? Enough said.....
THE REST:
I as well come from a physics background.?
Be extremely careful with those power levels.? At 35 kHz and 1 kV feeding a spark gap, you are evidently using shock excitation to look for ring-down and harmonic generation from your resonant LC network.? As a precaution, I would strongly recommend installation of the following from MiniCircuits installed at the input of the TINYSA.? Leave it installed.?
? ?? VLM-33W-2W-S+?
It is presently under redesign by MiniCircuits, but doing what you do, I'd almost "require" you install it or equivalent to protect the TINYSA - or any SA, for that matter.
Considering your application, that should be installed in addition to attenuators? It would be best to have a selection to match the levels of harmonics and fundamentals excited by the shock exitation.? These are available from ebay, or, better quality, Pasternack.? Values might include the following:? 20 dB, 10 dB, 6 dB, and 3 dB.? Small SMA style packages at 1 watt or less are adequate for your application. ?
Again, considering your power and voltage levels, I'd start with the short included antenna.? As such, it is an extremely short portion of a wavelength.? Therefore, you likely won't experience any frequency bias from the antenna up to where it becomes a 0.1-wavelength and more. ?
Also start at some distance from your spark gap and the LC network.? Approach the operating system with caution to, again, be "kind" to the SA. ?
You will also require multiple discharges of the spark gap to capture the ring-down and harmonic structure.? It would be advised to use the MAX HOLD function to capture the sum of a number of gap discharges.? Otherwise, the sweep is too slow (andy SA will exhibit this) to faithfully capture what you're after.??
I've done just what you are looking for before retirement for Uncle at KAFB in Albuquerque.? All I'll write based on the experience with Uncle is: "It's amazing what can be done with wide-band RF pulses".? I've also experimented as you here in my small lab.? If you want to email me offline of the group, please - I'm open.? Emails are:
? ?? DaveArea51A at gmail dot com ? ?? W zero LEV at arrl dot net
Glad to help where I can.
Dave - W?LEV? ? ??
Hi all,
I’m new to this group, a physicist by background but also new to using a spectrum analyser. Before I go and actually buy the Aursinc V0.3.1 model, I wanted to ask about how I might go about making measurements relevant to my research so I can be sure this is the best and most affordable approach.
To summarise, I am investigating resonance in coils driven at radio frequencies and high voltages and looking at the standing waves that result from certain coil configurations and wire lengths. To make it easier to show what I’m doing, I attach some graphics showing the circuit (without an output load), a typical coil configuration and an example of standing waves that show on a scope using a low-powered setup of 18V to the primary coil.
In particular, the queries I have are:
- Can I detect what frequencies are emanating from the coils by using the supplied aerial placed within say 50cm of the coils?
- What sort of attenuator would I need to cope with the high voltages and power in the secondary in particular?
- Are there any others known about how are doing this type of measurements?
- Will the tinySA-App work with Windows 10?
Thank you in advance for any help.
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 ?
Julian Perry
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Re: TinySA ULTRA 4" - No longer works
Indeed, the display test failed also. This indicates bad communication over the SPI bus.
Can you open the case and try to reseat the LCD cable? Maybe that will solve the problem
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Designer of the tinySA
For more info go to
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Re: Measuring resonant coil outputs
Thank you. Are the attenuators specific to your design of tinySA or are they are standard fitting device available from various outlets?
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One other point; what feature of a single loop (of 2mm tinned copper wire) determines its optimum detection frequency and is there an optimum diameter or configuration for my frequency range (e.g. square vs circular)?
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--
Julian
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Re: TinySA ULTRA 4" - No longer works
It looks like the MCU can't read data through the SPI interface. if it still doesn't work after removing the SD card, the MUC's SPI port may be faulty. the SD card, LCD, and RF chip are all mounted on the same SPI bus. Maybe the SPI bus was damaged when the SD card was inserted or removed.
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Re: Measuring resonant coil outputs
When you are probing with a loop antenna you can start at large distance (two meters) and reduce the distance if there are no strong signals.
Unless you are exiting the coil with a LOT of power, then you may have to start at larger distance.
To be absolutely sure, you can put a 20 or 30 dB attenuator directly on the RF connector of the tinySA and connect the antenna to the attenuator.
Make sure you never ever touch anything with the telescopic antenna.
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Designer of the tinySA
For more info go to
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Re: Measuring resonant coil outputs
On Fri, Apr 4, 2025 at 03:57 AM, Kerrowman wrote:
I know the tinySA is not accurate below 100kHz but I have heard that by making some Config adjustments then it will detect them.
The tinySA Basic (0.3.1 model) will actually work well down to 10 kHz but you lose some dynamic range
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Designer of the tinySA
For more info go to
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Re: Measuring resonant coil outputs
What about the issue of potentially damaging the SA? How can I work out the dB of the fields surrounding the coils to best protect it? I do have one of those cheap field meters for elec and mag fields, which measures in V/m and ?T.
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Julian Perry
Kerrowenergetics.org.uk
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Re: Measuring resonant coil outputs
:)
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Julian Perry
Kerrowenergetics.org.uk
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Re: Measuring resonant coil outputs
Yes, an important question. 10kHz - 20MHz I think is reasonable. I know the tinySA is not accurate below 100kHz but I have heard that by making some Config adjustments then it will detect them.
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Julian Perry
Kerrowenergetics.org.uk
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Re: Measuring resonant coil outputs
On 04/04/2025 09:54, Kerrowman via groups.io wrote: Will the tinySA-App work with Windows 10? Yes. David -- SatSignal Software - Quality software for you Web: Email: davidtaylor@... BlueSky: @gm8arv.bsky.social, Twitter: @gm8arv
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Gerd
DAVE REISER WA3TRS
Kerrowman
David J Taylor