Thx for the walkthru, well done and I love how you link and make due diligence on these products and link to the relevant parts, that a possible owner can benefit from.(golden) many other channels can learn from the "viewer perspective-awareness" you seem to suit your videos with. well done Andreas. +1 Don't have this Spectrum analyzer but were looking into it as an entry tool to just get familiar with this kind of class apparatus. at around 30 bucks delivered for this unit (no shell), alternatives are not hanging on the threes in this sub 100 bucks environment.
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
You are right: For sure it is good as an education device. And knowing this technology is important for many projects
@MILENEO34 жыл бұрын
I was about to buy one of these 50 dollars spectrum analyzer, but after seeing this video I changed my mine. Thanks Andreas Spiess
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
You are welcome!
@ernstelderenbosch17154 жыл бұрын
Thank you for yet another very interesting video! The testing, the explanations and the conclusions at the end are all very valuable. Thank you!
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
You are welcome!
@L-364 жыл бұрын
I designed spectrum analyzers for Hewlett Packard as my first job out of collage in 1971. The group I worked in is now called Keysight. They were very expensive but I see you can buy one now for a few hundred dollars and get a spectrum analyzer that works to 22GHz. Wow. I worked on the log amplifier that had a dynamic range of 100dB. Loved this video. I think that this cheap analyzer is mixing the input down to DC but the filter is actually a bandpass with a bandwidth of about 250 KHz and a center frequency of about 200 KHz. Thus when you input a signal you see both the + and - image products of the mixer output spaced 400 KHz apart. The display occupies that plus the bandwidth of the filter so they call it 1 MHz. When the LO is tuned to the frequency of the input signal the output is DC and the filter blocks it so you see what looks like a notch in the output.
@szabonandi4 жыл бұрын
This is when somebody understood the math behind the view... congrat!
@LutzSchafer4 жыл бұрын
Yeah that's very plausible. Thank you! That both side bands are visible seemed obvious. But how is this avoided in the design of professional instrumentation?
@L-364 жыл бұрын
@@LutzSchafer It gets very complicated as there are way more things to worry about than just the issue with this cheap spectrum analyzer. But for the question asked I will give a short reply. If you want to analyze .1 to 2.5 GHz, mix the input up to 3.6 GHz. Then the LO goes from 3.7 to 6.1GHz and the difference signal is 3.6 and the sum is 3.8 to 8.6 and can easily be filtered out. Then use another mixer to get the signal down to 300 MHz and another to get to 21MHz where I built the Log amp. These frequencies need to be carefully selected so that harmonics of the LO do not put spurious signals in band so they are picked more carefully that what I did in the above example. Hope this helps.
@L-364 жыл бұрын
By the way, the HP8566 weighed 100 pounds.
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
I suggest to watch the Signalpath video. There you see exactly what Allen explains: kzbin.info/www/bejne/fJ-appR7i8qChs0
@MalagasOnFire4 жыл бұрын
Very usefull tutorial about Spectrum Analyzer .. the natural sinewave generator is a must and cat is paying atention even "sleeping".
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
Yes, she usually does not sleep. She just "rests"...
@meteor80764 жыл бұрын
Cat found the best spot for a snap :D
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
This is why I need three monitors. One is no more usable...
@TheHellfiremissile4 жыл бұрын
Thanks for the video Andreas. My radio club bought a Rigol Spectrum analyser a few months ago and I wanted something similar for my little work bench and having found this on ebay thought it was a good little project ( I bought the naked board). I've only yesterday finished putting it into a case with N connectors and will be keen to try the new software. Love the cat on keyboard :-) Keep up the vid's, It's good to see a ham doing such a diverse range of topics.
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
For HAMs a nanoVNA maybe is a better choice to measure antennas and filters. I hope your SA will do the job.
@cbc75994 жыл бұрын
Tnx for nice explenation! Got it: the FIXED Resolution Band Width!
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
:-)
@AaronJackson14 жыл бұрын
This was a great video. You explained everything so well. Thanks!
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
You are welcome!
@manuelcornejo74053 жыл бұрын
Yes, yes Andreas is a good communicator
@phiber94 жыл бұрын
Thank you Guy with a swiss accent. I visited Luzerne for 1 day. At night. It was okay. :) I want a spectrum analyzer. I don't have a use for it right off the top of my head but I would find a reason. Not swiss mentality but hey... this is internet.
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
I also have bought a few things like that ;-)
@MaltWhiskey4 жыл бұрын
I understood the first and the last couple of minutes. Most important component is a furry oscillator.
@Moonbase594 жыл бұрын
"Furry oscillator"! Man, I almost spit my coffee against the screen laughing … have to remember that one! :-) :D
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
@Malt :-)) You got all you need, I think ;-)
@hernanirodrigues52614 жыл бұрын
Very good job Andreas, nice presentation and very useful, tanks you...!
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
Glad you enjoyed it!
@DarrellBoger3 жыл бұрын
I LOVE the pointer.
@AndreasSpiess3 жыл бұрын
:-)
@yangYang-df2zy4 жыл бұрын
I like that sweet hand! That helps a lot!!!!!!!!
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
:-)
@jms0194 жыл бұрын
The cat was really impressed
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
:-))
@ThomasDwyer1874 жыл бұрын
Excellent educational presentation, bromigo!
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
Thank you!
@robertsmiczsmiczamplificat5934 жыл бұрын
Very good info..I subscribed and plan to watch more vids. I have added some external filters and a 30db wide band LNA on the input of mine. It has made the spectrum analyzer more useable. It’s still not great, but much better. I also did clean up the Power supply and did the mods going around on the net. I added a variable attenuator on the in and TG out along with the ext Amps. I packed it a nice shielded cabinet its not as good as a real network analyzer, but it is actually useful now. I actually made a selectable multi filter selection for different band widths. The stock internal filtering was pretty bad. I may try to do some more improvements? We will see? Too many pokers in the fire. Great channel. I enjoyed watching.
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
Welcome aboard the channel! You invested quite some effort¨. Maybe you document it for others to follow?
@robertsmiczsmiczamplificat5934 жыл бұрын
Andreas Spiess . Thank you sir. I will try to put together all my info on the mods i made. Its pretty much chicken scratch now, but i will try to compile it i to something intelligible. I will be watching and i will let the channel know when i have good information to share. Thank you for the warm welcome.
@lohikarhu7344 жыл бұрын
Nice SA overview; i did think that you might add that one often uses a noise source, instead of a tracking generator, since it removes a couple of 'dependencies', but, that's a bit picky... i see that you mentioned the noise source right at the end! Sad, how often some inventive person's work becomes just one more source of a chinese company's income :-( When I was in Helsinki, i visited a showroom of "Finnish Design", showing off the truly-great breadth and quality of art, artisanship, and inventiveness of the people of this country of only 5.5 million people (a shameless plug for them! ), and, what do I see? A small group of mainland chinese (i recognised the mandarin language) , walking around, taking photographs of items... not just a 'snapshot', either, but pictures from every possible angle. Obviously, not just a 'tourist photo', they intended to go home, make a copy, and sell a few million. So, even when it's not 'visible', we may find the nice work of some German, Swiss, Canadian, Finn, at the heart of some chinese gear that is so inexpensive that we canpt avoid buying it...or, can we? Still, it would be a nice surprise for some German, or Swiss, ham person, to receive a few Euros/CHF in his bank or paypal, or 5€ in the post :-) !! itps just a thought....
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
I remember the 1980s where the Japanese did the same with our products. Nothing new. Switzerland still exists because we are very innovative. The same will happen again and again, I think. This is how the world moves. We were the leading country in textiles 100 years age... As you mention we can send these people a few Euros if we want. Like my patreons do it with this channel, for example.
@sq2jul4 жыл бұрын
Thank you for another great video. I wish to see more episodes related to RF signals and ham radio. Vy 73!
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
This is not ham channel. It focusses on the ISM usage of RF because only a very few of my viewers are HAMs. Maybe I can motivate a few ISM guys go get licensed...
@acestudioscouk-Ace-G0ACE2 жыл бұрын
Another very useful video thank-you. 2 years on I was hoping perhaps you had covered the Tiny SA spectrum analyser but could not find it on your page. I would be very interested to know how you find it.
@AndreasSpiess2 жыл бұрын
It seems to be a good device. There are a few very instructional videos on KZbin. I think they are from the programmer of the firmware.
@acestudioscouk-Ace-G0ACE2 жыл бұрын
@@AndreasSpiess Thanks for the reply. I have seen some videos. I was interested in how you personally found them. I think they are worth a try at the price.
@AndreasSpiess2 жыл бұрын
@@acestudioscouk-Ace-G0ACE I have a Siglent Spectrum Analyzer on my desk. So I did not use the tinySSA a lot.
@f1r3704 жыл бұрын
You need additional white noise generator, or use a happy cat instead. ( What Andreas demonstrated with Mishka at the end of the video )
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
Not exactly whie noise what she produces...
@Valenorious4 жыл бұрын
@@AndreasSpiess Perhaps better suited as a tracking generator for birdies detection.
@TurkishLoserInc4 жыл бұрын
Thank you again for the high quality video! I was thinking about getting one of these, I'm glad to know exactly what the limitations are.
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
You are welcome! This was exactly the reason for that video...
@stevec50004 жыл бұрын
The limitations are not what you see in the video.
@bourasabdennour83694 жыл бұрын
Please a video about using SDR as Spectrum analyser :)
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
Maybe later...
@manuelcornejo74053 жыл бұрын
@@AndreasSpiess Yes please
@stevensexton58014 жыл бұрын
LOL, the Swiss guy is driving my Germany wife crazy with his whistle.
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
I hope not ;-)
@deniscloud24744 жыл бұрын
YOU ARE AMAZING ! thanks for good content
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
You are welcome!
@ghlscitel67144 жыл бұрын
Grüezi! I enjoyed the video from beginning to end. I still use my Tektronix 2711 and I will not buy the one from Banggood.
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
Probably not a bad decision ;-)
@АлександрИванович-з7ы4 жыл бұрын
Маленькая рука-указатель - супер! :)
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
Thank you!
@umutk56144 жыл бұрын
Thanks Andreas, I learned at least basics by your nice video. By the way I loved your cat :-D
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
Thank you! And I will tell her...
@umutk56144 жыл бұрын
@@AndreasSpiess Purrfekt 😃
@electronic79794 жыл бұрын
Nice item
@isidoromaich72264 жыл бұрын
🙂
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
Yes!
@michalbuza88264 жыл бұрын
YOU SAVED ME 50€ FOR THIS BOX, THANK YOU VERY MUCH :-)
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
Glad I could help!
@genelim34724 жыл бұрын
I am not sure why I even watched it till the end. But I am stoned as fucked
@FROG20004 жыл бұрын
at 2:03 -70dbm = 0.0000001mw (6 Zeros) not 0.00000001mw. every -10dbm equals a factor of 10. good video otherwise
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
You are right. Thanks!
@LutzSchafer4 жыл бұрын
Andreas I have done similar experiments with the same Banggood device. What struck me first was that the tracking generator produces more or less a square waveform. Presumably same is true for the LO since it uses the same chip. So the mixing products must contain odd harmonics of the LO. I also observed the dip when trying to display a single carrier tone. You have any idea what it's causing it? It almost looks like as if both side frequencies contribute to whatever is "measured". The symmetry kindof gives it away. BTW I like your cat :)
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
Viewer Allen Edwards below gives an explanation for the notch. Concerning square wave: You are right. But because the LO sweeps with the TG it (usually) does not see these harmonics. I mentioned that the Siglent has more filters. This is where some of them are. Its TG creates a sine...
@fromthepeanutgallery10842 жыл бұрын
Thanks very interesting. what would -77dBm be in (microwatts/meter squared) and (Volts/Meter) I have an cell tower in front of my house about 1350 feet away pointing right at my window it says: on an antenna search (Maximum signal strength RSRP -77 dBm) for antenna that's facing 287degrees North would like to know if radiation is high at my window. Thanks
@AndreasSpiess2 жыл бұрын
You do not get absolute values because the influence of the antenna. But if a cell tower blasts in your direction you will have as very strong signal on the frequencies try use. BTW you find online calculators to convert dBm to Watt. As said, these are for cables. A typical cell tower easily emits 2kW where I live.
@frankthompson36774 жыл бұрын
Very informative presentation - The software WinNWT4 is not very convenient - please can you give me a lead to the other software. Thanks
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
Unfortunately, I do not have another because I do not use the device regularly.
@kisho26794 жыл бұрын
which spectrum analyzer is recommended for identifying chemical elements of a material (by optical, by thermal, ...)?
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
I have no idea :-(
@MrAndionline3 жыл бұрын
Danke fürs Erklären! Haben Sie auch noch einen deutschen Kanal? Mit Englisch tue ich mich ein bisschen schwer.
@AndreasSpiess3 жыл бұрын
Bitte, gern geschehen. Und nein, ich habe kaum Zeit für diesen Kanal :-(
@stuartgray58773 жыл бұрын
Sorry, but isn't your conversion from -70dBm wrong at 2:00? -70dBm is 1X10-7 mW which is 0.0000001 mW (minus seven 'Bell's is minus seven orders of magnitude) You have one too many zeros.
@syntropyandtheholdingcompa99083 жыл бұрын
I found some shrooms that allow me to see electrical signals
@AndreasSpiess3 жыл бұрын
Good for you. Use it to earn money!
@SuperArchi20107 ай бұрын
Hi there Any chance for a help here I want to measure EMF There is a device that produces an EM radiation and I wanted to find out all the details about it Any chance what tools I would need Thx Also For radio frequency measuring Thx for getting back to me
@AndreasSpiess7 ай бұрын
I think you need to watch videos concerning EMF if you are interested in this topic. Spectrum analyzers only have a "trackung generator that produces a vers small signal at one particular (but moving) frequency. They are mainly made to show RF signals.
@Antyelektronika3 жыл бұрын
Someone know maybe how to calibrate this device?
@bertondroid4 жыл бұрын
Brown noise source @ 21:09 ;D
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
:-))
@martinb.7703 жыл бұрын
What does the device say about the spectrum of the cat noise?
@AndreasSpiess3 жыл бұрын
Unfortunately it does not cover those low frequencies ;-)
@martinb.7703 жыл бұрын
@@AndreasSpiess so, you need a faster cat ... or a slower analyzer.
@ShirolaGhadirian4 жыл бұрын
Do you think the RF Explorer 3G could be a good step up at US$270?
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
I do not know. There is a comment of an owner below.
@l3VGV3 жыл бұрын
TinySA please! (said with russian accent)
@AndreasSpiess3 жыл бұрын
I have no plans with the TinySA for the moment.
@l3VGV3 жыл бұрын
@@AndreasSpiess Any videos from you is appreciated. And "for the moment" give some hope!
@stevec50004 жыл бұрын
Where did you find the adf4351 spectrum analyzer schematic? I've search and searched but can't find that one anywhere.
@@AndreasSpiess Did your's have a very weak signal? With the output connected back to the input the sweep is way down at -34 dB instead of at 0 dB like on the older one. Do I need to remove that resistor on the input? Actually I removed the resistor but it doesn't make any difference. I'm really disappointed in this newer model, the sensitivity is so poor that it's not much good as a spectrum analyzer unless you are dealing with transmitters close by.
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
Mine was higher, slightly below 0dB. But I do not remember the exact values. -34dBm seems to be very low. Defective?
@wong42434 жыл бұрын
cute little hand,haha
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
:-)
@BitsOfBoris4 жыл бұрын
Nano VNA or Nano VNA "V2"? :p
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
We will see when I get a V2, The normal is not good enough for me.
@BitsOfBoris4 жыл бұрын
@@AndreasSpiess Eh eh eh not surprised it catched your curiosity already.
@PA3WT-wimthielen3 жыл бұрын
Hallo Andreas auf them home page vom DL4JAL ist eines beschriebung www.dl4jal.eu/nwt4x/nwt4000.html
@AndreasSpiess3 жыл бұрын
Vielen Dank für den Link!
@hinz1 Жыл бұрын
So basically, garbage compared to TinySA, which is garbage compared to HP856x.
@AndreasSpiess Жыл бұрын
The TinySA is much newer and definitively the better choice. And for sure not garbage. The HP has a really bad price/performance ratio for most of the usual work compared with these cheap devices...
@hinz1 Жыл бұрын
@@AndreasSpiess ADF4351 VCO phase noise doesn't even come close to that of a YIG oscillator inside a good old HP spectrum analyzer. Unless you need a fancy computer interface, a HP8560/8561/8562/8563 or HP8566/8568 offers much better price/performance ratio.
@SergiyGryb4 жыл бұрын
like for cat :-) Mine is not as loud as yours :-)
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
I will tell her ;-)
@CyclingSteve4 жыл бұрын
My cat is a 1KHz detector, he came running, meowing every time you whistled. :D
@hopje014 жыл бұрын
Mine too! She doesn’t like this video :)
@thebeststooge4 жыл бұрын
Thank you as my cat whined when he whistled and I did not know why but now do.
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
Sorry for that, guys!
@CyclingSteve4 жыл бұрын
@@AndreasSpiess It was kinda funny, he never comes running when I whistle, I must be off tune.
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
@Green Steve: My natural authority over small animals? ;-)
@GeorgeWMays4 жыл бұрын
Lab cat. Very important. More valuable than the cheapie spectrum analayzer. Thank you for an informative video.
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
And also more expensive ;-)
@SkyhawkSteve4 жыл бұрын
and sometimes cats can be used as an ESD generator.... although usually when you weren't planning on it. :-)
@marcos.17674 жыл бұрын
Wow. I understood how a Spectrum Analyzer is working and what it's for. In some 20 minutes. Thanks!
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
You are welcome!
@lohikarhu7344 жыл бұрын
@@AndreasSpiess BTW, Andreas (du ?), is the hat simply part of your personal style, or is it a kind of "Tracht"?
@reinholdu99094 жыл бұрын
Let's wait for Andreas' answer ... (but) If you go back you'll find re. "🤠" that he is/used to be a steampunk afficionado... (zurich maker faire 2017) 73 de 🚲
@PhG19614 жыл бұрын
@@lohikarhu734 It's an 'ensemble' together with the 'lederhose'. Very common in alpine countries... ;-)
@lohikarhu7344 жыл бұрын
@@reinholdu9909 Steampunk :-)
@thetastefultoastie60774 жыл бұрын
5:48 _natural sine wave generator_ 😄
@jankomuzykant18444 жыл бұрын
1570 Hz (by Android apk) ;o)
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
So it was a bit over the 1k signal...
@mrdouble3 жыл бұрын
Freaked my dog out
@reinholdu99094 жыл бұрын
Best "organized" Vid in KZbin! Please never give up your style of "summarization". -seems yet another piece of equipment where I have to know the result before I can measure it... let me check the improvements ;)
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
Should improve the dynamic range...
@reinholdu99094 жыл бұрын
Andreas tnx... btw:YOU (and QO-100 :) are driving me now to finally go for a HAM licence ...keep up the good work "in style" (=your's :)
@MrPerrey4 жыл бұрын
@@AndreasSpiess - Yes, definitely on of the best organized tec chanel's over YT. And there are no wrong miss leading or confusing procedures. It's Swiss prescision content!!!
@k19radio13 Жыл бұрын
Awsome work and chanel. Thank you for your dedicated work. For this present moment the great tool is tinySA Ultra.
@denisernestomedina62573 жыл бұрын
NWT4000 DOES NOT RECOGNIZE THE LTDZ 35MHZ 4400MHZ SPECTRUM ANALYZER?
@McTroyd4 жыл бұрын
Amazing how cheap things can be when the core functionality can be implemented in software.
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
And excellent chips can be bought from Analog Devices for nothing...
@zakrent20004 жыл бұрын
If I understand everything correctly then this spectrum analyzer uses an low IF frequency of ~few hundred kHz, most spectrum analyzers use high IF that is higher than maximum frequency they can measure. Because of that it is going to see signals that are centered at LO +/- few hundred kHz and that's why there are 2 peaks when you measure signal of that handheld. That's very bad because some signals, like signal from that handheld will appear to occupy twice the bandwidth and have a weird notch in the middle as seen on the video.
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
Exactly! But for 50 dollars an IF above 4GHz including filters is probably still not possible.
@cmuller14414 жыл бұрын
You could say that the Mixer is a Multiplier. If you remember your trigonometry: sin(a)* sin(b) = (cos(a − b) − cos(a + b))/2 This is why the sum and difference of frequencies appear. In practice the Mixer is not perfect and there are nonlinearities that generates also harmonics so you get N*a + M*b (with N and M integers). But the other frequencies and usually much attenuated with a good Mixer.
@cmuller14414 жыл бұрын
And if you want to know how to multiply signals: kzbin.info/www/bejne/bZ_QnpVmpdaHi5I
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
You are, of course, right. For my videos I usually need more time to "leave things out" than to "put things in"...
@cmuller14414 жыл бұрын
@@AndreasSpiess I understand that just putting a trigonometry formula in a video can scare people 😆 I'm not a RF guy at all but I find that part of electronics quite stimulating. I just wanted to add some extra for the curious ones that asked themselves "how does a mixer work?"...
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
BTW: Your link points to a very good channel...
@la7yka3 жыл бұрын
Perhaps it is mentioned, but I didn't got it. Can this analyzer work as a tracking generator, e.g. for bode plotting?
@AndreasSpiess3 жыл бұрын
I do not know a lot of bode diagrams. But the device has a built-in tracking generator. Mind the minimal frequency if you would like to use it for audio.
@Aemilindore4 жыл бұрын
Thank you so much Andreas!! Lovely video. Thanks for your time.
@meteor80764 жыл бұрын
yes, he has very cool videos
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
You are welcome!
@olpqay2 жыл бұрын
1:52 Grützi Andreas, one zero too much. -70 dBm = 1*10^-7 mW = 0.0000001 mW 🙂
@AndreasSpiess2 жыл бұрын
Thank you for the correction!
@fpaolo634 жыл бұрын
Hi Andreas, some time ago I bought one of this chip device. I compared features wit a R&S in office lab: agree with your conclusion ... About SW, I tried to be in touch with the original designer but ( I can 100% understand why ) I did not receive an answer. Any way, googling and spent some time reading forum, I found Python driver and commands list ... ... but all is sleeping since "The job is not worth it"
@LutzSchafer4 жыл бұрын
I tried to reach the author too with no success. The software could be so much more improved.
@TMS51004 жыл бұрын
About as expected for $50. But I would just go buy used SA off ebay. You can get some really incredible ones for very cheap. Devices which used to cost $150,000 can be purchased for only ~$500. Lesson learned: expensive high end lab test equipment doesn't retain any value and depreciates worse than even the worst automobile.
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
You are rright. Especially spectrum analyzers. The Siglent is also only 3000 Euros for 3.2GHz. Costed also a fortune a few years back ;-)
@skylabby4 жыл бұрын
Let me say thank you for this video Andreas. I had this same device from banggood sitting on my desk and couldn't get it to work, i will be going back to it now that i have a better understanding of it..thank again.
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
I hope it will work for you.
@Turboy652 жыл бұрын
I used my R&S FSEA20 analyzers almost every day for a seven year period. I got pretty used to these high performance machines that had a noise floor of about -160 dBM at zero span. Made my job easy. These days those analyzers can be had for about 1500 bucks in good working order.
@AndreasSpiess2 жыл бұрын
You are right. I see a lot of people buying these old instruments. They are a very good choice if you have enough space and maybe also some knowledge to use/repair them. For you, as a long-time user, this is a perfect fit and not comparable with such a cheap device...
@mkatsube4 жыл бұрын
Thank you for wonderful explanation! I got exact image of this spectrum analyzer (LTDZ_35-4400M). I had interest in notch characteristics for CW (Continuous Wave) that 145.55MHz in your video. I checked the circuit diagram and I understood the mechanism of that. Following 2 things are the points of the notch: - The same idea of DCR (Direct Conversion Receiver) - The characteristics of RBW (Resolution Band-Width) filter About the DCR, when we apply the same frequency signal for RF (measurement signal) and LO (Local Oscillator) of the mixer (IAM81008), the mixer output become DC signal. And amplitude of the DC signal depend on the phase difference between RF and LO. However, RBW filter has DC block capacitors, so DC voltage doesn't reach to Logamp (AD8307) input pin. These DC block capacitors are the major reason of the notch characteristics. About the RBW filter, I simulated RBW filter (including DC block capacitors) that using LTspice. It had f0= 200kHz +/- 100kHz of bandpass filter characteristics. When we apply CW to the RF input, Logamp input will appear twin peaks of signal because RBW filter has bandpass characteristics. I think your demonstration of 145.55MHz CW agree to my estimation. Because I seen the frequency difference between peak to peak is 400kHz (=200kHz*2) in your video. I got additional idea from these consideration. It is TG (Tracking Generator) offset frequency. In DCR idea, if LO and TG sweep with the same frequency, mixer output will be DC voltage. In this spectrum analyzer, we cannot see frequency spectrum because DC block capacitor blocks DC voltage. So in this spectrum analyzer, TG (become RF signal) and LO frequency should have offset value such as 200kHz.
@retrociencia3 жыл бұрын
Amazing explanation! I was trying to figure out what was causing the notch. This design was used to simplify the mixing stage, using just one, in contrast to "conventional", or "real" spectrum analyzers that uses two or more mixing stages, right?
@geirthorud65814 жыл бұрын
You saved me $50. I might have bought this for fun. Also from the comments I learned that the Germans have abandoned the old version of "ss" which I learned back in the 1970-s. The "sharp s" which it was called here. (Where is it on my keybord?)
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
AFAIK it is still on their keaboard. We Swiss never needed it ;-)
@NotMarkKnopfler4 жыл бұрын
Kind of neat but that false notch renders the device useless in my opinion. Better to buy an old second hand SA. Thanks for the video Andreas 👍
@ИванСнежков-з9й4 жыл бұрын
I didn't quite understand where that false notch comes from. It is also quite prominent at the more detailed scan. Edit: Lister Dave's comment bellow explains it nicely. There is C29 capacitor that removes the very DC we want to measure. I Think that C18 may do the same. kzbin.info/www/bejne/hoPWknp7oJJ4qbM&lc=UgyDM9iflCNIOa0WzXV4AaABAg.95NRn9Qnwem95NTJCzMq0w
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
Unfortunatley you do not find old instruments in all countries. They are often sold in the US, and transport can become quite a problem for such heavy things :-(
@petrok1rp2542 жыл бұрын
Simply crap… I am stil using my old trusty HP spectrum analyzer and VNA on the bench. Lovely and trusty workhorse is impossible to beat. Both fully calibrated by NIST lab. Congrats to HP engs !!
@AndreasSpiess2 жыл бұрын
A good choice! But probably not affordable for everybody. And a little to clumsy for field usage ;-)
@pericha23 жыл бұрын
At 18:10 I think you made a mistake. Settings on Siglent are RBW 1MHz and att 20dB. This gives noise floor of instrument (as seen) around -45dBm. It can not measure beyond that and we see that smooth trace goes into noise. I assume that if you disconnected filter, noise floor will stay about -45dBm. Also at 8:20 you hit the noise floor of Siglent when measuring notch filter. Good LPF should have much greater out of band attenuation. Cheep analyser has noise floor at -70dBm as we can see. Please redo measurements with appropriate settings on Siglent. If I am wrong, please accept my apology. I don't own Siglent spectrum analyser to check by myself.
@AndreasSpiess3 жыл бұрын
Thank you for the correction!
@ddjazz4 жыл бұрын
TLDR It works but you get what you paid for. Thorough video again by Andreas!
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
I still think, we get quite a lot for 50 dollars. Those new AD chips really make it easy to build interesting things...
@Lion_McLionhead4 жыл бұрын
Relearned the term "tracking generator" from school, but these days you might as well get an SDR in that price range.
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
As I mentioned, the SDRs are not exactly the same. If you want one with transmit you are in a higher proce range.
@marsa744 жыл бұрын
Excellent video, as usual, thanks very much, Andreas. That German "Tiefpaßfilter" should be at least 24 years old as it is written "Tiefpassfilter" since 1996. Now I know what a spelling reform is good for.
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
Interesting. Frequencies still are the same today...
@lohikarhu7344 жыл бұрын
I think that the 'notch' is not RBW-related issue, but due to the LO 'step', since it appears that the design does not actually 'sweep', but uses discrete step sizes, or?
@listerdave12404 жыл бұрын
It's because when the frequency of the LO is exactly the same as the input frequency the output of the mixer is DC and the logarithmic amplifier does not amplify DC or very low frequency, also because of capacitor C29 which blocks any DC into the amplifier anyway. As the LO moves slightly above or below the input frequency then the frequency of the output from the mixer is again high enough to pass through C29 and for the AD8307 to amplify it. Apart from the notch this design has another flaw, that of 'reflections'. If for instance you were to look at an SSB signal it would appear as a double sideband one with suppressed carrier. In 'real' spectrum analysers they do not convert to DC but instead to an intermediate frequency of a few MHz and then measure the amplitude of that. That also eliminates the reflection problem.
@ИванСнежков-з9й4 жыл бұрын
@@listerdave1240 Thank you for explaining this phenomenon. This "notch" didn't make much sense given the theoretical principle of operation. BTW, isn't C18 also a problem?
@NiHaoMike644 жыл бұрын
@@listerdave1240 The AD8307 can handle up to 500MHz. An IF around 450MHz would stay well within the specs of the 8307 and make it easier to design the image rejection filter.
@LutzSchafer4 жыл бұрын
@@listerdave1240 This makes alot of sense. Why couldn't they just down convert to a constant IF like in any good old superheterodyne receiver? Then using a narrow band amp with filters would also filter out the odd integer multiples due to the square waveform of the LO. Yeah I realize this 50 bucks spend wasn't worth it's bang ...
@manuelcornejo74053 жыл бұрын
I nearly won a Tektronix 7613 for €20.00. I think it is obsolete but do you think is pointless to buy one of these according to the cheap spectrum analyzers you can get nowadays? I think this is very good for ELF from 1Hz onwards and I am interested in studying the brainwaves
@AndreasSpiess3 жыл бұрын
The professional SAs are much better than these small ones, of course. If you get a working one for 20$ and you have the space for it, very good!
@fritmore4 жыл бұрын
your left hand is really small, you know
@anthonycardenas91772 жыл бұрын
Andreas, thank you for your outstanding work! Please, will you PLEASE update your Links at the bottom? Sadly a number of them no longer connect. Thank you again!
@AndreasSpiess2 жыл бұрын
With 400 videos I cannot update all links :-( But I updated the link to the TinySA
@karlkaefer25693 жыл бұрын
Buyer beware. If you only need a *cheap* spectrum analyzer, get yourself a used RSP1 or RSP2 for about 100 € or even less and the spectrum analyzer software from sdrplay. Pretty accurate and much more sensitive than this crap here, although it is not as fast as a real spectrum analyzer. Andreas, well done this video!
@AndreasSpiess3 жыл бұрын
I agree.
@funtimess29953 жыл бұрын
Great videos :) Love the artificial hand...lol You have a great sense of humor along with great tech knowledge... Thanks for making it so much fun to watch.
@AndreasSpiess3 жыл бұрын
Thank you for your nice words!
@olivierlourme95214 жыл бұрын
Probably my favorite video among all your great quality tutorials! But what does the VBW indication on your Siglent screen correspond to?
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
The explanation is here: www.siglenteu.com/application-note/spectrum-analyzer-basics-bandwidth/
@matthines30862 жыл бұрын
Hey Andreas, thanks for all of the useful videos. I checked your website looking for a PayPal email to donate to but don't see it. Do you have a way for a direct donation?
@AndreasSpiess2 жыл бұрын
Thank you for donating. You can use my name on paypal (andreasspiess) if you want.
@epiendless11283 жыл бұрын
Thanks. Useful pointers here of what to look for in a cheap analyser. As I like to say, I would RTFM, but there was no FM to R.
@AndreasSpiess3 жыл бұрын
Documentation and software is not a strength of Chinese manufacturers, you are right.
@mreriklundh3 жыл бұрын
Would these GitHub repos help with the software problem? github.com/AI6YP/BG7TBL-RF-USB github.com/darkstar007/NetworkAnalyser
@AndreasSpiess3 жыл бұрын
Thank you for the links. I will try them in the future...
@iwan68413 жыл бұрын
I love the little 🖐, pointing out things 😂
@AndreasSpiess3 жыл бұрын
:-)
@manuelcornejo74053 жыл бұрын
Me too. Where did you buy it?
@Moonbase594 жыл бұрын
Always looking forward to hearing from you! I’m not into RF much myself (except when having to filter harmonics, hee hee), but your videos are always didactically well prepared so it’s pure joy watching them and there’s always something to learn. And of course I dig cat-lovers, having had my own lab cat for ever so many years. :-) Anyways, thanks for being there, doing all this and even teaching an old fart new tricks from time to time!
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
I am an old fart, too. And Dishka, too. So we are already three. She, however, seems not to be too interested in learning new tricks...
@tonysfun4 жыл бұрын
Very nice video again! You make my day, because I learn several new things and that is a must for me. Thank you Andreas!
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
I try to add some value to my test videos. Like that I hope it is easier for the viewer to decide if someting is good or bad for his application.
@larrynelson83854 жыл бұрын
Excellent presentation and explanations Mr. Andreas. Keep sharing your knowledge and we will enhance our world one step at a time!
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
Thank you for your nice words!
@alphonsedaudet44783 жыл бұрын
I am French. Can you confirm that the voice-over of this video is in English? I have a big doubt because I understood everything without problem! I have rarely seen a video of this quality on KZbin, both technically and in terms of video editing and sound recording ... and with so much humor!
@AndreasSpiess3 жыл бұрын
This is a very nice comment! Thank you. French nearly "killed" my career when I was young because of the bad grades. I only learned it when I worked in Cameroon... But since then I forgot most of it. Good that we can communicate in English.
@leroycasterline11223 жыл бұрын
Keep watching Andreas and prepare to learn a lot!
@manuelcornejo74053 жыл бұрын
@@AndreasSpiess Oh mon dieux c'est incroyable
@manuelcornejo74053 жыл бұрын
Hi Andreas. I can see you plan to speak at ukw-tagung.org/vortraege/ this year but most of the lectures are in german and Mein Deutsch ist nicht sehr gut. Maybe there is a not very expensive gadget that can make conversation mode real time translate
@AndreasSpiess3 жыл бұрын
This is an old speech from 2020. So far there are no further plans...
@richardroy67473 жыл бұрын
I would like to buy a spectrum analyzer for 2 reasons: 1-to familiarize myself with spectrum analyzers 2- find FM and LTE signals strenght for interference when I install antennas to be able to determine if FM or LTE traps should be used.Could the cheap one do the job?
@denisernestomedina62573 жыл бұрын
winnwt4 is no longer in the developer pages i just received the ltdz but cannot find the software anywhere, please help
@AndreasSpiess3 жыл бұрын
I do not use this device anymore. So I cannot help :-(
@souta954 жыл бұрын
Thanks for the video! I found it really informative. I probably would have wanted one of these had I seen them for sale, but as I mostly would use it to measure harmonics from transceivers they are kinda useless. I think for cheap harmonics measurements an SDR dongle and attenuator is the way to go. I already have a Nano VNA for checking filters and antennas.
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
You are right.
@stevec50004 жыл бұрын
You are trying to use the wrong software at 13:26 in the video. I'm using a version of the cheap 35-4400 board with the older software and I get a full display like you got on the Siglent spectrum analyzer at 2:20! I haven't tried the newer NWT4000 yellow program but am using a newer version of the old WinNWT4 program, ver. 4.11.09, with step set to 905000 but have an older board that has the SMA connectors sticking up vertically from the board, not on the end like you have, and it works great! The WinNWT4 program also has Help built in. A user manual can be found here: www.hamcom.dk/NWT4000/sweep%20software_hardware%20NTW4000-2%20USER%20MANUAL_UK.pdf Also, I have a NanoVNA and would like to know why it can't be used as a spectrum analyzer the same way as the NWT4000? I can use it to check the resonant freq. of antennas and so on but when I connect a signal to the input it doesn't show any signals the way the NWT4000 does! The input obviously works when checking an antenna so why doesn't it work by itself? Update, I tried the NWT4000 program and it didn't work for me either, seems to be pretty worthless compared to the older one.
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
Thank you for the link to the manual. If you see the signal I assume you have selected a different sample rate or different boundaries as I pointed out. The newerr SW only allows 2000 samples max.
@stevec50004 жыл бұрын
@@AndreasSpiess I didn't select the sample rate, the software put in the value automatically so it works. I don't remember where I found the WinNWT4 program, ver. 4.11.09 but Google should be able to find it. Also someone on Amazon is selling these 35-4400 Mhz spectrum analyzer boards for $33 that are $50-60 everywhere else! www.amazon.com/AGOAL-Spectrum-Analyzer-35-4400M-Frequency/dp/B07ZK3Z3F6/
@mega20343 жыл бұрын
My question is, Because of the frequency ranging from 35 MHz to 4.4 GHz is this unit any good for audio( 50Hz to 20KHz ) analysis? Thank you
@AndreasSpiess3 жыл бұрын
No. It does not work for audio. You can use a soundcard and software for audio.
@mega20343 жыл бұрын
@@AndreasSpiess thanks 🙏
@carlosgarcialalicata2 жыл бұрын
Can this be used to find out the right capacitor to reduce noise on digital signals? Thanks!
@AndreasSpiess2 жыл бұрын
In principle: Yes. But usually people use oscilloscopes for such applications.
@Halerno3 жыл бұрын
Can you not make a video about the cat? And, do not give him/her to much food ;-)
@AndreasSpiess3 жыл бұрын
She gets as much as she wants, but this is not a lot. Her fur is quite big...
@GabrielKleinCH4 жыл бұрын
RTFM is now RTFSC :) (Read the f*** source code :) )
@AndreasSpiess4 жыл бұрын
Yes!
@qzorn4440 Жыл бұрын
wow this is so cool. I am starting to check out how to build a SDR radio telescope and one video used a cheap spectrum analyzer test the 21cm astronomy hydrogen line. This is a all new learning curve on making a homemade radio telescope using SDR software. 😎 thanks a lot.
@AndreasSpiess Жыл бұрын
Check the newest link in the description before you buy a TinySA. There is a new version available.
@qzorn4440 Жыл бұрын
@@AndreasSpiess I checked it out and ordered a: tinySA ULTRA 100k-5.3GHz Hand held tiny Spectrum Analyzer + 4" TFT LCD +Battery. Thank you very much.