PORTXVNSA SA5 - Is This A Clone Of The TinySA Ultra Spectrum Analyzer?

[@TechMindsOfficial]

Just a little side note here as some of you snowflakes like to comment about the "Click bait" thumbnail. Actually, here in the UK it is illegal to intercept certain radio transmissions, and considering the wide frequency range this device covers, and the fact that it can demodulate some signals directly on the device, it "could" be abused. So, I'm just saying, don't do it..! That's all folks!!!

[@smegheadGOAT]

Most folks convicted of this in the UK were not busted by a special shock force of radio police but were busted doing other crimes

[@chryseus1331]

Whilst technically true it isn't enforced, no one has been arrested for intercepting transmissions basically since the law was made, not to mention it being impossible to detect in the first place.

[@TheMicrofox]

Well, a simple SDR USB Stick plus a piece of software can do the same. 😉

[@pd1jdw630]

The UK has some weird laws. Like paying for tv when you only own a tv and never watch public tv.

[@TheMicrofox]

​​@@pd1jdw630Well, in Austria and Germany the laws are even weirder. We have to pay for public broadcasting even if we don't own any radio or tv.

[@WECB640]

Buy the original and support the person who designed it, not the copycats.

[@Mark_B544]

Bring the price down then 😂

[@TheMeshenger]

Quit charging 500 for something that costs 20 bucks then lol

[@simplestuff3895]

I’m a self employed field engineer and have the luxury of using a range of Anritsu devices, which one of my clients supply for me to use on their sites and keep in calibration etc. However for other jobs, I have my own SA’s and VNA including Aaronia and MFJ. I use NanoVNA and TinySa, which I find read just as well for most applications as the Anritsu units. Particularly the VNA. I’ll probably buy an SA5 as it’s slightly larger and has the rotary knob. My biggest complaint with the Tiny and Nano devices is are really too small for my personal liking. Clue in the name! However, I find that every setting is a complete arse to enter with a stylus and I have to put my specs on to read the screens and menus. It would be good if someone was to develop a tinySA that has a larger display set into a case with rubber corners, buttons and a rotary knob. Along with quality N-Jacks. It would cost a fair bit more and not for everyone, but would be a good lower to mid range tool. Even better if the SA and VNA boards were incorporated into the one device and mode switchable, but still retaining separate RF connections for simplicity and cost. As far as this being a clone. My opinion, only an opinion, is that yes it’s based on the official product and references that on the case sticker, but as the code is on GitHub, I see it more as an evolution or iteration. Thanks for the video .

[@Skunkhunt_42]

I have an elusive electromagnetic interference issue trying to track down. Can these be used to aid that effort?

[@myradiovideos]

I just received my SA5 today... I also have the Tiny-SA Ultra but wanted the rotary knob and yes it makes navigating the menus very easy and FAST!!! I also noticed that the screen is brighter and sharper and the boot up time is also faster then the Tiny-SA.. The operational manual is a QUALITY item as mentioned, lots of details and in color.. When you look inside the build quality is first class. I am sure the builder and designer of the SA5 had permission to build this, after all he gave the original designer credit for the Tiny-SA.. In my opinion the build of the PC board in the SA5 is Superior to the SA-Tiny... I also have a Malahit DSP2 as well as a new WEB-888 receiver... The devices are so amazing what they can do in particular the WEB-888... I have high end expensive receivers like FLEX, KENWOOD and ICOM for ham radio, but how they pack so much QUALITY in a box and sell it for Hundreds not thousands of dollars beats me... Robert

[@my.own.devices]

I don't think for one second this product is authorized by Erik K to use his firmware. All the tinySA unauthorized clones have his name on them too, so it's not a mark of authenticity in any way. One difference I noted is that the tinySA Ultra has a max input level of +10dBm compared to the +6dBm on this one. It would have been interesting to see if the firmware preserved the test and calibration routines, and what their output is.

[@germanjohn5626]

Eric said clearly he had nothing to do with this device. So, if it is based on his device it is a clone.

[@DarrenGlen]

Does the SA5 update the screen faster when scanning? or are they both using essentially the same CPU?

[@myradiovideos]

@@DarrenGlen I just compared my SA5 and Tiny SA. Had them both scanning 2.4 to 2.5 GHz, watching my Wi-Fi signals and I would say they are IDENTICAL in all aspects. I wanted the SA5 because of the adjustment knob, makes changing modes and functions SUPER FAST!! For $99, one cant go wrong...

[@marky26uk]

Thanks for this, but not a full comparison to the TinySA Ultra, also Erik offers fantastic continued support for his devices with firmware updates when needed, he listens closely to his customers bug reports and swiftly remedies the bugs with a new firmware update, i very much doubt these knock offs would offer that at all.

[@TechMindsOfficial]

It was never meant to be a direct comparison video, but you are right, I cannot even find any information from the company that makes this. The killer for me is the fact the pc software doesn't work 100%. Cheers

[@justDIY]

Nice looking bit of kit. The screen seems really sharp with great contrast.

[@arekx]

Did you ask seller for source code of the firmware? (which he should provide as it is required by GPL license) ... and then do diff.

[@BrianG61UK]

Worth a try, I guess, but it's Chinese and they often don't care about things like staying legal by obeying software licences.

[@LawpickingLocksmith]

If it makes you happy, use it. Turn knobs generally make things easier. IBM pc clones had a turn key, and their manufacturers kept pointing that out.

[@PhinkTink]

i would only use it illegally in a responsible way

[@DarrenGlen]

Same as my car driving....

[@BlitzK]

I'd love to see someone do a proper tear down of the two of them side by side.

[@TechMindsOfficial]

I showed the only firmware differences, and the boards are totally different. What else would you like to see? Going through every single feature and showing the results would be an awfully long and boring video.

[@kokoso1]

make a comparission of all sdr receivers which has the lowest noise level and highest sensitivity

[@aMixOfThingies]

I second this

[@sivoltage]

Same

[@nine7295]

Probably the Elad FDM-DUOr (I own the FDM-DUO, which is a transceiver, the r version is a receiver.). It has very low noise.

[@TechMindsOfficial]

@kokoso1 Thanks for the suggestion, I will add it to the list that is very long :-) Thanks for watching guys, I appreciate it.

[@Soupie62]

Just like the nanoVNA, the change I REALLY want is - a bigger screen.

[@TechMindsOfficial]

If you want a large screen on a VNA then check out this product I reviewed, it's the only VNA I use now and it has a large screen: kzbin.info/www/bejne/g4umapKbbsqlecU

[@germanjohn5626]

take the software, modify it for a bigger screen and then install one...should not be to hard.

[@ploegmma]

The new RF Power Snitch would be a great companion device for this one (both USB-C now).

[@zaphhood4745]

Sweet. If it came in orange I would consider buying.

[@michaelkaliski7651]

Looks better than the original.

[@richardk8293]

What's in the air it's everybody's property, you need a license to broadcast but you don't need a license to receive.

[@Rick-wy4od]

I do like the scroll knob/button and the (somewhat) protected SMA connectors. Overall, it looks like a nicer, more robust design than the original. Be a shame if there are software/IP copying issues though.

[@genhu8870]

As you can see, this is a very bad clone, and at 6:45 you can clearly see that there is a lot of random spuriousness even when there is no input signal. tinySA ULTRA was designed with a lot of tests on the RF circuitry, and it shows that the clone manufacturer can't do these tests, so they can't give any guarantee on the RF performance.

[@MrHolozip]

Have you see Aaronias SPECTRAN spectrum analysers and SDR offerings? I would absolutely love one of these things, though they're a little spendy... would be an awesome thing to review if you could convince them to send you one! I'd love to see your take before committing to buying one.

[@alphaadhito]

I think it would be really understatement for saying Spectran is little spendy, lol. I was curious at the price and end up saying "oh" at the end 😂

[@MrHolozip]

​@@alphaadhito lol! You're not wrong... Its a dream toy for me. It's the whole 9kHz to 18GHz thing that has me wanting one of their newer 'eco' models

[@TechMindsOfficial]

@MrHolozip Yeh, they won't send me one... 😞

[@simplestuff3895]

I’ve been using Aaronia SA for almost 15 years now. I like the quality and accuracy of the guts, but the interface and packaging on some of them are like a high school project! Funny story. I had a job in a regional council office a few years back to install a DAS. I was walking around with my Aaronia 2025e taking readings. On one of the floors, a lady spotted me and had a look of shear panic on her face. She immediately got up from her desk and ran out of the building, (stopping to pick up her belongings!) although surprised, I took no notice. Later on, I was pulled aside by the IT guy who had received an email from HR explaining that the lady had thought I was from the bomb squad and took a panic attack! It was requested that when working on their site and if walking around with technical looking bits of kit, I should perhaps look less purposeful and that I change my working attire from all black with boots and body warmer, to a less military style of dress! I wasn’t trying to dress like the bomb squad, it was just some well priced working gear from Screwfister. I took notice of the request and turned up the next day in jeans and Tshirt, along with some flowers for the easily startled lady. 😊

[@germanjohn5626]

If it is based on the TinySA then the "encoder" is more likely then not a simple rotary pulse switch. That way they did not had to re-invent the wheel.

[@bashkillszombies]

China clones will always be a few bucks cheaper. Three years ago $10 ear pro looked like 3M $300 ear pro. Now they price gouged up to $250. So just enough to make people think they're saving money, but the reality is they're still getting $10 ear pro instead of $300. Tbh the TinySA feels gouged up the whazoo right now too.

[@germanjohn5626]

The TinySA still costs only about 150 bucks from the authorized dealers. Although there are some clones that charge close to 300 bucks for it.

[@Yonni6502]

Nice video! Thanks.

[@n1vca]

Thanks for the introduction ... love the fact that it goes until 5.3GHz AND with some more measurement tolerance until 6GHz, which I need for WiFi and FPV drone signals. I don't care if it is a few dB off, but I want to see the relative signals coming in on the higher end of the 5 GHz band. 2:21 wrong, the visual part of the screen is the same size if your camara angle isn't distorting it?! Interesting that the software tells you a specific same HW version in both devices, while the HW is quite different ... looks like they did some very minor changes to the firmware and made sure the new bigger PCB is compatible ... but as you say, it is quite odd that the windows app interaction seems to be using a different routine for communication.

[@TechMindsOfficial]

I said the screens look the same size! I was referring to the casing which is pretty obvious. So what's wrong?

[@TechMindsOfficial]

Actually, I get what you mean. Hardly worth a comment though considering they look the same size. cheers

[@Hank_W6IR]

The big knob just replaces the jog wheel so I doubt there was much in the way of different coding for it.

[@TechMindsOfficial]

I disagree, the jog wheel works differently to an encoder in terms of coding.. Unless the original firmware already supported it.

[@MrHolozip]

Thank you for the overview and the detailed video. In the ultra mode, does it manage 12Ghz like the TinySA?

[@alexzabara6405]

Hello Matt. The sellers sent me the firmware for SA5, which should work with the computer. Could you check it, as I have no opportunity. If so, where should I send the file?

[@TechMindsOfficial]

Get my email from qrz or YT about page. Thanks

[@HyperMAX9001]

How can open source device have unlock code for some "ultra" features? I'll rather buy something without these obstacles.

[@NigelBallard]

I was eating my Pad Thai so might have missed it, but I don't recall seeing you use the VFO once, though I did catch you stabbing the screen a lot. Did I miss it?

[@antoineroquentin2297]

Soo which one would you prefer?

[@TechMindsOfficial]

TinySA Ultra works as intended, the SA5 is glitchy with pc software, so for now, the TinySA Ultra

[@BrianG61UK]

@@TechMindsOfficial I wonder if you could swap over their firmware so that you get the nice big knob with your favourite firmware?

[@TechMindsOfficial]

Well, that depends if the original firmware supports a rotary encoder or not. As far as I can tell the original firmware only supports a jog wheel.

[@BrianG61UK]

@@TechMindsOfficial Ah. Okay. Shame.

[@321CatboxWA]

Ultra mode? thanks for posting well done.

[@fastradioburst253]

I want a video on how I can use this illegally - I mean, how someone ELSE could use it that way. I, myself, would never do such a thing.

[@TechMindsOfficial]

Unfortunately that's something YT TOS would not allow.

[@HemiJoel]

What is it used for?

[@connecticutaggie]

Thanks for the video. Can the SA5 or the TinySA be use as an USB SDR?

[@TechMindsOfficial]

Unfortunately not

[@connecticutaggie]

@@TechMindsOfficial 😟

[@mjmeans7983]

I was looking for a light spectrum analyzer.

[@SteveWrightNZ]

Yeah a shame these units dont have a larger screen

[@buning_sensations5437]

I guess i got this in my suggested as I watch lotsof tech. Any developer who can make visual color meter for photographers for under $500 I'd be interested. As they currently sell for usually over several thousand dollars, i.e. the Sekonic C-7000.

[@EasyOne]

nice

[@jameswest3275]

horrible. boycott this theft of intellectual property.

[@softwarephil1709]

It’s open source, not proprietary.

[@ergonomiczero2228]

Only goes to 5.3ghz though. Why would they stop there?

[@mikewillis1592]

Looks like a clone.

[@anandarochisha]

Chinese Clone designed to put tiny sa put of business

[@TechMindsOfficial]

That isn't going to happen if they have buggy firmware which makes the software unusable.

[@radiotests]

Its clearly a problem stretching out the board increasing trace length and introducing lots of erroneous signals and attenuating signals. The TinySA ultra was designed and built to give the user professional features like accuracy and acceptable noise that this larger knockoff did not think to offer. Its not going to be well used above 2m frequencies. Shameful knockoff that we should not support.

[@z3r0c00l2]

Well somebody obviously took the idea from tiny.sa ultra and made a better Version of it. Which is good ... And now tiny.sa is in shame 😂