[time-nuts] Re: Frequency counter recommendation wanted

[Busyspin]

Hi, all.

My frequency counter has found a new home - thanks!

-Mark

> On Mar 15, 2023, at 11:09 PM, Busyspin <mark.priest at busyspin.org> wrote:
> 
> 
> Hi, all.
> 
> I have a BK Precision 1856D 3.5GHz Frequency Counter (https://www.bkprecision.com/products/vids/1856D) that I bought at auction last year and I no longer have a need for it. If anyone here is interested in it I would be happy to send it to you if you help me cover the postage. I would hate to see it go to waste.
> 
> Thanks,
> Mark Priest
> 
> <image0.jpeg>
> 
>>> On Mar 15, 2023, at 8:36 PM, Bob Camp via time-nuts <time-nuts at lists.febo.com> wrote:
>>> 
>> Hi
>> 
>> One “interesting” point about the 1992: Coming up with an accurate answer to the question 
>> “how good is it?” is not at all easy. 
>> 
>> One *could* spend the day with the Racal sales guy asking that question. At the end of the 
>> day, the result would be confusion. Spend a day with the spec sheets an confusion also is 
>> the result. 
>> 
>> About the only conclusion you can come to is that they *really* don’t like to commit to a number.
>> One might wonder ….
>> 
>> Next you could grab one of the ones sitting around the lab and start looking at the results. 
>> Considering this is done in 1970’s, the gear to do so isn’t quite what you have today. Best
>> guess at the time was something around 4 ns for a “single shot” sort of resolution. 
>> 
>> On the same basis, the 5334 comes in at 2 ns and the 5335 comes in at 1 ns. The 53131
>> is around 0.5 ns and the 53132 is around 0.2 ns. 
>> 
>> The 5345 is also a 2 ns single shot device. Like the 5334, (and others) it can do averaging
>> to get lower.“Single shot” and “averaging” aren’t quite the same thing ….
>> 
>> The the 5370 (went it works) can get to 0.02 ns “RMS” and the SR620 can do about the 
>> same. The 53230 can get to 0.01 ns with a good input. Since these are one sigma rather than
>> a fixed LSB, the comparison isn’t quite perfect …..
>> 
>> Does any of this matter? It depends a lot on just what you want to / need to do. That’s always
>> the gotcha with these questions. Things are rarely tightly defined ….
>> 
>> If I’m looking at the delta between two 1 pps pulses, then I likely *do* care about single shot
>> sort of stuff. If I want to know if my transmitter is 2 Hz off at 10 GHz, that’s a different question.
>> 
>> Bob
>> 
>> 
>> 
>>> On Mar 15, 2023, at 4:07 PM, John Vendely via time-nuts <time-nuts at lists.febo.com> wrote:
>>> 
>>> I concur.  I've also experienced keypad problems with the 1992, and know of someone else who has, as well.  Otherwise, they're good instruments...
>>> 
>>> 73,
>>> 
>>> John K9WT
>>> 
>>>> On 3/15/2023 3:08 PM, Ken Winterling via time-nuts wrote:
>>>> John,
>>>> 
>>>> I've owned three of the Racal-Dana 1992 counters for years. The one
>>>> weakness I have noticed is that the keypad tactile switches.fail at a very
>>>> high rate. I got my counters very cheaply because they were advertised as
>>>> defective, for parts only.  If you encounter a switch problem I can send
>>>> you information on what I have done to fix the problem.
>>>> 
>>>> 73,
>>>> 
>>>> *Ken*
>>>> *WA2LBI*
>>>> 
>>>> 
>>>> 
>>>> 
>>>> On Wed, Mar 15, 2023 at 12:15 PM John Miller via time-nuts <
>>>> time-nuts at lists.febo.com> wrote:
>>>> 
>>>>> Right now I think I have a line on some Racal-Dana 1992s from another
>>>>> member, but I have heard so much good about the 5334B I think I want to get
>>>>> one just on principle. Especially once I have these 1992s, I could pick up
>>>>> a faulty 5334B and repair it! I think that could be a lot of fun and save a
>>>>> good bit of money.
>>>>> 
>>>>> I really appreciate all the feedback, folks, and hopefully in another 5-10
>>>>> years those I'll be able to get my hands on an  SR 620 or a multi-GHz model
>>>>> like the HP 53132A. I have an Agilent E4402B that needs some work....
>>>>> 
>>>>> Thanks all,
>>>>> John
>>>>> 
>>>>>> On Mar 14, 2023, at 4:39 PM, Stewart Cobb via time-nuts <
>>>>> time-nuts at lists.febo.com> wrote:
>>>>>> I've bought perhaps a dozen HP 5334B counters off ePay for my company
>>>>> labs
>>>>>> over the last decade, at prices from about $75 to $225. I've never had a
>>>>>> problem with one. Rick built a good box. For various reasons, the B model
>>>>>> is a better bet than the A model.
>>>>>> 
>>>>>> If it does everything you need it to do, the 5334B is the counter to get.
>>>>>> It's blessedly quiet because it doesn't have or need a fan.
>>>>>> 
>>>>>> Pro tip: you will occasionally see one listed "as is" with the display
>>>>>> showing "no osc". Those counters are generally fine. All that message
>>>>> means
>>>>>> is that the timebase switch on the back is set to "external" rather than
>>>>>> "internal", and the seller doesn't know to flip it back. If you can see
>>>>>> that on the photos, don't be afraid.
>>>>>> 
>>>>>> If it's an OCXO model (option 010), it's possible that someone harvested
>>>>>> the 10811 OCXO before selling the remainder. I've never seen that, but
>>>>> it's
>>>>>> possible. If so, it's a bit tedious to change back to the default
>>>>> internal
>>>>>> crystal, but these counters will always work with an external 10 MHz
>>>>> input.
>>>>>> Cheers!
>>>>>> --Stu
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