RF Electronics Video Blog, topic suggestions? - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: BalticLab
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: October 17, 2012, 02:40:01 am
content: My YouTube channel  is currently only used for auxiliary videos which are used for illustration purposes of my classic text blog . But that is supposed to change.So why another video blog? While there are plenty of really good electronics video blogs out there, almost all of them completely neglect the world of high frequency signals. Dave usually doesn’t cover RF-related stuff at all. Mike Harrison (Mike’s Electric Stuff) and Jeri Ellsworth do touch RF related stuff occasionally but usually not very deeply. Mike actually called RF the art of voodoo in a recent teardown video.My video blog is supposed to go hand in hand with my classic text blog. You will see product reviews and tutorials for basic and advanced RF and test equipment related topics. Since RF nowadays goes hand in hand with microcontroller applications, I will occasionally cover microcontroller-related topics as well.The first videos will hopefully be up by early November. I currently have a nice line-up of manufacturer contributed items to review. I would love to hear what YOU would like to see on the video blog in particular and most importantly, if you can imagine watching an RF-oriented video blog, subscribe to my YouTube channel  now so that I can get a general overview of how many are actually interested.Links: KF5OBS, YouTube:https://www.youtube.com/user/KF5OBS Jaunty Electronics:http://www.jaunty-electronics.com

author: FenderBender
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 17, 2012, 02:43:59 am
content: I (we) appreciate it.But come on! Did you not see those apocalyptic demonic satanic symbols they managed to disguise in the form of a circuit board? Black magic at work.We mustn't forget W2AEW though!https://www.youtube.com/user/w2aew

author: BalticLab
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: October 17, 2012, 02:47:53 am
content: Quote from: FenderBender on October 17, 2012, 02:43:59 amI loved the way Mike set the scene there with the satanic symbols. But after all it's just as little black magic as every other branch of electronics. If you have absolutely no knowledge about it, it appears to be black magic. But the good thing is that we can all learn and become Voodoo mastersQuote from: FenderBender on October 17, 2012, 02:43:59 amAgreed. I am a big fan and subscriber of his channel.

author: FenderBender
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 17, 2012, 03:12:47 am
content: Yeah I obviously don't think its really black magic. But as you say, if you don't understand something at all you think it's magic. Look at most consumers on this planet. They don't have the slightest clue how that smartphone works! Same thing with RF!

author: Unknown
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: October 17, 2012, 04:23:01 am
content: A dichotomy often faced is how to keep the entry level low enough to engage wide audience and deliver a good body of knowledge at the same time. I think a "simple" project like designing a wifi antenna might satisfy the first and to a certain extent the second criteria. The field of wifi antennas can certainly benefit from an informed approach.

author: BalticLab
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: October 17, 2012, 04:31:18 am
content: I agree, it's going to be darn difficult to deliver content that is appealing to entry-level experimenters as well as to Voodoo masters. A way could be splitting content up in the fundamental etry-level part and the advanced part. The viewer could choose to jump over the beginners part and dive straight into the advanced material.

author: EEVblog
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: October 17, 2012, 04:54:40 am
content: Don't ask what we want to see, just post stuff!I don't cover RF because it doesn't really interest me to do videos on it. Same with the others I would presume.Dave.

author: FenderBender
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 17, 2012, 10:13:28 pm
content: I think we ARE interested in RF, but a lot of us don't really fully understand it so we just choose to...well..ignore it.

author: EEVblog
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: October 17, 2012, 10:21:33 pm
content: Quote from: FenderBender on October 17, 2012, 10:13:28 pmYes, RF does interest me, just not enough over other things to spend any blog or project time on it. The same can be said for many other aspects of electronics, and also less related fields like robotics, mechanical, RC, and a bunch of other stuff like general physics etc.Dave.

author: tom66
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 17, 2012, 10:25:38 pm
content: Quote from: EEVblog on October 17, 2012, 10:21:33 pmDid you study RF (I presume you've got a degree?) I am considering the option for my second year - but it sounds like it would be a very challenging course. I like challenging, but I don't want to take on more than I can handle.

author: robrenz
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 17, 2012, 10:33:11 pm
content: A quick skim of your text blog seems to be superficial coverage of the topics for my taste. An example is the blown capacitor replacement topic. For all that text, you covered only one technical detail, voltage rating. I like to be educated and enlightened by a blog topic. If your videos are like that I dont think your going to get many views.Not trying to be abusive just my honest opinion.

author: BalticLab
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: October 17, 2012, 10:51:57 pm
content: Quote from: robrenz on October 17, 2012, 10:33:11 pmThe article wasn't supposed to be technical. The story was more about getting LCDs for free off the street. Locate broken caps, put new in, done. Other people have written tons of base articles on that, no need ro re-invent the wheel. On my non-RF related posts I do require readers to bring some electronics base knowledge with them.Like I wrote beforehand, it is pretty difficult to entertain both the entry level past time EE as well as the upper level expert.QuoteNo worries, I asked for constructive feedback. And while confirmation for ones current style is always a good ego enhancer, it doesn't help future improvements

author: free_electron
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 17, 2012, 11:27:54 pm
content: do a teardown of a 10GHz oscillator used in satellite LNB's. that's always interesting.... 1 transistor , a piece of silver wire and a pad of ferrite , all mounted on an alox substrate .... and yet, it works perfectly fine.or do a teardown fo that new 16 channel 60Ghz scope that agilent made. i'd like to see the chips in that thing ...

author: BalticLab
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: October 17, 2012, 11:32:52 pm
content: Quote from: free_electron on October 17, 2012, 11:27:54 pmNot Ku-Band but same story:http://jaunty-electronics.com/blog/2012/09/c-band-dro-lnb-teardown/I could do a video on that. I have about 20 different C-Band and Ku-Band LNBs laying around. Could be interesting.

author: EEVblog
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: October 18, 2012, 01:19:15 am
content: Quote from: KF5OBS on October 17, 2012, 11:32:52 pmBingo! You have your first video topic!Dave.

author: w2aew
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 18, 2012, 02:32:01 am
content: Cool, I'm looking forward to your RF videos - sounds like good stuff!

author: BalticLab
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: October 18, 2012, 02:38:57 am
content: Quote from: EEVblog on October 18, 2012, 01:19:15 amTo quote Staples: That was easy!My new HD camera is in the mail and I expect the first videos to be up late October. Make sure to subscribe so that you don't miss a thing.https://www.youtube.com/user/KF5OBSQuote from: w2aew on October 18, 2012, 02:32:01 amI appreciate hearing that from you. Your videos rock by the way!

author: BalticLab
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: March 03, 2013, 01:43:38 am
content: Okay, it has been a long long time. I am that kind of a person who is having difficulties upload something that is not 'perfect'. I remember Dave talked about that in several of his videos as well. As a result, i threw away several tryouts. So today I sat down and told myself to either get something, really anything up on YouTube or discard the video-blog idea in its entirety. So here's the raw and unedited result of this ultimatum:KF5OBS #1: Introduction and content ideas

author: rbola35618
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: March 03, 2013, 01:55:49 am
content: Rf is a subject that interest me. Please post some stuff.Robert

author: BravoV
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 03, 2013, 04:58:24 am
content: Quote from: KF5OBS on March 03, 2013, 01:43:38 amAs oldie said .. "good part + anticipated bad part = true perfection" ... so for starter stop worrying about those unnecessary thingy, imo your sound + video + scene and etc is perfect for a starter.Understand you've raised it few times that you won't do basic stuffs that already covered by many vblogs, but please consider when preparing some of your subjects (not all though), that it will be friendly as well for "intermediate level" enthusiast/hobbyist grade audiences.

author: BalticLab
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: March 03, 2013, 02:44:01 pm
content: Quote from: BravoV on March 03, 2013, 04:58:24 amAs I said in the video, my target is to present material in a way that beginners will be able to catch on but at the same time intermediate level viewers don't get bored. That'll be quite a challenge but I will try.

author: IanJ
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: March 03, 2013, 03:16:24 pm
content: Great to see another electronics video blog.......and if I can do it, then anyone can do it (I've done 6 so far).Love your first blog, and I've got no doubt you'll collect lots of subscribers.Have you thought about camera mounting positions? Here's my home-brew camera mounts.Also, what software are you using?........I've tried lots, and finally settled on the Vegas Movie Studio HD.Ian.

author: BalticLab
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: March 04, 2013, 03:01:52 am
content: Ian, that is a pretty nice set-up. I haven't worried much about the mounting yet. That will have to change for the first teardown video though.As far as software goes, I use KDenlive to edit. It's a freeware editing software for Linux based operating systems.

author: Anquietas
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: March 05, 2013, 03:51:21 pm
content: Take a look at Dave's very first EEVBlog video. He is so virginally tense and inexperienced in that video, you basically have nothing to worry about. It's interesting to see how people develop with experience.

author: BalticLab
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: March 05, 2013, 04:00:18 pm
content: It seems like it. As I said, i procrastinated making the first video over months. But now that I have uploaded the first video I am crazily eager to get the next one up. Interesting how one's view changes after one has done something and has developed some comfort with it. If time allows it, I will try to shoot the C-Band LNB teardown this weekend and post it next week.

author: MikeK
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 06, 2013, 10:16:55 pm
content: Quote from: FenderBender on October 17, 2012, 02:43:59 amYeah, I enjoy Alan's channel. He has some good videos.So do Peter:https://www.youtube.com/user/vk3yeAnd the other Alan:https://www.youtube.com/user/vk2zay

author: KJDS
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 06, 2013, 11:34:23 pm
content: From a recent chat with a young engineer interested in RF, then an idiots guide to the Smith chart would be welcome to many.

author: BalticLab
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: March 19, 2013, 02:34:25 am
content: And here's the long promised teardown video. Enjoy and let me know what you think!

author: smashedProton
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: March 19, 2013, 05:14:10 am
content: The audio is a little too quiet. But all round, i think that you did a really good job of making sense of the magic! I will stick around and watch you explain more satanic symbols and magical glyphs on pcbs.

author: vk3yedotcom
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: March 19, 2013, 10:14:51 am
content: Quote from: KJDS on March 06, 2013, 11:34:23 pm+1And as Dave says just post stuff.One topic per videoIntro music a few seconds (if at all)Intro a few seconds to define topic then rip into itLengths under 5-8 min unless really compelling stuffRecap main message at endSpend no more than 3-4 hrs to produce + edit each video - go for quantity insteadBut avoid camera shake, bad focus, bad music, bad audio or bad lighting

author: Anquietas
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: March 19, 2013, 12:45:16 pm
content: It was a nice overview and good start, I liked it!I would like to see more details, though. For instance, I have been asking myself where the power for the resonator/oscillator comes from, until he happened to mention it somewhat later on. Also, there was quite a bit of handwaving involved. The best part was actually him mentioning what that filter ("hairpin filter") is called, so I could Google the term and find books that cover this. Exposing some of the theory would also be nice, because I don't buy into this "just use CAD software to get what you need" advice. The choice of actives/passives in RF circuits is also interesting, and it would be nice if he made a more elaborate mention of the transistors he touched upon in the beginning. He also didn't say in the second LNB how that fanned out printed circuit artifact "introduces non-linearity" (or what it actually does, because I have no idea what that is good for). He also didn't say anything about transmission lines or how they are supposed to be interpreted - I would've loved to hear about this because that's probably a huge contributor to the RF magic. And there was no mention of the role of the ground plane, or where the vias from those RF chokes go.There was also some noticeable discontinuity in the level of exposition. I have the impression that it was partly made for people who have knowledge of RF circuitry, but then he mentioned stuff that people with some knowledge would already definitely know about.I highlighted the parts I would've liked to hear more about,Quote from: vk3yedotcom on March 19, 2013, 10:14:51 amNo intro music or anything like that. I dislike this even in TV series. He should probably do it the way he likes, but I find it most efficient to just say Hi and get started.

author: KJDS
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 19, 2013, 08:09:27 pm
content: That hair pin filter looks far more like an interdigital to me. It's possible that there's something not clear from the video and i'm mistaken, but there I've never seen ground vias on a hairpinAnd as for no-one doing the maths? I've got a spreadsheet that does it, wrote it years ago based on Denigs classic paper, so I'm one of those that does the maths.

author: mrflibble
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 19, 2013, 10:14:15 pm
content: Quote from: smashedProton on March 19, 2013, 05:14:10 amFound the audio to be no problem. And for the rest ... what he said! More demystiyfing of that black magic.If you happen to have anything GPS related that would be great, but like the others have already said ... just pick whatever you like and make a video about it.I will definitely be watching the next one.

author: BalticLab
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: March 20, 2013, 02:15:07 am
content: Quote from: KJDS on March 19, 2013, 08:09:27 pmAbsolutely correct. I honestly had no idea what a "hair pin" is. English isn't my first language so I always assumed they are hairpin filters in English because of the small size. You are correct, it's inter-digital.Quote from: KJDS on March 19, 2013, 08:09:27 pmNot trying to me a wise guy, but the spreadsheet is doing the math, not you. And as far as professional RF design goes, you rely on software for the most part. I personally appreciate the math behind it, however, I want to show how easy it can be. And unfortunately, that requires elimination of math where possible if I want to keep people interested.

author: madshaman
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: March 20, 2013, 02:33:51 am
content: Hi, I just took a look at your blog. You might be my new favourite person. Thanks! You have no idea how great it is to have so many people to learn from available at the tap of a button. It's fantastic.I saw a post about keeping people interested without heavy math; I think some people might be happy seeing more of the math.

author: lewis
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: March 20, 2013, 11:08:30 am
content: Quote from: KJDS on March 06, 2013, 11:34:23 pmHear hear! The Smith chart looks like voodoo magic stuff in its own right, let alone the water towers, butterflies, window cleaners, paperclips and whatnot you see on RF PCBs.

author: KJDS
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 20, 2013, 12:00:32 pm
content: Quote from: lewis on March 20, 2013, 11:08:30 amI went through a period of making space invader shapes do useful things.

author: jcook1979
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: March 20, 2013, 12:31:37 pm
content: I would like to learn more about RF electronics. You could talk about the various modulation schemes (like PSK and QAM), and how they're implemented; the inner workings of receivers; the design and construction of antennas (antennae?); any topic would do, really.

author: madshaman
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: March 24, 2013, 10:23:58 pm
content: Eagerly awaiting video #3 :-). Suggestion-wise, I'd like to see something along the lines of common gotchas associated with working at RF frequencies, how to solve, what roadblocks start to appear at what frequencies, stuff like that. I'm a newbie with this stuff though.Other stuff I can think of is common circuit elements and how they have to be designed/constructed differently at high frequencies or what problem solving approaches stop working as expected at high frequencies and what the alternatives are.As mentioned before, I wouldn't mind seeing more math.

author: BalticLab
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: March 25, 2013, 12:34:59 am
content: Quote from: madshaman on March 24, 2013, 10:23:58 pmI'll try to maintain a 2 week frequency of uploading new videos.Quote from: madshaman on March 24, 2013, 10:23:58 pmI will do exactly that. we'll talk about some common circuit elements and actually develop circuits together to show the entire 'from the idea to finished product' process.Quote from: madshaman on March 24, 2013, 10:23:58 pmWe'll get there.

author: JonnyBoats
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: March 25, 2013, 09:39:38 am
content: I would just like to say keep up the good work. I read your blog (great!) and now watch the videos.The LNB tear-down was very interesting. Microwave circuits are extremely specialized however, but still interesting.How about something really simple like a one or two transistor HF CW only QRP transmitter? You could get several videos covering such things as:how to make it stablesuppressing harmonicskey clicksetc.All the things we hams used to worry about back in the days when we built our own cheap transmitters from scrap parts.

author: madshaman
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: March 25, 2013, 04:16:24 pm
content: Quote from: KF5OBS on March 25, 2013, 12:34:59 amExcellent! And high praise for contributing your time to this.

author: BalticLab
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: April 12, 2013, 07:54:19 pm
content: And here's number 3:Unfortunately, I rushed to it too quick. I feel like I repeated some insignificant bits too often and neglected some of the important annotations. Ah well, still gotta learn to rather film more and cut it out than filming less and not having it in the video.Also, I am using a different encoder setting, so the video should look much better than the previous ones. The other ones I uploaded have a very low VBR. The newest one has a VBR of 10000 kbps. Please give me feedback on that. Also, I tried to capture audio with an external device and sync it up, but the bitrate was screwed up and I didn't want to invest the time messing with it.

author: lewis
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: April 13, 2013, 12:46:58 pm
content: Keep up the good work!You have an excellent way of explaining things that makes these concepts easy for a complete RF novice like me to understand.

author: madshaman
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: April 18, 2013, 08:05:05 pm
content: Thank-you KF5OBS, nice simple intro video, really liked it. Not sure how comfortable others feel, but wouldn't mind if you occasionally went into the complex math in the future. I'm a newbie to RF too, but I'm thinking there end up being barriers to progress at least mathematical clunkiness if you're using only reals.Please keep them coming!!!

author: mrflibble
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 18, 2013, 08:24:48 pm
content: Thanks very much for numero 3. And don't hesitate to put in some math where required. So please keep 'm coming!

author: joblessalex
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: May 02, 2013, 06:34:16 am
content: Something I am on my knees waiting for.... Thank you air!I would like to see a simple to follow, but detailed tutorial on designing a simple multiband (just change the filter) QRP amplifier. Another good topic to cover are the different types of oscillators and how to couple them to said amplifiers....

author: madshaman
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: June 13, 2013, 12:03:40 am
content: Number 4?

author: BalticLab
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: February 17, 2014, 07:04:05 pm
content: And I proudly present number 10:Thanks for everyone's suggestions and ideas. Just comparing video number 1 and video number 10 shows an enormous improvement in ... well, everything. This year I'll have a lot more time dedicated to YT videos. Current target is about 2 videos / month. And it seems that I am right on track with that target.

author: BalticLab
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: February 18, 2014, 05:33:22 pm
content: Quote from: Dawgie on February 18, 2014, 05:32:25 amWhy not? Criticism is important. Without, everyone would assume they're the best.Quote from: Dawgie on February 18, 2014, 05:32:25 amUsually, if you put stuff in series, it gets pretty serious. But in all seriesness, sorry, seriousness I used to re-shoot entire segments because of stuff like this. By now it's just part of me, a European living the American dream. And sometimes the fact that I live in the south of the US bleeds through in my language as well. I still wanna slap myself in the face every time I say "ya'll" or "ain't".The way a presenter speaks usually tells you a lot of interesting things about them. For instance, Dave's problem pronouncing many tech words, even though English is his native language, tells you that he gained a lot of his knowledge from reading. If you have never heard others use the words, you pronounce them the way you read them. For years I pronounced capacitor like capa-citor, simply because that's how I read it. Then in 8th or 9th grade or so I heard people pronouncing this word the correct way and adapted.

author: BalticLab
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: March 05, 2014, 06:53:31 pm
content: And Here's number 11 and 12.Video # 11: MailbagVideo # 12: Microwave Communication Experiments on a Budget

author: BalticLab
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: March 20, 2014, 04:34:05 pm
content: Here's a collection of a few videos I shot at this year's APEC conference in Fort Worth, TX. I'll be adding videos over time once I get done editing them.https://www.youtube.com/embed/videoseries?list=PLfqNul7RwoLQw2u8N5822TUSiQHtLxykS

author: BalticLab
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: March 22, 2014, 08:24:59 pm
content: Interview with kevin Parmenter of Mouser Elektronics.

author: G0HZU
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 23, 2014, 01:39:16 am
content: I watched video #12 with the microwave downconverter and thought you presented it really wellVery easy to listen to and also informative. The only suggestion I have is that I think some viewers would have liked to have seen a quick peek inside your multiplier and mixer boxes because I suspect they may not know what these circuits will look like.But it's nice and refreshing to see some videos about RF applications up at 10GHz that can be achieved with clever use of low cost and easily available hardware

author: BalticLab
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: March 23, 2014, 02:05:15 am
content: Quote from: G0HZU on March 23, 2014, 01:39:16 amWe will sure do that sooner or later. Right now I'm trying to produce at least 2 videos / month. Seems like I am ahead of that goal. There are a lot of requests and thinks I have lined up. Right now I'm at a breaking point where I have enough subscribers so that I enjoy creating content knowing there will be a lot of people watching, yet there's not enough return to justify the time. As always, there's two ways to tackle this: Give it up or believe in it. And I am going with the latter.Still don't have a channel trailer, a "stay with me!" video after the actual content is over, but I am working on it. I am glad that some manufacturers supported my vBlog from back when I was my own viewer. That helped a lot getting here.

author: BalticLab
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: March 25, 2014, 07:47:02 pm
content: Chat with Tektronix about the freshly released MDO3000:APEC 2014: LeCroy Power Measurement Demo:APEC 2014 Blooper Reel:

author: BalticLab
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: April 21, 2014, 04:11:42 am
content: Learn how to use Old-School Frequency Meters to measure frequencies well into the upper 2-digit GHz range.

author: Fank1
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: April 21, 2014, 09:13:34 pm
content: I don't know what the appeal of "tear downs" are.Take a couple of Dish or DTV LNB's and make a microwave link out of them.One TX - run the oscillator to the antenna.One Rx - down convert to base band and feed it into a sound card running one of the free audio SA programs.Now thats a video I would want to watch.JerryWA8HTO

author: BalticLab
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: July 28, 2014, 10:13:00 pm
content: New channel trailer:The new set up for the lab / blog is coming along quite well. Just wish Canon would hurry up with my XF200 camera.