Help with strange Glitch/Problem with Rigol DS1102E - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / testgear

author: gmi109
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: July 31, 2014, 12:09:52 am
content: I do apologize if this has already been answered somewhere in these forums, I did a search and couldn't find anything similar. I just got a DS1102E which is brand new. It has the 04.01 firmware. Whenever I am measuring a signal, it seems to randomly have a major error in measuring. The pictures I have show one example of what happens. Basically, I have the included Rigol probe hooked up from channel 1 to the 1khz test square wave. At first it displays correctly with a reasonable voltage.As I start to mess with the time base and voltage scale, the trace suddenly rises in magnitude as if it magically gets a DC offset. The second picture shows that it thinks that the Vmax is 7 volts, which is wrong. When I adjust the voltage scale, the Vmax increases with it (15.4 volts). At this point I disconnected the probe entirely, and it still showed a DC voltage of 13.8. Then I adjusted the time base smaller until I heard the relay click and then got some strange noise with a "claimed" frequency of 500 Mhz and Vmax of 27.2, all with no probe connected.Has anyone seen this before or know what might be wrong? I don't think it is anything that I am doing wrong, but that's always a possibility. Could it be a faulty unit? Something nearby emitting horrible EMI? Any help would be appreciated!

author: saturation
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 01, 2014, 06:14:41 pm
content: Its a strange response, but before we get worried about troubleshooting have you reset the scope to factory? then run the self calibration mode? If not, try that first then report back.Also, are both channels affected similarly?

author: gmi109
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: August 02, 2014, 03:47:46 am
content: QuoteThanks for the reply, I've been driving myself crazy trying to figure out if it is something I'm doing wrong. I did the factory reset followed by a Self-Calibration. Channel 1 exhibited the exact same issue. I have yet to get the exact same error to reproduce on Channel 2. However, when Channel 1 acts up, sometimes the smaller time bases on channel 2 will show similar noise patterns. Very strange.

author: rexxar
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: August 02, 2014, 05:00:00 am
content: Rigol has a 30-day no-question replacement policy; I had to send back the first DS1102e I got. They sent me a new one and a return shipping label, it was completely painless.

author: saturation
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 02, 2014, 12:59:30 pm
content: Sorry to read, that is definitely a fault then, likely hardware in CH1. Both channels should respond identically if there is no issue. Your recal and factory reset cleared any possible errors stored in memory. It should be fixed under warranty.Quote from: gmi109 on August 02, 2014, 03:47:46 am

author: gmi109
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: August 02, 2014, 03:50:21 pm
content: Thanks for the help, I will contact Rigol and get a replacement then.

author: saturation
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 02, 2014, 04:24:18 pm
content: You're welcome, please let us know how they responded to you and how long it took. There is a service manual now for it, but that's a last resort ... you can download it from rigol.comQuote from: gmi109 on August 02, 2014, 03:50:21 pm

author: gmi109
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: August 03, 2014, 12:01:05 am
content: I'm afraid I took the easy way out so I won't be able to report how Rigol's support is. I purchased this through TEquipment's Amazon store, so I've just returned it there. I'm considering saving up a bit longer and getting a DS2072 instead. Thanks again for the help.