WTB: (US) Signature Analyzer - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: Crambone
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: March 20, 2023, 02:48:50 pm
content: Hello, I’m looking for a working Signature Analyzer such an HP 5004a, 5005a…..Please let me know what you would need shipped to Mountainside, NJ 07092.Thank you, Andrew

author: PaulAm
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: March 21, 2023, 07:24:37 pm
content: In a pinch you can use Sigrok with the SA decoder and a $10 Salaea clone. It has some limitations but it can work. Not my first choice, but absolutely the cheapest.

author: super7800
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: March 21, 2023, 08:43:12 pm
content: Some older tek "logic analyzers" will do it. Can't remember a specific model off the top of my head. It's what I've used, and they work great. Cheaper than what hp go for used. Might be worth looking into.

author: Kosmic
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 22, 2023, 01:03:59 am
content: Quote from: super7800 on March 21, 2023, 08:43:12 pmTektronix 308. It's cheap and got a signature analyzer integrated.

author: james_s
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 22, 2023, 01:10:40 am
content: I had a HP signature analyzer years ago I finally gave away since it didn't seem like they were selling for enough to be worth packing and shipping. What are people using those things for? I thought the idea was pretty much a fad, I have some early 80s arcade schematics that list signatures but nothing else. It was a novel idea but in practice I found it easier to just diagnose the fault the old fashioned way.

author: alm
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 22, 2023, 09:55:37 am
content: HP was big on signature analysis for a while, and their service manuals would only discuss signature analysis for digital troubleshooting. Signatures would change with every firmware revision, however, so with today's reality of often not having the correct manual version for the firmware version of the instrument (just whatever version is available on the usual download sites), I'm not sure how useful it will be.

author: RolandK
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: March 23, 2023, 07:38:05 am
content: I had this problem with a HP 4274a, full with ~ 10 PCBs and signatures all over the schematics and fault findig trees (partly only readable in the 4275a manual). They have extra dip switches to set the right signature mode. In effect they output a counter to the parallel ports, so you can see if any bits are stuck, as each following bit has the half frequency. You can easily trace it with a scope or a logic analyser. Fault was the high speed comparator in the A/D converter, a National LM361N, same faulty ic as in a 5335a.The signals for the signature look like this:0101010101...0011001100...0000111100...0000000011......The sigrok aproach is "interesting".- The signatures are very long, 2^16 clock cycles, hard to sample with small ram, even worse without clocked mode.- You must find the right script to translate it on linux.https://www.onetransistor.eu/2017/11/script-to-compile-and-install-pulseview.html- or find the windows 32 bit version in archive.orghttps://web.archive.org/web/20201101141813/https://sigrok.org/jenkins/job/sigrok-cross-mingw/buildtype=static,debugtype=release,platform=cross-i686-w64-mingw32/lastSuccessfulBuild/artifact/pulseview-NIGHTLY-32bit-static-release-installer.exe- You should use your LA in clocked mode, which sigrok does not use (at least with the zerologic LA), but as it is free software, you can implement this.- The signature analyser script does not use clocked mode either, start and stop can't be on same signal transition. Would be the easier part to implement.

author: Teichhermelin
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: March 26, 2023, 03:37:44 pm
content: I have a 5005B for sale, but location is Germany. That'll be too expensive for you.

author: guenthert
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: May 10, 2023, 11:42:55 pm
content: Is this still relevant?How 'bouthttps://sfbay.craigslist.org/eby/ele/d/oakland-hp-5004a-signature-analyzer/7613105564.html(not associated, just stumbled across that posting)