just won- old Lecroy 9374L 4ch 1Ghz  2Gs/s max  - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: codeboy2k
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 29, 2012, 02:21:35 pm
content: Oh wow! I just "won" this on eBay for $475. Hope it works as advertisedI've never owned my own scope. I started with my first scope when I was just 10 or 11, back in the early 70's, it was a Tektronix but I was too young and didn't care about the model number, so I can't tell you what it was. I was lucky back then, because my father was VP of Engineering for his firm, so I could take anything home for my basement lab. My basement shop was well stocked until his retirement.In my career, I've always worked in the Engineering Dept. in whatever firm I worked at, and I always had access to anything I needed. I was never afraid to ask to take equipment home, so my home lab was once again, always equipped, so long as I was employed. I've been retired for several years now, and my home lab is quite lacking these days.Lately, I use a borrowed DS1052E but its 50Mhz bandwidth and 2 channels doesn't work for me on my current project.I needed a much larger bandwidth for some work I am doing now with a couple of FPGA's on a new board,I couldn't afford/justify a more modern 4-ch 500Mhz digital scope, as these start around $4500 USD and go up from there. I enquired about rental pricing, only to find out that a scope of this performance rating is about $$300-350 per month. At that price and for the duration of the project, it made more sense to try to buy a used one on eBay. If I was going to buy my first scope, I'll make it one with 4 channels and a decent bandwidth. I wasn't actually looking for a digital scope, I am comfortable with the older trace-sweeping CRT scopes. but in my search I saw this Lecroy and thought it would be pretty good.. and I got it( now buyers remorse sets in.. did I get a good price? lol )So, this is my first scope to call my own, and I am excited, even at my ageThis picture is the actual unit. The seller advertised it as "fully operational and functions as intended" so I cross my fingers that it arrives safe and sound.

author: Unknown
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: December 29, 2012, 02:34:11 pm
content: Beauty!as they say down under

author: marshallh
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: December 30, 2012, 08:13:10 pm
content: I have a 9374C, very similar, mine was made in 1998 or so. You will probably want to replace the floppy drive. They just a standard laptop slimline floppy drive. Buy a NEC or Teac drive off ebay from a server pull or something like that, and get a USB Floppy drive to save your screenshots to your internet computer.You will also want some probes. Avoid the cheap ebay chinese probes. They are crap.Real probes will cost you $50-100. I bought three Lecroy PP005 probes (passive 1:10 500mhz) over a period of several weeks for about $80 each. You can also use any other brand probe, but the scope will not auto-detect it as being 10x..I am using mine for signal integrity verification on FPGA applications. If you can, design in test points wherever possible with close ground points 1cm away.http://www.emcesd.com/1ghzprob.htmWhile you have it apart to replace the floppy I would suggest cleaning out the power supply, it can get extremely dusty and the last thing you want is a PSU failure to wipe out the entire board.

author: EEVblog
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: December 30, 2012, 08:58:21 pm
content: If it's similar to mine, the fan is damn loudWorth replacing that sucker.Got decent probes for it?Dave.

author: Unknown
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: December 30, 2012, 09:01:14 pm
content: I would probably set up data transfer via GPIB/RS-232 rather than mess with floppies.Definitely get brand name probes for 500 MHz, this is almost the upper limit for high-Z passive probes (I think Tek somewhat recently released an 1 GHz high-Z passive probe), so the technology is being stretched to its limits. I wouldn't trust the manufacturers behind the cheap, often unbranded, probes to have the engineering to pull this off. Ideally you want the probes that Lecroy recommends for your scope, the 1 Mohm input is swamped by parasitics at 500 MHz. Tektronix designed a separate probe for each of the different scope front-end designs for their 150+ MHz scopes (the P613x series), which is why there were often multiple probes with the same bandwidth in their catalog. Later they consolidated front-ends so they could reuse the same probe, I think now they're down to one or two 500 MHz probes.If you want to make full use of the 500 MHz bandwidth, you might also want to consider resistive divider (low Z) or active probes. The input impedance of 10x high-Z probes varies by about six orders of magnitude from DC to its max bandwidth, and is quite low (16 ohm?) near its rated bandwidth. Note that the rated bandwidth is when the probe is driven from a 25 ohm source impedance. Your circuit might present a higher impedance.Resistive divider probes can be fairly affordable. They are essentially commercial versions of the one described in the Doug Smith article linked to by marshallh (a resistive divider consisting of a terminated 50 ohm cable and a resistor), in a much nicer and sturdier package and with some extra tuning and engineering (which is why Dougs design goes to 1 GHz and the commercial ones go to 3+ GHz). I have bought some for < $100 on eBay. Even the new ones are relatively affordable for their bandwidth. Tek made the P6156 (note that the replaceable tip determines the attenuation factor), P6158 and P6150 (SMA, probably overkill for 500 MHz). HP/Agilent made several, and I would also expect Lecroy to make them. Since they just connect to a 50 ohm interface, there is no compensation or front-end matching to worry about, unlike high-Z probes. They tend to be quite cheap on the used market because nobody knows what they are. Howard Johnson has written about their advantages a few times. DC loading is high, loading at high frequencies is lower than passive probes, the impedance is almost constant over their full bandwidth (which is usually well over 500 MHz).Active probes usually require power from the scope, so it's not as easy to use them for other brands. They tend to be much more expensive than passive probes, even on the used market. Expect to pay a few hundred USD, depending on luck and availability. I once bought one in unknown condition (worked just fine) for $25. Advantage is that both DC and high frequency loading ishighlow.Both types of probes have a much (usually < 1 pF, I think the Tek P6150 is 400 fF) lower parasitic loading than low-Z passive probes, so ground lead inductance ironically also becomes less important. They're much more tolerant of long or even missing ground leads.You can make both types yourself (although the resistive divider probe is much simpler), the hard part is usually the mechanical design (you want it in a sturdy and compact package) and calibration (unless you have a spectrum analyzer + TG available).

author: marshallh
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: December 30, 2012, 09:19:54 pm
content: Quote from: alm on December 30, 2012, 09:01:14 pmThanks for that info. It confirms a lot of what I'd suspected. I have noticed some attenuation beyond what I'd expected for things like a differential SSTL-2 clock signal at 266mhz. I have parts on the way to build one of those resistive divider probes.Here's a comparison of a claimed 100mhz chinese probe, versus a Lecroy PP005 passive 500mhz probe.. keep in mind this test signal is only 2 mhz!!!They are both 10x probes, I just forgot to specify the attenuation in the scope for the first.Both probes were properly compensated before hand.Lecroy has some software called ScopeExplorer for windows that lets you use the scope from a Windows computer over RS232. I don't have a serial port anymore otherwise I would have tried it out.

author: codeboy2k
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 30, 2012, 09:33:15 pm
content: Quote from: marshallh on December 30, 2012, 08:13:10 pmI recently discarded about 1000 floppies I had in my possession, my house has none left, and I hope to keep it that wayThat means I don't really care if the floppy works or not, as I am hoping I can use the PCMCIA slot to get data off the scope.I do have a few PCMCIA hard disks around here.QuoteYes, I need some good probes.. I currently have (2) 300Mhz tek probes which won't be good enough. I'll look around for those PP005 probes.QuoteI'm also going to be using it for signal integrity verification, that's good advice about the test points, and thanks for the link.I'm going to clean it out before I plug it in. I saw Dave's video, I hope mine is not going to be that dusty, but I don't want to blow anything up because of the dust.So my plan is to not power it on as soon as I get it, but clean it up first, and check the ESR of the caps on the PSU and the mainboard, and replace anything that's out of spec before I give it power.

author: codeboy2k
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 30, 2012, 09:35:39 pm
content: Quote from: EEVblog on December 30, 2012, 08:58:21 pmDefinitely going to replace the fan. I need better probes, as I said in my reply to marshallh, I only have a couple 300Mhz probes.

author: Unknown
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: December 30, 2012, 09:40:52 pm
content: Quote from: marshallh on December 30, 2012, 09:19:54 pmThe fundamental maybe, but the harmonics from the rising edge are going to be much higher in frequency. Rise time is about 2.5 ns, so the bandwidth is approximately 140 MHz. Also note that a 100 MHz probe will look much wores on a 500 MHz scope than on a 100 MHz scope, since a 100 MHz scope will just attenuate all of the higher frequencies where the probe may be non-linear.Quote from: marshallh on December 30, 2012, 09:19:54 pmUSB-serial adapters usually work fine in these applications, as long as timing is not critical and the software doesn't try to mess with control lines. Test instruments usually just use it for buffered serial data. The protocol (SCPI-based) should be documented in the manual, if you want to do your own software. I'm sure there are also Labview drivers.

author: grumpydoc
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 30, 2012, 09:46:48 pm
content: QuoteAgree re: the fan noise but if replacing watch the air flow rating - these 'scopes (also) die if not cooled enough.I have a pair of 9354's - the original fans in these are Papst 4312M's. These are rated at 12V 0.26W 140m3/hr or 82.4 CFMThe other thing you have to watch when choosing a replacement is the current drawn by the fan - at least on the 9354 the fan is fed from the 15V supply via a 1W 6.2ohm surface mount resistor. I'm not sure I'd want to push that all the way to 1W so assuming that de-rating to 0.5W is reasonable that gives a max fan current of about 280mA - but watch out for the fact that gives more than 12V to the fan (most are OK to 15V anyway).For the 9354 I found the "Aerocool Shark" to be ideal (apart from styling :-). It's rated at 82.6CFM or 140.3m3/hr pretty much spot on with the original Papst, power is 0.36W at a nominal 12V and static air pressure similar to the Papst. However SPL is almost 13dB better.However I think the fan in the 9374 is a higher flow rate so make sure you check before replacement.Edit: Link for the aerocool:http://www.aerocool.us/accessory/shark_b12.html

author: codeboy2k
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 30, 2012, 09:47:39 pm
content: Quote from: alm on December 30, 2012, 09:01:14 pmI'm hoping to abandon the floppy drive and use the PCMCIA slot with cards.QuoteGreat information there thanks! I am definitely going to need some good 500 Mhz probes for my work.Thanks too for all the information you provided on resistive divider probes. I'll check iinto those too, see what I can find on eBay.QuoteI'll stay away from the expensive active probes unless I see a real need for it in the future. Maybe it will become necessary, I don't see myself getting one just yet.QuoteI might try to make a resistive divider probe, just because you said I can.Thanks so much for all the great advice in your post.

author: marshallh
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: December 30, 2012, 09:50:42 pm
content: Quote from: alm on December 30, 2012, 09:40:52 pmYou're right, I forgot about that. One of Dr. Johnson's articles explains how you can characterize the response of a system just by its pulse response.codeboy2k, check this out if you haven't already.http://www.sigcon.com/Pubs/straight/probes.htmWhen you have the time, check out his other articles. They are indispensable.I was unable to get the PCMCIA card slot working. To the best of my knowledge it is only enabled as a software upgrade, unlockable via serial key. Sometime in the future I plan on dumping the 68k program rom (it's a 1mbyte Intel flash) and seeing if I can figure out the algo.I have tried a 2mb PCMCIA memory card, 64mb CF in adapter, and 128mb CF in adapter, and all were unresponsive.

author: grumpydoc
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 30, 2012, 09:55:13 pm
content: QuoteIt has to be a PCMCIA SRAM card, not flash. Not clear if the first card you mentioned was one of these but the two CF's almost certainly wouldn't work (might have been a software option to enable one of the CF HDD's though - not sure of the details).

author: codeboy2k
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 30, 2012, 10:05:13 pm
content: Quote from: grumpydoc on December 30, 2012, 09:46:48 pmThanks grumpy ! good information there.Based on Dave's IR imaging of the board, it seems to be mainly the 4 large ASICS that get really hot. Since I now live in a small apartment and my lab is in my living room, I don't want anything too loud here. Maybe I will build a 4-way water manifold and put some water cooling blocks instead of the heat sinks that are there now.I'll have to do the heat calculations, and Dave's IR images from his video will give me a good starting point.After that I can really reduce the fan, maybe make it temperature controlled, as there's not much on the main board to get hot anymore, other than the PSU.

author: digsys
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: December 30, 2012, 10:06:26 pm
content: I love buying used LeCroys from USA .. SOOO many bargains !! I'm a LeCroy hoarder :-)What software / hardware options did you get? WP01, WP02 ?? 64MB ? CPU32 ?First thing I did also, replaced the noisy fan (some good advice here). I also found a place that sold NEW CRT screens !!Cost about $100 ea !! Bargain !! Well worth picking one up IF you see signs of the famous screen burn !

author: marshallh
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: December 30, 2012, 10:09:28 pm
content: Quote from: digsys on December 30, 2012, 10:06:26 pmColor me interestedMy screen burn-in is pretty substantial and I wouldn't mind a spare.Quote from: grumpydoc on December 30, 2012, 09:55:13 pmOk. And do you have to have the unlocked SW option, or is that just for the PCMCIA HDD dongle?

author: codeboy2k
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 30, 2012, 10:12:38 pm
content: Quote from: marshallh on December 30, 2012, 09:19:54 pmI really love the screen caps that come from this unit.I know most newer scopes these days produce better, color screencaps, but I just like these monochrome screencaps so much.The color ones seem all jaggy to me.QuoteYes, I'd heard about it. I have a USB serial port, should work I think.

author: codeboy2k
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 30, 2012, 10:18:39 pm
content: Quote from: digsys on December 30, 2012, 10:06:26 pmI don't know what options it has, but I think it's the CPU3 model. I'll have to wait until I can power it on to see which options it has.And I understand I can get the GAL update to get all the options anyways. Memory is easy, I'll certainly throw more memory at it.I might even have the needed 2x32MB 72-pin EDO SIMMs in my bins here

author: codeboy2k
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 30, 2012, 10:27:14 pm
content: Quote from: marshallh on December 30, 2012, 09:50:42 pmYes, I have read Howard Johnson's articles before, and seen some of his presentations and read his books. Great stuff! I'm constantly learning something from him.QuoteOh, I didn't realize the PCMCIA was locked. The bastards! I'm with you then. I'll want to dump the ROM and see if I can enable it. I too have a CF card with adapter that makes it look like a hard disk, so assuming it's unlocked or unlockable, then itshouldwork.

author: BravoV
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 31, 2012, 02:14:28 am
content: Not sure if this helps, floppy emulator using SD as media ->http://hxc2001.free.fr/floppy_drive_emulator/Also a brief thread/post from the LeCroy_Owners_Group's owner regarding this thing ->http://torlus.com/floppy/forum/viewtopic.php?f=25&t=675

author: EEVblog
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: December 31, 2012, 02:18:51 am
content: Quote from: codeboy2k on December 30, 2012, 10:05:13 pmAll the ASICs get too hot to touch. IIRC total consumption was about 250W or something.Dave.

author: codeboy2k
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 31, 2012, 07:19:23 am
content: Quote from: BravoV on December 31, 2012, 02:14:28 amYes, that could work well. Emulating a floppy onto img files of an SD card.. cool. I'll consider it.

author: codeboy2k
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: December 31, 2012, 07:28:15 am
content: Quote from: EEVblog on December 31, 2012, 02:18:51 amWith that much heat involving all the asics it seems more reasonable to just swap in a quieter fan and avoid the excesses of water. At least I'll do that simple change first and see how it goes. If I can't stand it and I need further quieting I'll go the extra distance later.

author: marshallh
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: January 04, 2013, 10:14:04 pm
content: Yesterday I was probing some signals on my Lecroy, it had been one for about 40mins. I left it running with no sources connected as I moved to my computer.About 10 seconds passed and then the Lecroy lost power.Took out the AC line filter. It is a standard IEC power entry module with fuses on both legs of the AC. The line fuse had gotten hot enough to stick to the ABS molding around it and prevented easy disassembly.The fuses are rated for 6A. They are over 14 years old, maybe they just had enough.In any case I took a look at the power supply, no problems there. Tested for shorts a-la Dave's scope. Nope.Connected to AC again for testing with no fuses and the scope worked fine for over 30mins while I watched carefully. I have a replacement power entry module on the way.http://www.digikey.com/product-detail/en/880-06%2F006/Q495-ND/739569Thoughts?

author: digsys
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: January 04, 2013, 10:29:08 pm
content: Quote from: marshallhI'd just put it down to one of those "probability / MBTF" failure things. The old(er) Lecroys were extremely well built,so I doubt it's a "quality" issue. Other than that, I have had the IEC Plugs cause damage to a socket because the spring tension was lousy.Doesn't take long for a loose IEC connection to heat up a connection either. IEC leads are cheap, maybe do an autopsy of the internals?

author: SeanB
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: January 05, 2013, 05:43:27 am
content: Fuseholders are prone to having intermittent contact, especially where the fuse has not been removed and replaced for a long time as corrosion builds up on the surfaces. The IEC ones as well often only have a small contact area with the fuse, which worsens the problem.

author: codeboy2k
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: January 09, 2013, 07:50:18 am
content: Quote from: SeanB on January 05, 2013, 05:43:27 amMy scope is arriving on Thursday.I will add "check IEC power input connector and replace fuse/clean corrosion" on my list of things to do when I get it

author: SeanB
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: January 09, 2013, 12:11:55 pm
content: Just how often do you think of checking working fuses. The Metro comes every 5 years and part of the service is to remove the fuses, clean them and the holders and then grease them again with dielectric grease and reinstall. 400A fuses........

author: codeboy2k
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: January 09, 2013, 03:02:31 pm
content: Quote from: SeanB on January 09, 2013, 12:11:55 pmyeah.. no one ever thinks about checking working fuses... . So I think I will just assume its 20 years old and could go any time now...

author: marshallh
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: January 09, 2013, 05:27:55 pm
content: After installing the new identical line filter and scavenging a 6a fuse, it is working fine again. Thanks guys

author: codeboy2k
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: January 18, 2013, 09:15:17 am
content: just an update.. I got my scope a few days back, opened the box and set it up tonight... It was packed beautifully using expanding foam-in-place and wrapped in bubble wrap inside, so the eBay seller (bpai) did a great job, good communication (he called me) and I highly recommend him as a quality eBay seller.It appears to be in great shape, with little to no burn-in on the screen, and no damage, and very clean. All 4 channels seem to work so far using the calibration output, I've not given it a thorough testing, nor have I tested all the math functions, but I assume they will work, it's just software.I really like the resolution on the monochrome display.Here's a few pics... (more in my dropboxhttps://www.dropbox.com/sh/981iqeafr6cec7b/AACS7x_W6WGN7jyxQRwWdPTHa?dl=0)https://www.dropbox.com/sh/981iqeafr6cec7b/AACS7x_W6WGN7jyxQRwWdPTHa?dl=0

author: digsys
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: January 18, 2013, 09:28:07 am
content: ..... and? Have you checked what options you gotX-ing fingers :-)

author: codeboy2k
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: January 18, 2013, 02:12:09 pm
content: Quote from: digsys on January 18, 2013, 09:28:07 amHere's the screen :

author: marshallh
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: January 18, 2013, 07:06:36 pm
content: Looks like you have all three Waveform processing packages, allowing you to do FFT (sadly missing on mine), histograms and statistics.The software version is 8.2.2 which is the latest available.

author: codeboy2k
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: January 19, 2013, 09:51:04 pm
content: Quote from: marshallh on January 18, 2013, 07:06:36 pmYeah. I feel like I really lucked out here. The scope is clean, all channels seem to work and it appears to be recently calibrated, and I've been told by the moderator Sam at the Lecroy yahoo group that the HD01 is also a rare option to have. I have been using that option with a 512MB compact flash card to extract waveform dumps. The downside is that PCMCIA slot is at the back. What a pain to insert and remove. Makes me wish I can hack an SD CARD or USB stick into it somewhere (SD would be simpler than a USB stack).The only think it really needs is to upgrade the memory to 64 MegI have the 68030 CPU, but it's so slow doing an FFT on 50,000 pts. It takes about 1 or 2 seconds to do that, so I can't leave it on auto mode. I've been playing with just triggering a single sweep and let it take its time doing the FFT.Now I think I need to find a front cover to keep it protected, and a couple of good probes. I'm also going to try making a passive probe with just a resistor tip, as has been talked about here in the forum recently.

author: codeboy2k
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: January 24, 2013, 10:52:07 am
content: actually works ok on auto, just wait for an update every second or so..Tonight I wanted to play more with the FFT, to understand how to operate it on this scope, so I built a phase-shift sine oscillator on a breadboard at around 1khz or so (it's close)The FFT shows the tallest fundamental frequency at the left edge (1khz) and it's 1st through 8th harmonic,which are pretty significant on this basic oscillator.The waveform looks nice stilljust shows you can't always know what's inside a waveform by it's appearance.

author: codeboy2k
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: January 24, 2013, 11:06:59 am
content: Quote from: EEVblog on December 30, 2012, 08:58:21 pmYeah I've been using it for a week or so now, it's damn loud. No decent probes yet, I'm still working with a 250Mhz one.Did your scope come with any probes that you apparently don't need anymore?

author: Daniil.Lab
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: February 03, 2015, 02:45:22 pm
content: Hi guys!I need helpI bought a LeCroy 9374 oscilloscope.My dream has come trueI want to update soft\firmware, my soft version 06.9.1Where can I find or download version 8.2.2 please help meThank You!

author: grumpydoc
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 03, 2015, 03:03:26 pm
content: QuoteJoin the Lecroy group on Yahoo. You will need some way of writing a floppy, or a GPIB interface.

author: Daniil.Lab
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: February 03, 2015, 03:33:39 pm
content: no floppy, GPIB and yes there is, but through Yahoo? i do not know

author: grumpydoc
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 03, 2015, 03:49:49 pm
content: QuoteYou will need a GPIB interface on your PC - one which looks like a GPIB interface as well, not a USB<->GPIB thing which looks like a serial port as the Lecroy software won't do a firmware update over anything which looks like a serial port.The other thing you can use is a PCMCIASRAMcard but they are quite expensive.Yahoo is just used for hosting the group - it's the best way to get info and find other people who have these 'scopes.

author: Daniil.Lab
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: February 03, 2015, 03:57:19 pm
content: Ahh thank you joined the club LeCroy Yahoo, wrote them a question.Or will work card PCMCIA to USB ? Or PCMCIA to SD ?

author: grumpydoc
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 03, 2015, 04:14:54 pm
content: QuoteNo, it has to be PCMCIA SRAM

author: Daniil.Lab
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: February 03, 2015, 04:21:36 pm
content: Quote from: grumpydoc on February 03, 2015, 04:14:54 pmOki will search PCMCIA SRAMThank you!

author: grumpydoc
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 03, 2015, 04:26:54 pm
content: QuoteI think it has to be 2MB as well - there is information on firmware upgrades in the group files section, read this before any purchase - a suitable card might well be more than you paid for the 'scope

author: Daniil.Lab
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: February 03, 2015, 04:44:13 pm
content: Quote from: grumpydoc on February 03, 2015, 04:26:54 pmbought yesterday my scope 550$Maybe emulation option floppy usbhttp://www.ebay.com/itm/NEW-Floppy-Disk-Drive-to-USB-emulator-Simulation-For-Musical-Keyboard-BU-/261729786514?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_15&hash=item3cf04f9a92is probably no?

author: grumpydoc
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 03, 2015, 05:36:15 pm
content: QuoteOK, they're not that expensive - maybe $70 - $100 for a 2MB cardBut then, I only paid about $150 for each of my 9354's

author: codeboy2k
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 03, 2015, 07:35:29 pm
content: It does not need to be the SRAM card. I am using a Compact Flash (CF) adapter in mine, it works fine.I don't know if all CF cards and CF adapters will work, but I do know mine works. I can format the card from inside the scope menu, save to it, and pull it out and put just the smaller CF card into my PC where I have one of these 20-in-1 adapters that includes a CF slot. It shows up as a flash drive in my PC.Some others on the yahoo lists have reported they are unable to use CF cards and must use the SRAM cards. I just know that's not true in my case. Mine works great.EDIT: googling forebay pcmcia compact flash 512MBreturns numerous 512MB CF PCMCIA adapter combinations for less than $20. I don't know if any of these will work like mine does, or if it's the specifics of my Viking adapter and crucial card that just works and I was lucky. However, you can try these out for < $20.I'm running firmware 08.2.2 so you will want to upgrade yours too.Congratulations on your purchase! I think it's a pretty decent scope still.EDIT2: I just realized that SRAM card is for the front panel. If you look at my screen shothereyou can see that I have the Hardware Option HD01 which allows a type III PCMCIA hard disk drive at the *BACK*. This is where I am using the PCMCIA to CF adapter, at the BACK, not at the FRONT slot. I think that you will need to check if you have a PCMCIA slot at the back and the HD01 option, then you will likely be able to use the PCMCIA to CF adapter as I do.EDIT3: If all you want to do is get screen shots, you can do that over serial. See the link herehttp://www.jvadillo.com/serialosci/serialosci.htm

author: grumpydoc
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 03, 2015, 08:17:29 pm
content: quote]It does not need to be the SRAM card. I am using a Compact Flash (CF) adapter in mine, it works fine. For firmware upgrade I'm pretty sure that it has to be an SRAM cardThere was an option which allowed a PCMCIA storage card to be used for file storage but AFAIK the 'scope won't boot from an image on a CF card, and it was an option so not all 'scopes support it.

author: codeboy2k
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 03, 2015, 08:29:27 pm
content: Quote from: grumpydoc on February 03, 2015, 08:17:29 pmYep, I just realized because I have the HD01 option (PCMCIA storage) that's what allows me able to use a CF card.For firmware update you need to use the SRAM card at the front, true. You can also use the GPIO port or a Floppy Disk. I was lucky here, my scope was already updated to the latest firmware when I got it.If I needed to update my firmware, here's what I would do: I don't have a GPIO or a floppy disk anymore. So I would try to use the SRAM slot, and maybe hack together an SRAM emulator using a PIC. The specs are easy, PDF here:http://pdf1.alldatasheet.com/datasheet-pdf/view/1696/MITSUBISHI/MF38M1-LSDAGXX.html. If I can't do this, I'd pull the flash chip out (if it's socketed) and try to use a programmer.It's too bad that the Linear Flash card will not work. There are plenty of these on eBay but apparently the PCMCIA FLASH card does not work, it must be SRAM. Probably the scope is trying to write there and if it can't write to the card, then it doesn't recognize the card. This might be hackable with a flash card and a small PIC to respond to writes or something, depending on what it's trying to do.

author: Daniil.Lab
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: February 03, 2015, 11:11:02 pm
content: Quote from: codeboy2k on February 03, 2015, 08:29:27 pmYes friend, I too was thinking about soldering the flash memory (my flash no socketed), just buy a new flash one and program and soldering.My main board.

author: Daniil.Lab
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: February 03, 2015, 11:40:10 pm
content: Ooo helped me in the group Yahoo.I was given the firmware 8.2.2 93XX822.fla and 93XX822.BINWe have to think how to sew

author: marshallh
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: February 04, 2015, 02:52:46 am
content: Seriously, just buy a $15 USB floppy drive and call it a day. Very convenient for getting screenshots off it as well.The PCMCIA CF trick sadly doesn't work on the front slot (I tried).Heres my motherboard, a bit later production (Mine's a 9374C) and has a bodged voltage reference for some reason: (note repair sticker in upper right)http://imageshack.com/a/img534/3112/img0018ei.jpgAlso you should burn yourself a new Option GAL to unlock all the software features! Lecroy have recently shared the JED programming file to burn your own 22V10. You can also buy one from a fellow on the Yahoo group.

author: Daniil.Lab
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: February 04, 2015, 04:58:49 am
content: Quote from: marshallh on February 04, 2015, 02:52:46 amOk, thank you.Quote from: marshallh on February 04, 2015, 02:52:46 amYes, I wonder what they wanted.Quote from: marshallh on February 04, 2015, 02:52:46 amYes of course, I do not have any chips GALmy motherboard.Buy new and write. 22V10 or 16V8 what is important?

author: Daniil.Lab
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: February 04, 2015, 05:07:36 am
content: Guys, how many years the life of the instrument?He has a lot worth chip cube GAL their term of 20 years documentation, memory storage.My scope since 1996 years, 19 yearssoon dies a ?Or do not need to worry

author: grumpydoc
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 04, 2015, 07:46:59 am
content: QuoteI wouldn't worry too much - you might wish to change the battery on the CPU card at some point, again there are notes in the files section of the group.

author: Daniil.Lab
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: February 04, 2015, 09:55:07 am
content: Quote from: grumpydoc on February 04, 2015, 07:46:59 amOh yeah, a dead battery 1.8 Volt, the clock is running, but it is necessary to change the battery.I'm crazy))) No adapter, soldered wires))) unsolder my flash, and read, is ok, size file 1 048 576 byte dump in case of crash to.new firmware file 93xx822.FLA programm it's ok.soldered to check scope.------------------Power on, my scope beep 2 signal, is ok test ?

author: Daniil.Lab
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: February 05, 2015, 05:05:28 pm
content: Thank you friends!I have everything turned out!

author: codeboy2k
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 05, 2015, 05:28:12 pm
content: excellent work! that's quite an effort but it paid off.

author: Daniil.Lab
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: February 05, 2015, 06:09:32 pm
content: Quote from: codeboy2k on February 05, 2015, 05:28:12 pmThank you for I try tobeforeafterReplace all capacitors electrolyte, added radiators.

author: codeboy2k
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 05, 2015, 06:46:50 pm
content: Wow. The before picture was a really dusty...You cleaned it up really great! it must look like new now.Good job!

author: digsys
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: February 05, 2015, 09:49:59 pm
content: Excellent job and awesome effort ... sooo can I get you to do my 2 old LeCroys :-)siiiigh I'm just lazy and you didn't make it easier with all that work :-)

author: Daniil.Lab
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: February 06, 2015, 03:16:12 am
content: Quote from: codeboy2k on February 05, 2015, 06:46:50 pmQuote from: digsys on February 05, 2015, 09:49:59 pmThank you guys !!!I love electronics, and she me? ))))2 nd pour life.No problem to all, I clean device)))

author: Daniil.Lab
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: February 10, 2015, 10:44:21 am
content: Flashed ATF16v8, options open

author: digsys
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: February 10, 2015, 11:18:05 am
content: Quote from: DaniilAwesome !! Yanno, that list of option cost ~ $25K here when they were first released. My 9424 option chip was $12K ...I LOVE these discount prices !! :-)

author: Daniil.Lab
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: February 10, 2015, 03:39:51 pm
content: Quote from: digsys on February 10, 2015, 11:18:05 amI agree !!!