John Steigerwald Posted July 23, 2006 Report Share Posted July 23, 2006 of the portable flavor. Does anyone own or use one? Any recommendations? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Philip Perkins Posted July 23, 2006 Report Share Posted July 23, 2006 of the portable flavor. Does anyone own or use one? Any recommendations? Have a handheld old Goldline ASA10, not a lot of bands but easy to see and good for quick views of where sibilance is, etc. (http://www.gold-line.com/asa10b.htm) Have a freeware Mac OSX pgm "Audio Xplorer" that works pretty well on my laptop (www.arizona-software.ch/applications/audioxplorer/en/). Best I have is part of the Pinguin Meters package for WXP. (http://www.masterpinguin.de/products/pg-am/brochure.htm). Also check out the RTA in "Mac The Scope" (www.channld.com/mts.html). Philip Perkins Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Steigerwald Posted July 23, 2006 Author Report Share Posted July 23, 2006 Thanks Philip. I should have said RF spectrum analyzers. I forgot to add that. Sorry. I'm looking for something handheld to see what's floating around when on a site survey and when there's a problem shooting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Philip Perkins Posted July 23, 2006 Report Share Posted July 23, 2006 Thanks Philip. I should have said RF spectrum analyzers. I forgot to add that. Sorry. I'm looking for something handheld to see what's floating around when on a site survey and when there's a problem shooting. Sorry. There was a discussion of this on RAMPS some time back, and I remember looking at a website that had such a device, but it was pretty expensive. I've also seen software analyzers that the RF guys had on big events and multicam location TV shows. Philip Perkins Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Terry Posted July 24, 2006 Report Share Posted July 24, 2006 of the portable flavor. Does anyone own or use one? Any recommendations? John, Great question. Every spectrum analyzer that I know of costs thousands. I can't afford those. I use a scanner (ICOM PCR-1000) that attaches to the Mac that runs MacR-1000 software. David Terry Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Steigerwald Posted July 24, 2006 Author Report Share Posted July 24, 2006 ... the RF guys ... I think those guys are increasingly becoming us. It seems that we're the only ones with an actual thought or idea of what happens when we turn on a transmitter. Most everyone else on the set that uses any kind of radio gear is happy to see the green light and/or signal and off they go. It doesn't occur to them what effect it may have in that nifty little invisible range of wavelengths where we are increasingly forced to make our living. (Modulus anyone?) Every spectrum analyzer that I know of costs thousands. I found a unit made by Protek (3290) that runs about 2K, but can't find one to demo or anyone with any kind of hands-on knowledge of the unit. Rhode & Schwarz makes a sweet one (FSH3) for about 8k, but, given it's range of features, I think it's designed more with the telecommunications and WiFi service sector in mind. Sort of like buying a plasma tv to use as a power indicator. I like the Mac software, but would like to be completely hand held. Maybe Larry or Glenn might have some input on this? The quest continues... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Eric Lamontagne Posted July 24, 2006 Report Share Posted July 24, 2006 Doesn't a Lectro 411 reciever have a built in spectrum analizer for it's band? I use an optoelectronics hand held unit that was inexpensive to buy and quite handy. It's an older model (3300) without the spectrum graphically represented. I believe their new models are quite nifty: http://www.optoelectronics.com/xsweeper.htm Eric Lamontagne Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Philip Perkins Posted July 24, 2006 Report Share Posted July 24, 2006 I think those guys are increasingly becoming us. It seems that we're the only ones with an actual thought or idea of what happens when we turn on a transmitter. Most everyone else on the set that uses any kind of radio gear is happy to see the green light and/or signal and off they go. It doesn't occur to them what effect it may have in that nifty little invisible range of wavelengths where we are increasingly forced to make our living. (Modulus anyone?) On major event shoots, live shows etc etc RF is now treated as a separate dept., not exactly part of audio, but coordinating everything RF. On those shoots I was happy to let those guys figure the mess out and just take our feeds--it's a huge complex job. Philip Perkins Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eric Leonard Posted July 25, 2006 Report Share Posted July 25, 2006 You'll need something with better sensitivity and dynamic range than the Protek/BK handheld analyzer, plus it helps to have something that can -clearly- observe and track the various digital modulation schemes. The FSH/Rhode and Schwarz units are really nice when paired with the right kind of antennae, but it lacks real digital modulation cojones. We'll travel with an IFR or Agilent spectrum analyzer when doing live broadcasts to find the cleanest holes. Especially when we're out of town and forced to coordinate with dozens of other station and networks. It helps to build super-tight tunable front-ends for the RFs as well. Sometimes it's the key to snuggling into a clear spot next to a death-ray paging(?) transmitter. We've built custom preselectors, tunable filters, and amplifiers for the receiver-side of our systems. We'll also, when possible, put custom-built high-gain receive antennas at the top of our remote truck's 38-foot mast, with its own mini-front end at the antenna site. Eric Leonard KFI AM-640 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Steigerwald Posted August 4, 2006 Author Report Share Posted August 4, 2006 Do you have a model number for the Agilent unit? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eric Leonard Posted August 5, 2006 Report Share Posted August 5, 2006 Hey John. Not off-hand. There are too many options to list. Agilent is the rebranded excellent HP line of instruments. The ESA-E series (not the -Ls) are excellent and relatively inexpensive (all decent analyzers will cost a car). They're portable, and for RF audio work, you won't need coverage above 3 GHz - so the least expensive models are fine. I've got one. There's plenty of decent used gear on the market through quality resellers. HP or IFR units that cover DC-1.5 GHz are typically good enough. We're not so worried about peering into the noise floor, so just-decent sensitivity is fine (super sensitivity is super expensive). Resolution isn't that important for audio-RF work either - anything we need to watch out for will be readily apparent. If you have an RF-fest scheduled, it's inexpensive to rent the gear for a few days. SAs are typically best used on a site survey well ahead of production. Any of the current generation digital SAs enable the user to sweep a particular band for activity -- even to log the activity for hours or days (great for finding itinerants...). You'll be able to print out or store a sweep of the spectrum, which, as you can imagine, makes RF coordination much easier. It helps to use the receive-side antennae you'll be using on your RFs with the analyzer on one pass, and some better tuned instrument-grade antennae on another (if you have access to them). On a recent assignment to cover a Space Shuttle landing at Edwards AFB the government spooks cruised the media area with the handheld R&S analyzer and an active log antenna, checking to make sure no one had their WiFi activated (and who knows what else). This kind of setup would be handy for an unexpected meeting of crews -- like at the scene of a disaster or impromptu event. I'm thinking of downsizing to a more portable system just for this purpose. The new Icom computer receiver (PCR-1500 - I think) might be a cheap alternative. It's wideband, has crummy sensitivity and dynamic range (it's a glorified scanner) -- BUT -- it'll paint a picture of all the active RF (assuming, of course, it's analog, continuous duty, etc.). I think it's a PC only deal - but for the price, it might be worth grabbing and trying out. It will definitely help finding DTV, TV, etc. Hope this helps. I'm in Burbank if you have a practical situation and need a hand. EL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff Wexler Posted August 5, 2006 Report Share Posted August 5, 2006 Kudos to newsspy for such a thorough rundown on spectrum analyzers and their use --- I learned a lot from just this one post. Thank you for sharing your knowledge and experience. Regards, Jeff Wexler Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gformicola Posted August 11, 2006 Report Share Posted August 11, 2006 John and company, You also might take a look at the Winradio units. http://www.winradio.com/ or this inexpensive ($500-600) unit http://www.winradio.com/home/1550e.htm I know we have had great success with one of their higher end units (around $4K once you package up all the bells and whistles), and I became aware of this company when someone from a vendor brought one in to do some heavy freq coordination for us. Just FYI, Be Well, Gerry Formicola Chicago, Illinois Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.