TINYSA ULTRA SPECTRUM ANALYZER AND RF SIGNAL GENERATOR 

That is correct and thank you pointing this out. -73dBm for HF and -93dBm for VHF. Thanks I have pinned your comment for others to easily see.

That TECH MINDS fix in a video my commentary is the best of 2022. You was my inspiration for RADIO BUNKER. ! all the best

@@RADIOBUNKER73 That's awesome! I have subscribed to your channel just now.. :-) Good luck!

Is the dBm "Millivolts" or actually dBu ? "Microvolts" with the m designation? Considering one for Amateur Radio experimentation. Setting generator levels and associated attenuation levels.

Not to mention that the price spike really really fast for "good" SA or VNA, or in some case combined SA+VNA, upwards of tens of thousands for Rigols and Siglents, and R&S or Keysight is just comically priced compared to those tinySA, NanoVNA/LiteVNA etc.

Ohhh my bad..

@@TechMindsOfficial Good excuse to do a follow-up showing the limitations of the "ultra" mode. A suggestion for the RF gen part: use one of your SDRs to show the signals produced.

The internal attenuator was set to automatic, do you think I should of set that to manual? Maybe to 10dB?

​@@TechMindsOfficial You can try that, switch in the internal attenuator, if the harmonics fall by more than the amount of the attenuator then you were overloading, but really because we don't know how the internal attenuator works (it could just be a gain controlled amplifier) an additional 10db or 20dB in-line attenuator before the input is the way to 100% sure. Also make sure the LNA is switched off. Actually my TinySA Ultra arrived since my post and I must say it is very impressive for the price and size. My main SA is a 1980s HP8060A, in these the attenuator is a real piece of hardware and you can immediately switch in a resistive attenuator. As a precaution I have a 10dB attenuator permanently connected to the front panel, apart from offering a degree of protection against overload it also serves to save wear on the unit's own "n" socket.

He should have had adequate attenuation if the signal output was just one watt. For a 5 watt HT radio I typically use about ~65dB of attenuation and that keeps me at least the recommended 30db below its maximum input rating of 6dB. The only difference is I use external attenuators and then allow the auto-attenuate function to act as internal protection if I ever miscalculate my attenuation, but with 65dB attenuation on the input the auto-attenuator ordinarily remains at 0dB. You may also use an external step attenuator, if you prefer, but the less expensive one I purchased on Amazon for $75 I noticed was off by nearly 1.5dB with around 40dB attenuation added in (as in, a bit too much attenuation) whereas my fixed attenuators always seem to be practically dead on their target attenuation (as in, within plus/minus a few hundredths of a dab versus stated attenuation) when I have tested them. If you enter the amount of external attenuation you have provided as a negative value in the EXTERNAL GAIN parameter then the TinySA Ultra will automatically account for your external attenuation in its reported numbers (it automatically accounts for any automatic internal attenuation, so do not count that value - just your external attenuation). The Baofeng and similar Chinese knock-off radios sold at economy prices are fairly notorious for their harmonics as they have no meaningful input or output filtering to block those harmonics. Some are just within legal limits while others are well outside and it is just chance in many cases. My Baofeng UV-82 (which was Part 90 certified) was well within the legal limit for harmonics, but they were quite clearly there as compared to my Yaesu VX-6r which had no visible harmonics (so somewhere below the TinySA Ultra’s noise floor). I use a 20dB 50W (I also have a 20dB 100W) power attenuator as part of my TinySA Ultra’s kit as that allows me to use the same exact setup for both HTs and mobile radios just by adding in another 10dB when testing mobile radios. I use my 100W 20dB attenuator for testing 100W HF radios. Combined with the NanoVNA-H4 (also a 4” display) the combo offer us all sonde extremely portable and affordable options for testing that both our radios are operating within spec and that our antennas are performing at there optimal best as well. Just a few years ago the equivalent capability and bandwidth to cover all the popular amateur bands would have cost the amateur operator many thousands of dollars and we now have that all covered for about $350, tops (and covers to at least the 23cm band, if not greater, on the VNA/antenna analyzer). Just be careful not to buy a counterfeit TinySA Ultra as they do not pass self-diagnostics as-is so their manufacturers are patching the firmware so it will report “success” on the self-test. This causes all to look good (whether it is, or not) until you install your first update patch and discover that your counterfeit unit will never pass self-diagnostics. Obviously, the author author and creator of TinySA Ultra (its hardware and firmware) can not help people out if they bought a counterfeit unit as he has no say in their manufacture, quality control, or repair (the counterfeit manufacturers are simply ripping off his work and seeking a knock-off fir just a few dollars less than the authentic units).

Good point. I always use an external attenuator with my SA's, and try to measure around -20dBm or so for best dynamic range and accuracy.

re: "I think those harmonics might have been due to overloading" Yes. Professional measurement with quality gear like HP, Agilent or Keysight calls for attenuating the fundamental as well, IF one cares to read thru the procedure used by manufacturer for FCC Type Acceptance tests.

well worth it, I have 3 of the old ones integrated into various projects and will replace them with the ultra.

If you listen to what I say I mention that after the 10dB attenuator there is a 20db, lower powered attenuator. It’s a NooElec one, so they are very small, it’s silver in colour and you can see it in the video. Plus I am using low power on the radio.

@@TechMindsOfficial Even with 30 dB attenuation, that will only bring 1W to 0 dBm. So if the transmitter outputs anything above 1W you are potentially damaging the equipment. What if the power level changes, e.g. because you are in memory mode and the channel has a set power level and after overwriting it you accidentally reset to the original power level by changing the channel and going back or restarting the radio? It's not expensive equipment, but IMO this is not a good practice

That's what the VNA can do - NanoVNA or LiteVNA. TDR is a feature of a Network analyser rather than the Spectrum one.

Cheers! Thanks for letting me know, I’ll fire my proof reader.. that’s me duh lol thanks

No, please use an oscilloscope for such purpose such as DSO2512g.

Hey Gerry! Thanks for the message. I currently have the Q900 V4 in video production, and I intended to do the testing and show results. It may be a separate video from the first launch video, as it could be a quite long segment with all the bands, but yes, it will be done :) cheers

@@TechMindsOfficial thanks. That would be a welcome video for sure as I am about to pull the trigger on a Q900 v4 and this sort of information would greatly help by purchasing decision

It does appear to be able to do resolution down to 20 Hz. A good test fixture and a signal generator with a high accuracy timebase (or GPS disciplined osc) might be needed. Also, your specs might be too tight - drift of 20 Hz with room temp shift could be expected at say 10 MHz easy with the crystal itself, and then the other components play a par too.

Thanks mate, I’m still learning this amazing bit of kit, lots to learn! Thanks for your comment, it’s very much appreciated.

Thank you for noting this too. And also thanks to the channel creator for his time to do this review.

Sure.. :-)

there’s little point blanking the screen, only to say it in the audio….

It’s RU-vid editor taking its time to process!

Yes.

If you listen to what I say I mention that after the 10dB attenuator there is a 20db, lower powered attenuator. It’s a NooElec one, so they are very small, it’s silver in colour and you can see it in the video.

Hardly. It's useful for generating a signal on a specific frequency to test receiver equipment. Not everything is a jammer!

@@josephhacker6508 correct, not everything is used for it's intended purpose (10/29/69) and it's because of that that we have advanced fast and far...but I assume you know this already if you're using the loose term "hacker" in your name. So from the vague information you so gallantry offered it is then safe to assume it can only jam a single frequency at a time, that is if using a singular antenna?

@@JohnnyDerppp it wont be jamming anything. The output power is too low.

nope, its a signal generator to check receivers and other gear.To low a level to be an effective jammer.