Hi I was going to work this as a quick video on my second channel like I just uploaded two videos on Eevee blog too with two little bugs I found in the new road and Schwartz RTB to double for oscilloscope like five minutes after a couple of minutes after I started using it and I found another issue. here is about to start like a First Impressions review: I Just discovered this I thought it was worth showing you this and sort of I comparing it against different scopes. We're talking about micro Phonics in particular Micro Phonics in multi-layer ceramic capacitors. Now I've mentioned this on videos before on Maury on ceramic capacitors, capacitors and things like that.

I've even shown you that how that the humble oscilloscope probe can also be microphonic if you tap it on the bench because well this end in here is going to have a multi-layer ceramic capacitors in it. So when you tap it, they can actually be microphonic, generate a voltage inside the capacitor and it can cause a problem in all sorts of not just the oscilloscope probes, but all sorts of products. All sorts of systems. Real trap beyond players, something to watch out for, and you'll notice that this will change a bit depending on the surface I've got.

Obviously, if I tap it on the bench here, that's a hard surface that's generating a lot of G into the actual probe itself. Now if I put it onto the anti-static mat over here which is Sponger. it's a similar kind of response. It's slightly, it's a say, frequency response, but the response is a little bit dampened.

Now, one of the keys to this is the orientation. The physical rotation orientation of the probe when it actually strikes the surface like this, that's the position that generates the most amount. Now if I just rotate it so that the switch is on the top there. so I've rotated 90 degrees still does it.

We get a different response and it is Danton So I actually discovered this on this our TBR - mm and I Guess it's not surprising that it's possible, but I was a bit shocked at the extent of it inside this thing. Now what? I've got set up I've got all my channels set to 2 millivolts per division here. I've got it set to two milliseconds per division. I've just chosen these as a reasonable example of what we're going to see here.

The triggering mode I've said to normal is just Ed's trigger triggered off channel 1 rising slope DC coupling. No high frequency reject or anything like that. It's a very typical low level triggering configuration and with a mid range art time base. Now take a look at this.

Ok, I'm going to work it in single mode and Wow look at that microphonic. I'm just using my little plastic thing here that was not a particularly hard tap either. That was a just a pretty cure. that one didn't do it.

There's a level. There's a level there that it's actually jogged. That's where form. Actually, that's because of my my trigger levels actually there.

Sorry. So if we set the trigger level just above the noise there, ah Jay Look, it's the tiniest little knot. Oh, that was so gentle and knock that was Ah. I barely even tapped it.

And there we go as triggering. Channel One seems to be worse than the others. Channel 1 and Channel 4 seemed to be like the worst culprits. Channel 2 seems to be pretty good now.

I Can experiment with this. I Haven't actually done this yet. but ah, tap the tap the probe front end like that on Channel 1. Just gentle tap on Channel 2.

Look at Channel 2. it's coupled straight through the B and C. The vibration from tapping this couple straight through the B and C onto the PCB onto the front end. Multi-layer ceramic capacitors.

If you've no doubt seen my tear downs of analog front ends of oscilloscopes, they're filled with multi-layer ceramic capacitors. and if you get, you know if you're not careful, you can get ones that are. You know much more micro microphonic than others. You've got to be careful.

You wants a real multi-layer 10 microfarad, 10 volt ones or something like that. They have a horrible dielectric there. They can be really horribly microphonic with all those you know, hundreds of layers or dozens, or however many layers they have inside there. So there are piezoelectric and it's a piezoelectric effect anyway.

I Won't go into details, but that wood is almost certainly that. what's at fault here because see, this is horribly to me, that is horribly microphonic. I Originally found this because I was actually yeah. Also, I think I was tapping like the and touching the annotation button I noticed that the trigger lead came up every time I touched the.

It's not going to do it now and probably have to set up the configurations, but that's how I discovered the problem here. sorry I've got to go back knowing thing about the scope. by the way you put in auto mode, you hit single. It doesn't take it out of auto mode like I want it to go when I press that single button I want it to just go into normal mode and be ready to trigger I Don't like the way that operators do.

It's not a bug, it's just an undesirable feature in my opinion. anyway. so let's actually compare that to many other oscilloscopes are having a lab and see if this is a common problem in oscilloscopes. Mic, micro Phonics on the multi-layer ceramic capacitors on the front end.

Hmm. but by the way, um, this is like a high that you know this is a high frequency tap right? So this is a relatively you know it's a pretty high frequency tap. What is that you know? I You can go in there at the time base and measure it, but also you can get the lower frequency thump. Now if I actually do the bench, it's You know you can see it coming through, but it's reasonably well isolated from the bench.

presumably because it's got, you know, big huge rubber feet on the bottom. There some of the biggest I've seen on any scope, so that's going to dampen any vibration coming through the bench. So I wouldn't be too concerned about that with them it. we can go down to 1 millivolt per division if we want, but yeah, it's not.

You know I'm not too well, not too concerned about coming through the bench like that even though it is possible. But as I said, I just saw it. like tapping on the screen and this is a big touchscreen. It's designed to be touched and prodded and poked and everything else.

but you know I'm always tapping the Skype you don't go like that. Boom, You know. Anyway, let's compare with some different scopes, shall we? Okay, let's do another. Rohde & Schwarz.

Exactly the same settings. two milliseconds, 2 millivolts per division. I'll keep the settings the same on all the Scopes we do here. This is actually even though it's Rohde & Schwarz, Rohde Schwarz brought out pay Meg like I don't know.

Seven eight years ago, a long time ago and this is actually a hey Meg designed and produced unit, but it's rodent which was so anyway. I'm saying it might even have some Rohde Schwarz tech Rohde Schwarz front end. by the way that are to be to double for Rohde & Schwarz scope we just saw has its own 10-bit ADC It's absolutely killer. There's no other scope in that price range with a 10-bit ADC in there and that's a rodents.

warts are designed ADC custom ADC in there so you know this might have a Rohde Schwarz ADC as well. So let's have a look at this. know it's possible to up not as not as big as well. There we go.

Got some low frequency stuff so the rodents warts really seem to be yeah, really seem to be susceptible don't man, that's not a particularly you know big thud. really. I mean stood. You probably wouldn't do it normally, but it's it.

just something. See, did we tap it? There we go. We can see that doing either. you know I have to turn down the 1 millivolt or something to really start seeing that, but that's not allowed in the bench you know and whoa, you're that tap in the B and C's that's horrible mural.

Okay let's have a look at the good old Keysight 3000 our X-series shall we? Been around for a long time. It's a stalwart. Let's give it a tap on top and it looks like it's doing. it's.

doing it. It's got something there. Oh yeah, really got to hit it hard. but it certainly it is Possible it's much higher frequency content than what we were getting on the road.

And Schwarz one. Of course, that's going to be totally dependent upon the construction of the multi-layer ceramic capacitors used inside these things. So you know it's all to do with mechanical resonant modes of the piezoelectric material and the size of the plates. And you know every other, You know a ton of other.

It's not easy to get in here and do that, but look one bit. coupled through to Channel 1 & 2 there - yeah. okay. yep, it's getting through.

Whoa. Oh, that's a shocker in it, but that's some real high frequency stuff going on there. 200 microseconds per division. So much higher frequency.

but you know it's still doing the business. So I'd say the keysight one is fairly susceptible as well. The brand-spanking-new not even released yet. that's not the correct number.

It's going to be the 1202. XE Sigler This is the only one in the wild in the world. apparently by GM Once again, 2 millivolts are per division. This can go down to 500 micro volts.

so let's actually turn that down to 500 micro volts. Good having separate controls there. Oh there we go. Oh wow, jeez is not much.

is there not? Well, yeah I can see that. really got a whack. Ah, can I even look like that? I can't I can't is a is good from a point of view of you know, tapping on the box but if we yep we can see that coming up, definitely if we are tap that once again. like the Keysight very high frequency er stuff they're being coupled through so you know but this one doesn't have the issue like you know, touching the screen touching the top of the box unless you and directly couple through to the B and CS This one's rock-solid and the good old.

Roy Gold Es 1054 Z Once again 2 millisecond here, 2 millivolts per division, 2 millisecond time base there and yep, wow, that's actually Wow that's potentially what that's got to be Is that that is worse than the road and Schwartz is it where it's on par? Wow I'm just gently gently tapping the top of that. Geez, I thought the road and Schwartz was ah man, that's terrible Wow Top on the band. See there there we go. Once again, that's like just totally saturated that we yep, even tapping on the second channel is enough to trigger channel one.

Wow I am bellied I am barely touching that. seriously. Wow that is terrible. What a shocker we try.

Keysight's new IDs Oh Ex 1100 are 1000 X-series our scope and was a little bit that'll be going on there once again. 2 millivolts per division I'm going to whack it. pretty hard to do anything. doesn't do the low frequency stuff rock-solid on the low freq.

or maybe yeah if you're lucky. Jeez, but let's uh, yep. Yep, there we go. We can get it once you directly couple in there, you get it every time, don't you? jeez? Anyway, alright, the GW inspected Es 1104 B sorry, but I don't Still can't get over how sort of I believe this scope is.

I'm sorry for any fans of it out there. See it. Okay, scope, but it's you know. Anyway, well, low frequency stuff is not.

It's got some low frequency stuff in there. Let's try and single. Wow Yeah, maybe in Channel 4 there, but geez, you really have to work it hard. Generally that's pretty solid.

Plastic poker. Oh, you really have to go to town. you really have to get, you know, nothing really got to get ah quite vicious with it before it'll do anything. Wow Wow, that's probably the best isn't it? Is that the best on the BNC is that we've seen? That's that's pretty good.

compared to the others. that's not bad at all. And the Tektronix MDO 3000 series scope once again, 2 millivolts per division. 2 milliseconds.

Got the trigger point just above our Channel 1 there. Ah, it's pretty awesome. That's pretty awesome. This one looks like the best so far.

Bingo! We got the front panel but it Hey it requires you know a significant little significant little work there, you know? So yeah, we've got the susceptibility in here. Maybe not as good as the GW in Stick. we just saw it I think from memory, but yeah, as far as actual wire case coupling through to the front end goes, no, this one is the best so far. Rock-solid and probably the equally ugly Teledyne Lacroix waved yet touch three, Five four I Can just switch this on because it's boot timers are ridiculously quick.

Look at that. Um, so I've already set it up to millivolts all the rest of it. Let's put in single mode. Jeez.

Having a hard time? Yep, not susceptible whatsoever. Something else fell down on the bench, said let's go Channel One Oh hello. Yep. Yep, that's pretty violent.

That's pretty violent. Yep. I'm just touching. that is that? Is that the worst one? perhaps? Teledyne Lacroix it's not cut.

Oh yeah, you got a couple through. Got a trigger off that channel? That could potentially be the worst in terms of the B and C I'm just gently touching that. I mean low-frequency stuff. Not all you really need that high frequency.

Even a gentle tap like that that is really that is really quite. That's feather touch. Wow, it's a most susceptible I suspect and the Rye Gold 2000 series. Yep, it's acceptable from two low frequency and yet high frequency but not.

it's about average. Let's try to be and see. Oh yeah, thank you very much. Look at that and I know you want to see old school.

Let's get the HP Fifty Four, Six One six B and give it a ball. Yep, we can do exactly the same thing, but give it a whack on a Chevy Wah, That's fine and dandy, even on the case down here. Wow that's the shield in metal shielding for the front end. You really have to tap the B and C to get that directly coupled to the front end coupling cap.

So there you go. I Think that's every scope I have in my lab? I'm not entirely sure anyway. I still contend that the road and Schwarz RTB to double a four is an issue because not only of course does it work on the BNC input, it just goes absolutely off the scale. but it's actually sorry.

yeah, it is the most sensitive. I Mean what is what is that? I Mean that's you know. let's go to 20 millivolts per division. and yeah, there we go.

So that's just a gentle tap, let alone er, let alone a good whack like that. But not only that, but the problem is this is touchscreen. I mean I can just tap on the screen like that and cause that to come up, especially if you've got like fingernails are for example and you you know which I don't but you tap it with the fingernail. It's probably going to be a bit high frequency than if you've got you know, a bit of a stump of a digit and calls out to go in, but you don't want that when you just playing around with your touchscreen.

and this is a capacitive touchscreen. So my non capacitive pokers not going to work but like in terms of actual are operating the screen. But look, what happens? I mean if you did have one of these that you know even get capacitive pokers, can't you? I mean that's just ridiculous. I'm just gently touching that and look at the amplitude.

Wow, that's just like a girl I swear like I'm not even holding that rigidly just like loosely going like that anywhere on the screen. That's just that. that's saying you can't have that and they advertise that their front E and I'm super low noise front end with their 10-bit ADC and custom blah blah blah and everything's fantastic until you actually use their big functional touchscreen. That's just what is it.

A feature? You could say that's a feature right? So touch triggering, whack triggering? trademark. Hmm. Anyway, hope you enjoy that. Catch you next time.