Empathy List Archives

BS

Bob Stewart

Mon, Jul 25, 2016 6:30 PM

I let an older, well-aged GPSDO warm up overnight and then I ran a test with the UPS. Attached were the PRS*, the GPSDO, and the 5370A. I didn't notice anything when I removed power. I did notice about a 450ps phase spike when I plugged the UPS back in some 640 seconds later. But that was it: one single spike. And then it was back to business as normal. It will be interesting to see what happens the next time we get disturbed power here.

That 5370 consumes a Lot of power. Someone posted instructions recently about swapping in a couple of bucking regulators, which I plan to try soon on one of my units.
*A note about the PRS. Recently I was concerned that it had an output problem. I think I traced it back to the proverbial "short between the headsets". Although the output is similar to my GPSDOs, it has a sine wave output, whereas my GPSDOs have a square wave output. So, it seems that the 5370 needs a slight adjustment to the input levels between PRS and GPSDO.

Bob
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GFS GPSDO list:
groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/GFS-GPSDOs/info

I let an older, well-aged GPSDO warm up overnight and then I ran a test with the UPS. Attached were the PRS*, the GPSDO, and the 5370A. I didn't notice anything when I removed power. I did notice about a 450ps phase spike when I plugged the UPS back in some 640 seconds later. But that was it: one single spike. And then it was back to business as normal. It will be interesting to see what happens the next time we get disturbed power here. That 5370 consumes a Lot of power. Someone posted instructions recently about swapping in a couple of bucking regulators, which I plan to try soon on one of my units. *A note about the PRS. Recently I was concerned that it had an output problem. I *think* I traced it back to the proverbial "short between the headsets". Although the output is similar to my GPSDOs, it has a sine wave output, whereas my GPSDOs have a square wave output. So, it seems that the 5370 needs a slight adjustment to the input levels between PRS and GPSDO. Bob ----------------------------------------------------------------- AE6RV.com GFS GPSDO list: groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/GFS-GPSDOs/info

CS

Charles Steinmetz

Mon, Jul 25, 2016 7:34 PM

Brooke wrote:

But a relay switched UPS, like mine, does nothing to the line waveform,
so the Sola offers a lot of improvement.

Since the Sola does not help getting a sine waveform, it may be better
to put it on the input since that might make dropout detection more
reliable?

Instead of continuing to fiddle around with two sort-of partial
solutions that do not actually solve the problems, why not just buy one
or more proper online UPS boxes? Several of us have mentioned specific
part numbers, where you can look for them at decent prices, and how to
maintain and care for them.

This alternative would solve decisively the problems you (and Bob) are
seeking to solve, and the cost is not extravagant (it would be even more
economical if you hadn't already bought the offline UPS and the CVT --
perhaps you can sell them to recover some of the cost).

It is details like these that distinguish a "home time lab" from "a
bunch of test equipment in the basement."

Best regards,

Charles

Brooke wrote: > But a relay switched UPS, like mine, does nothing to the line waveform, > so the Sola offers a lot of improvement. > > Since the Sola does not help getting a sine waveform, it may be better > to put it on the input since that might make dropout detection more > reliable? Instead of continuing to fiddle around with two sort-of partial solutions that do not actually solve the problems, why not just buy one or more proper online UPS boxes? Several of us have mentioned specific part numbers, where you can look for them at decent prices, and how to maintain and care for them. This alternative would solve decisively the problems you (and Bob) are seeking to solve, and the cost is not extravagant (it would be even more economical if you hadn't already bought the offline UPS and the CVT -- perhaps you can sell them to recover some of the cost). It is details like these that distinguish a "home time lab" from "a bunch of test equipment in the basement." Best regards, Charles

BS

Bob Stewart

Mon, Jul 25, 2016 8:15 PM

Charles, I can't speak for Brooke, but I have to point out that each of us has different needs when it comes to powering our lab. For myself, if I lose power, that's OK. I'm retired selling a few GPSDOs here and there and working on some other stuff, so I don't need a 24/7 operation. What I'd like to get rid of are the occasional spikes out of nowhere on my test results. Are they from the power line? From the DUT? From the test equipment? So, for that reason, I ordered a Sola xfmr. I haven't hooked it up yet, because I was offered a pair of free APC Smart-UPS 700 units, sans batteries. It seemed reasonable to put batteries in one and see exactly what it would do. I've done a power cycle test, and later this year the power company will provide the source-switching tests accompanied by phase jumps and transient brownouts. I suspect the UPSes won't quite stand up to that, but we'll see. If they don't, then the Sola will be connected in. If I really got serious, though, I think I'd look into Solar System stuff, such as an inverter, a lead-acid battery bank, and a suitable battery charger. But, as I said: I'm retired, and the budget just isn't there to do what might be the right thing to get clean power 24/7/365.
Bob
-----------------------------------------------------------------
AE6RV.com

GFS GPSDO list:
groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/GFS-GPSDOs/info

  From: Charles Steinmetz <csteinmetz@yandex.com>

To: time-nuts@febo.com
Sent: Monday, July 25, 2016 2:34 PM
Subject: Re: [time-nuts] The home time-lab

Brooke wrote:

But a relay switched UPS, like mine, does nothing to the line waveform,
so the Sola offers a lot of improvement.

Since the Sola does not help getting a sine waveform, it may be better
to put it on the input since that might make dropout detection more
reliable?

Instead of continuing to fiddle around with two sort-of partial
solutions that do not actually solve the problems, why not just buy one
or more proper online UPS boxes? Several of us have mentioned specific
part numbers, where you can look for them at decent prices, and how to
maintain and care for them.

This alternative would solve decisively the problems you (and Bob) are
seeking to solve, and the cost is not extravagant (it would be even more
economical if you hadn't already bought the offline UPS and the CVT --
perhaps you can sell them to recover some of the cost).

It is details like these that distinguish a "home time lab" from "a
bunch of test equipment in the basement."

Best regards,

Charles

time-nuts mailing list -- time-nuts@febo.com
To unsubscribe, go to https://www.febo.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/time-nuts
and follow the instructions there.

Charles, I can't speak for Brooke, but I have to point out that each of us has different needs when it comes to powering our lab. For myself, if I lose power, that's OK. I'm retired selling a few GPSDOs here and there and working on some other stuff, so I don't need a 24/7 operation. What I'd like to get rid of are the occasional spikes out of nowhere on my test results. Are they from the power line? From the DUT? From the test equipment? So, for that reason, I ordered a Sola xfmr. I haven't hooked it up yet, because I was offered a pair of free APC Smart-UPS 700 units, sans batteries. It seemed reasonable to put batteries in one and see exactly what it would do. I've done a power cycle test, and later this year the power company will provide the source-switching tests accompanied by phase jumps and transient brownouts. I suspect the UPSes won't quite stand up to that, but we'll see. If they don't, then the Sola will be connected in. If I really got serious, though, I think I'd look into Solar System stuff, such as an inverter, a lead-acid battery bank, and a suitable battery charger. But, as I said: I'm retired, and the budget just isn't there to do what might be the right thing to get clean power 24/7/365. Bob ----------------------------------------------------------------- AE6RV.com GFS GPSDO list: groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/GFS-GPSDOs/info From: Charles Steinmetz <csteinmetz@yandex.com> To: time-nuts@febo.com Sent: Monday, July 25, 2016 2:34 PM Subject: Re: [time-nuts] The home time-lab Brooke wrote: > But a relay switched UPS, like mine, does nothing to the line waveform, > so the Sola offers a lot of improvement. > > Since the Sola does not help getting a sine waveform, it may be better > to put it on the input since that might make dropout detection more > reliable? Instead of continuing to fiddle around with two sort-of partial solutions that do not actually solve the problems, why not just buy one or more proper online UPS boxes? Several of us have mentioned specific part numbers, where you can look for them at decent prices, and how to maintain and care for them. This alternative would solve decisively the problems you (and Bob) are seeking to solve, and the cost is not extravagant (it would be even more economical if you hadn't already bought the offline UPS and the CVT -- perhaps you can sell them to recover some of the cost). It is details like these that distinguish a "home time lab" from "a bunch of test equipment in the basement." Best regards, Charles _______________________________________________ time-nuts mailing list -- time-nuts@febo.com To unsubscribe, go to https://www.febo.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/time-nuts and follow the instructions there.

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The home time-lab