I recently bought one of these:
http://jyetech.com/en/default.html
Because I've been wanting a scope but am currently unable to drop a couple hundred to a couple thousand on one.
I bought it from Seeed Studio, but they appear to drop ship from the maker in Hong Kong, which took several weeks to get here. Now that I know this, I would instead recommend buying from here, because they stock it and are based in the US.
http://www.nkcelectronics.com/digital-storage-oscilloscope-very-low-cost.html
The scope is $50 built. It's also available as a kit for about $15 less, but it involves soldering surface mount chips and resistors, and to me that wasn't worth it. $50 for a brand new scope is a steal, anyway, IMO.
It is a cool design: it's basically 3 circuit boards mounted together with spacers. The center board has the circuit, including the LCD, and the outer 2 boards serve as the "case". It's about the size of a cassette tape, but 1" thick. For life-proofing, adding some kind of sides might be smart, since the circuitry is otherwise exposed to the elements. The functions are all labeled using the silkscreen layer of the top board. It comes with a little switch mode supply, but can use a 9vdc center positive supply, or a 9v battery if you work out a suitable adapter. It also includes a detachable probe with gator clip ends, probably pretty standard for scopes.
Performance, the part you're waiting for:
I haven't used a real analog scope. I'm guessing that those fortunate enough to have nice ones would not want to downgrade to this, but for building pedals, this is a gigantic step up from just a multi-meter. It even has a built-in oscillator, putting out a constant 500hz 5vpp square wave. This is a very cool addition and allows you to probe through a circuit without a separate function generator or plucking a guitar string over and over.
Previous reviews elsewhere complained about the screen's refresh rate being around 2-3 fps, but this has been significantly upgraded. It's still not instantaneous like a more expensive scope should be, but it's generally around 6 frames per second. Certainly good enough for my purposes (tweaking pulse width trims, that kind of thing).
The bandwidth and screen resolution are perfectly usable for audio, and I would think probably still usable beyond that (1Mhz). Of course, you can change the time scale and level sensitivity, vertical and horizontal position, etc. It's also got a frequency counter. Max input voltage is 50v, so fine for stompboxes; I don't know what the actual audio voltages are in amps, so I don't know (but kind of doubt) that this would be usable there.
I wanted a little handheld scope for peering more deeply into circuits, seeing what exactly each part was doing so I could get a better understanding of electronics. I also wanted to be able to debug with greater clarity than an audio probe, and to be able to see oscillator waveforms to tweak the more precisely. This scope does all that perfectly. Although I love old equipment, and having an old analog scope would be really neat aesthetically, at this point I'm not sure I have any real technical need for anything beyond this JYE scope.
Not bad at all. Good enough performance to tinker around and a cheap enough price.
You look at high-end test equipment where technology brings awesome performance at equally
awesome price tags (beyond many companies budgets).
That's an example where technology can help the smaller player.
Hi
this is a bargain.
You can spend hundreds of $$$ and not get features like:
# Save up to 6 captures to EEPROM and retain after power down
# Retrieve and display saved captures
# Transfer its screen to PC as bitmap file via serial connection
thanks for the information.
this looks really cool! thanks for the tip! i've been thinking about getting a scope for a while, and this looks like a great way to get one on the cheap.
I have a few scopes but I might buy one of the kits just for fun, maybe I'll put it on my pedal board :o
I'm just getting into tube amp building, so this might not work there. Of course, with a 10x probe, it might... Thanks for the post, I was totally unaware of this scope.
The kit has the SMD components pre-soldered:
The new version features a PCB with all the SMD components pre-soldered
Digital Storage Oscilloscope with Panels DIY KIT (SMD pre-soldered)
Item#: TST-0002
$35.95
http://www.nkcelectronics.com/digital-storage-oscilloscope-diy-kit.html
I'm on a very limited budget so I can't get the oscilliscope yet. I did order the capacitor meter kit though for about $13.50 with shipping. I have some hard to read caps and this is a nice cheap price. It ranges from 1pf to 500uf for testing. I'll let y'all know how it works when I'm done. It should take 3 days to receive it.
Wow. :icon_eek: That's a pretty good buy. It's also a very compact unit, too. It probably outperforms my old Tektronix 453 in some respects. It doesn't have the problem with the vertical legs on square waves that a CRT does, either. I'm tempted to buy one of these. Building a little enclosure for it wouldn't be hard to do.
Sorry for hi-jacking again. I received and built the capacitance meter kit. It works pretty good. I tested many caps and I think it's fairly accurate. I need to make a metal enclosure for it now. I can't wait to get some bucks together for the oscilliscope too. Except for a transistor tester I'll have all the debug equipment I'll need for a while.
Yeah, I wish I had seen that cap meter when I was making my order. Would be nice to have.
How did you know that the meter is accurate? Seems like the sort of thing where you kind of have to take the meter's word for it. :icon_lol:
Can you explain some of the pracitcal functions something like this can serve? I have a 5 dollar DMM but .. wow--complete garbage. Maybe it's the fact that it's a piece of crap from some hobby store combined with the fact that I really, to be quite blunt, don't know how to use it--partially because it's hard to read.
But ya, what could I do with this? Would it check continuity? Would it tell me how many volts are going through a particular component? What note it might be?
I tested a bunch of known caps first to see how well it matched. Then I tested the unknown or the not too sure caps.
I have a $5 multimeter too and I think it's perfectly fine. If you think the problem may be that you don't know how to use it, that's probably the problem. :icon_wink: A multimeter is what you want for checking continuity and DC voltage, and a cheapie should get the job done just fine, albeit with a low refresh rate.
An oscilloscope is good for looking at the waveform of a signal. You can use it to see what effect each component has on the actual audio signal. Probe in front of a transistor, and you'll see the clean audio signal. Probe after the transistor, and you'll see its waveform much bigger, and possibly clipped. It's not much use if you don't know what a waveform means.
Technically, it does show continuity. No sound? Poke your probe through the circuit, while you have some audio (a cd, the built-in oscillator, a guitar) playing through it. If you see the waveform on one side of a component, but not on the other side, this can alert you to a cold solder joint (assuming that audio's supposed to go through that point).
Quote from: oldrocker on September 23, 2009, 07:56:25 PM
I tested a bunch of known caps first to see how well it matched. Then I tested the unknown or the not too sure caps.
But how did you know the known caps? Do you have another cap meter?
Oh I see what you're saying. No I don't have another meter. I was reading the value stamped on the cap. The reason I built it is because I bought a variety pack of caps. There were many caps where the stamped values were either faded or absent.
So as for complete accuracy it looks good on the cap stamps that I can read in comparison with the meter readout.
Done! Works fine. It doesn't make my analog scope useless, but surprisingly much bang for the buck here. Absolutely useful for debugging, trimming etc. Nice with the frequency counter function (slow update though). Something for the flanger fiends, maybe, or if you're into compact living. Inexpensive for sure.
(http://www.aronnelson.com/gallery/main.php?g2_view=core.DownloadItem&g2_itemId=41096&g2_serialNumber=1)
(http://www.aronnelson.com/gallery/main.php?g2_view=core.DownloadItem&g2_itemId=41099&g2_serialNumber=1)
Wow that's awesome. I've got to get me one of those osc kits.
If I had seen this a few years ago I definitely wouldn't own my BitScope. Of course, with the $600 price tag comes a lot of WAY COOL features that I don't think I could live without now that I have them, but this kit looks solid - and what a bargain!
If this thing was dual trace, I'd have to get one just for the times when I don't feel like firing up Parallels to run the BitScope software. Hell I might anyway just for the frequency counter.
Very cool. Yeah, I'd say that it definitely is a lot of bang for your buck.
I just ordered one as a birthday gift to myself. I'm not sure how I will use it, but I look forward to finding out. ;D
I'll post if I make any interesting observations/discoveries...
I'm interested....
The problem is, that I'm a guy who makes mostly switching circuits and such. I don't know what I'd do with a scope, though if I should have one and learn it I would like to buy in at this price.
Can someone break down for me in a nutshell what a scope is gonna do for me that my meter can't and why I have to buy it??
Thanks!!
If you mean switching like CMOS, this could be very useful, to see logic states. If you mean switching like passive loop boxes, AB boxes and the like, an oscilloscope probably wouldn't be useful to you.
Quote from: Taylor on October 27, 2009, 08:21:01 PM
If you mean switching like CMOS, this could be very useful, to see logic states. If you mean switching like passive loop boxes, AB boxes and the like, an oscilloscope probably wouldn't be useful to you.
Im interested in getting into cmos and the possibilities it presents. I am also planning on maybe building a delay and tremelo effect.
great find! a must have! i don't think my advisor will be too happy if i start borrowing the GHz scope to do "home audio" work...
Hold your horses!
(http://www.justblair.co.uk/images/stories/SeeedStudioDSONanoPocketDigitalStorageOs_107D2/DSCN1727.jpg) (http://www.justblair.co.uk/seeed-studio-dso-nano-pocket-digital-storage-oscilloscope-review.html)
$89 (click the pic for review)
:) T.
Dang, that looks pretty sweet. :-\
In other news, I'm having some weird issues with my JYE scope. I might recommend people not buy them right now until I figure out if the problem is the scope or me...
Taylor,
Now you tell me :P.
I just received mine in the mail. I am a little disappointed since when I placed the order it said a power adaptor was supplied. It wasn't. When I looked at their online catalogue it had changed and they no longer include it. I sent an e-mail saying that since it was listed as being included when I ordered, shouldn't I have received one. We'll see if they respond, but I am wondering if I just threw away $40. I'll post once I build it to let you guys know.
I just noticed these problems, and I'm still not sure if it's my own error, a bad power supply, or the scope itself. Lots of people have used these scopes successfully so don't get discouraged.
That is bunk about the supply. If I were you, I would contact JYE directly, the builder sent me about $12 to buy a new supply when I told him that the included one wasn't working properly. I have found that the service from Seeed studio is kind of bad, but talking to JYE directly is very friendly and helpful.
They should definitely send you one if it was included at the time of purchase.
Thanks Taylor. Yeah, I will wait until I get it put together before I assume there are any problems.
I contacted the seller, and received a response. Unfortunately they just said, "The kit version does not includee power adapter. It is listed below the product description as a related item you can purchase." Not saying a word about the fact that it didn't read that way when I placed the order. I wrote back insisting, so we'll see. I have adaptors I can use, so it isn't a huge deal. But, I hate not getting what I ordered.
Anyway, I will contact JYE directly as you suggest.
If you figure out the wierdness you are having with yours, please post and let us know the details.
Just to let anyone reading this know, the guys I bought this from have convinced me that I was wrong about the adaptor being included. Not the first time I get something wrong... But I am setting the record straight.
Now to build it and see if it works!
Quote from: Thomeeque on October 29, 2009, 06:46:36 AM
Hold your horses!
(http://www.justblair.co.uk/images/stories/SeeedStudioDSONanoPocketDigitalStorageOs_107D2/DSCN1727.jpg) (http://www.justblair.co.uk/seeed-studio-dso-nano-pocket-digital-storage-oscilloscope-review.html)
$89 (click the pic for review)
:) T.
Ohh wow, that looks fantastic, I've looked at the link and in the photos it looks just like a mobile phone. I wonder how long it will be before an oscilloscope app could be available for an iphone. now that would be something.
Already exists.
http://www.faberacoustical.com/products/iphone/signalscope/
But even the apps are a lot more expensive than the scopes in this thread, and that doesn't take into account the price of the iphone itself.
Quote from: Taylor on October 29, 2009, 02:22:54 PM
In other news, I'm having some weird issues with my JYE scope. I might recommend people not buy them right now until I figure out if the problem is the scope or me...
Just wanted to update and say that the problems I was experiencing were due to the thing I was probing, not the scope. The JYE Tech scope works perfectly and I'm quite happy with it. The other one shown above does look quite sleek, but at close to twice the price. At the moment the JYE is just fine for my needs, but I can't deny I feel a little bit of "hey look at that new girl" syndrome. :icon_wink:
Quote from: Taylor on November 02, 2009, 12:06:08 AM
..The other one shown above does look quite sleek, but at close to twice the price. At the moment the JYE is just fine for my needs, but I can't deny I feel a little bit of "hey look at that new girl" syndrome. :icon_wink:
I've got this one (PPS10)..
(http://www.econologie.com/shop/images/velleman_oscilloscope_pps10.jpg)
..and I'd almost kill for the new girl's display, the builded one sucks big time (it has poor resolution, very weak contrast and monochromaticity does not help either).. OK, maybe I'd not kill for it, but I'd spend 40 dollars more for sure ;) But on the other hand, at least from the photos of the JYE Tech scope, it's looks it has bit better display than PPS10.
T.
When I ordered the Capacitance Meter Kit which doesn't come with a power supply I originally powered it with a nine volt battery. When I did hook up a power supply I found that it used negative ring and positive inner hole. My pedals use the opposite. So check to see which one would be used on the oscilloscope. Just in case there's no polarity protection. I wouldn't know. The cap meter does have protection though. Thank goodness.
Quote from: Taylor on October 29, 2009, 06:05:58 PM
Already exists.
http://www.faberacoustical.com/products/iphone/signalscope/
But even the apps are a lot more expensive than the scopes in this thread, and that doesn't take into account the price of the iphone itself.
Has anyone tried this app??
It's very confusing. Some of the images in the links show it in what seems to be a case, or perhaps just a front panel? Others show it as a bare board with exposed switches. Which is it? Does it come in a case for $50?
Its the bare board. It doesnt come with a case and for the 50 quid u get it as a kit to put together. theres a thread on it in here somewhere
Here's the link to the thread
http://www.diystompboxes.com/smfforum/index.php?topic=79173.0 (http://www.diystompboxes.com/smfforum/index.php?topic=79173.0)
Quote from: Hupla on November 05, 2009, 11:51:49 AM
Its the bare board. It doesnt come with a case and for the 50 quid u get it as a kit to put together. theres a thread on it in here somewhere
Actually, for $50 it comes preassembled. The kit is like $35.
Even though I started that thread and still like my scope, if I had ZVex-level scratch I'd pony up for something more deluxe... :icon_wink:
ZVEX IN CHEAPO O-SCOPE CREDIT CRUNCH SHOCKER!!
(http://www.aronnelson.com/gallery/main.php?g2_view=core.DownloadItem&g2_itemId=41137&g2_serialNumber=1)
Yes and no - not really a case, but a front and back panel. The rest is good ventilation, I suppose. The board with the exposed switches is an earlier version. This one was assembled from the kit. I like it!
LARS
I bought one of the kits last week. Unfortunately one of the SMD parts (D1) had been knocked off during transit. Also the back plate was scratched. The people I ordered it from (KCS Electronics) have been very nice about it, though. They suggested I try to resolder the part, even though the trace got damaged. (I haven't tried yet.) But, they are supposedly sending me a replacement anyway. So, I suggest anyone buying this takes a good look at the board before they start soldering in case anything fell off during shipping.
I've never soldered an SMD part before. I hope I manage ot o.k....
Anyone got a youtube clip of this thing in action? It looks like a calculator type LCD which are very slow to redraw... I want to see what the refresh looks like.
Nevermind, I found one:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z3wMmb31wHo
Good youtube clip, the scope seems to do screen redaraws at a good rate. It's very tempting.
Anyone know anything about the tone generator in the clip?
Based on the name "XR Noiz box", it's probably based on the XR8038 or XR2206 function generator chips.
Quote from: sixstringphil on November 05, 2009, 04:33:26 PM
Anyone know anything about the tone generator in the clip?
Nope. I just searched for "oscilloscope" and browsed through until I recognized the one in question. There were a couple other small LCD type oscilloscopes too I noticed... didn't really check them out yet though.
Unfortunately the clip does not seem to show much of the scope possibilities, it seems more like the noiz box demo.. Instead of tuning scope to get nice picture of various kinds of generated signals, the guy tunes generator to get nice readings on the scope mostly :)
He kinda just shows its refresh rate. It seems decent enough. Its hard to come up with reasons not to get one ha
At that price point, one would be crazy not to build it into an actual pedal. Analog panal meters? That's so last year. :)
Pure Tube-display preferred... (CRT)
[edit]: like THIS... :icon_cool: (http://www.diystompboxes.com/smfforum/index.php?topic=25039.msg630284#msg630284)
Ok, now I want one too.
Has anyone found a source for them in Europe?
Quote from: Skruffyhound on November 06, 2009, 05:05:30 PM
Ok, now I want one too.
Has anyone found a source for them in Europe?
Is: "Europe" where your interweb ends??? :icon_rolleyes:
No, but I get slapped for 75% import tax if I get anything in the post from the States, so that stunts the power of my "interweb" a bit.
75%? Where are you, that is outrageous!
Denmark. We get to pay the original sales tax in with the purchase price, then when the packet gets caught by the import authorities we get to pay 25% danish sales tax, some general tax and a hefty handling charge, plus we get to pay tax on the cost of the postage. the percentage can move up or down a little depending on the cost of postage compared to the price of the item or nature of the goods etc. I'm no expert but by my calculations, items become almost twice as expensive if they are purchased outside of Europe. Which is the whole point. It has been carefully calculated so that there is no advantage in buying from the States while the dollar is weak. The rules apply to all countries outside of Europe, but they focus mostly on America, the chances of a packet getting through unnoticed from the States is very slim.
We try of course to get stuff sent to friends/relatives in other European countries and then forwarded, or picked up from the States if someone is visiting, but it's limited how often a friend can be bothered to help you out.
So if anyone has a link for this scope in Europe I'll save 50 bucks and up to a months waiting time while the packet is processed through customs.
Hi,
there's more about the xr-noise box here:
http://blog.makezine.com/archive/2009/09/xr-noise_box_sounds_sweet.html (http://blog.makezine.com/archive/2009/09/xr-noise_box_sounds_sweet.html)
OK, so I went and checked out their Euro distributors
http://www.watterott.com/ (http://www.watterott.com/) Only in kit form and I don't want to make a measuring device as my first SMD build.
http://www.kgesperanto.se/kgdais/ (http://www.kgesperanto.se/kgdais/) These guys were offline for some time.
So I ordered the scope and a capacitance meter that I remembered from the original thread, plus some nice looking 4 pin, 3 colour LED's common cathode (seems like they can also be modulated to blend the colours - some interesting posibilities there) from :
http://www.seeedstudio.com/ (http://www.seeedstudio.com/) the Chinese dist. Lets see if customs catch it.
I'll report back if there are any problems
I just wanted to report in with a succesful build report for this guy. I built the already solderd SMD board version, but as I wrote about previously, D7 (I made a mistake above when I said D1) came off in transport. Well, my sloppy perf board skills came in handy as I was able to use a bit of insulated wire to replace the trace, and luckily didn't burn up that tiny diode. It took me about 45 minutes to get the right continuity with that, but only about 1h15m to complete the rest. Luckily I had screws to attach the plates to the supplied posts, because those didn't come with it. :icon_confused:
Anyway, for the time being I am learning how to use it, but I really loved looking at what the waveforms of a breadboarded 555 square wave oscillator looks like running through compressor, phaser, tremelo, modulated delay, etc. I keep feeling like the theme music for Outer Limits is going to start up.
Now I need a practical use for it...Suggestions?
Quote from: doc_drop on November 08, 2009, 01:04:26 PM
Now I need a practical use for it...Suggestions?
Use it to adjust trim pots, like the one that controls the rail to rail op amp output from the MV-53 Tap LFO circuit:
http://www.moltenvoltage.com/mv-53.html
;)
Quote from: oldrocker on November 02, 2009, 09:05:21 AM
When I ordered the Capacitance Meter Kit which doesn't come with a power supply I originally powered it with a nine volt battery. When I did hook up a power supply I found that it used negative ring and positive inner hole. My pedals use the opposite. So check to see which one would be used on the oscilloscope. Just in case there's no polarity protection. I wouldn't know. The cap meter does have protection though. Thank goodness.
I think there's a protection diode, but it does use a center positive supply, the opposite of most stompboxes, so that's something to watch for.
One thing I don't like about this scope is that it doesn't have markers to indicate voltages on the screen. You can see that something is more positive or more negative, and you can guess the max swing based on the sensitivity setting you're on, but I wish I could just tell that, "this LFO is swinging between 5v and 2.7v" or whatever.
Quote from: Skruffyhound on November 07, 2009, 09:15:11 AM
Denmark. We get to pay the original sales tax in with the purchase price, then when the packet gets caught by the import authorities we get to pay 25% danish sales tax, some general tax and a hefty handling charge, plus we get to pay tax on the cost of the postage. the percentage can move up or down a little depending on the cost of postage compared to the price of the item or nature of the goods etc. I'm no expert but by my calculations, items become almost twice as expensive if they are purchased outside of Europe. Which is the whole point. It has been carefully calculated so that there is no advantage in buying from the States while the dollar is weak. The rules apply to all countries outside of Europe, but they focus mostly on America, the chances of a packet getting through unnoticed from the States is very slim.
We try of course to get stuff sent to friends/relatives in other European countries and then forwarded, or picked up from the States if someone is visiting, but it's limited how often a friend can be bothered to help you out.
So if anyone has a link for this scope in Europe I'll save 50 bucks and up to a months waiting time while the packet is processed through customs.
Never mind didnt see the 4th page.
Quote from: Skruffyhound on November 07, 2009, 06:41:59 PM
OK, so I went and checked out their Euro distributors
http://www.watterott.com/ (http://www.watterott.com/) Only in kit form and I don't want to make a measuring device as my first SMD build.
http://www.kgesperanto.se/kgdais/ (http://www.kgesperanto.se/kgdais/) These guys were offline for some time.
So I ordered the scope and a capacitance meter that I remembered from the original thread, plus some nice looking 4 pin, 3 colour LED's common cathode (seems like they can also be modulated to blend the colours - some interesting posibilities there) from :
http://www.seeedstudio.com/ (http://www.seeedstudio.com/) the Chinese dist. Lets see if customs catch it.
I'll report back if there are any problems
I know you have already ordered but if it doesnt work out for you, Watterott also sell the kit with all the SMD's soldered on. http://www.watterott.com/Digital-Storage-Oscilloscope-Kit-with-Panels-all-SMD-are-mounted-DSO-_1
Im considering buying from them.
Thanks, it's on the way from China now, lets see if it arrives with all it's SMD components still on the board :icon_biggrin:
i am glad that i found this site.
i currently have a tek 2246a 100mhz 4 channel, and a type 422 2 channel 15mhz scope, but that nano........
(http://bostonbiker.org/files/2009/06/do-want.jpg)
Has anybody here besides Zvex bought one of the DSO nano scopes? Interested to know more...
Hi,
Just got a DSO Nano from US prior to seeedstudio's December release. I don't know what to do with it yet but thought it will be a usefull tool as I learn more!!
Ihaven't bought the nano ... yet :icon_mrgreen:
The 50 dollar scope has been caught by customs and has now been sitting in some dusty packhouse on the docks for a week or so. Could still be a month before I see it, and the tax bill. :icon_frown: