EE / RF / EO – covering the full spectrum
If you’ve landed on this page, chances are you already have a good idea what a waveform or signal generator does and why you’d need one. You may even be close to deciding on a new unit for your lab. If so, you’ve come to the right place!
We’ve compiled a list of 5 great signal generators, and they cover all different price points, so there’s bound to be something for every budget.
Read MoreIntroducing a new SDR radio bundle specifically designed for tuning into weather satellite signals.
Using an SDR to receive weather data from NOAA’s GOES satellite constellation is one of the most common applications for software defined radio enthusiast. There are a ton of tutorials and videos on how to setup your SDR rig, antenna, and SDR software to receive and decode weather images.
One thing that can slow folks down on their quest for home-brew meteorology is figuring out just what equipment is needed beyond a great SDR radio. There are antennas, LNAs, filters, etc. It can all become a bit overwhelming at times.
That’s where a new SDR bundle from Nooelec comes in. The folks over at Nooelec have taken all the guess work and hours of sifting through forums out of designing the best SDR weather station. They’ve created a bundle that includes everything you need to receive weather satellite images.
Read MoreBGAs or Ball Grid Arrays can be one of the most difficult Surface Mount Device (SMD) package types when it comes to solder rework. Having a good BGA rework station is critical to troubleshoot and replace these types of components. Many of today’s most advanced SDR or software defined radio chipsets are BGA package types. There are a few reasons why BGA rework is so difficult. The solder pads are located underneath the package body. The large surface area makes it difficult to evenly reflow the solder pads without overheating surrounding components. With any electronic rework operation it is important to test continuity and function before and after any major rework event.
Our top pick came in as the T862++ IR BGA Rework Station with pre-warmer. It offered a good balance between features and affordability.
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One of the most essential pieces of test equipment for any electronics lab is the multimeter. Today, multimeters are typically all digital and are referred to as Digital Multimeters or DMMs. Choosing the right digital multimeter can be daunting since the DMM is one of the most used pieces of equipment in the lab.
Digital multi-meters can be portable or benchtop. For this article, we’ll focus on benchtop multimeters suitable for use in a typical electronics lab. As the name implies, benchtop multimeters are used to measure multiple fundamental electronics measurements. The most basic measurements include measuring voltage, current, and resistance. More advanced benchtop digital multimeters can also measure things like capacitance, inductance, conductance, frequency, duty cycle, diode drops, etc.
Read MoreWhen it comes to Software Defined Radios or SDRs, the variety of offerings can be overwhelming when trying to pick the right set up. We scoured the web in search of 15 great software defined radios so you wouldn’t have to!
So what is the best SDR receiver or transceiver in 2021? The answer is… it’s complicated! When picking an SDR radio, there are many factors that come into play; frequency ranges, transmit/receive capability, complexity, available firmware and open source projects, and of course cost! The following list of great SDR radios covers this diverse spectrum and we hope any one interested in software defined radios will find something that will work for them.
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![How to pick the best multimeter [PLUS, 5 great benchtop multimeters]](/_restore-assets/129deb2bfb7501ad5bbc990601980624462a7f33.png?__rv=82dd359a7afb)