No problem, I noticed that one channel of the audio dropped out completely in the editor so I re-rendered it. UA-cam won't let you replace a video so I had to upload a whole new one.
Great video, thanks. I have a same signal generator, and try to calibrate it. I had the R9 adjusted to 6V and calibrated all A to F bands without much trouble. But I can not get the wave form on oscilloscope for 455 khz and 10.7 Mhz sweep. Read the instruction which is not quite help since the way it did need crystal. I do have frequency counter. My question is can I calibrate 455 kHz and 10.7 MHz with the frequency counter (with the Modulation switch in Ext without any signal input) instead the wave form? Thank you in advance.
You only need the crystal if you want a marker to appear during sweep mode. The 455 Khz. signal is adjusted using L7 (See Pg. 42 of the manual), L8 for 10.7 Mhz. You should be able to calibrate using a freq. counter. Actually, the dial of the RCA is so far off that you'd probably want to use a freq. counter anytime you use the generator just to be accurate. -- The direction manual IS kind of confusing especially when it comes to where to set the MOD & VFO switches. I just had to fiddle with the settings to get the output I wanted. Later I'll try and see what the proper sw. settings are to cal. the generator and get back to you.
Thank you very much for your reply. I will try to calibrate the L7 and L8 with frequency counter, then try the RCA on some transistor radios. By the way, when I read the manual, it mentioned the original testing cable has a 0.001 pf 500 V cap built in, so I soldered a 0.005 pf 1000v cap that I have before the BNC output. @@DVRproductions52
Actually no. You should see my other (3) vintage generators sine wave. This is the best of the lot and it's typical for these. It's just the way they are, believe me, I've tried. Sometimes I think they were designed that way so they could take advantage of the harmonics of a poor sine wave to get 2X the frequency out of them if needed or to create a dot or bar pattern on a TV.
Get over yourself Steven , the RCA WR50 was only a $65 piece of gear in 1966 and it’s still very useful and in demand. RF circuits do not really care if the waveform is perfect, it’s all about circuit excitation.
@@erin19030 Not being a clean sine wave means lots of INTERFERENCE in other bands from the harmonics the sine wave contains, which I assume is OBVIOUS to anyone working with RF. I am not an RF transmitter, so there is nothing to "GET OVER", so please refrain from personal attacks..
Your test inherited equipment ensemble looks much like mine.I built my test bench tools up starting in 1962 when I graduated from RCA Technical Institutes. After my tour in Nam with the US Army i pocked up an IBM designed Tektronix portable scope. I do use my gear in restoring Vintage radio sets. Forget ESR with the cap, no one even had a clue what that was until the advent of switching power supplies. RCA built home equipment to Mil- Spec designs and quality. You wont find cheap paper wax caps in a WR-50 B. The resistors where also a high grade type. Testing each component for accuracy is a total waste of time if you have never fired up the test instrument. If you have a Variac with parameter monitoring you don’t need a dumb dim bulb tester, thats for amateurs.
I sure wish I could have held on to my Tek. scope when I left IBM in 2020, that was a fine instrument! The WR-50 B's resistors were almost ALL way out of tolerance. That really surprised me. As for the dim-bulb, that little thing has saved me several times recently when I accidentally shorted the mains while working on something. -- Thanks for the comment Erin!
Wow, a wealth of knowledge. 😎 Thank you.
I like that little Powerstat, that box looks great.
Me too! Thanks for the comment.
Wonderful! Glad to see more
Oh my bad this is a re-upload from a few days ago. But I will gladly watch again
No problem, I noticed that one channel of the audio dropped out completely in the editor so I re-rendered it. UA-cam won't let you replace a video so I had to upload a whole new one.
You're very welcome, thanks for the comment!
Great vid. I just sold mine last year & you made me regret that a bit. I never cal'd the sweep part so that was very helpful. 👍
The Sweep function is the most advanced and important part of the RCA WR-50c
I have one of these but never tried to calibrate it. Thanks for the video!
The directions from RCA can be a little confusing alright.
Calibration is simple
Great video, thanks. I have a same signal generator, and try to calibrate it. I had the R9 adjusted to 6V and calibrated all A to F bands without much trouble. But I can not get the wave form on oscilloscope for 455 khz and 10.7 Mhz sweep. Read the instruction which is not quite help since the way it did need crystal. I do have frequency counter. My question is can I calibrate 455 kHz and 10.7 MHz with the frequency counter (with the Modulation switch in Ext without any signal input) instead the wave form? Thank you in advance.
You only need the crystal if you want a marker to appear during sweep mode. The 455 Khz. signal is adjusted using L7 (See Pg. 42 of the manual), L8 for 10.7 Mhz. You should be able to calibrate using a freq. counter. Actually, the dial of the RCA is so far off that you'd probably want to use a freq. counter anytime you use the generator just to be accurate. -- The direction manual IS kind of confusing especially when it comes to where to set the MOD & VFO switches. I just had to fiddle with the settings to get the output I wanted. Later I'll try and see what the proper sw. settings are to cal. the generator and get back to you.
Thank you very much for your reply. I will try to calibrate the L7 and L8 with frequency counter, then try the RCA on some transistor radios. By the way, when I read the manual, it mentioned the original testing cable has a 0.001 pf 500 V cap built in, so I soldered a 0.005 pf 1000v cap that I have before the BNC output. @@DVRproductions52
How many times did you mutter the sound "uh"? I'll tell you - a pathetic number of times.
Yeah, it bothers me too and I'm trying to do better at that.🙄
Out of tolarance is out of smolerench. Fuse it if you like, a very good idea !
The sine wave from the generator looks AWEFUL!!!!!! Is there any adjustment for that??????????????
Actually no. You should see my other (3) vintage generators sine wave. This is the best of the lot and it's typical for these. It's just the way they are, believe me, I've tried. Sometimes I think they were designed that way so they could take advantage of the harmonics of a poor sine wave to get 2X the frequency out of them if needed or to create a dot or bar pattern on a TV.
Get over yourself Steven , the RCA WR50 was only a $65 piece of gear in 1966 and it’s still very useful and in demand. RF circuits do not really care if the waveform is perfect, it’s all about circuit excitation.
Its one step above the EICO 324 RF generator. None of this gear is professional lab gear, but the users are clever people.
@@erin19030
Not being a clean sine wave means lots of INTERFERENCE in other bands from the harmonics the sine wave contains, which I assume is OBVIOUS to anyone working with RF.
I am not an RF transmitter, so there is nothing to "GET OVER", so please refrain from personal attacks..
Your test inherited equipment ensemble looks much like mine.I built my test bench tools up starting in 1962 when I graduated from RCA Technical Institutes. After my tour in Nam with the US Army i pocked up an IBM designed Tektronix portable scope. I do use my gear in restoring Vintage radio sets. Forget ESR with the cap, no one even had a clue what that was until the advent of switching power supplies. RCA built home equipment to Mil- Spec designs and quality. You wont find cheap paper wax caps in a WR-50 B. The resistors where also a high grade type. Testing each component for accuracy is a total waste of time if you have never fired up the test instrument. If you have a Variac with parameter monitoring you don’t need a dumb dim bulb tester, thats for amateurs.
I sure wish I could have held on to my Tek. scope when I left IBM in 2020, that was a fine instrument! The WR-50 B's resistors were almost ALL way out of tolerance. That really surprised me. As for the dim-bulb, that little thing has saved me several times recently when I accidentally shorted the mains while working on something. -- Thanks for the comment Erin!