James -
Depending upon what you intend to do with it, the price can vary from
next to nothing, to infinity.
That said, if you are interested in using on Drake gear, the most useful
generator (aside from the Calibrator built into most receivers) is one
of the XG generators from Elecraft. The XG-2 is a 'tri-band" (80 / 40 /
20) calibrated source with 1 uV and 50 uV outputs. These are the two
most-needed levels, 1 uV for Noise Figure or MDS testing, and 50 uV for
calibrating S-Meters to S-9. This is the generator that I use most
often, if for no other reason than it is about the size of two "thumb"
drives and runs off a coin cell.
For general coverage, a Heathkit IG-42 or similar will give you a decent
50 kHz to 30 MHz generator. An external attenuator, commercial or
homebrew can convert it to a calibrated source. About $40
My favorite is an HP 606A/B which covers 50 kHz to 65 MHz, is stable,
has a beautiful attenuator and is well calibrated. It's BIG, 10" high,
19" wide rack panel with cabinet to match. Typically sells for $100 and up.
The HP 8640B is a good generator, goes to 512 MHz I think, 1024 with an
optional doubler. It's only 5.5" rack panel, but weighs about as much
as the 606! It does have a weak point in the internal gearing,
(plastic,) that is happening often now. So watch EBay type sales.
There have been talks about making a replacement gear, but ....
Beyond this you are getting into newer stuff, from the cheap stuff from
China that's not as good as the Heathkit, up to the megabuck units
current with HP. There are a couple of HP units that sell in the
$200-300 range that are smaller and lighter and show up on EBay, etc.
73, Garey - K4OAH
Glen Allen, VA
Drake 2-B, 4-B, C-Line& TR-4/C Service Supplement CDs
<www.k4oah.com>
James Bridgers wrote:
I would like to have a rf signal generator for my use. Any suggestions as what
to look for?
Thanks in advance for your help
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