Re: [time-nuts] Plug and play GPSDOs was:(no subject)
Many thanks Mark. I was thinking of setting up in a fixed position and leaving on permanently. But then if there's a power cut? Do you know if the China supplier is OK? Or any source in the UK of Thunderbolt? David Mark Sims hol...@hotmail.com 30/06/09 17:48 There is one thing that make most GPSDOs not quite plug and play... that is their need to know their location rather precisely. They do this with a self survey mechanism. The self survey can take several hours. Most units can trigger this automatically if their location changes more than a specific amount. You are better off manually triggering the self survey and saving the results in the unit. Unless you do this, the unit might go into self-survey mode every time the power cycles or might get confused trying to use the old location. _ Windows Live™: Keep your life in sync. http://windowslive.com/explore?ocid=TXT_TAGLM_WL_BR_life_in_synch_062009 ___ 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. ___ 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.
Re: [time-nuts] Plug and play GPSDOs was:(no subject)
I have my equipment attached to a rather large (100+ pounds) UPS device in case of a power outage. It'll run a Thunderbolt for a week I'd suspect. I've purchased several items from fluke.l (that's an L not a one) on eBay with good results every time. The only problem I ever had was just this week when I ordered a pair of Panasonic VIC100 antennas. I asked him to throw in two TNC to F adapters so I could go to ordinary RadioShack cable TV cable. I received two TNC to N instead. This cost me $5! No complaints, just a minor annoyance, but now I have a pair of adapters I didn't have before and I made due with a Pamona adapter kit till I find a proper replacement. -Bob On Tue, Jun 30, 2009 at 10:56 AM, David Hilton-Jones david.hilton-jo...@clneuro.ox.ac.uk wrote: Many thanks Mark. I was thinking of setting up in a fixed position and leaving on permanently. But then if there's a power cut? Do you know if the China supplier is OK? Or any source in the UK of Thunderbolt? David Mark Sims hol...@hotmail.com 30/06/09 17:48 There is one thing that make most GPSDOs not quite plug and play... that is their need to know their location rather precisely. They do this with a self survey mechanism. The self survey can take several hours. Most units can trigger this automatically if their location changes more than a specific amount. You are better off manually triggering the self survey and saving the results in the unit. Unless you do this, the unit might go into self-survey mode every time the power cycles or might get confused trying to use the old location. _ Windows Live™: Keep your life in sync. http://windowslive.com/explore?ocid=TXT_TAGLM_WL_BR_life_in_synch_062009 ___ 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. ___ 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. ___ 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.
Re: [time-nuts] Plug and play GPSDOs was:(no subject)
I am not very much interested in how it is achieved, but wonder if a 10MHz oscillator locked to GPS is now available as plugplay rather than needing a lot of time/effort/building. I note the Thunderbolt units available from the Far East on ebay for~£80gbp. Are these really PP - that is, just connect PSU and aerial and out comes 10MHz locked to GPS? Is it necessary to connect to a computer via the RS232 link, or is that just there if you want to fiddle and be clever? You probably need a PC to set it up. After that, it should just work all by itself. The problem is that the Thunderbolt doesn't have any LEDs to tell you that it is or isn't happy. The main thing you might want to monitor is the number of satellites. If your antenna is in a good location, that will get boring pretty quickly. If your antenna is marginal, you can watch it occasionally go into holdover when there aren't any satellites visible. If you like software, you could program your favorite one-chip micro to talk to the serial link and blink a LED when something is wrong. You can test the holdover stuff by disconnecting the antenna. If so, then this may be preferrable to running my rubidium source continuously. The rubidium doesn't need an antenna. For the price of a Thunderbolt, you could get a spare rubidium. (I'm assuming you are using Telco surplus units.) What I am interested in is stability, not ultiamte accuracy. What level of stability do you need? What time scale? Is an OCXO good enough? The nice think about a GPSDO is the great long term stability. -- These are my opinions, not necessarily my employer's. I hate spam. ___ 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.
Re: [time-nuts] Plug and play GPSDOs was:(no subject)
I suggest you try The RF Connection for adapters: NM/FF N(M)/F(F) 3.00 http://therfc.com/ Lester B Veenstra MØYCM K1YCM les...@veenstras.com m0...@veenstras.com k1...@veenstras.com US Postal Address: PSC 45 Box 781 APO AE 09468 USA UK Postal Address: Dawn Cottage Norwood, Harrogate HG3 1SD, UK Telephones: Office: +44-(0)1423-846-385 Home: +44-(0)1943-880-963 Guam Cell: +1-671-788-5654 UK Cell: +44-(0)7716-298-224 US Cell: +1-240-425-7335 Jamaica: +1-876-352-7504 This e-mail and any documents attached hereto contain confidential or privileged information. The information is intended to be for use only by the individual or entity to whom they are addressed. If you are not the intended recipient or the person responsible for delivering the e-mail to the intended recipient, be aware that any disclosure, copying, distribution or use of the contents of this e-mail or any documents attached hereto is prohibited. -Original Message- From: time-nuts-boun...@febo.com [mailto:time-nuts-boun...@febo.com] ..n in two TNC to F adapters so I could go to ordinary RadioShack cable TV cable. I received two TNC to N instead. This cost me $5! No complaints, just a minor annoyance, but now I have a pair of adapters I didn't have before image001.jpg___ 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.
Re: [time-nuts] Plug and play GPSDOs was:(no subject)
For really good adapters, I've had good luck with S.M. Electronics (http://www.smelectronicsllc.com). They are pricey -- like $24-$36 each for 18 GHz stainless N-to-something adapters, but I think on the whole cheaper than Pasternack, and they often stock several grades (with specified frequency for SWR) at different price points. I've been really happy with the quality, and they usually ship the same day. They also have a really wide variety of adapters available -- they can match just about anything to anything else. Their stuff is probably overkill for antenna cable adapters, but is great for use on test equipment. John Lester Veenstra wrote: I suggest you try The RF Connection for adapters: NM/FF N(M)/F(F) 3.00 http://therfc.com/ Lester B Veenstra MØYCM K1YCM les...@veenstras.com m0...@veenstras.com k1...@veenstras.com US Postal Address: PSC 45 Box 781 APO AE 09468 USA UK Postal Address: Dawn Cottage Norwood, Harrogate HG3 1SD, UK Telephones: Office: +44-(0)1423-846-385 Home: +44-(0)1943-880-963 Guam Cell: +1-671-788-5654 UK Cell: +44-(0)7716-298-224 US Cell: +1-240-425-7335 Jamaica: +1-876-352-7504 This e-mail and any documents attached hereto contain confidential or privileged information. The information is intended to be for use only by the individual or entity to whom they are addressed. If you are not the intended recipient or the person responsible for delivering the e-mail to the intended recipient, be aware that any disclosure, copying, distribution or use of the contents of this e-mail or any documents attached hereto is prohibited. -Original Message- From: time-nuts-boun...@febo.com [mailto:time-nuts-boun...@febo.com] ……..n in two TNC to F adapters so I could go to ordinary RadioShack cable TV cable. I received two TNC to N instead. This cost me $5! No complaints, just a minor annoyance, but now I have a pair of adapters I didn't have before ___ 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. ___ 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.
Re: [time-nuts] Plug and play GPSDOs was:(no subject)
-Original Message- From: time-nuts-boun...@febo.com [mailto:time-nuts-boun...@febo.com] On Behalf Of John Ackermann N8UR Sent: Tuesday, June 30, 2009 11:40 AM To: les...@veenstras.com; Discussion of precise time and frequency measurement Subject: Re: [time-nuts] Plug and play GPSDOs was:(no subject) For really good adapters, I've had good luck with S.M. Electronics (http://www.smelectronicsllc.com). They are pricey -- like $24-$36 each for 18 GHz stainless N-to-something adapters, but I think on the whole cheaper than Pasternack, and they often stock several grades (with specified frequency for SWR) at different price points. Likewise.. They're a good source for between series adapters and pads, particularly for microwave (e.g. KSMA or 2.43.5) ___ 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.
Re: [time-nuts] Plug and play GPSDOs was:(no subject)
eBay. 12 bucks for 4 including shipping :) -Bob On Tue, Jun 30, 2009 at 12:17 PM, Lester Veenstra m0...@veenstras.comwrote: I suggest you try The RF Connection for adapters: NM/FF N(M)/F(F) 3.00 http://therfc.com/ Lester B Veenstra MØYCM K1YCM les...@veenstras.com m0...@veenstras.com k1...@veenstras.com US Postal Address: PSC 45 Box 781 APO AE 09468 USA UK Postal Address: Dawn Cottage Norwood, Harrogate HG3 1SD, UK Telephones: Office: +44-(0)1423-846-385 Home: +44-(0)1943-880-963 Guam Cell: +1-671-788-5654 UK Cell: +44-(0)7716-298-224 US Cell: +1-240-425-7335 Jamaica: +1-876-352-7504 This e-mail and any documents attached hereto contain confidential or privileged information. The information is intended to be for use only by the individual or entity to whom they are addressed. If you are not the intended recipient or the person responsible for delivering the e-mail to the intended recipient, be aware that any disclosure, copying, distribution or use of the contents of this e-mail or any documents attached hereto is prohibited. -Original Message- From: time-nuts-boun...@febo.com [mailto:time-nuts-boun...@febo.com] ……..n in two TNC to F adapters so I could go to ordinary RadioShack cable TV cable. I received two TNC to N instead. This cost me $5! No complaints, just a minor annoyance, but now I have a pair of adapters I didn't have before ___ 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. ___ 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.
Re: [time-nuts] Plug and play GPSDOs was:(no subject)
There is one thing that make most GPSDOs not quite plug and play... that is their need to know their location rather precisely. Yes, it's helpful on the way to perfection. Is it a requirement for the OPs level of ambition? I think not. I wonder if the long self-survey procedure is an artifact from the bad old SA-days, when there was a genuine need to filter out the quarter of an hour wiggle introduced to the GPS signals. -- Björn ___ 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.
Re: [time-nuts] Plug and play GPSDOs was:(no subject)
-Original Message- From: time-nuts-boun...@febo.com [mailto:time-nuts-boun...@febo.com] On Behalf Of Mark Sims Sent: Tuesday, June 30, 2009 2:32 PM To: time-nuts@febo.com Subject: [time-nuts] Plug and play GPSDOs was:(no subject) Yes, you can just leave the unit running without much problem, but what works really well is to use an old laptop as a permanent monitoring device. You can get them for around 20 bucks... Lady Heather was created for Thunderbolt just such a situation. Much more entertaining and informative than das blinkenlights. There are DOS and Windows versions available in the download at: http://www.thegleam.com/ke5fx/heather/readme.htm Even better would be some ambitious amateur programming one of the little LCD+microcontroller widgets to make a display. Probably not worth it, dollar wise, but might be nice, especially for a field operation (e.g. setting up a hilltopping microwave setup or something like that.. Minimize the number of separate boxes, etc.) ___ 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.
Re: [time-nuts] Plug and play GPSDOs was:(no subject)
In a message dated 30/06/2009 22:38:35 GMT Daylight Time, james.p@jpl.nasa.gov writes: Even better would be some ambitious amateur programming one of the little LCD+microcontroller widgets to make a display. Probably not worth it, dollar wise, but might be nice, especially for a field operation (e.g. setting up a hilltopping microwave setup or something like that.. Minimize the number of separate boxes, etc.) - Something like this by any chance?:-).. _http://www.ko4bb.com/Timing/GPSMonitor/_ (http://www.ko4bb.com/Timing/GPSMonitor/) regards Nigel GM8PZR ___ 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.
Re: [time-nuts] Plug and play GPSDOs was:(no subject)
-Original Message- From: time-nuts-boun...@febo.com [mailto:time-nuts-boun...@febo.com] On Behalf Of gandal...@aol.com Sent: Tuesday, June 30, 2009 2:48 PM To: time-nuts@febo.com Subject: Re: [time-nuts] Plug and play GPSDOs was:(no subject) - Something like this by any chance?:-).. _http://www.ko4bb.com/Timing/GPSMonitor/_ (http://www.ko4bb.com/Timing/GPSMonitor/) regards Yes.. Except the work-in-progress, hard hat required part And then I was thinking about something where you hook a bluetooth serial port dongle on the thunderbolt (or other RS232 device), and then use your PDA/iPhone/etc as the display/control interface. ___ 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.
