HP manuals online

[peterc]

Hi all

I've just been to www.agilent.com
& did a search for the 3310 oscillator & up it came. Also the 3311 & 3312.

People are asking silly money on ebay for these manuals, now they are online. Well done HP.

Peter

 

[gyraf]

:green: :thumb:

 

[clintrubber]

Right ! :grin:

A while back I was pleasantly surprised that I could get about everything for my old HP audio-testset (8903B). So not only the manual but also full service docs. :thumb:

Which makes me wonder why lots of other companies start removing pdf-stuff when it seemingly has become 'too old'.

Bye,

Peter

 

[bcarso]

That is überkool. It's nice to know some of the old HP survives and even thrives in Agilent, while the parent company goes careening along a treacherous trajectory. Barney Oliver would be pleased (and he wasn't easily pleased).

 

[Larrchild]

What a cool find!

My mid-80's RF Signal Generator, RF Spectrum Analyzer and Modulation Analyzer now have full documentation. Bravo.

Hewlett and Packard would not be pleased at the current board of directors-bugging, computer and printer company who managed to buy my 2nd least favorite computer company, Compaq.

But Agilent Rocks!

 

[Larrchild]

I only wish I had a garage, Wayne. Or even a basement. (We don't get those down here).
So I'm using the nicest room in the house, my back porch. as an impromptu factory floor.

Nice view while I drill and mill, anyway!

 

[bcarso]

But alas no manual for the 204C now (if ever) although the 200CD is still there.

 

[Samuel Groner]

Oh, and while we're at it: if you see the HP461A schematic/manual, drop me a note!

Samuel

 

[bcarso]

The 204B is probably close enough for my needs---thanks. The C has an extended frequency range and no battery option.

I'm contemplating taking out the bridged-T attentuator so that the output Z can be lower, but I'll probably just roll a little buffer amp and leave the thing intact.

 

[bcarso]

Aarrgh. This thing has some errr interesting mechanical details (and now I understand why the dial feels kind of funny---check out the drawings of the cam). I think I had better leave well enough alone.

 

[bcarso]

Apparently it adjusts those other little trims.

Well, it turns out the 204C is totally different---using variable air dielectric C's for frequency. They probably had enough trouble with those cams that they decided to design the linearization into the capacitors. There is still something mechanically amiss in the dial and whether it is worth playing with I haven't decided.

Ah the days when transistors were dear. A pretty remarkable instrument given the economies of the time.

I may break down and get that guy's little Ap. I spent a fair amount of time the other day proving out an analog switching circuit that's about to be used in a layout that will entail a considerable amount of time and money. This generator and my existing analyzer weren't up to the direct measurement, so I did a nulling circuit that got me down to an observable residual that was relatively easy to observe and measure, moreover showing that most of the energy was at the second harmonic. Fun in its way but a direct measurement would have gotten the job done more quickly.

 

[peterc]

Brad

Looks like the 204c manual is at BAMA.

Check here:

http://bama.sbc.edu/hp.htm

Peter

 

[bcarso]

Thanks Peter. I did see that and need to adjust some things to get in.

Meanwhile I did solve one problem---for once what I was afraid was some complicated mecahnism's problem turned out just something needing lubrication.

I did of course have to take more of it apart anyway, and spent some time pondering the power supply, an elegant use of components for the purpose. I couldn't resist putting in some modern electrolytics for the bulk caps, and doing a little re-routing to make the charging current spikes flow away from other parts of the circuit, and by filtering the current sources reduced the ripple to less than 50uV p-p. Whether this will confer any benefit on the oscillator as a whole remains to be seen.

The probable biggest improvement would be more elaborate, and involve using a lower distortion means of controlling amplitude. It is tempting because the dial and range switching would be mostly unaffected, and the result would look and feel like the old instrument except with much lower distortion. But in this way lies madness---perhaps it's the influence of our recently-joined luminary, driving me towards POOGEville :roll:

 

[bcarso]

And a further thought (and further from the thread): especially with older equipment, never underestimate the utility of contact cleaners.

The 204C turned out to be very very touchy, especially the critical peak detector associated with the AGC. All got way better when I managed to find my can of Nu-Trol and clean the switches and potentiometers.

The next equipment crisis was the 334A distortion analyzer, which behaved for all intents and purposes like it had a cracked wafer or intermittent solder joint on the level set/sensitivity adjustment switch/pot. This is another impressive beast from the halcyon days of HP, and is also not for the faint of heart to go messing with. However, access to the switching was fairly straightforward, and the nu-trol treatment wholly effective---there were no fractured parts after all.

As the 334A sat under a bunch of other things on the bench it was with some trepidation that I went after the problem. But it was a successful operation, and I have at least a cleaner bench in the vicinity now as well.

 

[PRR]

> Wow. That cam is really something. Is it for mechanical linearization?

The dial is log scale.

The pots are Linear.

Sure you can get "Audio Taper" pots which are "sorta log", but it is a 2-decade range and we only need one decade. And the curve is really two linears. And the accuracy and calibration may be far worse than 10%.

There used to be True Log pots accurate enough to calculate canon trajectories. Even H-P couldn't afford to put two on your workbench.

So they used plain old good Wirewound. Very consistent, very Linear.

And worked that wonky cam to re-curve the dial.

It seems to have a third pot on the dial, a direct coupled 5-cent trimmer. It seems to fudge the peak detector threshold. That whole end of the rig is something which shouldn't oughta work.

I suspect a mechanical obsessive would have a more specific word than "cam". The two scrolls are linked with two cables. If they had teeth, it would be gearing, and yes there are scroll gears (and mind-bending puzzles setting up the tooth-chopper to make them).

> never underestimate the utility of contact cleaners.

Old disused H-P gear ALWAYS needs contacts cleaned, and often needs mechanical lubrication (as I think you found).

One of my 200ABs, the dial just would NOT turn. I soaked it in oil, and solvent, but finally had to hammer the shaft out. With the shaft exposed, it cleaned up easily, and now works fine.

Of two 200ABs and a transistor ACVM, lube and clean covered most problems. One also had a broken 6SJ7 heater, the other had the electrolytic in the signal path go open.

I went around the 200AB power supply on the assumption that the filter caps must be bad by now (both are over 40yo). Could not find any for-sure change in hum or stability.

My current problem is that I lost the screws to hold the older 200AB in its case, and it keeps trying to escape nose-down on the floor.

My Tek 'scope has also gone intermittent, and I can't find the range switch. This 'scope is WAY too fast for me; I'm happier inside my 15MHz Leader or better yet my 19KC DuMont (aint much to go wrong in there).

My General Radio AC VM also needed contact cleaning, a LOT. But it has a unique extra problem. The regulator tubes (large neons) have a half-life. Starting voltage is reduced by a pinch of radioactive dust. It's at the age that I have to open it up and check to see if the VRs lit-off or not. Sometimes patience (or heat) helps. That gives me time to clean the contacts some more.

I also recently brought a "24W" gitar amp, untouched since the 1970s, up from 6W to 13W just by cleaning contacts. New tubes found yet another watt, but the main problem was contacts.