[Arm-netbook] Oscilloscope or bust?

[Christopher Havel]

Pardon a top post, plz, I'm on my phone again...

Oscilloscopes are a great tool for either (a) analyzing analog waveforms,
if you know what you're doing, or (b) looking like the absolute incarnation
of technological tomfoolery, if you don't.

Mostly I fall into the second category. My scope is a secondhand,
pre-moonshot Tektronix 422. It weighs about as much as a good stout WW2
battleship and probably has just as much metal... it certainly has almost
as many controls, and the dizzying array of knob and levers and buttons
means I have virtually no idea how to work it. I do have the manual and a
lot of bad excuses, though!

...anyways...

These links may be of some use. The first couple are a little outdated, but
all should be serviceable...

https://hackaday.com/2016/01/27/a-tale-of-two-sub-100-oscilloscopes/

https://hackaday.com/2017/11/09/review-jye-tech-dso150-oscilloscope-kit/

https://hackaday.com/2017/11/18/ds212-oscilloscope-review-open-source-and-great-for-hacking/

...and, if you're "Robinson Crusoe on a Desert Island" desperate (note, I
wouldn't trust myself with this one!)...

https://hackaday.com/2017/04/06/hacking-a-vintage-tv-into-an-oscilloscope/

There are also dead-simple recipes out there (Forrest Mims, /et al/) for
o-scope builds using (literally) a few chips and a double-fistful of
LEDs... but those badly lack the sort of display resolution you need for
this.

HTH...

Chris

On Sun, Sep 9, 2018, 11:26 PM David Niklas <doark at mail.com> wrote:

> Hi,
> I need help here. I was designing the power supply of my laptop and I
> noticed that some power bucks and step up/down converters (Which both
> seem to do the same thing. Please tell me otherwise.), produced a more
> stable power supply than others. In order to find out if they are truly
> suitable for suppling power to sensitive electronics I've heard that I
> need an oscilloscope.
> I currently own:
>
> 1. #222634543946
> "DC-DC 10/12/15/20A 150/250/300/400/1200W Step up Step
> down Buck Boost Converter"
>
> 2. #152710861245
> "2A DC Boost Step-up Adjustable Converter Module 3v-24v to 3.3v 5v 6v
> 9v 12v 24v"
>
> After learning that some guy with an oscilloscope reviewed these, I'm
> planning to get: #122923215542
> "6 Pack MP1584EN ultra Small DC-DC 3A power Step-Down
> Adjustable Module Buck M2H3 6 Pack MP1584EN ultra Small DC-DC 3A power
> Step-Down Adjustable Module Buck"
>
> I've seen many oscilloscopes online on crowd funding campaigns. I've
> never been certain of which to get, if any. The real professional ones
> are out of my budget range of about $100. *I'll pay more if I must*, but I
> already did not anticipate the need to actually evaluate what should be
> solid products.
> I probably should find a solid adjustable DC power supply to test these
> with vs. an old laptop power pack or some batteries.
> What I need some of these things to do is to take a dynamically variable
> voltage as input (Li-Ion batteries in series), and produce a constant
> voltage as output. Others I need to just convert to the correct voltage
> from the old laptop power pack.
>
> Thanks!
> David
>
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