Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE: Hardware vs. Software Oscilloscopes

This is topic Hardware vs. Software Oscilloscopes in forum Film Handlers' Forum at Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE.

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Posted by Michael Schaffer (Member # 1204) on 06-03-2003, 08:41 PM:

I think we touched the subject before, but I would like to have some fresh input as I am setting myself up here with equipment in the US. The idea of having a software scope is still very appealing as it means less equipment to carry around except for the adapter to the soundcard inputs.
Is it generally possible to calibrate them well to the inputs of the soundcard? I have a Toshiba 2,0 GHz Pentium 4 notebook but I do not know yet which soundchip it has (it is sitting in the car right now).
Otherwise, which oscilloscopes which are readily available on the American market would you recommend? What are the price windows for both solutions?

Posted by Mark Gulbrandsen (Member # 72) on 06-04-2003, 12:39 AM:

Michael,
CRT based scopes are still the best way to go, unless you have megabucks (8500.00 U.S.) to spend on a very high end LCD color scope. Most software based scopes will not properly display a L-R signal fomr the test film.....some other signals are also very difficult to look at on the LCD based scopes. Since Tektronix makes the best scopes, look to E-Bay for a good deal on a used Tektronix 465B scope. Its still the industry standard 100 mhz scope(most do 150 meg!). There are probably many available on E-Bay in Germany, or close by....so you can deal with that back home and savre duties going back.
Mark

Posted by Michael Schaffer (Member # 1204) on 06-04-2003, 02:19 AM:

quote:
megabucks

No, no!

quote:
so you can deal with that back home

Actually it looks like I might stay here (S.D.) for a while.

Posted by Mark Gulbrandsen (Member # 72) on 06-04-2003, 06:24 AM:

South Dakota?

````````````````````````````````````You must have a distant relative that has a cattle ranch out there....... Possibly they were immigrents and then became squatters back in the early 1800's.....?

I wasn't aware that airlines went from Germany to S.D., perhaps you hitch hiked or took a box car from New York......?

Are there actually people STILL living in South Dakota? I thought that Locust ate all the people living there a long time ago....Wasn't there something in the in the Bible about that, Old Testament?

Where are you getting real Beer from out there? That could become a serious problem!

Anyway, Salt Lake City is the next stop that Box Car will make!! We have real good beer here but its a but towards the unleaded side of the scale.

Anyway,,,,,....Have fun! Keep your eye out for abandoned Drive Inns that have not been open for decades! We have a full time technician out there near South Dakota some place...His name is Dennis.......
Mark

Posted by Kris Brunton (Member # 432) on 06-04-2003, 08:17 AM:

I have a Tektronix 210 in my kit when I have to travel light. We also have a few CRT scopes hanging around for typical use.

Someone gave me a copy af a software based scope but as my laptop can't handle two line inputs I haven't really played with it.

Posted by Gordon McLeod (Member # 33) on 06-04-2003, 08:24 PM:

Leader a pain to fix but small and compact

Posted by Frank Angel (Member # 248) on 06-05-2003, 12:25 PM:

I am sure that software scopes, just like hardware scopes come in the range of so-so to best-in-show, but since I've never seen any technical benchtest reviews of them, I was pretty much shooting in the dark when I picked mine on a whim. Believe me, there are too many variables to take them seriously -- what computer processor you are using, what are the characteristics of the sound card, what are the current glitches lurking in your memory that you don't know about, and the Microsucks Windblows operating system in general. And then there's software -- IMHO way to easy for your winding up one that is at the bottom of the accuracy list. And after looking at scopes since childhood, I can tell you that the software/laptop scope, for me anyway, is impossible to look at. And as I said, I don't trust them. But then again, when I push SEND on my email, I don't trust it is actually going to get there -- so don't go by me. [Smile]

Frank