Hello all, I just purchase this Frequency counter, I am use to checking CB frequencies with a $13.00 clip on Freq Counter, a cheap functionable counter. I am wondering on how to put the new BK Precision 1823A Counter in line with my Oscilloscope, Arbitrary Waveform Generator, and my tinySA. I just do not want to overload the Counter when checking frequencies on the CB radio during re-alignment. Does anybody have a image or can tell me the right and best way to have the Counter in-line with my equipment. There are 3 inputs on the Counter, and are BNC connections. I also have a RF Sampler in line ,need a little advice on the proper way to put this in line so I do not destroy anything in my test equipment. Any suggestions and or pictures or personal ways of putting this in-line would be appreciated for my tuning of the radios.I want to thank you all for any advice I may receive. Have a great day.Mark.

 

Do you have an operators manual for the frequency counter? If not, get one and read the specifications. That will let you know what are the maximum limits for the input circuits. Advice from any other source could be misleading.

 

According to the manual at 26-27MHz the maximum input level on inputs A & B (30Hz - 100MHz) is 25v p-p AC + 25v DC offset. The input is high impedance, so you need a 50ohm BNC through termination to connect this to 50ohm sources and use on the AC setting. 25v represents 12.5W so don't go connecting it to the output of a CB transmitter unless you know its well below that level and your termination is good for that output power. For higher powers you'll need a higher power 50ohm load which usually has a 10:1 or 100:1 sampling port, or a simple loop antenna (a few turns of 18awg enamelled wire about 1" diameter) should pick up enough signal to measure usefully.

For sampling inside an equipment to check oscillator frequencies, etc, a spare x1 or x10 scope probe would be useful.

How you connect it to your other equipment depends entirely on what measurement(s) you are trying to make.

 

According to the manual at 26-27MHz the maximum input level on inputs A & B (30Hz - 100MHz) is 25v p-p AC + 25v DC offset. The input is high impedance, so you need a 50ohm BNC through termination to connect this to 50ohm sources and use on the AC setting. 25v represents 12.5W so don't go connecting it to the output of a CB transmitter unless you know its well below that level and your termination is good for that output power. For higher powers you'll need a higher power 50ohm load which usually has a 10:1 or 100:1 sampling port, or a simple loop antenna (a few turns of 18awg enamelled wire about 1" diameter) should pick up enough signal to measure usefully.

For sampling inside an equipment to check oscillator frequencies, etc, a spare x1 or x10 scope probe would be useful.

How you connect it to your other equipment depends entirely on what measurement(s) you are trying to make.

Hello, thank you for the input for me to install the frequency counter. As for a loop antenna, is there any links on how to make one? I am new at electronics, but I know enough to not hook IP a transmitter to the counter, as right now I have it at the end of my test equipment on a 50 ohm BNC jumper. I have everything going through a Rf Sampler, and have the counter after my TinySA. I only run 4 to 10 watts peak, no more no less, as the Cobra radios are stock, no mods or no crap in the radios at all.
I am curious about the making of a loop antenna, with the 18 guage wire rapped onto the antenna? I also use a x10 scope probe hooked to the counter, set at x10 for any in radio frequency adjustments, as a couple of CB transceivers had been molested and the pots cores turned, and are grossly out of adjustment, this takes me longer to tune with the signal generator.
I am going to do some searching on the loop antenna construction , if you may have any information on this, I would be in your dept if possibly posting on this forum for me to study and make one for the counter.Thank you for starting me in some direction of how to hook this up, as before I was using a $13.00 counter from China on the radios, as I did not trust or rely on these.Going to do some thinking on what to do on my installation, I need a foot in the door on how to use this updated Frequency Counter, as I never had a sophisticated counter before. Thank you for the input, as I was saying , any information on the antenna would be appreciated so I can start using the counter in line with my test equipment. Thank you for your reply, going to do some searching on the loop antenna, have a great Monday , as any more input on this subject would be appreciated . Thanks and a pleasure to talk and anwser you back. Mark

 

have a look at http://lea.hamradio.si/~s53mv/counter/probes.html - he has 1 loop on the end of a piece of coax, you might need more than 1, it costs virtually nothing to experiment