Hi all, I am wondering if anyone can point me to a proper RF Sampler so I can hook up my Ham radio equipment for testing? I am new to all of this...Thanks in advance

John

 

What connectors does your equipment use?

 

What connectors does your equipment use?

PL239 on the radio's and BNC's on my scope

 

PL239 on the radio's and BNC's on my scope

Just get a PL-239 female to BNC male adapter such as this.

 

What do you mean by "sampler"? Are you looking for a detector to demodulate the signal? What frequencies and power levels?

 

Just get a PL-239 female to BNC male adapter such as this.
View attachment 178931

Thanks...

 

Testing should be using a dummy load. You could go with an RF attenuator, but for even a 1000 W transmitter, a 100:1 oscilloscope probe works.

I think I used a dummy load from MFJ with PL259's, a "T" and some way to get to banana plugs and probed there. The instrument used N connectors. Or made a test point, I forget. It was a transmitter on an ISM band.

 

Testing should be using a dummy load. You could go with an RF attenuator, but for even a 1000 W transmitter, a 100:1 oscilloscope probe works.

I think I used a dummy load from MFJ with PL259's, a "T" and some way to get to banana plugs and probed there. Or made a test point, I forget. It was a transmitter on an ISM band.

Thanks all...

 

Hi John - You weren't very specific about what you were trying to do, or what equipment you have; but I get your comment about being "new to all of this."
You don't want to just plug your transmitter into your scope with an adapter. The transmitter is expecting to see a load of around 50 ohms, and connecting it to a high impedance scope input will cause unpredictable behavior or may damage the transmitter. If the power output from the transmitter is more than a few watts, you will likely destroy the scope as well.
That's one of the reasons why KISS suggested a dummy load. You need to connect the transmitter output to a 50 ohm load that can handle the power level of the transmitter. A coax "T" connector makes the connection from the transmitter to dummy load, and provides a way to "tap" the signal for viewing on the scope. Coming off the T you can connect a resistor voltage divider. If your power output is modest (<100W, which is about 100V peak @ 50 ohms) a 10:1 scope probe may be OK.
There are a lot of articles and youtube videos on this topic. Google "monitor ham radio oscilloscope" or similar.
GL

 

Hi John - You weren't very specific about what you were trying to do, or what equipment you have; but I get your comment about being "new to all of this."
You don't want to just plug your transmitter into your scope with an adapter. The transmitter is expecting to see a load of around 50 ohms, and connecting it to a high impedance scope input will cause unpredictable behavior or may damage the transmitter. If the power output from the transmitter is more than a few watts, you will likely destroy the scope as well.
That's one of the reasons why KISS suggested a dummy load. You need to connect the transmitter output to a 50 ohm load that can handle the power level of the transmitter. A coax "T" connector makes the connection from the transmitter to dummy load, and provides a way to "tap" the signal for viewing on the scope. Coming off the T you can connect a resistor voltage divider. If your power output is modest (<100W, which is about 100V peak @ 50 ohms) a 10:1 scope probe may be OK.
There are a lot of articles and youtube videos on this topic. Google "monitor ham radio oscilloscope" or similar.
GL

yep, I was thinking the very same thing about reducing power...