What is the difference between 53100A and Agilent 53200 series?

The 53200 models are time interval counters, good for basic time and frequency measurements on signals ranging from less than 1 Hz to hundreds of MHz or more. DSP-based test sets like the 53100A can make similar time/frequency measurements at much higher resolution, and they can also perform phase noise measurements, which counters are not great at to put it charitably. However, they don't replace counters in the general case for a few different reasons, such as being limited to measurements on CW signals rather than pulses. (There are ways to perform pulse measurements with similar DSP techniques, but the 53100A in particular doesn't do that.) The block diagram of a 53100A looks more like a radio than a counter, since it performs phase detection after downconversion to baseband. That makes it possible to band-limit the noise that the phase detector sees. This is why these instruments outperform counters so dramatically. With a counter, both the front-end and the trigger circuits 'see' the whole RF spectrum at once, but the measurement bandwidth of a 53100A can be as low as 5 Hz. -- john -----Original Message----- From: jelveh_t--- via time-nuts <time-nuts@lists.febo.com> Sent: Monday, September 2, 2024 2:02 AM To: time-nuts@lists.febo.com Cc: jelveh_t@yahoo.com Subject: [time-nuts] The difference between 53100A and Agilent 53200 series What is the difference between 53100A and Agilent 53200 series? _______________________________________________ time-nuts mailing list -- time-nuts@lists.febo.com To unsubscribe send an email to time-nuts-leave@lists.febo.com