334A Distortion Analyzer

[PurelyNonsense]

I'm working on a piece of equipment and the procedure calls for a 334A distortion analyzer. I work in the Army labs so they don't have one. When I was in the Air Force, we had three at the very least. I was told that since they are obsolete I'll have to deal with it. My question is, why is the 334A still listed as a standard on some equipment? And can the PSA(Army version of the MMR) or any other piece of equipment act as a good substitute?

[griff61]

If you're in an Army lab, you should have a Boonton 1121, but an AN/USM-677or the MMR will work fine as well. The MMR can get pretty far down in the dirt, as far as frequency.

[PurelyNonsense]

I was planning on using the MMR but I'm not a big fan of the Boonton. Boonton to me is the Great Value brand of the test instrument world.

[CalLabSolutions]

The 334 has unmatched low frequency capabilities!  Many labs still used it for that specific reason.
The MMR may work.. But it has a voltage limit problem as well as impedance issue on some test.

Most labs, and the Army as well I believe, have a Stanford Research distortion analyzer.  It is even called out in TME.. Someone is going to have to post the model number.. I am to LAZY to look it up right now..

Mike.

[CalibratorJ]

The SR piece is an ultra low distortion function generator (DS360), not an analyzer.

The 1121 is actually a very solid piece of equipment, perhaps it was one of Boonton's mistakes.....

And what in the world are you calibrating using an Army TB that still calls for a 334....

[griff61]

And what in the world are you calibrating using an Army TB that still calls for a 334....

This

[PurelyNonsense]

I'm calibrating an 8904A multifunction generator. There is no Army TB so we have to use the Air Force TO. We used the Boonton. I agree that they made a mistake and make it work pretty well. But it actually fails other calibrations that the MMR passes. Kind of a hit or miss piece really.