Best AM FM Stereo RF Generator for a Newbie

I have two setups. Ended up winning a few auctions at the same time on ebay...

HP 8644B signal generator (boat anchor warning) combined with an HP 8904A opt 001 for the FM Stereo portion. The HP8644B is supposed to be the lowest noise generator HP made (well, not sure about the new crazy expensive stuff) The 8644b is a better generator than the 8657A/B and goes for less money, maybe because of the size or maybe it's just less well known.

Rohde and Schwarz SML01 (or 02 or 03) with the SML-B5 Stereo module installed. I really like this thing. Small, quiet and easy to use. I'm probably going to keep this and get rid of the HP eventually. I actually ended up with two of the SML01's. They had bad LCD's but you can source their replacements from China.

I saw these for sale recently, but unfortunately the guy sold out of them. They checked all the boxes .. too bad. A.B.O Co. AVR-5510-PI AM FM Signal Generator w/ Manual from Pioneer Facility | eBay
 
"A.B.O Co. AVR-5510-PI AM FM Signal Generator" seems like another ideal unit. There is a "Leader 3216 FM Stereo FM-AM Signal Generator 100KHz-140MHz" on epay for about the same price. Either unit looks nice but if some goes wrong with them, I would be left with an expensive shelf ornament. I assume the old Sencor or Sound Tech 1000 are tube units. That may be asking for trouble too, but still hoping for something in between.
Thanks again, Folks!
 
The Sencore stuff and ST1000 are solid state but they are old and unless you find one that someone's already gone over, I'd plan on refurbishing/repairing it. (Capacitors, and there are a few mods to improve them, and in the case of the SG165 there's some plastic stuff that breaks, lots of great youtube videos and forum posts on both topics) In my opinion they are overpriced for what they are, since that's what everyone thinks that's what they need to buy. They don't seem to come up for sale all that often (well, the SG80 and the ST1000a). Oh, and if you get either of those get yourself a frequency counter as well...

I got my HP 8904a (with the correct serial# and option 001 for FM stereo) for about 250 shipped and the 8644B for around 350 shipped in the last month, to give you an idea.. where as the ST1000A's have been going for 800+ on ebay lately... even the SG165 is going for 500 bucks in working condition. You can also pair the 8904A with all sorts of other high end signal gens like Marconi, Fluke, other HP's, etc... which also sell dirt cheap. So, you could get a setup like this for 5-600 bucks.

Most of the time this type of stuff (the HP type equipment) is sold from eWaste scrappers, and you can lowball the heck out of the best offer price. Also, many of them list the stuff as 'working condition' (not for parts/broken) with a 30 day warranty, and if often arrives broken, since they don't really know how to test the stuff properly beyond powering it on. Then when you take them up on their return policy they just tell you to keep it and refund all your money since it's not worth the hassle for them. I've had this happen a few times, and was able to fix the gear easily.

I doubt you'll find another AVR-5510-PI for sale, I've never seen them before the guy who bought them from the Pioneer auction put them up for sale and there's practically no info available online. Too bad, they seem great.

Kenwood makes some too. Here's one for sale at what I'd consider a cheap price. I don't know much about them, though. Kenwood SG-5110 FM Stereo FM-AM Signal Generator 100KHz-110MHz | eBay

Good luck and have fun!
 
Last edited:
We have two old Sencore SG-165's at work. Not used much except for a cook bench using the level meters. Still use the Sound Technology 1000A for alignments. Had to recap the power supply. Still works good.
 
BlueCrab said:
I have both a Sencore SG165 and a Leader LSG-231 (the Leader 3214 in the previous reply is newer). Both are ok for older analog tuners, but both need to be gone over with a fine tooth comb to ensure they are working to spec. I wouldn't use them to align newer tuners except to check for gross mis-alignment.
Click to expand...
I just got a Leader LSG-231, and I am looking for the Operations Manual. I was told it works fine. Any assistance with "a fine tooth comb" would be helpful. I have no need for combs because I have not used one in years...
What do I need to look for?
How do I check to see if it is working properly?
Is there an alignment for this alignment tool?

Thanks for any assistance. I am an AF guy, RF is sort of Greek to me. But I am willing to learn.
 
Stereo signal generator. You really need a good spectrum analyzer to verify it's output is spot on.
But, any good frequency counter, DSO FFT scope, etc, will give you a idea if it's close enough.
There are also software based solutions based on Software Defined Radio.
I'm off this week. I'll try to find time to set up one of my SDR radios(it's been years), a SoftRock Ensemble, and show the output of my Panasonic Stereo RF Generator.
 
Tuned to upper side band WJHR Pensacola FL, a Christian broadcaster. Two AM stations are to the right, note the upper and lower side bands. A Spanish station, and a Chinese station praising Cuba and denouncing US imperialism.
My 100' long wire antenna needs maintenance, connections cleaned, tree branches cut away.
Need to get to work on some carpet cleaning and think about how to use this to look at FM Stereo Generator output. Probably inject the signal directly to the antenna.
The software running is HDSDR. It's highly configurable and looks like many options added since I last used it.
 

Attachments

  • PXL_20230612_140437737.jpg
    PXL_20230612_140437737.jpg
    4.9 MB · Views: 8
Well, results are less than satisfactory. Not surprising, just something I've wanted to try for a while. A more modern SDR radio would help, as that SoftRock unit is ancient.
It's good to see the improvements to the HDSDR software, very impressive.
Time to look for a modern SDR radio, preferably a kit.
 

Attachments

  • PXL_20230612_222231890.jpg
    PXL_20230612_222231890.jpg
    3.1 MB · Views: 6
George S. said:
Tuned to upper side band WJHR Pensacola FL, a Christian broadcaster. Two AM stations are to the right, note the upper and lower side bands. A Spanish station, and a Chinese station praising Cuba and denouncing US imperialism.
My 100' long wire antenna needs maintenance, connections cleaned, tree branches cut away.
Need to get to work on some carpet cleaning and think about how to use this to look at FM Stereo Generator output. Probably inject the signal directly to the antenna.
The software running is HDSDR. It's highly configurable and looks like many options added since I last used it.
Click to expand...


George, I didn't think you spoke chinee so how do you know they were denouncing the US??? :) YOU GET A BIG HUH????
 
mlucitt said:
I just got a Leader LSG-231, and I am looking for the Operations Manual. I was told it works fine. Any assistance with "a fine tooth comb" would be helpful. I have no need for combs because I have not used one in years...
What do I need to look for?
How do I check to see if it is working properly?
Is there an alignment for this alignment tool?

Thanks for any assistance. I am an AF guy, RF is sort of Greek to me. But I am willing to learn.
Click to expand...

Attached are the manuals...
 

Attachments

You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top