RFEXPLORER3 - Spectrum Analyzer Monacor - Free user manual and instructions

USER MANUAL RFEXPLORER3 Monacor

433.750M 437.250M 435.500M

English DeutschDeutsch SeiteFrançaisFrançais PageItalianoItaliano PaginaEspañolEspañol PáginaNederlandsNederlands PaginaPolskiPolski StronaEnglishEnglish Page RF Spectrum Analyser These instructions are intended for users with basic knowledge in RF technology. Please read the instruc-tions carefully prior to operation and keep them for later reference. 1 Safety Notes The unit corresponds to all relevant directives of the EU and is therefore marked with .Caution with high EM radiationThe RF EXPLORER allows to measure very small signals down to −120 dBm. Therefore, the antenna inputs are very sensitive and may be dam-aged by an excessive radiation even with the unit switched off. The maximum input level of +5 dBm must not be exceeded. This level results e. g. at a distance of approx. 1 m to a micro wave oven or at a distance of approx. 10 cm to a mobile phone.It is also absolutely necessary to prevent static dis-charging via the antennas. For instance, firmly seize the metal housing by one hand prior to attaching or touch-ing an antenna by the other hand.– For storage or transport, keep the unit in a metal box and / or remove the antennas.– In areas of very high RF radiation, connect one SMA plug each with a 50 Ω terminating resistor to the antenna jacks (e. g. the item SMA-150AW from MONACOR). The unit is suitable for indoor use only. Protect it against dripping water, splash water and high air humidity. The admissible ambient temperature range is 0 – 40 °C. For cleaning only use a dry, soft cloth, never use chem-icals or water. No guarantee claims for the unit and no liability for any resulting personal damage or material damage will be accepted if the unit is used for other purposes than originally intended, if it is not correctly operated or not repaired in an expert way.If the unit is to be put out of operation defini-tively, take it to a local recycling plant for a dis-posal which is not harmful to the environment.Do not put defective rechargeable batteries into the household waste but take them to a special waste dis-posal (e. g. collective container at your retailer). 2 Overview The RF EXPLORER has been designed to be intuitive and easy to use. There is no need to read comprehensive user manuals to take full advantage of its advanced function-ality. Most of the complexity inherent to the spectrum analyser is simplified by the firmware. For instance, you do not need to adjust the resolution bandwidth (RBW) each time you select a different frequency span. Actually, you do not even need to know what RBW is.ENTERMENURETURNHandheld Spectrum AnalyserUSB 2.0 RF Explorer OFFONRF 50Ω

240 – 960 MHz 15 – 2700 MHz Fig. 1 Connections and operating elements1 Antenna jack for the range 240 – 960 MHz2 On / off switch3 Antenna jack for the range 15 MHz – 2.7 GHz4 Display5 Keypad6 Mini USB port to charge the battery (for this purpose, set the on / off switch to position ON) and for operation via a PC 3 Spectrum Analyser Mode Rechargingthebattery After switching on the RF EXPLORER, the display succes-sively shows menus with information: RF Explorer Spectrum Analyzer S/N:B3B985L7K8BM8NCF ver01.23 20-Sep-17 www.rf-explorer.com

dBm FIR nOR 5/s USB Fig. 3 Spectrum displayThe display shows an X axis and a Y axis, X for the frequency in MHz and Y for power in dBm.Fig. 3 shows the frequency range from 2.408 GHz to 2.458 GHz and the amplitude (dynamic range) from −10 dBm to −120 dBm.Configuration settings such as amplitude reference and frequency span are preserved between sessions. The display shows a small marker which indicates the peak amplitude in the current frequency span. The first value states the frequency at this point and the second value the amplitude.The display also shows a symbol USB for the USB port (in case of connection to a PC) or a battery symbol (when the on / off switch is set to ON). To recharge the internal battery, connect the RF-EXPLORER / 6 to a USB port; the on / off switch (2) must be in the position ON! Then the USB symbol and the battery symbol are displayed alternately. 4 Menus The unit is operated via several menus which are succes-sively called with the button MENU. The button RETURN allows to return from each menu to the spectrum display. MENU

Fig. 5 Menu operational mode To call the menu OPERATIONAL MODE, press the button MENU (repeatedly). Select the desired function using the button or and press the button ENTER to call the function. Spectrum Analyser: spectrum analyser mode (chapters4.2 – 4.4) WiFi Analyser: Wifi analyser mode (chapter 5) This menu line is only available if the frequency range “15 – 2700M” has been selected in the bottom line “Module” of the frequency menu (chapter 4.2). RF Connection: indication of the activated frequency range (240 – 960 MHz or 15 – 2700 MHz; chapter 4.2) with the antenna jacks used and indication of memory size Battery: battery status indication About: indication of information relating to the unit, e. g. serial number and firmware version

FREQUENCY MENU Center Freq: 2433.000 Freq Span: 050.000 Start Freq: 2408.000 Stop Freq: 2458.000 Module: 15-2700M Fig. 6 Frequency menu This menu which allows to change frequency settings is probably the menu most used. When, after switching-on the RF EXPLORER, the spectrum is displayed and the button MENU is pressed twice, the frequency menu appears. However, this pro- cedure is changed in the following. Each time the button MENU is pressed while the spectrum is displayed, the last menu called appears. Thus, time is saved as it is not nec- essary to navigate through all menus to return to the previous one. There are two different methods to change the frequency range shown in the spectrum display:

1. Center Freq and Freq Span

This is the usual spectrum analyser adjustment all experts are familiar with. The center frequency (Center Freq) of the frequency band to be analysed is adjusted and then the bandwidth (Freq Span).

2. Start Freq and Stop Freq

Only a few spectrum analysers offer this user-friendly method. The lower frequency (Start Freq) and the higher frequency (Stop Freq) of the frequency range to be analysed are adjusted. When Center Freq and Freq Span are adjusted, Start Freq and Stop Freq are changed accordingly and vice versa. In general, Center Freq / Freq Span are adjusted when the frequency is known and Start / Stop Freq to check a cer- tain range. To go to an option, use the buttons and . Then press the button ENTER to be able to edit the option. Go to the position to be changed with the button or . Adjust the desired value with the button or and confirm the adjustment with the button ENTER or cancel it with the button RETURN. In the line Module, use the button ENTER to select the frequency range to be analysed (240 – 960 MHz or 15 – 2700 MHz). After selection, the display will briefly indicate the activated frequency range with the antenna jacks used:

240-960MHZ [ACTIVE] 15-2700MHZ 64KB RAM Extra found 2MB ROM Extra found Fig. 7 Indication of the activated frequency range (in this example: 15 – 2700 MHz) Then the display will automatically return to the frequency menu. Notes: The bandwidth can be adjusted between 0.112 MHz and 600 MHz. The lowest and the highest frequency to be adjusted depend on the settings in the menu lines “Freq Span” and Module”. Example of a change of bandwidth from 9 MHz to

6.5 MHz; the lower and the higher frequency will be up-

dBm FIR nOR 5/s USB Fig. 9 Spectrum display with bandwidth 6.5 MHz The new frequency range is adjusted. As a further exam- ple, repeat the procedure to change the bandwidth to

dBm FIR nOR 5/s USB Fig. 10 The bandwidth is changed to 2.5 MHz The new frequency range is adjusted but what is interest- ing now is that the center frequency can also be changed with no need to call the frequency menu. For this purpose press the button or (repeatedly) when the spectrum is displayed: Each time the center frequency is reduced or increased by

∕8 of the bandwidth, i. e. at a bandwidth of

2.5 MHz by 0.3125 MHz by just pressing a key. This direct

method is especially useful with a narrow bandwidth. During the spectrum display the measuring values and the measuring curve can be frozen by pressing the but- ton ENTER. This facilitates the reading for values rapidly changing. In this case, the indication HLD next to the Y axis is flashing. To return to the present values, press the button ENTER again. The frequencies of the scan range are indicated at the X axis. Alternatively to this, the bandwidth SP, the cen- tre frequency C and the resolution bandwidth RBW can be indicated. To switch over, press the button RETURN. When the button or is now pressed (repeatedly), it is not the centre frequency which is changed but the band- width. Thus, the bandwidth can also rapidly be changed without calling the menu.

This menu allows to change the level display in the Y axis. To call the menu, press the button MENU repeatedly until the menu is displayed. ATTENUATOR MENU Calculator: Normal Top dBm: -010 Bottom dBm: -120 Iterations: 004 Offset dB: +000 Units: dBm Fig. 11 Attenuator menu This menu has some interesting options: Calculator: offers five modes for the level display. To change the mode, press the button ENTER. Max: The peak values of the last frequency band scan iterations [sweeps] (see menu option below) are used, in this case the peak values of the last 4 scans. This is the standard mode by which rapidly changing RF signals may be detected or the channel assignment can be found in difficult cases. (The selected mode is shown in the spectrum display on the left of the Y axis, for this mode with MAx

Average: The arithmetic media average during the last scan iterations is calculated. This mode is especially suitable to find the average of the noise floor and to display signals with constant frequency and amplitude (Continuous Wave). (This mode is shown in the spectrum display with AVG

Overwrt: Higher level values overwrite lower values until the button RETURN is pressed or the center fre- quency is changed with the button or

by MONACOR INTERNATIONAL. All rights reserved. A-1409.99.04.07.2018 Max Hold: Simultaneous display of the present levels and the maximum levels. (This mode is shown with MxH

Normal: No calculation, continuous display of the cur- rent levels. (This mode is shown with nOR

Top / Bottom dBm: Herewith the measuring range of the level is adjusted. “Top dBm” for the upper meas- ured value of the Y axis and “Bottom dBm” for the lower value. The difference between the two values cannot be inferior to 10 dBm. Iterations: Indicates the number of scan sweeps to cal- culate the peak values (calculator: max) or the average values (calculator: average), adjustable from 1 to 16. The higher the iteration value, the more exact the calculation, but the slower the display. Offset dB: Moves the measured level by the value ad- justed (±100 dB). Example: A level of –76 dB is measured at a certain frequency at a place in the room. With an offset of +76 dB the RF-EXPLORER shows 0 dB in this case. For measure- ments at other places in the room, the level deviation to the place of reference is directly shown in dB. Units: The unit dBm or dBμV can be selected for the Yaxis with the button ENTER. In the spectrum display, the selected unit is shown by “dBm” or “dBV” on the left next to the Y axis. For a simple test change the upper dBm value to –70 dBm. Then press the button RETURN to return to the spectrum display. The level range indicated is now smaller and thus the signal on the display is higher, especially the noise floor. 433.750M 437.250M 435.500M434.999-45.0

433.750M 437.250M 435.500M

dBm FIR nOR 5/s USB Fig. 12 Upper dBm value reduced by 20 dB As the upper dBm value is very frequently changed, this value can be increased by 5 dBm with the button and be reduced by 5 dBm with the button when the spec- trum is displayed. Together with the buttons and to change the center frequency, these shortcuts are very useful for configuration adjustments in real time as there is no need to call a menu.

4.4 Configuration menu

RF EXPLORER offers some configuration facilities to adjust the unit as desired or according to application. Press the button ENTER repeatedly until the configuration menu is displayed. CONFIG MENU Backligh: Max Contrast: 3 USB Bauds: 500kbps Draw Mode: Vectors Marker: Peak DSP: Auto Fig. 13 Configuration menu The options in this menu can be selected with the buttons and and be adjusted by pressing the button ENTER repeatedly. Backlight: Backlight for the display: OFF, Low, Med, High, Max. The RF EXPLORER offers good visibility indoors and outdoors, even in direct sunlight. With a low back- light the battery is preserved. Contrast: 10 contrast levels for the display are available. USB Bauds: The presetting is 500 kbits / s which is also recommended. When problems occur during data trans- fer to the PC which is quite rare, change to the slower speed of 2.4 kbits / s. However, this is not recommended as the connection becomes very slow. The speed of data transfer of the RF EXPLORER must match the speed of the PC to obtain a correct connection. Draw Mode: In case of the adjustment “Vectors” a level curve for the scanned frequency range is displayed, in case of the adjustment “Fill” individual columns show the level. Marker: Place a marker to read frequency and level at this point. None: no marker Peak: automatic marking of the frequency with the highest level Manual: The marker can be moved in the scan range with the buttons and . DSP: The digital signal processor of the RF-EXPLORER is equipped with a subprogram which filters unwanted signals occurring in case of signal processing (e. g. image frequencies). However, for an extensive filtering, the measuring process will become slower and short wanted signals (e. g. WiFi signals) cannot be recognized due to the high calculating effort. To measure short wanted signals, the adjustment Fast should be selected (is shown by FST in the spec- trum display) and for exact measurements free of interfer- ence select the adjustment Filter (indication FIR ). In the setting Auto, the unit will automatically select the most suitable measuring method ( FST

5 WiFi Analyser Mode This mode serves to display the 13 WLAN channels in the 2.4 GHz range. To be able to switch on the mode, the frequency range “15 – 2700M” must be selected in the line “Module” of the frequency menu (chapter 4.2). To switch on, press the button MENU repeatedly until the menu OPERATIONAL MODE (fig. 5) ap pears. Select the line “WiFi Analyzer” with the button or . Then press the button ENTER. 2412.000M 2472.000M2442.000M

FIR MxH 24/ USB Fig. 14 WiFi Analyser mode 6 PC Software On our homepage you will find a software for Windows which allows to operate the RF EXPLORER from your com- puter. At the same time you also receive a software for possible firmware updating (RFExplorer Firmware Update Loader). http: // www.monacor.com RF-EXPLORER / 3 Services DOWNLOADS (Please note that “Microsoft

.NET Framework v4Client Profile” must be installed.) Windows is a registered trademark of the Microsoft Corporation in the USA and other countries. Licence The firmware included in the RF EXPLORER is protected by copyright © by Ariel Rocholl, 2010 – 2013. RF Explorer PC Client is a free software under GPLv3, therefore you are free to modify, distribute and use it according to GPL terms. 7 Specifications Display: high contrast LCD display with backlight, 128 × 64 pixels Measuring ranges: 15 – 2700 MHz Amplitude resolution: 05 dBm Dynamic range: –120 dBm to 0 dBm Absolute max input power left antenna jack (240 – 960 MHz): +5 dBm right antenna jack (15 – 2700 MHz): +30 dBm Medium noise level: –115 dBm (typical) Frequency stability and accuracy: ±10 ppm (typical) ≙ 0001 % Amplitude stability and accuracy: ±3 dBm (typical) Frequency resolution: 1 kHz Resolution bandwidth (RBW): automatic 26 – 600 kHz Antenna connections: SMA, 50 Ω matching calibrated 50 Ωantennas supplied Power supply: rechargeable lithium polymer battery, 1000 mAh, operating time approx 16 h, rechargeable via the USB port Dimensions: 71 × 122 × 25 mm Weight: 210 g Subject to technical modification.ELECTRONICS FOR SPECIALISTS ELECTRONICS FOR SPECIALISTS ELECTRONICS FOR SPECIALISTS ELECTRONICS FOR SPECIALISTS ELECTRONICS FOR SPECIALISTS ELECTRONICS FOR SPECIALISTS ELECTRONICS FOR MONACOR INTERNATIONAL GmbH & Co. KG • Zum Falsch 36 • 28307 Bremen • Germany

433.750M 437.250M 435.500M

433.750M 437.250M 435.500M