[ARC5] Crystal Alternative

[Bruce Long]

As far as I know the Digikey treats the programable osci as a value added item.  You need to tell them what freq you want and they will program the osc for us.  They count the stock level as zero until they have done the programing


      From: Phillip Carpenter <carpenterpa at tds.net>
 To: W9RAN at oneradio.net 
Cc: ARC-5 QTH <ARC5 at mailman.qth.net>
 Sent: Saturday, April 22, 2017 7:15 PM
 Subject: Re: [ARC5] Crystal Alternative
   
Bob,

When I go to the Digi-Key website and put in any of the Epson oscillator product numbers, they all say zero availability and won't let you add to the cart.

Any advise?

Thank you in advance for your reply!

Phillip W4RTX 

Sent from my iPhone

> On Apr 22, 2017, at 6:34 PM, Robert Nickels <ranickel at comcast.net> wrote:
> 
> I've shared the following on a couple of groups and since many of you are already familiar with these parts, I figured it would make sense to pass it along here as well.    Please contact me off-list for additional information or questions since this is somewhat off-topic and shameless commerce, thanks.
> 
> 73, Bob W9RAN
> 
> 
> The announcement of the impending closing of International Crystals has
> many people thinking about frequency control, which is essential to keep
> many of our older radios on the air. The fact is, International is
> closing for a reason - modern radios and electronics in general simply
> do not generate much demand for standard quartz crystals, and it is even
> more challenging to sustain any kind of one-off custom manufacturing
> business.
> 
> Fortunately, modern technology provides alternatives. Since shortly
> after my SDR converter article appeared in Jan. 2013 QST, I switched to
> programmable oscillators made by Epson in a 4 pin DIP (non-SMT)
> package. These are complete crystal-controlled oscillators with
> integrated PLL circuitry that is programmed by the distributor (DigiKey)
> to produce an output on any specified frequency from 1 to 125 MHz. The
> accuracy is stated as 50ppm but I've consistently found it to be better
> than that. These are fixed-frequency devices and cannot be
> reprogrammed, nor can they be shifted in frequency by external
> components such as is done by "warping" a quartz crystal for clarifier
> or RIT, VXO, or FM modulator circuits.
> 
> However, they are great fixed frequency sources for receiver local
> oscillators, up- or down-converters, SSB high frequency oscillators, AM
> or SSB marine radios, and transmitters/transceivers. The output is a
> 5 volt p-p square-ish wave but this has not been a problem since
> whatever harmonics are present are filtered out by existing tuned
> circuits in the radio. It is usually possible to obtain proper mixer
> operation by simply coupling the output to the crystal socket, but some
> crystal-controlled transmitters will require an added external amplifier
> to raise the drive level to that required for full power output.
> Naturally, the application of these devices is the responsibility of the
> user.
> 
> I have created a small PC board (2" square) to facilitate the use of
> these programmable oscillators. The board has sockets for 1 to 4
> oscillators (4-pin DIP package) and provides full buffering of all
> control and signal leads to protect the delicate oscillators from
> inadvertent damage. The board includes a voltage regulator that
> accepts 8-18 volts input and requires a switch closure to ground or
> logic level "0" signal to select a given frequency. For more information:
> 
> http://www.rantechnology.com/four-channel-oscillator-board.html
> 
> I've got a limited number of kits available for the price of $18 each,
> postpaid in the US. If you're interested in one, please drop me a
> private email and I will provide details. Note this is for the
> four-channel board only; you must order the oscillators directly from
> DigiKey (current price is $4.10 each, qty 1-10, specify desired
> frequency in MHz in "Order Notes").
> 
> Based on our shared interest in restoring and using military radios I
> wanted to give the group advance notice of this alternative.
> 
> Thanks and 73,
> 
> Bob W9RAN
> 
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