[Hallicrafters] S meters

[Mark Shaum]

Mike,

If you have some source of RF output at a high level that you CAN
measure with some degree of accuracy  (rig plus wattmeter, putting out 1
watt for example into 50 ohms) you can build a simple pi or T resistor
attenuator network to reduce that to whatever your desired taret level
is, such as 50 microvolts across 50 ohms for that S-9 reference.  My old
TS-430 makes a fine mid to high level signal generator from below the
broadcast band to 30 Mhz.  Just be careful to ride the power output
control carefully, or you may end up with a bunch of resistors and/or
your receiver under alignment emitting a tad of smoke.  I have used the
430 as an alignment tool, but have a HP 606 and URM25 that generally are
a bit more functional in that effort.  I've also used the 606A as a QRM
AM transmitter as it can modulate fully to 100% with an external AF
input, so you can see I tend to get my functionalities confused at
times. :)

A good but relatively inexpensive signal generator with a calibrated
attenuator is still a test bench staple, but you can't get much less
expensive than a resistor pad if you already have some or sort of RF at
a measured value

73! - Mark K9TR

----- Original Message ----- >
> 2. Once I have the S-meter operating properly, I will need to adjust
> the factory gain to get an S-9 reading with the proper input signal.
Without
> a $1000 piece of test gear, is there any simple way to measure a 1/2
or 1
> microvolt level?