[Test-Equipment] Tektronix Oscilloscope 545

[J Forster]

A 545 is definitely a very dated scope. That said, it is still a very good
scope. It is far better than anything Heath, night, Eico, etc. produced.  Tubes
can be had, even CRTs.  The 545B is essentially the best of the letter series
scopes. They are still useful for working on stuff of early 1980s vintage, and
certainly fine for all; WW II and Korea stuff. They are decent for digital stuff
up to 10 MHz or so clock rate, like DTL and some TTL.

Letter series (including the 1 series like 1A1, ...) will only work in letter
series mainframes. Stay away from the 585. It's an aardvark and requires
adapters.

These days, you can expect to buy a scope, PIs, and cart for <$100 at ham fleas.
Maybe even free.

BUT, the audiophools have taken a liking to parts of them, like tubes and
transformers. Some are being cut to pieces to make damn idiot tube power amps.
Hanging, drawing, quartering, and boiling in hot molten lead is insufficient
punishment, IMO.

FWIW,
-John

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Mike Manes wrote:

> The Tex 545 is a late-60's vintage vacuum state scope. My 535A is the 15 MHz
> version, and it still works fine with same plugins that the 545 uses.  It
> draws about 750W from the line and keeps the ham shack nice an toasty on
> winter nights. But replacement tubes may be hard to find.  I bought mine
> from the company I worked for back in 1973 for $350. Not sure if the
> current price reflects its current capabilities re newer and better scopes,
> eg, HP 1740A etc, or inflated value as a working "antique".
> 73 de Mike W5VSI
>
> Floyd Petri wrote:
> > I have some questions about a Tektroxix Oscilloscope Model 545.  Just
> > how old and obsolute are they?  Are they still good, useful and
> > reliable?  Are they expensive and where can you get them?  Is it better
> > to find someone with one to sell or buy from a business?  Most important
> > is the plug in units.  Are they interchangable among different model
> > oscilloscopes?  If I had some plug in units is there a better scope than
> > the 545 that I can get to use the plug in units?  About what would I
> > expect to pay for one?  I figure shipping will be a killer.
> >
> > Floyd