Operating Tips

SDG6000X Series

SDG1X firmware 1.01.01.33R1 adds TrueArb capability

May 27, 2019

Starting at firmware version 1.01.01.33R1, the SIGLENT SDG1000X series of arbitrary waveform generators now feature TrueArb output capability. Traditional arbitrary waveform generators use DDS (direct digital synthesis) to create waveforms. This technique is very powerful, but at higher output frequencies, DDS begins to lose resolution because it will skip or drop output samples in order … Continued

USB Connectivity Checklist

February 28, 2019

The Universal Serial Bus (USB) is very popular and has added a tremendous level of convenience and flexibility to computer and peripheral controls, including test and measurement instrumentation. As with all technology, it isn’t always sunshine and blue skies. Here are some common troubleshooting steps for USB connection issues: – Is the instrument plugged in … Continued

SIGLENT SPA1010 Amplifier output control

February 15, 2019

The SIGLENT SPA1010 Amplifier can be a useful accessory for applications requiring higher voltage and/or current from a signal source like a SIGLENT SDG arbitrary waveform generator. The SPA features a power-on indicator LED, Short LED, a X10 indicator LED, and a set of switches on the front panel. To use: Connect the output of … Continued

Programmatically selecting a built-in arbitrary waveform with an SDG

February 15, 2019

The SDG series of arbitrary waveform generators have a number of built-in arbitrary waveforms including health-related waveforms like cardiac and math waveforms like sinc. To read the available waveforms, you can send the following string: STL? This will return a list similar to the following (the exact return data depends on the instrument model and firmware … Continued

SDG selection table

December 29, 2018

Here is a table showing the output protection on the SIGLENT SDGThere is the ‘short circuit’ protection in all our generators.(he output of the generator can be connected together, please see the attached pic) Series Channels Max Sine Frequency (MHz) Arbitrary Waveform Data Depth Resolution (Bits) Output Protection SDG800 1 30 16 kpts 14 SC (all), OVP … Continued

Are your instruments FCC compliant?

December 18, 2018

Test and measurement equipment is exempt from FCC emissions limits per CFR 47, Part 15, para 15.103(c): https://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/CFR-2002-title47-vol1/pdf/CFR-2002-title47-vol1-sec15-103.pdf Specifically: “(c) A digital device used exclusively as industrial, commercial, or medical test equipment.”

Format for programmatically building an Arbitrary Waveform for SDGs

February 26, 2018

The SDGs require UTF8 formatting for the words used to build an arbitrary waveform. The code may report “UnicodeDecodeError: ‘ascii’ codec can’t decode byte 0x80 in position 77: ordinal not in range(128)” This indicates that the arbitrary waveform data is coded as “ascii” which is not the expected data format “utf8”. Here is the proper … Continued

What instruments accept SCPI commands for remote control?

October 25, 2017

All SIGLENT instruments (except for the SHS1000 and SHS800 hand-held oscilloscopes) support SCPI remote control commands. For more information, download the specific instrument programming guide located on the product page.

How to install the USBTMC driver

October 24, 2017

SIGLENT Technologies uses a broad range of products that utilize the USBTMC unified protocol to communicate with the host computer and control. Users can use SIGLENT provided PC software to send commands to remotely control the instrument. In addition, you can use NI-MAX (National Instruments Measurement and Automation Explorer) for instrument control. Here is an … Continued