Vintage Test Gear

Repairing HP Spectrum Analyzer 8554B

It might not be something that i use every day in my workshop but indeed a useful tool. HP Spectrum analyzers 8554B with tracking generator 8444A are popular and although the workshop manual states 1973 various upgrades were done to the power supply section and some IF & RF sections are still available if you search the internet. My HP went faulty sometime ago and with the lock down situation it was time to bring some projects up to date. I must admit quite a bit of information are available on the internet with regards to repairs done previously.

This spectrum analyzer was worked on before and looks like common problem in the IF Section ( 8552B ). The main power supply feeds various sections with different voltages.-100 +100 , -12.6 , +10 volt and so it goes on. On the one plugin pc board i found the popular transistor 2N3055 used in many power supplies and amplifiers in the 70’s and 80’s faulty and replaced it. HP Spectrum analyzer is operational again and calibrated which you will also find in the workshop manuals online.

I can now play again and enjoy my RF spectrum analyzer for many years to come!

Basic test gear is not expensive to build and all components are available locally form Mantech and Communica. The images represent the following equipment.

Signal tracer with signal generator, RF sniffer, HF to UHF frequency counter, 0 to 24 volt 3 amp variable power supply, grid dip oscillator with plugin coils, HF manual tuner, power supply with build in signal tracer and a pen used as test probe.