Rohde Schwarz R&S UPL Audio Analyzer Renovation

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#462
In the second-hand market, there are many half-length industrial ISASBC or PC104SBC, which can be used for UPL by making an adapter board. This is my idea. Those who use the VIA686 chip can basically use the native ISA. There is a wide range of CPUs available, from 586 _ PIII to suitable motherboards.
I have been using WIN98SE since 2021 and I am very satisfied. The motherboard is externally connected with USB and PS2 mouse sockets. The CPU is K6-2 + 450 running at 300MHZ. I hope the core voltage is 1.5V. Unfortunately, the AI5VG motherboard can only provide a minimum voltage of 2.0V.
So, I've been looking for a suitable way to use a lower power CPU and motherboard, but only if there is a native ISA, with PS2 mouse and USB .
 
#464
ZakMcKracken said:
Ok, now @Bjirre has Window 95 and 98 running on his machine, Pandora’s box has opened here. Until now, I had left it closed, because there was no point in opening it for a DOS machine.

Pandora’s box, here, contains vintage CPUs and RAM. Stuff that‘s not taking up space, hence not saving any by tossing it out. And for as long as I’m buying used x86 based Test & Measurement, I’m very cautious about what I throw away. So I’ve opened my UPL, and started to expand it.

The stock CPU is an IDT WinChip C6. Ironic, for a DOS machine. But what’s more remarkable, is that it’s clocked at 133MHz, instead of the 200MHz it is rated for. Perhaps this is done to reduce heat dissipation, or perhaps because all EMC tests were done at 133MHz and R&S didn’t want to go through that again for additional performance they didn’t need anyway. It does have a heatsink with fan installed, but no cooling paste was applied.

Did anybody here, especially the people running Windows, increase the clock frequency, or replace the CPU with a faster one? Pandora’s box here still contains an AMD K6-III+ rated for 380MHz. A 500MHz version exists, but is in high demand by vintage gamers.

Did anybody here increase the RAM? My machine has 32MiB in 2 72-pin SIMMs. I don’t know if that’s stock, or that I installed that. But I did find 3x 128MiB DIMMs in Pandora’s box. They are PC-133 memory, where PC-100 is required, but I don’t think that’s a problem. What is a problem, is the SuperCap on the R&S board right where the DIMMs are, and the heights of the DIMMs themselves.

Does anybody know what’s the largest harddisk size supported?

Having Windows running on this instrument VASTLY increases its usability, because it enables network access, eliminating the need for mucking around with floppies or floppy images. Thanks @Bjirre!
Click to expand...
SDRAM 128M !
If there is a digital board, there will be a conflict between the position of the memory module and the digital board. My solution is to choose the shortest memory module and polish off the ROM chip of the PCB a little more, so that it will not be affected.
 

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#465
Hi, I don’t have a UPL, I own a Levear VP-7725D, but I have an SML with the B5 option for tuners. I was hoping to take a look at the .BAS files R&S includes with the package here: https://www.rohde-schwarz.com/us/ap...h-option-b5-application-note_56280-15610.html

Is there any chance someone can open the BAS files in that package and save them in .TXT format with R&S Basic on their UPL? They do not open correctly on a PC in their current format, which seems to be known. I would like to try to get some clues from the files on how to adapt the code to work with my test equipment. Thanks!!
 
#472
Hi all, i bought a UPL a couple of years ago, in fully working order. After reading about replacing the floppy drive with a usb i ordered the part and installed it fine. Now, i would be very interested in using the R&S attached setups. So i downloaded Bart's Disc1 and Disc2. Unfortunately when i try inst.bat there is an error in the filecheck and shows its corrupted. My upl firmware version is 2.02.
 

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#476
Thank you for your interest Bart
Two photos below
The first photo after loading DOS. After pressing "r" several times, the program loads without a problem and does not report errors. My disk was replaced with a 4GB CF card divided into two partitions. When the computer works for a longer while and then is reset, after reloading DOS, the problem with the CF card does not occur.
The second photo: "options" of my device (you can have less 🙂 )
BTW. The problem with channel no. 2... never existed.... The problem was a faulty cable. The signal is available directly on the pins. Sorry for the confusion. I was in a hurry with the entry on the forum
 

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#479
I have a question for the UPL users in this group.
Does the UPL have the ability to display the residual distortion waveform?
I am still on the hunt for a UPL to potentially replace my VP-7725D, but that is an important feature. I didn't see it mentioned in the docs I've read but maybe im missing something.
 
#480
simingx said:
Well, after much pain and some money, I now have a front digital I/O for my UPL!
I had a local guy “clone” the layout of the board as best as he could, based on photos of the original board and the original schematics.

That many components took me the better part of 2 days to solder, not to mention having to trawl through sellers of questionable merit to locate all the obsolete parts.

Seems to work fine, apart from some teething problems caused by oxidation on the pins of the (really old stock) CLC430s.
Click to expand...
Hi simingx
,Could you please share the manufacturing files and debugging methods and BOM of the digital IO board? Or where can I buy these things? Thanks
 
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