DTU-236A with RFXpert - User Manual
Contents
1. 7 Save Curent Plan Create New Channel Plan n C N Noise Floor Toong l Frequency Remove Channel Plan Add Minimum 53 000 Change PlanName Remove Maximum 865 000 Auto Channel Search NTSC Only Point Mode Test Point Mode Enable 0 4 dB This value will be added to all RF Level calulations BER Options Busa Enor Com 3 FastFEC Number of Errors Per Burst 1 0 PER Window ErrorSecs Window Level Measurement Units BurstE nmorSecs Window i dBmy C dBm dByV PN 23 window Restore Defaults Cancel Apply Figure 16 Additional Measurement Settings 1 BER Options The first step is to define the window size used for averaging resetting several measurements that pertain to digital modulation Three Minutes is the factory default window size BER SER and PN 23 values are average values and the window size determines the time frame over which the averaging is calculated The averaging is reset at an interval equal to the window size Error Seconds and Burst Error Seconds cumulative values and their counters are reset at an interval equal to the window size 2 Burst Error Count Burst Error count defines how many errors must be present in one second before Burst Error Second count is triggered See section 6 figure 24 for more detail on this measurement 3 Level Measurement Units Select between dBmV2. EC DTU 236A Settings Snapshot Record Figure 30 Channel Spectrum Display 2 Adjacent Spectrum The Adjacent Spectrum is an 18 MHz span with a 280 KHz resolution bandwidth and 200 KHz measurement intervals The center frequency will be defined by the channel that you have selected DTU 236A with RFXpert aan nT 2414 oxalhost DTU 236A 4236004152 y Disconnect Auto Settings Snapshot Record mu eee Figure 31 Adjacent Spectrum Display 3 System Spectrum The System Spectrum is a full sweep 50 1000 MHz of the RF input A 280 KHz resolution bandwidth measurement is taken of each channel in the band of the currently selected channel plan DekTec RFXpert localhost DTU 236A 4236004152 22 DTU 236A Disconnect Auto Insp Settings Snapshot Record System Monitor Modulation Detail Spectrum Detail About E ERR Channel 83 Freq 579 00 Mhz Type QAM 256B 03 04 2015 Figure 32 System Spectrum Display 25 DTU 236A with RFXpert User Manual 6 5 About the RFXpert Ick icc The final tab in the measurement display window is an About tab This tab displays the current version of RFXpert software RF Probe driver serial number of the connected RF Probe and dll version numbers The About tab provides information only and no values may be changed DekTec RFXpert localhost DTU 236A 423600415
3. If you want to review or change any of your installation settings cick Back Click Cancel to exit the wizard Current Settings setup Type Server Destination Folder C Program Files x86 DekTeclRFXpertl User Information Name DekTec Company InstallShield Figure 3 Finishing the Install DTU 236A with RFXpert Dek 4 Launching RFXpert 4 1 Client Server Architecture The RFXpert software is composed of two components a server application and a client application The server application is transparent to the user and will autostart when the PC is booted up The server status is displayed in the tray lower right corner of the Windows toolbar Right mouse clicking on the server icon allows you to stop or restart the server application in the event of a failure The server icon will be green when it is running under normal conditions red indicates that it is stopped and amber indicates that server is stopping or starting The client application provides the user interface to the RF Probe along with all measurements and settings Figure 4 Server Icon in tray 4 2 Launching the RFXpert Double click on the desktop icon created by the software installation This will launch the RFXpert software This is the client software and may be run on a PC remote to the PC that is running the server application with the RF Probe physically attached It may also run locally 4 3 Connecting to an RF Probe
4. SER represents segment errors that are measured in the digital transport stream The MPEG stream is divided into packets or segments Each segment contains 187 data bytes plus one sync byte A commonly used measure of quality of the final output stream is Segment Error Rate SER SER is computed as the number of segment errors per second As with BER the value is averaged over the duration of the time window and reset to O every time the window rolls over An SER value of about 3 typically averaged over a 20 second window occurs at TOV Once segment errors start to occur SER rapidly increases as the signal worsens cliff effect Smaller numbers are better ErrorSec represents errored seconds errored second is any second that contains at least one error in the digital transport stream This measure keeps a count of the number of errored seconds that occur within the reset window The value is reset to O when the window rolls over BurstES represents burst errored seconds exactly the same as the errored seconds measurement except that only seconds that contained greater than burst number of errors are counted Burst Errored Second is defined by the number of errors that DTU 236A with RFXpert Tdv Dek must occur to a burst This value is set in the Settings gt General tab see Figure 16 This test is useful in distinguishing inconsistent bursty type interference impairments trom constant error rate problems su
5. Dek equalizer is trying to compensate for These measurements are valid for 8VSB channels and will be inactive on NTSC or QAM channels X DekTec localhost 218 g Mm 2 v EQ DTU 236A pem Disconnect Aubin Setngs Snapshot Recond Disable Equalizer a EXT 1 i i i EN EM E V i i eee prr pe ee apes wine 10 41 42 44 44 15 16 eine e e nC n nl ec System Monitor Modulation Detal Multipath Detal Spectrum Detal About Aen Channet 11 Freq 201 00 Mhz 8 58 0757 Figure 27 Multipath Detail Tab 1 Equalizer Loading Bar Graph The equalizer loading number shows how hard the equalizer is working The load is computed by taking the RMS value of the taps not including the center tap This provides a measure of how much energy is going into correcting for undesired reflections A lower number indicates that the equalizer is not working as hard and that the signal is of good quality 2 Multipath Echo Profile This is a plot of the tap energy versus time delay trom the selected channel The channel is shown as a spike at time t O and is represented as 100 If reflections echos of the original signal are present it will show as another spike at some positive or negative time
6. 236A with RFXpert User Manual 1 Introduction TAM ET The DTU 236A RF Probe and RFXpert software is a comprehensive package designed to provide real time analysis and monitoring of 8VSB QAM Annex A B and C and NTSC RF channels Note QAM Annex is equivalent to DVB C QAM Annex B is used in North America and Korea and Annex C is used in Asia The RFXpert software is intended to be loaded by the end user on any qualifying PC or laptop and work in conjunction with the DTU 236A RF Probe The RFXpert provides complete RF analysis and logging along with transport stream recording Channel plans and alarms may be custom defined by the user 2 Specifications and Minimum Requirements 2 1 DTU 236A RF Probe RF Input Connector Frequency Level Modulation NTSC Band Power Source Voltage Current Dimensions Physical Weight 75 ohm type F female 47 to 1002MHz 30 to 50dBmV 8VSB QAM Annex A 16 32 64 128 amp 256 Annex B 64 amp 256 and Annex C 64 amp 256 Broadcast FCC Cable IRC Cable HRC Cable USB port of host PC 5V DC 500mA 180x107x36mm 7 1 x 4 2 x 1 4 lt 500g lt 116 Minimum PC Laptop Requirements Operating System USB Processor RAM Windows XP SP3 7 8 2 0 Core 13 or better minimum DTU 236A with RFXpert User Manual Ick ET 2 2 RFXpert Software RF Tests Level MER EVM BER Modulation Display Echo Protile Spectrum Disp
7. Auto Inspect Results Figure 51 Performing an Auto Inspection You will now be prompted to enter a site name that will be associated with the inspection Please enter your site name Southwest Figure 52 Entering a Site Name Auto Inspect Interval l Multiple Auto Inspections In Progress Inspection Results Southwest 05 03 05 11 38 40 AM Passed ME nne aa Last Auto Inspect 11 38 42 AM Next Auto Inspect 11 39 42 AM Time Until 00 00 14 NUN Figure 53 Multiple Auto Inspections in Progress DTU 236A with RFXpert Dek The Auto Inspect report will open automatically at the end of a single inspection You must manually select the desired report from the list if a multiple auto inspection was performed see figure above ipix HF Xpert Auto Inspect Results Master Test Result Failed Site test Device DTU 234 Date 5 3 2005 Serial 4234000001 Time 11 41 Date 4 6 2005 Profile Name Sioux Falls SD Thresholds 8VSB QAM 64B QAM 256B NTSC Min Min Max Min Max Min Max Level dBmV Pilot Level dBc Ratio dB Margin dB 2 ms Channel Modulabon Frequency Leve PilotLevel C NRabo Margin E V M P F dBmV dBc dB dB 2 ms 6 NTSC 85 00 31 8 10 6 Failed 1 NTSC 201 00 12 0 30 5 Failed 13 NTSC 213 00 14 41 1 Failed 17 NTS
8. QAM signal constellation display will contain squares and the individual dots representing symbols should ideally be in the center of the squares The number of squares will depend on the QAM mode e g QAM 64 will have 64 squares DTU 236A with RFXpert Tivi Dek Constellaton Constellaton Figure 25 8VSB and QAM Constellation Displays 3 Eye Diagram The eye diagram gives you another visual means to verity the modulation quality of the incoming digital channel This diagram displays the trace as the incoming symbols move from one value to another The display will look very similar for both 8VSB and QAM 64 channels 7 eyes 15 eyes for QAM 256 You should have open eyes in a good incoming signal Eye Diagram Figure 26 Eye Diagram Display 6 3 Multipath Detail The Multipath Detail tab displays information gathered from the RF Probe s adaptive channel equalizer The adaptive equalizer uses knowledge of the ideal 8VSB signal to cancel out the effects of multipath echoes and ghosts and non ideal frequency response in the transmission channel The DTU 236A RF Probe has been characterized to remove contributions from the unit s own RF front end pre amp tuner etc from the information displayed in this mode The taps of the equalizer refer to the values of a sampled impulse response of the converged equalizer The tap values can reveal information about the types of impairment that the DTU 236A with RFXpert
9. Snapshot Disable Constellation Eye Diagram X System Montor System Monitor Modulation Detail Modulation Detai Multipath Detail Spectrum Detail About Figure 44 MER and Modulation Detail with EQ DISABLED DTU 236A with RFXpert Tdv Dek 11 Auto Inspect The Auto Inspect feature of the RFXpert allows you to automatically measure and log every channel within a defined channel plan This feature makes it simple to quickly verity the status of your cable or RF distribution system by providing a report detailing overall status and measurement reports for individual channels within a plan 11 1 Setting the Profile Click on the Settings button in the tool bar then select the Auto Inspect tab in the Settings window to create profiles and define Auto Inspect parameters Figure 45 Entering Auto Inspect Settings Settings E 15 x General Auto inspect Logging Auto Inspect Controls Auto Inspect Profiles N Create New Profile Delete Selected Frofile Measurement Enable Pass Fail Limits RF Level I lt e lt Pilot Level dBc 0 dB E sr 3 5 Margin dB lt p Li 2 rms Restore Defaults OK Cancel Figure 46 Auto Inspect Settings Tab 1 Auto Inspect Profiles The first step to setting up an Auto Inspection is to define a Profile The Profile is uniqu
10. You must now connect to a DTU 236A RF Probe to begin measurements The RFXpert software is laid out in a Client Server architecture This means that the RF Probe may be connected to one PC but accessed via a network connection by another PC You may also run the RFXpert with an RF Probe connected directly to the same PC Click on the Connect button in the upper left corner of the RFXpert application A new window will pop open To connect to a DTU 236A on a remote PC you must enter the IP address of the PC that has the server application and RF Probe s connected in the left test box If you are running local to the same PC you may type in localhost instead of the IP address The software will scan for connected devices The right text box now displays all of the RF Probes that are connected to the server PC Select the RF Probe you desire to use if more than one is present and click on the Connect button If multiple DTU 236A s are connected each device is distinguished by the hardware number which matches that printed on the device DTU 236A with RFXpert Dek Server Address localhost Searching for DTU devices Figure 5 Connecting to an RF Probe 4 4 Licensing the RF Probe You may run the RFXpert software with an unlicensed RF Probe However you will only be able to create channel plans and tune channels This feature may be useful if you desire to run the DekTec StreamXpert software but have no need for
11. channel modulation to serve as the measurement noise floor for your system Each channel plan may have a different C N Noise Floor frequency DTU 236A with RFXpert Dek 2 Auto Channel Search This button allows you to automatically create a channel plan You must provide a name band and an RF level threshold which the RFXpert will then use to automatically populate the channel plan Modulation scheme may be manually defined and the RF Probe will attempt to lock onto each channel in the band using the selected scheme Any RF channel that has a level greater than the specitied threshold will be added to the plan You will be prompted to enter a C N Noise Floor frequency if the channel plan has any NTSC channels You may go back and manually modify this automatically created plan at a later time auto Channel Search Plan Name Band FCC Cable Minimum Level dBmv 10 0 m Modulation Types 1 8VSB v QAM 64B NTSC v QAM 256B Figure 15 Automatic Channel Plan Creation DTU 236A with RFXpert Dek 5 2 Additional Settings There are three additional settings that must be defined before proceeding with RF measurements General Auto Inspect Alarms Logang Channel Plans pM Channel Ant Search 3 Channel 4 5 Carrier Frequency MHz 55 250 f g Modulation
12. channels is usually expressed in dBm or dBmV dBm is a measure of power as dBmV is a measure of voltage dbmV 1 milliVolt X dBmV 20 log Y volts 001 OdBm 1 milliWatt X dBm 10 log X watts 001 In order to convert between dBm and dBmV the system impedance must be known Because a signal with a given fixed power will generate different voltages across different impedances In a 75 Ohm system OdBm 48 75 dBmV dBmV 48 75 dBm In a 50 Ohm system OdBm 47 dBmV dBmV 47 dBm The channel power is the average power measured within the 3dB bandwidth of the channel approximately 5 38MHz for 8VSB 5 06MHz for QAM 64 and 5 38MHz for QAM 256 The average digital channel power is often measured with a signal level meter spectrum analyzer power meter The DekTec DTU 236A RF Probe has built in averaging circuits to accurately measure the average channel power of a digital channel 8VSB QAM 64 and QAM 256 Viewing the digital channel on the RFXpert spectral display can be confusing because the signal trace indicates a level that is much lower than the actual average channel power level measurement This difference is due to the narrow bandpass filter in the spectral display s signal detector also known as the resolution bandwidth RBW filter The spectral display is created by sweeping the RBW filter across the bandwidth of the channel The noise like qualities of digital channel cause it to be attenua
13. dBm and dBuV 5 3 Selecting the Channel Plan and Channel To select the desired channel plan simply click on the channel plan see figure 16 in the list and select the OK button at the bottom left of the General Settings window You will now be returned to the main display containing the RF Measurement tabs DTU 236A with RFXpert User Manual Ick icc To tune to a channel within the selected channel plan go to the status bar and click on the buttons to move up or down one channel at a time You may also right mouse click within the channel information area to bring up a new window that allows you to quickly select any channel within the channel plan Note Channel Plans are saved as cha xml file in the following directory path Program Files DekTec RFXpert xml plans The plans will be retained even if the software is upgraded MER Margin EVM PreFEC BER PostFEC PER Errorsec BurstEs 23 Window 00 03 00 00 03 00 00 03 00 00 03 00 00 03 00 00 03 00 Time 00 00 12 00 00 12 00 00 12 00 00 12 00 00 12 00 00 12 2 40 2 41 2 42 2 43 Time mins hz Type QAM 256B 03 04 2015 Figure 17 Changing Channels DTU 236A with RFXpert Dek 6 RF Measurement Tabs The main analysis capabilities of the RFXpert are displayed in a series of tabs located in the center of the application By selecting the different tabs near the bottom you w
14. pruna d start inbox Microsoft Outlook Streamxpert Manual YW decoder bar bmp Paint s Streamxpert No rec 2 4 2 01PM Figure 57 StreamXpert DTC 320 Software Application DTU 236A with RFXpert Dek Appendix A RFXpert Default Values Alarm Settings Histogram Fail Warn Warn Ried 19 45 30 5 _ Video Carrier Level NTSC 15 4 0 45 50 50 Filotlevel fess b fo Carrier Noise Ratio NTSC 43 Jo 80 MER 18 3 MR law o B5 MR 5 o o 3 tw l mz QAMMB 58 92 0 bw oms he _ Dd e e m Prese 7 Do hes pea Porse vee ves sk 6 s Digital _ se pee es PP Standard TOV Values used in Margin Calculation 8VSB 15 2dB QAM64B 18 5dB QAM256B 23 5dB DTU 236A with RFXpert Dek Appendix B Digital Channel Power Measurement 8 Spectral Displays This appendix provides information on power measurement and spectrum displays These concepts are then applied to the DTU 236A RF Probe and RFXpert software The power of digital communications channels such as VSB or QAM modulated TV
15. 2 a wem 7 s smM 5e Disconnect Auto Insp Settings Snapshot Record DTC 340 Software Hardware Application 2 6 3 17536 Dil 1000 Driver 4 4 16 55 NET Assembly 2 6 2 17534 NET Framework 2 0 50727 5485 Hardware Cal Date 07 28 2014 DTU 236A Device DTU 236A 4236004152 Firmware 0 0 0 0 System Monitor Modulation Detail Spectrum Detail About Eun pees Channel 83 Freq 579 00 Mhz Type QAM 256B 03 04 2015 Figure 33 RFXpert About Tab 18 27 DTU 236A with RFXpert 7 Measurement and Log Settings The Settings icon in the Tool Bar of the RFXpert contains several advanced settings pertaining to the alarming and interval logging parameters of the channel under test The settings icon will also allow you to create and modity channel plans discussed previously in this manual and create Auto Inspection profiles discussed later in this manual Figure 34 Measurement and Log Settings 7 1 Alarm Settings To configure the alarm limits and alarm logging select the Alarms tab within the Settings window The first step is to select the modulation mode in the upper left corner This allows you to set up unique alarm limits for each of the different supported modulation schemes Settings E 161 x General Inspect Alams Mode svse v Enable Aarm History Log Store Logs for 30 Days Measureme
16. C 491 00 1 9 416 Failed 29 8VSB 563 00 10 7 21 9 22 8 7 6 Failed 32 8VSB 581 00 44 14 8 312 16 0 26 Failed 36 NTSC 605 00 28 40 6 Failed v Figure 54 RFXpert Auto Inspect Report The Auto Inspect report will not be saved until you click on the Save or Export buttons at lower right corner of the inspection report Save will create a file rst that may be viewed with the RFXpert application at a later time Export creates a comma separated text csv file that may be viewed using a standard text editor or spreadsheet application You may also select print to receive a hard copy from an attached printer Select the Open and View Inspection Results button in the Auto Inspect window see Figure 54 to view saved reports DTU 236A with RFXpert Save Auto Inspect Results Save in P My Computer eu EJ Asci on orion Shared on Zeus 5 w Common on Zeus X Fie name 05 03 05 11 41 05 AM Save as type Auto Inspect Results rst ne 05 03 05 11 41 05 AM Save astype Inspect Results csv Figure 56 Exporting an Auto Inspect Report el e DTU 236A with RFXpert Dek 12 Using the DekTec StreamXpert DTC 320 You may add transport stream analysis capabilities to the RF Probe by purchasing the DekTec StreamXpert DTC 320 software The StreamXpert software is inclu
17. DTU 236A with RFXpert 8VSB QAM and ASI Analysis amp Monitoring Probe for USB 2 USER MANUAL TAM March 2015 DTU 236A with RFXpert Tdv Dek Table of Contents lob 3 E I MIR OON 4 2 Specifications and Minimum 1 4 2 GAR gt 4 2 2 REXSen SO TW GL uovinertundtevt cple atte tace ioter dud tevet spia etin sued E tiat teved topi rd qt Rub 5 3 RFXpert Software 2 4 0 0 1 0 0 ene n n n nne nnne nenne neni 6 CHIC ENDO 8 4l Client 7 Server 5s eiue 8 42 Launching Tie RFA per E 8 8 AA 9 4 5 RFXpert Application General 1 11100 11 SN S Channel PION cece 12 SR B 12 LAOR TIR Io TOR 15 5 3 Selecting the Channel Plan and 15 17 Oel IACONO 17 Fore Ul levi To To Deldi TT 2 Oo MONDON CTEM 22 Dd opectrum apace ccd ace a
18. RF measurements To take advantage of the full analysis capabilities of the RFXpert software you must install a license file Note This file may have been pre installed at the factory in which case you will not need to complete the following steps IF you need to install a license to run the RFXpert the header of the application will indicate that it is in Limited Functionality Mode and an Activate button will be present Figure 6 Licensing the RF Probe Step 1 Click on the Activate button to begin the license installation process You will receive a new window that reports the serial number of the RF Probe Press OK to continue You eee conmected to DTU 2364 device with the seral number 42356004152 Plesie select the RFXpert Actevation Fie fes thes device to enable full RF Xpert functionality Figure 7 Licensing the RF Probe Step 2 You will now be prompted to browse for the license file This will be an xml file containing the serial number of the RF Probe you wish to license It will be located in the License folder DTU 236A with RFXpert ince ace Ickicc of the USB thumb drive you received with the DTU 236A RF Probe Select this file and click Open Select RFXpert Activation File Look in License t My Recent Documents Desktop My Documents Computer E Dongle 4234000001 xml Filename Dongle 4234000001 xm Places Files of type RFXp
19. a continuously updated level measurements with pass green tail red warn yellow color coded thresholds for quick diagnosis The level thresholds are user definable 8VSB channels will display average channel power level and pilot level dBc below the average channel power level QAM channels display average channel power level only and NTSC will display the video carrier level and the carrier to noise ratio 48 Figure 20 Level Bar Graphs 3 Digital Modulation Bar Graphs These bar graphs display the MER Margin and EVM for 8VSB and QAM channels Pass green fail red warn yellow color coded thresholds provide for quick diagnosis The level thresholds are user definable This section will be grayed out when measuring an NTSC channel MER Modulation Error Ratio is the digital equivalent of an analog signal to noise ratio displayed in dB MER is a ratio of signal power to the power of the impairments within the signal The larger the MER value the better the signal quality Margin represents how far the MER value is from the threshold of visibility TOV digital cliff Margin equals MER 15 2 dB for 8VSB See Appendix A EVM error vector magnitude is a RMS value that represents the amplitude ratio of the RMS error vector amplitude to the largest symbol amplitude This is basically how closely the modulated digital symbols are received compared to the theoretical ideal EVM is calc
20. ch as poor MER PN 23 This is an industry standard Bit Error Rate test pattern available on most modulators For this test to be used on the RFXpert the modulator must be switched to test mode to inject the pseudo random PN 23 bit pattern into the payload data area of the stream i e the program 15 taken off line and the data bytes are replaced with a known test pattern A true BER counter is contained in the receiver in the RF Probe It generates the identical pattern synchronizes itself with the incoming pattern and counts actual bit errors via a bit by bit comparison Note The PN 23 values will not be valid unless a PN 23 signal is received Also the PN 23 alarm will not indicate a Warn or Fail unless a valid PN 23 signal is received Value Window Time PreFEC BER 1 0E 09 00 03 00 00 00 37 PostFEC BER lt 1 0E 09 00 03 00 00 00 37 SER 0 00 03 00 00 00 37 ErrorSec 00 03 00 00 00 37 BurstES 0 00 03 00 00 00 37 PN 23 1 0E 09 00 03 00 00 00 37 Figure 22 Digital Bit Error Display 5 Master Alarm This box gives you a real time indication of the overall status of the incoming RF channel If all measurements are in a Pass status the box will be green If any measurement is in a Fail status the box will be red Figure 23 Master Alarm 6 Receiver and FEC Lock These are simple Pass green and Fail red status indicators for the incoming signal Receiver lock is valid for 8VSB and QAM channels and
21. ded in the USB thumb drive included with your DTU 236A RF Probe You must install a purchased license on your RF Probe to use the StreamXpert software or have another DekTec device in connected to your PC that is licensed for StreamXpert If you purchased StreamXpert in conjunction with your RF Probe the license will already be loaded on the RF Probe All information regarding software installation and operation is contained in the StreamXpert manual Note Do not install the drivers contained in the StreamXpert installation Disregard these procedures covered at the beginning of the StreamXpert manual The drivers for the RF Probe will be installed with the RFXpert software StreamXpert No record file E Analyser Record DVBMode 00 X short term G is T 100ms Normal 2 ast input Tu 225 i Program 1 gt Video 17 MPEG 2 Video Audio 20 User private PID infa 5 ff 0 PAT 15 0 kbps 9 77 16 15 3 kbps 51 49 17 MPEG 2 Video 12 3 Mbps o BL Bitrate 12 314 978 bps PCR Yes fear Type MPEG 2 Video i i Stream ID 224 JJ 20 User private 422 kbps H 8191 Null packets 6 6 Mbps 11 23 2004 11 07 53 Found 2 DEKTEC input devices 11 23 2004 11 07 53 Failed to select adapter 11 23 2004 11 07 56 Selected DTU 225 SN 4225332010 Bitrate TR 101290 Ready ND ie Bye
22. delay and reduced percentage trom the selected channel This graph can assist in determining whether signal problems are being caused by multipath problems or not The center tap Ous corresponds to the main signal and any other echo is interference and noise Multipath Echo Profile 4 16 18 20 22 24 26 28 30 32 34 36 38 40 Delay uS Figure 28 Multipath Echo Protile Graph DTU 236A with RFXpert Tdv Dek rt 6 4 Spectrum Detail The RFXpert software also includes a Spectrum Detail tab Upon selecting the Spectrum Detail tab you will be prompted that entering the Spectrum Analysis mode will disable all logging alarming and channel specific measurements This is due to the fact that the tuner will be in a sweep mode to provide the spectrum measurements Selecting Yes will allow you to view the spectrum graphs selecting No will take you back to the previous tab you were viewing You are about to enter Spectrum Detail Mode doing so will disable RF and Pilot Level logging alarms and other channel specific monitoring do you wish to proceed Figure 29 Entering Spectrum Detail Mode All of the Spectrum Analysis windows are auto ranging Once you have entered into the spectrum Detail tab you have three display options 1 Channel Spectrum The Channel Spectrum is a 6 MHz span with a 280 KHz resolution bandwidth and 100 KHz measurement intervals The center frequency will be defined by the channel that you have selected
23. displays the RF signal measurements Using the different tabs you may choose to view the overall RF measurements modulation details multipath and spectrum analysis 3 Status Bar The bottom area of the RFXpert displays the status of Receiver and FEC lock It also displays the current channel that is selected and provides the ability to change channels DTU 236A with RFXpert Dek 5 Creating a Channel Plan To properly utilize the RFXpert application you must first build a channel plan You may create multiple channel plans for use in different locations and the channel plans may include channels of different modulation types 5 1 Building the Plan Start by clicking on the Settings button in the toolbar Now select the General tab within the Settings window Channel Description Carrier Frequency MHz Modulation C N Noise Floor Frequency MHz 1 Maximum 865 000 NTSC Only Hours Sec PreFEC Window o Wf 3 WT o eae Ee CI PostFEC Window 3 SER Window o ifo Number of Errors Per Burst 0000 ErrorSecs Window o 3 oO 0 i o PN 23 Window o 3 Mo Restore Defaults OK Cancel Apply Figure 12 Creating Channel Plan 2 1 Create New Channel Plan Use this button to manually create a channel plan You will be asked to provide a name fo
24. e name that ties a channel plan and a set of measurement parameters together for performance of an automatic analysis of your system You may create multiple profiles for use at many different locations or DTU 236A with RFXpert Tdv Dek systems Start by clicking the Create New Profile button You may go back and modify or delete profiles at any time x Profile Name Lafayette Figure 47 Creating an Auto Inspect Profile After clicking on the Create New Profile button a new window will pop up prompting you to enter a Profile name Click on the Create button to proceed 2 Select the Channel Plan Now select the Channel Plan that you wish to associate with the Profile You may also enter notes in the Description field Settings ioj x Genaral Auto Inspect Alarms Logging Auto Inspect Controls Auto Inspect Profiles Lafayette CO Description Save Profile Create New Profile Mode 8 5 Delete Selected Profle Measurement Pass Fail Limits T OK Fail Pilot Level dBc M E R dB Margin dE M Figure 48 Defining Parameters for the Auto Inspect Profile 3 Defining the Auto Inspect Measurement Parameters final step in creating the new or modifying an existing profile is to define which measurements you want as part of the inspection and their Pass Fail limits Use the Mode pull down bo
25. ert Activation File xml Figure 8 Licensing the RF Probe Step 3 You will now receive a confirmation window if the license file was correctly applied to the RF Probe Click OK and the application will close double click on the RFXpert desktop icon and the fully licensed application will open RFXpert Activation Complete This application will now close Please restart it in order to use the fully activated software Figure 9 Licensing the RF Probe Step 4 DTU 236A with RFXpert User Manual 4 5 RFXpert Application General Layout PreFEC PostFEC PER MER Errorsec BurstES PN 23 Margin DTU 236A Value lt 1 0 09 0 0 Window 00 03 00 00 03 00 00 03 00 00 03 00 00 03 00 00 03 00 Ick icc Time 03 31 53 03 31 53 03 31 53 03 31 53 03 31 53 03 31 53 6 13 6 14 Time mins amp 15 PM Time mins System Monitor Modulation Detail Spectrum Detail About Channel 23 Freg 579 00 Mhz Type QAM 255B 03 04 2015 Figure 10 RFXpert Overview 1 Tool Bar The top area of the RFXpert application contains all of the settings and shortcuts that allow you to tailor the analyzer to your individual situation It also contains the controls for connecting and disconnecting from individual DTU 236A RF Probes Some of the settings are Channel Plan Logging Auto Inspect EQ Disable and TS Recording 2 Measurement Windows This area
26. ill have the ability to view the overall system modulation details multipath and a spectrum analysis 6 1 System Monitor The System Monitor tab displays information concerning the overall status of the incoming RF channel It also includes two histogram display and Pass Fail Warn indications DTU 2364 4236 36004152 sz 50 129 je DTU 236A Settings Value Window Time PreFEC BER 00 03 00 03 31 53 PostFEC BER ETT 00 03 00 03 31 53 5 PER 0 0 00 03 00 03 31 53 ow Error amp ec 00 03 00 03 31 53 00 03 00 03 31 53 T 23 lt 1 00 03 00 03 31 53 03 04 2015 18 16 Figure 18 System Monitor Tab 1 Histogram Displays The system monitor tab includes two histogram displays These displays have a time axis of 5 minutes and the level axis is auto ranging You may zoom in or out on the histograms by holding down the left mouse button and moving the mouse cursor over the histogram you desire to zoom on You may also change what the histograms display by right mouse clicking over the histogram you wish to change and selecting a new measurement parameter from the pop up box DTU 236A with RFXpert i w RF Level B Pilot Level EVM MER Margin PreFEC BER PostFEC BER f BurstES 23 Figure 19 Changing the Histogram Display 2 RF Level Bar Graphs The RF level bar graphs display
27. ing at a later time To take a Snapshot simply click on the Snapshot button while the desired measurement screen is displayed You will now be prompted to select a location and a name for your JPEG image The default name is the date and time of day Figure 38 Taking a Snapshot Save As Save in Computer Disk Ascii on orion w Shared Zeus 5 w Common on Zeus X 50205 084320MM 7 Figure 39 Saving the Snapshot JPEG File DTU 236A with RFXpert ria ene Ickicc 9 Transport Stream Recording The RFXpert software allows you to capture the incoming digital transport stream on 8VSB and QAM channels The file will be recorded to a directory on the server PC Click on the Record button to initiate transport stream recording Connect Figure 40 Recording a Transport Stream Step 1 A new window will open and you will be required to enter some basic information Record Location Path On the Server C Program Files amp 86 Dek Tec RFXpert vecordings File Name Settings 6 Time 0 HH MM SS Bitrate Sze 0 00 MB 38810752 Figure 41 Record Setup The destination path of the record file is displayed at the top of the Record window and may be changed by selecting the browse button Now provide a file name a trp extension will be added to all record files You must then define the du
28. ings The Logging tab in the Settings window allows you to define the parameters for Interval Logging Interval Logging is basically a snapshot of selected measurements of the tuned channel at a defined time period that is stored in a log file Settings 151 Auto Inspect Alarms Logging v Enable Interval Logging R F Level Log Interval 1 min d Store Old Logs For 30 Pes EVM Margin Burst Error Sec Count SER Error Sec Count PN 23 PreFEC BER PostFEC BER Logs C Program Files Sencore RFXpert Nogs Change Path View Logs Restore Defaults Cancel Apply Figure 36 Interval Logging To perform Interval Logging you must first check the Enable Interval Logging box in the upper left corner You now need to check which measurements you want to include in the Interval Logging Now define the interval frequency of occurrence you wish to have for the measurement snapshots and how many days you wish to keep the logs before purging The bottom portion of the Logging tab contains the path to the log files both Alarm and Interval default path is ProgramFiles DekTec RFXpert logs Alarm or Interval However you may change this by clicking on the Change Path button and defining your own directory path The View Logs button will quickly take you into the directory where the logs are stored The logs are created as a comma separated te
29. installation is self explanatory However take note of the setup type screen Figure 2 Selecting either the client or server icon presents options for installation of each RFXpert is a client server based architecture and must be installed accordingly It is recommended to leave this option as is which will install both the server and client Insert the DTU 236A USB connection into your or Laptop You may be prompted to install new hardware If the driver is not automatically installed manually direct the hardware installer to browse to the Program Files DekTec Drivers folder to load the driver and install the device It may require you to do this two times You will now be able to use your RFXpert software with installed DTU 236A RF USB device Welcome to the InstallShield Wizard for DekTec RFXpert The InstallShield R Wizard will install DekTec RFXpert on your computer To continue dick Next WARNING This program is protected by copyright law and international treaties Figure 1 RFXpert install DTU 236A with RFXpert Custom Setup Select the program features you want installed Click on an icon in the list below to change how a feature is installed Feature Description Sencore RFXpert Client components only This feature requires 2108KB on your hard drive Install to C Program Files x86 DekTec RFXpert InstallShield The wizard is ready to begin installation
30. is defined as the equalizer being able to synchronize to the incoming signal FEC lock indicates that the digital channel has a valid incoming transport stream DTU 236A with RFXpert Tivi Dek 6 2 Modulation Detail The Modulation Detail tab provides you with measurements and diagrams particular to a modulated digital 8 5 and QAM channel The measurements will be grayed out and the diagrams inactive when measuring an NTSC channel ocathost DTU 236A 4236004152 EE 2 16 DTU 236A Disconnect Auto Insp Settings Snapshot Record 02 2 MER 36 3 Margin 12 8 01 4 Constellation Eye Diagram Channel 83 Fr System Monitor Modulation Detail Spectrum Detal About 579 00 Mhz Type QAM 2568 03 04 2015 Figure 24 Modulation Detail Tab l Digital Modulation Bar Graphs These three graphs display the exact same information that was previously described in the System Monitor tab see Figure 21 However there are no Pass Fail Warn color indications The bars are always green 2 Constellation Diagram The constellation diagram gives you a visual indication of how closely the demodulated digital symbols are received compared to the theoretical ideal The 8VSB signal constellation display has 8 lines and the individual dots representing symbols should ideally be in straight lines at the middle of the vertical dotted lines The
31. lay Logging Type Auto Inspect File 10 to 10dBmV O 1dB resolution 1dB accuracy 40 to 10dBmV amp 10 to 50 dBmV 2dB accuracy 15 to 38dB measured from constellation 2 3 to 16 5 RMS Pre Post FEC SER Errored Seconds Constellation and Eye diagram 2 3 to 40us delay range to 30dBc echo level Channel 6 7 8 MHz Adjacent 18 21 24 MHz Full 50 1000 MHz Interval and alarms Automatic analysis and logging of a channel plan User defined limited by host hard drive space DTU 236A with RFXpert User Manual Ick icc 3 RFXpert Software Installation Important The USB driver for DTU 236A is included in the RFXpert software install package Installation of the driver is required to provide the USB drivers and channel tuning capabilities USB Thumb Drive Your DTU 236A RF Probe was shipped with a USB drive that contains Software Manuals and Brochures 1 Insert the USB drive into a USB port on the host PC Browse to the Software RFXpert folder Double click on the RFXpert Installer exe application to begin the installation For Windows 7 right click the installer exe and select Run as Administrator If you do not have Microsoft Net framework installed on your PC you will be taken through the Net install procedure Simply leave all settings in default and next your way through the installation The Driver will be installed first then the RFXpert Software The remainder of the RFXpert
32. nt Log on Fail Pass Fail Limits Warn OK Fail RF Level dBmV v lt ho lt 1 5 lt Pilot Level dBc 7 e MER dB 72 4 EVM rms v G c SER errs sec v lt io fs ErrorSec lt fo e BurstErrorSec v lt Warn Pre FEC BER v lt fi E 5 E E lt Post FEC BER v lt j E s E 5 lt PN 23 77 lt Ep Figure 35 Alarm Settings Checking the Enable Alarm History Log will generate a log entry each time there is a measurement alarm You will also receive an alarm once a measurement returns to a good state from a fail state The location and type of log will be discussed in the next section on Interval Logging You may also select the number of days the logs will be kept before purging Each of the measurements contained under the System Monitor tab may be set to generate a log entry by checking the Log on Fail box next to the measurement type DTU 236A with RFXpert Dek Each of the measurements contain a series of values that define the Pass Warn Fail limits You may define custom values for each measurement The Restore Defaults button in the lower left corner will return all of the values to the factory settings The default values are derived from existing standards industry practices and DekTec s extensive experience 7 2 Interval Logging Sett
33. r the plan and select the band FCC Cable IRC HRC or Broadcast All channels in the band will then be added to the plan assuming the following modulation schemes Broadcast 8VSB FCC Cable QAM 256B IRC and HRC Cable QAM 256B DTU 236A with RFXpert You may then go back and manually change individual channels to a different modulation scheme 8VSB QAM 64 256 NTSC Unwanted channels may also be removed from the channel plan and added back in at a later time Create New Channel Plan xi Plan Test Band Broadcast Settings E E Generel loging Channel Plans Broadcast SF Carrier Frequency MHz 83 250 Modulation Type NTSC 00 000 Minimum 53 000 Maximum 865 000 NTSC Only Options Hours Min PreFEC Window PostFEC Window 3 SER Window Wy 3 ErrorSecs Window o BurstErrorSecs Window 0 3 PN 23 Window o dj 5 Number of Errors Per Burst 10 Figure 14 Modifying and Saving Channel Plans The areas boxed in red Figure 14 allow you to modify save and add channel descriptions to your channel plans The C N Noise Floor Frequency must be defined to provide a reference for calculating carrier to noise ratio measurements on NTSC channels You should pick a frequency that has no active
34. ration of your recording This may be in Time or File Size Click on the Record button to initiate recording DTU 236A with RFXpert 10 Equalizer Disable The DTU 236A RF Probe has a built in 8VSB equalizer Equalizers are widely used in 8VSB receivers set top boxes to tacilitate reception of marginal signals containing large amounts multipath or other channel impairments The equalizer attempts to flatten the channel response by canceling signals caused primarily by multipath echoes Disabling the equalizer allows you to take true measurements that show signal quality without the benefit of the channel being equalized EQ disable is only valid on 8VSB channels Multipath measurements will be disabled when the EQ is disabled Figure 42 Disabling the 8VSB Equalizer MER value and Constellation Eye diagram degradation is the most obvious indication that the EQ has been disabled ocalhost DTU 236A 4236004152 50 EQ DTU 236A Disconnect Auto insp Settings Snapshot Record Desable MER Margin 20 2 EVM Figure 43 MER and Modulation Detail with EQ ON Constellation Eye Diagram E 8 System Montor Modulation Detal Mutipath Detail Spectrum Detad About Channel 32 Freq 581 00 Mhz 8 58 DTU 236A with RFXpert Dek 4 DekTec R p 3 t DTU 23 4 236 5004152 0 DTU 236A Auto d 2
35. te un entm pete see cient IUE MEI pe 24 5 9 FOG UF AG IR E es 26 7s Measurement and Log Settings 27 NUVI Sells cocco mm veto nas MEME 27 7 2 Interval Logging gt RIS TOT 28 SE 30 9 Transport Stream Recording 31 ai D ODIE e eei A AAE E E R 32 ERAO e E E A A eee eee 34 l l SOA ihe ERNEUT 34 11 2 Performing an Automatic 37 12 Using the DekTec StreamXpert 320 02 000000000 40 Appendix A RFXpert Default 6 00 41 Appendix B Digital Channel Power Measurement amp Spectral Displays 42 Appendix C QAM Constellation Impairment Examples 43 DTU 236A with RFXpert User Manual g Revision History 2015 03 17 Update with latest RFXpert application version 2012 10 29 Initial version of this document Update of manual for DTU 236A Copyright 2015 by DekTec Digital Video B V DekTec Digital Video B V reserves the right to change products or specifications without notice Information furnished in this document is believed to be accurate and reliable but DekTec assumes no responsibility for any errors that may appear in this material DTU
36. ted by the narrow RBW filter This attenuation is what causes the difference between the trace level and the level displayed on the System Monitor tab DTU 236A with RFXpert Appendix C QAM Constellation Impairment Examples The following constellation diagrams are examples of impairments a QAM 64 channel This will also apply to QAM 256 ee elt 8 eee Ge ew o 6 6 6 6 6 958 e 5625609528 eee 6 5 ee amp 55 Bos 5 5 SEs A Ff wow M ale 7 1 amp x N A PP NOM Nou d Ve Wee t9 aas oe 00 F Phase Noise il Ic cc i I Q Phase Error IF Compression
37. ulated from the MER value The lower the value the better the signal quality DTU 236A with RFXpert Dek Figure 21 Digital Modulation Bar Graphs 4 Digital Bit Error Display The Digital Bit Error Display within the system monitor tab provides bit error statistics that are averaged or counted over a specified time window Defining the window size was described in the previous section see Figure 12 This section is valid tor 8VSB and QAM measurements but will be grayed out when measuring an NTSC channel Pass green fail red warn yellow color coded threshold indicators provide for quick diagnosis The thresholds are user definable PreFEC BER value is the Bit Error Rate expressed before any changes have been made to the demodulated digital transport stream by the embedded Forward Error Correction codes This can be thought of as the raw bit errors in the digital payload Values lower than 1x10 6 are generally considered acceptable Ranges from 1x10 9 near perfect signal to 1x10 3 TOV are typical PostFEC BER value is the Bit Error Rate expressed after changes have been made to the demodulated digital transport stream by the embedded Forward Error Correction codes This can be thought of as the remaining bit errors in the digital payload after all corrections improvements have been made This value should be numerically lower than the PreFEC BER Values lower than 1x10 8 are generally considered acceptable
38. x to select the modulation scheme and then define the appropriate DTU 236A with RFXpert User Manual measurements and limits 8VSB and QAM will have the same measurements but different limits with the exception of Pilot Level 5 only NTSC measurements completely different The preset measurement limits are derived from the current settings in the Alarm tab You may modify these limits specific to you desired auto inspect profile X Settings Figure 49 NTSC Parameters within Auto Inspect DTU 236A with RFXpert Dek 11 2 Performing an Automatic Inspection Now that you have defined an Auto Inspect protile s you may proceed with performing automatic inspections Start by clicking on the Auto Inspect button in the tool bar The Auto Inspect window will now open Select the profile that you wish to apply and the number of times you wish to perform the inspection A single inspection will run once and then create the report Multiple inspections are defined by the number of inspections and the interval between each inspection Click on the Run Auto Inspection button to initiate the inspection An Auto Inspect report will be generated for each time an inspection 15 performed Auto Inspect Auto Inspect Profiles Lafayete CO Figure 50 Starting an Auto Inspection Inspection Mode Single Multiple Inspection Count interval min 0 a Run Auto Inspection Open and View
39. xt file csv that may be opened with any text editing or spreadsheet software One file is created per day and the file name is the date it was created DTU 236A with RFXpert User Manual TAM ET Modulation Pilot Date Time Channel Frequency Type RF Level Level EVM 5 19 2015 8 56 18 29 563 8VSB 10 73 12 4 7 08 5 19 2015 8 57 19 29 563 8VSB 10 71 12 37 7 26 5 19 2015 8 58 19 29 563 8VSB 10 52 12 53 7 11 5 19 2015 8 59 19 29 563 8VSB 10 76 12 66 7 01 5 19 2015 9 00 19 29 563 8VSB 10 57 12 17 7 26 5 19 2015 9 01 19 AM 29 563 8VSB 10 39 12 42 7 03 5 19 2015 9 02 19 29 563 8VSB 10 55 12 39 7 2 5 19 2015 9 03 20 29 563 8VSB 10 41 12 4 6 83 5 19 2015 9 04 20 AM 29 563 8VSB 10 85 12 38 6 98 5 19 2015 9 05 20 AM 29 563 8VSB 10 83 12 23 7 23 5 19 2015 9 06 20 AM 29 563 8VSB 10 89 12 71 6 96 5 19 2015 9 07 20 AM 29 563 8VSB 10 66 12 09 6 76 5 19 2015 9 08 20 AM 29 563 8VSB 10 72 12 51 7 26 5 19 2015 9 09 21 29 563 8VSB 10 72 12 51 7 26 5 19 2015 9 10 21 29 563 8VSB 10 72 12 51 7 26 5 19 2015 9 11 21 29 563 8VSB 10 72 12 51 7 26 5 19 2015 9 12 21 29 563 8VSB 10 72 12 51 7 26 Note The example above only shows a portion of the entire logged values Figure 37 Example Interval Log DTU 236A with RFXpert 8 Snapshot The RFXpert contains a unique feature that allows you to quickly capture a JPEG image of any measurement screen for view
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