A Signals Intelligence Collector’s Assessment of the TinySA
Review thread for TinySA Spectrum Analyzer
Amazon link: https://t.co/3tfLWpXAHO pic.twitter.com/xNrSNrwcw9— Madman(6′ nil | IQ: .mil) (@madmanactual) November 14, 2022
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About the Author: NC Scout
NC Scout is the nom de guerre of a former Infantry Scout and Sergeant in one of the Army’s best Reconnaissance Units. He has combat tours in both Iraq and Afghanistan. He teaches a series of courses focusing on small unit skills rarely if ever taught anywhere else in the prepping and survival field, including his RTO Course which focuses on small unit communications. In his free time he is an avid hunter, bushcrafter, writer, long range shooter, prepper, amateur radio operator and Libertarian activist. He can be contacted at [email protected] or via his blog at brushbeater.wordpress.com .
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GUNS N GEAR
I have one and It is definitely worth the money. I do not have the new Ultra model so I can’t say whether that one is worth the extra $. This product is good but you NEED to actually understand what you are looking at when you view a FFT! (The signal strength vs. time display.) What you see is dependant on sampling rate AND display resolution! (For emphasis – !!!!!) This is discussed in at least one of the 40+ videos by the guy behind the TinySA. (You NEED to view these – ALL of them.) A very good instruction regarding this point is given in the documentation for the Frequency Manager and Scanner Suite Plugin package for SDR# – Look for the part that says your display is lying to you. For in the field the TinySA is much more usable than a tablet with SDR dongle but has nowhere near the capabilities. The main reason I purchased this was because it includes a Signal Generator – not a great one, but good enough for my testing needs. It was worth it to me for that reason alone. I agree that this item is essential for the Comms/SigInt guy to bring along, especially given its size, weight, and cost.
At this price you can stack a few in case they break or to augment someone else’s TOC.
It should be relegated to the lab or TOC for anyone thinking the portability is good for field use though.
The touch screen fails to work with even the lightest drop of mist and it’s got ingress points near the scroll wheel where plenty of water could get into the case.
It’s certainty nice for checking radios, etc. but again don’t take it into the field unless you’re using it in a tent.
I’m looking hard at the RigExpert for field use.
Another good use for these is to find sources of RFI at your base station.
Brought mine to class last year and it impressed the folks that looked at it. Nice bit o kit, and for the money extremely useful- allows a quick overview of large chunks of spectrum in a hurry. Very good training videos online, too.