Frequently Asked Questions

General Questions Questions Related to Specific Gage Products Can't Find an Answer?

Q. Is it possible to increase the record length for a CompuScope card without having to buy an additional memory CompuScope?

A. Yes. Reducing the sample rate increases the time between successive samples and therefore increases the record length for the same amount of memory. An analog can be made with VCR tapes: If you record with the T120 tape in SP (normal) mode, the recording time is 2 hours, whereas if you record with the same tape in the LP (long play) mode, the recording time is 4 hours.

You must be very careful, however, in increasing the record length by reducing sample rate alone. If your sample rate is not fast enough to capture enough points on every cycle of your signal (if it is repetitive) or across pulse (if it is transient), you may lose valuable information. The same VCR analogy applies again: LP mode produces a longer recording but with poorer quality.

You need additional memory CompuScopes when you have high frequency signals and yet you need a long record length, e.g. when you are looking for fast glitches on the power lines or when you are looking at a long stream of communication data etc.

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