RFVSG PXIe-5673E's Arb WF Generator (PXIe-5450) error -1073807339

[LVUser94]

Thank you in advance for any help you can provide for my problem with an RF VSG. I am helping a grad student to setup a 7 year old (purchased used) PXI RF system for his thesis work. The PXI RF system is a PXIe-1075 chassis with a PXIe-5663E VSA, and a PXIe-5673E VSG. We are having some trouble in getting the VSG to work.

The PXIe-5673E (RF VSG) is made of the following modules:

  Slot10: PXIe-5450 Baseband I/Q Generator (Arb Func Generator)

  Slot12: PXIe-5611 UpConverter / IQ Modulator

  Slot13: PXIe-5652 RF Generator

The PXIe-5450 is configured as "AWG" and PXIe-5652 is configured as "LO" in the PXIe-5611.

In MAX, all three devices in the PXIe-5673E pass self-test. The external wiring also appears to be correct, and exactly as described in the NI documentation for 5673E. Please see attached files for MAX configuration.

When I used the  RSFG Soft Front Panel, I am not able to open a session to the VSG. It gives a timeout error (Please see attached file for error).

The RSFG Soft Front Panel is able to open a session with the PXIe-5652, and able to output a CW RF output.  So the PXIe-5652 is working Ok. So I suspect the problem lies in the PXIe-5450.

There is a separate Test Panel in MAX for the PXIe-5450. This also give a similar timeout error. 

I also tried a basic LabVIEW NI-FGEN shipping example with the PXIe-5450, and I am getting an error there as well (please see attached file for error).

So I am unable to proceed...since this is a used system, I have no way of knowing if was working before. I am hoping this is just a configuration issue.

Thanks again!

Sincerely

Sundaram Raghuraman

[Confuzzled]

I agree that getting started with the Soft Front Panels or shipping examples is a good place to start. Having all the modules pass self-test is also promising.

I'm getting hung up on the RFSG Soft Front Panel screenshot you provided. It's implying that the downconverter can't PLL to the AWG (5451) external Reference clock. I would rule out this area first. The two main things I can think of that would cause this is improper cabling configuration (i.e. Clk In not connected to the appropriate Clk Out) or the reference is no longer within the required specifications for the PLL to lock to it. You mentioned this is an older system so it's possible if it has not been calibrated recently then the reference clocks may have drifted outside of the specification.

Can you provide a screenshot of the cabling setup?

Another consideration is on the driver side. If this is an older system, you might consider updating the drivers if you haven't already assuming your operating system and LabVIEW version can support it. Unfortunately based on your screenshot I can't discern the current version of RFSA/RFSG on your system.

Hope this helps!

[LVUser94]

Hi Confuzzled,

Thanks for your interest. I am enclosing photos showing the cabling setup. All connections are tight. Hope this clarifies the setup.

I too agree that the RFSG Soft Panel message about PLL is misleading. I suspect that the real problem is with Function Generator (PXIe-5450). I am not able to get this to output any waveform at all from its MAX Test Panel. (I forgot to save that error message!). But I got an identical error when I tried a LabVIEW shipping example (please see enclosed photo of that error).

All the drivers (NI-FGEN, NI-RFSA, NI-RFSG, NI-RFmx) I am using are the latest available (Ver 17 or 17.1).

Thanks again for your help.

Sundaram Raghuraman

[Confuzzled]

What's interesting is the LabVIEW shipping example should be using the 5450's internal frequency reference. Just to be sure, when you run the LabVIEW example, is the CLK IN port on the 5450 still connected to the 5652 REF OUT port? This shouldn't matter, but maybe try disconnecting the CLK IN port on the 5450 when you run the example and try again.

Since the error you are getting in the shipping example is a timeout being thrown by the Initiate function, it's possible there's a hardware problem internal to the 5450. The Initiate function is where all of the configuration settings are committed to the device's hardware. If some aspect of that process hangs or doesn't work, you can get a timeout.

I would call up NI support and see what they have to say. If the modules are no longer under warranty, it might be worth sending the 5673E in for calibration. If it fails, then they'll tell you which module(s) specifically need to be repaired and the cost. If it passes calibration fine then at least you'll have a calibrated instrument.