After quite some heavy work with the MSR-904A, we are close to completion. The last defect, supposedly last, was an issue with the 0-9 V internal tuning voltage – could not get it to change from 0-9 V even with all adjustments suggested by the manual, and looking at the schematic – no other way to adjust. There can be drifts of some resistors over time, but all checked and very much as spot-on is they can be.

So, the issue comes from a part of the AFC circuit – there is some gain switching with a 4051 CMOS switch, and as it turns out, this was missing the -6 V supply voltage – causing a positive voltage at the output, which upset the tuning assembly, even with AFC disabled. The wire, not sure if it was broken when I received it – well, easy fix, but took me the best part of 2 hours to find it.

With the machine now ready to be put back in service and fully operational, a few hours warm-up, and all the oscillators and YIG filters fine-tuned, I slipped with the screw driver – a spark – and the 250 MHz amplifier was dead. Fortunately, no major defect, just the 2N2905A that switches on the power for the 250 MHz amp. Added a “new” one, 1984 vintage…

Finally, closed the lid, to keep my screwdrivers out, and did a quick check of sensitivity at about 1.7 GHz (because I have a really well calibrated 0.1-2.1 GHz source, a HP 8642B here already on the bench and did not want to carry around heavy microwave synthesizers…).

Here, the result, which I would call pretty much satisfactory. Doesn’t get much better unless you cool down the receiver with some liquid helium.

The machine, in all its beauty.