Imac Watch Timegraphers

[Alienfox]

Hi, is there an app for timing a mechanical movement that works?  I have read about a couple but they seem to have bad reviews.

 

Den

[Blacklab]

Welcome Den. Have tried a couple but the problem is that the phone mikes are too sensitive picking up any background noise. Best to bite the bullet & buy a Timegrapher- excellent bit of kit.

[clockboy]

I have never got them to work correctly, even with a dedicated mic attached. The two I have tried is "Clockmaster" & "Kello"

Kello is OK for a watch but is limited with the information given. It shows how fast/slow a watch is running but no beat error function. Clockmaster is just not worth the bother.

[canthus]

I have used 'WildSpectre Mobile Lite' free app on a Samsung Galaxy Tab8 (Android OS) before I got a proper Timegrapher.  Its not bad and you can get good results once you know how to use it correctly, the help instructions are fairly easy to understand. 

To overcome the problem of extraneous noise I placed the tab on a soft cloth and then placed the watch right up against the mike, I then covered the watch with a thick cloth. Then kept very quiet!! 

If using a bare movement you will need to ensure no cloth fibres can get in (perhaps try in a plastic bag).

I also tried 'Tickoprint' and 'Clock Tuner' free apps.  The former was OK but difficult to set-up and interpret, the latter best only for clocks.

[Alienfox]

Thanks guys, think I will have to save up for timegrapher, however I read on a post here that someone had debt eloped some software and some hardware that works.

Den

[dadistic]

I have used WildSpectra with some success. 

 

I've also tried Watch-O-Scope, http://www.watchoscope.com

 

I used my own microphones. The software seems nice and it works, but is a hassle because I don't have a proper way to mount the watch to the mic.There are plans for a microphone and amplifier on the web site, and I bet watch-o-scope works much better if you take the time to build them.

[jdm]

The specific microphone and rotating support can be bought without the machine, but alone it costs two thirds of the complete system, Makes sense since the machine is little more than cheap display from the 80s and microcontroller.

[dadistic]

Yep, seen them on fleabay. Used microphones come up from time to time also, but you would still need the appropriate pre-amp to connect to your computer. 

[clockboy]

A dedicated microphone did help me.   The best results I got was using the IPhone ear piece supplied with the phone.

[ausimax]

I came across an old post on SCWF by Feca67 about using Bilburo software with a home made mike/amplifier and decided to have a go,
bought a cheap guitar mini amp & some peizoelectric guitar pickups and constructed the hardware.
I was surprised at the sensitivity of the pickup it picks up the TV in the next room as background noise.

I downloaded the Bilburo software  and proceeded to run some test on a Seiko 7019 movement (uncased without dial or hands) so I had no idea of its timing. The main problem I found was that even though I was taking readings with the watch on the pickup back down the slightest movement of the watch, even just rotation changed the amplitude of the recording and that effects the result of the test because you then have to alter the software settings.

Tried altering the watch beat error and time error, however you would get it fairly good then a couple of readings later its all over the place.

I also tried using Delph software, only problem is the freeware version can't be used in real time, you have to make and save a WAV file recording in Audacity and then run those files in the software, this seems to give a more stable reading all I need to be able to do is interpret the data.

All this is because I don't want to spend $250 on a Timegrapher, a lot of loot for the use I have for it.

 

My wife bought me a Timegrapher for Xmas so that solved that problem, though the Delph software shows  results as the waveform that could be useful for diagnostic measures that you can't obtain with the Timegrapher graphic output.

 

Max

[jdm]

All this is because I don't want to spend $250 on a Timegrapher, a lot of loot for the use I have for it.

 

It's about $150 nowadays. Also someone posted about yet another application in a thread that I don;t have at hand.

[Geo]

It's about $150 nowadays. Also someone posted about yet another application in a thread that I don;t have at hand.

It depends what model you buy!

[matabog]

http://www.watchrepairtalk.com/topic/3002-d-i-y-watch-timing-machine/

 

 

... :)

[jdm]

It depends what model you buy!

 

Before buying I had a look. $150 and $250 models (respectively knock-off ff Witschi 100 and 1900) are the same, only the latter has a less obsolete display. I don;t think anything more is needed for the hobbyist.