PC/104-GPIB part number question

[TF123]

Hi,

I have a PC/104-GPIB card in an SDX2000 DME transponder signal generator. This card has failed and I want to purchase a second hand card. My card is marked 182795E-01 as the part number. I have found some cards for sale that are marked 182797A-01 and 182795B-01.

Can anyone tell me the difference between these cards?

Thank you for in advance for any help 

[rolfk]

The letter before the dash indicates the revision of the PCB. Everytime anything is changed on the PCB this letter is increased. Changes could be as simple as replacing some parts because the previous part is not available anymore, more expensive or had a higher than normal failure rate. It can be also functional improvements to improve compatibility with newer hardware, fixing bugs that had to be circumvented in software, and improving manufacturability.

The different part number likely indicates a new design or design variant that may or may not be functionally fully compatible. It could be things like adaption to different markets, or local requirements from legal or technical regulations.

[TF123]

Hi Rolf,

Thank you for getting back to me, is there anyone in NI that I can contact to find out the differences?

Best Regards

[rolfk]

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@TF123 wrote:

Hi Rolf,

Thank you for getting back to me, is there anyone in NI that I can contact to find out the differences?

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I wouldn't know and kind of doubt it. This product is discontinued since I don't know how many years. Nobody currently working at NI probably has any active memory of this product and it is extremely unlikely that you can get anyone to go and dig into hidden archives to try to unearth that documentation and then work through it to try to understand what the possible differences might be.

[TF123]

I think I will take a gamble and try buying the boards and seeing if they work.

Thank you for the help, I will report back if they work.