HP Agilent 8566B Microwave Spectrum Analyzer 100 Hz-22 GHz with Display Keysight

HP Agilent 8566B Microwave Spectrum Analyzer 100 Hz-22 GHz with Display Keysight

The HP 8566B is a two-unit microwave spectrum analyzer system covering 100 Hz to 22 GHz, consisting of a dedicated spectrum analyzer mainframe and a separate display unit. Designed for both bench and system use, the 8566B covers a wide frequency range with a synthesized local oscillator for low residual FM and minimal long-term drift. This listing includes both the analyzer unit and the display unit. Rack ears and handles are not included.

Specifications & What's Included

• Frequency range: 100 Hz to 22 GHz (DC-coupled input)
• Extended range: 26.5–75 GHz with preselected external mixers
• Maximum coverage: up to 325 GHz with additional external mixers
• Synthesized local oscillator — low residual FM, minimized long-term drift
• Narrow resolution bandwidths for low-level signal measurement
• User RAM: 16 KB — stores trace data, instrument states, and downloadable programs (DLPs)
• Internal bus and microcomputer control with GPIB / IEEE-488 interface for computer control
• Display outputs (rear): Y, Z, BLANK (BNC)
• Recorder outputs (rear): VIDEO, PENLIFT, SWEEP (BNC)
• 21.4 MHz IF output: OUT, VIDEO, INP (BNC, rear panel)
• EXT TRIGGER INPUT: 5V MAX (rear panel)
• Frequency reference: EXT/INT switchable; SWEEP+TUNE OUT; 10 MHz reference output
• Front panel sections: COUPLED FUNCTION, MARKER, INSTRUMENT STATE, TRACE, REFERENCE LINE, SWEEP, TRIGGER, SCALE, KEY FUNCTION, numeric entry keypad
• Form factor: two-unit rackmount/benchtop stack (analyzer mainframe + display)
• Rack ears and handles: NOT included
• Includes: analyzer unit and display unit (interconnected); no cables, rack ears, or handles

Applications

The HP 8566B is part of Hewlett-Packard's 8560 series of microwave spectrum analyzers, instruments that were widely used from the 1980s through the 2000s in RF and microwave engineering, radar cross-section measurement, satellite communications, electronic warfare, and semiconductor device characterization. The 22 GHz upper frequency limit made the 8566B suitable for K-band and lower Ku-band measurements without external mixing, while the external mixer ports allowed coverage into the millimeter-wave bands — a configuration common in aerospace, defense, and advanced communications research labs. The GPIB interface allowed integration into automated test systems (ATE), a standard configuration in production and R&D environments of that era. Though superseded by later Agilent and Keysight instruments, the 8566B remains in use in legacy test systems and in labs that maintain older calibrated standards. HP later became Agilent Technologies, which subsequently became Keysight Technologies — buyers search the instrument under all three brand names.