Equipment & Troubleshooting Flashcards
7 cards from real CBT practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 7 Equipment & Troubleshooting flashcards as text
A transmitter's VSWR suddenly spikes to 3:1. What is the FIRST corrective action a broadcast technologist should take?
Answer: Inspect the transmission line and antenna for faults
A high VSWR indicates an impedance mismatch, most commonly caused by a transmission line or antenna fault that must be located and corrected.
Which test instrument is used to measure the frequency response of an audio circuit?
Answer: Audio signal generator and analyzer
An audio signal generator sweeps frequencies while an analyzer measures the output level, producing a frequency response curve.
An FM exciter's stereo pilot tone is missing. Which subsystem should the technologist check first?
Answer: Stereo generator (composite encoder)
The 19 kHz stereo pilot is generated by the stereo composite encoder; its absence points to a fault in that subsystem.
A broadcast engineer notices audio is present on a video feed but the waveform monitor shows the video level is 120 IRE. What problem does this indicate?
Answer: Video is clipped above white level (superwhite)
100 IRE is standard white; a level of 120 IRE means the video exceeds the white clip level, which can cause issues in downstream processing.
What does an Optical Time-Domain Reflectometer (OTDR) measure in a fiber optic plant?
Answer: Location and magnitude of losses and reflections along a fiber
An OTDR sends light pulses down the fiber and analyzes backscatter to pinpoint splices, connectors, breaks, and their associated losses.
A digital video router experiences intermittent switching errors. Which component is the MOST likely cause?
Answer: Reference signal (black burst or tri-level sync) instability
A digital router relies on a stable reference signal to synchronize switching; an unstable reference causes unpredictable frame-boundary switching errors.
When replacing a power amplifier tube in a high-power AM transmitter, which safety procedure is MOST critical before opening the final amplifier cabinet?
Answer: Discharge all high-voltage capacitors using a grounding stick
High-voltage filter capacitors in AM transmitters can retain lethal charges long after power is removed and must be safely discharged before work begins.