Powerful Software, Uncompromising Hardware

ThunderScope packs the power of expensive, bulky high-end oscilloscopes into a portable and affordable package. While traditional scopes are limited by their built-in processing capabilities and cramped user interfaces, ThunderScope is designed to stream the complete 1 GS/s of sample data in real time to your computer for processing and analysis. ThunderScope’s fast connections (via Thunderbolt, USB 4, and PCI Express) and unique software-defined architecture allows it to be used for everything from simple measurements to complex protocol analysis.

ThunderScope is a re-imagining of how test equipment is designed and used. The hardware focuses on the most important aspect of an oscilloscope - the analog frontend. Traditional scopes have to split their budget between the analog frontend and support components such as a small screen, underpowered microprocessor, and large chassis. ThunderScope takes a different approach: A no-compromises analog frontend that connects to your computer over the fastest available interfaces. Unlike any other scope that handles processing on device, this change in approach allows ThunderScope to use your computer to its fullest potential. This makes ThunderScope the only scope that will get better every time you upgrade your computer.

Out of the Box Experience

ThunderScope is easy to use. Just connect it to your computer, open up ngscopeclient, and start taking measurements.

Unlike traditional oscilloscopes, ThunderScope isn’t constrained by limited sample memory. It can capture events across a wide range of timescales, from human-scale events to nanosecond-level details. For example, you can capture and decode a USB MIDI transaction and monitor the audio waveforms coming out of your synth:

Since you have complete control over the hardware, you can disable the anti-aliasing filter on a channel and benefit from the huge front end bandwidth by using it as a software defined radio! Here, a 434 MHz radio signal is captured through direct digital down conversion, while simultaneously probing and decoding the SPI bus connected to the radio transceiver:

ThunderScope’s analog frontend meets the highest standards for noise performance. After years of iteration, we’ve developed a frontend that ranks among the best in its bandwidth class.

Future Expansion Options

ThunderScope integrates seamlessly with the rest of your test setup. Sampling can be synchronized to a standard 10 MHz external reference clock, or an arbitrary frequency provided by your device under test. Alternatively, an internally generated reference clock can be output via the same BNC jack to synchronize your other test equipment to ThunderScope, or an arbitrary frequency clock can be provided to the device under test. The FPGA that handles data acquisition and transfer is accessible via an input/output connector, which can be used as an external trigger input or for functions defined by the end user when using a custom bitstream.

If you need more than four channels, we are also working on a feature where you can pair multiple ThunderScopes using the clock and sync connections to simultaneously measure as many channels as your computer can handle.

Pairing ThunderScope

Pairing ThunderScope PCIe

Fast and Flexible Software

ngscopeclient

ngscopeclient is a powerful, open-source client for test equipment, offering advanced features beyond typical oscilloscopes. It includes a suite of filters and protocol analyzers for measuring and decoding everything from UART to Ethernet. It’s fully GPU accelerated and incredibly responsive, making everything from regular probing to deep analysis a seamless experience. It even connects to other test equipment, enabling complex tests to be done without needing multiple vendors’ software or writing test scripts.

TS.NET

ngscopeclient receives data from TS.NET, our hardware control and triggering software. TS.NET allows for fine grain control over the hardware and contains our library of highly efficient triggering code, which can be used to construct the exact trigger you need for your signal.

A Commitment to Open Source Excellence

ThunderScope was designed from the ground up to be a truly professional oscilloscope, a technically excellent design that can be built on and used for years to come. Just as RepRap led to Open Source becoming a leading choice in 3D Printers, we hope that ThunderScope can start a new wave of open source test equipment.

But technical excellence can only get you so far. It is the sustained efforts of the excellent open source community around this project and the projects we rely on that have made ThunderScope possible.

With the launch of ThunderScope we are committing half of all profit made (in perpetuity!) to sustaining that excellent community by funding the projects and contributors that have gotten us here, as well as new projects focusing on open test equipment and tooling.

Key Features

Hardware Features

• Thunderbolt / USB4 and PCIe compatible interfaces: Streams samples to your computer at over 1 GB/s. Note: ThunderScope cannot be used with USB 3 or lower, or Thunderbolt 2 or lower. ThunderScope PCIe requires a 4x PCIe Gen 2 slot or higher.
• Flexible bandwidth: Up to 350 MHz bandwidth with one active channel. 200 MHz per channel with two active channels, and 100 MHz per channel with four active channels. Disabling the anti-aliasing filter unleashes the full 500 MHz analog bandwidth for RF experiments using direct digital downconversion.
• Adjustible resolution: From 8-bit up to 12-bit resolution depending on sample rate.
• Selectable termination: 1 MΩ and 50 Ω termination allows use of standard passive or active probes, and direct connections to 50 Ω systems and equipment.
• Portable: Requires only a Thunderbolt / USB 4 capable laptop and USB C cable. Comes in a hard case that holds your ThunderScope and probes, and fits easily in a backpack.

Software Features

• Multi-window user interface: Organize, view, and analyze measurements without the limitations of a small screen. Keep every waveform captured during a session.
• Advanced triggering: From the basics like edge triggering all the way to custom software-defined, cross-channel triggers that allow you to capture complex behavior.
• Protocol analysis: Measures and decodes protocols including I2C, SPI, CAN, SWD, USB, and Ethernet, as well as custom protocols.
• Memory depth: Limited only by your system memory. Allows you to capture seconds of data and zoom all the way to nanoseconds without reconfiguring and recapturing.

Specifications & Comparison

¹ This specification is a current measured value with margin applied, it is subject to improvement by production.
² The hardware for 12-bit mode is present in the design, however gateware and software for it is not implemented at time of writing
³ Currently in development

What’s in the box?

ThunderScope

• One ThunderScope in an aluminum enclosure
• One USB-C cable rated for 40 Gbps data transfer
• One customized Pelican 1120 carrying case

ThunderScope PCIe

• One ThunderScope PCIe card
• One custom PCIe bracket

Developer Edition

Developer edition units are a limited run of early bird units, which will feature a larger Artix-7 50T FPGA and 256 MB of DDR3. We’re doing this so these units can run our stable XDMA gateware while we transition to our new LiteX gateware, which takes less FPGA resources and does not require DDR3.

Note: Probes are sold separately so those who already have them can buy just the ThunderScope model they want, while those who need them or want more can add probes to their order to arrive with their ThunderScope.

Resources & Documentation

ThunderScope is the culmination of various projects with many different authors and repos, unified by the common goal of making excellent open source test equipment.

• Main Repository: Hardware, XDMA gateware, and documentation
• LiteX Gateware: Alternative FPGA gateware which uses the LiteX framework
• LitePCIe drivers support Linux, and now Windows and Mac, which is in development by the ThunderScope community.
• LiteX hardware control library for the LiteX gateware (in development).
• TS.NET: Hardware control for XDMA gateware, full throughput triggering, and interfacing with client software.
• ngscopeclient: ThunderScope's primary user interface, and long-standing and independent open source project made for deep analysis of data from various test equipment. For more information, check out ngscopeclient's GitHub and user manual.
• thunderscope-rs: Lightweight triggering, control and client software made to excel at quickly probing and exploring signals (in development).

Additional Information

• Teardown 2023 Project Overview Talk
• Supercon 2023 Analog Front End Talk
• ThunderScope Teardown Session Livestream
• ThunderScope Analog Front End Video Series

Community

• Our Discord Server is where we discuss the latest developments on the project, it is mirrored to #thunderscope:matrix.org on matrix and #thunderscope:libera.chat on IRC as well!
• Twitter: @aleksorsist
• Mastodon: @aleksorsist@fosstodon.org

Manufacturing Plan

• ThunderScope’s prototyping is complete and the production hardware design is in progress.
• ThunderScope will be tested for FCC and CE compliance by Nemko Canada.
• Critical BOM components including the FPGA, ADC, front end buffer, and PGA have been secured.
• ThunderScope’s PCBA will be done by Entropic Engineering, who have graciously offered us their assembly line for the first batch as well as connections with higher volume assembly houses for successive runs.
• The aluminum enclosure will be sourced from Hammond Manufacturing,
• The carrying case will be sourced from Pelican, with foam inserts cut in-house.
• The scope probes will be sourced from Testec.

Timeline

As the campaign comes to a close, we will order the first ThunderScope Developer edition boards, aluminum enclosures, cases, and probes. These should arrive at EEVengers HQ in Kitchener, Ontario, Canada by the end of 2024. We will carry out calibration, testing, and packing in house before sending units to Mouser for distribution.

Regular updates on manufacturing progress will be provided throughout the campaign. We’ll share photos, timeline updates, and manufacturing progress as we move through all the steps.

Fulfillment & Logistics

Once all units are tested and packed by us at EEVengers HQ in Kitchener, Ontario, Canada, we’ll send them on to Crowd Supply’s logistics partner, Mouser Electronics. Mouser will handle fulfillment and shipping of all campaign orders.

For more information, see Crowd Supply’s ordering, paying, and shipping guide. You can confirm your order, update your shipping address, and more on your Crowd Supply account page.

Risks & Challenges

The ThunderScope hardware design has been in development for 3 years in its current form, with another 3 years of research and experimentation before that. We have a dozen beta testers with the latest hardware and have not run into any major issues over the last two months.

The changes between the latest hardware (Beta 2) and production hardware schematics are relatively minor. The layout will change more significantly to bring the FPGA module onto the main board, however nothing about the module will change electrically, so the risk is only in the edges of the module layout that need to change to interface with the now combined mainboard. We will mitigate this risk by running a smaller gamma run first before committing to full production, this gamma run will become developer edition units and be shipped out ASAP once they pass all our internal testing.

Coordinating sourcing, manufacturing, and distribution is difficult in the best of times and this project is not immune to the inherent risks involved.

We have secured enough critical components to manufacture 50 units immediately. Additional components, such as the probes, enclosures and cases, will be ordered after the campaign ends. Because some components will be sourced from outside of Canada, there is always the risk of shipping delays and customs issues.

Since ThunderScope is a high-speed device, there are some additional challenges involved with manufacturing and certification. Special attention must be given to the PCB fabrication and assembly. We’ll be working with Multech, a manufacturer with the experience and capabilities required to fab consistent, high-quality PCBs. FCC and CE certifications are a major milestone and we plan to do as much in house testing as possible before sending it to Nemko Canada for compliance testing. In the unlikely event that ThunderScope fails certification, it could delay the shipping date by 4-6 weeks as we revise and submit for additional testing.

We commit to immediate communication with backers regarding any timeline changes or challenges encountered.