The November, 2026 Ad of the Month features one the most innovative oscilloscopes Tektronix ever built, the 7854. This ad ran in Industrial Research and Development in May, 1982, not long after the introduction of the instrument. In addition to being tied with 7844 as Tek’s third-highest bandwidth analog (realtime) oscilloscope, the 7854 was a groundbreaking digital oscilloscope—the first to incorporate a microprocessor. In addition, to the 16-bit Texas Instruments TMS9900 chip, the 7854 contained a 10-bit digitizer and a programmable waveform processor with a GBID interface. During early development before it received its official designation, it was called the “The Smart Scope.” The project manager was Tom Rousseau.

The 7854 Waveform Processing Oscilloscope can be programmed for automated waveform analysis using a detachable keyboard. It was programmed in RPN, reverse Polish notation, like HP calculators. As the ad states: “The 7854 digitizes repetitive signals up to 400 MHz. Stores them. Measures them. And displays the answer.” With optional memory, up to 40 waveforms could be stored and with the 7S11 Sampling Unit or the 7S12 TDR/Sampler plug-in and S-4 sampling head, waveforms up to 14 GHz could be sampled. The 7T11A Sampling Timebase plug-in also had to be used.

The 7854 mainframe sold for $10,500 in 1981 but with a typical complement of four plug-ins the price could easily exceed $20,000 ($77,500 in 2026).

This advertisement is a two page spread. This is the left page of the ad.

This is the right page of the ad.

The museum website has several pages devoted to the 7854. Our 7854 Waveform Processing Oscilloscope page highlights the unit on display at the museum as well as photos of the design team and early prototypes, ads, and operational photos. We also offer a replacement 7854 ROM board designed by the museum to replace the Mostek MKB36000 ROMs that are known to degrade over time.

Based on the popularity of our 500 series plug-in puzzle, we offer a 1000-piece 7854 puzzle. The museum teamed with Giovanni “Gianni” Becattini for the puzzle photo. He is known for this free pdf books on Tektronix instruments. The puzzle is available at the museum and in our eBay store.

Advertisements of the Month: Sept 2025 - Present.