page_title: Tektronix
section_title: 1955–1969
hierarchical_section_title: Tektronix / History / 1955–1969
caption_attribution_description: English: Hughes Aircraft made the first storage oscilloscope the 104D but very few were made. Tektronix mass produced a better one the 564 and with plug-ins it can do much more.
context_page_description: Tektronix, Inc., historically widely known as Tek, is an American company best known for manufacturing test and measurement devices such as oscilloscopes, logic analyzers, and video and mobile test protocol equipment.
  Originally an independent company, it is now a subsidiary of Fortive, a spinoff from Danaher Corporation.
  Several charities are, or were, associated with Tektronix, including the Tektronix Foundation and the M.J. Murdock Charitable Trust in Vancouver, Washington.
context_section_description: In 1956, a large property in Beaverton became available, and the company’s employee retirement trust purchased the land and leased it back to the company. Construction began in 1957 and on May 1, 1959 Tektronix moved into its new Beaverton headquarters campus, on a 313-acre (1.27 km²) site which came to be called the Tektronix Industrial Park.
  In the late 1950s (1957–58), Tektronix set a new trend in oscilloscope applications that would continue into the 1980s. This was the introduction of the plug-in oscilloscope. Started with the 530 and 540 series oscilloscopes, the operator could switch in different horizontal sweep or vertical input plug-ins. This allowed the oscilloscope to be an adaptable test instrument. Later Tektronix added plug-ins to have the scope operate as a spectrum analyzer, waveform sampler, cable tester and transistor curve tracer. The 530 and 540 series also ushered in the delayed trigger, allowing to trigger between a sweep rather than at the beginning. This allows more stable triggering and better waveform reproduction.
  In 1961, Tektronix sold its first (possibly the world's first practical) completely portable oscilloscope, the model 321. This oscilloscope could run on AC line (power mains) or on rechargeable batteries. It also brought the oscilloscope into the transistor age (only a Nuvistor ceramic tube was used for the vertical amp input). A year and a half later the all transistor model 321A came out.
  The 560 series introduced the rectangular CRT to oscilloscopes. In 1964 Tektronix made an oscilloscope breakthrough, the world's first mass-produced analog storage oscilloscope the model 564. Hughes Aircraft Company is credited with the first working storage oscilloscope (the model 104D) but it was made in very small numbers and is extremely rare today.
  In 1966, Tektronix brought out a line of high frequency full function oscilloscopes called the 400 series. The oscilloscopes were packed with features for field work applications. These scopes were outstanding performers often preferred over their laboratory bench models. The first models were the 422, a 16 MHz bandwidth and the 453, a 50 MHz bandwidth model. The following year the 454, a 150 MHz portable.  These models put Tektronix well ahead of their competitors for years. The US Military contracted with Tektronix for a model 453 "ruggedized" for field servicing. The 400 series models would continue to be popular choices in the 1970s and '80s. In addition the styling of the 400 series would be copied by Tektronix's competitors. 400 series oscilloscopes were still being used as of 2013.
caption: The Model 564 First Mass Produced Analog Storage Oscilloscope
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