Spotlight Q&A with Harrison Osbourn, CEO, Signal Hound

JED: Since acquiring Signal Hound two-and-a-half years ago, what are some of the key elements of your strategy to grow the company and expand your customer base?

Osbourn: We have doubled down on new product development as a key part of our company strategy both in existing and new categories. We have been very busy filling out our product portfolio in order to fit the different needs and use cases of our customers. For example, last year we launched the SP-145, which is a 14.5-GHz spectrum analyzer that filled the gap between our BB60D (up to 6 GHz) and our SM200 (up to 20 GHz) spectrum analyzers. We are also pursuing new categories supported by the launch of our first phase noise tester, the PN400, and an upcoming launch of our very first Vector Network Analyzer, a two port, 40 GHz VNA, the VNA400.

JED: What are some of the important market trends you are seeing that are driving customer requirements for spectrum analyzers and signal generators?

Osbourn: We are seeing the continued proliferation of sensors across industries that is prompting an increased demand for test and measurement equipment like ours. Additionally, the increased focus on electronic warfare and signal intelligence is also driving more demand. We are seeing customers want higher frequency ranges, as well as higher bandwidth requirements.

JED: How have these trends influenced Signal Hound's latest product releases?

Osbourn: The above trend of higher frequency requirements helped prompt us to release our SM435, which is an extremely powerful 43.5 GHz spectrum analyzer that has an impressive 160 MHz of instantaneous bandwidth and is extremely popular for spectrum monitoring. We are also working on a multi-channel receiver that features four channels that can be independently tuned or phase coherent, the PCR 4200, which we hope to release in the first half of 2025. Signal Hound is working tirelessly to keep enhancing our product line in order to deliver unrivalled value for our customers.

JED: Signal Hound has developed several software tools for its spectrum analyzers. Is this software mostly focused on test and measurement or do you see a growing need for operational applications, such as interference detection and geolocation? On a related note, what are some of the third-party EW and SIGINT software suites that can be used with your spectrum analyzers?

Osbourn: All of our spectrum analyzers come with our powerful software, Spike. Spike has several inherent toolkits that are mostly focused on test and measurement. We recently launched our revamped phase noise test toolkit, which partners with our brand new PN400 tester to provide an extremely cost effective and flexible way to perform phase noise testing. We do partner with several third-party EW and SIGINT software suites, such as 3dB Labs, Kestrel, Decodio, and Procitec. Signal Hound features a software development kit, which allows our software partners to link up our hardware with their software depending on use case.

JED: What are your goals for Signal Hound over the next few years?

Osbourn: We have ambitious goals at Signal Hound to continue to build out our product portfolio by enhancing our current products, while also developing new offerings that grow our capabilities. In the future, we will offer more powerful spectrum analyzers and signal generators in higher frequency ranges, as well as more capable products that have higher bandwidths. We are constantly collecting customer feedback in order to develop the next generation of products that will fit the needs of our customers both today and beyond.