Triplett PT6 User Manual

TRIPLETT

The

Hound 3

Instruction Manual

1

Hound 3 Instruction Manual

Table of Contents

1. Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

2. HOUND 3 Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

3. Safety Warnings and Cautions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 - 5

4. Specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 - 6

5. Control Locations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

6. General Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 - 13

7. Operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 - 38

8. Maintenance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

9. Accessories and Replacement Parts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

10. Warranty . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39 - 40

1: Introduction

The HOUND 3 is the latest Inductive Amplifier from Triplett
Corporation, improving on the features found in the popular
HOUND and HOUND 2 designs. Key new features are the
white LED illuminators, a Bandpass filter, an earphone jack,
and an easy battery access door. Used in conjunction with
the FOX or FOX 2 wire tracing signal generators, the HOUND
3 quickly traces hidden wiring through walls and aids in lo­cating a specific wire or wires within a group or wires, with­out piercing or stripping away their insulation.

84-865

2

2: Product Features:

2.1: Traces FOX and FOX 2 signals through drywall,
plaster, and wood frame construction

2.2: Picks up FOX or FOX 2 signals from a foot away

2.3: Identifies target wires without stripping off insulation

2.4: Adjustable Volume / Sensitivity control

2.5: Built in white LED illuminators for use in poorly
illuminated areas

2.6: Improved amplifier gain for higher sensitivity traces

2.7: Bandpass filter peaks signal sensitivity while
suppressing 60Hz

2.8: Conductive plastic duckbill probe provided for deep wire
bundle penetration and non-shorting performance

2.9: Metal probe provided for contact probing

2.10: Rugged, moisture resistant, mylar cone speaker with
high strength alnico magnet

2.11: Earphone jack for use in high noise areas

2.12: Improved performance LED signal strength indicator
works even when earphone is used

2.13: Uses common 9 volt battery

2.14: Convenient door for easy battery replacement

2.15: Internal shielding suppresses feedback

3

3: Safety Warnings and Cautions:

3.1:

Review the Safety Warnings and Cautions for the signal gen­erator (“toner”) . . . i.e. FOX or FOX 2 . . . that will be used.

3.2:

Use care when using the HOUND 3 to probe any wire or cable.
An unexpected dangerous voltage may be present, which
may result in injury to the user.

3.3:

Potentials applied to the HOUND 3’s probe may appear,
greatly reduced, at the earphone jack. This could pose a shock
hazard to the user, if for example, the probe is brought in
contact with a high voltage potential.

3.4:

The HOUND 3’s metal probe can accidentally short out a cir­cuit that is being tested. Use care when testing live circuitry,
or an accidental short may result in user injury.

3.5:

Use caution when working with telephone lines. They can
support dangerous voltages. 50VDC is often present, and
100VAC may be present during ringing. Additionally, tele­phone lines may support dangerous levels of common mode
voltages. In some circumstances, user injury may result.

4

3.6:

Use caution when working with any long unconnected wire
or cable. Under some conditions, unconnected wires may
“float up” to dangerous potentials, and touching them may
result in user injury.

4: Specifications:

4.1: Amplifier

High impedance bootstrapped FET input for high gain and
sensitivity. Incorporates a bandpass filter to improve sensi­tivity to FOX signals while suppressing 60Hz.

4.2: Speaker

1 1/2" mylar coned speaker with high strength alnico mag­net is rugged and moisture resistant.

4.3: Probes (2 provided)

a) Solid aluminum conical probe for low resistance contact
testing
b) Carbon filled nylon duckbill probe with metal threads for
sensitive non-shorting testing.

4.4: Earphone Jack

Accepts standard 1/8" (3.5mm) mini phone plug, either mono
or stereo. For use with electromagnetic (dynamic) earphones
from 8 Ohms to 2000 Ohms. Automatically mutes loud­speaker when earphone is used. An earphone with a shielded
cable is suggested to reduce the possibility of feedback from
the cable to the probe tip.

5

4.5: Signal Strength Indicator

Bright red LED signal strength indicator maintains sensitiv­ity, even when the earphone is used.

4.6: Power

A standard 9 volt battery (alkaline is recommended) pro­vides power for all circuitry. The battery is accessible by re­moving a convenient snap-on door (no tools required). The
HOUND 3 is protected against the accidental reversal of the
battery polarity.

4.7: Illumination

2 efficient bright white LEDs powered from separate current
sources provide constant illumination until battery is mostly
depleted (about 6 volts).

4.8: Size

1 7/8" dia at speaker, 1 3/8" dia at body, 8 1/4" long with
metal probe, 9 1/4" with conductive plastic probe.

4.9: Weight

Typically 6 ounces including battery

6

5: Control Locations

Conductive Plastic

A

Duckbill Tip

B

Metal Conical Tip

C

LED Headlights

D

Signal Strength Indicator

E

Power Button

F

Sensitivity Control

G

Earphone Jack

H

Battery

Connector

I

Battery

Strap

J

Battery

Cover

K

Battery

(not included)

L

Speaker Cover

A

C

D

E

L

Figure 1

7

F

G

H I

K

B

J

6: General Information

6.1: Installing Battery

Remove Battery Cover (J) by pressing the release tab to­wards probe end of the case. Remove Battery Connector (H)
and Battery Strap (I). Snap Connector to 9 volt battery and
slide Strap over battery. Position Strap so that the finger tab
is on the side of the battery. Insert battery into HOUND 3
case, placing bottom of battery against foam, and compress­ing the foam while completing the battery insertion (see Fig­ure 2). Lead wires should be behind battery and “dressed”
to allow battery to be fully inserted. The finger tab on the
Strap should be sticking out of the Battery Compartment.
This tab is used to remove the battery. Fold the tab over, and
secure the Battery Cover to the case by inserting the end
near the Earphone Jack (G) first, and snapping the opposite
end of the Cover to the case.

Figure 2

8

Helpful Hint:

The LED headlights can be used as a low battery indicator.
Their brightness is regulated when the battery is good, but
as the battery is depleted, a point will be reached where the
brightness of the LEDs will begin to decrease. It is a good
idea to consider replacing the battery at this time (or at least
have a spare one on hand). The HOUND 3 will continue to
work for a while, but some reduction in sensitivity and loss
of loudness may be noticed. Replace the battery for maxi­mum performance.

6.2: Power Button (E)

The Power Button is typically pressed and held while the
HOUND 3 is being used. When pressed, the Amplifier and
Speaker is activated, and the LED headlights are turned on.
Release the button to turn the product off.

6.3: LED Signal Strength Indicator (D)

The Signal Strength LED is used to indicate the presence of
a signal when it may be difficult to hear the signal coming
from the speaker (because of high ambient noise levels). It
will glow brighter as the received signal strength increases.
The brightness will be seen to pulsate with the characteris­tics of the received signal.

Helpful Hint:

The Signal Strength LED responds to any received signal.
Any sound normally heard in the speaker will cause the LED
to light. The user will note that the HOUND 3 will “pick up”
signals from electrical devices other than the FOX or FOX 2.

9

Probably the most notable signal, a buzzing sound, comes
from fluorescent lights. Other sounds can often be heard
when the HOUND 3 is placed near a TV, computer, or other
electronic device. The Signal Strength LED can’t differenti­ate between these signals…… so if the user is observing
just the LED, without being able to hear the speaker, he may
mistake an interfering signal for the target signal. This is
where the earphone is handy. By using the earphone, the
user can determine if the signal that the LED is responding
to is the target signal.

6.4: Volume / Sensitivity Thumbwheel (F)

The Volume / Sensitivity Thumbwheel controls the loudness
of the sound from the speaker. Usually, when initially search­ing for the target signal, the thumbwheel is set to maximum.
At this maximum setting, electronic noises from electrical
wiring or devices may be heard. When the target signal is
heard, the user can track the signal to its source by moving
the HOUND 3 in the direction that makes the sound of the
target signal get louder. As the loudness of the target signal
increases, the thumbwheel setting can be reduced, which
will reduce the loudness of the other interfering sounds.
Repeating this process will lead the user in the direction of
the wire with the target signal on it.

Helpful Hint:

The user can often track the Tone signal to its source with­out adjusting the Volume / Sensitivity thumbwheel. When
the target wire is in a group of wires, adjusting the
thumbwheel can help determine which wire is the target wire.

10

In this situation, it often helps to reduce the Volume / Sensi­tivity setting, so changes in loudness are easier to discern.
Also, the thumbwheel may be used to reduce the loudness
of the HOUND 3 in quiet office surroundings, so its use is
less obtrusive to nearby workers.

6.5: Earphone Jack (G)

The earphone jack accepts a standard 1/8" (3.5mm) mini­plug. This type is often used with portable music playing
devices. The earphone may be either a stereo or mono type.
For best results, the lead wire should be shielded to reduce
the possibility of feedback occurring between the lead wire
and the HOUND 3’s probe. When the plug is inserted into
the jack, the HOUND 3’s speaker is turned off, and the sound
can only be heard through the earphone.

To use the earphone, set the HOUND 3’s Volume / Sensitiv-
ity thumbwheel to minimum, plug the earphone into jack,
and press the Power button. Adjust the thumbwheel for a
comfortable sound level in the earphone.

Helpful Hint:

Setting the Volume / Sensitivity thumbwheel to minimum
prior to using the earphone, as previously described, can
often save the user from a jarring experience. Sounds that
are not very loud in the speaker, can be very loud in the
earphone. While the HOUND 3 does provide some compen­sation for this, the earphone loudness can varying greatly
depending on the earphones actually used.

11

In some situations, the HOUND 3 may have a tendency to
“feedback” at high Volume / Sensitivity settings. The feed­back may sound like a howling or squealing sound coming
from the speaker. To suppress this effect, the Volume / Sen­sitivity thumbwheel can be reduced, or the user may find
that touching an ungloved finger to the earphone jack may
help.

6.6: LED Headlights (C)

The white LED headlights provide light for performing tests
in poorly lit areas. The LEDs do not interfere with the target
signal. If fluorescent lighting is causing a lot of interference
with the target signal, the user may find it helpful to turn off
the lighting temporarily, and use the non-interfering illumi­nation provide by the LEDs.

6.7: Conductive Plastic and Metal Probes (A & B)

Two probes are provided with the HOUND 3. They are easily
changed by screwing and un-screwing them from the tip of
the HOUND 3.

The metal conical probe is rugged and durable. If working
with low voltage wiring, the metal probe can provide a sig­nificant increase in signal loudness when the metal in the
target wire, or a metal contact connected to the target wire,
is touched. This sometimes aids in identifying the target wire.
For example, the metal probe is often used to drag along the
contacts on a telephone punchdown block. In situations
where the metal probe may short a circuit, leading to dis­ruption of the circuit operation, or may short a power cir-

12

cuit, possibly causing equipment damage and user injury,
use of the conductive plastic probe is recommended. The
plastic probe is only slightly conductive, and usually causes
no disruption of equipment operation. An additional advan­tage is its “duckbill” shape, which allows it to penetrate deeply
into a bundle of wires.

Helpful Hint:

When using the conductive plastic probe, greater signal
pickup will be obtained if the wire being probed is laid against
the flat surface of the duckbill. Laying the wire against the
tip or edge of the duckbill will not produce the strongest
signal.

7: Operation

7.1: Pre-use Testing

Refer to the Instruction Manual of the FOX or FOX 2 (or other
Toner) for additional information on using the FOX’s and
HOUND 3.

Turn on a FOX or FOX 2 and set it to the Tone generation
mode. Press and hold the Power Button on the HOUND 3
and adjust the Volume / Sensitivity thumbwheel while plac­ing the probe of the HOUND 3 close to the test leads of the
FOX or FOX 2. The Tone being generated by the FOX or FOX
2 should be heard from the speaker of the HOUND 3. Using
the Volume / Sensitivity thumbwheel, adjust the loudness to
a comfortable level.

13

Notice that if the HOUND 3 is moved closer to the FOX or
FOX 2, the loudness of the Tone from the speaker increases,
as does the brightness of the signal LED. This effect will
allow you to locate a wire connected to the FOX or FOX 2
leads, even when the wire is hidden in a wall or ceiling.

7.2: Wire Tracing and Finding Faults

The HOUND 3, when used in conjunction with a FOX or FOX
2, can be used to trace and locate wires in cables and in
wood frame construction. There are several common test
scenarios . . . tracing wires through walls or ceilings, trac­ing wires in multiwire cables or harnesses, and locating
breaks in wires. In additional to obvious residential and
commercial uses, the FOXs and HOUNDs has also been used
on radio towers, in cars, boats, and even submarines.

7.2.1: General Wire Tracing Information

• “Toners and Probes” like the Triplett FOX and HOUND prod­ucts, will not trace “live” AC or DC power wires.

• The only type of “live” circuit that the FOXs and HOUNDs
will trace is a telephone circuit.

• The FOXs tracer tone will not penetrate electrically con­ductive materials . . . like any kind of metal or wet earth.
This means that the HOUNDs cannot pickup the tone if the
target wire is in a metal conduit or is underground. The
HOUNDs will pickup the tone at locations where the target
wire emerges from the conduit or the earth.

14

• The FOXs tracer tone will penetrate wood frame walls and
ceilings, and plaster and drywall. Under good conditions, a
HOUND can pickup the tone from a foot or more away from
the target wire.

• The FOXs tracer tone will pass through any electrical cir­cuitry connected to the target wire(s). Hence, to identify a
specific wire, it will be necessary to disconnect all loads and
circuitry from the wire. This includes switches, capacitors,
resistors, coils, transformers, lights, motors, etc.

• The FOXs tracer tone can be shorted out by any loads on
the target wire. All loads must be disconnected from the tar­get wire.

• Wet drywall, wet cinder block walls, or any wet wall sur­face will also shield the FOX signal, preventing the HOUND 3
from detecting its presence.

• The actual wire being wet can shield the signal. The wire
can be wet internally, shielding the signal. This phenomena
has been observed in “Romex” electrical wire. The internal
paper separator can get wet from exposure to the weather.
The exterior surface of the Romex can be dry, but because
the internal paper separator is wet, it shields the tracer sig­nal.

• Extremely high humidity will reduce the effectiveness of
the HOUND 3 in finding the FOX signal. Condensing atmo­spheres may even cause the products to malfunction until
they dry out.

15

7.2.2: The FOX 2, Crosstalk, and TrueTrace

Crosstalk is the bleeding of the tracer tone from the target
wire onto adjacent wires. This often happens in multiwire
cables, or in cable harnesses where many wires are bundled
together in close proximity to each other. A tracer tone ap­plied to a target wire or wires may crosstalk onto adjacent
wires. Some wires/cables are constructed to reduce the
crosstalk, but other wire/cables crosstalk readily. So much
crosstalk can occur that the tracer tone on the adjacent wires
can be almost as large as the original tone on the target
wire. This can make it difficult to identify the target wire with
any of the HOUNDs. The traditional method of trying to de­termine if the tone being received is the original tone, or is
crosstalk, is to short out the wires with the tone where the
HOUND is being used. If shorting the wires only reduces the
tone’s level, but does not completely kill it, then the shorted
wires have crosstalk on them, and are not the target wires.
If shorting the wires completely kills the tone, then its likely
that the wires are the target wires. Unfortunately, this is not
100% effective. The FOX 2 uses TrueTrace . . . a test tech­nique which greatly improves the accuracy of the trace.
Shorting the target wires together causes the cadence (the
speed at which the tracer tone warbles or pulses) of the tracer
tone to change, positively identifying the target wire(s).

7.2.3: Wire Tracing Methods

There are two basic wire tracing methods . . . “floating” and
“grounded”.

16

In the floating method (also called Line to Line), the tracer
tone is applied to two wires (a pair) in the cable or wire har­ness to be tested. See Figure 3. The FOX or FOX 2’s red clip
is connect to one wire and the green clip is connected to the
other wire. This method is often used on telephone, inter­com, or alarm wires. The floating method tends to cancel
out some of the tracer tone, so a HOUND 3 usually works
best when the user has access to the wires, and can place
the HOUND 3 right against the wires. This method identifies
the wires as a pair. It will not identify which wire is con­nected to the FOX or FOX 2’s green clip or which wire is
connected to the red clip.

If using a FOX, identify the target wire using the “Remote
Tone Kill” technique. When the wire or wires (pair) that the
FOX is connected to, are shorted out, locally or remotely,
the TONE signal from the FOX is “killed”.

In situations where it is difficult to identify the target wire,
because of crosstalk from other wires, the target wires can
be identified by shorting out the wire pair with the TONE on
it. If you have found the correct wires, the TONE will be com­pletely killed. If the TONE is still heard, but reduced some­what in level, you have not found the target wires. This
method is not foolproof, and experimentation, common
sense, and experience must be used to apply it properly.
However, in many instances, it will provide trace verifica­tion. A caution . . . if you are at a location where the only
wires are not the target wires, but they have a signal on them
due to crosstalk . . . it may appear that you have killed the

17

FOX TONE when you short out the wires. To make sure, leave
the short on the wire in question, and go back to FOX, and
test the alligator clips with the HOUND 3. If the TONE is still
there, you have not shorted the target wire.

Note: Even with the FOX’s alligator clips shorted out, the
case of the FOX unit will still radiate some TONE. Do not
confuse this with the TONE coming from the alligator clips.
Perform a few experiments by shorting out the clips and
probing the FOX with the HOUND 3 so you know what to
expect.

If using a FOX 2, the wires can be momentarily shorted to
active the True Trace feature. If this is the target pair, the
cadence of the tracer tone will change.

18

CORDLESS

TRIPLETT

INTERFACE

VISUAL CONT.

TALK

BATTERY TEST

UNLOCK

WARBLE
PULSE

AUDIBLE CONT.
TRACER TONE

OFF / POLARITY

AC / RING

REV NORM

OVERLOAD PROTECTED

Figure 3

Floating or Line-to-Line Tracing

In the grounded method (also called Line to Ground), one
clip of the FOX or FOX 2 (either the red or green) is con­nected to earth ground or a “fake ground”, and the other clip
is connected to the target wire. The target wire can be one
wire of a pair or a multiwire cable. See Figure 4. This method
creates the strongest tracer tone, and is often used when
wires are traced through walls or ceiling. It is also useful
for identifying a specific wire within a bundle of wires. If

19

connection to a true ground is not available, a large metal
object can be used as a fake ground. For example, a large
metal desk or a metal file cabinet can be used. When tracing
wires in a car, trailer, or RV, etc. the metal frame or body can
be used as a ground. When tracing wires in a boat (that is in
the water) with a wood or fiberglass glass hull, any piece of
metal that comes in contact with the water can be used as a
ground. Simply connect one clip of the FOX or FOX 2 to the
ground or fake ground, and the other clip to the target wire.

To identify the wire, True Trace (only available in the FOX 2)
can be used in conjunction with the grounded method of
tracing, if the ground that is used at the FOX 2 location is
also available at the end location of the wires. Simply short
each suspect wire to the ground while listening for a ca­dence change with the HOUND 3. If water is used as the
ground, it usually is not conductive enough to active True
Trace at the end opposite of the FOX 2.

To identify the wire, if using a FOX, and a ground is available
at the end location of the wires, apply the Remote Tone Kill
technique (previously described) by shorting suspect wires
to ground, to identify the target wire.

Helpful Hints:

Extension pieces of wire, or long clip leads, can be used to
connect the FOX or FOX 2 to a ground or fake ground. The
extension wire can be hundreds of feet long if necessary.

To test a fake ground to see if it can be used for wire tracing,

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connect one clip from the FOX or FOX 2 to the candidate
object (like a metal desk) and the other clip of the FOX or
FOX 2 to the target wire. Hold the HOUND 3 near the object.
A “good” fake ground will not radiate much tracer tone. The
tracer tone should be much stronger on the FOX’s other clip.
If it is not, the target wire may be shorted to ground, or the
fake ground may not be adequate. Generally, the larger the
object used as the fake ground, the better it works.

If the target wire is somehow connected to ground, this will
greatly reduce or kill the tracer tone.

TARGET
WIRE

TRIPLETT

CONTINUITY

TALK

HI

TONE

WARBLE

LO

OFF / LINE POLARITY

MULTI-WIRE CABLE

TERMINALS

Grounded or Line-to-Ground Tracing

Figure 4

21

7.2.4: Telephone wires, Tracing and Finding Faults

The floating method is usually used to locate a pair of wires
in a telephone junction block. If the wires are already termi­nated into a modular telephone jack, simply plug the FOX or
FOX 2 into the jack. This method works with the phone line
connected or disconnected from the wires going to the tele­phone company. A stronger trace is usually obtained if the
wires are not connected to the telephone company.

If the wires are not connected to the telephone company,
the grounded method can be used to trace telephone wires
through a wall or ceiling. Use the green and red clips to con­nect to the phone line and ground.

To identify the wires, if using the floating method and a FOX
2, momentarily short the suspect wires together to active
True Trace, and listen for the cadence change. If it changes,
you’ve found the target pair. If no change occurs, keep
searching.

To identify the wires, if using the grounded method and a
FOX 2, momentarily short the suspect wire to ground to ac­tive True Trace, and listen for the cadence change. If it
changes, you’ve found the target wire. If no change occurs,
keep searching. This will not work if a fake ground is being
used. An actual ground is required to activate True Trace.

An “Open Fault” may involve either one or both wires of a
telephone wire pair. Finding the open will only work if there
are no other faults (like a short to earth ground) in the pair.

22

If the pair is “live”, disconnect the pair from the incoming
telephone line before trying to locate the open. Short the
wires together at the far end and connect the shorted wires
to a good earth ground (a fake ground may not work well).
An extension wire may be used. At the other end of the wires,
connect one of the clips of the FOX or FOX 2 to a good earth
ground. Experimentally connect the other clip of the FOX or
FOX 2 to one wire and then the other, while listening to the
tracer tone on this clip with the HOUND 3. If the level of the
tracer tone drops significantly when the clip is connected to
one of the wires, this wire is probably OK and the other wire
is open. That is, the open wire is the one that doesn’t drop
the level of the tracer tone. If neither wire drops the level of
the tracer tone, they are probably both open (or a good
ground has not been used).

Leave the clip connected to the wire or wires that do not
“load down” the tracer tone. See Figure 5. Using the HOUND
3, follow the path of the wires by finding the strongest sig­nal. An abrupt drop in the tracer tone level will occur at the
point of the open. Keep in mind, however, if tracing unseen
wires in the wall or ceiling, that the wires may pass behind a
metal object (like a furnace duct) that prevents the HOUND
3 from picking up the tracer signal, or the wires may diverge
from the path of the receiver. Before assuming that the open
has been located, try finding the signal nearby or in an adja­cent attached wall or ceiling. Also keep in mind that it may
not be possible to find the open in all situations, because of
the number of variables involved.

23

Helpful Hints:

A pair of wires with an “open” may allow the tracer tone to
appear at the far end of the pair, despite the open fault. In
this situation, The FOX 2’s True Trace will not work, even
though it is applied to the target pair.

STRONG

TONE

CORDLESS

TRIPLETT

INTERFACE

VISUAL CONT.

TALK

BATTERY TEST

UNLOCK

WARBLE
PULSE

AUDIBLE CONT.
TRACER TONE

OFF / POLARITY

AC / RING

REV NORM

OVERLOAD PROTECTED

Figure 5

Locating an Open

7.2.5: Coaxial cable, Tracing and Finding Faults

Coaxial cable, like that used for cable TV, satellite TV, closed
circuit TV, early LAN systems, etc. is often connected to other
cables through splitters, combiners, or amplifiers. In order
to trace the cable, it must be disconnected from these
“loads”. Since coaxial cable is self-shielding, the floating
method usually does not work well when tracing the cable.
It can be done, but the HOUND 3 must be held very close to
the end of the cable to pick up any signal. To apply a floating
signal to a coax, connect one clip of the FOX or FOX 2 to the

OPEN FAULT

WEAK TONE

24

center conductor of the coax, and the other clip to the shield
of the coax.

The grounded method often works better for tracing coaxial
cables. Connect one clip of the FOX or FOX 2 to a ground or
fake ground, and the other clip to the shield of the coax.
This method will cause the coax to radiate enough tracer
tone to trace the coax through drywall.

To identify the coax, if using the floating method and a FOX
2, momentarily short the shield and center conductor to­gether to active True Trace, and listen for the cadence change.
If it changes, you’ve found the target coax. If no change oc­curs, keep searching.

To identify the coax, if using the grounded method and a
FOX 2, momentarily short the shield to ground to active True
Trace, and listen for the cadence change. If it changes, you’ve
found the target coax. If no change occurs, keep searching.
This will not work if a fake ground is being used. An actual
ground is required to activate True Trace.

To identify the coax, if using a FOX, use the Remote Tone Kill
technique (previously described).

Note: It is not unusual for the loose turn-able part of a co­axial connector to have poor electrical contact to the cable
shield until it is screwed on to its mating connector. Conse­quently, True Trace may not activate if this part of the con­nector is contacted.

25

Because of the way that coax is constructed, it is not pos­sible to find an open in the center conductor. It is possible to
find an open in the shield, if the shield is not shorted to the
center conductor or ground. Connect the center conductor
of the coax to earth ground. Connect the shield and center
conductor at the far end of the coax to earth ground. Con­nect one clip of the FOX or FOX2 to an earth ground. Experi­mentally connect the other clip of the FOX or FOX 2 to the
shield of the coax, while listening to the tracer tone on this
clip with the HOUND 3. If the level of the tracer tone drops
significantly when the clip is connected to the shield, the
shield is probably grounded and can’t be traced to the open.

If the level of the tracer tone doesn’t drop much, leave the
clip connected to shield. Using the HOUND 3, follow the path
of the coax by finding the strongest signal. An abrupt drop
in the tracer tone level will occur at the point of the open.
Keep in mind, however, if tracing unseen coaxes in the wall
or ceiling, that the wires may pass behind a metal object
(like a furnace duct) that prevents the HOUND 3 from pick­ing up the tracer signal, or the coaxes may diverge from the
path of the receiver. Before assuming that the open has been
located, try finding the signal nearby or in an adjacent at­tached wall or ceiling. Also keep in mind that it may not be
possible to find the open in all situations, because of the
number variables involved.

7.2.6: Power Wires, Tracing and Finding Faults

The FOX or FOX 2 and HOUND 3 cannot trace or identify
“live” power wires. To use a FOX or FOX 2 and HOUND 3 to

26

trace a power wire, power must be removed from the wire,
and all loads must be removed from the wire. This may be
as simple as turning the circuit breaker off, and turning off
all of the loads.

NM-B (Non-Metallic wires, sometimes called “Romex”) can
be traced by putting one clip of the FOX or FOX 2 on the
ground or neutral, and the other clip on the hot wire.

ing a FOX 2 and it starts beeping, remove it from the wires
immediately. The wires are live. Remove the power source.

Reconnect the FOX 2. Trace the wires using the HOUND 3 in
the usual manner.

If the target wires are in a metal conduit, they cannot be
traced until they emerge from the conduit.

To identify the wires, if using a FOX 2, momentarily short
the suspect wires together to active True Trace, and listen
for the cadence change. If it changes, you’ve found the tar­get pair. If no change occurs, keep searching.
care not to short together live wires! If this is a possibility,
the user may wish to use a light bulb to activate True Trace.
Simply connect a 120VAC incandescent bulb (any wattage)
across the wires. If the bulb lights, the line is live. If the
cadence changes, the target wire has been located. If noth­ing happens, keep searching.

An adapter with a standard lightbulb base and clip leads can
often be purchased at a local hardware store.

27

If us-

Warning, take

7.2.7: Resistance Heating Wires

The FOX or FOX 2 and the HOUND 3 can be used to trace the
path of a resistance heating wire in a plaster wall or ceiling.
This is usually performed to find an open in the wire. It is
best if the user is familiar with resistance heating techniques,
particularly in regard to the typical patterns used for the wire
path. The wire is usually in a serpentine pattern, with the
wire spacing and orientation varying depending on the
amount of heat needed in different areas of a room.

Finding the open can be a challenge. Several techniques can
be, and should be, used.

It helps if the user performs a few experiments before trying
to find the open. See Figure 6. Attach a few pieces of wire
(any kind) more than several feet long to each clip of the
FOX or FOX 2. Lay the wires out on a non-conducting sur­face (a wood floor with no metal in the vicinity . . . nails are
OK, but make sure there’s no metal furnace duct below the
floor) parallel to each other, about 4 “ apart. Using the HOUND
3, trace along one of the wires, in normal fashion, noting
how the tracer tone becomes stronger as the wire is ap­proached. Now trace along the other wire, noting that it be­haves just like the previous wire. Now, slowing move the
HOUND 3 from one wire to the other wire. Notice that at
approximately the midpoint between the wires, the tracer

tone becomes very weak. This is the “null point”...... the place

where the signal from one wire cancels the signal from the
other wire. Notice how this null differs from simple loss of
signal . . . that is, there’s a very narrow zone where the null

28

occurs, and the signal gets stronger quite rapidly on either
side of the null. By waving the HOUND 3 back and forth while
slowly moving along the length of the wire, the path of the
null point can be followed between the wires. These wires
can be thought of as being on either side of the open fault .
. . so by using this technique, it will be possible to localize
the area in which the fault occurs.

STRONG

SIGNAL

CORDLESS

TRIPLETT

INTERFACE

VISUAL CONT.

TALK

BATTERY TEST

UNLOCK

WARBLE
PULSE

AUDIBLE CONT.
TRACER TONE

OFF / POLARITY

AC / RING

REV NORM

OVERLOAD PROTECTED

NULL

SIGNAL

FADES

Figure 6

Reposition the test wires so that they are inline with each
other, with a small gap between them (1/16" to 1/8"). See
Figure 7. Again, trace along the length of the wire and note
how a null point occurs at the gap. This technique can be
used to find the open fairly precisely, if the spacing of the
wires and the location of the open lends its to this approach.

29

STRONG

SIGNAL

NULL

OPEN

CORDLESS

TRIPLETT

INTERFACE

VISUAL CONT.

TALK

BATTERY TEST

UNLOCK

WARBLE

PULSE

AUDIBLE CONT.
TRACER TONE

OFF / POLARITY

AC / RING

REV NORM

OVERLOAD PROTECTED

Figure 7

Now, attach one of the clips and the wire attached to it to a
good earth ground. See Figure 8. The HOUND 3 should pickup
very little signal from the grounded wire. Move the HOUND
3 along the length of the wire and note how a strong signal

30

is picked up on one side of the open fault, and very little
signal is picked up on the other side of the fault.

STRONG

SIGNAL

WEAK SIGNAL

OPEN

CORDLESS
INTERFACE

VISUAL CONT.

TALK

UNLOCK

AUDIBLE CONT.
TRACER TONE

GROUND

TRIPLETT

BATTERY TEST

WARBLE

PULSE

OFF / POLARITY

AC / RING

REV NORM

OVERLOAD PROTECTED

Figure 8

For the most accurate simulation, lay out a serpentine pat­tern on the floor similar to that in the ceiling, and locate the
open in different places, using the nulling and the grounding

31

technique. Have an assistant position the open fault while
you are out of the room, and then cover the wire with card-

board, newspaper, plywood, etc. . . . and see if you can find

the open. You’ll probably find that the open is sometimes
found in the wrong place. Notice what wire configuration
causes this to happen and experiment with the nulling and
grounding techniques to see if a method can be figured out
that will work in these situations.

To test the actual resistance heating circuit, disconnect the
ends of the heating wires from the power source. This can
usually be done at the thermostat that controls the room.
Attach the clips of the FOX or FOX 2 to the wires (one clip to
each wire) and use the nulling and grounding techniques
discussed above, and any other methods learned from your
experiments, to find the open fault.

7.2.8: Cars

Wires can be traced in cars or similar metal bodied vehicles
using the grounded method. The metal body of the car acts
as a ground, and as a shield. This means that, compared to
tracing in a wood frame structure, it will be necessary to
place the HOUND 3 closer to the target wire to pick up a
tracer tone.

Connect one clip of the FOX or FOX 2 to the metal chassis of
the car, and the other clip to the wire to be traced. As in
other applications, the far end of the wire must be discon­nected from any loads or any other wires, or the tracer tone
will be shorted out, or it will migrate into other wires. Be-

32

cause wires adjacent to the target wire will often acts as
shields, and because the wires in cars are often bundled to­gether into harnesses, it may be difficult to follow the target
wire through the harness. Try to locate the wire as it emerges
from the harness.

If using a FOX 2, use the True Trace feature to identify the
target wire. Short the suspect wires to the metal chassis to
activate True Trace, and listen for the cadence change. If more
than one wire causes the cadence to change, the wires are
somehow connected together, either through a short or
through a load (like a light bulb, a switch, a motor, etc.).

If using a FOX, use the Remote Tone Kill technique (previ­ously described) to find the target wire.

Find an open fault by tracing along the wire until the tracer
tone drops dramatically in level. Shorting the far end of the
open wire to chassis ground may help. If the wire is bundled
in a harness, it may be difficult, if not impossible to locate
the open without unbundling the harness. In these cases, it
is sometimes more expedient to run a new wire to replace
the open wire.

7.2.9: Boats

Wiring tracing on metal hulled boats is similar to tracing
wires in cars (see above).

If tracing wires in a boat with a non-conductive hull (wood
or fiberglass) that is in the water, the grounded method can

33

be used, but the water will act as the ground. Attach one clip
of the FOX or FOX 2 to a metal object that is in contact with
the water, and the other clip to the wire to be traced. If nec­essary, attach an extension wire to the FOX or FOX 2 so that
the clip will reach the “grounded” metal object. If there is no
grounded metal object, simply drop the extension wire over­board into the water.

If tracing wires in a boat that is out of the water, attach one
clip of the FOX or FOX 2 to the metal trailer frame, or to a
grounded metal object. As before, an extension wire can be
used if necessary.

Water is generally not conductive enough to activate the True
Trace feature. If the boat is reasonably small, an extension
wire can be attached to the grounded clip and run to the far
end of the suspect wire. Short the extension wire to the sus­pect wire to see if True Trace activates.

7.2.10: LAN Cables

Ethernet LAN cables may be traced with the HOUND 3. If
using a FOX 2, simply plug the LAN cable into the FOX 2’s
RJ-45 jack. If necessary, use a LAN jumper cable to connect
between the FOX 2 and a wall jack. If using a FOX, the user
will need to make his own adaptor, to transition between the
FOX’s clips or its RJ-11 plug, to an RJ-45 plug/jack.

An adaptor is available that will allow the RJ-45 jack on the
FOX 2 to connect to a coax based LAN with BNC connectors.
See preceding information on Coaxial cables.

34

Do not connect a FOX or FOX 2 to a live LAN! This will not

damage the FOX’s, but it may “crash” the LAN.

Due to their construction, LAN cables tend to suppress the
tracer tone field. It is often necessary to get close to the
cable with the HOUND 3 to locate or trace it. To increase the
tracer tone strength, connect either clip of the FOX or FOX 2
to a ground while the target cable is connected to the RJ-45
jack. However, when using this grounded technique, the
tracer tone strength may be so dramatically increased that
the tone will crosstalk onto adjacent cables, making the path
of the target cable difficult to differentiate from the path of
the other LAN cables. This is especially true if the LAN cables
are bundled together, which promotes crosstalk.

To identify the LAN cable, if using a FOX 2, pair 4/5 must be
momentarily shorted to active True Trace. These are the cen­ter 2 pins on an RJ-45 connector. These can be shorted out
with a small wire . . . or a special user constructed plug/jack
made for this purpose.

Specialized LAN testers, like the Triplett PairMaster,
WireMaster XR-2, or WireMaster XR-5 can easily identify
LAN cable faults. These faults are usually right at the RJ-45
connectors. If an open fault is identified in the LAN cable,
make sure that the open is in one of the active pairs. In a
typical 568A/B CAT 5 LAN, only pairs 1/2 and 3/6 are used.
Pairs 4/5 and 7/8 are not used. Faults in these pairs will not
affect the performance of the LAN.

35

To find an open fault in a LAN cable, first check the RJ-45
connectors on the ends of the cable. If these are OK, some
special test cables, or a Break Out Box (BOB) is necessary to
find the open along the path of the cable. First, trace the
path of the cable using the pre-described methods. Then
insert a BOB, our use a special cable to connect the clips of
the FOX of FOX 2 to the LAN cable. Connect 7 of the LAN
wires together, leaving the open faulted wire as the 8th wire.
Connect the 7 wires to one clip of the FOX or FOX 2, and
connect this clip to earth ground. Connect the open faulted
wire to the other clip of the FOX or FOX 2. Trace along the
path of the cable (which has already been located) with the
HOUND 3, listening for a sudden drop in the tone level. When
this drop is found, note its position. Continue tracing along
the path of the cable. If the tone level stays low, the point at
which the level dropped is probably the location of the open
fault. If the level comes back up, there was probably an un­seen obstruction that caused the level to drop. Continue trac­ing along the cable until the “true” open is found.

2.7.11: Alarm / Security Wires

Alarm and security wires can be traced like other wires. If
using a FOX 2, the True Trace feature is convenient when the
wires are connected to an enclosed magnetic switch. Sim­ply open and close the protected opening, or use a test mag­net, to actuate the sensor. Listen for the cadence to change.
If it changes, you’ve identified the proper wire, and verified
that the sensor is working.

36

If there is an EOL resistor on the line, it may be necessary to
remove it for True Trace to work. To find out if the EOL needs
to be removed, turn on the FOX 2, set it to TRACER TONE,
and connect it’s clips to the wires. While listening to the FOX
2’s pilot tone, short the clips together several times, noting
whether the cadence changes. If it does, the EOL can be left
on the line. If the cadence does not change, the EOL must be
removed.

7.2.12: Miscellaneous Multiwire Cables

Some general principles are important to keep in mind when
locating and tracing wires and cables.

Any wire with a signal on it, which runs parallel to another
wire or wires tends to couple its signal to the other wires.
The closer the wires are together, and the longer the parallel
run, the more signal that is coupled. This situation occurs in
multiwire cables, and when cables are bundled together when
installed.

Luckily, if the other wires are low impedance (they have loads
on them), the coupled signal will be lower in level. So, in
general its best to disconnect the cable being traced from
its loads, leaving other paralleling cables still connected to
their loads. If the other cables do not have loads (like when
they are being installed), it helps to temporarily connect one
end of the cable to earth ground, so that they do not inter­fere with the trace.

37

The loading effect can also be used when trying to locate an
open fault in a wire in a multiwire cable. By leaving the loads
on the unfaulted wires, the tracer tone will be reduced in
level on the unfaulted wires, and make locating the open
easier. In fact, if the other wires are unconnected, it helps to
temporarily connect them to earth ground, so that they sup­press the effect of the coupled signals. It may also help to
connect the far end of the open faulted wire to earth ground.
Doing this will produce the most distinct change in tracer
tone level when the HOUND 3 passes over the location of
the open.

8: Maintenance

The HOUND 3 should require little maintenance throughout
its life. If the case gets dirty, clean it with a mild soap and
water solution.

9: Accessories and Replacement Items

FOX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3380

FOX 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3382

9 Volt Battery (alkaline) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37-48

Duckbill Plastic Probe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79-798

Conical Metal Probe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2567-79

RJ-45 to BNC Adapter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2455-824

Speaker Cap (shielded) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-4292

Battery Cover for HOUND 3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-4286

Instruction Manual . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84-865

Carrying Case . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-4291

Earphones . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13837

38

10: Warranty Info

ONE YEAR LIMITED WARRANTY

The Triplett Corporation warrants instruments and test equipment
manufactured by it to be free from defective material or workman­ship and agrees to repair or replace such products which, under
normal use and service, disclose the defect to be the fault of our
manufacturing, with no charge within one year of the date of original
purchase for parts and labor. If we are unable to repair or replace
the product, we will make a refund of the purchase price. Consult
the Instruction Manual for instructions regarding the proper use and
servicing of instruments and test equipment. Our obligation under
this warranty is limited to repairing, replacing, or making refund on
any instrument or test equipment which proves to be defective within
one year from the date of original purchase.

This warranty does not apply to any of our products which have been
repaired or altered by unauthorized persons in any way so as, in our
sole judgment, to injure their stability or reliability, or which have
been subject to misuse, abuse, misapplication, negligence, accident
or which have had the serial numbers altered, defaced, or removed.
Accessories, including batteries and fuses, not of our manufacture
used with this product are not covered by this warranty.

To register a claim under the provisions of this warranty, return the
instrument or test equipment to Triplett Corporation, Service De­partment, One Triplett Drive, Bluffton, Ohio 45817, transportation
prepaid. Upon our inspection of the product, we will advise you as
to the disposition of your claim.

39

ALL WARRANTIES IMPLIED BY LAW ARE HEREBY LIMITED TO A
PERIOD OF ONE YEAR FROM DATE OF PURCHASE, AND THE PRO­VISIONS OF THE WARRANTY ARE EXPRESSLY IN LIEU OF ANY
OTHER WARRANTIES EXPRESSED OR IMPLIED.

The purchaser agrees to assume all liability for any damages and
bodily injury which may result from the use or misuse of the prod­uct by the purchaser, his employees, or others, and the remedies
provided for in this warranty are expressly in lieu of any other liabil­ity Triplett Corporation may have, including incidental or consequen­tial damages.

Some states (USA ONLY) do not allow the exclusion or limitation of
incidental or consequential damages, so the above limitation or ex­clusion may not apply to you. No representative of Triplett Corpora­tion or any other person is authorized to extend the liability of Triplett
Corporation in connection with the sale of its products beyond the
terms hereof.

Triplett Corporation reserves the right to discontinue models at any
time, or change specifications, price or design, without notice and
without incurring any obligation.

This warranty gives you specific legal rights, and you may have other
rights which vary from state to state.

40