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NI PCI-5421

100 MS/s, 16-Bit Arbitrary Waveform Generator

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  • 12 Vpp into 50 Ω load
  • 8, 32, or 256 MB of onboard memory
  • 91 dBc close-in SFDR and -62 dBc THD at 10 MHz
  • Graphical waveform creation and editing software
  • 100 MS/s sampling rate, 400 MS/s with interpolation
  • Optional 16-bit LVDS digital pattern output
  • Data Sheet
  • New! Compare to similar products

Step 1: Verify Device and Quantity Selection
Part
Number		 Description Est Ship Days Glossary Definition US Dollars
(change) 		Qty
  NI PCI-5421      
778692-02 32 MB
NI Recommended		 -- For price, select country  
778692-03 256 MB -- For price, select country  
778692-01 8 MB -- For price, select country  

Each NI PCI-5421/32MB requires: 1 Cable

NI PCI-5421/32MB Cable
Step 2: Select Cable
Part
Number		 Description Est Ship Days Glossary Definition US Dollars
(change) 		Qty
Shielded
778827-01 SMB 112
NI Recommended		 -- For price, select country  
188859-01 SMB 200 -- For price, select country  
Step 3: Select Optional Accessories
Part
Number		 Description Est Ship Days Glossary Definition US Dollars
(change) 		Qty
Software
778848-01 NI Analog Waveform Editor -- For price, select country  
Step 4: Add to Cart or Get a Quote

Please select the country where you will use the product(s) so that we can provide you with accurate pricing, availability, and purchasing information

The National Instruments PCI-5421 is a 100 MS/s arbitrary waveform generator featuring 16-bit resolution and up to 256 MB of onboard memory. With this combination of high-resolution and deep memory, you can generate long, precise, aperiodic waveforms. The NI PCI-5421 is ideal for a range of applications in communications, consumer electronics, scientific research, automotive, and military/aerospace. Because the PCI-5421 uses the PCI bus, waveforms can be downloaded up to 280 times faster than with GPIB-based generators. Using the Synchronization and Memory Core (SMC) and the RTSI bus, you can create stimulus/response systems with digitizers and high-speed digital I/O or synchronize two or more arbitrary waveform generators to form a phase-coherent multichannel generation system.

The 32 and 256 MB models include the NI Analog Waveform Editor, an interactive tool for creating and editing analog waveforms.

Data Sheet | View Pricing and Purchasing Information »

Specifications Documents


Specifications Summary

General 
Form FactorPCI
OS SupportWindows, Real-Time, Linux
LabVIEW RT SupportYes
Analog Input 
Number of Channels0
Analog Output 
Number of Channels1
TimingHardware
Update Rate100 MS/s
Frequency Range0..43 MHz
Resolution16 bits
Output Impedance50 Ohm, 75 Ohm
Maximum On-Board Memory 256 MB
Maximum Voltage Range-6..6 V
      Range Sensitivity48 mV
Minimum Voltage Range-2.82..2.82 mV
      Range Sensitivity1 mV
Waveform TypesStandard Functions, Intermediate Frequency, Arbitrary, Video, DC
Provides Data Bit Marker?Yes
Supports Linking/Looping Segments?Yes
Supports Frequency Hopping and Sweeping?No
Supports Data Streaming?Yes
Supports On-the-fly signal adjustments?No
Supports Modulation?Yes
Dynamic Range -78 dBFS
Noise Floor (@ -50 dBm output)-148 dBm/Hz
Digital I/O 
Number of Channels0
Timing/Triggering/Synchronization 
Synchronization Bus (RTSI)Yes
T-clock CapabilityYes
TriggeringDigital
External ClockingYes
Physical Specifications 
Length34.07 cm
Width10.67 cm
Height2.03 cm
I/O ConnectorSMB male

View Pricing and Purchasing Information »

Extended Warranties

National Instruments designs and manufactures all products to minimize failures, but we know unexpected failures can still occur. Extended warranties provide a fixed economical price at the time of system purchase covering any repair costs for up to three years.

  • Significant cost savings compared to individual repair incidents
  • Fault location, diagnostics, and repair by NI any time the system product fails
  • All parts and labor costs covered as well as any adjustments needed to bring the hardware back to manufacturing specifications

Calibration

NI recognizes the need to maintain properly calibrated devices for high-accuracy measurements. We provide manual calibration procedures, services to recalibrate your products, and automated calibration software to calibrate many of our measurement products.

Training

NI training is the fastest, most certain route to productivity with NI tools and successful application development.

Repair Services

  • You can return your registered product under warranty at no additional labor and parts cost. NI offers fault location, diagnostics, and repair any time the system fails as well as any adjustments needed to bring the hardware back to manufacturing specifications.
  • Contact us to obtain a Return Material Authorization (RMA) form and shipping instructions
  • View your RMA support request status online
  • Register your product

Technical Support

www.ni.com/support

View Pricing and Purchasing Information »

Select your application need to see compatible software options for the NI PCI-5421.

Application Need

Graphical Programming Text-Based Programming
Option 1: Select one of the following NI Developer Suite packages or Configure Your NI Developer Suite >>
Part
Number		 Description Est Ship Days Glossary Definition US Dollars
(change)		 Qty
Pre-configured NI Developer Suite Packages
DS410841 NI Developer Suite Core with Automated Test Option (English)
NI Recommended		 -- For price, select country  

Please select the country where you will use the product(s) so that we can provide you with accurate pricing, availability, and purchasing information

Option 2: Select any of the following software products
Part
Number		 Description Est Ship Days Glossary Definition US Dollars
(change) 		Qty
LabVIEW Software
776678-09 NI LabVIEW Professional Development System for Windows (English) -- For price, select country  
776670-09 NI LabVIEW Full Development System for Windows (English) -- For price, select country  
778786-03 NI Modulation Toolkit for LabVIEW -- For price, select country  
Specialty Software
777777-09 NI TestStand Development System for Windows -- For price, select country  
778848-01 NI Analog Waveform Editor -- For price, select country  

Please select the country where you will use the product(s) so that we can provide you with accurate pricing, availability, and purchasing information

Option 1: Select one of the following NI Developer Suite packages or Configure Your NI Developer Suite >>
Part
Number		 Description Est Ship Days Glossary Definition US Dollars
(change)		 Qty
Pre-configured NI Developer Suite Packages
DS410841 NI Developer Suite Core with Automated Test Option (English)
NI Recommended		 -- For price, select country  

Please select the country where you will use the product(s) so that we can provide you with accurate pricing, availability, and purchasing information

Option 2: Select any of the following software products
Part
Number		 Description Est Ship Days Glossary Definition US Dollars
(change) 		Qty
Application Software
776800-09 LabWindows/CVI Full Development System for Windows -- For price, select country  
778801-09 NI Measurement Studio Professional Edition for Microsoft Visual Studio -- For price, select country  
779384-03 NI LabWindows/CVI Run-Time Module for Linux -- For price, select country  
777875-03 NI LabWindows/CVI Enterprise Connectivity Toolkit for Windows -- For price, select country  
779086-01 NI Modulation Toolkit for LabWindows/CVI -- For price, select country  
Specialty Software
777777-09 NI TestStand Development System for Windows -- For price, select country  
778848-01 NI Analog Waveform Editor -- For price, select country  

Please select the country where you will use the product(s) so that we can provide you with accurate pricing, availability, and purchasing information

Other compatible software: ANSI C/C++, Visual Basic .NET, Visual Basic 6.0
Graphical Programming Text-Based Programming
Option 1: Select one of the following NI Developer Suite packages or Configure Your NI Developer Suite >>
Part
Number		 Description Est Ship Days Glossary Definition US Dollars
(change)		 Qty
Pre-configured NI Developer Suite Packages
DS410863 NI Developer Suite Core with Control Design and Simulation Option (English)
NI Recommended		 -- For price, select country  

Please select the country where you will use the product(s) so that we can provide you with accurate pricing, availability, and purchasing information

Option 2: Select any of the following software products
Part
Number		 Description Est Ship Days Glossary Definition US Dollars
(change) 		Qty
LabVIEW Software
776670-09 NI LabVIEW Full Development System for Windows (English) -- For price, select country  
778941-03 NI LabVIEW System Identification Toolkit for Windows -- For price, select country  
778552-03 NI LabVIEW Simulation Interface Toolkit for Windows -- For price, select country  
777136-01 NI LabVIEW Advanced Signal Processing Toolkit -- For price, select country  
779023-03 NI LabVIEW Digital Filter Design Toolkit -- For price, select country  
Specialty Software
778848-01 NI Analog Waveform Editor -- For price, select country  

Please select the country where you will use the product(s) so that we can provide you with accurate pricing, availability, and purchasing information

Option 1: Select one of the following NI Developer Suite packages or Configure Your NI Developer Suite >>
Part
Number		 Description Est Ship Days Glossary Definition US Dollars
(change)		 Qty
Pre-configured NI Developer Suite Packages
DS557505 NI Developer Suite Core with Real-Time for LabWindows/CVI Deployment Option (English)
NI Recommended		 -- For price, select country  

Please select the country where you will use the product(s) so that we can provide you with accurate pricing, availability, and purchasing information

Option 2: Select any of the following software products
Part
Number		 Description Est Ship Days Glossary Definition US Dollars
(change) 		Qty
Application Software
776800-09 LabWindows/CVI Full Development System for Windows -- For price, select country  
778801-09 NI Measurement Studio Professional Edition for Microsoft Visual Studio -- For price, select country  
779667-09 NI LabWindows/CVI Real-Time Module -- For price, select country  
778915-03 NI LabWindows/CVI Execution Trace Toolkit -- For price, select country  
779509-03 NI LabWindows/CVI PID Control Toolkit -- For price, select country  
777757-01 NI PID Toolkit for Visual Basic -- For price, select country  
Specialty Software
778848-01 NI Analog Waveform Editor -- For price, select country  

Please select the country where you will use the product(s) so that we can provide you with accurate pricing, availability, and purchasing information

Other compatible software: ANSI C/C++, Visual Basic .NET, Visual Basic 6.0
Graphical Programming Text-Based Programming
Option 1: Select one of the following NI Developer Suite packages or Configure Your NI Developer Suite >>
Part
Number		 Description Est Ship Days Glossary Definition US Dollars
(change)		 Qty
Pre-configured NI Developer Suite Packages
DS410838 NI Developer Suite Core with Real-Time Deployment Option (English)
NI Recommended		 -- For price, select country  

Please select the country where you will use the product(s) so that we can provide you with accurate pricing, availability, and purchasing information

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Option 2: Select any of the following software products
Part
Number		 Description Est Ship Days Glossary Definition US Dollars
(change) 		Qty
LabVIEW Software
776678-09 NI LabVIEW Professional Development System for Windows (English) -- For price, select country  
777844Y-09 NI LabVIEW Real-Time Module for Windows -- For price, select country  
779953-09 NI LabVIEW Statechart Module -- For price, select country  
778915-03 NI LabVIEW Execution Trace Toolkit -- For price, select country  
Specialty Software
778848-01 NI Analog Waveform Editor --