Nine Fives growth playbook

On both switch cards and product pages, replace "Sold out" with "Next batch ships <month>" and two choices. (1) Join the waitlist: email, quantity, application and frequency band. (2) Reserve now: a refundable deposit or full prepayment, charged when the unit ships. Show how many units the next batch holds. Send waitlist sign-ups a short note from the founders with the ship date, and send monthly progress until the batch ships. Pass quantities to the build plan, and sell the in-stock attenuator to anyone who needs to start testing now.

A visible ship date keeps buyers from going back to the incumbents. Deposits turn interest into cash and a firm build quantity. Waitlist answers show which applications and volumes drive demand, which helps size batches and the next product.

[ ] Next batch quantity and ship month agreed
[ ] "Sold out" replaced with "Next batch ships <month>" on homepage cards
[ ] Waitlist form on POE-SPDT-6G and POE-SP4T-6G pages (email, quantity, application, band)
[ ] Pre-order or refundable deposit option with refund terms
[ ] Founder welcome email with ship date and in-stock attenuator link
[ ] Monthly batch progress email
[ ] Blog links checked
[ ] Weekly waitlist report to the build plan

• The ship date slips

  Give a month, not a day, and email every reservation as soon as it moves.

• Deposits create refund work

  Make deposits fully refundable and keep the waitlist free.

• Your websiteHomepage (checked November 10, 2026): headline "Uncomplicate your test bench."; three instruments: POE-ATTEN-6G at $800 (0-95.25 dB in 0.25 dB steps, 100 kHz-6 GHz), POE-SPDT-6G at $800 and POE-SP4T-6G at $1,200, with both switches marked "Sold out" and no ship date, lead time, back-order or notify-me option; PD8X shown as "Pre-Release" with no price; the closing call to action "Let's talk about your bench" under "What are you working on?" goes to /pages/contact; "Backed by Y Combinator"; no customer logos, testimonials or case studies, and no mention of quotes, purchase orders, volume pricing, distributors, shipping or warranty.Source
• Blog"Using LLMs to unleash the embedded Linux beast" (October 20, 2026): firmware 4.7.0 cuts POE-ATTEN-6G boot from about 21 s to 5.6 s to a fully drawn menu (DHCP lease 8.6 s vs 28.5 s), tested over 30 power cuts; the post asks existing customers to update firmware, links to the PD8X and all three instrument pages, including the two sold-out switches, and ends with a hiring call.Source
• Y Combinator profile"RF test equipment for next-gen spacecraft, drones, and cellphones"; "modern radio frequency test equipment and solutions to disrupt the $130B test equipment industry"; Spring 2026 batch, team of 3, San Francisco; launch post "Simple, Networked, Driverless RF Test Equipment" for manufacturers of radio devices in cellphones, drones and satellites.Source

Add a "Get a quote" button next to Add to cart on every product page. It should generate a PDF quote from the cart, valid for 30 days, with company details, lead time and payment terms (card, PO or net 30 after approval). Publish a short "Buying for a lab" page that covers PO process, tax forms, warranty, shipping and returns, and link it from the footer and checkout.

The engineer who finds the product rarely holds the card. A quote they can forward to purchasing keeps the deal moving instead of stalling, and larger multi-unit orders tend to come through POs.

• Net terms create late payments

  Offer net 30 only after a credit check or first paid order.

• Your websiteHomepage (checked November 10, 2026): headline "Uncomplicate your test bench."; three instruments: POE-ATTEN-6G at $800 (0-95.25 dB in 0.25 dB steps, 100 kHz-6 GHz), POE-SPDT-6G at $800 and POE-SP4T-6G at $1,200, with both switches marked "Sold out" and no ship date, lead time, back-order or notify-me option; PD8X shown as "Pre-Release" with no price; the closing call to action "Let's talk about your bench" under "What are you working on?" goes to /pages/contact; "Backed by Y Combinator"; no customer logos, testimonials or case studies, and no mention of quotes, purchase orders, volume pricing, distributors, shipping or warranty.Source
• Your websiteStore data (Shopify, checked November 10, 2026): four products from $800 to $1,500, with PD8X listed at $1,500; checkout wallets Apple Pay, Google Pay and Shop Pay; a 30-day refund policy without free returns; no pricing, quote or shipping-policy page found; the site description still says Nine Fives "specializes in ethernet-enabled variable attenuators, RF switches, and power meters", though no power meter is in the catalogue.Source
• Competitor researchMini-Circuits homepage: "Global Leader of RF and Microwave Components", "DC to 86 GHz", over 10,000 active models; lists Programmable Attenuators and switch matrices, a WebStore, a quote request form, authorized distributors and free samples (ezSample).See the research Source

Turn PD8X into a founders' reservation. Show the $1,500 chassis price or a launch price, a target ship quarter and a refundable deposit (for example $100). Ask which and how many modules the buyer would fill it with. Give reservation holders early NineVue access and a call with the founders to review their rack plan.

Deposits show which buyers are serious and fund the first batch. The module answers forecast attach revenue: an eight-slot chassis filled with $800-$1,200 modules is worth several times the chassis.

• Delivery slips after taking money

  Keep deposits small and fully refundable, and share build updates monthly.

• Your websiteHomepage (checked November 10, 2026): headline "Uncomplicate your test bench."; three instruments: POE-ATTEN-6G at $800 (0-95.25 dB in 0.25 dB steps, 100 kHz-6 GHz), POE-SPDT-6G at $800 and POE-SP4T-6G at $1,200, with both switches marked "Sold out" and no ship date, lead time, back-order or notify-me option; PD8X shown as "Pre-Release" with no price; the closing call to action "Let's talk about your bench" under "What are you working on?" goes to /pages/contact; "Backed by Y Combinator"; no customer logos, testimonials or case studies, and no mention of quotes, purchase orders, volume pricing, distributors, shipping or warranty.Source
• Your websiteStore data (Shopify, checked November 10, 2026): four products from $800 to $1,500, with PD8X listed at $1,500; checkout wallets Apple Pay, Google Pay and Shop Pay; a 30-day refund policy without free returns; no pricing, quote or shipping-policy page found; the site description still says Nine Fives "specializes in ethernet-enabled variable attenuators, RF switches, and power meters", though no power meter is in the catalogue.Source
• Your websiteHomepage product story: connect by "PoE or USB-C", control by "touch, browser, or API", "no drivers or installers, just a browser"; each unit serves its own web UI and automation runs over REST or SCPI; a device UI preview labelled "no hardware connected" shows firmware 1.3.5; PD8X backplane and NineVue software "simplify rack configuration" ("One rack. A clearer picture."); footer newsletter "New instruments. Useful ideas."Source

Put the question on the homepage as a five-field form: what you are testing (spacecraft, drone, cellphone, other), frequency band, number of RF paths, timeline and email. Route answers to a reply template matched to the use case, with a suggested configuration (for example, attenuator plus SP4T or a PD8X rack).

Structured answers let the founders reply quickly with the right setup, and over time show which segments and bands to build for.

• More fields reduce submissions

  Make only email required.

• Your websiteHomepage (checked November 10, 2026): headline "Uncomplicate your test bench."; three instruments: POE-ATTEN-6G at $800 (0-95.25 dB in 0.25 dB steps, 100 kHz-6 GHz), POE-SPDT-6G at $800 and POE-SP4T-6G at $1,200, with both switches marked "Sold out" and no ship date, lead time, back-order or notify-me option; PD8X shown as "Pre-Release" with no price; the closing call to action "Let's talk about your bench" under "What are you working on?" goes to /pages/contact; "Backed by Y Combinator"; no customer logos, testimonials or case studies, and no mention of quotes, purchase orders, volume pricing, distributors, shipping or warranty.Source
• Y Combinator profile"RF test equipment for next-gen spacecraft, drones, and cellphones"; "modern radio frequency test equipment and solutions to disrupt the $130B test equipment industry"; Spring 2026 batch, team of 3, San Francisco; launch post "Simple, Networked, Driverless RF Test Equipment" for manufacturers of radio devices in cellphones, drones and satellites.Source

Add a "Boots in under 6 seconds (firmware 4.7.0)" line and a short clip to each product page and the homepage UI preview, and update the preview's firmware number. In the blog post, make the attenuator the main buy link while the switches are out of stock, and add waitlist links for the switches.

Engineers trust measured numbers, and boot time matters for automated benches that power-cycle often. Sending readers to an in-stock product turns content into orders.

• Boot times vary by network

  State the test setup and that PoE handshake time is included.

• #1 Turn the two sold-out switches into a waitlist with a ship date, so demand isn't lost on the homepage

• Blog"Using LLMs to unleash the embedded Linux beast" (October 20, 2026): firmware 4.7.0 cuts POE-ATTEN-6G boot from about 21 s to 5.6 s to a fully drawn menu (DHCP lease 8.6 s vs 28.5 s), tested over 30 power cuts; the post asks existing customers to update firmware, links to the PD8X and all three instrument pages, including the two sold-out switches, and ends with a hiring call.Source
• Your websiteHomepage product story: connect by "PoE or USB-C", control by "touch, browser, or API", "no drivers or installers, just a browser"; each unit serves its own web UI and automation runs over REST or SCPI; a device UI preview labelled "no hardware connected" shows firmware 1.3.5; PD8X backplane and NineVue software "simplify rack configuration" ("One rack. A clearer picture."); footer newsletter "New instruments. Useful ideas."Source

Rewrite the homepage and product descriptions around what a searcher can buy today: driverless PoE/USB-C attenuators and switches to 6 GHz, browser and API control, and list prices. Add a "coming soon" page for power meters only if one is planned, with a notify form.

Search snippets that match the page set the right expectation and lift click-through. Promising a product that doesn't exist loses trust with engineers.

• Losing searches for "power meter"

  Use a notify page if a meter is on the roadmap.

• Your websiteStore data (Shopify, checked November 10, 2026): four products from $800 to $1,500, with PD8X listed at $1,500; checkout wallets Apple Pay, Google Pay and Shop Pay; a 30-day refund policy without free returns; no pricing, quote or shipping-policy page found; the site description still says Nine Fives "specializes in ethernet-enabled variable attenuators, RF switches, and power meters", though no power meter is in the catalogue.Source
• Your websiteHomepage (checked November 10, 2026): headline "Uncomplicate your test bench."; three instruments: POE-ATTEN-6G at $800 (0-95.25 dB in 0.25 dB steps, 100 kHz-6 GHz), POE-SPDT-6G at $800 and POE-SP4T-6G at $1,200, with both switches marked "Sold out" and no ship date, lead time, back-order or notify-me option; PD8X shown as "Pre-Release" with no price; the closing call to action "Let's talk about your bench" under "What are you working on?" goes to /pages/contact; "Backed by Y Combinator"; no customer logos, testimonials or case studies, and no mention of quotes, purchase orders, volume pricing, distributors, shipping or warranty.Source

Serve a smaller, mobile-sized version of the PD8X hero image and preload it. Lazy-load the device UI preview and the demo video below the fold. Remove unused theme JavaScript (about 109 KB). Re-test, and watch the field LCP trend monthly.

Visitors are fine today, so this is maintenance, not a rescue. Fixing the trend now keeps the homepage fast as more media is added.

• Image quality drops

  Keep the full-size image on desktop.

• PageSpeedGoogle PageSpeed (November 10, 2026): mobile performance 36/100 and desktop 61/100; in the lab phone test the main image (the PD8X rack chassis photo) appears at 14.8 s, with 5.2 s of blocking time, a 3.2 MB page and 128 requests, and about 109 KB of unused JavaScript. Real visitors pass Core Web Vitals: field LCP 0.85 s at the 75th percentile, INP 54 ms, CLS 0, though field LCP is 56% slower than in the previous period.Source

Publish 10 recipes, each a runnable Python script with a wiring diagram. Examples: an attenuation sweep with a spectrum analyzer, an SP4T round-robin across four DUTs, a receiver sensitivity test, a fading profile, and a pytest fixture for an instrument. Host the scripts in a public code repository and link every recipe from the matching product page.

Engineers search for the task, not the product. Recipes rank for those searches, show that the instruments are "driverless", and shorten the time from purchase to first test.

• Takes time from hardware work

  Start with three recipes and add one a week.

• DocumentationReference manuals for the attenuator, SPDT and SP4T: "All interfaces provide equivalent control over the device"; Web UI and JSON REST API on port 80, SCPI over raw TCP on 5025 and SCPI over HiSLIP (IVI-6.1) on 4880 for VISA; the getting-started page gives a PyVISA example and a curl call to /api/system/status. Docs.ninefives.com's root redirects to the store's documentation page.Source
• HiringFounding RF Engineer (Y Combinator jobs, San Mateo, $170K-$200K, 0.50%-2.00% equity): own products "from cradle to grave"; turn requirements into schematics, select components and optimize the BOM, bring up and characterize prototype PCBAs, and maintain "a common embedded Linux software stack across products"; preferred: SCPI, VISA, HiSLIP, LXI and REST interfaces, Buildroot, Python, Go or C/C++. The company aims to help customers "cut their time to market in half".Source

Publish an OpenAPI file for the REST API and a structured SCPI command list (command, arguments, ranges, units, examples) for each instrument. Add a single plain-text summary of the docs at a stable URL. Link all three from every reference manual, and version them with the firmware.

More engineers now draft test scripts with coding assistants. Instruments whose APIs those tools get right on the first try will be chosen and recommended more. It is a cheap way to make the "driverless" promise true for automation too.

• Spec drifts from firmware

  Generate it from the firmware source on each release.

• #8 Publish a Python test-automation cookbook with runnable scripts for each instrument

• DocumentationReference manuals for the attenuator, SPDT and SP4T: "All interfaces provide equivalent control over the device"; Web UI and JSON REST API on port 80, SCPI over raw TCP on 5025 and SCPI over HiSLIP (IVI-6.1) on 4880 for VISA; the getting-started page gives a PyVISA example and a curl call to /api/system/status. Docs.ninefives.com's root redirects to the store's documentation page.Source
• BlogEngineering blog: three posts (July 9, October 5 and October 20, 2026), including "How to vibecode a Wilkinson divider" for a 6-18 GHz power divider; an RSS feed and a Google Analytics consent notice, but no newsletter signup.Source
• Y Combinator profile"RF test equipment for next-gen spacecraft, drones, and cellphones"; "modern radio frequency test equipment and solutions to disrupt the $130B test equipment industry"; Spring 2026 batch, team of 3, San Francisco; launch post "Simple, Networked, Driverless RF Test Equipment" for manufacturers of radio devices in cellphones, drones and satellites.Source

Publish a guide on choosing a programmable attenuator or switch. Compare control by USB, Ethernet and PoE, driver needs, cable distance, rack density, price transparency and API types, with a factual table naming common product families. Close with when Nine Fives is the right choice and when it isn't, such as above 6 GHz today.

Comparison searches come from buyers close to a decision. An honest guide that says when not to buy earns trust with engineers.

• Out-of-date rival claims

  Cite and date every claim and avoid naming specific prices.

• Competitor researchVaunix homepage: "Portable & Programmable RF Test Devices", including digital attenuators, RF switches, matrix and mesh network attenuators; the featured attenuators are USB programmable, with Ethernet on the LPA-103V amplifier; no prices on the site, which offers a 2026 product guide said to include pricing.See the research Source
• Competitor researchMini-Circuits homepage: "Global Leader of RF and Microwave Components", "DC to 86 GHz", over 10,000 active models; lists Programmable Attenuators and switch matrices, a WebStore, a quote request form, authorized distributors and free samples (ezSample).See the research Source
• Your websiteHomepage product story: connect by "PoE or USB-C", control by "touch, browser, or API", "no drivers or installers, just a browser"; each unit serves its own web UI and automation runs over REST or SCPI; a device UI preview labelled "no hardware connected" shows firmware 1.3.5; PD8X backplane and NineVue software "simplify rack configuration" ("One rack. A clearer picture."); footer newsletter "New instruments. Useful ideas."Source

Create two or three bundles. A "Path and level kit" (attenuator + SP4T, with cables and a ready script). A "Rack starter" (PD8X + four modules). A "Production rack" (PD8X filled). Price each slightly below the sum of its parts, and show the saving and a recipe link for each.

Bundles match how engineers build a bench, raise order value, and make the rack story concrete.

• Stock-outs break bundles

  Offer bundles on reservation while the switches are out.

• #1 Turn the two sold-out switches into a waitlist with a ship date, so demand isn't lost on the homepage
• #3 Take paid PD8X reservations instead of a silent "Pre-Release" label

• Your websiteHomepage (checked November 10, 2026): headline "Uncomplicate your test bench."; three instruments: POE-ATTEN-6G at $800 (0-95.25 dB in 0.25 dB steps, 100 kHz-6 GHz), POE-SPDT-6G at $800 and POE-SP4T-6G at $1,200, with both switches marked "Sold out" and no ship date, lead time, back-order or notify-me option; PD8X shown as "Pre-Release" with no price; the closing call to action "Let's talk about your bench" under "What are you working on?" goes to /pages/contact; "Backed by Y Combinator"; no customer logos, testimonials or case studies, and no mention of quotes, purchase orders, volume pricing, distributors, shipping or warranty.Source
• Your websiteHomepage product story: connect by "PoE or USB-C", control by "touch, browser, or API", "no drivers or installers, just a browser"; each unit serves its own web UI and automation runs over REST or SCPI; a device UI preview labelled "no hardware connected" shows firmware 1.3.5; PD8X backplane and NineVue software "simplify rack configuration" ("One rack. A clearer picture."); footer newsletter "New instruments. Useful ideas."Source

Ask Space Capital and the YC network for introductions to RF and test leads at 15 portfolio companies. Offer a design-partner package: a discounted bench, a direct line to the founders, and input on the next instrument. In exchange, ask for a case study and a quote after 90 days.

Warm introductions convert far better than cold outreach in a small, trust-driven market, and design partners give product direction and the first public proof.

• Space teams cannot be named publicly

  Offer anonymous case studies by segment.

• Investor pageSpace Capital portfolio page: Nine Fives "builds networked, driverless RF test equipment for teams building next-generation spacecraft".Source
• Y Combinator profile"RF test equipment for next-gen spacecraft, drones, and cellphones"; "modern radio frequency test equipment and solutions to disrupt the $130B test equipment industry"; Spring 2026 batch, team of 3, San Francisco; launch post "Simple, Networked, Driverless RF Test Equipment" for manufacturers of radio devices in cellphones, drones and satellites.Source
• Your websiteHomepage (checked November 10, 2026): headline "Uncomplicate your test bench."; three instruments: POE-ATTEN-6G at $800 (0-95.25 dB in 0.25 dB steps, 100 kHz-6 GHz), POE-SPDT-6G at $800 and POE-SP4T-6G at $1,200, with both switches marked "Sold out" and no ship date, lead time, back-order or notify-me option; PD8X shown as "Pre-Release" with no price; the closing call to action "Let's talk about your bench" under "What are you working on?" goes to /pages/contact; "Backed by Y Combinator"; no customer logos, testimonials or case studies, and no mention of quotes, purchase orders, volume pricing, distributors, shipping or warranty.Source

Present the refund policy as a "30-day bench trial" on product pages and in checkout. Add a prepaid return label for first-time business buyers, and a day-25 email asking how the test went. Track trial returns and reasons.

Saying the guarantee out loud removes the risk of trying a new vendor, and the day-25 email collects feedback and testimonials.

• Returned units can't be resold as new

  Refurbish and sell as open-box.

• Your websiteStore data (Shopify, checked November 10, 2026): four products from $800 to $1,500, with PD8X listed at $1,500; checkout wallets Apple Pay, Google Pay and Shop Pay; a 30-day refund policy without free returns; no pricing, quote or shipping-policy page found; the site description still says Nine Fives "specializes in ethernet-enabled variable attenuators, RF switches, and power meters", though no power meter is in the catalogue.Source
• Competitor researchMini-Circuits homepage: "Global Leader of RF and Microwave Components", "DC to 86 GHz", over 10,000 active models; lists Programmable Attenuators and switch matrices, a WebStore, a quote request form, authorized distributors and free samples (ezSample).See the research Source

Write three short bench stories from early buyers, named or anonymised by segment (for example "a smallsat radio team"). Cover what they test, the bench before and after, setup time and a photo of the rack. Put a one-line quote on each product page and the homepage.

Peer proof is the strongest persuader in technical buying, and segment-specific stories help spacecraft, drone and cellphone teams each see themselves.

• Defense or space customers can't be named

  Use anonymised segment stories.

• #12 Sign five spacecraft and drone design partners through the investor network

• Your websiteHomepage (checked November 10, 2026): headline "Uncomplicate your test bench."; three instruments: POE-ATTEN-6G at $800 (0-95.25 dB in 0.25 dB steps, 100 kHz-6 GHz), POE-SPDT-6G at $800 and POE-SP4T-6G at $1,200, with both switches marked "Sold out" and no ship date, lead time, back-order or notify-me option; PD8X shown as "Pre-Release" with no price; the closing call to action "Let's talk about your bench" under "What are you working on?" goes to /pages/contact; "Backed by Y Combinator"; no customer logos, testimonials or case studies, and no mention of quotes, purchase orders, volume pricing, distributors, shipping or warranty.Source
• Y Combinator profile"RF test equipment for next-gen spacecraft, drones, and cellphones"; "modern radio frequency test equipment and solutions to disrupt the $130B test equipment industry"; Spring 2026 batch, team of 3, San Francisco; launch post "Simple, Networked, Driverless RF Test Equipment" for manufacturers of radio devices in cellphones, drones and satellites.Source

Publish a firmware changelog page (version, date, products, changes, known issues) and an RSS feed for it. On each release, email owners of the affected instruments with the headline improvement and a one-step update guide. Show "firmware available" in the device's own web UI if it can check.

Owners on current firmware have a better product, file fewer support requests and recommend it. Each release email is also a reason to talk to customers.

• A bad update affects many units

  Stage rollouts and keep the A/B boot fallback.

• Blog"Using LLMs to unleash the embedded Linux beast" (October 20, 2026): firmware 4.7.0 cuts POE-ATTEN-6G boot from about 21 s to 5.6 s to a fully drawn menu (DHCP lease 8.6 s vs 28.5 s), tested over 30 power cuts; the post asks existing customers to update firmware, links to the PD8X and all three instrument pages, including the two sold-out switches, and ends with a hiring call.Source
• HiringFounding RF Engineer (Y Combinator jobs, San Mateo, $170K-$200K, 0.50%-2.00% equity): own products "from cradle to grave"; turn requirements into schematics, select components and optimize the BOM, bring up and characterize prototype PCBAs, and maintain "a common embedded Linux software stack across products"; preferred: SCPI, VISA, HiSLIP, LXI and REST interfaces, Buildroot, Python, Go or C/C++. The company aims to help customers "cut their time to market in half".Source

Add the same newsletter form to the end of every blog post and in the blog header, with a post-specific offer (for example the divider simulation files). Send a monthly "bench notes" email: one technical post, one firmware note, and stock and batch news.

It turns one-off readers into a list Nine Fives owns, which is the cheapest channel for launches and restocks.

• Irregular sending

  Keep it monthly and short.

• BlogEngineering blog: three posts (July 9, October 5 and October 20, 2026), including "How to vibecode a Wilkinson divider" for a 6-18 GHz power divider; an RSS feed and a Google Analytics consent notice, but no newsletter signup.Source
• Your websiteHomepage product story: connect by "PoE or USB-C", control by "touch, browser, or API", "no drivers or installers, just a browser"; each unit serves its own web UI and automation runs over REST or SCPI; a device UI preview labelled "no hardware connected" shows firmware 1.3.5; PD8X backplane and NineVue software "simplify rack configuration" ("One rack. A clearer picture."); footer newsletter "New instruments. Useful ideas."Source

Build a web page where buyers drag modules into the eight PD8X slots. It shows the total price, a wiring diagram and a generated Python starter script for that layout. Buyers can then reserve the rack, request a quote, or email the configuration to a colleague.

It shows the "driverless" promise before purchase, captures detailed buying intent, and turns a $1,500 chassis into a multi-module order.

• Scripts don't match final firmware

  Generate from the published API spec (idea 9).

• #3 Take paid PD8X reservations instead of a silent "Pre-Release" label
• #9 Publish a machine-readable API spec so engineers' coding assistants write correct test scripts

• Your websiteHomepage product story: connect by "PoE or USB-C", control by "touch, browser, or API", "no drivers or installers, just a browser"; each unit serves its own web UI and automation runs over REST or SCPI; a device UI preview labelled "no hardware connected" shows firmware 1.3.5; PD8X backplane and NineVue software "simplify rack configuration" ("One rack. A clearer picture."); footer newsletter "New instruments. Useful ideas."Source
• Your websiteStore data (Shopify, checked November 10, 2026): four products from $800 to $1,500, with PD8X listed at $1,500; checkout wallets Apple Pay, Google Pay and Shop Pay; a 30-day refund policy without free returns; no pricing, quote or shipping-policy page found; the site description still says Nine Fives "specializes in ethernet-enabled variable attenuators, RF switches, and power meters", though no power meter is in the catalogue.Source
• DocumentationReference manuals for the attenuator, SPDT and SP4T: "All interfaces provide equivalent control over the device"; Web UI and JSON REST API on port 80, SCPI over raw TCP on 5025 and SCPI over HiSLIP (IVI-6.1) on 4880 for VISA; the getting-started page gives a PyVISA example and a curl call to /api/system/status. Docs.ninefives.com's root redirects to the store's documentation page.Source

Test each instrument with the common VISA implementations and test environments your customers use (Python, MATLAB, LabVIEW, C#), and publish a compatibility table with snippets. Evaluate whether formal LXI conformance is worth pursuing for enterprise buyers.

A tested compatibility list answers the first question in a lab evaluation, and removes a reason to stick with the incumbent.

• Licence cost for some environments

  Start with free tools and those buyers request.

• #8 Publish a Python test-automation cookbook with runnable scripts for each instrument

• DocumentationReference manuals for the attenuator, SPDT and SP4T: "All interfaces provide equivalent control over the device"; Web UI and JSON REST API on port 80, SCPI over raw TCP on 5025 and SCPI over HiSLIP (IVI-6.1) on 4880 for VISA; the getting-started page gives a PyVISA example and a curl call to /api/system/status. Docs.ninefives.com's root redirects to the store's documentation page.Source
• HiringFounding RF Engineer (Y Combinator jobs, San Mateo, $170K-$200K, 0.50%-2.00% equity): own products "from cradle to grave"; turn requirements into schematics, select components and optimize the BOM, bring up and characterize prototype PCBAs, and maintain "a common embedded Linux software stack across products"; preferred: SCPI, VISA, HiSLIP, LXI and REST interfaces, Buildroot, Python, Go or C/C++. The company aims to help customers "cut their time to market in half".Source

Add one question to every waitlist, reservation and contact form: "What would you buy next?" Options: an 18 GHz attenuator or switch, a power meter, an SP8T or switch matrix, or other. Each quarter, rank options by stated volume and deal size, run a paid pre-order for the top one, and commit engineering only when pre-orders reach a set threshold.

Hardware is expensive to get wrong. Pre-orders fund tooling and prove demand before a new hire's first year is committed.

• Stated demand overstates real demand

  Count only paid pre-orders toward the threshold.

• #1 Turn the two sold-out switches into a waitlist with a ship date, so demand isn't lost on the homepage
• #3 Take paid PD8X reservations instead of a silent "Pre-Release" label

• HiringFounding Electrical Engineer (Y Combinator jobs, San Mateo, $170K-$200K, 0.50%-2.00% equity): "develop the next generation of electronic test equipment" with the founding team; schematics, PCB routing, RF PCBAs such as LNAs, power amplifiers and couplers, switch-mode power supplies, and embedded Linux; in person five days a week.Source
• BlogEngineering blog: three posts (July 9, October 5 and October 20, 2026), including "How to vibecode a Wilkinson divider" for a 6-18 GHz power divider; an RSS feed and a Google Analytics consent notice, but no newsletter signup.Source
• Your websiteStore data (Shopify, checked November 10, 2026): four products from $800 to $1,500, with PD8X listed at $1,500; checkout wallets Apple Pay, Google Pay and Shop Pay; a 30-day refund policy without free returns; no pricing, quote or shipping-policy page found; the site description still says Nine Fives "specializes in ethernet-enabled variable attenuators, RF switches, and power meters", though no power meter is in the catalogue.Source

Keep single-rack NineVue free. Offer a paid fleet tier per rack per year with multi-rack dashboards, firmware rollout, configuration snapshots and audit logs, plus optional self-hosting for secure labs. Launch it first with design partners.

Recurring software revenue smooths lumpy hardware sales and raises switching costs once a lab standardises on Nine Fives.

• Secure labs won't use cloud software

  Offer self-hosted from the start.

• #3 Take paid PD8X reservations instead of a silent "Pre-Release" label
• #12 Sign five spacecraft and drone design partners through the investor network

• Your websiteHomepage product story: connect by "PoE or USB-C", control by "touch, browser, or API", "no drivers or installers, just a browser"; each unit serves its own web UI and automation runs over REST or SCPI; a device UI preview labelled "no hardware connected" shows firmware 1.3.5; PD8X backplane and NineVue software "simplify rack configuration" ("One rack. A clearer picture."); footer newsletter "New instruments. Useful ideas."Source
• Competitor researchMini-Circuits homepage: "Global Leader of RF and Microwave Components", "DC to 86 GHz", over 10,000 active models; lists Programmable Attenuators and switch matrices, a WebStore, a quote request form, authorized distributors and free samples (ezSample).See the research Source

Package that internal setup as a reference design: "The agent-ready RF bench". It includes a bill of materials (Nine Fives instruments, a PoE switch, a camera), a safety-limited control layer with allowed ranges and an emergency stop, example tasks and the blog write-up. Publish it as a guide and a starter repo, demo it at RF and test events, and offer it as a bundle.

It gives Nine Fives a category of its own instead of competing spec-for-spec. It also pulls in the technical audience already reading its blog.

• Seen as hype by conservative test teams

  Lead with measured results such as the boot-time gain.

• #9 Publish a machine-readable API spec so engineers' coding assistants write correct test scripts

• Blog"Using LLMs to unleash the embedded Linux beast" (October 20, 2026): firmware 4.7.0 cuts POE-ATTEN-6G boot from about 21 s to 5.6 s to a fully drawn menu (DHCP lease 8.6 s vs 28.5 s), tested over 30 power cuts; the post asks existing customers to update firmware, links to the PD8X and all three instrument pages, including the two sold-out switches, and ends with a hiring call.Source
• Your websiteHomepage product story: connect by "PoE or USB-C", control by "touch, browser, or API", "no drivers or installers, just a browser"; each unit serves its own web UI and automation runs over REST or SCPI; a device UI preview labelled "no hardware connected" shows firmware 1.3.5; PD8X backplane and NineVue software "simplify rack configuration" ("One rack. A clearer picture."); footer newsletter "New instruments. Useful ideas."Source

Set up a demo bench at the office: an attenuator and switch feeding a small spectrum display, behind a camera. Visitors book or join a two-minute session, change the attenuation and switch paths, and watch the trace move. Visitors control it through a separate demo service with a fixed set of actions, never the device itself. At the end, offer the waitlist, reservation or a quote.

Hands-on proof without shipping hardware is rare in RF test. It makes the website memorable and shareable among engineers.

• Abuse or downtime

  Fixed actions only, rate limits and a recorded fallback video.

• Your websiteHomepage product story: connect by "PoE or USB-C", control by "touch, browser, or API", "no drivers or installers, just a browser"; each unit serves its own web UI and automation runs over REST or SCPI; a device UI preview labelled "no hardware connected" shows firmware 1.3.5; PD8X backplane and NineVue software "simplify rack configuration" ("One rack. A clearer picture."); footer newsletter "New instruments. Useful ideas."Source

Pull the inbound links in Search Console and a backlink tool. Find old URLs that still receive links or visits and redirect any relevant ones to the closest current page, such as the homepage, docs or blog. Ignore or disavow unrelated spam. Then ask a few relevant sites, such as RF directories and investor portfolio pages, to link to product pages.

Recovering old link value is cheap, and a cleaner link profile helps a young brand rank for its own product names.

• Redirecting irrelevant links

  Redirect only links on RF, test or engineering topics.

• Domain historyDomain records: ninefives.com registered in 2008, with web-archive history from 2001 (busiest year 2018), while the company was founded in 2025; authority score 16.Source