Protek 506 review.

[twit]

Hello

I'm Tom and I'm from Poland. I'm watching your video blog and I think it is very cool.

Electronics is my hobby (occupation - computer programmer), I think i really like it
Okey, EOT.
I'm thinking about new multimeter which should be Protek 506, I can buy it here in Poland. I want multimeter for many years, so it would be great to see some 'strong' review on your video blog. (i can't find any)
This multimeter is kinda old (production from 1994-1996 smth. like that) but you still can get a new one in the shop.
For me in my country it is the best price offer and it looks like the Protek 506 is the best for my money 'range'.

http://www.protektest.com/ProdInfo.asp?prodId=506
Sorry for my english.

Thank you.
Best Regards David.

[EEVblog]

I used to have a Protek 506. It wasn't bad in it's day, and was popular for a long time, but there are much better options these days.
I didn't like the range switch, really hard to turn.

Dave.

[twit]

Hey,

Thanks for the answer.
If you used it then it should be OK he he.

Best Regards.
Tom.

P.S.
waiting for another episode

[EEVblog]

Thanks for the answer.
If you used it then it should be OK he he.

I said I *had* one (two actually, surplus from an old job), that doesn't mean I actually used it!
Sold'em on ebay.
It's not actually a bad meter, and was very popular in it's day, the same model has lasted a very long time on the shelves.

Dave.

[twit]

Thanks for the answer.
If you used it then it should be OK he he.

I said I *had* one (two actually, surplus from an old job), that doesn't mean I actually used it!
Sold'em on ebay.
It's not actually a bad meter, and was very popular in it's day, the same model has lasted a very long time on the shelves.

Dave.

Hey,

Yeah, I got it
Thanks anyway...

I got this multimeter 30% cheaper then is OK for me.
But, I need second, I think it will be some Fluke. (probably Fluke 287 I see it in nice price)

One more question.
I'm thinking about Good Will Instek GPS-4303 Lab DC supply, could you tell me something about it or maybe make some review of it?
It's kinda cheap and it looks fine, but who knows what is inside...

Best Regards

P.S.
http://www.gwinstek.com/en/product/productdetail.aspx?pid=38&mid=53&id=131

[Hydrawerk]

Protek (Hung Chang) 506 can still be bought in many shops. http://www.gmelectronic.com/digital-multimeter-rlc-protek-hc-506-p722-087
But I think that it has no CAT rating Not good for the price.
This website is not working. http://www.protektest.com/ProdInfo.asp?prodId=506

[Hydrawerk]

I founf the schematic of Protek 506. There is some input protection.
It is a nice product from year 1995.

[Hydrawerk]

It is probably still in production. http://www.gsi-protek.com/#!506/c10xi
Any opinion on its older brother D705T?
http://www.gsi-protek.com/#!d705t/chlz

http://www.testequipmentdepot.com/protek/dmm/d705t.htm

[helius]

The Protek 506 has a non-isolated PC data connection, so it would not pass any kind of CAT rating. By the same token, it can be used for PC logging without an expensive optical adapter. Not everybody uses their multimeters to measure high-energy circuits.
Note that closed-case digital calibration is not offered, you need to turn trimmers to calibrate the meter.

[Hydrawerk]

There is a classic Maxim MAX134 DMM IC in the HC-506.
https://datasheets.maximintegrated.com/en/ds/MAX134EVKIT.pdf
https://www.maximintegrated.com/en/products/analog/data-converters/analog-to-digital-converters/MAX134.html
https://datasheets.maximintegrated.com/en/ds/MAX133-MAX134.pdf

[Hydrawerk]

The Protek 506 has a non-isolated PC data connection

Well, there are optocouplers used. See the last page of the schematic. Look for U9 and U10.
https://www.eevblog.com/forum/suggestions/protek-506-review/?action=dlattach;attach=156144

[helius]

Sure, that's the minimum protection that would be expected. The problem is that if the internal PCB suffers tracking because of a fault, the pins of the RS232 connector can become live.
I have a 506 but don't use it much anymore (it has an uncommon inductance mode, but there are better ways of measuring L). The square wave output is also sometimes useful. I paid about $30 for it in 2008.

[shakalnokturn]

I also have one of these for the time being, interesting features considering it's release date.
The PCB layout on mine is too messy though, maybe that's to do with it being a Chinese made rather than Taiwanese model.
The RS232 is opto isolated, of course the risk of arcing exists but shouldn't be much of a concern as long as one doesn't exceed the meters ratings. With enough voltage the risk of arcing through the case to the IR interface exists on other DMM's.

I have a couple of diskettes with the original RS232 software, I have yet to unbury a computer with a floppy drive and check how corrupt they are. Even if they are readable, the software probably only runs on DOS or Win95.

Can anyone point me to a modern alternative for logging software that will talk to this DMM?

[shakalnokturn]

Finally found a working FDD!
Have yet to find a box that will run the software...

Still looking for alternatives if anyone cares?

[helius]

The interface of the 506 is extremely simple and you could duplicate the features of the DOS software in a half an hour using your favorite scripting language.
All it does is open a serial connection at 1200 baud, 7 data bits, 2 stop bits, no parity, and send a character (literally any character) to the meter every time it wants to take a sample. The meter responds to each single character by sending the current main display as a line of data, each line followed by a carriage return (^M).

Code: [Select]

DC 000.1 V
DIO SHORT
RES OL
FR 1.00 MHzThat's pretty much it. The full list of formats is in the manual.