Author Topic: Review: Uni-T UT136B, Tired of the multimeter snobs? A very nice budget meter!  (Read 73820 times)

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Offline Wytnucls

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I'm not sure which older operating manual you're after, but most of them are available on the site in English:

http://www.uni-trend.com/product.html

 

Offline hgg

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The UT120C Manual.
 

Offline Wytnucls

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Most of the specs are here:
https://www.eevblog.com/forum/testgear/uni-t-ut120c-review-and-tear-down/msg180726/#msg180726
From the manual:
Input sine wave     10Hz~10kHz   >1V RMS    10kHz~100kHz   >30V RMS
 

Offline Wytnucls

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From the Chinese manual for the UT136 range (ABCD):
Below 100kHz   > 300 mV RMS      Above 100kHz  > 600 mV RMS
« Last Edit: January 10, 2014, 02:47:15 pm by Wytnucls »
 

Offline hgg

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From the Chinese manual for the UT136 range (ABCD):
Below 100kHz   > 300 mV RMS      Above 100kHz  > 600 mV RMS

Perfect for my project!  The UT61E is even better with
Below 10MHz   > 300 mV RMS      Above 10MHz  > 400 mV RMS
Thanks!

Now, if lightages can also tell us the burden voltage of the UT136B it would be great!

I will combine the multimeter with the following Brymen probes that Franky is selling on ebay:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Brymen-Silicone-Gold-Plated-Test-Leads-Probes-Multimeters-CAT-IV-1000V-/171162377470?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item27da129cfe

0.024 Ohms internal resistance confirmed by Franky.  Not bad at all.  Silicon and gold plated as well.
I think it will make a nice portable combo for the price.  I am not sure if they will fit though.

« Last Edit: January 10, 2014, 04:01:53 pm by hgg »
 

Offline LightagesTopic starter

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This little meter is really good for current measurement. The resistance on each of the ranges is as follows; 100 ohm in microA, 1.3 ohm in mA,  0.025 ohm in A. This is basically the same as a Brymen! You will also most definitely be happy with the Digitek leads from Franky.
« Last Edit: January 10, 2014, 04:04:57 pm by Lightages »
 

Offline SeanB

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Those are nice looking leads Frankie has.
 

Offline hgg

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Thanks for the information.    100 Ohms in the uA range ??
The leads are Brymen, not Digitek.

Only problem is the multimeter.  I can only find the C version in DX and am not really a fan
of DealExtreme.  Slow shipping and you don't really know if they actually have the items in stock.

Maybe you know of an alternative online shop that is selling the C version.
Did you buy yours from ebay?
 

Offline LightagesTopic starter

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Yes, 100 ohms in the microamp range. The Brymen leads are outstanding leads in any price range. I think they are a bit overkill when you consider you are paying almost the same for the leads as the meter. For the combined price of the UT136X and the Brymen leads you can almost pay for the Digitek DT2843R and have a much more capable multimeter with the really nice leads already. The Digitek leads are very nice with the exception that the tips are not very sharp but they are a better match price wise for the UT136X than the Brymen leads.

Yes I purchased my UT136B from DX and no I don't like them very much neither but options for getting things to Chile are limited and everything has always arrived. They are slow but reliable IMHO.
 

Offline Terabyte2007

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I decided to see how cheap you can go and still get a decent meter. What can you get $20? I don't know, but up your budget to $21 shipped to your door and you might be surprised. I was.


I have Fluke, ExTech and a couple Uni-T, and I really like them. I have the 61E, and I really think it's a nice multimeter. I have to agree with you, there are some decent cheaper brands, you just need to do the research.

Eric Haney, MCSE, EE, DMC-D
Electronics Designer, Prototype Builder
 

Offline hgg

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The UT61E has 12 ohms in the mA range.  The UT126B with 1.3ohms is 9 times more accurate then!
(or the UT61E is 9 times less accurate...   :()

I was also thinking of the Digitek solution instead of the Uni-T + Leads, but I'm not really sure.
I don't receive good vibes from Digitek...   :)   The other reason is that I need something compact. 

I was going to buy the UT120C again but then I saw the UT126C.
I think I will try the UT126C + Brymen leads.
 

Offline Monkeh

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The UT61E has 12 ohms in the mA range.  The UT126B with 1.3ohms is 9 times more accurate then!
(or the UT61E is 9 times less accurate...   :()

Burden voltage and accuracy are two entirely different things..
 

Offline hgg

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What happens then to accuracy when you have a high voltage drop
from internal resistance, when you measure low currents... ?
 

Offline Monkeh

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What happens then to accuracy when you have a high voltage drop
from internal resistance, when you measure low currents... ?

Nothing happens to the accuracy of the reading, only its relevance.
 

Offline hgg

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I think we are saying the same thing. 
The accuracy of each multimeter is fixed of course, but when you have a large burden voltage drop,
you have to account for that, otherwise the reading will not be so "accurate".
 

Offline LightagesTopic starter

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The current being measured will be accurate but the voltage being supplied to the device will be affected and therefore the current measurement might not actually relate to what the device would use under normal voltage conditions, or the device might not function at all.

I am still working on my multimeter lead shootout but  can say that the Digitek leads are very good buys with gold plating, nice flexible and soft insulation, nice strain reliefs on each end, and low resistance. The only two drawbacks so far are the fairly dull tips and non-silicone insulation but still very flexible.

Yes the UT136X is very small and it is a great buy but if you are going to spend another $17 on leads then the DT2843R is a much better buy with temperature, True RMS AC+DC, back light, Relative function, Min/Max function, and has great leads included already in addition to what the UT136B offers.
 

Offline hgg

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Do you know if the leads supplied with the Digitek are exactly the same as these?

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Brymen-Silicone-Gold-Plated-Test-Leads-Probes-Multimeters-CAT-IV-1000V-/171162377470?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item27da129cfe

Quote
temperature, True RMS AC+DC, back light, Relative function, Min/Max
The UT136C has temperature and I saw in your video review of the UT136B that you
did rel out capacitance.  True RMS, back light and min-max I don't really need.
I need it to be compact and with a good frequency counter.
« Last Edit: January 10, 2014, 08:36:44 pm by hgg »
 

Offline LightagesTopic starter

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The leads supplied with the Digitek are as shown on this page:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Digitek-DT-2843R-AC-DC-True-RMS-Multimeter-Backlight-and-Temperature-/171080136251?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item27d52bb63b
They are Digitek leads not Brymen leads.


The only things you can rel on the UT136B is capacitance and resistance. They are also only autoranging until you do a rel function and then they stick in whatever range you rel'd on.
« Last Edit: January 10, 2014, 09:54:54 pm by Lightages »
 

Offline hgg

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I see.  Ok, thanks again.
 

Offline idpromnut

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Cheap'n'cheesy!  Bought!
 

Offline hgg

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Just received the Brymen probes from Franky.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Brymen-Silicone-Gold-Plated-Test-Leads-Probes-Multimeters-CAT-IV-1000V-/171162377470?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item27da129cfe


Probes

Very nice quality.  Compared to the Fluke TL175 leads the silicone cables are just a bit thicker
and of similar quality.  No rating markings on them.  The stress relief of the Fluke is better.
The protection cups are nice and firm and the leads fit very nicely on the UT61E.

Measured with the UT61E their total resistance is 0.04 Ohm (1 meter per lead)
compared to the TL175 which is 0.08 Ohm (1.2 meters per lead).    Very nice!

Finally the gold plated tips are really nice and they take correct measurements with very
little pressure.  Great at continuity testing as well.

Only problem was that they arrived in a small package and consequently a lot of bends.

Overall a very nice set of leads.
I am still waiting for the UT136C from DX...
« Last Edit: January 23, 2014, 02:09:23 pm by hgg »
 

Offline Jasper

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Now why isn't the 136 range mentioned in the (2009, sheesh) catalog on the uni-t site or on their manual download page? Is it not yet in there and they're running very behind, or is it gone from there already?
 

Offline iloveelectronics

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Now why isn't the 136 range mentioned in the (2009, sheesh) catalog on the uni-t site or on their manual download page? Is it not yet in there and they're running very behind, or is it gone from there already?

Uni-T hasn't updated their English website for who-knows-how-long. Try their Chinese site: http://www.uni-trend.com.cn/cp.asp
My email address: franky @ 99centHobbies . com
My eBay store: http://stores.ebay.com/99centhobbies
 

Offline LightagesTopic starter

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I was just going to post the same thing, but I will get you to the correct page:
http://www.uni-trend.com.cn/cp-show.asp?yy=%D6%D0%CE%C4&ProductNO=610
 

Offline Jasper

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I knew I was doing *something* wrong.

Still prefer the english catalog pdf as a format though :)
 


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