Thinking of buying a multimeter.

[adrianf88]

First i would like to say hello to everybody, I'm a big fan of Dave's channel and quite possibly, i can "blame" him for my hobby. I started out with a cheap, and i do mean cheap multimeter which i bought for about 15$.

This one to be more exact. Same model, same brand....

http://img.diytrade.com/cdimg/2159999/33940157/0/1385965308/best_digital_multimeter_dt9208a.jpg

A good enough multimeter for my little electronics projects but lately, it's been acting up. I tried measuring a simple AA (R6) battery and the reading was all over the place. Started at 10.4V and then settled after a few seconds at 1.43V but then spiked back up to around 7V. So i believe it's his time to retire from service. So i began looking for a decent meter for around 60$. Cheapies as Dave would call them but for my budget, i would call that top dollar! ) It's intended use would be small electronic projects, measuring components like resistors, caps, etc. Small voltages, currents and on occasion, power outlets around the house, blown fuses and stuff like that. I would like to be able to read a temperature now and then to see if a heat-sink is doing it's job during a build. 

I had a look around and finally found some contestants:

Uni-t UT61E, UT61B, UT60H.

But...

UT61E doesn't measure temperature
UT61B isn't True RMS
and i can't find anywhere a teardown of the UT60H (which is both true RMS and measures temp.) so see how it is built (if it uses HRC fuses like the UT61B(E), how's the board layout, the shielding or if it's anywhere near as safe as the UT61)

So... My questions are:

Does anybody know how the UT60H looks like on the inside? Does it use HRC fuses or glass ones?
Do you know any similar multimeter than can do what the UT60H can do for the same price?

Thank you so much for taking the time to read this entire post and i look forward to hearing your opinion.

P.S. If i messed something up and you don't understand something, i apologize. English isn't my first language.

[Electric flower]

I own 61E and im quite happy with it, as it comes to measuring temperature, as a beginner (like me) you can get away with measuring voltage generated by thermocouple probe when it is heated, (look at Dave's video about thermocouples).
There are plenty of K type thermocouple graphs that let you see connection from voltage generated to a temperature. PM me if you want some info about 61E or something else, there are 4 videos of 61E done by Mjlorton on Youtube.

60H was also on my list of choices as well as 61E, i went with 61E becouse it was cheaper, 60H looks better than 61E but i can't say for shure.

[tld]

Hi,

Just thought I'd mention that at least for me, there's no big win in having a temperature-function on the multimeter itself. Sure, could be handy, bit if I'm measuring temperature-rise, there's a good chance I'd want to measure current-draw at the same time.

Having a separate unit for measuring temp might be more handy, and there's plenty of decent cheap ones available.

At least of the uni-t models you mention, I'd prefer the 61E, and separate temp measure.

tld

[PedroDaGr8]

Temperature devices are cheap:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/TM-902C-Digital-Thermometer-new-version-0-1-degree-resolution-50-to-1300C-/200902258791
This is sold by a forum member Franky (iloveelectronics)

He's an awesome guy with great prices. He also sells the UT61E for $57
https://www.eevblog.com/forum/buysellwanted/brand-new-uni-t-ut61e-for-sale/

He might be able to combine shipping to reduce the cost a bit for you.

[adrianf88]

Hey! Thank you everyone for the fast reply! I know the UT61E is a favorite around here, and that's the reason it's a contender in my list, but i would really, really like to be able to measure temperature too. I took a look at Franky's store on ebay, (BTW, thanks for the info!) and he also sells the UT139C whichs is both True RMS and can measure temperature. Any thoughts about that?

And i know the UT60H looks good but how is it built? Anybody around here knows?

[dannyf]

I have had quite a few DT830 and a DT930, some dating back to the 1980s. They have all worked every well, and the last one I have was $5.

I really don't see the point of buying anything else.

[Wytnucls]

The 139C is one of the latest UNI-T meters. The company seems to take input protection a bit more seriously these days. On paper, it looks all good. A few of the drawbacks are the lack of a bar graph and a PC connection.
Don't expect stellar performances in that price range, but it should be good enough for your needs.

[retiredcaps]

For the $60 budget, you may want to consider the Digitek DT-2843R

Lightages, a member here, did a review



It has True RMS and temperature measurement.  I can't say that I ever needed True RMS though.

Franky also sells the meter.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/171080136251

[retiredcaps]

A good enough multimeter for my little electronics projects but lately, it's been acting up. I tried measuring a simple AA (R6) battery and the reading was all over the place. Started at 10.4V and then settled after a few seconds at 1.43V but then spiked back up to around 7V.

If you want to try and fix the existing meter, I suggest

1) try a fresh battery.  Sometimes a marginal battery gives funny readings, but the meter does not display the low battery icon on the lcd.

2) try different probes.  You may have broken wires inside your probes?

3) check the rotary switch.  Give it a good IPA cleaning.

4) check the soldering on your input jacks.  Maybe there is a bad solder joint?

5) give your PCB and good IPA bath and cleaning.

6) check your input impedance.  You may have a bad PTC or some marginal component?

[retiredcaps]

I have had quite a few DT830 and a DT930, some dating back to the 1980s. They have all worked every well, and the last one I have was $5.

I really don't see the point of buying anything else.

Everyone has different requirements. While a $5 830 works well for your purposes, it may not work well for others.

Just like a Fluke is overkill for some, others depend on its safety ratings, reliability and customer service.

[han]

I have had quite a few DT830 and a DT930, some dating back to the 1980s. They have all worked every well, and the last one I have was $5.


I really don't see the point of buying anything else.

Everyone has different requirements. While a $5 830 works well for your purposes, it may not work well for others.


Just like a Fluke is overkill for some, others depend on its safety ratings, reliability and customer service.

Even fluke can be unsafe for some people

[iloveelectronics]

Hey! Thank you everyone for the fast reply! I know the UT61E is a favorite around here, and that's the reason it's a contender in my list, but i would really, really like to be able to measure temperature too. I took a look at Franky's store on ebay, (BTW, thanks for the info!) and he also sells the UT139C whichs is both True RMS and can measure temperature. Any thoughts about that?

And i know the UT60H looks good but how is it built? Anybody around here knows?

I actually own a UT60H myself. Bought it when I first got back into the hobby a couple of years ago, before I became a seller If I remember correctly it uses only glass fuses. I don't like the meter much as it's slow, in terms of screen update rate, auto ranging, as well as the continuity tester.

The UT139C would actually be my personally recommendation if you do not need the higher resolution and PC connectivity of the UT61E.

BTW, thanks everyone for recommending me again! I'm really grateful for all your support!

Cheers,
Franky

[adrianf88]

Thank you everybody for all the replies! What a wonderful community! Usually i get my head chewed off for being a newbie but i see here is not the case! Anyway, thank you again, and thank you Franky for clearing that up for me. The UT60H is a no go for me as of right now. So the only 2 meters left are the UT61E and the UT139C. I love the UT139C but i have to wonder.... Why is it cheaper than the UT61E when it has more features? I love the NCV feature and i also love the backlight feature but again... why is it cheaper? Inside it looks better built than the UT61E.  And also i never worried about the counts since i never needed more than 2 decimals on my readings, but after seeing the video i have to wonder.... If i measure anything below 6V it will read 5,123V right? If i go over 6 it will read 6,12V. But what will happen if i go over 60? Will i get only one decimal? like 60,5V or 100,2V? That will definitely be a no go for me...  

And also, why can't i find the UT139C on the UNI-TREND site? Or anywhere else for that matter besides ebay?

[iloveelectronics]

The UT61E is more expensive mainly because of the higher count, and the data logging capability to a PC.

A 6000 count meter means the maximum display you will see on the screen is 6000 (technically it's 5999), regardless of the position of the decimal point. So yes, you will read 5.xxxV before you hit 6V, and 6.xx after that (because it cannot display 6xxx). You have will 2 decimal places until 59.xxV and then down to one decimal place after 60.xV.

[adrianf88]

Thank you Franky for the fast reply! I'll have to think about that... But thank you everybody for all the help! And as soon as i make a decision, i'll contact Franky to buy one. Either one or the other!

[iloveelectronics]

They do have more info of the UT139C on the Uni-T website, but only on the Chinese version website.

http://www.uni-trend.com.cn/cp-show.asp?yy=%D6%D0%CE%C4&ProductNO=780

[adrianf88]

Thank you again Franky! Now i know the UT139C is a legit meter. And not just a Chinese toy. And i would buy it right now if it wasn't for that pesky low count number... Does UNI-T make a UT139D or E or F or anything similar that would have the same specs as the UT139C but with a bigger count? Because i love the NCV feature, the backlight, the temperature, the build quality and also the fact that it uses AA batteries. But if i could have 2 digits up to 100V like 100,xxV it would be the perfect meter and i would buy it right now!

[Wytnucls]

Don't fuss too much about count and accuracy with cheap meters, as they drift quite a bit over time. Their very basic voltage references are internal to the main DMM chips, which are surrounded by the cheapest components available.
Rather base your decision on the features that you need the most.

[adrianf88]

Hello there! Trust me, i'm not fussing about precision. I don't want 6 digits and i don't expect very accurate readings for the price. And by accurate i mean getting a read of 10,123456V from a 10,123456V source. But what i do need is at least 2 digits up to 100V. Like 100,12V. My main hobby is LED's right now and working with constant current sources is a bit of a fuss. So if i were to need, let's say 200,5 mA, the difference between 200,51 mA and 200,59 mA could cause the LED's to burn out. So if anybody knows a multimeter with the exact same specs as the UT139C but with a bigger count please let me know. I believe i could cut back on the NCV feature... So maybe a UT139C without NCV but with a bigger count?

[KJDS]

Hello there! Trust me, i'm not fussing about precision. I don't want 6 digits and i don't expect very accurate readings for the price. And by accurate i mean getting a read of 10,123456V from a 10,123456V source. But what i do need is at least 2 digits up to 100V. Like 100,12V. My main hobby is LED's right now and working with constant current sources is a bit of a fuss. So if i were to need, let's say 200,5 mA, the difference between 200,51 mA and 200,59 mA could cause the LED's to burn out. So if anybody knows a multimeter with the exact same specs as the UT139C but with a bigger count please let me know. I believe i could cut back on the NCV feature... So maybe a UT139C without NCV but with a bigger count?

Are you really using 0.01% resistors and similar parts for an LED?

[BravoV]

 

[davidefa]

ut139c review and teardown:
user manual: http://www.pinsonne-elektronik.de/media/daten/UT139A_B_C_eng_uni-t_pinsonne.pdf

P.S. 0.1mA will not hurt your led

[adrianf88]

Nope. But i built quite recently an LED lamp with a bunch of LED's and it required a constant current source of 320,5 mA maximum. And i had to test everything very carefully, pots, resistors, everything so i wouldn't go over 320,5 mA and even if i didn't use 0,01% resistors, the output needed to be precisely tuned in order for the LED's not to burn out. And since then i began a lot of small electronics projects involving LED's. In some i needed the extra precision, in some i didn't. And i don't just use resistors for my LED projects. I use something like this as the power source:

[Wytnucls]

Measuring currents accurately is not an easy matter, even for expensive meters.
Quoted accuracy for the 61E on DCmA is 0.5%+10 counts. So the last digit is irrelevant if you measure 200.05mA, anyway.
With low voltages, the problem is even more acute, as now you have the 61E burden voltage to deal with.
With AC, accuracy is quoted as 1.5%+50 counts above 1kHz, so let's not even go there.

[Wytnucls]

The only other meter available in that price range I can think of, with a high 22,000 count, true RMS and temperature, is the Victor 86E.
Quality is not one of their strongest suit though...

http://www.china-victor.com/english/en/product_data.aspx?ClassID=168&ID=313
http://www.fasttobuy.com/digital-multimeter-victor86e-victor-86e-digital-multimeter-usb-interface_p4360.html