After having spent most of my life intermittently tinkering with electronics in a not too serious fashion and getting a bit more serious the past 1-2 years, it's finally time to upgrade the workbench into something more permanent. I've grown tired of every tool being a project itself, and want tools that help me get the job done, rather than having to fight them to get anywhere. A bit of background is that I'm the owner of a tiny fledgling business. Electronics are not my core business, but I've found it to be an enjoyable and useful addition to my bag of tricks and have become a more prominent part of things because of that. I'm not quite focussing on one area, with work including the assembly and repair of my own power and CNC tools and computers, the design and manufacture of tools and components for internal use, preliminary feasibility testing and prototyping of boards to be used in actual products and possibly small scale manufacture in the future. I'm still looking into the certification and liability side of the latter. Embedded microcontrollers, small power supplies, motor control and some minor RF work are amongst the things I worked on so far. I don't mind spending money on good tools, but as with any starting business, money is very tight. Spending money here means not spending it elsewhere. It also means I'm not going to set a fixed budget, as I don't want to set a hard limit and miss out. I've looked at various options for a while now, and the time has come for you folks to take shots at my reasoning.
I've bought a Fluke 87V. I was actually looking for something much more modest, but I could pick it up at a decent price. Even though I initially felt I overspent and was prepared to dislike it for being nothing too special, I'm actually pleasantly surprised. In relevant ways, it reminds me of my Knipex tools. It can take a beating and will get the job done regardless, without much fuss or excitement. This has reinforced my belief that it pays to get some proper tools, as I've always appreciated them in other areas. I've never caught myself thinking I should have bought a worse tool for the job, but again, the budget will dictate the choices here. I've assembled to following preliminary list:
1. Rigol DS1054Z - You can hardly go wrong with this one. Even though the model is ageing a bit, there don't seem to be any competitors with an equal amount of channels and value. I've looked long and hard at the Siglent SDS1202X-E, because of its higher bandwidth, better FFT and more snappy interface, but I think the bigger memory and extra channels of the DS1054Z win out. Four channels will help looking at digital signals and working on brushless motors. I've also looked at more expensive models, but I don't see too much reason to upgrade. Any significant performance gain coincides with a huge price hike.
2. Korad 3005D-2S - The Korad is a fairly basic dual channel power supply with enough extra features to make it interesting. It has a convenient UI and all the obligatory basic options. You can also read and write data through a PC, which could be a very useful addition for some testing. I've looked at the Rigol DP832, but that's quite a bit more expensive without offering that much more. It should be more accurate, but the interface is a little more clunky. I'm not sure spending two to three times more will pay off there.
3. Quick 861DW - Considering I'm moving towards more modern components, often available only in some of the more annoying SMD packages, I thought it'd be a good idea to invest in a good hot air station. This seems to be the only option between the Aoyue models and the much more expensive Hakko or even JBC and Weller ones. I know Aoyue is known as a good budget option, but I've had a lot of trouble with my 936 station. Even though that may very well have been a fluke [ha!], it has turned me off to the degree that I'd rather spend a bit more to get something else. This model seems to be very well liked by people who do professional board level repairs and is compatible with the commonly available Aoyue nozzles.
This should get me along my way for now. Next up would be a decent function generator, but for now I've bought a very cheap FG-100 that'll fill the gap until then. What do you guys think and have I missed any obvious options?