Electronics > Beginners

First DMM?

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GigaJoe:
Something $20 cheap, thing is .... later on you will figure-out needs , like better precision, or need a bench one with 5.5 or so or need autohold, need min/max or math , need bar graph, transistor measure , need something else ....

as a second moment: by mistake you may measure current in the wall plug, (had happens with me when I measure transformer parameters ... 2 DMM dead , cant fix it ...)

So i have a few disposable for $10-$20 it works well for 95% , the rest 5% covers by 5 or 6 digits bench one ... Another positive and some fun thing, change a quartz till it stable ,  some of them going up to 4-5 times faster,  arranging range in eye blink :) - I HATE slow multi-meter, unless it 6-7D ...

Doctorandus_P:
The Brymen meters have about the highest performance / quality you can get for 1/2 or 1/3 the price of a Fluke.
The Aneng meters are a very nice addition for electronics.
You always want more than 1 multimeter.
For example for measuring input and output voltages / currents fo a circuit.
Use one to keep track of the temperature of a transistor, while using another meter for who knows what.
If you are in doubt of the quality / accuracy of your DMM, you can use the second meter as a check.
You can use 1 DMM to check if the other has blown a fuse.
You can use 1 DMM to check input impedance etc. of another DMM.

The Aneng AN8009 (EUR 23 From Ali / Ebay) has a very generous amount of ranges.
The GreenLee meter mentioned earlier in this thread are rebranded Brymen's.
Some of the "Voltcraft" meters are also rebranded Brymens, (or UTi).

A DMM that beeps at me when the switch is in Volt position and the probes are in an Amp bananabus has saved me multiple times from blowing up my DMM.

xani:

--- Quote from: rhb on July 12, 2018, 04:22:02 pm ---
--- Quote from: xani on July 12, 2018, 11:24:58 am ---
--- Quote from: rhb on July 12, 2018, 03:14:01 am ---Not sure where you live.  But if you're in the US I suggest you buy a pack of gum at Harbor Freight and get a free DMM.  With a cal they are good to better than 0.1%.   And you can do the cal with some fresh batteries.  All you need is the right coupon.

--- End quote ---
Life is too short for non-autoranging DMM ^-^. Also non-fused 10A range is something I'd avoid for someone that's just starting. If I got one for free sure I'd toss it in a toolbox as spare, but I woudn't want to pay for one


--- Quote ---The test probes are fragile, but a bit of hot melt glue where the wire goes into the probe is supposed to solve that.

--- End quote ---
I think that's all cheapish meters, good probes cost more than them for the most part

--- End quote ---

The 10 A range is fused.  These are the modern equivalent of a Fluke 8000A except for not being rated to 1200 V.  Beginners should not be playing with high voltages, so that hardly matters.

--- End quote ---
Is it ? On picture you attached shunt seems to go directly from COM to 10A., just like on  other types of it. I did saw some other teardown that did seem to have it separate, so it might depend on model.


--- Quote ---These are the modern equivalent of a Fluke 8000A except for not being rated to 1200 V.

--- End quote ---

They look like same kind of meter I've used 20 years ago when I was a kid (well ones like that[/url;] ). Those didn't had 10 A range fused either.


--- Quote ---A beginner should be conscious at *all* times of what they expect the meter to read.  A manual ranging meter encourages developing safe work habits.  Autoranging meters tend to encourage just poking the probes in.  That can get very spectacular if it's a CRT or microwave oven  HV section no matter what DMM you're using.

--- End quote ---

If someone sets manual ranging meter to highest range and poke microwave or CRT, result will be as bad.

I don't really see a value in manual ranging (and you can do that on auto meter anyway if you really need), just adds to annoyance when probing unknown circuit. Fine for a cheapie (for price of HF meter you get amazing deal all things considered) but IMO getting anything above $30 with manual ranging is pointless.


--- Quote ---A well equipped electronics test bench is not cheap.  I've got more of the HF units that I can count (or find).  I've had only one fail.  A 34401A certainly meets the OP's requirements, but I think all would agree it's rather overkill for a beginner.

The HF DMMs are one of the few Chinese T&M devices I don't dislike.

By the time you add up a DMM, DSO, AWG and PSU it's not cheap.  You can fix a lot of things with just a DMM, but you *really* need to know what you're doing to be able to do that.

I just thought I should point out that a DMM is like your first shot of heroin.  After that you want more.  The TEA thread is testimony to that problem.  So buying more than you need at any stage is questionable.  And it's pretty hard to beat free.

--- End quote ---

Agreed. If I had $150 to spend on beginner's T&M I'd definitely not burn it on meter. Just cheap meter + used analog scope (or, in case of digital, cheapo logic analyzer) would be WAY more useful than $150 meter

Mr. Scram:
I'd argue going for the BM257 rather than the BM235. The bar graph is a good feature to have and the extra connectivity could be useful is that tickles your fancy. The latter could be considered superfluous, but a bar graph is a very useful tool and helps understanding what's going on more easily.

Lightages:
I will repeat the recommendation for a BM257S. You are unlikely to need anything better for a long time and unlikely to find anything better for the price.

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