Brand new Agilent 34401A in Europe (France) (all gone now)

[DaneLaw]

w0nder how many of that 50pcs stack (40sold) that's been picked up by EEVlog users.. 
Though not for me, 460$ is still quite a chunk and a fluorescent display on a 6½ bench DMM can be a challenge.

Its a model that there is a lot of data and info about, been in play since 1992 and it's not like new 6½ bench DMMs are hanging on the trees, even the cheaper Chinese brands on their modern variants.. are up there price-wise... a Hantek 6½ unit is around 600 $ incl. EUVAT & delivery and that unit seems to be a mixed affaire.

[H.O]

Yeah, come on guys, hurry up and buy them all so I can forget about it once and for all...please...
I really don't need another bench DMM, but then again it's the classic 34401A and I don't have one of those 

[Sorama]

Yeah, come on guys, hurry up and buy them all so I can forget about it once and for all...please...
I really don't need another bench DMM, but then again it's the classic 34401A and I don't have one of those 

admit it: you are supposed to buy one!
(how can you not)

[coromonadalix]

one thing people tend to forget     if theses are really new,     you will need to age the reference ....   

i had 3 of them used w some problems (x-former and a vfd)  aged for years,  recapped them,  one did get a certification, and was perfect  the others where just compared, and where still rock solid, had the rack mountable  L4411a   but at some point you do miss the front keypad

but man they where fast to settle and get/be ready


and grab or build an "duino" gpib interface, or lan to gpib interface  we have in some thread and be happy.

sure some says  they lack  this or that,  but they don't crash like more recent ones ... cough cough      

personally I would avoid any 3446x 34475 models,  some say okay  some have problems, but others brand have quirks too. my personal  2 cents

a 34410a  was a perfect upgrade for my oldies 34401  ...   1x  vfd later  loll     sure the vfd can or could be a problem, but now  many have been cloned for many models ...     

but at theses prices mmmm  i'm still doubting, for me a 300-350$  would have been perfect

[Traceless]

I bought one, thanks again a bdunham7 for letting us know. As mentioned by Kleinstein and HighVoltage those are not common here in Germany - here is a current example of pricing for used 34401A in Germany.

[AVGresponding]

one thing people tend to forget     if theses are really new,     you will need to age the reference ....

No. The LM399's in these are selected and pre-aged (or pre-aged, and then selected). One of the best features of the 34401A is the long term stability. Modern 6.5d DMMs may have fancy UI's and marginally better connectivity, but none of them will beat the general performance of a 34401A, and few will even match it.
 

but at theses prices mmmm  i'm still doubting, for me a 300-350$  would have been perfect

That's the price of an slightly-below-average-condition used one, not a NIB   

[DaneLaw]

Hurry godammit...Last call as in 2 left, as Im writing this.

[bdunham7]

No. The LM399's in these are selected and pre-aged (or pre-aged, and then selected). One of the best features of the 34401A is the long term stability. Modern 6.5d DMMs may have fancy UI's and marginally better connectivity, but none of them will beat the general performance of a 34401A, and few will even match it.

None of the cheap ones, anyway.  I just did a tempco/calibration test of the 10V range on my old v10 (circa 1996) US-made 34401A and it is still well within spec on the original 29 year old calibration.  About +0.67ppm/C tempco (noticeable but not terrible) and -2ppm @ 23C, spot-on at 25C.  There's plenty of 3458A owners out there that wish they had long-term drift that low.

[mawyatt]

Being somewhat seasoned (OK old!!) these were and still are the standard for 6 1/2 digit DMMs. The long term stability isn't speculated or extrapolated, it's proven over multiple decades!!

Would be a fun project to see if this long term storage had any adverse effects on performance. Once a good long term burn-in (few months) to push out the humidity suspect they will be great performers for the next few decades!! 

Great opportunity for the folks in Europe, wish that deal would have shown up here in US!!

Best

[Sorama]

And…sold out!
50 pieces in less than 4 days.

Not bad.

[H.O]

Phew, I managed to resist :-) And now I regret it :-(

 

Congratulations to all forum members who got one, price was cheaper than many banged up units with faint VFD.

[Swake]

and grab or build an "duino" gpib interface, or lan to gpib interface  we have in some thread and be happy.

No need, these already have a serial interface 

[rogerggbr]

Thanks for the heads up, I got there with 9 left on Friday whilst at work, thought about it, ummed a bit, do I really need one of these? Looked back and there were 7 left, ordered one. Always wanted something like this as a master reference, too good to miss. I reckon worst case is I have to sell it again later, but realistically that is not going to happen. I have a couple of other bench meters but nothing close the performance (on paper) of these. Now I guess I have to admit to having an addiction not a hobby I CAN QUIT ANYTIME I WANT.....

[Sorama]

This morning, the 34401A was delivered. 
It looks like the dmm has never been used: not any dirt or traces on the rubber feet/bottom and the screen protector still on the display.
I still need to understand why the beeper works/behaves differently when in continuity or diode mode.
Completely different behaviour then its physically much smaller brother the fluke 45.

[SHF]

got mine delivered 2 days ago, it is really new, calibration is top

[Swake]

I can see 2 of them in that picture 
You can compare now

[SHF]

I can see 2 of them in that picture 
You can compare now

[B0B45]

Got mine today, too.

Guess we got a very good deal in the end. 

[B0B45]

Guess they renewed? the electrolytic caps
edit: not so sure anymore, could be old ones. Maybe someone knows what kind of caps are used in the meter.

[coromonadalix]

for the caps  seems totally legit

for the blue relay  i would do compare specs  with the normal coto found in others 34401a

[Swake]

Got a picture of another meter with same caps and same blue relay.

Why are they putting capton tape on those capacitors?

[AVGresponding]

Got a picture of another meter with same caps and same blue relay.

Why are they putting capton tape on those capacitors?

Meder Electronic are one of the suppliers for 0490-1914. The specs will be the same as the COTO ones.

The tape is most likely to help with HV isolation of the cans, rather than thermal issues.

[pe1oxp]

Received it also few day ago. Looks like new and working fine. Haven't compared it yet against other meters and standards.

Only complain is that they removed the Certificate of Calibration from the box and the internal carton box with accessories contains the shipping list of another 34401A (other serial number).
Unfortunately no response on questions i asked the seller.

[rogerggbr]

Mine arrived yesterday into UK complete with all documents. Other UK importers from Europe (like me) need to remember that VAT will be payable along with "brokerage charges" depending on the specific carrier (in this case UPS). Not complaining at all, but I had sort of forgotten that as I don't do it regularly, in my case an extra £82

[ps]

Guess they renewed? the electrolytic caps

Yes, the capacitors have been replaced. The new ones are Nippon Chemicon KMG series, the original ones were KME. So this is the same quality. The seller wrapped them into Kapton tape for additional leakage protection.

The blue Meder relay is normal for the MY- and SG-made devices. It is narrower and does not touch the surge arresters.