| General > General Technical Chat |
| How good of a multimeter does a hobbyist *really* need? |
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| dmlandrum:
When you consider that the better, higher-confidence multimeters cost as much as a good brand new oscilloscope, I'm wondering how good I really need my multimeter to be for the occasional project that will never be turned into a product for sale. I understand the argument against cheap Chinese multimeters, which can lead to false confidence in your readings, but if you consider that $300-400 for a multimeter might be overkill for a non-professional, is there perhaps a happy medium that can be found? What brands and models might that happy medium be? I suppose one other option would be hunting around for used Flukes, which come up a lot on eBay. They often spur fierce bidding wars, though, which is why I hate eBay sometimes. (Yes, I'm one of those annoying old "I used eBay before it was cool" people. :) ). Still, I've seen Fluke 77's on my local Craiglist for not too much, so that might work for me. So I guess the secondary question is, what do we want to look out for in a used meter? Thank you for your time. I love the videos and the forum here. :) |
| GeekGirl:
Some 20 odd years ago, I worked as a tech, Installing security, intercom and CCTV, I had a series 1 Fluke 77, was a very reliable, trustworthy meter. I would buy one if you can find it at the right price :) Things to look for on a used Meter, that ohms works :) shorted leads should be <1 ohm, to test DC voltage use an 1.5V AA cell, you should measure >1.5V on a brand new one ~1.6V, if you also have say a 1.5 Ohm 5W resistor, you could use this with the battery to make a 1A current source :) ( I have used these tests at an electronics swap meet, if it passes some basic tests and looks in reasonable condition , I have no worries handing over money :) |
| charliex:
I got a broken fluke 88 from a friend for free, sent it in to fluke for a repair with a flat repair fee of $150, Bad LCD and a broken case. Its always hard to say when you're recommending tools, everyone has a different set of rules for what works for them. Some people are happier to put up with flaws for a reduction in cost, and others will pay a lot for a recognised name, though hopefully with the support. I like fluke, I like the $50 protek handheld i got from frys, lots of features. Didn't like the protek bench dmm though. |
| Zero999:
Was the Fluke your friend gave you worth repair? |
| qno:
The main problem I have with cheaper DMM's is overload protection and insulation. If you measure AC 110, 230 or even 400 V I would stick to the quality Brand's. If you measure electronics <24VDC you will be fine. I think there is nothing wrong with using a meter of $5 from your local supermarket. It will learn you to do measurements. And if you make a mistake you only loose $5. As long as you do not measure on the grid or use the high current settings for more than a few seconds. Then after a while you know what is important for you. What is also important to me is the test leads. You can end up paying more for a good set of leads than the meter itself. Watch out! Older meters sometimes use odd input impedances on some ranges. Not the 10 Mohm you are used to today. Fluke isn't the only quality meter manufacturer. You can pick up good quality brands for a good price anywhere on the web. Gossen is one example. It is well known in Europe but maybe you can do a nice deal elsewhere in the world. Hewlett Packard (now Agilent) Tektronix, Philips and Beckman, Simpson, Hioki are among the brands I have or used. Also look for brands that have faded or became unpopular due to takeover by a competitor. Philips is bought by Fluke in the 90ies and relabeled the successful products to Fluke. Philips started the Scopemeter in the mid 90 with the 93, 95 and the 97 models. Hardly anyone remembers because Scopemeter is now synonym to Fluke. Tektronix is now owned by the Danaher group. They use to have a line of multimeters. You can buy older Gossen meters renamed to BBC or ABB. And there is nothing wrong with my Fluke 8020 if you can do without the bargraph display and only do basic Volts ohms and current measurements. |
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