Author Topic: A dream came true Today34401A Digital Multimeter, 6½ Digit DMM  (Read 8853 times)

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Offline DavidAzulay5000Topic starter

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A dream came true Today34401A Digital Multimeter, 6½ Digit DMM
« on: February 20, 2023, 02:53:10 pm »
A dream came true Today  in perfect condition 8) 8) 8) 8) 8) 8)
HP 34401A Digital Multimeter, 6½ Digit DMM
« Last Edit: February 20, 2023, 03:46:57 pm by DavidAzulay5000 »
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Offline Miti

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Re: A dream came true Today34410A Digital Multimeter, 6½ Digit DMM
« Reply #1 on: February 20, 2023, 03:22:04 pm »
Are you sure it is 34410 and not 34401? Congrats anyway!
Fear does not stop death, it stops life.
 
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Offline coromonadalix

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Re: A dream came true Today34410A Digital Multimeter, 6½ Digit DMM
« Reply #2 on: February 20, 2023, 03:23:33 pm »
LOL  it is an 34401a   not a 34410a   huge difference  loll
« Last Edit: February 20, 2023, 04:00:26 pm by coromonadalix »
 

Offline DavidAzulay5000Topic starter

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Re: A dream came true Today34410A Digital Multimeter, 6½ Digit DMM
« Reply #3 on: February 20, 2023, 03:54:10 pm »
Are you sure it is 34410 and not 34401? Congrats anyway!

Sorry spelling mistake, it's from the excitement
I have been looking for this device for a long time
A friend sold it to me today for less than $200
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Offline coromonadalix

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Re: A dream came true Today34401A Digital Multimeter, 6½ Digit DMM
« Reply #4 on: February 20, 2023, 04:00:09 pm »
good deal  if it works ok    :-+
 
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Offline DavidAzulay5000Topic starter

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Re: A dream came true Today34401A Digital Multimeter, 6½ Digit DMM
« Reply #5 on: February 20, 2023, 04:03:36 pm »
good deal  if it works ok    :-+
work perfect no erorrs
pass all test
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Offline Miti

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Re: A dream came true Today34410A Digital Multimeter, 6½ Digit DMM
« Reply #6 on: February 20, 2023, 04:37:18 pm »
Sorry spelling mistake, it's from the excitement
I have been looking for this device for a long time
A friend sold it to me today for less than $200
I totally get it. I bought one from a colleague for 150 CAD and I’m thinking of buying the second one for the same price. I can’t find a reason not to.  :palm:
Fear does not stop death, it stops life.
 

Offline DavidAzulay5000Topic starter

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Re: A dream came true Today34410A Digital Multimeter, 6½ Digit DMM
« Reply #7 on: February 21, 2023, 04:53:27 am »
 8)
Sorry spelling mistake, it's from the excitement
I have been looking for this device for a long time
A friend sold it to me today for less than $200
I totally get it. I bought one from a colleague for 150 CAD and I’m thinking of buying the second one for the same price. I can’t find a reason not to.  :palm:
8) 8) 8) 8) 8) 8) . >:D
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Cuz Baboon's better than Weasel
 

Offline Swake

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Re: A dream came true Today34401A Digital Multimeter, 6½ Digit DMM
« Reply #8 on: February 21, 2023, 12:57:09 pm »
These things go 3x that price on this continent.
When it fits stop using the hammer
 
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Offline J-R

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Re: A dream came true Today34401A Digital Multimeter, 6½ Digit DMM
« Reply #9 on: February 22, 2023, 01:39:22 am »
I don't think the friends-pricing is valid for comparisons!

In my opinion, the 34401A is mostly good for accuracy & stability, but to capitalize on that you need to have it calibrated.  Usability is becoming a bit outdated compared to the new stuff on the market  Even something as simple as Min/Max is a pain in the neck.
 

Offline DavidAzulay5000Topic starter

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Re: A dream came true Today34401A Digital Multimeter, 6½ Digit DMM
« Reply #10 on: February 22, 2023, 03:41:47 am »
I don't think the friends-pricing is valid for comparisons!

In my opinion, the 34401A is mostly good for accuracy & stability, but to capitalize on that you need to have it calibrated.  Usability is becoming a bit outdated compared to the new stuff on the market  Even something as simple as Min/Max is a pain in the neck.
Amazing device
In terms of calibration
I tested it compared to my Quadtech 1659 RLC DigiBridge
He is my standard in terms of accuracy
Indeed all the resistance of the resistors exactly
From 5 milli ohms to 100 mega ohms
The only thing I did to 34401A
This is a short calibration
I was surprised that the milliohm resistance measurement was accurate even with 2 wires

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Offline NoisyBoy

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Re: A dream came true Today34401A Digital Multimeter, 6½ Digit DMM
« Reply #11 on: February 22, 2023, 06:16:13 am »
Then you are assuming the Quadtech is your reference standard, when did you last check its calibration?

The 34401A is capable of better than 0.01% accuracy in resistance measurement, which far exceeds the Quadtech spec of 0.1%.  So while what you do can verify whether it is in the ballpark, it is far from the calibration 3-R suggested.  As the full calibration also check on other functions beyond resistance as well.

However, many 34401A hold its accuracy well, perhaps that’s all you need, and that is perfectly acceptable. But if you need a 6.5 digit meter for high precision and accuracy, then I agree with 3-R that a full calibration is a good investment. 

I think annual calibration may be excessive for most hobbyists except the volt nuts, I personally would send a used meter for calibration, so i know I can trust its reading.  Especially if it has not been calibrated for a few years.

In any event, congratulations on your new meter. I have a couple, I love their silent operation and fast boot time.  But if you need to see MIN-MAX, then I think newer meters definitely have an advantage. 

Enjoy your new meter.  Outside of a calibration,I would also suggest a new VFD if you want the ultimate readability. 
 

Offline DavidAzulay5000Topic starter

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Re: A dream came true Today34401A Digital Multimeter, 6½ Digit DMM
« Reply #12 on: February 22, 2023, 06:36:04 am »
Then you are assuming the Quadtech is your reference standard, when did you last check its calibration?

The 34401A is capable of better than 0.01% accuracy in resistance measurement, which far exceeds the Quadtech spec of 0.1%.  So while what you do can verify whether it is in the ballpark, it is far from the calibration 3-R suggested.  As the full calibration also check on other functions beyond resistance as well.

However, many 34401A hold its accuracy well, perhaps that’s all you need, and that is perfectly acceptable. But if you need a 6.5 digit meter for high precision and accuracy, then I agree with 3-R that a full calibration is a good investment. 

I think annual calibration may be excessive for most hobbyists except the volt nuts, I personally would send a used meter for calibration, so i know I can trust its reading.  Especially if it has not been calibrated for a few years.

In any event, congratulations on your new meter. I have a couple, I love their silent operation and fast boot time.  But if you need to see MIN-MAX, then I think newer meters definitely have an advantage. 

Enjoy your new meter.  Outside of a calibration,I would also suggest a new VFD if you want the ultimate readability.
this is all i need dont use MIN-MAX
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Offline coromonadalix

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Re: A dream came true Today34401A Digital Multimeter, 6½ Digit DMM
« Reply #13 on: February 22, 2023, 11:16:51 am »
i had some of my 3x 34401a  meters checked  and 2 of them ended being calibrated,   but the cal facility  said they where on par /  within the specs 10-15 years later ....

i recapped 2 of them, and 1 of them had an clone vfd installed in it ........


now upped the game with an 34410a,  who got a new cloned vfd tooo

you have some software  here on eevblog  if you want to do some logging  ....
 
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Offline DavidAzulay5000Topic starter

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Re: A dream came true Today34401A Digital Multimeter, 6½ Digit DMM
« Reply #14 on: February 22, 2023, 12:31:57 pm »
i had some of my 3x 34401a  meters checked  and 2 of them ended being calibrated,   but the cal facility  said they where on par /  within the specs 10-15 years later ....

i recapped 2 of them, and 1 of them had an clone vfd installed in it ........


now upped the game with an 34410a,  who got a new cloned vfd tooo

you have some software  here on eevblog  if you want to do some logging  ....

I know the software
Later I will install it on one of my computers that has a GPIB connection.

I am very pleased with the purchase
Usually all my measuring equipment I bought broken and repaired and calibrated after that.

This is one of the only devices I've purchased that is completely working.

He had another 34401A that I could have purchased much cheaper because it had a problem measuring resistor values less than 2 ohms and I did not purchase it even though it is very easy to fix it in the future I might purchase it as well because I really liked the performance of the 34401A .

I tested the 34401A today
in a 4 wire connection
for measuring resistances
of my VISHAY precision resistor collection
0.01%
And all the measurements were exact
I'm going to use it mostly for measuring short circuits.

That's why the milliohm resistor measurements were most important to me
On a daily basis I use my Quadtech 1659 RLC DigiBridge project
which is an amazing measuring device .

Its only problem is that the measurements are made on the 4-wire Digibridge fixture connector on the device
That means to measure anything you have to connect the component directly to 1659
Do you know how pleased I was that the 34401A
Gave me the same results as the 1659
that the 1659 I calibrated.
It is very easy to calibrate, you only need 4 precision resistors with specific values
24.895 ohms and  15 ppm
374.06 ohm 5ppm
5.9581 kilohms 22ppm
94.986 kilohms 280ppm

« Last Edit: February 22, 2023, 01:49:34 pm by DavidAzulay5000 »
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Offline J-R

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Re: A dream came true Today34401A Digital Multimeter, 6½ Digit DMM
« Reply #15 on: February 22, 2023, 10:26:59 pm »
Totally understand if you only need certain functions and can also test the 34401A to verify it is accurate in those areas.  I have a DMM I'm debating getting calibrated, but have mostly been just using it for DC 0-10V, so...

The calibration data printout for my 34401A has a couple hundred data points.  An older device that has stabilized combined with at least a somewhat recent calibration + data is very nice to have.  It builds trust!

I recently picked up a new DMM with both the factory calibration and then a 3rd party calibration only a few months later.  The 3rd party didn't do any adjustments, just provided the data printout.  Well, that thing had drifted enough that the last digit is not really even worth looking at.  But still in spec.  And from a daily usability perspective, it's far better than the 34401A.
 

Offline DavidAzulay5000Topic starter

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Re: A dream came true Today34401A Digital Multimeter, 6½ Digit DMM
« Reply #16 on: February 24, 2023, 12:15:17 pm »
HP 34401A after zero calibration on all the Ranges

Resistor testing on some of my vishay precision resistor collection
0.05 percent
0.01 percent
2500 ohm
10 Kohm
5 Kohm
125 Kohm
1 ohm
100 milliohm
Etc. etc
Starting with resistors 5 milliohm ceramic resistors
Up to 100 mega ohm 1 percent resistors
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Offline Wade2019

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Re: A dream came true Today34401A Digital Multimeter, 6½ Digit DMM
« Reply #17 on: February 24, 2023, 02:14:56 pm »
Congratulations on owning the 34401A, which is the representative of the multimeter,Although I own three 34401A and one 34410, I am still very excited to meet 34401 for the first time
 

Offline DavidAzulay5000Topic starter

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Re: A dream came true Today34401A Digital Multimeter, 6½ Digit DMM
« Reply #18 on: February 24, 2023, 06:04:25 pm »
Congratulations on owning the 34401A, which is the representative of the multimeter,Although I own three 34401A and one 34410, I am still very excited to meet 34401 for the first time
i have 4 DMM

Quadtech 1659 RLC DigiBridge

HP 34401A

keithley 197A autoranging microvolt dmm

FLUKE 87
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Offline DavidAzulay5000Topic starter

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Re: A dream came true Today34401A Digital Multimeter, 6½ Digit DMM
« Reply #19 on: February 25, 2023, 04:59:58 pm »
In order to check the accuracy of measuring DC voltages

 I built a precision voltage reference 5 volt

 Based on the linear technology LT6657AHMS8-5

Accuracy of 0.1 percent in regulation

PPM 0.5

The measurement voltage  5.000.73 volts.
Later I will build some more
I have too many V REF
To choose from my collection.
LTZ1000
LM399
LT1021 5V 7V 10V
TL1634 1.25V
LT6657 1.25V 2.5V 3V 5V
LT6658

And lots of other models.
I usually dont like to use them because I like to collect Linear Technology components.
Some people collect stamps
I collect components.
I have about 20 models of their voltage reference
« Last Edit: February 25, 2023, 05:09:54 pm by DavidAzulay5000 »
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Online PartialDischarge

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Re: A dream came true Today34401A Digital Multimeter, 6½ Digit DMM
« Reply #20 on: February 25, 2023, 05:19:02 pm »
i had some of my 3x 34401a  meters checked  and 2 of them ended being calibrated,   but the cal facility  said they where on par /  within the specs 10-15 years later ....

Same, I have a 34401 not calibrated in probably 15 years, checked it with a new DMM6500 and they only differ a bit in the last digit
 

Offline Fungus

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Re: A dream came true Today34401A Digital Multimeter, 6½ Digit DMM
« Reply #21 on: February 25, 2023, 08:11:08 pm »
Same, I have a 34401 not calibrated in probably 15 years, checked it with a new DMM6500 and they only differ a bit in the last digit

It's almost as if they were designed for that...  :popcorn:
 

Offline DavidAzulay5000Topic starter

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Re: A dream came true Today34401A Digital Multimeter, 6½ Digit DMM
« Reply #22 on: March 01, 2023, 08:08:44 am »
Perfect 10 10.000.00V

 Another precision volt reference I built
 Based on the Linar Technology IC

 LT1021bch-10

 Exactly 10.000.00 V
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/Tx1SPPJ5NDI
« Last Edit: March 01, 2023, 01:51:59 pm by DavidAzulay5000 »
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Offline MathWizard

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Re: A dream came true Today34401A Digital Multimeter, 6½ Digit DMM
« Reply #23 on: March 02, 2023, 05:20:07 pm »
These things go 3x that price on this continent.
Yeah thats a great price, they never go that low on ebay. I think when I got my SDM3065X, all the similar used 34xxx and Keithley's were about the same price, and more. I have no regets the 3065x is great for me, but someday I'd like to see the difference, the top brands make.
 

Offline NoisyBoy

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Re: A dream came true Today34401A Digital Multimeter, 6½ Digit DMM
« Reply #24 on: March 02, 2023, 05:38:03 pm »
You would not want to compare a modern meter UI and display against a vintage meter like a 34401A, when you do your comparison, you should do it against a 34461A.  It is not fair to compare a 30+ year old design to a modern equipment. 

While I love the quiet operation of the 34401A, quick boot time, and stability, it is no match with modern meters without logging its output to the PC.  So if you are looking at capturing and displaying more than a single point of of measurement, or trying to see trends, or trying to get dual displays such as voltage and frequency, your life would be so much easier with a modern meter. 
 


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