Best Oscilloscope under $300?

[theaustindixon]

I'm planning on taking some electronics courses in the fall, and I'd like to get a budget oscilloscope (hopefully under $300) for practicing at home. Looking around online, I see these options:

New:

• Hantek DSO5102P
• Siglent SDS1052DL
• Rigol DHO800

Used:

• Siglent SDS1202X-E
• Rigol DS1052E
• Tektronix TDS2012

Any reason to buy one of these over the others?

[tautech]

Any reason to buy one of these over the others?

USB screenshot capability especially for a novice where you can capture waveform screenshots and present them to a mentor for advice/guidance.

The new SDS802X HD will be priced close to your budget.

[tggzzz]

Make sure you leave sufficient budget for the other items you will need. Bench power supply. Multimeters. Soldering iron. Scope probes. 4mm banana flying lead. Signal generator. Hook up wire and copperclad (unetched) PCB, or stripboard. A basic component kit. Diagonal cutters and pliers.

If you are considering second-hand equipment, then you can get scopes much much cheaper than $300; just make sure it is working.

All equipment has a learning curve, which means a beginner is often better served by having simple easily understood equipment. Beginners should be learning fundamental electronics, not spending too much time on the GUI of one manufacturers 2024 entry level equipment.

A good engineer will always be looking for simple easy ways to do the job. Once upon a time recording a scope trace required Polaroid cameras or pen plotters. Now the simplest and fastest way to record the complete experimental setup and all measurements is with a phone or digital camera (ah, bliss. The past wasn't always golden

[baldurn]

Used always depends on what you can find. New however I would only consider Rigol DHO800 or Siglent SDS800X HD. The Siglent will be released in about a week, so wait for pricing on that before deciding.

Those two are the newest tech and while you probably won't actually need the signature feature of 12 bits, there simply is no reason not to play with the most recent iteration of a DSO. Unless you are on a tight budget and want to spent significantly less by going used.

[abeyer]

I'm planning on taking some electronics courses in the fall, and I'd like to get a budget oscilloscope (hopefully under $300)

Given that's a while away still, if you don't have an urgent need now, you might consider waiting:

• You might decide you want to get (or not!) the same brand/model you use in school
• School might suggest something and/or be able to get you a discount
• The new 12 bit models will have shaken out a bit by then
• It gives you some time to possibly save up a bit and look at a slightly higher price point... $300 is a cap that seems like it's hard to stay under without making some compromises you probably wouldn't if you look up to even just $400ish. (of course there's always a more sparkly bit of test equipment... but this price bracket in particular seems like it brings some pretty noticeable trade-offs that you might not otherwise have to make.)

[Fungus]

It's hard to define "best" but the Rigol DHO800 is easily the "least-dinosaur" of that list.

All the others are antiques by comparison.

[Aldo22]

(hopefully under $300) ...

• Rigol DHO800

If you find a Rigol DHO800 for less than $300, please let me know.

[tggzzz]

It's hard to define "best" but the Rigol DHO800 is easily the "least-dinosaur" of that list.

All the others are antiques by comparison.

With skill and imagination[2], you can do a heck of a lot with simple old equipment that is working. Developing such skill and imagination is very useful for any beginner, especially one that aspires to be a competent engineer.[1]

Simple equipment allows beginners to concentrate on the fundamentals, and not be distracted by chrome-plated buttons hiding complex subtle functions.

So, yes - it is hard to define "best".

[1] valuable in a career too. What scope can you use to develop the world's fastest scope? How can you measure X when you don't have the budget for a dedicated X-tester, or the lead time is too long due to your company's internal processes? Sit there and whine?

[2] see my .sig

[baldurn]

Simple equipment allows beginners to concentrate on the fundamentals, and not be distracted by chrome-plated buttons hiding complex subtle functions.

It can also be limiting. Say you need to decode a SPI signal from your Arduino - all beginner level stuff. But you took the advice of getting an old boat anchor CRO because simple is better. The skill and imagination needed to find a different solution is something you do not have yet, and it is getting in the way of what you are actually trying to learn right now. Many beginners might just give up.

You also do not want to deal with aliasing and other garbage produced by the instrument itself. This is a real risk if you get the very cheapest digital handheld scopes, with limited bandwidth and sample rates and specs that are lies. The advanced learner may know about these thing and use skill+imagination to work around it. The beginner may become confused and give up.

[nctnico]

Agreed about decoding and buying a modern day DSO. But if you need/want a general purpose oscilloscope that actually works as advertised, you'll need 10 times the budget. Decoding is not a strong point on Rigol and Siglent scopes (can Hantek / Owon even do decoding?) and it is not unheard of a firmware update breaks a feature which was previously working. Something has got to give. Last week I visited an electronics lab at an university. They had a whole bunch of Tektronix educational oscilloscopes. IIRC Keysight has a similar offering. It could be worthwhile to see if these scopes can be purchased used or at a university discount. The specs may not look stellar on paper but having an instrument which just works as advertised is extremely helpfull (almost priceless). As a beginner you are dealing with enough unknowns as it is.

[Aldo22]

(can Hantek / Owon even do decoding?)

Not sure about DSO5102P, but the cheaper DSO2C10 can do decoding (very basic, but for $130....)

[Caliaxy]

(can Hantek / Owon even do decoding?)

Not sure about DSO5102P, but the cheaper DSO2C10 can do decoding (very basic, but for $130....)

DSO5102P doesn't.

[tggzzz]

Simple equipment allows beginners to concentrate on the fundamentals, and not be distracted by chrome-plated buttons hiding complex subtle functions.

It can also be limiting. Say you need to decode a SPI signal from your Arduino - all beginner level stuff. But you took the advice of getting an old boat anchor CRO because simple is better. The skill and imagination needed to find a different solution is something you do not have yet, and it is getting in the way of what you are actually trying to learn right now. Many beginners might just give up.

You also do not want to deal with aliasing and other garbage produced by the instrument itself. This is a real risk if you get the very cheapest digital handheld scopes, with limited bandwidth and sample rates and specs that are lies. The advanced learner may know about these thing and use skill+imagination to work around it. The beginner may become confused and give up.

I entirely agree about "strange" effects with digitising scopes. They occur even with more capable/reputable equipment but the effects are more subtle. Classic example is using a repetitive sampling mode to look at a digital transition, where the scope insists on drawing a line between successive samples. Misleading doesn't begin to describe it! (Yes HP,/Agilent I'm lookng at you!)

I wonder how we managed with digital signals before digitising scopes were available? Oh yes, we made the stimulus repeatable (always and still a good idea for many many reasons!) or used a analogue storage scope (horrible things !)

Where that isn't possible, use a scope to look at the analogue waveforms to ensure they will be correctly interpreted as digital signals (i.e. signal integrity). Then, for digital signals, flip to the digital domain with very inexpensive logic analysers or use a protocol analyser such as a bus pirate.

[tggzzz]

The specs may not look stellar on paper but having an instrument which just works as advertised is extremely helpfull (almost priceless). As a beginner you are dealing with enough unknowns as it is.

Precisely!

[Demon Xanth]

(hopefully under $300) ...

• Rigol DHO800

If you find a Rigol DHO800 for less than $300, please let me know.

Here you go:
https://www.tequipment.net/Rigol/DHO802/Digital-Oscilloscopes/

[Aldo22]

Here you go:
https://www.tequipment.net/Rigol/DHO802/Digital-Oscilloscopes/

Yes, that looks good.
Unfortunately not for me... 

[Demon Xanth]

That shipping price is a "please don't" price. 

[baldurn]

I wonder how we managed with digital signals before digitising scopes were available? Oh yes, we made the stimulus repeatable (always and still a good idea for many many reasons!) or used a analogue storage scope (horrible things !)

Where that isn't possible, use a scope to look at the analogue waveforms to ensure they will be correctly interpreted as digital signals (i.e. signal integrity). Then, for digital signals, flip to the digital domain with very inexpensive logic analysers or use a protocol analyser such as a bus pirate.

I am not saying that it is a problem to work with the old tech. But unless your interest lies specifically in learning how things was done in the past, I am arguing that the beginner is better of using a modern entry level DSO from a reputable vendor (and specifically the Rigol DHO800 or Siglent SDS800X HD). Those instruments are not perfect, but good enough to avoid most surprises and with a good range of features. It is something you will be able to keep for many years before possibly outgrowing the instrument.

Older A brand instruments may also be good options. The problem is that the beginner has no way to know if he is getting a good deal or not. There is a lot of overpriced and outdated stuff out there.

I am advising against going too cheap. The new stuff that is significantly cheaper than the before mentioned Rigol and Siglent is often "too cheap". If you are on a budget and need to make ends meet, I would say you need to go the used route. Yes that might even include an old CRO, because any instruments is better than no instrument.

[ebastler]

I recommend that you look for a 4-channel scope. Much more flexible than two channels; among other things they are capable of looking at (and decoding!) serial buses like SPI, with clock, data, enable, command/data lines.

With the recent or upcoming launch of new 12-bit entry-level scopes (Rigol DHO800 and Siglent SDS800X HD series), I would expect that the previous generation of 8-bit entry-level models increasingly show up on the used market. That would be the Rigol DS1xx4Z and the Siglent SDS1xx4X-E. They currently start at around $400 new, hence should become available for $300 or less used. I would prefer either of these over the other "used" models you have looked at.

[Smepic]

Rigol DS1054Z is 299€ on https://eleshop.eu/catalog/product/view/id/625/s/rigol-ds1054z/category/82/

It is quite reliable, or at least its bugs are well known.

[KungFuJosh]

Rigol DS1054Z is 299€ on https://eleshop.eu/catalog/product/view/id/625/s/rigol-ds1054z/category/82/

It is quite reliable, or at least its bugs are well known.

Ewww! No. Don't waste money on a 10 year old scope. There's MUCH better options out from both Rigol and Siglent, including a new scope being release this month from Siglent that should be competitive near that price.

[Fungus]

If you find a Rigol DHO800 for less than $300, please let me know.

Here you go:
https://www.tequipment.net/Rigol/DHO802/Digital-Oscilloscopes/

You might regret only getting two channels though, especially if you have any interest at all in microcontrollers and other digital electronics.

[Fungus]

Rigol DS1054Z is 299€ on https://eleshop.eu/catalog/product/view/id/625/s/rigol-ds1054z/category/82/

It is quite reliable, or at least its bugs are well known.

The DHO800 doesn't have enough bugs to justify getting a DS1054Z. Almost every feature is better and easier to use on the DHO.

IMHO the whole "bugs" thing is massively overstated on the DHO. There's half a dozen annoyances that you need to watch out for, nothing that stops you getting things done.

Focus on the pluses instead: The compact size, the touch screen, the readability of the text, windowing, WiFi, etc. are such HUGE advantages over those others that there's no way I'd trade in my DHO for anything on that list.

[MT]

Anyone who buys 2ch scopes today dont know what they are doing and should instead become a nurse or something.

[mwb1100]

I’m not sure I should be suggesting the following since I have never used one and there have been a number of complaints on eevblog about it, but for its price it seems like something that could be considered as a beginner scope:  the Hantek DSO2D10.  Also the review posts aren’t always 100% negative - and it seems that there’s a lot of help available on eevblog too.

You can get one on Amazon for $200 (after an 8%off coupon is applied by checking a box).  It also comes with a signal generator which would be useful in school labs.

However, the OP should check the various threads here to see if the potential negatives might be too much of a risk.

Another option that might be considered is getting a used Digilent Analog Discovery on eBay.  The oscilloscope doesn’t have high bandwidth, but it’s likely good enough for most school projects.  Also  the AD has a ton of various devices that would be useful in educational labs.  New ones would be out of price range, but used ones seem to go for around $150.  A v1 model should be nearly as useful as a v2 or later model, and those are on eBay all the time.