Debranded Micsig handheld scope on sale on eBay

[elebot]

Apparently Micsig is selling their MS220T scopes with some multimeter issues debranded on eBay - http://www.ebay.com/itm/322153406489 (advertised as fully functional, only with disabled multimeter funtion).
It is my guess that it is MS220t as the features/params match but have not seen internals of the "real" MS220t.
The price seemed OK to me (even with the shipping, duties and taxes) so now I have my first handheld scope.

In the spirit of this forum I had to open it and here are some pictures of the internals.

As you can see there are quite some differences to the isolated version Dave has reviewed.


The multimeter is disabled in HW by disconnecting the red plus socket and in SW by (at least) disabling the "Meter". Also the square wave test signal for probe compensation is not available as it is also generated by the multimeter.

You can fully control the scope via USB but unfortunately the SW is for 32b Windows only (Win 7 and up), no 64b version :-(


Have not checked all the features/params but so far I am quite happy with the purchase.

[Assafl]

Is it not isolated channels? even when using a battery?

I like my Scopemeter just to be able to do "carefree" prodding inside mains equipment. (Of course I jest - any "carefree" prodding - even with an isolated scope or differential probes - will eventually kick your ass).

You can fully control the scope via USB but unfortunately the SW is for 32b Windows only (Win 7 and up), no 64b version :-(

That is disappointing. Perhaps it will install and work with one of the compatibility modes in Windows? I know getting the Fluke SW to work is a pain in the A**.

[robert_]

I also bought one, hope it is sort of worth the 200Eur i paid in the end.
I guess it will be good enough for what i need a portable scope for (as im getting rid of that not really portable TDS3014 w/battery now, before it gets entirely worthless).
It probably will be good enough to look at some rotary encoder signals, triac switching and signals like that.

Yes, both channels DO share the same common! It is not grounded (on battery, and with no usb connected). So if one decides to float the common, it would be a really good idea to insulate all other connectors...
Isolated channel scopes are quite a different price class, and i would not buy anything chinese there, as most applications that require isolated channels will deal with high energy. Rather go for a R+S RTH (the one that sucks by far the least, compared to fluke, tek or agisight) here.

[nctnico]

with high energy. Rather go for a R+S RTH (the one that sucks by far the least, compared to fluke, tek or agisight) here.

Ar you sure? I went through most of the isolated input scopes last year and the higher end Keysight models seem to be the best when comparing specs. BTW I did use the Keysight U1620 a couple of times and it seems like a very capable instrument to me which can replace a 2 channel benchtop oscilloscope.

[mnementh]

Dang. Wish I had $300 to gamble with right now.


mnem
This is where I usually put some pithy remark.

[elebot]

Is it not isolated channels? even when using a battery?

I like my Scopemeter just to be able to do "carefree" prodding inside mains equipment. (Of course I jest - any "carefree" prodding - even with an isolated scope or differential probes - will eventually kick your ass).

As mentioned - the oscilloscope channels share common ground with everything else. You could use it floating if you do not need different grounds for each channel, there is nothing connected and the potential is not too high. I mean for example the controls like the scroll wheel or the touch screen are probably not safe for high voltages.

On  the other hand to avoid ground loops issues or slight difference it is still great (not to mention fanless operation  ).

The multimeter is properly isolated.

That is disappointing. Perhaps it will install and work with one of the compatibility modes in Windows? I know getting the Fluke SW to work is a pain in the A**.

You can run it in a virtual machine. I think the main bottleneck is the USB driver - has to be 64b for 64b win...
When asked Micsig they do not have or work on such version (nor they are willing to publish the protocol, yet?). Apparently they main push are the tablets now.

[elebot]

Btw the DMM is there and when connected back the plus socket with the board it seems to be working just fine and within specs. So far. I have not checked all the ranges yet / I am wondering what were the QA issues there.

But since the FW is modified, the only way how to use it is via the PC program. I mean you cannot switch to the DMM function by the big button on the meter but you can use the "virtual version" of the same button on the PC  And then you can even disconnect the scope from the PC, switch DMM functions (voltage/resistance/...).

The recorder can also record DMM values and there the DMM function is not blocked at all (ie. you can do measurements without PC).

[robert_]

Interesting.
Is it possible to flash the regular MS200 firmware image?

[TheSteve]

If this was the isolated input version it would be a great deal.

[elebot]

Interesting.
Is it possible to flash the regular MS200 firmware image?

Unfortunately not.
The upgrade/flashing is done from the PC program (ScopeSuite) and perhaps the check is done there. At least it would indicate the past experience (from an earlier version of the ScopeSuite?) here https://www.eevblog.com/forum/testgear/micsig-technical-support-join-in-eevblog/msg667946/#msg667946 (but that version does not do the trick either).

[robert_]

As i dont have my device yet, i cant really check anything myself at the moment.
How does the device identify itself (if there is any such option, such as the about screen, or to the pc software)?
It would be very good to have a firmware update file that would fit that speciual model, no matter which version but unfortunately, i doubt there is any.
Does that Silabs (?) MCU that seems to handle the front panel do anything (i guess uart, spi or i2c going to the aplication processor?) when the "Meter" button is pressed? Maybe its disabled right there.

[elebot]

I did some more checks of the DMM and here are the results:

• DC mV - almost spot on, well within the specs
• DC V - almost spot on, well within the specs (note that highest voltage I could check was 124V (with error 0.15% so no problem)
• AC mV - low frequencies well within the specs (see below)
• AC V - low frequencies well within the specs (see below)
• Diode test - no specs provided, but seems reasonable (open test voltage 2.748V, shorted test current 1.063mA; voltage drop measurement error under 1%)
• Resistance - below 50 ohms shows about 2 digits low and the specs are +/-1% and no digits (which is strange), so this would be out of specs. Above 50 it is again well within the specs.
• Continuity - fairly slow (seems like ordinary resistance measurement with a threshold for beep, no hysteresis). Same error as resistance above. BUT starts beeping at 18 ohms, specs states 50 ohms. So out of specs in this respect.
• Capacity - TBD (have not checked yet)

Regarding the AC accuracy - manual states frequency range of 10Hz to 20kHz. But above 2kHz (for sine wave) the readings starts going down (-40% at 11kHz, -60% at 18kHz). So there is definately an issue with AC measuments. For AC (TRMS) there is used AD737J. Note that I have checked sine wave only so the TRMS quality was not checked either (but there are no specs for waveforms anyway).

So in summary:

• issues with AC measurements above 2kHz - perhaps some issues with the TRMS converter?
• continuity test threshold different than stated (18ohm v. 50)
• low resistance measurements - open question
• otherwise no issues found (so far)

[nctnico]

There may be an issue with the AD737 when it comes to low and high signal levels. The VC8145 bench DMM uses a similar RMS converter chip and the accuracy/bandwidth of the RMS conversion depends on the input signal level.

[TheAmmoniacal]

So do anyone know why the multimeter has been disconnected? Manufacturing defects? Or just don't meet the specs? (how did you reconnect and enable it?)

[elebot]

There may be an issue with the AD737 when it comes to low and high signal levels. The VC8145 bench DMM uses a similar RMS converter chip and the accuracy/bandwidth of the RMS conversion depends on the input signal level.

I have used 1.7V eff for the frequency response check.

[elebot]

So do anyone know why the multimeter has been disconnected? Manufacturing defects? Or just don't meet the specs? (how did you reconnect and enable it?)

Micsig told me that there were QA issues so they disabled it and are selling it as non Micsig, but who knows...

In HW you just need to reconnect the socket - see the attached photo of how it came (they just cut the wire).

In SW for full functionality you would need to flash the original FW.

[TheAmmoniacal]

So do anyone know why the multimeter has been disconnected? Manufacturing defects? Or just don't meet the specs? (how did you reconnect and enable it?)

Micsig told me that there were QA issues so they disabled it and are selling it as non Micsig, but who knows...

In HW you just need to reconnect the socket - see the attached photo of how it came (they just cut the wire).

In SW for full functionality you would need to flash the original FW.

Did you get it with accessories and everything? How useful is the SPI/I2C triggering? Is there any form of decoding? Is the firmware available and easy to flash onto it?

[elebot]

So do anyone know why the multimeter has been disconnected? Manufacturing defects? Or just don't meet the specs? (how did you reconnect and enable it?)

Micsig told me that there were QA issues so they disabled it and are selling it as non Micsig, but who knows...

In HW you just need to reconnect the socket - see the attached photo of how it came (they just cut the wire).

In SW for full functionality you would need to flash the original FW.

Did you get it with accessories and everything? How useful is the SPI/I2C triggering? Is there any form of decoding? Is the firmware available and easy to flash onto it?

It came with probes, power supply/charger, USB cable and battery. Comparing with the original they removed manual, CD with SW (I guess since both would be Micsig branded),  and multimeter probes 

SW, manual and FW can be downloaded from the web. But you cannot directly flash the FW since there is some check.

I have not tried the SPI/I2C trigger yet but is there in the menu. Decoding is not supported (mentioned as optional addon). I think it is SW option only since for the trigger it has to decode it anyway (so the HW supports it, I guess).

[TheAmmoniacal]

I just messages them about shipping costs, thanks for the heads up on this one!

Makes me wonder if these are hackable to unlock the software features?

[kado]

I just got the shipping coast:

Hello Karsten,

the shipping cost is 75USD total. and it inlcuse ebay freight shipping cost 10%.
Jelin Wei

Shenshen Micsig instruments Co., Ltd.

www.micsig.com

[TheAmmoniacal]

I just got the shipping coast:

Hello Karsten,

the shipping cost is 75USD total. and it inlcuse ebay freight shipping cost 10%.
Jelin Wei

Shenshen Micsig instruments Co., Ltd.

www.micsig.com

At $75 USD for shipping I don't think I'll bother, expensive as hell. I'll ask what other options there are.

[kado]

@ robert_
what did you pay for shipping and tax when you say you got it for 200 € ?

Interesting to know how they charge the shipping coast in relation to the product price.

[robert_]

They do take offers for lower prices, so...
I did recieve it today.
After Tax and some random UPS fees its a bit over 250eur, but still not too bad.
So far, it does work, as expected its a chinese D-Brand scope with limited capabilities, but should do.

Interesting find in the MS200 fw update file:

Code: [Select]

<content>                  <pcode>MS200</pcode>            <type>MicSig</type>             <pkg>0</pkg>            <version>8.0.53.306-N1</version>               </content>

Might be worth trying to change MS200 to SCOPE200? Maybe its that stupid...

[TheAmmoniacal]

They do take offers for lower prices, so...
I did recieve it today.
After Tax and some random UPS fees its a bit over 250eur, but still not too bad.
So far, it does work, as expected its a chinese D-Brand scope with limited capabilities, but should do.

Interesting find in the MS200 fw update file:

Code: [Select]

<content>                  <pcode>MS200</pcode>            <type>MicSig</type>             <pkg>0</pkg>            <version>8.0.53.306-N1</version>               </content>

Might be worth trying to change MS200 to SCOPE200? Maybe its that stupid...

Only 250 euro? What bid did they accept? With the 75 USD shipping + 20-25% VAT?

[robert_]

They dont declare the full value (just as any chinese supplier seems to do), so taxes ended up around 30Eur for me.

[mtdoc]

They do take offers for lower prices, so...
I did recieve it today.
After Tax and some random UPS fees its a bit over 250eur, but still not too bad.
So far, it does work, as expected its a chinese D-Brand scope with limited capabilities, but should do.

Interesting find in the MS200 fw update file:

Code: [Select]

<content>                  <pcode>MS200</pcode>            <type>MicSig</type>             <pkg>0</pkg>            <version>8.0.53.306-N1</version>               </content>

Might be worth trying to change MS200 to SCOPE200? Maybe its that stupid...

Only 250 euro? What bid did they accept? With the 75 USD shipping + 20-25% VAT?

I offered $180 USD and they said no - that $220 was the lowest they would go. With another $69 for shipping I said no thanks.

[elebot]

They do take offers for lower prices, so...
I did recieve it today.
After Tax and some random UPS fees its a bit over 250eur, but still not too bad.
So far, it does work, as expected its a chinese D-Brand scope with limited capabilities, but should do.

Interesting find in the MS200 fw update file:

Code: [Select]

<content>                  <pcode>MS200</pcode>            <type>MicSig</type>             <pkg>0</pkg>            <version>8.0.53.306-N1</version>               </content>

Might be worth trying to change MS200 to SCOPE200? Maybe its that stupid...

Congrats to your new scope.

Re price - that's about right. I have also asked why so expensive and they claimed that was the only way due to LiIon battery regulation. Btw in my case they used DHL Express, took 2 days to deliver to Europe (unnecessary (and expensive) luxury)...

Re FW upgrade - I do not it that would be that easy. I was looking a little bit into it. It seems that the FW as downloaded from web is something like:

• Header (length, perhaps checksum,etc.), which includes also the "XML manifest" you saw
• Signature
• Encrypted payload

Within the encrypted payload it sort of repeats again as there are several parts of the FW and each is again (perhaps with some variation in details):

• Header (length, perhaps checksum,etc.), which includes also the "XML manifest" you saw
• Signature
• Encrypted payload

For the current FW "MS200_8_53_306_N1.bin" it contains these "manifests":

Code: [Select]

        <content>
<pcode>MS200</pcode>
<type>logo</type>
<pkg>0</pkg>
<version>8.0.0.0-N1</version>
</content>
...
<content>
<pcode>MS200</pcode>
<type>meter_mcu</type>
<pkg>0</pkg>
<version>8.4.0.0-N1</version>
</content>
...
<content>
<pcode>MS200</pcode>
<type>user_bios</type>
<pkg>0</pkg>
<version>8.0.30.201-N1</version>
</content>
...
<content>
<pcode>MS200</pcode>
<type>mcu_key</type>
<pkg>0</pkg>
<version>8.2.0.0-N1</version>
</content>
...
<content>
<pcode>MS200</pcode>
<type>app</type>
<pkg>0</pkg>
<version>8.0.53.306-N1</version>
</content>

With the exact data sizes of:

• logo - 614 400 bytes
• meter_mcu - 2 184 bytes
• user_bios - 118 872 bytes
• mcu_key - 8 227 bytes
• app - 4 519 504 bytes

Interestingly enough the program decodes and decrypts everything in the memory then checks version (which in our case fails). At the moment I think what fails is checking the "major version" - here 8 (which is then reported as 8N1) versus 7N1 from our scopes. I.e. so far what I have seen is a check is done in the program on Windows and not on the scope (which is good).

The decryption is not secret, the key , etc is in the program (or you can just use API Monitor and trace APIs like CryptDecrypt  ).

[TheAmmoniacal]

Anyone care to do a review of this Micsig?

[TheAmmoniacal]

Too late, I've bought one! Offered $200, got accepted.

If anyone find ways to improve or hack it, please post!

[elebot]

If anyone is interested I have figured out how to unpack and repack the firmware updates.

However the FW for real Micsig is not completely compatible with the debranded version. And it seems that the features are controlled separately. I.e. the FW as such is just one and then some separate data block contains data like serial number, product code, delivery date, available features, etc.

My guess is that this is controlled by the FW part called "bios_user" or "bios_sys" (note that the FW updates contain only "bios_user" part).

[TheAmmoniacal]

If anyone is interested I have figured out how to unpack and repack the firmware updates.

However the FW for real Micsig is not completely compatible with the debranded version. And it seems that the features are controlled separately. I.e. the FW as such is just one and then some separate data block contains data like serial number, product code, delivery date, available features, etc.

My guess is that this is controlled by the FW part called "bios_user" or "bios_sys" (note that the FW updates contain only "bios_user" part).

So you are able to flash the Micsig firmware on it, but the Meter functions are still not available?

Mine just arrived today, and I'm quite happy with it. Has the cheap Chinese look and feel to it, but performs well and has all the options and function I would want in a handheld scope.

The DMM frontend looks very nice and clean, sad not to have it working!

[elebot]

So you are able to flash the Micsig firmware on it, but the Meter functions are still not available?

The update SW is checking among others the "major" version from the scope and from the FW file (7 v. 8 ). I managed to flash it once (by running in a debugger and tweaking the data in runtime).
But no, it did not re-enable the multimeter function. So I gave up.

[fremen67]

So you are able to flash the Micsig firmware on it, but the Meter functions are still not available?

The update SW is checking among others the "major" version from the scope and from the FW file (7 v. 8 ). I managed to flash it once (by running in a debugger and tweaking the data in runtime).
But no, it did not re-enable the multimeter function. So I gave up.

Did you notice that Micsig also have a MS420IT scope that has exactly the same specifications as the MS220T? The only visible difference beeing the price: 999$ for the MS220T and 599$ for the MS420IT.
Something interresting is that the MS420IT shares its firmware with the MS520T, top of the range model. The "major" version in the 420/520 firmware beeing 5. Did you have a look in it?

[TheAmmoniacal]

So you are able to flash the Micsig firmware on it, but the Meter functions are still not available?

The update SW is checking among others the "major" version from the scope and from the FW file (7 v. 8 ). I managed to flash it once (by running in a debugger and tweaking the data in runtime).
But no, it did not re-enable the multimeter function. So I gave up.

It looks like the MS420IT don't have serial bus trigger ("decode") like the MS220T.
Did you notice that Micsig also have a MS420IT scope that has exactly the same specifications as the MS220T? The only visible difference beeing the price: 999$ for the MS220T and 599$ for the MS420IT.
Something interresting is that the MS420IT shares its firmware with the MS520T, top of the range model. The "major" version in the 420/520 firmware beeing 5. Did you have a look in it?

[fremen67]

So you are able to flash the Micsig firmware on it, but the Meter functions are still not available?

The update SW is checking among others the "major" version from the scope and from the FW file (7 v. 8 ). I managed to flash it once (by running in a debugger and tweaking the data in runtime).
But no, it did not re-enable the multimeter function. So I gave up.

This is at least one good reason for the "Meter" key not to work 

[TheSteve]

So did they really disable it in firmware or is it just the cut positive input and the removed contact pad?

[TheAmmoniacal]

The first thing I did was disassemble the keyboard to make sure the key wasn't disconnected in hardware. I'm 95% certain it wasn't .. but now you made me uncertain, will check again later today.

[robert_]

So you are able to flash the Micsig firmware on it, but the Meter functions are still not available?

The update SW is checking among others the "major" version from the scope and from the FW file (7 v. 8 ). I managed to flash it once (by running in a debugger and tweaking the data in runtime).
But no, it did not re-enable the multimeter function. So I gave up.

That is the level of ugly bodge job i sort of expected.
I did check if there was any rework on the front panel controller and the connector going to the front but didnt disassemble any further. Going to have a look at mine soon...
Now for the interesting part, which glue will bond to the silicone rubber keymat?

This is at least one good reason for the "Meter" key not to work 

[TheAmmoniacal]

So you are able to flash the Micsig firmware on it, but the Meter functions are still not available?

The update SW is checking among others the "major" version from the scope and from the FW file (7 v. 8 ). I managed to flash it once (by running in a debugger and tweaking the data in runtime).
But no, it did not re-enable the multimeter function. So I gave up.

Even the built-in recorder function works fine. Testing it against my voltage standard gives ~0.6% inaccuracy, can't find anything else wrong with it. 
This is at least one good reason for the "Meter" key not to work 

That is embarrassing! My first instinct was that the disabling was very easy and basic, why waste any time on it? Checking if the button was disconnected was my first thought, I disassembled it completely and checked the conductive pads! I even traced it out from the ribbon cable! But found nothing wrong.. Checked again today to make sure, and yep -- the conductive pad IS NOT THERE. (Maybe I should start sleeping at night?)

Simply gluing a new conductive pad on and soldering the positive input terminal back on fixes it, the meter works just fine! Although my scope has a bad input terminal, the plastic shroud/protection around it is bent - so it's very hard to put my multimeter probe in the socket. Could this alone be the reason why it was rejected?

[elebot]

Same here - quick "transplant" from another keyboard and the meter is fully working.

Would be interesting if anyone else could check any issues/inaccuracies of the meter. If every scope has problems only with AC measurements at higher frequencies.

[fremen67]

Same here - quick "transplant" from another keyboard and the meter is fully working.

Would be interesting if anyone else could check any issues/inaccuracies of the meter. If every scope has problems only with AC measurements at higher frequencies.

The meter function does not work at all on my scope. When showing the meter screen, the scope freezes. It only displays the frame but no numbers. Either with the "fixed" keyboard key or from Suitescope... 

[fremen67]

So you are able to flash the Micsig firmware on it, but the Meter functions are still not available?

The update SW is checking among others the "major" version from the scope and from the FW file (7 v. 8 ). I managed to flash it once (by running in a debugger and tweaking the data in runtime).
But no, it did not re-enable the multimeter function. So I gave up.

Did you check after flashing your scope wether you are able to activate the probe compensation signal output or not?
According to the MS200 user manual (p34) you have to press (scope) F4, F4, F2... but with our original firmware v7, the function key does not show.

[TheSteve]

So maybe there are several different potential failures, the solution was to disable it no matter the problem so they could still be sold.

[fremen67]

I may need you help with some test points on scopes with working DMM function. As the DMM chip is known (the FS9922-DMM4 used in UT-61D) I will try reverse engineering the DMM part http://www.ic-fortune.com/upload/Download/FS9922-DMM4-DS-13_EN.pdf
I suppose that the data are retrieved from the DMM chip via TXD (pin 92) but I don't see where it could be connected.
By any chance, if someone can sense this pin on a working scope.
There are only few components around the DMM chip. Maybe I will be lucky 

[TheAmmoniacal]

So you are able to flash the Micsig firmware on it, but the Meter functions are still not available?

The update SW is checking among others the "major" version from the scope and from the FW file (7 v. 8 ). I managed to flash it once (by running in a debugger and tweaking the data in runtime).
But no, it did not re-enable the multimeter function. So I gave up.

Can you provide an explanation for how to flash the device? (as the other guy asked, does the flashed firmware have the probe compensation function? Scope + F4 + F4 + F2)

[elebot]

I had to step through the ScopeSuite in a debugger and manually rewrite memory at some points so that the FW version checks would pass. I needed several attempts to accomplish that (and then to revert, to put back the 7.x FW  ...).
Would definitely need help from someone experienced with disassembly/debugging.

But the bottom line is that it did not help and it seems that all the functionality is in the current firmware. It is just somehow selected what stuff is available and what is not. Probably similar method like the licensing or serial number handling. Which I susspect is handled by the "BIOS" part of the FW, perhaps by the C8051F380 on the powerboard ?

[elebot]

If anyone wants to study the firmware then attached is a simple experimental tool (console Win32) for decoding/encoding the firmware update files as used by the ScopeSuite and offered on the web.
As always, no warranties, etc etc
You might need Visual C++ Redistributable for Visual Studio 2015 (https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=48145).

[fremen67]

I may need you help with some test points on scopes with working DMM function. As the DMM chip is known (the FS9922-DMM4 used in UT-61D) I will try reverse engineering the DMM part http://www.ic-fortune.com/upload/Download/FS9922-DMM4-DS-13_EN.pdf
I suppose that the data are retrieved from the DMM chip via TXD (pin 92) but I don't see where it could be connected.
By any chance, if someone can sense this pin on a working scope.
There are only few components around the DMM chip. Maybe I will be lucky 

Some progress today. If I short the REL/RS232 pin (77) on the FS9922-DMM4 for more than 2 seconds (simulating the RS232 activation key) then it starts sending data on the TXD pin (92). I can then trace the signal on U10 (optocoupler input), and then I see a signal on another optocoupler output (U24). Still no valid data on the scope but it is stops freezing as soon as the transmition starts. It just shows 0°C whatever function I select.

I checked the states of MEAS1-4 (pin 88-91) which are supposed to select the DMM function but they are stucked at H-level.
It seems that the DMM chip is not initialized and that the scope freezes waiting for the transmitted data.
MEAS1-4 are wired to a Quad CMOS analog switches (DG201AAK) and those switches are wired to the C8051F330 CPU.
I noticed a lack of solder on the GND pin of the C8051 but still no changes after rework... the C8051 may be empty...
Next step will be to try to flash it again.

[DiodomanX]

I've bought one too, any one know if the meter is usable at least for basic measures and if the decode of serial protocols is available. Thanks in advance.

Armando Molina

[TheAmmoniacal]

I've bought one too, any one know if the meter is usable at least for basic measures and if the decode of serial protocols is available. Thanks in advance.

Armando Molina

The meter functionality has been disabled because of QA issues, so the problem will be different on each unit. Just glue a piece of conductive padding on the keypad and see how well it works.

All the oscilloscope functions are supposed to work just fine, I have bus triggering on mine but I haven't tried the decoding yet. I will attach the manual for the meter, the serial bus trigger and decoding is on page 127:

https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/15526481/Permanent/EEVBlog/Handheld_manual.pdf

[DiodomanX]

I will try it when arrived, they use DHL for shipping to México.

[TheAmmoniacal]

Finally got the PC software working, it was giving me:

The application has failed to start because its side-by-side configuration is incorrect. Please see the application event log or use the command-line sxstrace.exe tool for more detail.

Installing the fix https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/confirmation.aspx?id=14431 fixed it (Microsoft Visual C++ 2005 Service Pack 1 Redistributable Package ATL Security Update).

But then it popped up requiring a an authorization code for the software, what is this? How do I get it?

Is it possible to get a USB driver for this scope?

[elebot]

The USB driver is in the ScopeSuite installation package. But it is installed only on 32b Windows (as it is a 32b driver) and I believe it requires at least Windows 7.
Personally I have solved it by using virtual machine and one of the free IE test images from Microsoft (see https://developer.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-edge/tools/vms/). For me that worked just fine.

I think the authorization error/message is related to missing driver/not connected scope. Make sure the driver is installed and you can see your scope is in the device manager.
Good luck.

[DiodomanX]

Got mine, fix the keyboard and the red input and have the same issues with AC at high Freq. but at least is usable for quick measures.

[TheAmmoniacal]

Got mine, fix the keyboard and the red input and have the same issues with AC at high Freq. but at least is usable for quick measures.

What do you people mean with "AC at high frequency" problem? The specification of the DMM IC says 1 kHz max. Mine reads AC voltage just fine up to 1 kHz, but falls off the cliff at higher freq.

Anyone know how to use the screen capture on this scope? Does it only work when connected to the PC? Can it save it to a USB memory stick? (doesn't work with FAT32 or NTFS)

[DiodomanX]

Can be saved to USB memory stick, i only try FAT32, later i will test NTFS.

[TheAmmoniacal]

Can be saved to USB memory stick, i only try FAT32, later i will test NTFS.

Did it work for you? USB 2.0 or USB 3.0-3.1 stick?

[DiodomanX]

USB 2.0 8GB Sandisk

Enviado desde mi XT1563 mediante Tapatalk

[TheAmmoniacal]

That might be the problem then, I only have USB 3.x memory sticks here, none of them work. The "Screen capture" option is grey and inactive.

[blackfin76]

Do you like your Micsig handheld oscilloscopes? How is the waveform update? Fast as expected?

[blackfin76]

I also bought one of these, I did enable the multimeter function by restoring the keypad and connection to the socket.
I have identical issues as elebot.

- DC mV seems fine
- AC mV seems fine (even up to 100kHz)
- diode forward voltage indicates lower then on my other multimeter
- resistor test has large error in low resistor ranges, becomes smaller at larger resistance values
- capacitance test works but indicates large error. I measured a 1nF/1% devices and it indicates 0.95nF

About the scope:

It's think it's actually a nice scoop, menu's will have to get used at of course. I used a Tektronix AFG2021 AWG to generate signals and used a 50 Ohm terminator at the end of the coax. Vertical and horizontal scales are well within specs, automatic measurements like Up-p, Urms, frequency, rise and fall times come very close to those measured on my Agilent scoop and the settings on the AWG.

It has two acquisition modes, normal and fast. In normal mode it uses the entire memory, in fast mode it only uses so much as to fill the screen. Probably a fixed number of point, a similar function I have seen in Tektronix TDS3000 series. The number of waveforms displayed varies with horizontal setting, have not figured out the relation between number of waveform/s and horizontal setting.
This scope has no DPO like function, don't know if there are portable scoops out there that have this capability.

build quality is oke, the housing feels very solid and might takes some abuse, however I was suprised they used really poor quality screws to mount the display module. This model LCM is a 5.7" 640x480 panel, Data Image model FG 050720. They have good reliability but poor viewing angles and resistive pressure sensitive touchscreen. You have to look straight at it or from above, if you tilt the scoop backwards the image fades. If you look at the correct angle they give a very clear image.

The probes Micsigg supplied look like they are of of good quality, bit too large for my taste. I prefer Tektronix probes, much smaller size and nice flexable cable. Probably won't use them untill I run out of options.

I also spent a few minutes with a Siglent SHS806, but this product has much lower waveforms/s and a display with much lower resolution. So the Micsig really looked like a class higher compared to that.
The last portable scoop I used was a Tektronix THS720P, a very capable scoop imo, even though it's alomost 20 years in use, I think it can take a rest from now on.

Thinks I don't like? Yes of course. I don't think all the options are placed in the menu's in an intuitive way. Selecting the acquisition lenght is put under save/recall button, the acquisition mode under the scope menu and the refresh rate under the display menu. All funtions that are related to one another and could beter have been put in one menu.
Also I really dislike the scoop does not display it's actual sample rate on lower sweep times. The DC accuracy seems to have some issues. It needs constant calibration in the lowest settings of a divider range. Range 1 seems to go from 2mV to 50mV, range 2 from 100mV to 2V and range 3 from 5V to 20V/div. In the 2 lowest settings of range 1 and 2 you get quite a large DC offset which can be made zero by calibration. However this error keeps coming back after some time. In the 100mV/div setting this error is about 50mV!!! DC drift in this order I have not seen before in a DSO. Also the acquisition memory depth is 240k points, this half when 2 channels are being used, also the sample rate halfs when both channels are used. The internal ADC is a 8-bit two channel 500Ms/s device, so I wonder if Micsig just added those two numbers up or are they actually interleaving them on one channel 

[afm]

But you are happy with your oscilloscope, right? I bought one and has the same problems as you, but I'm happy with it

Before I had bought the Hantek DSO 1062B, after three weeks stopped working, I sent back to China and the seller never returned to me. I open a dispute in  PayPal and received the money back
The Hantek DSO 1062B comes with indoor fan, and heat a lot, a piece of trash!

This Micsig is 10 times better

[blackfin76]

Yes, still happy. The longer you work with your equipment the more things you start to notice. Three other things I noticed about the Micsig:

- FFT has linear scale, I don't get to see an option to put it into logarithmic.
- When you attach probes and select the lowest vertical scale, the artifacts of a switching regulater start to appear. This was noticeable with the PSU connected.
- When measuring the output of a 44MHz clock oscillator I noticed the  signal did not stable trigger, again this was done with the supplied probes. It looked like the signal was jittering, which it wasn't (verified with other scope). This problem becomes worse when enabling channel two, because of the interleaving it will take even less sample points. I believe this caused by the way the proces the signal for visual presentation. When I have some time I will repeat the test in dot mode instead of vector mode.

One thing I still didn't test is battery run time, of course this has to be tested because it's portable.

Edit: did a run time test, both channels on, backlight at 50% brightness. Run time from full to low battery indicator was 4 hours. At that moment I reconnected the power supply to recharge the batteries. The battery is a 7.2V 6500mAh type and judging by size I believe it's build with 4 18650 cells.

[amirm]

Too late, I've bought one! Offered $200, got accepted.

Thanks for posting.  I offered $200 too and it got accepted.  And shipping went down to $60 from $69 for total of $260. 

[TurboTom]

After the positive inpressions that I got about that MICSIG scope in this thread, I decided to get one of the units as well to replace my worn-out "fleet" of portables (Philips/Fluke PM97 with intermittent defect, THS710A, hacked, otherwise okay, and a few others not even worth mentioning). Offered 190USD and got accepted. Including shipping and VAT/Customs to the EU, I'm closer to 300EUR than to 200... 

Anyway I was lucky in so far that the DMM section was working after I replaced the conductive pad on the keyboard silicone membrane (silicone sealant / RTV works perfectly to stick a salvaged conductive pad to it -- you won't be able to tear it off without damaging it.

On mine, the negative DMM socket was squashed to an extent that re-shaping it isn't possible. I guess this is done on purpose to make the DMM section (even more...) unusable. Fortunately these sockets appear to be standard parts and I'll replace them with some Hirschmann's.

The DMM section shows some peculiarities: When I first switch to DMM mode, the DCV is automatically selected and something like 0.19V is displayed (measurement teminals open). If I just let the instrument sit like this, the reading slowly (over some minutes) creeps to something close to 0. If I insert a set of leads (as far as that's possible with the damaged socket...) and short them out, the relaxation to 0 takes place almost immediately. Compared to a Rigol DM3068 6.5 digit bench meter, I found the DCV readings to be out by about 0.1% + 1digit (tested 0...30V on DCV and DCmV), so really nothing to complain about. The AC range is interesting since there is a big difference (frequency-wise) between the mV and the V ranges: I found the mV range to be working from approx. 10Hz to  30kHz (tested with different waveforms to verify RMS converter accuracy - square wave drops off first, sine will work accurately to almost 100kHz), so pretty useful for low-voltage audio stuff. The V range will do from 20Hz (amazingly at 10Hz it fluctuates heavily) to something like 1kHz. All the AC ranges had accuracies in the 1% range (once again compared to the aforementioned bench meter). The ohms and capacitance ranges appear to work within reasonable accuracy for quick checks.

Once I've replaced the sockets, I'm going to figure out what external shunt I've got to use for the amps ranges. It's a pity this wasn't included (but for obvious reasons...).

There's one more issue with the meter that probably affects all of them: The shielding can of the DMM section has the scoop pressed into it like it's used on one of the scope channels. In my case, despite of the insulation sheet inside, the edge of this scoop got so close to the positive DMM socket terminal that I wouldn't consider it safe to use. Just a slight spike will cause an arc-over, and since the shielding can is referenced to the negative socket, this may result in a major firework, depending on the circuit that's being measured. I simply ground off the projecting part of the scoop and everything's fine.

The scope section provides an impressive capture rate and initially I questioned myself how MICSIG gets that done with a single, pretty base-line FPGA, an SRAM and a DSP while the "desktop contenders" struggle to reach half that rate with at least two FPGAs, separate sampling and frame buffer memories, some glue logic (in forms of a CPLD) and a DSP. A closer look at the MICSIG reveals that it doesn't provide any intensity grading (as it has been reported before) but it also doesn't provide sin x / x waveform approximation, instead it uses only straight lines in "vector display mode" to connect the individual samples. Yet, a closer look at the sampling engine provides some interesting details: In fact, there isn't a sin x / x approximation taking place in the display engine, but (at least when doing single shots) at scan rates faster than 20µs/div (which equals 1GSa/s with a sample memory of 240k -- single channel operation), the sampling engine fills in up to 100 approximated (apparently sin x / x scheme is used here indeed) "virtual" sampling points into the sample memory between the "real" samples. This makes single shots at high scan rates still look rather neat. Zooming in into single shot traces reveals the nature of the signal processing, though. But in general and for the usual applications of portable scopes, there's nothing wrong with that.

In normal and auto trigger modes, the approximation may not be necessary since some "equivalent time sampling" can be utilized to visualize fast, periodic signals accurately enough.

I hope these findings may be of some interest.

Cheers,
Thomas

[amirm]

I received mine in about 3 days (they handed the last leg to USPS).  I am surprised about the quality and feel of the unit.  What I find especially positive is the intuitive user interface.  Walked through all the menu options in about 10 minutes and it all made sense.

Definitely a great buy at $260 all up.  Thanks to OP for bringing it to our attention.

[mtdoc]

Early on they had responded to my offer of $180 saying that $220 is the lowest they could go.  After reading recent posts I decided to try again with an offer of $190. They came back with $210 and then accepted $200. It's on its way.

We're setting up a "Maker space" at my kids school and this should be perfect for the little devils to use.  We'll see how it holds up to the abuse.

[TurboTom]

Some news on the multimeter function after I installed new input terminals:

It's quite amazing that DCV / DCmV ranges up to 5V and apparently ACmV range as well feature a high-impedance input (>>10MOhm), only ACV and DC 50V/500V/1000V ranges have the standard 10MOhm input resistance. This explains the relatively high residual voltages with open probes.

The current measurement range expects a 10mOhm four-terminal shunt connected across the input terminals (10mV eq. 1A). Maybe some clamp current probes may also work. Otherwise, my DMM section appears to work pretty accurate. Only the continuity buzzer is almost inaudible. I guess I've been lucky...

The final scope feature that would be really nice to have is the serial bus decode function. Since it actually triggers on a certain data byte, all the functionality is already there but it only doesn't display it. There must be a way to "liberate" this function...

Cheers,
Thomas

[mtdoc]

Mine arrived a couple of days ago.

The scope function is much better than I expected.- I'd never used a hand held scope and so I had low expectations....

It took some futzing around to find something to repair the meter button conductive pad with.  The salvaged pads I had around had too high of a resistance to work.  I ordered some of these and they worked a treat.

As others have mentioned - the voltage measurement accuracy - especially at the upper limits of its AC frequency range,  is not great.  It will be nice to have the meter functionality in any case.   Especially for the data logging function I think.

- When you attach probes and select the lowest vertical scale, the artifacts of a switching regulater start to appear. This was noticeable with the PSU connected.

At least on mine - that is only present if  the probe is near the AC charger's switching power supply.  Not surprising at all in that case and easily remedied by moving the PSU farther away or running on battery which I will almost always do in any case.

There's one more issue with the meter that probably affects all of them: The shielding can of the DMM section has the scoop pressed into it like it's used on one of the scope channels. In my case, despite of the insulation sheet inside, the edge of this scoop got so close to the positive DMM socket terminal that I wouldn't consider it safe to use. Just a slight spike will cause an arc-over, and since the shielding can is referenced to the negative socket, this may result in a major firework, depending on the circuit that's being measured. I simply ground off the projecting part of the scoop and everything's fine.

Thanks for pointing that out. I see what you mean but it did not appear quite as concerning to me.  I put some insulating tape in between just in case. The meter function will never see any high voltage - in my use.

I'm very happy with this purchase.  Incredible value for the price IMO.  Kudos to the OP.   I've been wanting a handheld scope for a while but could never justify the expense. 

This will be just what I need when helping out at my kids school maker space on electronics projects. We'll see how it holds up to the abuse that 6-12 year olds can dish out..

[blackfin76]

I've used the scope now for a few weeks and it has really grown to me. Is it a state of the art instrument? No it's not. But the best scope is the scope you have at hand and this one is a very nice one to take with you.

[eKretz]

I too snagged one of these. Thomas any ideas on that decode function?

[sotos]

Siglent SHS806 vs Micsig TO1102+Battery. What to buy?. ? want one of them, but which one.

[mstck]

I Just wanted to add my voice to the others who thanked the OP for bringing this device to our attention. I just received mine and I am pleased withe the purchase so far.  I would like to try reviving the meter but I do not have conductivity pads at hand. I will order some shortly.

Edit:

I just added a conductivity pad and connected the terminal which was cut, but no joy. The meter function does not appear to be available on this unit. Bummer.

[eKretz]

Mstck - are you sure your conductive pad is up to snuff? IIRC another member mentioned that the 1st one he tried didn't work. It looks like it has worked for everyone so far but two guys, did both of you try multiple pads or directly completing the circuit?

[TheAmmoniacal]

Follow-up .. Very happy with the scope, responsive and intuitive, lots of features - good value for money. Cheapish-feeling build and construction, but solid. Mine performs up to spec on both the oscilloscope section and DMM section. The only thing the scope is missing from the MS220T model is the probe compensation output option. I've spent a few days trying to flash the original MS220T firmware onto this scope to enable it, but without success.

For those thinking of getting one:
It's important to keep in mind that the scope comes with no warranty or support, Micsig does not acknowledge these scopes as theirs. They will never get a firmware update, the PC software will forever be 32-bit only (drivers) and existing bugs/flaws/missing features will never be fixed/added.

[mstck]

Mstck - are you sure your conductive pad is up to snuff? IIRC another member mentioned that the 1st one he tried didn't work. It looks like it has worked for everyone so far but two guys, did both of you try multiple pads or directly completing the circuit?

Thanks for the suggestion.  I was beginning to think along the same line since absolutely nothing happens when I press the "Meter" key.  I ordered these... https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B017OIKGMW/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&p;sc=1 as recommended by mtdoc in post #68.  They install on the membrane, not the key. As such, I was wondering if there is a need to  place something in the hollow of the key which would push on the contact when the key is pressed.

I will open the unit again after xmas festivities, and see if I can energize it outside of the case to test if the pad works.

[mtdoc]

Mstck - are you sure your conductive pad is up to snuff? IIRC another member mentioned that the 1st one he tried didn't work. It looks like it has worked for everyone so far but two guys, did both of you try multiple pads or directly completing the circuit?

Thanks for the suggestion.  I was beginning to think along the same line since absolutely nothing happens when I press the "Meter" key.  I ordered these... https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B017OIKGMW/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&p;sc=1 as recommended by mtdoc in post #68.  They install on the membrane, not the key. As such, I was wondering if there is a need to  place something in the hollow of the key which would push on the contact when the key is pressed.

I will open the unit again after xmas festivities, and see if I can energize it outside of the case to test if the pad works.

Yeah, those worked well for me. The resistance on the conductive pads I had salvaged from a calculator was too high. 

Yes, I glued one of the rubber bumps from the calculator pad on to the underside of the Meter button where the conductive pad had been. This provided the needed protrusion to push on the conductive pad.  It has been working very well.

[mstck]

Thanks mtdoc. That additional "filler"  is likely to be the source of  my problem. Do you know if  super glue would work on this material?

[mtdoc]

I used silicone adhesive.  Super glue (cyanoacrylate) might work but it can be brittle after curing - so not the best choice IMO.

For the "filler" any firm but rubbery material should work. One of those small, self adhesive rubber feet might be a good choice as well.

[eKretz]

In the scope section I also noted the DC offset seems to float quite a bit in the low mv range. Looks like I did get serial triggering actually - I was looking in the wrong place. Also in the system information tab it shows "Model HighRefreshRate"  "Model Udisk" (USB data recording) and "Model XY" (XY Mode) options installed.

The data logging looks useful enough and is pretty easy to use. It can log at different time rates and logs on a graph like a scope screen. While viewing the record you can use cursors to get exact voltages and time stamps, as well as graph slope.

I used a USB 2.0 stick for logging tests and it did fine with that. Inserting the USB also activates the Screen Shot button so it isn't grayed out anymore. Haven't played with that yet to see what it does though.

It looks like the disabled multimeter and neutered firmware have only got two negatives as far as I can see - no probe compensation and no external trigger. Both functions are tied to the multimeter and are missing from the neutered firmware.

[eKretz]

Sure would be nice if we could figure out how to "re-Micsig" the scope and be able to flash the firmware to restore the probe compensation and external trigger. I wonder what the problem was that caused them to disable the meter and discount these. My jacks were externally both perfectly functional and not smashed or bent at all.

[mstck]

Hi all. Success. I finally have the DMM section working, thanks to you. I have only done a quick check, but everything seems fine so far. I observed that the beeper used for the continuity check is virtually inaudible as mentioned earlier, and wondered if  anyone has identified a fix for this. Not a game changer, just nice to have.

Thanks again for your assistance.

[eKretz]

Mine has the "barely there" continuity beeper as well. I haven't played with it to investigate why yet.

I was doing some scope work today and found that I have what seems to be a faulty probe though. The trace jumps all over the place when the probe wire is jiggled even when the ground wire is shorted to the probe. The other probe's trace is stable with the same treatment. Swap the probes to the other channels and the jumpy behavior follows the faulty probe.

I also noticed that the DC offset float is quite a lot worse on channel 1 than on channel 2 - even with good quality probes installed.

[eKretz]

Have you other guys done anymore testing on your scope section of the meter? Just wondering about the DC offset accuracy - the manual says 2% - mine is way worse because it keeps jumping around - Channel 1 is worse than Channel 2, both seem out of spec. In the 20mV range with a LeCroy 10:1 probe I'm seeing mean voltage jump around like 6-8mV.

It also jumps around similar percentages higher ranges, some seem better than others. This makes it kind of tough to use cursors unless it's a one-shot or sampling is stopped. I've tried performing both the regular 'calibrate' function and the 'fast calibrate' function but almost immediately the voltage starts jumping around again.

I guess I'm wondering if everybody has the same issue or if I have a unit with a problem.

[TurboTom]

Did you run the calibration after the scope has warmed up? Mine had a pretty obvious offset as well that caused the trace to jump around when input sensitivity is changed. Moreover, there's also quite a strong temperature dependancy of the offset voltage, so depending on ambient temperature and warm-up time, the effect may reappear. Yet, the auto calibration function compensates the offset (at the then present temperature) quite well.

Cheers,
Thomas

[eKretz]

Yes, I did indeed. I tried waiting half an hour the first time, and varying times up to 2 or 3 hours. No matter how long I let it warm up, either calibration routine brings it back to zero momentarily, then it starts to float up and down again all over the place within less than a minute. I don't mean a slow drift either. More like an oscillation. This happens  whether I have no probe connected, have a probe connected and grounded, and even when displaying a signal.

This is running on battery also, and no stray signals around - again this doesn't happen on my bench scope when they're sitting within a couple feet of each other.

[eKretz]

Here's a video, this was after a couple hours warm up time:

http://s240.photobucket.com/user/eKretz/media/Pub/TRIM_20161231_013516.mp4.html

[eKretz]

Just been doing some more playing/checking. Discovered that if I ground couple Channel 1, it still fluctuates about 0.4mV - more than my Tek when DC coupled (but probe grounded). Oddly, after reverting to DC coupling it also seems to reduce the DC offset wander by a decent amount - before being ground coupled it wanders near 8mV in the 20mV range - after ground coupling then switching back to DC coupling, the wander drops to more like 3mV. Still outside the rated 2% though. In 1V range before ground coupling it was wandering 350+mV, after ground coupling, a little over 100mV. After a few minutes it starts going back up again. Hoping some more guys will check in so I can see if it's just my unit doing this - I know blackfin? was it? mentioned something about this too.

[rpress]

I see a similar offset problem, only on channel 1.  On the 100 mV range I see a jump of -18 mV, which is consistent.  It will change to -18 mV offset for a while (up to a few seconds) and then jump back to zero.  In 2 mV range the jump is 0.4 mV.

Ground coupling seems to give a nice steady trace with no jumping of the offset.

[eKretz]

Thanks for checking in. Sounds like yours is quite a bit better than mine. Mine goes both above and below zero, and quite a bit more in magnitude than yours. I just uploaded a video showing how it starts doing this immediately after a full calibration. Should be able to post it today, been having difficulty with my upload being viewable on Photobucket so I just switched to YouTube.

[rpress]

I decided I would try to fix the offset problem.  I started by swapping ICs from the AFE of channels 1 and 2.  The first thing I noticed is a ton of flux residue, a lot of it under the ICs as well as around them.  As I swapped them I cleaned things up with isopropyl alcohol.

Just swapping/cleaning the ICs mostly fixed things, and the problem did not move to channel 2 so I don't believe the ICs themselves were a problem.  I still saw an occasional offset wander so I cleaned the discrete amplifier stage just before the VGA.  This is the group of components just above the QFN component (the VGA).  After doing this it has practically eliminated the problem.

https://youtu.be/o34ETXZH-yg

Sorry I don't have a before video.  Maybe you could try cleaning yours (without removing ICs) to see if it has an effect.

[eKretz]

I will give that a try as long as they don't have a problem with it. Thanks!

I assume AFE = analog front end, and I know what to look for as far as the QFN package VGA. So the AFE will be the isolated boards connected to the BNCs, right? (I remember from Dave's teardown video of the similar scope). You swapped ALL ICs there?

[rpress]

Once open, remove the single screw holding down the metal cover near the BNC and take it off.  Make sure you are on the correct channel. 

I swapped the LMH6518, AD706, and OPA4872.  I did not swap the transistors.  I do not recommend you do this, these parts are quite expensive and the LMH6518 is challenging to solder.  Try a thorough cleaning first with a fine bristled nylon brush (toothbrush?) and alcohol.  Apply heat to dry.

[cdev]

Make sure to remove the battery and all power before cleaning and drying it.

Does the Windows application run under Wine?

[rpress]

Does the Windows application run under Wine?

I plugged the USB into my Fedora 25 desktop.  It detected the device but no driver was loaded.  Because there is only a 32-bit Windows driver I am thinking it is a custom device and not some USB-serial converter chip that could be used with Linux.

[cdev]

What does "lsusb" say?

[rpress]

lsusb:
Bus 003 Device 005: ID 3955:1956 

dmesg:
[68476.341130] usb 3-1: new high-speed USB device number 5 using xhci_hcd
[68476.509840] usb 3-1: New USB device found, idVendor=3955, idProduct=1956
[68476.509846] usb 3-1: New USB device strings: Mfr=1, Product=2, SerialNumber=3
[68476.509849] usb 3-1: Product: Microscope C
[68476.509851] usb 3-1: Manufacturer: Microscope Co., Ltd
[68476.509853] usb 3-1: SerialNumber: M

[eKretz]

OK I think the issue has been found. I tried doing the flux residue cleaning and swapped the 706s and 4872s from channel to channel with no results. Then I went ahead and swapped the 6518s and the unstable offset problem changed from Channel 1 to Channel 2. Looks like faulty or damaged 6518s.

[Mikke]

Hello everyone,

After reading this interesting thread I bought one myself. So far I am happy with it, especially since I had no scope at all before.

However, I have one question to other owners of this scope:
Does the Recorder-function work in your units? It seems that mine starts recording from multimeter input, but using scope inputs recording just doesn't start. I haven't tried to fix the multimeter yet, so at the moment I have no recorder at all.

By the way, it seems that the selling price is now more than doubled.

[mtdoc]

Recorder function works fine on mine - both meter and scope.

It's crazy that they raised the price that much.

[amirm]

Yeh, at the price I would have gotten a new one.

Belated thank you for the instructions to bring the meter to life.  Mine is working now .

[trevwhite]

Everyone still happy with these scopes?

Anyone figured how to unlock the decoder option?

[TheAmmoniacal]

Can someone verify if bus decoding works on this debranded MS220T at all? Anyone else tried?

I'm either stupid or it doesn't have the function, it still has all the bus triggering options, but I can't get the decoding trace. See the first attachment for my attempt - this is how it appears on my scope. The other picture is from the manual.

EDIT: Nope, it does not. Good reason to keep hacking on.

[TheAmmoniacal]

If anyone is interested I'm now looking to sell my debranded MS220T for $250 + shipping

It has two bodged repairs; the two wires connecting the BNCs to the PCB had to be soldered back on. And I have a piece of copper clad board glued on the DMM button to activate that functionality.

Works perfectly fine as far as I can tell.

[mtdoc]

Picked up one of these cases for my debranded MS200 (thanks to nctnico posting on the Micsig tablet thread).  Nice case for the price ($13 for the large) and it fits pretty well with an easy mod of the foam insert.