Brymen 786 or 867s or something else?

[LuisB]

Hello, at first i am new to this forum and would consider myself somewhat of an electronics newbie (at least in cooperant to the majority of you reading this). I used the search function and basically found out that any of those meters should be fine for my needs, but i would really like to get a better understanding about what is important to look for when choosing a meter. And maybe there are better meters to choose from that I just dont know.

I am looking for a well build multimeter mainly for my DIY projects now (mostly low voltage Arduino projects) and in the future (planning on converting a work van into a camper van with solar). In addition to that it should be a reputable meter with safety standards confirmed by a third party, because i might take it to work if needed and for insurance reasons i want to be save on that side (The UNI-T unit i own right now says that it support some safety standards but its not third party verified).

On that note i work as an chemical engineer in in electro chemistry right now, we have quite some multimeters in the lab but they are either old and crusty or benchtop ones and i dont want to take a benchtop multimeter to measure, for example, a sensor that might have gone bad.

But enough about work, like i said i mainly want to use it for my DIY needs and yes i want a bit of an overkill for now because i dont know what i might want to do in the future and i dont really want to buy another multimeter in the near future.

My budget is about 160 € (+/-) (Germany) and right now i am mostly looking at Brymen models because they seem to have a really good price to performance, the meters are UL listed and there is a reseller here in Germany.  But now we come to my problem, there are so many in that price range that look kind of similar on paper.

Brymen BM829s @ 149 €

Brymen BM785 @ 149 €

Brymen BM857s @ 159 €

Brymen BM867s @ 159 €

Brymen BM786 EEVBlog Edition @ 169 €

Brymen BM839 @ 179 €

Thank you in advance for all input and sorry if i did not apply by any guidelines.

[J-R]

For primarily electronics use, personally I'd go straight for the BM869s.

For primarily other hobby/DIY use around the house maybe get the BM789 for the AutoV/LoZ and EF?

I don't see the point in getting lesser models with missing features.  You'll just have to buy another DMM later.

But if you're truly dead-set on the price-point, I could see the BM829s as a reasonable solution due to the AutoV and EF as well as PC-Comm and the dual display.

[mwb1100]

Those are all good meters so i think your decision will come down to whether there is a particular "non-core" feature that one has that is missing on the others.  I don't have direct experience with any of the meters other than the BM786. There are a few things about the 768 that I like aren't on some of the other meters:

  - a long backlight - many people don't seem to care much about this, but maybe my eyes aren't so great or something.  A lot of meters have a 30 second backlight timeout that drives me a little crazy. The BM829 is one with a 30 second timeout.  I like 2 minutes or more preferably.  You have to look in the manual for this info - the data sheet almost never mentions the duration, only if there's a backlight or not. The BM768's is 10 minutes or more.

  - 3V diode check.  The BM786 will light up most LEDs.  Many Brymen meters have a 2V diode check that might not light up blue or white LEDs

  - LCD flashing for continuity.  If you work in a noisy environment or with headphones on to listen to music while working this feature will be helpful.  I'm surprised it's not more common.

  - AutoHold - similar to (but not exactly the same as) the famous Fluke TouchHold/AutoHOLD.  This is a very useful feature.  I probably should have lead off with it.

Something not on the BM786 that some of the other meters in list have (I think) is a PC COMM link option that allows you to log readings over a long period of time.

You should consider if there are one or more of these kinds of special/specific/unusual features that might set some or one of the meters apart for you.

[Fungus]

I don't see the point in getting lesser models with missing features.  You'll just have to buy another DMM later.

a) Less clutter. It simplifies the selector dial and the display. Less button presses, easier to read.

b) Not true, sometimes you really don't need a feature. Ever.

[nightfire]

Simple: Take the 786 and support the eevblog with it ;-)

Rule of thumb: If there are only minor features you need are amiss, in some kind of future you are buying a 2nd multimeter anyway because of measuring volt/amps simultaneoulsy etc.
And for the usage told here, I do not see in whih regards the 786 would come short.
(I mean, really short)

[LuisB]

Simple: Take the 786 and support the eevblog with it ;-)

I knew there would be some  biases

But yes, I think the 786 is the best choice with some of the features that @mvb1100 mentioned and with it being a decent bit smaller in size.

I if happen to need features like PC connectivity or dual display in the future it might be time at that point to invest in a used oder entry level bench multimeter that provides that features.

[radiolistener]

Using 867 for about 6 years and it still keeps the calibration.

There is issue with Brymen golden plated probes which come with DMM - it is broken. It began to work poorly, contact was broken somewhere, and it has short circuit resistance up to 7 Ω.

[Neutrion]

Simple: Take the 786 and support the eevblog with it ;-)

I knew there would be some  biases

But yes, I think the 786 is the best choice with some of the features that @mvb1100 mentioned and with it being a decent bit smaller in size.

I if happen to need features like PC connectivity or dual display in the future it might be time at that point to invest in a used oder entry level bench multimeter that provides that features.

The BM789 is even better. (Unfortunately not aviable in EEVBLOG blue)I would buy the Uni-t UT-210e or something similar for small dc amps as well, especially if you are planning to play with some solar installation.