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| Looking for a decent sub $1500 bench multimeter |
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| hansibull:
Hi! I'm looking for a decent bench multimeter to use for electronics troubleshooting and audio-related measurements for use at work. There are lots of meters to choose from, and the specs vary greatly between manufacturers. I've been looking at the Fluke 8845A, but this seems to be quite ancient. It's also quite pricey for the specs you're getting. But is it really nice to use? The Keysight 34460A seems to have all the bells and whistles, but has (from what I've read) a noisy fan and is slow to boot. The Siglent SDM3065X seems to be really slow to settle when I'm used to a handheld Fluke 87V, so hope the bench multimeter can be "snappy" like the 87V in terms of auto-ranging speed. Here are some key features: Must have/be: * Not "annoying and quirky to use". I want it to be just as convenient as a handheld. (I bought a Rigol DG1022Z a few years ago because of the specs, and I regret it every single time I use it since the UI is so terrible and quirky) * Reasonably quick auto-ranging. At least so that you'll have to sit and wait for each measurement. Maybe this can be adjusted in the settings with a tradeoff in accuracy? * 5.5 digits or more * 4-wire resistance measurement with 1 milliohm resolution or better. I'll use the meter to track down short circuits on a PCB, so this is important. If it comes with decent probes, this is a pluss * True-RMS * Reasonably fast boot time or a soft power switch for immediate startup Nice to have: * dB volts * Capacitance measurement * A latched buzzer so I can drag the probes across a bunch of pins quickly to find a short circuit * A fan that's not so annoying you want to turn the instrument off between each measurement These are the ones I've been considering: but are there other units worth looking at? * Fluke 8845A/8846A * Keysight 34460A/34461A * Siglent SDM3065X I'd love to hear what you would recommend. Thanks! |
| Someone:
Keithley 2015 ? |
| blackdog:
Hi hansibull :-) I have several digital multimeters here KeySight, Fluke, HP and Keithley 6.5 digits and the 3458A which is 8.5 digits. Now if you ask me for the budget you have available which one you should buy, I say the Keithley DMM6500. The controls are a little different than the KeySight 34461A and the 34465A which are also good meters, but my experience having used the Keithley for 1 year that the DC stability is better than a pair of KeySight's 34465A which matters to me. The difference is not big. The interface for daily use of the KeySight 3446xA series is a bit easier. But in my use the emphasis is mostly on performance. I hope this helps you a little in your choice. Kind regards, Bram |
| 2N3055:
Keithley DMM6500 |
| Domitronic:
I use a DMM6500 but it is a touchscreen interface. Not sure if that fits your not "annoying and quirky to use" requirement. I use it for measurements my handhelds are not able to do. For everything else a handheld is still more convenient in my opinion. It has an annoying bug which is only relevant if you want to measure resistance of large inductors. There the autorange function and the 100 Ohm measuring range do not not work. Not sure if there is a fix for that in new devices. But if you don't work with large inductors it doesn't matter anyway. Otherwise i like it. Especially for recording data over time. Measuring ranges are also nice. For example current ranges are going really low so its possible to measure leakage currents. These are the things i use it for. |
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