| Products > Test Equipment |
| Tools I want |
| (1/4) > >> |
| BirdManPhil:
I've messed with electronics off and on for 28 years. I built an analog multimeter when I was 13 from a radio shack kit. Until recently it was always just a hobby and way to make extra cash on the side. I'm at a point in my life where I'm happily repairing electronics 6 days a week for 50 hours and I love it, but I'm teaching myself more and more every day and I'm going to start really expanding my tool base. You guys are the only people who I think can point me in the right direction here. I have wanted a scope since I was 16 but back then even the old used analog crt scopes were too much money for me. Over the years working on computers, tvs, radios vcrs and now phones, tablets and game consols ice never once used a scope for anything and I've always wondered how many "no fix" jobs were die to me not understanding how a scope could be used to better diagnose a circuit. So my learning journey begins and I'm pulling the trigger. It's probably overkill but I'm taking a look at these 2 scopes for the "hackability" as well as combination if features and tools in one device: Rigol MSO5074 Siglent SDS804X HD I really like how these have so many tools in one. My main confusion is bandwidth I've never really had to consider that until now. I read that I2C lines are typically 100khz-400khz, and I2C problems are common killers of $1000 iphones and that's easy to cover on any scope . My question is do I even need a 350mhz mso for anything? What are the frequencies I'm likely to run into dealing with lines inside a 13 pro max for example? I will likely never really need 90% of the features these scopes have. But I want to have fun learning and not be limited by very budget gear. I set my max budget for the base scope itself minus hardware addons to $1000. Which would you choose if you were working on modern devices like smartphones and tablets often and am I missing a scope I should consider over these 2? Thanks a ton in advance this is alot to learn lol |
| Aldo22:
In my opinion, there are two approaches. You know the saying "Buy cheap, buy twice". I say why not (buy twice)? If I have no idea about something reasonably complex, I always buy a cheap model first. If I see that it's not enough, then I know why and I know what I need and what I have to look out for. In the end, you might even save money this way. New 100MHz scopes are available for well under $200, which is significantly less than the price difference between the Rigol MSO5074 and the Siglent SDS804X HD. Others (especially salespeople) say: "Buy something real straight away". Often you end up with a device that is too complex to start with, or where you simply don't need 90% of the features. I know that many people here have a different opinion. It's a question of personal preference. However, the Siglent SDS804X HD is reasonably inexpensive, so you could give it a try. ;) |
| tautech:
--- Quote from: Aldo22 on June 15, 2024, 08:39:39 am ---In my opinion, there are two approaches. You know the saying "Buy cheap, buy twice". I say why not? If I have no idea about something reasonably complex, I always buy a cheap model first. If I see that it's not enough, then I know why and I know what I need and what I have to look out for. In the end, you might even save money this way. New 100MHz scopes are available for well under $200, which is significantly less than the price difference between the Rigol MSO5074 and the Siglent SDS804X HD. Others (especially salespeople) say: "Buy something real straight away". Often you end up with a device that is too complex to start with, or where you simply don't need 90% of the features. I know that many people here have a different opinion. It's a question of personal preference. However, the Siglent SDS804X HD is reasonably inexpensive, so you could give it a try. ;) --- End quote --- Buying an instrument for 'now' vs something you can grow into as skills develop need also be considered. |
| Fungus:
--- Quote from: Aldo22 on June 15, 2024, 08:39:39 am ---In my opinion, there are two approaches. You know the saying "Buy cheap, buy twice". --- End quote --- So we should all buy BMW/Mercedes as our first cars? --- Quote from: BirdManPhil on June 15, 2024, 03:40:40 am ---You guys are the only people who I think can point me in the right direction here. I have wanted a scope since I was 16 but back then even the old used analog crt scopes were too much money for me. Over the years working on computers, tvs, radios vcrs and now phones, tablets and game consols ice never once used a scope for anything and I've always wondered how many "no fix" jobs were die to me not understanding how a scope could be used to better diagnose a circuit. --- End quote --- A 'scope lets you see what's happening in a wire. Without a 'scope you're working blind. --- Quote from: BirdManPhil on June 15, 2024, 03:40:40 am ---I really like how these have so many tools in one. My main confusion is bandwidth I've never really had to consider that until now. I read that I2C lines are typically 100khz-400khz, and I2C problems are common killers of $1000 iphones and that's easy to cover on any scope . My question is do I even need a 350mhz mso for anything? What are the frequencies I'm likely to run into dealing with lines inside a 13 pro max for example? --- End quote --- Remember that a a square wave is the sum of a series of sine waves. For the square wave to be nice and square on the screen your 'scope needs to see those higher frequencies as well as the base 100khz-400khz frequency. I don't know if you really need the logic analyzer abilities when you have a 4-channel 'scope. Most internal buses are serial. --- Quote from: BirdManPhil on June 15, 2024, 03:40:40 am ---I will likely never really need 90% of the features these scopes have. But I want to have fun learning and not be limited by very budget gear. I set my max budget for the base scope itself minus hardware addons to $1000. Which would you choose if you were working on modern devices like smartphones and tablets often and am I missing a scope I should consider over these 2? --- End quote --- For digital stuff: High bandwidth and high sample rate are king. The Rigol has numbers for both that are hard to argue with. |
| Aldo22:
--- Quote from: Fungus on June 15, 2024, 10:48:59 am --- --- Quote from: Aldo22 on June 15, 2024, 08:39:39 am ---In my opinion, there are two approaches. You know the saying "Buy cheap, buy twice". --- End quote --- So we should all buy BMW/Mercedes as our first cars? --- End quote --- No, I meant the opposite. I'm not a fan of that saying. I meant: "Why not buy twice, first something cheap and later what you really need, when you know what you need?" --- Quote from: Fungus on June 15, 2024, 10:48:59 am ---For digital stuff: High bandwidth and high sample rate are king. The Rigol has numbers for both that are hard to argue with. --- End quote --- Both the Rigol MSO5074 and the Siglent SDS804X HD are 70MHz scopes, which is not a particularly high bandwidth. |
| Navigation |
| Message Index |
| Next page |