I am a big DE-5000 fan but unless you have matching split banana leads, the jacks do you no good.
Well, in this specific case they do - they're perfect for measuring the resistance of test leads.
But yeah, most of the time, I use the TL21 or TL22 or the leaf terminals.
Although, even if you used normal test leads, at least the split jacks cancel out the connector resistance. I can't believe they're not standard on all multimeters. The price increase would be what, 50 cents?
My fluke 2/4 kelvin probes are split bananas to match the 8846A but the split is in the wrong direction to match the DE-5000. So you need to use the alligator clip or tweezer units that plug in to the component test slots to get the 4 wire capability out to the test point. Remember you need to do a open/short cal with whatever you have plugged in for leads. If you want the best accuracy you need to replace the alligator clips with real kelvin clips that keep source and sense separate all the way to the component leads.
Correct. Before I did the measurement above, I did an open cal and for the short cal I connected the leaf terminals with a short piece of silver plated wire.
Anyway, I ordered a set of these:
http://www.ebay.de/itm/LCR-Meter-Test-Leads-LCR-test-Clip-Terminal-Kelvin-Test-Line-BNC-CABLE-/190916817101?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item2c738770cdAnd I'm going to wire them into the TL-21 case, as the short wire croc clips are pretty useless and not really four wire at all.
I have to say that the DE-5000 is easily one of the most if not the most useful tools for me now. I'm learning new things all the time. Like how the skin effect affects resistance - the resistance of the 19 mOhm test lead increases to 58 mOhms at 100kHz. And that's the real part, i.e. ohmic resistance. And I'm still surprised how consistently accurate it is. I wouldn't even be pissed if I had paid $350 for it.
At $120, it's unbelievable value.
PS I'd love to know if/where you can buy split 4mm plugs - cable/panel/PCB mount, doesn't matter.