Brymen 869S vs EEVblog BM786?

[ElectricPower]

I need an number two multimeter and i love my BM869S. But what is the main difference between BM869S and EEVblog BM786?

[joeqsmith]

Both have manuals available on-line.

[Fungus]

Both have manuals available on-line.

And downloadable "datasheets" with lists of features.

[J-R]

If you already have the BM869s, I wouldn't bother with any of the BM78x models. (If you must, get the BM789 so you have dual temperature, AutoV/LoZ and higher bandwidth.)

Maybe consider the 121GW, as it has some features those Brymens don't, and has about 5 times the battery life.

Or better yet, just state what your priorities are and why you want a second DMM??

[ElectricPower]

Maybe consider the 121GW, as it has some features those Brymens don't, and has about 5 times the battery life.

What futures does the 121GW has that BM869S do not have? Except the battery life?

I have seen Joe Smiths video about 121GW and he was not impressed.

[Kibabalu]

low burden current measurement, for example

[ElectricPower]

I think i deside to support Dave this time. I think EEVblog BM786 is a good number two meter for the bench. I love the resolution on BM869S (50.000 count with posibility for 500.000 count)

I soon get my 5.000 dollar christmas bonus (50.000 NOK) and then i can visit Dave's store

[ElectricPower]

low burden current measurement, for example

Is'nt it cheaper to just buy uCurrent Gold for that? 121GW is an expensive meter regards to what you get... i think...?

Joe Smith found several weakness with that meter. It's in fact more expensive than BM869S.

[Kibabalu]

I have both. Yes the 896s is a very good choice. If you need low burden current measurement buy the 121GW. Have a look at the weaknesses and decide wether there are relevant for you or not. I'm using most of the time the 121GW, despite the `weaknesses`.

[BillyO]

I think i deside to support Dave this time. I think EEVblog BM786 is a good number two meter for the bench. I love the resolution on BM869S (50.000 count with posibility for 500.000 count)

I soon get my 5.000 dollar christmas bonus (50.000 NOK) and then i can visit Dave's store

Good choice.  It's a really solid meter and you can use 1.5V (nom) lithium cells without worry so you can forget about battery leakage.  This is the meter you want to fill the "all purpose" category.  You won't go wrong.

[ElectricPower]

uCurrent Gold is sold out in eevblog store. Somebody that knows when i can buy this?

[ElectricPower]

I couldn't wait. BM786 is now ordered

[J-R]

I like the 121GW for Bluetooth, long battery life and you can backup/restore both the firmware & calibration.  A recent firmware hack to disable mode selection memory is handy.
Selector switch is nice and light. You can adjust the display contrast.  The secondary display can have a few goodies displayed: internal temperature, burden voltage, time, date, battery level. You can turn the beep on and off with a couple button presses.

However, I have not found the mA display via the A shunt to be particularly great, since the accuracy suffers.  The BM869s can generally provide just as good mA values using the A range (1mA is no problem).  Ultimately, I can get far better numbers from my high-end bench meters via the mV function.

It's absolutely true that UEi has never been at the same level as Brymen from a hardware performance perspective, but on the flip side Brymen is pretty well stuck in a rut.  Their software is ancient, the BM78x series didn't really bring anything new to the table compared to the BM869s other than a slightly smaller form factor, NCV detection and AutoV/LoZ.  They also play games like many other companies by limiting features to segment the products (handheld vs. clamp for example).

My main point: if you already have a BM869s on your bench, then why get the BM786?  They both have poor battery life at about 100 hours and have a lot of overlap.
But otherwise it does what it says, no problem there.  Although my early BM789 has a list of problems, such as beeper dies with the magnet attached and it makes a clicking noise when you turn it on.  Luckily I dodged a couple other major issues before and after my revision number.


I stopped watching Joe's videos many years ago as I eventually realized few to none of his tests were of any interest to me.  This was back when I also watched lots of shootout videos and bought what was recommended.  I ended up with a bunch of equipment that I didn't like and had to go buy the equipment I really wanted.


The uCurrent Gold has been out of stock for quite some time from I've seen.  I managed to snag one about 2 years ago, but use the much more expensive CurrentRanger instead due to the handy built-in display: https://lowpowerlab.com/shop/product/152
Again, a you may be surprised at what you can do via the mV range on your existing DMM...

[ElectricPower]

A little update.

BM786 fell down in my mailbox today.

A short unbox:

[BILLPOD]

ElectricPower, are the probes in the last picture what came with the meter?
They look like Probemasters.

[ElectricPower]

ElectricPower, are the probes in the last picture what came with the meter?
They look like Probemasters.

Thats right. That is Probemaster. I bought two sets of Probemaster for my two Brymen meters. But the probes that came with the BM786 was actually wery good. Soft silicone leads, high quality

[ElectricPower]

Some first impressions:

1. The BM869S has a little better display. When backlight is on the numbers on the BM786 is uneven. Not bad at all, but BM869 has a little better display.

2. the wheel is easyer to turn on BM786 than BM869S. BM869S is more firm.

But i have not tested the BM786 more than that. This is just my first impressions out of the box

[ElectricPower]

One question:

Wich of these meters should i choose when i want to measure wery low current? Let's say under 10-50 uA (micro ampere)? Is it even possible?

[J-R]

One question:

Wich of these meters should i choose when i want to measure wery low current? Let's say under 10-50 uA (micro ampere)? Is it even possible?

This is eyes-closed easy, both have 0.01uA resolution.  I ran both through the full uA ranges and they are basically identical.

Even at the extremes, say for example 0.05uA, both were accurate to within 0.01uA.  At 50uA, I would say you could easily trust both to within 0.1uA.

[ElectricPower]

One question:

Wich of these meters should i choose when i want to measure wery low current? Let's say under 10-50 uA (micro ampere)? Is it even possible?

This is eyes-closed easy, both have 0.01uA resolution.  I ran both through the full uA ranges and they are basically identical.

Even at the extremes, say for example 0.05uA, both were accurate to within 0.01uA.  At 50uA, I would say you could easily trust both to within 0.1uA.

Thanks

[J-R]

To clarify, I meant an eyes-closed easy task for the DMMs, I wasn't being condescending...

Also, I used the Keithley 197A to check these measurements, with its surprisingly usable 0.001uA resolution on the 200uA range.

Just discovered the 6uA range with 0.0001uA resolution on the U1461A...

[Fungus]

Wich of these meters should i choose when i want to measure wery low current? Let's say under 10-50 uA (micro ampere)? Is it even possible?

Even a $1 multimeter can measure that. 

[sonpul]

I also recently chose between BM869s/867 and BM789. And I am very pleased that I chose BM789.
I was pleased with such necessary opportunities as it turned out:
AutoHold Real-Read™ , BeepLit™  Continuity, BeepLit™  Diode Alert, LoZ AutoV. That's all I need.
AutoHold. I sometimes take a lot of measurements and it's a big help.
Long-term illumination 30min.
It's just wonderful. Together with intelligent I-APO auto-off.
The emphasis on the study of circuits, diodes, etc. BM869s is
a good and famous DMM. But the BM789 is lighter and more ergonomic. It's more modern.