I recommend Multimeter with limited budget

[marck120]

Hi, greetings to all.

I live in Italy, I don't speak English, I was looking for a multimeter for non-professional use, I needed a tool to keep at home to use in case of need, just to perform some checks on electronic boards.

The budget is quite low, I thought I would spend about € 100 - € 120, as far as possible I would like to get a valid multimeter, with good build quality and that lasts over time. Which model do you recommend ?

[CharlotteSwiss]

Don't worry, even if you don't open them in English, the forum is open to everyone! With that money I would get a uni-T model, decent quality at a low price. 

[Fungus]

I live in Italy...

The budget is quite low, I thought I would spend about € 100 - € 120, as far as possible I would like to get a valid multimeter, with good build quality and that lasts over time. Which model do you recommend ?

It's an easy decision if you're in Europe - get a Brymen!

eg. The BM235 is a good little meter and easily fits your budget: https://brymen.eu/shop/bm235/

[rvalente]

For 100..120 euros can get you a lot of good stuff, specially if you look for used. Just keep an eye open our your local ebay/craiglist/2nd hand journal/olx/facebook market.

You may score a used 87V, I've got mine for 100 usd because it was missing the yellow holster.

The BM235 as suggested is pretty cool and very well made and you can support the eevblog by buying from dave. https://www.eevblog.com/product/bm235/

A Fluke 17B is also a great meter and very well made.

For about 70 euros maybe the UT61E+ be a good choice, although the input protection is not the best (as uni-t's are historically), just do not use for everyday mains probing and it should be fine.

[bdunham7]

I'm going to shock Fungus by agreeing with him.  In your locale and at the price listed in his link, the Brymen BM235 is a very good choice.   An EU seller, an authorized product and a 3 year warranty are all good things as well.

[Just_another_Dave]

Hi, greetings to all.

I live in Italy, I don't speak English, I was looking for a multimeter for non-professional use, I needed a tool to keep at home to use in case of need, just to perform some checks on electronic boards.

The budget is quite low, I thought I would spend about € 100 - € 120, as far as possible I would like to get a valid multimeter, with good build quality and that lasts over time. Which model do you recommend ?

Are you looking for a desktop (da tavola) or a handheld one like the one from Brymen?

[marck120]

@CharlotteSwiss, @Fungus, @rvalente, @bdunham7, @Just_another_Dave

Thank you very kind

The uni-T multimeters from what they have explained to me and from the exams of Dave Jones do not respect the certifications and safety standards.

The BM235 seems great to me, what do you think of the BM257 model ? https://brymen.eu/shop/bm257s/

But on the forum it says this:

Brymen BM867 CATIV / 1000V Fuses rated only for 600V which is strange because the bigger brother BM869 which is built the same way has 1000V fuses. It appears that this problem can be corrected merely by installing the higher rated fuses. Reviews by mjlorton on his website www.mjlorton.com and here by iloveelectronics https://www.eevblog.com/forum/reviews/brymen-bm-867-teardown-pictures/ (Submitted by Lightages)

https://www.eevblog.com/forum/testgear/a-list-of-multimeters-that-do-not-appear-to-meet-their-claimed-safety-specs/?all

Is the 600V limit a problem ? If I have to check a capacitor and I exceed 600v, do I risk immediately blowing the fuse ?

Yes, I need a portable multimeter like the BM235

The EEVblog Multimeter BM235 is AU $ 160.00 which should be 102 euros, I don't know if I can order from Italy, what changes from the original BM235 ? With 107 euros I take the BM257

[ledtester]

...
 I was looking for a multimeter for non-professional use, I needed a tool to keep at home to use in case of need, just to perform some checks on electronic boards.
...

For low voltage circuits the Aneng 8008 / 8009 / 870 are fine meters and will only set you back $20-$30 USD from aliexpress. These meters have been discussed quite a bit on these forums.

[marck120]

...
 I was looking for a multimeter for non-professional use, I needed a tool to keep at home to use in case of need, just to perform some checks on electronic boards.
...

For low voltage circuits the Aneng 8008 / 8009 / 870 are fine meters and will only set you back $20-$30 USD from aliexpress. These meters have been discussed quite a bit on these forums.

Thank you, I knew the Aneng models, for what I have to do they would also be fine, but it is always a Chinese multimeter, the Brymen seem superior to me, I think they are built in Germany.

[rsjsouza]

The BM235 seems great to me, what do you think of the BM257 model ? https://brymen.eu/shop/bm257s/


The EEVblog Multimeter BM235 is AU $ 160.00 which should be 102 euros, I don't know if I can order from Italy, what changes from the original BM235 ? With 107 euros I take the BM257

Despite the BM235 is an excellent meter, the BM257 has more features such as bargraph and PC communications. Both will last you a lifetime. Brymen meters are manufactured in Taiwan to an excellent level of quality.

Uni-T and Aneng are enough for bench applications but really not very suitable for high power electrical circuits such as you would find in a distribution panel or outdoor electrical installations.

[bdunham7]

The BM235 seems great to me, what do you think of the BM257 model ? https://brymen.eu/shop/bm257s/

Is the 600V limit a problem ? If I have to check a capacitor and I exceed 600v, do I risk immediately blowing the fuse ?

The EEVblog Multimeter BM235 is AU $ 160.00 which should be 102 euros, I don't know if I can order from Italy, what changes from the original BM235 ?

You would have to read the datasheets carefully, but I think the main difference is that the BM257 has PC-Comm which allows you to connect it to a computer with an optional cable.

I don't know if the BM235 fuses are rated for 600V or 1000V, but at your level of experience you should not be exceeding 600 volts anyway.  Voltage doesn't blow the fuse, current does.  The fuses are only involved when you are using the current jacks.  The fuses voltage rating refers to the maximum voltage that it can interrupt when it blows.  If you exceed both the voltage and current rating of the fuse, your meter may turn into a ball of fire rather than blowing the fuse.  This only happens with 'high energy' circuits, such as industrial electrical service panels.  You should be pretty safe with anything that runs on batteries or plugs into a wall socket.

I think the EEVBlog version comes with better leads.  It may be difficult or expensive to get this version in the EU at this time, unfortunately.

[tunk]

I guess it will be easier to give advice if you're more specific
about what are you going to use it for.

Is the 600V limit a problem ? If I have to check a capacitor and I exceed 600v, do I risk immediately blowing the fuse ?

AFAIK, the fuses are for the Amp ranges. No expert, but I've never
seen anyone checking capacitors using the Amp ranges.

If you don't need Amp ranges you could also look at the Fluke 101.

Looks like brymen.eu is based in Poland - check if they handle VAT
etc., or if you have to do it. There's also a 10-15€ shipping fee.

[Bud]

...
 I was looking for a multimeter for non-professional use, I needed a tool to keep at home to use in case of need, just to perform some checks on electronic boards.
...

For low voltage circuits the Aneng 8008 / 8009 / 870 are fine meters and will only set you back $20-$30 USD from aliexpress. These meters have been discussed quite a bit on these forums.

The probe sockets on those are pure junk. While the meter is OK what is the point if you cant reliably connect the probes. Do not buy these Aneng stuff.

[Just_another_Dave]

@CharlotteSwiss, @Fungus, @rvalente, @bdunham7, @Just_another_Dave

Thank you very kind

The uni-T multimeters from what they have explained to me and from the exams of Dave Jones do not respect the certifications and safety standards.

The BM235 seems great to me, what do you think of the BM257 model ? https://brymen.eu/shop/bm257s/

But on the forum it says this:

Brymen BM867 CATIV / 1000V Fuses rated only for 600V which is strange because the bigger brother BM869 which is built the same way has 1000V fuses. It appears that this problem can be corrected merely by installing the higher rated fuses. Reviews by mjlorton on his website www.mjlorton.com and here by iloveelectronics https://www.eevblog.com/forum/reviews/brymen-bm-867-teardown-pictures/ (Submitted by Lightages)

https://www.eevblog.com/forum/testgear/a-list-of-multimeters-that-do-not-appear-to-meet-their-claimed-safety-specs/?all

Is the 600V limit a problem ? If I have to check a capacitor and I exceed 600v, do I risk immediately blowing the fuse ?

Yes, I need a portable multimeter like the BM235

The EEVblog Multimeter BM235 is AU $ 160.00 which should be 102 euros, I don't know if I can order from Italy, what changes from the original BM235 ? With 107 euros I take the BM257

Unless you’re going to work with medium or high voltage applications (which I wouldn’t recommend you doing, unless you really know what you’re doing), 600V is enough for measuring everything. Capacitors used in most circuits are rated below that voltage (higher rated ones can be found in power electronics and maybe some RF applications), so their dielectric will probably break before damaging your multimeter

[rvalente]

If you gonna eventually test a 230V socket, even with a aneng multimeter I'd do it, i'd just be extra careful (specially with that poor pvc prones).
But i'd never touch a 380V/440V electrical cabinet with nothing but a CAT III/IV certified instrument. No way.

As you're in europe, try finding some used gossen metrawatt or maybe used hiokis, brymens, amprobes (same group as fluke, danaher) any of these are good deals.

This is the topic for the uni-t 61e+
https://www.eevblog.com/forum/testgear/new-uni-t-ut61-series-(ut61e)/

[Fungus]

A Fluke 17B is also a great meter and very well made.

Very basic features though, and in reality no better made than a Brymen.

For about 70 euros maybe the UT61E+ be a good choice, although the input protection is not the best (as uni-t's are historically), just do not use for everyday mains probing and it should be fine.

IMHO the UT61E+ is only worth it for the PC logging feature. If you don't need that feature you can get a meter with similar abilities for much less money.

[Fungus]

The BM235 seems great to me, what do you think of the BM257 model ? https://brymen.eu/shop/bm257s/

BM257 is an excellent meter if you want to max out your budget. You get extra features like the bar graph and peak detection.

Is the 600V limit a problem ?

Hopefully not. You shouldn't really be going near 600V.

If I have to check a capacitor and I exceed 600v, do I risk immediately blowing the fuse ?

A capacitor should always be fully discharged before you measure it, ie. at 0V.

It wouldn't blow the fuse anyway, the fuses are only on the amps ranges.

[Fungus]

The probe sockets on those are pure junk. While the meter is OK what is the point if you cant reliably connect the probes. Do not buy these Aneng stuff.

I don't know what abuse your meters receive but I own Anengs that have lasted for many years. My old AN860B+ is one of my favorite meters ever.

If you get an Aneng be sure to get some gold probes to go with it. They really make a big difference.

[marck120]

Thank you all, very kind.

I need the multimeter to check electronic boards, power supplies, for the moment I have an electrode welder, a satellite receiver and a PC power supply that I would like to check because they don't work, things like that.

I was referring to the voltage of the capacitors which sometimes reaches 1000v, this for example is 1000v but we are talking about voltage, the voltages of the alternating current I think it is a different thing.



As a shop that sells in Europe there is also this,: https://www.welectron.com/Brymen-BM257s-Multimeter_3

Regarding the Aneng I saw the video of Dave, when he opens the multimeter he has a laugh, he says that it is not very solid:

[Trader]

The budget is quite low, I thought I would spend about € 100 - € 120, as far as possible I would like to get a valid multimeter, with good build quality and that lasts over time. Which model do you recommend ?

Uni-T UT161, will cost +- $70 on AliExpress 11-11 (AC 20kHz, AC+DC).

Or Kaisi K-9033 (dual display and bargraph) or Aneng AN870 for +- $32.

Or if you just want to have a DMM for eventual use at home:  Aneng M118A (auto selection and range) for $11

[Trader]

I need the multimeter to check electronic boards, power supplies, for the moment I have an electrode welder, a satellite receiver and a PC power supply that I would like to check because they don't work, things like that.

You can think about a Small DMM & Oscilloscope (very important for modern boards), like this one:  Hanmatek HO52 50M, $138 - https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005002339897106.html

[marck120]

The budget is quite low, I thought I would spend about € 100 - € 120, as far as possible I would like to get a valid multimeter, with good build quality and that lasts over time. Which model do you recommend ?

Uni-T UT161, will cost +- $70 on AliExpress 11-11 (AC 20kHz, AC+DC).

Or Kaisi K-9033 (dual display and bargraph) or Aneng AN870 for +- $32.

Or if you just want to have a DMM for eventual use at home:  Aneng M118A (auto selection and range) for $11

About the aneng and uni-t multimeters they explained this to me, this is what they wrote to me:

"Forget the various ANENG and emulate digital multimeters (already because they exist also rebranded). Dave Jones when he examined one (and to realize it just open one as I did on my 8008) highlighted the internal constructive danger.
Yes, because they are invariably all (including the aforementioned UNI-T 61E) with alleged certifications for the various categories of overvoltages induced on the electricity distribution networks, 105% disregarded.
As a design of the printed circuit (dimensions, areas of respect provided to avoid the firing of dangerous internal sparks due to the limited space; absence of slots in the air, etc.) as well as as passive components for managing the transistors (PTC first of all but also varistors with metal oxides, gas dischargers these very uncommon indeed).
And this is a question of safety first of all that the purchase price; Digital multimeters of this kind are only suitable as fourth, fifth equipment and only for direct current measurements (within 250 Volts AC ... I wouldn't dare to measure potential differences above 400 Volt AC at 50 Hz). "

[armandine2]

I think my Hantek 2C42 is border line valid as a DMM but it does fit your budget - you get an oscilloscope to boot.

Can't comment much on the previous suggestions (Uni-T, BM235, used Fluke 87V, BM235, Fluke 17B, UT61E, Aneng 8008/8009/870, BM257, Fluke 101, used Gossen Metrawatt et al) other than a quality DMM appears to be at least a long lasting product, in my experience.

[marck120]

I need the multimeter to check electronic boards, power supplies, for the moment I have an electrode welder, a satellite receiver and a PC power supply that I would like to check because they don't work, things like that.

You can think about a Small DMM & Oscilloscope (very important for modern boards), like this one:  Hanmatek HO52 50M, $138 - https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005002339897106.html

Beautiful instrument but it's too expensive for me, yes the oscilloscope is very important, maybe in the future I could even buy it.

[marck120]

I think my Hantek 2C42 is border line valid as a DMM but it does fit your budget - you get an oscilloscope to boot.

Can't comment on much on the previous suggestions (Uni-T, BM235, used Fluke 87V, BM235, Fluke 17B, UT61E, Aneng 8008/8009/870, BM257, Fluke 101, used Gossen Metrawatt et al) other than a quality DMM appears to be at least a long lasting product, in my experience.

The Gossen Metrawatt falls within the budget, the Hantek 2C42 costs  168 €

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