Bench multimeter suggestions

[coromonadalix]

the Brymen 500,000  counts doesn't help in absolute resolution/precision, and its available only for few functions, it's a real 50,000 count meter, there was some talk here about that (sorry can't recall the links)


Make a wish list on paper and try to find the most suitable meter for you

Everyone here can or will submit this and that,  At first you have to know your needs and choose accordingly

Fast continuity test
Resolution / Display count

Most of precision benchs meters are stuck around 2-3 amps, for current measurements, you get up to 10 or 20 amps in some cases with older meters, but there are reasons to why they do that <10 amps,  i simply use  non inductive power resistors in serial for ac-dc currents ...  when you blow  8$ worth of fuse, you'll think a better was to save them  loll
 
Aaaaand  Calibration costs, yeah  you can or could be surprised, here in my town an old Keithley 196, cost way more than a hp34401a to calibrate 

Aaaaaaaand     What about servicing the meter if it need to be repaired ??  parts availability ?? Schematics ??

etc...

[voltsandjolts]

Aaaaand  Calibration costs, yeah  you can or could be surprised, here in my town an old Keithley 196, cost way more than a hp34401a to calibrate 

Thats not surprising, they will have a mostly automated system for calibrating the 34401, not so for the 196.

[Specmaster]

While the Brymen 500,000 count is available only on a few functions, the rest of the meter is high precision 4.5 digit 50,000 count on all other ranges and is accurate, it ties in very nicely with my selection of HP3466A, HP3468A, HP3478A, Fluke 8840A, Fluke 8842A and Solartron 7150Plus bench meters and brings a wealth of other desirable features the bench meters just don't have even though when new, they cost many times the cost of the Brymen's current new price so to my mind it makes an excellent addition my bench quality meters and its a hand held if required (not that I need it for that as I have plenty of other handhelds including Flukes) which can be used when a portable meter is required.

[coromonadalix]

Old fluke 187 189 series 50,000 counts are very good too, but sell pretty high

But the op want a bench meter  loll

 I have found an old BK Precision / Metrix MX556 meter,  works very well and fast, calibration software is free, just ask ...

 Like the previous thread say : You have lots of used meters,  3478a  34401a,   keysight  and many many others, you can or could find some good ones ? snatch some deals ?

You have some meters thread listing here, who may help choose

[KC0PPH]

Wanting to get a bench meter myself. I have some industrial dmms but looking for a new bench meter. I am trying to figure out if I should get the 4.5 digit siglent or go for a 5.5 digit from them or Rigol. I plan on getting the Rigol psu as well as I like the features better than the siglent.

As for use cases, mostly hobby and some ee courses. I was thinking about getting the 4.5 now, when I develop and need a better meter go for a 5.5 and use that to check how the 4.5 is aging. I could also do the 5.5 now and get the 6.5 later and do the same. Eventually I would like a 6.5 but don’t think I have the use case to justify the cost delta.

[KC0PPH]

Bump

[beanflying]

Given you are in the USA and not Japan like the OP there is plenty of decently priced used gear. HP/Agilent 34401A, 3478A, 3468B etc or if you have the room for it you will pay less for the full 19" rack version 3457A 3458a and others that slightly predate those models.


https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_trksid=p2380057.m570.l1313.TR4.TRC1.A0.H0.Xagilent+multimeter.TRS0&_nkw=agilent+multimeter&_sacat=0
 

[Berni]

Well in my opinion 6.5 digits is nice to have in a bench meter since they are the only ones that get to those sort of resolutions.

Modern handheld meters are offten 4.5 digit and a good one is often spot on to the last digit even for things like DC Volts. And tend to be more convenient since you can just put the meter wherever you want.

There are other advantages to bench DMMs like often a easier to read display or full SCPI automation(Once you get a GPIB dongle). Another thing is that they typically have better burden voltage on the Amps range reducing the need for Daves uCurrent box. But the biggest advantage are the extra digits that you can get there. Do you care if your 3.3V rail is 3,300001 or 3.299999 V? Of course not (Tho in a lot of cases the little bit of OCD in you does find the 2nd one rather annoying). But what the extra digits allow you to see is drift. This allows you to characterize the temperature stability of a voltage reference and similar things. If you are making a product that measures voltage then the extra digits give you plenty of confidence in knowing exactly how large the test voltage you are feeding in is. It also serves as a good "golden standard" in your lab where you can check other multimeters against it to make sure they are accurate.

Just don't descend into the territory of 7.5 and 8.5 digits. Voltnutery in a expensive disability that is difficult to cure.

[exe]

Just noticed this thread. On my K2000 I measured open voltage on continuity tester as 6.5V, which I was using to trouble-shoot a chip with 5.5V absolute maximum.... The chip was dead long before, but you get the point. I suspect other DMMs based on K2000 (like K2015) also have the same problem.

I used my aneg dmms (8002 or 8008), they have also fast continuity tester, and their open circuit voltage is 1V, which looks to be much safer (don't remember the current).

[tooki]

Just another vote for the K2000/2015 (I have the latter). This beast is wickedly fast in every way. Its continuity tester is (other then perhaps the test voltage?) second to none, making even a Fluke 87V seem sluggish in comparison.

Me, I don’t need the added precision of such a meter. But holy smokes do I appreciate the responsiveness. It gets a stable reading before other meters have even finished autoranging. It’s hard to state how much this makes working with it seem... fluid and effortless. You’re just not waiting around.

[Berni]

Yeah i love the speed of my Keithley 2015.

Bench DMMs generally have higher diode test voltages, its common for them to be able to light up a blue/white LEDs and those need 3V and up.

I'm not too worried about blowing up chips. They all tend to have ESD protection to cope with the typical 1mA test current. In fact i often use the diode test function to measure ESD diodes in chips to make sure something is connected to a pin properly (Can not only tell apart shorts but also open circuits).

[exe]

Responsivnes is the reason I use it more and more. It's just convenient. I wonder DMM6500 provides the same experience.