Best value for the money. - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: IvoS
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: August 19, 2013, 11:28:26 pm
content: I want to buy one of these but can not decide : BK Precision 5492Bhttp://www.bkprecision.com/products/multimeters/5492B-5-1-2-digit-bench-digital-multimeter.html, Rigol DM3058Ehttp://www.rigolna.com/products/digital-multimeters/dm3000/dm3058E/or Fluke 8808A.http://www.myflukestore.com/p5816/fluke_8808a_digital_multimeter.phpWhich one of these do you think is the best value for the money? All are 5 and 1/2 digit. Is there any other brand in this category under $800?

author: Unknown
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: August 20, 2013, 05:05:24 pm
content: The Agilent 34405A is $800 MSRP, so should be available for under $800 from tequipment.net, for example. According to the Agilent website it will be discontinued, so this may mean discounts. Keithley has nothing in your price range, the 21xx models are rebadged and of inferior quality, and the 20xx series is > $1k.The BK meter appears to be an Escort design, just like the Agilent Uxxxx series (Agilent bought Escort). I would rather buy a Fluke (8808a) or Agilent (34405a) design sight unseen than an Escort or Rigol. Escort doesn't make bad stuff, but was not up there with the top brands either. The former Escort designs represent Agilent's budget line of instruments. Recent Rigol equipment appears to be well made, but this DMM is a slightly older design. Teardowns from some forum users were not terribly positive, although I don't recall the exact models. There were some complaints about cheap resistor networks, and I remember a sample that was reworked by a monkey and then another monkey signed off on the QC. Shahriar seemedquite happywith the DM3068, although I'm not sure how unbiased this review was (sponsored by Rigol and he focused on the positive points). I'm not going to go through the DM3058 datasheet because some moron at Rigol NA decided that I need to register before downloading adatasheet.What's odd about the Fluke 8808a is the choice for RS-232 for communication. An USB-RS232 converter is cheap, so it's not a big deal, but a modern interface like USB or LAN is nicer. Does Fluke still make you pay for the software or is it offered for free? Agilent and the others will give you the software for free. The Fluke is also sold under the Tektronix brand (DMM4020?). Same instrument and quality, but might be cheaper. Not sure if it uses the same software (this has been discussed on this forum).But the important question is what are you using it for? Is accuracy or resolution important? Is it for low resistance measurement with four-wire connections? Is speed important, either for time resolution or high throughput? Are system features like triggering and fast switching important? Are statistics or data logging important? PC connection? Do you need the software to do something particular? Do you need LabView drivers?I would rather bet on Agilent or Fluke for software support then Rigol or BK. With Rigol I'm surprised if the software actually does what it's supposed to do, and I expect them to discontinue the software as soon as a new model comes along. Case in point: the Rigol DG1022 (ask Bored@Work how well the v1 hardware is supported). You can still get LabView drivers for the Fluke 8840a that was discontinued about 20 years ago.Agilent and Fluke are the big multimeter brands with decades of experience in this kind of stuff. BK will put their name on whatever instrument they get their hands on. Rigol has made decent (DS1052E) and good (DS2000) scopes and mediocre (DG1022, software) and decent (DG4xxx) function generators, but the jury is still out on their DMMs as far as I'm concerned. So based on that I would prefer the Agilent/Fluke. You don't list the prices you would pay (are you comparing list prices or street prices?), so it's hard to comment on price. I would expect more features on the lesser brands, although the feature set of all these meters seems fairly bare bones to me. None has statistics, for example. So based on that, I see no advantage (except maybe price?) of the BK/Rigol meters.

author: IvoS
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: August 20, 2013, 07:10:36 pm
content: Thanks for the insight. I don't want to spend more than $800 on the list price instrument. I mentioned Rigol DM3058E because it has better ACV precision than Fluke 8808A on all frequency range. I don't need any software options or fast triggering, data logging or histograms. Just need good reliable multimeter for home lab with 5 1/2 digit resolution.

author: edavid
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 20, 2013, 07:17:35 pm
content: Quote from: IvoS on August 20, 2013, 07:10:36 pmWhy not a used Fluke 8840A, 8842A, or 45?

author: dr.diesel
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 20, 2013, 07:21:22 pm
content: I have the Tek 4020, same as the Fluke 8808, been using it for years, it's a great bench meter. These meters have been in production for many years and have a proven track record, you can't go wrong.Also, IMO the vacuum fluorescent display is an upgrade to the LCD on the Rigol. However, one of the Rigol models, in the same price range has a sensor input, reading TCs is something I could use on my bench. Currently i'm using a separate DMM for that, it would just be nice to have it built on.My pick would be for the 4020/8808.

author: Lightages
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: August 20, 2013, 09:23:17 pm
content: So you need a 5.5 digit multimeter for its resolution only and not for its ultimate accuracy? For voltages only? If so then you might consider some of the 500,000 count multimeters made by Brymen at a much lower price. The BM869, for example, can be purchased for under $300 shipped.If you want the implied accuracy of a 5.5 digit meters and want a desktop meter, then never mind

author: Unknown
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: August 21, 2013, 01:01:08 am
content: Quote from: dr.diesel on August 20, 2013, 07:21:22 pmI agree, VFD is nicer than LCD for basic numbers display. TFT may be nicer for fancy graphs, but I prefer VFD for a basic DMM.Quote from: IvoS on August 20, 2013, 07:10:36 pmWhy compare list prices? Some brands almost always sell for list price, for others you rarely pay list. Compare the actual price you end up paying at your preferred distributor. But if you want to exclude the Agilent because its $1 over budget then my preference is for the Fluke.Quote from: IvoS on August 20, 2013, 07:10:36 pmWhere did you find a specification of precision? Why do you care about precision if all you need is 5.5 digits of resolution? Don't confuse resolution, precision and accuracy, these are technical terms withspecificmeanings.Quote from: IvoS on August 20, 2013, 07:10:36 pmIf that's all you want, then it's a wash. All meters listed offers 5.5 digit of resolution. I don't expect any of them to die anytime soon, although I have more confidence in Agilent and Fluke. As others mentioned, there are cheaper ways to get 5.5 digits of resolution, especially if you don't care about accuracy or the other features.