GW Instek - becoming unavailable? - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: syzygy
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: July 02, 2025, 05:51:18 pm
content: I normally purchase Keysight 34401 (and lately 34461A of course?) DMM for manufacturing processes where traceability is a requirement, but a recent project calls for a lower budget approach - and the GoodWill Instek GDM8341 seems to fit the bill.But when I went to purchase (thru Newark, DigiKey or Mouser), they're not available (and they all had several in early June)Of course, I can still find them at Test Equity, but I'm wondering if there's been a problem?- Tariffs?- Maybe popularity - could be all distributors are pulling from a 'marketplace' supply?- Reliability problems?(thought I'd check in here for opinions)

author: coromonadalix
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 02, 2025, 06:33:27 pm
content: for a 50k count dmm, sure you have plenty of alternatives bench based ones, but pricing ?

author: syzygy
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: July 02, 2025, 07:18:39 pm
content: My concern is why did GW Instek suddenly seemingly get 'pulled' from offerings?but, my needs for this specific case is:USB for PC readsMetrology convenient (can pull and cal. periodically)Universal AC Mains (international)1yr. Accuracy (uncertainty) of +/-8uA on 50.000mA (or I suppose 100.000mA) DC Current RangeI don't expect a budget DMM to last as long as a Keysight 34461A, but hopefully 5 years? (E'lytic caps being the weak components?)

author: ralphrmartin
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 02, 2025, 07:29:16 pm
content: Could it be related to the new trade tariffs?

author: nctnico
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 02, 2025, 07:29:58 pm
content: It could be trade tariffs but it is also possible the model has been discontinued and is replaced by a newer model. On GW Instek's website it says the stock for the model you choose is limited. And I also see newer DMMs. So my guess would be the model is simply discontinued. The GDM-9041 seems to be a replacement model.

author: syzygy
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: July 02, 2025, 08:40:03 pm
content: Thanks nctnico - that fits what I'm seeingI didn't know about the GDM-9041 - I looked it up on their website - and it certainly looks like they're 'following' Keysight - the GDM-9041 looks like Keysight's 34461A replacement for the 34401 (Color TFT vs VFD) -...pity I don't see any place to buy one - or even price it out - (I've only googled it so far)

author: Smokey
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 02, 2025, 11:14:25 pm
content: GW Instek is far from the bottom of the quality scale.They are Taiwanese and have been around since 1975.https://www.gwinstek.com/en-US/about_us/index/About_GWInstekBad caps are not really a thing to worry about with new equipment. Certainly not in the 5 year timeframes.

author: neverendingstudent
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: July 03, 2025, 06:56:38 am
content: So, this doesn't exactly address your wanting to know what is going on with the availability, but I figured I'd mention that I have a number of GDM-8342 meters in stock. They are the same meter but with front-panel USB for logging data to a thumbdrive. They are used refresh pulls from a university equipment upgrade that I got at auction. Bought a pallet of test equipment from the university and there were a bunch of that same GW Instek meter - so far I've been cleaning/testing and selling them one at a time on eBay, but if you are interested shoot me a PM.

author: Jeroen3
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 03, 2025, 07:33:39 am
content: https://www.gwinstek.com/en-global/news_release/detail/20250124/3Quotedated 2025-01-24Is the 9041 "binary compatible"?Great news eveyone, it now has "A.I."!

author: ballsystemlord
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 12, 2025, 05:41:05 pm
content: Quote from: Jeroen3 on July 03, 2025, 07:33:39 amSeriously?!(It's not listed on that webpage.)

author: neverendingstudent
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: July 13, 2025, 05:21:06 pm
content: Quote from: ballsystemlord on July 12, 2025, 05:41:05 pmIn this case it stands for 'Automatic Identification' - I'm guessing not needing to select a mode to check a diode vs a capacitor or something like that.From their site: "A. I. Measurement offers automatic identification and measurement for Voltage, Resistance, Diode, or Continuity tests without the need for manual selection"Huh - no manual switching between voltage and resistance? I wonder how that is being implemented... and how trustworthy it is in terms of fast switching between the two and not frying your resistance circuitry. I suppose they have something solid, Instek is a good name, I don't think they'd ship a product that's going to fry itself en-masse.

author: ballsystemlord
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 17, 2025, 09:23:47 pm
content: If it makes a difference to anyone, it appears that all GW Instek listings on tequipment have come down in price by a bit after being inflated due to the tarrifs.

author: KungFuJosh
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 17, 2025, 11:55:50 pm
content: Tequipment = the worst.

author: ballsystemlord
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 19, 2025, 05:59:17 pm
content: Quote from: KungFuJosh on July 17, 2025, 11:55:50 pmHow so? I've yet to find a place in the USA that charges less than them and I've had success almost every time when speaking to CS -- contrast that with my experiences, all of which were negative, trying to ask Rigol a question about their equipment that I own.

author: pac1085
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: July 19, 2025, 10:33:21 pm
content: I've only ordered from Tequipment twice, the first time was fine but the second time was strange. First time I ordered Pace ADS200, no issues. Second time I ordered a Quick 861dw hot air station. Their website said they had several in stock (they show the exact number) - but for some reason the order said 'backorder' and it was going to be weeks before it dropped shipped from the manufacturer. I called them and they confirmed they had them in stock but for some reason their system was forcing them to backorder one for me. Really strange. I ended up cancelling it and buying it on Amazon. Go figure, the "sold from" on Amazon was Tequipment as well, but was prime / fulfilled by Amazon, and it came in 2 days.

author: KungFuJosh
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 19, 2025, 11:24:59 pm
content: Quote from: ballsystemlord on July 19, 2025, 05:59:17 pmSearch the regular TE section and you'll find stories, including at least one of mine. I've never had a good experience with them.The best TE dealer in the US is Saelig. No competition. Their customer service is second to none, and they have a discount code for EEVblog users.

author: KungFuJosh
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 19, 2025, 11:26:16 pm
content: Quote from: pac1085 on July 19, 2025, 10:33:21 pmThey do that a lot. That's one thing that pisses people off is that they claim they have something in stock, but they're actually drop shipping from suppliers anywhere in the world.

author: tooki
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 19, 2025, 11:48:47 pm
content: Quote from: neverendingstudent on July 13, 2025, 05:21:06 pmI wish these companies would recognize that to some of us, “AI” isn’t a selling point to begin with, and that using the “AI” initialism to mean anything else (“Automatic Identification”, “Apple Intelligence”, etc) just seems like a desperate attempt to ride on AI coattails…Anyhow, automatic mode selection has been around on some inexpensive handheld meters for a while now, so it clearly can’t be particularly hard to do. Bear in mind that any (genuinely) CAT rated meter needs to tolerate the test voltages on every mode, and good meters have always been sufficiently protected in every mode. (E.g. if I take my Fluke or Keysight meters and apply voltage in any mode, it won’t be damaged.)

author: ballsystemlord
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 20, 2025, 04:47:54 am
content: Quote from: pac1085 on July 19, 2025, 10:33:21 pmIt was probably consigned for their Amazon store. I've seen it happen with suppliers within driving distance of myself, but for other things than electronics.Quote from: KungFuJosh on July 19, 2025, 11:26:16 pmZoro does that as well. So to do local suppliers of parts that my father uses for work. The amount of stuff actually in stock has drastically decreased in the last 5 or so years.

author: Sorama
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 20, 2025, 05:10:04 am
content: The GDM-9041 is indeed the successor:https://www.gwinstek.com/en-IN/news_release/detail/20250124/1Prices are also available at known distributors webshop.Edit: it seems I’m late to the party…others have shown this url already.Need more coffee.

author: ballsystemlord
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 20, 2025, 05:25:28 am
content: Quote from: KungFuJosh on July 19, 2025, 11:24:59 pmI did an overview of the various posts I could find involving bad experiences with tequipment. I did not find yours, KungFuJosh (because you reply so much warning everyone away it generates a lot of false positive matches), but based on what I could find, TE is very responsive to customer complaints here. It sounds like they want to improve even if they're not there yet.I also browsed Saelig's site. They have identical pricing to tequipment, which is good, but they lack some of the items that TE sells. Namely, at least one Simpson DMM and one GW Instek oscilloscope. That's not to say that they're bad (I could just ask for a special order), rather, I thought it was worth noting.

author: edavid
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 20, 2025, 03:39:43 pm
content: Quote from: ballsystemlord on July 20, 2025, 05:25:28 amResponsive? They haven't posted since Evan left in 2023.https://www.eevblog.com/forum/profile/?area=showposts;u=690

author: ballsystemlord
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 21, 2025, 02:53:41 am
content: Quote from: edavid on July 20, 2025, 03:39:43 pmSadness, Evan responded to all the complaints I could find. E.G.https://www.eevblog.com/forum/chat/very-bad-service-from-tequipment-net/msg804612/#msg804612

author: itproman
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: August 02, 2025, 10:43:19 pm
content: I’m in Ontario,Canada.I just bought one from you on eBay.My first Benchtop multimeter (aside from a pristine Simpson 467).Anticipation!