Affordable handheld multiscope

[lego4040]

What's up this morning, thankfully not my fever I'm interested in learning how to use a oscilloscope and was thinking of getting a extech 381275 or 381285. I can justify the purchase for my work and need some advice on good affordable hand held scope. Thanks guys

[eleventeen]

I think you want to ponder the "handheld" size factor versus the (what ever it is called) "book sized" solid state scopes. In terms of being able to see stuff & do real work with them. I have seen some used, great condition Tektronix scopes on Craigslist that were so cheap, talking well under $200, I really had to restrain myself from buying one, even though I already have a scope (bench, CRT-type)

[lego4040]

whats a good model number to look for? I see some on craigslist at reasonable prices

[eleventeen]

I wish I could tell you, but all I can tell you is to grab the model number in the CL ad and search for same in google images to be sure it is a handheld, then look up the specs. Much depends, of course, on whatever else you might want to use the 'scope for----audio requires "no" bandwidth to speak of. Also depends upon whether you live in an urban area where such scopes are/were common.




There was a listing for a "book size" Tek scope that was $200, while the same scope was listed in another ad for $600. It was all I could do to resist buying it, even though I am fine w/the scope I have.

[HotBluePlates]

A Tektronix 465 is a fine scope. There are buy-it-now Tek 465's on 'the bay' right now for ~$200 after shipping. This model fully refurbished to like-new and calibrated would be ~$600. And it's probably all you'll ever need unless you get into high-speed digital electronics (or the microwave range).

[lego4040]

Cool, thanks. Know I'll need a idiots guide to use one. Don't know if I'll actually get one know but I thought it would be handy to learn and have in tube land.

[PRR]

> A Tektronix 465 is a fine scope.

Yeahbut.... not exactly "handheld".

[HotBluePlates]

True dat.

I'm probably uninformed... In my mind "good," "handheld" and "affordable" seem mutually-exclusive. The 465 isn't handheld, but it's not that big in the big scheme of things. And it's surely affordable now (and may be all the scope he'll ever need).

[G._Hoffman]

Given the new DS1054Z that Rigol just came out with, I have to figure you'll be able to find a DS1052E or DS1102E on ebay for less than $200 before too long, which gives you something fairly small and portable, and being a digital scope you have some capabilities you may not need to work on guitar amps, but which are valuable if you get much beyond guitar amps.  Not exactly a handheld unit, but still, quite portable, and good capabilities.  Or, if you can go for $400, you could get the 1054Z, which is a hell of a lot of scope for $400.  Just because of the screen sizes, any of these are going to be much more useful than those little Extechs.


Gabriel