Digital Multimeter recomendation

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Originally Posted By: Mr Nice
At work we only have Fluke meters and can order what we need from BC Group IntL. It's true the lower priced Flukes are made in China.

Once a year Tektronix will come out and test / calibrate all our test equipment at hospitals.


Just had my company "upgrade" my Fluke 87 III to a 177 ... what a difference in feel, the 87 wins hands down! I didn't think to ask my company to let me keep it although I doubt they would have. Luckily I have a stash of meters and have another 87 III at my disposal! We have Tektronix as well do our yearly calibrations, they are owned by the same company. I just had a chance to use my son's Klein meter that I got for him when he was in HVAC school and it's not a bad meter once I figured out how to take measurements with it; paired it up with a good set of test leads and it works fine.
 
I'm still surprised he didn't pursue the same field you are in.

If I was younger I'd definitely pursue robotics field service with Da Vinci.
 
if you need a good budget meter buy a used fluke.
yardsales,pawn shop,ect.
a 20 year old fluke is lightyears ahead of modern stuff under $300.
the steal of the century?my $5 fluke 73 III.garage sale find.
i picked it up and the seller said $5 it does not work.
none of them work without a battery!
it looked new other than being dusty.
possible it had never tasted electricity until i put in a battery.
its more work than buying a harbor freight unit of dubious quality/safety but worth it in the long run.
 
I guess I'm the odd person out - I get along just fine with the free HF DMM's and a couple of VTVM's. The HF accuracy is fine for the hobbyist type work I do, and when I let the smoke out of one, it's not a big deal. Sometimes it's kind of fun to light one up.

If you want to see more of what is going on, I would suggest a handheld digital storage scope with at least a couple of channels. A lot more useful than an expensive DMM - especially with small value AC signals which most DMM's are terrible with. Mine can handle up to 600 volts DC, which is more than enough for most vacuum tube circuits ( transmitters excluded ).
 
Thanks for all the info.
I still ended up getting the Etekcity MSR-U1000. Found it for $30 new.
So far it is doing everything I need it to do, but I really have not done much with it yet. Probably does more than what I need.

I almost got the Uni-T UT213C meter that Piston Slap posted, but I just did not need all that.
 
I'm just a hobbyist so I own a South wire. Made in China. We sell fluke at work but I don't need that. I don't like that fact that mine is auto ranging but I can live with it. The most complex use I've gotten out of it is use of frequency to test my map sensor and it was flawless.
 
Originally Posted By: E150GT
I don't like that fact that mine is auto ranging

Does it not have a button to switch off auto ranging and select a range manually? My cheap $30 DMM does.
 
Originally Posted By: Piston_slap
...The unique feature on this would be the DC amp measurement by the clamp. Great for "starter draw", alternator output, etc. I can even read the 5-20ma drain the ECM draws when asleep. Be sure you order the "C" suffix to get the DC current feature.
+1
Why buy a clamp meter that won't read DC Amps?? Makes no sense. Then you can use it to measure current draw on your car, boat, trolling motor, etc. Auto mechanics sure need this feature....so do the solar installers. This is a very handy feature.
 
Look up the mega328 ESR meters on Ebay for < 20 bucks while you are at it,they test capacitors,,chokes,transistors,resistors,diodes, out of circuit though.Handy little devices.I like the Craftsman clampmeter for price and features.
 
I recently picked up this one. It has bluetooth so you can log data using a smartphone or tablet. Their mobile app is somewhat primitive, but it covers the basics. You can export data to Excel and play around with it there.

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As an EE, I'm a bit of a DMM snob. If it's not a Fluke or similar CALIBRATED instrument, I don't use it. It's about accuracy AND repeatability. That's NOT to say there aren't inexpensive handheld DMMs out there that won't do a fine job 99% of the time for most home hobbyist users, cause there are. And yes, you could spend ridiculous money on a DMM!

I'd suggest you make sure it is designed to meet 1000 volt IEC 61010 CAT III and 600 V CAT IV standards, has a CE mark and is fused.
 
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