[sdiy] OT: DMM recommendations

[Sarah Thompson]

The difference tends to show up if you do something stupid. A Fluke will
just go on like usual, maybe blowing a fuse. Cheap meters have a tendency
to catch fire or worse.

If you're only ever doing low voltage stuff, it probably doesn't matter.

I love my Fluke 289. But I do have a few cheapies lying around too.

On Tue, Mar 6, 2018 at 3:15 PM, <rsdio at audiobanshee.com> wrote:

> There is a significant cost difference between manufacturing something
> that will last a lifetime versus something that is easily broken,
> discarded, and simply replaced.
>
> It’s not about the complexity of the circuit, although precision ADC chips
> do cost quite a bit more than basic ones that aren’t as accurate. It’s more
> about the mechanical design, the cost of the materials used, and attention
> to things like practically sealing the electronics. Maybe the Fluke isn’t
> actually waterproof, but the enclosure has foam seals and a clever
> arrangement of the rotary switch selector that prevents dust and
> contaminants from getting inside.
>
> I see people buying three or more of the same Behringer product as
> replacements when the individual units break. At the opposite extreme, E-mu
> Systems was notorious for building synths like tanks - sliding them down
> the banister at their home to see if they would survive the drop. It seems
> obvious to me that there is a cost difference here. I’d rather pay extra
> for something that could be a “lifetime purchase” as compared to a cheap
> version that might not work when I need it in a time crunch.
>
> Brian
>
> On Mar 6, 2018, at 12:41 PM, sleepy_dog at gmx.de wrote:
> > >  After all, these days a multimeter isn’t exactly rocket science. It’s
> a decent ADC and a uP and a bit of software. How hard is that? £200 hard?
> Really?
> >
> > Adhering to good engineering practises & not lying about compliance with
> the safety norms suggested on the stickers apparently is somewhat hard.
> > I only ever bought 30 to 70 buck-ish meters myself,  but I will not for
> a  second believe I should e.g. be measuring high voltages with that.
> > I have seen teardowns of meters which had smaller distances, and/or
> weaker fuses than needed to fulfill a certain norm, or fuses that should
> have had sand for absorbing heat but didn't (no idea whether that's part of
> a norm or just good practise). I don't know all that much about those kinds
> of things, but I didn't leave the forums where experts were musing about
> those things while laughing at fotos of offending gear with a good
> impression :-)
> >
> > Tom Wiltshire wrote:
> >> I don’t agree. Many people are test equipment snobs. The fact is
> there’s cheap stuff out there which is 99% as good as the vastly more
> expensive stuff in 99% of the situations. Maybe you’re that 1% user, but
> probably you’re not and you’d just like to think you really need that
> really nice bit of test equipment (I know I would). But you probably don’t,
> and you’ll find out that 9V is 9V or that that 10K resistor is actually
> 100K just as easily with something that cost £15 as £150.
> >>
> >> After all, these days a multimeter isn’t exactly rocket science. It’s a
> decent ADC and a uP and a bit of software. How hard is that? £200 hard?
> Really?
> >>
> >> My 2 eurocents,
> >> Tom
> >>
> >> On 5 Mar 2018, at 19:14, Byron G. Jacquot <thescum at surfree.com> wrote:
> >>> I agree with Alexandre - if the alternatives are Fluke and import
> meters of questionable provenance, Fluke wins by a long shot.
> >>>
> >>> Used Flukes are findable - check craigslist.
> >>>
> >>> The Fluke 115 is a general purpose meter that also fits your price
> range - there's a kit with a case and an assortment of probes for just a
> hair over $200.  Don't confuse it with the other 11x meters, which are
> tailored for specific applications - electricians and HVAC.
> >>>
> >>> Amprobe meters (formerly Wavetek/Meterman) are also pretty good, but
> I'm not up on their latest offerings.
>
>
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