multimeter suggestions

Bigwillystyle · May 3, 2020

Hey guys, another annoying question..

Looking for a new multimeter.. sold all my good gear years ago.. but to be honest I prefer old-school style multimeters eg. manual range adjustment. I'm not a fan of auto ranging ones.. mainly because they cannot be used for fault finding data lines.

other preference is a loud buzzer for continuity.. I'm deaf, and really struggle to use some meters (like the Digitech one I have now) because unless I'm in a dead quiet area or sit it on my shoulder I cannot hear it..

have used the automotive SCA Multi meter and found it to be quite good for the above reasons, just wondering if there are any other suggestions of important features for this hobby and suggestions of brands other than Fluke not only for cost but mainly because they are all auto range..

scamper · May 3, 2020

I personally don't have a problem with auto range on a digital meter, That's what the decimal point and readout is for. You do need a diode function though or you need an analogue meter as well. If you want to check diodes or transistors that is. At the end of the day most of the digital meters are good enough for most things in this hobby, (I have a fluke and a cheap one) the biggest issue I find is the leads themselves. Unfortunately you have to spend almost as much on leads as you do on the cheap meter for it to be workable.
But if you are checking data lines with a meter, then you are better than me, so I will leave it to someone with more knowledge to help you out on that one.

David_AVD · May 3, 2020

I also use (Fluke) auto ranging multimeters at work. At home I have a Uni-T UT61E and that was good value for money.

Katekate · May 3, 2020

I have one of the cheap flukes ($100?) and it lets you lock in the range.

Mark_M · May 3, 2020

Katekate said:
I have one of the cheap flues ($100?) and it lets you lock in the range.

That cheap Flue does seem like a cheap Fluke.

I'd suggest hunting on eBay. My two Fluke meters (23 and 12) are fabulous.
The Fluke 23 was my grandfathers and was apparently bought 40 years ago, it hasn't died or lost calibration. I think the Fluke 12 is around 10-15 years old?
(Both are featured in this video and you'll see the auto ranging: video).

An old Fluke like these won't have the bells and whistles. But they are what you need.
Yes these auto range but it can be fixed.
I also find it very handy for a meter to hold the highest/lowest measurement.

Old Flukes are still great, get one for a decent price on eBay.

Bigwillystyle · May 3, 2020

You can't test data with a multi meter (need a scope for that), but the ability to chuck a meter on the end of a string and see if data is passing out is useful I would imagine.. You would test the front of the string and compare it to the back.. You should see something fairly similar voltages wise.. Auto range will hop and pop all over the place trying to lock onto a moving voltage..

Certainly Keen for any other suggestions too..

Agree Mark they are awesome.. Our shop meter was a 117??? with the remote detachable screen.. that was bloody amazing to be able to take the screen with you and turn the key and monitor the voltage from away from the meter.. Saved having 2 people do some basic tasks..

Katekate · May 3, 2020

not as cheap as it used to be https://www.fluke.com/en-au/product/electrical-testing/digital-multimeters/fluke-115

David_AVD · May 3, 2020

I've never felt the need to use a manual range DMM as the range hold function effectively does the same.

Even the UT61E has range hold and that's quite a cheap DMM.

scamper · May 3, 2020

David_AVD said:
I've never felt the need to use a manual range DMM as the range hold function effectively does the same.

Even the UT61E has range hold and that's quite a cheap DMM.

yep, forgot about range hold. It's been a few years since I did anything more technical than check for continuity or volts. been out of the game for over 20 years now and don't miss it one little bit

Mark_M · May 3, 2020

David_AVD said:
I've never felt the need to use a manual range DMM as the range hold function effectively does the same.

I totally agree on this one.
Good Fluke's have reasonable ranging. It won't suddenly switch between ranges.
The only reason I have to hold the decimal point is for low voltage measurements. 3 decimal accuracy is nice.

Uni-T are getting decent rep. My electronics class has 30 of them with too many functions on the dial.

I'd still go for a Fluke

.

Bigwillystyle · May 3, 2020

range hold.. yes i forgot too..

TANSA · May 3, 2020

My 2 cents in this is drop past an electrical wholesaler, they have lots of differnt makes and models at good prices.
I have 2 flukes both over the $800 mark and both you can lock the ranges.
My most favorate is the 87 MkV which is about 15 plus years.

TerryK · May 4, 2020

For continuity I would suggest building your own tester. I have not found any meters that test continuity well. I typically use the resistance scale(s) to check continuity. The reason is a meter's continuity threshold varies from meter to meter. And an ohm or two within a low resistance check is a large error.

Beyond continuity and/or resistance checks no meter will check well the data line; scope pretty much required here. For what it's worth, I own a Fluke 79 and it has, I've used its frequency scale. There are limitations however. It's up to the user (me) to correctly interpret the readings with the associated device limitations.

My overall recommendation: find a meter with the requirements you need and most of the features you want and hope it is in your cost range. For the odd use, obtain a dedicated test device or borrow.

David_AVD · May 4, 2020

I would never use the continuity function to measure low resistance. It's not what it's for.

Use the Ohms range to test for resistance.

If you want a super accurate reading below a few Ohms, you'll need to do a 4-wire measurement (special meter and leads).

Use continuity as a quick audible check that something is connected via a low-ish (but not defined) resistance.

tooms · May 14, 2020

I'm impressed with this - https://www.eevblog.com/product/121gw/ I've had mine for about 2 years now, maybe longer .. hasn't missed a beat. I'm sure someone could hack something up to use the Bluetooth radio to output to a phone so you can jack the volume right up.

multimeter suggestions

Bigwillystyle

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scamper

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David_AVD

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Katekate

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Mark_M

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Bigwillystyle

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Katekate

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David_AVD

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scamper

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Mark_M

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Bigwillystyle

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TANSA

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TerryK

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