Hi OzMikeH,
Another huge bonus. Unlike most other meters on the market (bench or otherwise), a Fluke will hold it's calibration extremely well. That is unless you so something evil to it.
BTW, there are devices that will give a serial port an IP address and communicate as if it's hooked up to your computer! Cool!
-Chris
I remember them as being somewhat better than that. I did tons of them and there is no way an Extech or other meter would stay within the limits of a Fluke. They were actually superior to many bench meters (excluding Datron, Fluke, HP/Agilent and Kiethley). Their attenuator is also much, much more accurate than other meters. Then there is the question of high frequency accuracy. They really shine there too. I'm talking about 85/87's and like models. They do make cheaper meters with relaxed specs, but their good ones are even better.
Another huge bonus. Unlike most other meters on the market (bench or otherwise), a Fluke will hold it's calibration extremely well. That is unless you so something evil to it.
Well, yeah! Those terminal blocks are not cheap either. Clean with alcohol, nothing else.
No. Humans being what they are, and the fact that these hold their calibration well, make sure you get the cert with recorded values (all of them!), before and after. This is an R6 level at Transcat. Keep them honest or you may as well just burn the lower amount of cash. A C of C (certificate of Compliance) is a complete joke. This says that it's a meter and it works. Yipee!
Yes. A Fluke 5500A, or better yet, a Fluke 5520A. The 5500A is getting dicey. Still, my HP is the very best item I ever bought. What they don't tell you are all the features you get beyond the basic ones. No way I'd trade mine for a pair of Fluke 87 equiv's, because that is what mine is currently worth new (still current). Not even 4 Fluke meters.
Pretty hard to argue that point. Although Steve's meter may possibly give them a run for their money. Far more functions in Steve's also. He can trend bias over time for example. I can if I hook up the GPIB and program it. The newer Agilent meters are going USB and LAN. You have to love a LAN connection. Fantastic!!
BTW, there are devices that will give a serial port an IP address and communicate as if it's hooked up to your computer! Cool!
-Chris
Serial-IP is a program I use a lot, Then we stick Lantronix boxes on everything that has a serial port. Great for offsite access to serial devices.
One weird thing I had with the HP974A that really put me off it:
I was load testing a static inverter (28VDC to 110V 400Hz AC for aircraft)
We test the static inverters by running them through a big variac into a 2400W 240V electric kettle. We monitor voltage, current and waveform between the inverter and variac with 2 calibrated multimeters and an analog CRO. We use the variac to vary the load on the inverter for various tests.
The HP was indicating 2.16 amps at no load, then I UNPLUGGED the kettle and the reading didn't change, 2.16 amps into thin air. The meters on the DC supply were showing the normal idle current for the inverter. The waveform was a nice sine wave without any ugly fluffies on it but somehow measuring current on an open circuit with this signal applied was freaking the meter out.
One weird thing I had with the HP974A that really put me off it:
I was load testing a static inverter (28VDC to 110V 400Hz AC for aircraft)
We test the static inverters by running them through a big variac into a 2400W 240V electric kettle. We monitor voltage, current and waveform between the inverter and variac with 2 calibrated multimeters and an analog CRO. We use the variac to vary the load on the inverter for various tests.
The HP was indicating 2.16 amps at no load, then I UNPLUGGED the kettle and the reading didn't change, 2.16 amps into thin air. The meters on the DC supply were showing the normal idle current for the inverter. The waveform was a nice sine wave without any ugly fluffies on it but somehow measuring current on an open circuit with this signal applied was freaking the meter out.
Hi OzMikeH,
Serial to IP is fantastic. New life for heritage stuff that still works great.
Some Agilent / HP stuff has very wide bandwidth and high input impedance. I can see where this may cause problems in some cases.
Have you given Agilent a call? They have engineers to sort these things out and they are very approachable. Either that or the calibration is not being done correctly. Either way you ought to find out what the issues are.
-Chris
Serial to IP is fantastic. New life for heritage stuff that still works great.
Some Agilent / HP stuff has very wide bandwidth and high input impedance. I can see where this may cause problems in some cases.
Have you given Agilent a call? They have engineers to sort these things out and they are very approachable. Either that or the calibration is not being done correctly. Either way you ought to find out what the issues are.
-Chris
Just had to post because I've been using one the past few days...
Somewhat related- Fluke Network meters are fantastic too.
The Cable IQ meter is very popular at work for checking CAT 5/6 as well as simple network troubleshooting- but mostly testing cable as it's used more and more for audio and video over UTP.
Fantastic!
Somewhat related- Fluke Network meters are fantastic too.
The Cable IQ meter is very popular at work for checking CAT 5/6 as well as simple network troubleshooting- but mostly testing cable as it's used more and more for audio and video over UTP.
Fantastic!
Absolutely. Although the XL8 sends control to the DSP brains via Fiber on Neutrik's awesome new FiberCon connectors.
I've sent 32 channels of audio 1000' over two cat5 cables with Aviom. It spoils one quickly.
Wireless would be cool and is probably on the way, but here in the states bandwidth is quickly running out. In NYC, finding clear frequencies for a few dozen wireless mics is really challenging.
I've sent 32 channels of audio 1000' over two cat5 cables with Aviom. It spoils one quickly.
Wireless would be cool and is probably on the way, but here in the states bandwidth is quickly running out. In NYC, finding clear frequencies for a few dozen wireless mics is really challenging.
Hi imix500,
-Chris
Absolutely. I've being doing similar things with VoIP. What we really should have are standards equal for both. They do send audio over VoIP already for retransmission.
Actually, all you are sending is data. Many wireless nodes are self adapting. Or a band could be cleared for this use. Individual mics would simply be the same thing converted to digital. There can be problems, but this would eliminate standard static. We'll trade static for digital noise.
-Chris
Hopefully, standards will multiply in the next few years. AES50 is the newest that is of use to guys like me on a daily basis, and it looks like manufacturers are scooping it up. Otherwise, it seems like everyone has thier own protocol.
I belive high end wireless audio is heading in this direction, but few manufacturers have been successful with a digital system. One that I used on a show and works pretty well is made by Trantec.
The idea of systems adapting and selecting their own frequencies in a live situation is very scary to theater sound types. We usually have a dedicated computer and KVM system just to monitor each channels RF and AF remotely.
Still, once all-digital works and is proven it will make our lives sooo much easier.
I belive high end wireless audio is heading in this direction, but few manufacturers have been successful with a digital system. One that I used on a show and works pretty well is made by Trantec.
The idea of systems adapting and selecting their own frequencies in a live situation is very scary to theater sound types. We usually have a dedicated computer and KVM system just to monitor each channels RF and AF remotely.
Still, once all-digital works and is proven it will make our lives sooo much easier.
Capacitance/Inductance meter
As long as we are on the topic of meters, is there a Fluke meter that can measure Caps and Inductors? This would be really what I would need....volts/resistance/amps/capacitance/inductance meter is all I really need - maybe frequency?
Anywho, apexjr has these no-name meters that do uF - F and uH - H (pretty good range too) for $50 and I have been thinking about getting one...I have enough old scrap inductors laying around...would love to be able to re-use some of them if I could find out what their value was...
I also have a Textronix 5110 (?) I got off ebay a year or so ago and still haven't used it...need a tutorial of sort...want to check some preamp power supplies...all the EE's I work with don't have a clue on how to use it...
As long as we are on the topic of meters, is there a Fluke meter that can measure Caps and Inductors? This would be really what I would need....volts/resistance/amps/capacitance/inductance meter is all I really need - maybe frequency?
Anywho, apexjr has these no-name meters that do uF - F and uH - H (pretty good range too) for $50 and I have been thinking about getting one...I have enough old scrap inductors laying around...would love to be able to re-use some of them if I could find out what their value was...
I also have a Textronix 5110 (?) I got off ebay a year or so ago and still haven't used it...need a tutorial of sort...want to check some preamp power supplies...all the EE's I work with don't have a clue on how to use it...
I do not think you will find inductance on any of the handheld fluke (multimeters). I use the 87 and 77 and find them perfect for most everything. Some of the benchtop are faster or have higher precision but you have to be more careful, since they run on mains, they can pick up noise if you are measuring small currents or voltages.
To measure inductance, there are a couple of choices. You can get another meter to do it (esp if you do not need high accuracy), or a fluke lcr like a PM 6303 or lastly, there are many circuits posted around of how to build an LC meter from a PIC/AVR micro.
To measure inductance, there are a couple of choices. You can get another meter to do it (esp if you do not need high accuracy), or a fluke lcr like a PM 6303 or lastly, there are many circuits posted around of how to build an LC meter from a PIC/AVR micro.
Hi John,
Build an LC circuit and oscillator to figure out your inductors. Buy some precision capacitors to use in your oscillator. A Fluke 87 can then be checked with the caps (as your "standard") and read the resulting oscillation frequency. After that it's only math. Cheap and more accurate than cheaper inductance meters.
I use an HP 4263A LCR meter. Expensive, but worth every penny if you need something this accurate.
-Chris
Build an LC circuit and oscillator to figure out your inductors. Buy some precision capacitors to use in your oscillator. A Fluke 87 can then be checked with the caps (as your "standard") and read the resulting oscillation frequency. After that it's only math. Cheap and more accurate than cheaper inductance meters.
I use an HP 4263A LCR meter. Expensive, but worth every penny if you need something this accurate.
-Chris
One thing to watch for with buying used Fluke meters is the condition of the LCD. Sometimes a few segments go out: that can often be fixed by swapping the "zebra" strip (or whatever it's called) end-for-end. But if the displays go dark, that can cost some money to replace. I bought my Fluke 77 around the same time as two coworkers did, and both their displays went bad within 5 years. Inexplicably, mine is still legible after about 20 years.
When it comes to bench meters, consider an LED meter instead.
Another thing with some Fluke 77's is that the 10 amp range was NOT fused, so you could get into trouble if you lost track of how the test leads were connected.
Bear in mind that a couple of generations of electronic techs and designers got by just fine with analog meters.
As for L and C:
AADE had a couple of versions of an LC meter published in Radio-Electronics (or whatever it was called at the time); the first used logic chips in a clever way, the next a PIC (and very little else). I don't see the plans on AADE's website any more. $100 for a kit ain't too bad: http://www.aade.com/lcmeter.htm
There's links to reviews of it.
Maybe the more sensible approach is to use a sound card with analysis software; I know the IMP/MLS would measure complex impedances.
When it comes to bench meters, consider an LED meter instead.
Another thing with some Fluke 77's is that the 10 amp range was NOT fused, so you could get into trouble if you lost track of how the test leads were connected.
Bear in mind that a couple of generations of electronic techs and designers got by just fine with analog meters.
As for L and C:
AADE had a couple of versions of an LC meter published in Radio-Electronics (or whatever it was called at the time); the first used logic chips in a clever way, the next a PIC (and very little else). I don't see the plans on AADE's website any more. $100 for a kit ain't too bad: http://www.aade.com/lcmeter.htm
There's links to reviews of it.
Maybe the more sensible approach is to use a sound card with analysis software; I know the IMP/MLS would measure complex impedances.
A little more searching found an article on building an L/C meter:
http://www.geocities.com/ttarsorg/contributors/homebrew-lc-meter-2.pdf
http://www.antrak.org.tr/gazete/111998/barbar.htm
It's the AADE L/C meter, the second version that was published in the June 1996 "Electronics Now".
http://www.geocities.com/ttarsorg/contributors/homebrew-lc-meter-2.pdf
http://www.antrak.org.tr/gazete/111998/barbar.htm
It's the AADE L/C meter, the second version that was published in the June 1996 "Electronics Now".
Hi Dangus,
I repaired many Fluke meters. Most of the time you only need to gently clean the zebra strip with 99% alcohol and reinstall it. Clean the PCB and display contacts as well. Do not touch any of these surfaces. The only displays I ever replaced were broken ones. I did have to replace some zebra strips though. They should be cheap from Fluke, so are the displays.
-Chris
I repaired many Fluke meters. Most of the time you only need to gently clean the zebra strip with 99% alcohol and reinstall it. Clean the PCB and display contacts as well. Do not touch any of these surfaces. The only displays I ever replaced were broken ones. I did have to replace some zebra strips though. They should be cheap from Fluke, so are the displays.
-Chris
mpmarino said:
anatech said:
Well, whadya know! It's actually an 87V and it still has the plastic protective cover on the display AND it's in my possession. I gave Fluke a call and it has a conditional lifetime warranty. Yippeee! As long as it hasn't been overvoltaged (doubt it, the most we work in is 240v) and hasn't been physically abused (can't see that) they will fix it for free. Yipeee!
edit: I have the cal procedure but not the equip to do it - I'll let them do it.
Hi Dangus,
That's interesting. Early meters did that as I've mentioned. The only other thing I can think of is that the meter display was exposed to full sun often. Nothing else comes to mind here.
At any rate, a new display LCD was not very expensive. Replace the zebra strips at the same time. Either that or replace the entire meter. The display is less expensive to do.
-Chris
That's interesting. Early meters did that as I've mentioned. The only other thing I can think of is that the meter display was exposed to full sun often. Nothing else comes to mind here.
At any rate, a new display LCD was not very expensive. Replace the zebra strips at the same time. Either that or replace the entire meter. The display is less expensive to do.
-Chris
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