Oscilloscope Recomendations

[Bryan]

Hi all,

Firstly, I would like to introduce myself. I am a recent DIYer, with a few kits under my belt, and I am currently building a pair of 845 monos. This is my first thread here, though I have lurked around watching all of you for some time now. It is nice to see such a great community, and have access to many types of advice and experience.

So, secondly, I hope this is in the correct forum. I would like to purchase a scope to use for basic audio trouble-shooting, tweaking, and optimization of builds/designs. I am not entirely sure what it is that I should be looking for. These are my requirements.

1. Cheap (used). Vague, but say around $200, maybe more if necessary.
2. I would like to be able to use it for a few years without the need for upgrading.
3. Reliability
4. Good reputation.

So, do you guys have any recomendations?

Thanks,

Bryan

[dhaen]

Welcome to the forum Bryan

I think the best value in used scopes (at the lower end) is still the Tektronix 465 series. You might just get a reasonable one within budget.
You might also check out these other threads:
"Audio" Oscilloscope features
and

DIY oscilloscope
(thread develops towards your area).

845 Monoblocks eh? I'm a little partial to the 845 myself. People have given up asking me when mine will be finished (enough to show off)

You'll like it here

Cheers,

[DaveInVA]

If you look around you can get pretty good deals on old Tektronix scopes. I recently purchased a 475 at an obsolete equipment auction for $175 and its in excellent condition.

Dave

[Tom Bavis]

Any of the Tek 400 series should be fine for audio work. These are the last ones that can be repaired by mere humans - no special Tektronix integrated circuits.

I have two Tek 922s and these are pretty good, though a bit fragile. And one is dead - no trace - which probably means a bad HV tripler, and has one vertical knob broken off. On the plus side, the dead one was free and the good one was $50 including shipping from eBay. That also included two Tektronix probes... All in all, the 900 series could be the best buy out there IF working. But if someone offers a Telequipment (imported by Tek), keep walking - maybe even RUN...

Got a few extra probes by trading a few tubes, and I still use an old HP 130C scope (cuz it's at the BOTTOM of the pile of test equipment). Only good for 500KHz, only one channel, but that big round tube is nice - no squinting at waveforms here!

[Sch3mat1c]

I uh... fourth? the Tek 4xx. I have a 475 and aside from a smelly (of ozone) problem with the HV where it connects to the CRT (I need some silicone), it works great.
Hee, I got mine free from a very generous person, he said he wasn't going to ever use his electronics again anyway, so sent me like 200lbs. of junk (including the scope and his tube collection ), free of charge!

Tim

[arnoldc]

hi bryan, thanks for the thread. i've been wanting to buy a scope too for the same purpose.

guys, would you have biases for/against PC based scopes like Pico Scope, or similar? am i wasting money (or becomes more expensive) if i go that route?

how about newer scopes that can be purchased from farnell or rs components?

what features should i look for?

sorry, too many questions.

[Variac]

Hey guys, this has been discussed a lot on this forum. You should really check out those links mentioned earlier and search the threads also to get all the details.
Apparently you can get really good scopes on e-bay for around $200. The computer based ones apparently can't compete at that price. Since some of you are in other countries, so your situation may vary, but in countries with big electronic manufacturing industries, they are dirt cheap!

[arnoldc]

ooops sorry. jumping to the other threads, thanks!

[Bryan]

Thanks Guys,

I've found the searches (plenty of great info), and will keep my eye out for some models on e-bay.

I appreciate all the help!

Bryan