I no longer recommend the UT61E because of the issues with drift. It seems to be about a 50/50 crap shoot on whether you get a meter that drifts or not. It appears one or more of the resistors in the integrated resistor divider network drifts relative to the others making it very difficult, if not impossible to calibrate it out. Additionally, in more recent editions Uni-T has been cutting costs (for example they no longer gold plate the selector traces, which will dramatically reduce the life of the meter). This is coming from someone who has two of them, one I know for a fact has drifted and the other I haven't bothered testing as I use my bench meter for the high resolution stuff now. That being said, you DO get a LOT for your money with these. You get a lot of features, damn fast continuity, and a resolution that is second to none (you also get TrueRMS and PC data logging). That being said, it is not without its drawbacks. The biggest drawback is its lack of robustness on the input protection. A static electric spark, even just from walking across the room, directed at the inputs will kill the meter. Unfortuantely, it isn't just the UT61E that suffers from this, it is most other Uni-T meters as well. I have no clue WHY that is, because they use ceramic fuses and PTCs (and even MOVs on the UT139C) but they still seem to die more easily than most other meters.
In this price range, I would much rather recommend the Amprobe AM-510. If you don't need the resolution or the PC connectivity, it tends to be WAY better value for the money, especially as a first meter. It has solid accuracy and has loads of features. More importantly it has input protection that was clearly designed by Fluke (the parent company of amprobe) and is UL-Listed.
As an aside, Dave from EEVBlog has a couple of new meters he is involved with. The meter which is relevant here is a brand new line from Brymen that he is putting his logo on. He stresses this one is the exact same as the Brymen version (the BM235) other than the blue case and the ultra-premium test leads, but the interesting thing is that this series from Brymen hasn't been officially announced yet. This meter is a step down/step-sideways from the BM257S (which runs around $120) and appears to include almost all of the features (except a pc connection) that the BM25x series does. I have a feeling it might be below $100 and if so would be a damn good value. Based on what I see the BM235 will have uA/mA/A, TrueRMS, adjustable multi-level non-contact voltage detection, temperature, 50mV AC and DC range, low-pass filter, LoZ selection, backlight, data logging (not sure about this but it has a rec button), etc. It looks pretty well feature packed. Most of this I am just reading from the labels on the dial, there is no officially released specs at this time.
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we can't get Brymen easily in the USA because of 'Greenlee' marketing, then at their pricing I'd be stepping up towards a real Fluke USA made one. or shop around for a used bench top model. I'm gonna wait for the 'Pedro' marketed DMM w/ double gold plated selector switch. luckily I haven't seen any drift on my 61E.😀 dang it, I'm gonna resist opening it up to see if I'm on the short end of the China lottery again.
Is this the evil Mark posting a site where there is just too much attractive gear at modest prices? 🙂 Some of the prices on tested working gear are below eBay and there is a good selection. Thanks.
The Euro-to-USD exchange rate has made ordering from European vendors like TME.EU very very beneficial. I know quite a few people that have ordered from there. For example, due to the exchange rate the Brymen BM869S, Brmens competitor to the Fluke 289, is down to $208 (plus $10 shipping to the USA).
I wish that I had enough time and connections to make a meter. It would be fun, instead I just like following them (and test equipment in general). I mainly do repairs and resell to fund my hobbies. It has worked well so far for me.
If you meter hasn't drifted I am glad for you, because honestly I loved the build quality of that meter when I got it. The screen is literally one of the easiest to read screens out there period. Fluke could learn a thing or two from how great the contrast is on that screen . The meter drifting and its lack of robustness really left a bad taste in my mouth though.
any links talking about these 61E changes you speak of. I thought you wiped out one of yours due to somehow inserting the battery in reverse or was that after you noticed drift in the new one? anyway, drift /PCB plating is probably related to parts procurement problems (potentiometers are notorious). I thought the general impression was that this model has improved over time! once again, one or two reports on youtube or forums are important sources but don't nearly make solid facts!
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You have probe contact issue. The probe should be of the cross-cut solid type, use a nail or similar to open them up a bit and reinsert - should be fine. You may also have oxidation on the contacts inside the meter.
The Fluke has high input resistance but at least the ones I have seen seem well within their specified accuracy.
The Fluke has high input resistance but at least the ones I have seen seem well within their specified accuracy.
Yeah the one that drifted is the one that I wiped out. The drift didn't bother me enough because most measurements I do are relative more than absolute. As long as you stay within the same range, the drift doesn't affect relative measurements. I picked up the second one (before I killed the first one) for $20 when a store as closing them out. At that price, couldn't turn it down. I actually recently got a part to repair it but just haven't gotten around to trying the repair. I don't blame Uni-T per se for the one dying but putting a battery in backwards really shouldn't have killed the meter. I will try to find the threads I saw showing the new selector without copper plating. At this point, I have multiple multimeters and the UT61E has its place. I no longer recommend it as a primary meter but it definitely is as a second meter if you know its limitations.
what do you consider drift , all error terms of voltage stability should still be in spec for a year yes? if you see anomaly, the 1st place I would look is the calibration pots, look up the data sheet.
I was at around 30 counts of drift when I killed the meter, it tended to be really temp sensitive at the time and my house at that time was really drafty. I don't remember how that is relative to specs but I remember thinking it was kinda high. I have seen several people have their meters drift out of spec on DCV and Resistance around the end of one year. The DCV can be calibrated, the resistance cannot (there is no cal pot for resistance). I actually thought about doing a DCV cal pot mod (using a fixed resistor and a smaller trimmer to help limit drift). I actually still have the schematic for the UT61E saved on my computer somewhere.
pick the trimmer carefully probably just a part change to a quality name brand will see some improvements.
I think once you start playing with bench meters or $300 DMMs your impressions (memories) of low cost handhelds will undoubtedly change.
I think once you start playing with bench meters or $300 DMMs your impressions (memories) of low cost handhelds will undoubtedly change.
Haha I have an HP 34401A that I love, just had it calibrated and adjusted. Also have a Brymen BM869S that I'm doing a review on (waiting on some parts for testing something interesting).
OK, Dave at EEVBlog released the manual and specs for the Brymen BM235 meter. Looks like a pretty good budget meter, with the tight specs you would expect out of a quality meter.
Here is the link if anyone cares:
http://www.eevblog.com/files/BM235-Manual-EEVblog.pdf
Here is the link if anyone cares:
http://www.eevblog.com/files/BM235-Manual-EEVblog.pdf
The digitech is more than 10 years old. Even a few years ago I could no longer pull the leads out of the DMM. So I think it has served its glorious days and I should let it rest in peace.
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