I know this topic has been covered before ... read post after post ... but still trying to decided on a cheap scope to do some testing and learning.

This all started because a friend thought I might have some ripple on a power supply I had and said if I had a scope I could put in on and check.

He said "any cheap scope" will work for something like this.

I have never had a scope .. just want something to "play" with ... say under $100

I read review after review ... post after post ....

I came up with a few but need help deciding between them ... or maybe someone has a different one they recommend ...

Again ... simple testing ... maybe watch my PWM output on an Arduino ... stuff like that.

All these are from Amazon ...

At the bottom $39.99 ... Aleistfdno simple .... single channel .... downfalls (as far as I can tell) are small screen, only 3V amplitude on signal generator, limited trigger functions ... not sure if you can use signal generator and scope at the same time

At $69.99 (89.99 with $20 coupon) ... Bside with touch screen Dual channel ... not sure if I need that ... touch screen, not sure if this is good or bad ... only 7 signal types and you can't use them at the same time as the scope (from review) .. limited trigger function ...

At $84.99 (119.99 with $35 coupon) ... Bside 3 in 1 dual channel ... has multi meter , don't need one as I have two already ... buttons instead of touch screen (maybe better or worse) .... only 7 signal types and you can't use them at the same time as the scope (from review) .. limited trigger function ...

At the top $89.99 ($99.99 with $10 coupon) ... Fnirsi 2C53T ... Seems to have a lot of features ... just worry about the 4.2 starts on Amazon

And there are dozens more ... Fnirsi 2C53T $89.99 .... Fnirsi DSO152 $36.99 ... Leolov 154-pro $43.99 .....

Any advice here?

I know for the price these are all just toys ...

I am hoping for simple testing and learning how to use a scope, one of these will work.

I would be willing to go "a bit more" but from what I can see, I would need to go up to say $800 to get into a "real" scope ...

thanks .... Mike

 

Certainly there are a lot of choices. And my advice would be "none of them." A working used scope of a better quality and greater capability will serve better. But you do need to get it demonstrated before buying it.

 

People will sell good quality scopes cheap because there is no test lead / probe.
You can buy them for $5.49

https://www.mpja.com/60MHz-Oscilloscope-Probe-for-Mini-DSOs/productinfo/35886+TE/

 

People will sell good quality scopes cheap because there is no test lead / probe.
You can buy them for $5.49

https://www.mpja.com/60MHz-Oscilloscope-Probe-for-Mini-DSOs/productinfo/35886+TE/

Hmmm .... now you have me thinking on a different path.

Just checking ebay ... I see a few Textronic TDS 3032 ... 2 channel, 300 MHz 2.5 GS/s

No probes

So Siglet and Digikey has probes for $150 each ... Al iExpress 500MHz 10X 300 volt fore $15

They can't be the same quality but will almost any probe work?

Thanks!

 

At the beginning, I started with a few cheap toys just for learning and testing with frustration.. As knowledge progressing and accuracy & functionality become priority, a proper scope is a must. Should invested on a better scope rather than upgrading toys after toys..

 

They can't be the same quality but will almost any probe work?

They will, up to a certain point.
60MHz is faster than anything I ever did.
Micro controllers and automotive.

 

Hmmm .... now you have me thinking on a different path.

Just checking ebay ... I see a few Textronic TDS 3032 ... 2 channel, 300 MHz 2.5 GS/s

No probes

So Siglet and Digikey has probes for $150 each ... Al iExpress 500MHz 10X 300 volt fore $15

They can't be the same quality but will almost any probe work?

Thanks!

Welcome to AAC.

For your application nearly any 10X probe will work beyond what you need—as long as it is not defective. You will need to learn to set the probe compensation, but that‘s trivial and you will be all set for quite a while. You don’t need the OEM probes, you are unlikely to notice any difference compared to inexpensive aftermarket options.

 

Certainly "Y" is correct, and with the higher performance used scopes, probe performance becomes more important as the frequency increases. For audio stuff almost any probe will do, but then for higher impedance circuit checking, more than just cheap wire probes are needed. Also, usually higher accuracy comes with the more expensive probes. BUT if you do not need that extreme accuracy then cheaper can be adequate. I got a dual channel 20MHZ scope for $2 at the end of a swap. The flaw was that it was missing the screws to hold the case together. Not a bad deal at all. I had suitable screws, the wrong color, though. So good deals can happen sometimes.

 

For cheapness, you can't beat the current offer on PCB Scope - £5 in UK, plus postage of course. It plugs into a windows PC. 2 channels scope and 4 channels logic analyser.

 

For cheapness, you can't beat the current offer on PCB Scope - £5 in UK, plus postage of course. It plugs into a windows PC. 2 channels scope and 4 channels logic analyser.

This looks like a very nice board, particularly for education—but even a modestly engaged hobbyist would soon find it‘s limitations—at best—annoying, and at worst stymying.

A very special kind of person who would never try to explore beyond type very low bandwidth and constrained feature set of the board might be OK with it, I suppose—but the TS already seems to be looking past this level.

Nonetheless, this would be an excellent way to get people non yet interested enough to want to invest in a scope to understand why they might want one.

 

If you are OK with using a "Swiss Army Chip" with your computer, tablet or phone; look at the "Labrador." https://espotek.com/labrador/ Scope, signal generator, VOM, logic analyzer -- runs on Windows, Linux, Android Ernesto (web guy and inventor) is very prompt and helpful. Available on line and from Amazon. About 30 dollars.

 

If you are OK with using a "Swiss Army Chip" with your computer, tablet or phone; look at the "Labrador." https://espotek.com/labrador/ Scope, signal generator, VOM, logic analyzer -- runs on Windows, Linux, Android Ernesto (web guy and inventor) is very prompt and helpful. Available on line and from Amazon. About 30 dollars.

WOW ... for the few times I use it ... and till I figure out how and why I will use an oscilloscope, this could be very very interesting! I see it is just a board .. guessing it connects with a USB cable ... and you buy a few probes (or at this low frequency maybe just leads will work). Thanks so very much!

 

I own Zoyi ZT-703S, it works. Probably a-ok to learn on (probably works fine for most hobby stuff). Plus, it's a multi device. It's not perfect, but it is fairly accurate.
The only thing extra I say you might need, is an extra 'probe' set-kit, one that has QD tips and stuff. Rather cheap sets on amzon to get. This gives you some flexibility to hook or probe a wider range of things.

I also have a FNIRSI DPOX180H. It too is ok. The scope end of the DPO is a bit better than the ZT, but the ZT is a multi device. Having to choose is a pros cons game, etc.

https://zoyitools.com/product/zt-703s/

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09ZTSYXM2

 

If cheap is your criteria, get the DSO138.



https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256807564126740.html

 

I know this topic has been covered before ... read post after post ... but still trying to decided on a cheap scope to do some testing and learning.

This all started because a friend thought I might have some ripple on a power supply I had and said if I had a scope I could put in on and check.

He said "any cheap scope" will work for something like this.

I have never had a scope .. just want something to "play" with ... say under $100

I read review after review ... post after post ....

I came up with a few but need help deciding between them ... or maybe someone has a different one they recommend ...

Again ... simple testing ... maybe watch my PWM output on an Arduino ... stuff like that.

All these are from Amazon ...

At the bottom $39.99 ... Aleistfdno simple .... single channel .... downfalls (as far as I can tell) are small screen, only 3V amplitude on signal generator, limited trigger functions ... not sure if you can use signal generator and scope at the same time

At $69.99 (89.99 with $20 coupon) ... Bside with touch screen Dual channel ... not sure if I need that ... touch screen, not sure if this is good or bad ... only 7 signal types and you can't use them at the same time as the scope (from review) .. limited trigger function ...

At $84.99 (119.99 with $35 coupon) ... Bside 3 in 1 dual channel ... has multi meter , don't need one as I have two already ... buttons instead of touch screen (maybe better or worse) .... only 7 signal types and you can't use them at the same time as the scope (from review) .. limited trigger function ...

At the top $89.99 ($99.99 with $10 coupon) ... Fnirsi 2C53T ... Seems to have a lot of features ... just worry about the 4.2 starts on Amazon

And there are dozens more ... Fnirsi 2C53T $89.99 .... Fnirsi DSO152 $36.99 ... Leolov 154-pro $43.99 .....

Any advice here?

I know for the price these are all just toys ...

I am hoping for simple testing and learning how to use a scope, one of these will work.

I would be willing to go "a bit more" but from what I can see, I would need to go up to say $800 to get into a "real" scope ...

thanks .... Mike

Hi Mike, if your $100 limit is not particularly hard, you can get into a real scope for quite a bit less than $800. Consider the Rigol DS1102Z-E - Two Channel / 100 MHz Digital Oscilloscope:

https://www.tequipment.net/Rigol/DS1102Z-E/Digital-Oscilloscopes/?b=y&v=7906

When you create an account with Tequipment.net you get a discount, and the scope is available for $265.05 vs. the $279.00 list price. I also get a pop-up encouraging me to talk the them about their best price, so an additional discount may be available. Shipping is free for orders over $99.

It comes with probes and with features and functions you won't get with cheapo offerings. It includes a memory depth upgrade, advanced trigger options, serial decode for UART/SPI/I2C and more, waveform math functions and many other built-in features. It has a LAN interface, and with a very simple shell script you can extract a screen shot and save it as an image file.

I have no association with Rigol or Tequipment.net whatsoever, but do have a similar older model Rigol scope and it has been incredibly useful. The beauty of this option is that it doesn't cost a lot more than some of the things you're looking at, will give you great results with features you find on higher end test equipment, and you won't feel like you immediately need an upgrade if you start wanting to do more.

 

Hi Mike, if your $100 limit is not particularly hard, you can get into a real scope for quite a bit less than $800. Consider the Rigol DS1102Z-E - Two Channel / 100 MHz Digital Oscilloscope:

https://www.tequipment.net/Rigol/DS1102Z-E/Digital-Oscilloscopes/?b=y&v=7906

When you create an account with Tequipment.net you get a discount, and the scope is available for $265.05 vs. the $279.00 list price. I also get a pop-up encouraging me to talk the them about their best price, so an additional discount may be available. Shipping is free for orders over $99.

It comes with probes and with features and functions you won't get with cheapo offerings. It includes a memory depth upgrade, advanced trigger options, serial decode for UART/SPI/I2C and more, waveform math functions and many other built-in features. It has a LAN interface, and with a very simple shell script you can extract a screen shot and save it as an image file.

I have no association with Rigol or Tequipment.net whatsoever, but do have a similar older model Rigol scope and it has been incredibly useful. The beauty of this option is that it doesn't cost a lot more than some of the things you're looking at, will give you great results with features you find on higher end test equipment, and you won't feel like you immediately need an upgrade if you start wanting to do more.

I am actually having that exact debate with myself. Cheap ... just a toy and throw way say $100 in a year or two ... or $300 and have it for a while.

Thanks for the info!

 

I am actually having that exact debate with myself. Cheap ... just a toy and throw way say $100 in a year or two ... or $300 and have it for a while.

Thanks for the info!

Save a bit more and spend the money for a good, long term investment scope with plenty of aftermarket hacks and upgrades.
https://forum.allaboutcircuits.com/threads/12bit-rigol-dho800-scope.195972/

https://www.amazon.com/Rigol-DHO800/dp/B0CGHQHQN7?th=1

 

Hi Mike, if your $100 limit is not particularly hard, you can get into a real scope for quite a bit less than $800. Consider the Rigol DS1102Z-E - Two Channel / 100 MHz Digital Oscilloscope:

DHO804. 900 series if you want bode & signal gen.

 

I know this topic has been covered before ... read post after post ... but still trying to decided on a cheap scope to do some testing and learning.

I am actually having that exact debate with myself. Cheap ... just a toy and throw way say $100 in a year or two ... or $300 and have it for a while.

Well, if you keep changing your requirements or needs, you'll just keep buying up.

If you have the money, look at Rigol DHO 904 or 1000. If you want easy wallet learning scope, look at the $100 items.