What test equipment should I use? What are you using?

[Richard P]

Moderators' notes​
This thread is a collection of lists of test equipment each of us use... and the equipment recommended to be "on your bench"
Post your test equipment, with photos, and share it here with the other AK members. Some of the below posts may seem out of order as they were pulled from the "Test Equipment sub-forum" thread that predated this actual sub-forum.

Here's a partial list of my most used test equipment - maybe that will generate questions about use/repair/acquisition:

- Tektronix 2236 o-scope
- Tektronix TDS380 o-scope
- Tektronix AWG2005 arbitrary waveform generator
- Tektronix TM501 (2x)/502/504 w/ lots of standard plug-ins (DMMs, frequency counters, signal generators, power supply, etc.)
- Leader 3216 AM/FM stereo signal generator
- 2 x Leader LMV-186B AC millivolt meter
- BK Precision 4040A sweep signal generator
- Keithley 196 DMM
- Simpson 260-7M VOM
- DER DE-5000 LCR meter
- Heathkit C-3 Capacitor tester
- 2 x Tenma 72-2690 Power supplies
- Variac & dim bulb tester
- Hakko FX-888D soldering iron
- Anesty ZD-915 desoldering station
- Newacalox 858D hot air rework station
- Focusrite Scarlett 2i2 USB audio interface with REW, ARTA and AudioTester v3.0 software

Rich

 

[Subtraction]

my meager contribution to this thread

i have found that though handles make equipment look badass (to me)
they can be a pain when adjacent to bnc? connectors

 

[pac1085]

I started out with a Der EE DE-5000 LCR meter, but it would often have trouble reading large capacitors of 8200uF and up, even if i try to test at 100 Hz. The manual says it should measure up to 20,000uF. I want to get accurate measurements on large filter capacitors since they are often so expensive and sometimes impossible to replace without major re-engineering a device due to how they can be mounted. It also doesn't have much resolution on ESR readings. Shrug, just bought a HP 4274A instead and it resolves all those issues. Can we get a test equipment addict support thread??

 

[Richard P]

@pac1085 Interesting experience with the DER DE-5000. I've never had an issue measuring larger capacitors and ESR resolution is to 3 decimal places . . . plenty for me. Maybe yours had an issue. That HP4274A looks nice, though. I'll add it to my list of 'must have' test gear, lol.

Rich

 

[pac1085]

A few weeks ago, a friend of mine was at Goodwill and saw this sitting on a table. It's an HP 410B VTVM, I had him buy it for me. $33. He went back the next day and there was another one, in rougher condition sitting there. I passed on that one and left it for the next guy. I probably should have had him grab it though, good chance it had a decent tube in the AC probe.

I got it home, opened it up, checked for any obvious faults/bad electrolytics, etc. Tested the tubes. Replaced the ballast tube since it had the wrong one in there, which might have been ok (10-4 instead of 6-4). It looked good. Fired it up, adjusted the 6.3v filament setting, and it worked, but the AC scale was reading low (it did have the EA53 tube in the ac probe). DC and ohms were dead on.

At first I thought it may have been bad insulation on the AC probe triax (Which apparently is a known issue, it was old and crusty) so I ordered some new Triax and tried that. No improvement.

After way too much troubleshooting, I found a Micamold cap, C3 inside the meter, immediately following the probe which had developed high ESR - 8k. I replaced that and AC worked perfectly. I was then able to get the meter calibrated and it meets spec on all ranges/functions now. Pretty excited to have one of these on the bench!

Another cool little fact, it has a brass Eastman Kodak asset tag riveted to it, and it’s not far off in # from a HP 201C I picked up a few months ago with the same Eastman Kodak tag.

 

[Nashou66]

$33 !!!!!! I got one on the bay for 4 times that and I thought I got a good deal!!!

This are going for good money .

I do like that LCR meter. Can you test at voltages with that HP? I have a Sencore LC meter that testes up to 600vdc . It does come in handy for those larger caps that are hard to find replacements for and you want to be sure.

Athanasios

 

[pac1085]

$33 !!!!!! I got one on the bay for 4 times that and I thought I got a good deal!!!

This are going for good money .

I do like that LCR meter. Can you test at voltages with that HP? I have a Sencore LC meter that testes up to 600vdc . It does come in handy for those larger caps that are hard to find replacements for and you want to be sure.

Athanasios

No, only up to 5 volts. The sencore stuff is nice, and honestly probably a better tool for someone repairing vintage audio, but they seem impossible to obtain, let alone for a decent price (and difficult to service when things go wrong). I have some separate high voltage Kepco current limited power supplies (500 & 2000v) that I use for leakage testing caps

 

[Nashou66]

Here is my HP next to an EMC model 300. I have not tested the HP yet and I did some work on the EMC but it's not 100% . A little more complicated for me, and the schematics for it are not fun to look at. But A dedicated repair forum like we propose here would be awesome !!!

 

[Richard P]

i picked up a Tektronix AWG2020 recently. Couldn't resist for $50. It supposedly works, but I'll go through it when time allows. I've never used one, so I'm wondering if any of you have experience with this or a similar model. I'm hoping i can use it for FM IF sweep alignments when it's done. I have a BK Precision 4040 right now that does a reasonable job, but maybe this will be better. Lots of other uses, I'm sure, that I'll find as i work with it.

Let me know if you have any input.

Rich

 

[Zether]

Great idea for a forum. Here's a partial list of my most used test equipment - maybe that will generate questions about use/repair/acquisition:

- Tektronix 2236 o-scope
- Tektronix TDS380 o-scope
- Tektronix AWG2005 arbitrary waveform generator
- Tektronix TM501 (2x)/502/504 w/ lots of standard plug-ins (DMMs, frequency counters, signal generators, power supply, etc.)
- Leader 3216 AM/FM stereo signal generator
- 2 x Leader LMV-186B AC millivolt meter
- BK Precision 4040A sweep signal generator
- Keithley 196 DMM
- Simpson 260-7M VOM
- DER DE-5000 LCR meter
- Heathkit C-3 Capacitor tester
- 2 x Tenma 72-2690 Power supplies
- Variac & dim bulb tester
- Hakko FX-888D soldering iron
- Anesty ZD-915 desoldering station
- Newacalox 858D hot air rework station
- Focusrite Scarlett 2i2 USB audio interface with REW, ARTA and AudioTester v3.0 software

Rich

I have to say, I do like your set up. Your dummy load also looks nice. What are the toggle switches for? I cannot make out what it says on the label. I need to build something like that for myself, mine is a nest of loose wires.

 

[Zether]

My latest additions to my setup:

• HP 8903B Audio Analyzer - needs some work as showing high distortion. The lower the frequency the higher the distortion, measuring 6% at 20hz when using the inbuilt source.
• HP 3312A Function Generator - had to clean the switches and pots and it came alive.
• HP 5384A Frequency Counter - seems to work fine

 

[Richard P]

I have to say, I do like your set up. Your dummy load also looks nice. What are the toggle switches for? I cannot make out what it says on the label. I need to build something like that for myself, mine is a nest of loose wires.

The toggle switches select between 1X and 10X for the scope output. I built a simple voltage divider- with the switch used to bypass it for 1X mode. i used a 3.6k 1/2W upper resistor and a 500 ohm, 15-turn trimmer for the lower resistor so I could dial it in for accuracy - you can kind of see those on the outsides of the BNC brackets. The heat sink came from an old Sony STR-DE835 receiver. I'll add a fan in the future if needed, but so far I haven't needed one.

Rich

 

[The Fuxtor]

The toggle switches select between 1X and 10X for the scope output. I built a simple voltage divider- with the switch used to bypass it for 1X mode. i used a 3.6k 1/2W upper resistor and a 500 ohm, 15-turn trimmer for the lower resistor so I could dial it in for accuracy - you can kind of see those on the outsides of the BNC brackets. The heat sink came from an old Sony STR-DE835 receiver. I'll add a fan in the future if needed, but so far I haven't needed one.

Rich

View attachment 2992961

Hey.. that's a really good idea for heatsinking! I've been on the lookout for an old car amp to use for some dummy loads, but I got a half dozen old amps/receivers I could steal the heatsink from!
Kudos

 

[Semanon]

I would just get whatever variac you can find at a hamfest and separate ammeter

I went on a collecting spree for a few of these Simpson single-purpose meters. One of the most very useful is the 370 ammeter. And you can find them cheap with a little patience.

 

[Bogdan Baba]

Awesome little device
https://www.koolertron.com/koolertr...eform-generator-frequency-meter-266msa-s.html i made a case for mine.

 

[Musicman524]

Super exciting day for me yesterday! As many of you have seen in my other posts, I am
Helping my landlord go through his massive collection of vintage equipment. I’m easing in slowly as I start to repair and restore different items. I have worked on mostly turntables so far, but looking to start working on receivers and amps.

I asked if he had a signal generator and oscope I could borrow and boy did he! I went in his other building and it was my version of heaven. Just absolutely loaded with tons of equipment. There were many signal generators and o scopes, but these are the two he chose for me. Upon initial reading, they are great quality pieces of equipment. I am just cleaning up the exterior so far, but going to open them up tomorrow and see what needs replacing.

Can’t wait to show you these things in action!

 

[Mr.Heatsink]

The toggle switches select between 1X and 10X for the scope output. I built a simple voltage divider- with the switch used to bypass it for 1X mode. i used a 3.6k 1/2W upper resistor and a 500 ohm, 15-turn trimmer for the lower resistor so I could dial it in for accuracy - you can kind of see those on the outsides of the BNC brackets. The heat sink came from an old Sony STR-DE835 receiver. I'll add a fan in the future if needed, but so far I haven't needed one.

Rich

View attachment 2992961

Nice resourcefulness Richard.

 

[Bob@FM]

Test gear - the heart of all electronics test and repair - love it.
A few yeas ago, I was part of a local one day effort to recycle old stuff, and keep it out of the landfill.
I worked in the test gear biz my whole career, so they quickly made me the electronics repair guy. The one thing I brought, other than de-oxit and a multimeter, was a little AC line meter called kill-a-watt. You can quickly measure AC power load and current to diagnose dead power supplies, etc. But also compare the nameplate (usually near the line cord) watts/current to what it's actually pulling. Also great for measuring things around the house for energy consumption. The basic one for $35 is fine, carried at many stores.
Bob

Kill A Watt Meter - Electricity Usage Monitor | P3

 

[Bob@FM]

One more comment on old test gear - I personally recommend avoiding old test gear with tubes. Unless you like restoring it for historical reasons.
Newer stuff is so plentiful and cheap, and usually way more accurate and reliable.

 

[pac1085]

Test gear - the heart of all electronics test and repair - love it.
A few yeas ago, I was part of a local one day effort to recycle old stuff, and keep it out of the landfill.
I worked in the test gear biz my whole career, so they quickly made me the electronics repair guy. The one thing I brought, other than de-oxit and a multimeter, was a little AC line meter called kill-a-watt. You can quickly measure AC power load and current to diagnose dead power supplies, etc. But also compare the nameplate (usually near the line cord) watts/current to what it's actually pulling. Also great for measuring things around the house for energy consumption. The basic one for $35 is fine, carried at many stores.
Bob

Kill A Watt Meter - Electricity Usage Monitor | P3

View attachment 3014638

They sell this exact model (P4400) at Harbor Freight for 27.99 if anyone is looking. I finally picked one up the other day.

Here's a question for the group. All of the outlets in my house, including the ones on my bench's hutch are installed the 'proper' way, with the ground prong facing up. Anyone know of an adapter I can plug in to flip the outlet (without losing the ground connection)? I don't think they make them. I really don't want to flip my outlet